Chapter 9: Things Better Left Unsaid

"So, Megure-keibu found the radiation trail," Conan repeated, trying to refocus his mind to the case he's suppose to be working on. It was rather difficult though as the information from the previous conversations were still fresh in his mind and still weighing his mind down.

Hattori nodded, "Yeah, 'e says that they followed the trail ta the Koyasu Pharmacy in Minato. They are headin' over there right now."

"Then we'll head over there as well," Conan concluded.

Kid leaned on his counter looking at the two detectives with an odd smirk, "Following a radiation trail. That's new."

Conan responded, "Two people already died and we think that whoever is behind it has another target."

"This wouldn't happen to be related to that conversation you had me translate, would it?" Kid asked carelessly, but he had his eyes trained on Conan.

Conan looked at him oddly, "Yeah, it is, but why do you care?"

"I don't," Kid shrugged normally, "but, though it has nothing to do with me, I'd suggest leaving it alone."

Conan narrowed his eyes at Kid, "And why would we do that?"

"Because I don't know about you, but radioactive materials aren't exactly safe and as I said earlier you have a habit of looking into things without paying attention."

"Well sorry to disappoint you, but we're detectives and it's our job to look into things like this to stop it," Conan retorted, "Besides, if you care so much, why don't you just come with us?"

Kid pointed at himself, "Me come with you? Sorry, but seeing it has nothing to do with me, I think I'll sit this one out."

"Fine then, we'll just go look by ourselves," Conan concluded, then sighed dramatically, "If we run into trouble, well, I guess we'll just have to deal since we don't have backup."

Kid scoffed, "Shouldn't you be listening to what your older brother is telling you?"

"Probably, but like you said, I have a habit of sticking my nose where it shouldn't be, so I need my big brother to save the day," Conan looked up at Kid with perfect child's innocence.

Kid was not amused.

-00000-

As it turned out, Kid wound up driving the two detectives to the pharmacy. With the traffic, the trip took longer than expected and, much to Kid's displeasure, gave the two detectives more than enough time to poke and prod the thief about the scene with his 'girlfriend.' They knew they had been seeing things when Kid had been thrown into the wall without the girl touching him. Kid maintained that said girl was a witch hell-bent on making him hers, as he is the only one immune to her spell that ensnares men. Of course, neither detective believed him, as they both knew that 'real' magic doesn't exist. Kid just gave up, stating, "Fine, believe what you want." Both detectives were determined to find the truth about the girl and Kid's relationship later.

When they got to the pharmacy, the police were already there. They found Megure with the head doctor of the pharmacy, Tachibana Masato.

"Ah, Hattori-kun, Conan-kun, and…," Megure trailed off, noticing Kid and confused by the resemblance to Shinichi.

Kid spared the man and held out his hand politely, "Edogawa Toshiro, I'm Conan's older brother."

Megure nodded, "Ah, yes, Mouri-san mentioned you. What brings you here?"

"Just keeping an eye on the kid," Toshiro said, politely, "I hear that he tends to wander off when he's on a crime scene." He ignored the glare that Conan was giving him and the laughter Hattori was trying to hold in.

Megure chuckled, "Yeah, he tends to do that, but no harm is done. Just make sure he doesn't get himself into trouble now."

"Yes sir," Toshiro said, smiling kindly.

Hattori asked, "So, Megure-keibu, what did ya find?"

Megure sighed, "Unfortunately, nothing yet. We were able to trace Ueda-san's medication to here, and Tachibana-sensei here is giving us full cooperation, but we still haven't found anything yet."

Hattori nodded and then turned to Tachibana, "Tachibana-sensei, ya don't mind if we look aroun' fer a bit? See if we can find anything ya guys missed."

Tachibana shook his head, "Not at all. Megure-keibu spoke highly of you and Hakuba-kun. Please, if there is anything you need, just let me know."

"The Brit's 'ere?" Hattori asked, not sounding all that pleased.

Megure nodded, "Yeah, he contacted me not long after Ueda-san's death and asked to be a part of the case. I wasn't really sure about it, but his father is the Superintendent General and he signed off on it."

Hattori sighed and muttered, "Fine. Let's go find him." The trio left Megure and Tachibana and headed over to where the British sleuth was.

They found Hakuba in a conference room that the police were using, looking over files. Hearing the door open, Hakuba looked up and said, "I was wondering when you were going to show up."

Hattori glared, but before he could retort, Conan asked, "What have you found, Hakuba-niichan?"

Hakuba blinked and looked from Conan to Toshiro and remarked, "I thought Conan-kun was going to stay out of this."

Toshiro sighed, "He was, but he's stubborn, so this is the next best option. Besides, I'd rather have someone watching him than letting him run off on his own." Conan rolled his eyes, but Hakuba nodded his head in understanding and looked back down at the files.

