Conan: Science Cartoonist Kudo Yuji

"Hey, uncle, that old man won't swing his knife at me when he sees me, right?"

At the entrance of the police department, Kuroba Kaito, who was sitting in the car, and Hakuba Shirako beside him were lying on the glass. Kuroba Kaito, who had never had a face-to-face encounter with Minami Masamune, was extremely nervous about this dangerous old man as his father called him.

"You have misunderstood sir. An old man who can safely entrust his granddaughter to Kudo-kun will not draw his sword against a young boy for no reason."

[You don’t deny the possibility of drawing your sword…]

Kuroba Kaito swallowed the saliva in his mouth and pointed at the white horse beside him: "Then forget it, why did the white horse come here too?"

The magician's questioning also allowed Dequan to observe Bai Ma Bai Zi directly. He looked up and down at the so-called daughter of the Bai Ma family with a curious look.

"In fact, I took a sample from Miss Bai Ma today for DNA testing, and the results showed that you are indeed the daughter of Director Bai Ma."

As for when the sample was obtained, of course it was after Hakuba Baizi went to school, I sneaked into Hakuba's room in the mansion and collected it on her bed.

Dequan was puzzled by the fact that his sister slept in the bed of her blood-related brother. After all, Bai Ma was not so poor that he could not even prepare a separate room for Bai Ma Bai Zi.

The only possible explanation is that when he took the report to report to Minami Masamune, the two of them guessed the truth.

Kuroba Kaito and Hakuba Shirako, who heard him talking in the car, immediately understood how this uncle got the sample and stared at him.

"Can I sue you for trespassing?" Bai Ma Bai Zi folded his hands. No matter whether you are a girl or a boy, it is unpleasant to have your private space invaded by strangers.

"I don't think so."

Dequan held the steering wheel with both hands: "Breaking into someone else's home at random is called trespassing, but when I break into someone else's home it's not called trespassing."

Urging the two to get out of the car, Tokuizumi started the car immediately after the two high school students closed the door and disappeared in front of the police department, leaving behind only Kuroba Kaito and Hakuba Shirako who kept coughing because of the car exhaust.

With a feeling of uneasiness, Kuroba Kaito consciously walked ahead.

"Yo, you're here."

The door of the top-level officer's office is always open, because the police officers of the Police Bureau have all moved to the current police building. Minami Masamune is the only one left at the top of the National Police Agency, so it doesn't matter whether the door is open or closed.

Kneeling on the tatami and drawing the last stroke with a brush, Minami Masamune looked at his new work with satisfaction. He hesitated whether it was too trendy, so he stood up with the help of the ground and invited the two to come forward to appreciate it.

The canvas depicts a full moon with a Japanese-style building as the background. In the most eye-catching position, Kidd in white clothes is leaning against the wall with his cloak fluttering.

"It's a bit weird to pair a Japanese painting with Kidd."

Kuroba Kaito's words were immediately met with a glare from Minami Masamune. The magic boy was frightened and retreated, and Hakuba Baizi and him left the office. "What do you know, kid! The times are progressing. Simply painting things from the past will not lead Japanese painting into a new future."

Minami Masamune put on the wooden clogs beside the tatami, stomping on the floor with a clacking sound, looking at Kuroba Kaito with a look of disdain: "You are not as good as Yuuji, he is the Japanese painter who dares to let me draw anime."

Kuroba Kaito was speechless after hearing what Minami Masamune said. He wanted to retort that their relationship did not allow him to say such willful words, but then he realized that this would easily anger the old man, so he had to change the subject.

"Why did you ask the uncle to bring us here?"

Kuroba Kaito perked up, knowing that the old man had evil intentions towards him, the magician realized that now he would know what the dangerous thing was.

“Well, it’s actually very easy.”

Minami Masamune adjusted his beard and asked Kuroba Kaito to help him collect the paintings. The two of them knelt on the tatami together to roll up the scroll.

"Your father is worried that I will force you to die. Don't worry about that. I have other people to use for general matters. There is no need for you to go."

In other words, the matter entrusted to him by Minami Masamune must be extraordinary. Kuroba Kaito's hand holding the scroll paused.

"It's not a good thing for the Japanese police or the Self-Defense Forces to handle this matter. If we're not careful, it could easily turn into a war between countries, so we can only let civilians like you go."

"Hey, hey, hey, war or something like that, it can't be more dangerous than on Hachijo Island!"

Minami Masamune's silence made Kuroba Kaito understand his answer, and the boy immediately felt resistance. Although he was a fearless thief with a superb IQ and a perfect personality, except for the small shortcomings of not being able to skate and being afraid of fish, it did not mean that he would voluntarily join in such a dangerous thing.

Although he refused firmly, Kuroba Kaito did not move at all. His clenched fists were also telling Minami Masamune about himself.

"Back in the late Meiji era, Machida Seitoku gave Hijikata Toshizo a sword called the Five-pointed Star. Later, a gold miner named Axie Kubo Saburo became a Japanese arsenal owner in Hokkaido during the war. Axie was a fan of Hijikata, so he collected the Five-pointed Star swords and created a riddle to bury an important treasure."

"You want me to help you find treasure? What does that have to do with starting a war?"

Even if the treasure was the design drawings of new weapons from the military factory at the time, Minami Masamune wouldn't be so worried, right?
"Treasure."

Nan Zhengzong took a breath.

"It is said that it was an important treasure that Fu Jiang secretly bought from the United States when the war was about to end."

The old man looked at the night sky outside the window and his words became a little colder.

"It seems to be a treasure that can change the battlefield in Asia in an instant." (End of this chapter)