"Well, Megure-keibu and his men were able to link back Ueda-san's medication that was contaminated back here. Yamada-san was the pharmacist that sold Ueda-san his medication, but she says that she had no idea of the contamination, as after all, it was an over the counter medication. Nothing on the security cameras show any tampering with the merchandise."

Hattori shook his head and said sarcastically, "So, it was sheer luck that Ueda-han just happened ta pick up that particular box that was contaminated. Yeah, I'm not buyin' that."

Hakuba nodded, "I agree. There is something missing. Megure-keibu is already working on getting records from the drug manufacturers, but…"

"You think that someone is covering their tracks even to the drug manufacturers," Conan finished.

Hakuba again nodded, "Yes, I think that whoever did this made sure to cover all their tracks, which unfortunately, they seem to be very good at."

"Have you heard back from that tape Conan got?" Toshiro asked.

Hakuba shook his head, "Unfortunately, no, I have not. They're still working on it. When I told them that we got a partial translation, they were amazed that you were even able to understand that much, Edogawa-san. It seems that the languages are following a language system of its own, so it's been difficult to properly translate it in its true context."

"I noticed that, but I assumed it was due to the switching between so many different languages. Explains a lot though," Toshiro remarked thoughtfully. In the corner of his eye, he saw Conan giving him a strange look, but did nothing.

Hattori mused, looking at Toshiro, "Ya said that these guys were talkin' about the National Diet and the Cabinet, right?"

"Yes."

Hattori continued, "Don't ya think that we should warn 'em that somethin' might happen, then? These guys could be plann' ta attack them."

"I already thought of that," Hakuba explained, "but because we only had a vague translation from an unauthorized source, they can't take action nor do they even know what to warn them from."

Hattori shook his head, "I still think that they should take some measures ta protect themselves, just in case."

"They said that they would tell them to be more careful, but that's about as far as they can go without solid evidence as they haven't found a direct threat in the tape yet."

Hattori countered, "But that fact that they were mentioned on the tape should mean somethin', right?"

"But the tape didn't directly say the National Diet or the Cabinet," Hakuba stated.

Hattori turned sharply to Toshiro, "Ya said that they were talkin' about them!"

Toshiro explained calmly, "What I was able to make out was 'the lawmakers and rulers of Japan.' The language switched from Norwegian to Arabic in the middle of it. I pieced it together the best I could, but it was obvious that that's what they were talking about."

"That makes sense and clever on their part," Hakuba agreed, "Even if they were to be overheard, like we were able to, a round about sentence that switches languages in between and the message follows a grammar of its own making is going to be really hard to translate clearly."

Conan absorbed the information and was well into his own thoughts. While he was a little angry that Kid hadn't mentioned that earlier, he knew it wouldn't have made much of a difference. Actually, they were lucky that Kid was able to piece that information together. The fact that the National Diet and the Cabinet were even mentioned in the tape meant that they were somewhat connected to what this group was doing or going to do. It was unsettling, and Conan wouldn't be surprised that in the long run, the government was these guys' target. But like Hakuba said, without a threat or even a definite statement about them, there can't be much done in terms of protection.

But that's what was really troubling. Whoever was behind this had a lot of resources and knew how to hide their tracks. It was like they were chasing a shadow, like the Black Organization. Conan really didn't like that thought. Though he was positive that this had nothing to do with them, it didn't mean that these guys weren't just as dangerous. He could hear Kid's and Himura's advice about watching himself and not biting off more than he could chew. He wouldn't admit out loud, but he knew that he was going to have to follow their advice and play this very carefully. Who knows what could happen if this goes bad really quick.

Conan was brought back to reality when he heard a woman's voice in the room.

"Would you boys like anything?" a cheerful young woman asked, "You've been working in here for sometime now, and I thought that you would like some refreshments."

Toshiro waved his hand, "Nothing for me, but thank you," he motioned to the others, "You want anything?"

"Some water for us would be fine," Hakuba said, standing up, "I hope you don't mind getting it myself though."

The woman looked confused, but smiled and motioned him to follow her.

Once they were gone, Hattori muttered, "What was that about?"

"My guess is that he's being cautious considering the radiation poisoning was linked to here. He's paranoid like that," Kid remarked causally.

Conan countered, "Not a bad idea, though. Who knows where any of that stuff is now. It doesn't hurt to be careful."

Hakuba came back with three glasses of water, passing them to all them. Just as he sat back down to continue looking over the files, a vibrating noise rumbled through the room. Toshiro dug into his pocket, gave the number on the caller I.D. a strange look, but answered his phone.

"Hello?" The three detectives couldn't here the voice, and Toshiro was just shaking and nodding his head with an occasional interjection as he listened to the person on the other end.

"Yeah… I know… but… okay, okay, I get it. I'll be there in a little bit," and he hung up.

He stood up, "Sorry, but I need to go. I have a friend who's having some issues with his shop and since he's out of town at the moment, I need to go help him out. I'm sorry, but can you watch Conan for me? I know even if I take him with me, he's just going to find his way back here somehow."

Conan glared at him, even though he knew it was merely an excuse to avoid suspicion, but Hakuba assured Toshiro that he would watch the boy.

Not long after Toshiro left, Hakuba stood up, "I think we should look around ourselves, no?"

Conan and Hattori agreed, leaving the conference room with Hakuba.

Unfortunately, hours later, the three detectives came back to the room with nothing to show for their efforts.

"Just who are these guys?" Hattori almost ranting, "They have enough guts ta use radioactive poisonin', but they covered it up completely."

Hakuba sighed, "It just shows that they are far more dangerous than we anticipated; that they will go to great lengths to meet their goals."

Conan was only vaguely listening to the others' comments. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. It was as if the trail just vanished. But he knew that there was always a trail. Perhaps, they were just looking at this the wrong way. He looked at the files on the table. There had to be something there. They were looking at this at the wrong angle.

He mentioned this to the other two. Nodding their heads, the two detectives gathered the files and followed Conan out the door.

-00000-

The next day had Hattori, Hakuba, and Conan at the detective agency. Ran and her father were both out of the office; leaving the detectives going over the files they collected from the pharmacy with little success. They went over everything, yet there was still nothing that pointed to any direction. There were order forms, reports, and various other files that gave no indication to the case and radiation.

"There has to be somethin' 'ere!" Hattori whined in frustration. The other two said nothing, but felt the same frustration as the Osakan. It was getting ridiculous.

Conan ignored his friends ranting, going over the reports from the pharmacy. As he flipped through them for the third time, there was a knock on the door. Hakuba got up to answer, only to find Inspector Megure at the door.

"Megure-keibu," Hakuba greeted, slightly startled, "Have you found something on the case?"

Megure looked very uncomfortable, as if he was about to do something he really didn't want to do. Taking a deep breath, he stated, "Tachibana-san is dead."

All three detectives turned to the Inspector, "What?"

"Tachibana-san is dead," Megure restated, "Was shot last night."

"Is there any leads to who did it?" Hakuba asked.

Megure nodded, "We found the murder weapon, but it had three separate finger prints on it."

At this the detectives were confused and were about to ask when he continued, "The finger prints belong to Hattori Heiji, Hakuba Saguru, and Kudo Shinichi." He looked at the Brit and Osakan with a strange cross between sternness and disbelief. The detectives themselves stood still in shock. How? Each one of their minds was running a thousand miles per hour trying to come up with any possible response, let alone an explanation.

Finally, Hattori spoke the silence, "Ya can't seriously believe we're the ones who killed Tachibana-han."

Megure sighed, "I don't want to believe it, but your prints are on that gun. So, I have to ask, where were you last night around seven o'clock?"

Hattori immediately responded, " I was 'ere with Conan, Mouri-han, and Ran-chan. Ya can ask 'em."

Megure nodded and turned to Hakuba, who stated, "I was having dinner with my father."

Megure sighed once again, "That just leaves Shinichi-kun, who I know for a fact is with his parents in America right now." No one saw the look that past between Conan and Hattori at that. "We'll have to check your alibis, but for the time being, we'll take this as you kids being framed," he paused, "That being said, I don't want you anywhere near this case anymore."

"But, Megure-keibu-" Hattori tried to protest, but the Inspector cut him off.

"I don't know why, but whoever is behind this was clearing covering up their trail by using you kids. And I don't want to find out what they would do if you're still poking around, and I sure as hell don't want to explain what happened to your fathers if one of you got hurt," he stared pointedly at Hakuba and Hattori. "I know you want to help, but I'm not risking it. If I see either of you around anything about this case, I'll have someone escort you home and keep you under house-arrest," he threatened, "I know Shinichi-kun is probably already on his way here if he knows about this. And if he shows up, I'm putting him on watch too."

Hattori wanted to argue, but a solemn Hakuba replied, "We understand, Megure-keibu. We will stay out of the case for now." When Hattori glared at him, Conan nudged him, shaking his head.

Megure nodded, "For the time being, I'll be having officers checking up on you. So stay out of this until it's cleared up."

With the detectives agreeing, admittedly begrudgingly, the Inspector left.

As soon as the Inspector was driving away, Hattori looked to Conan, angrily barking, "How the hell did they get our prints?"

"Hattori, calm down!" Conan barked back.

"Calm down! Kudo, they framed us! Put our prints on a gun! How can ya be calm about that!"

"Hattori," Conan warned, "We have an alibi, so be more worried about why they framed us."

Hattori gave him a look, "Seriously, Kudo. In case ya forgot, despite havin' an alibi, we're banned from the case. Shouldn't ya be worryin' about that?"

"I realize that Hattori, but we need to work together in order figure this out."

Hattori was about to retort, but the very confused Brit asked aloud, "Kudo?"

The two detectives stopped arguing, looking at Hakuba stiffly. They forgot about him.

Hattori laughed nervously, "It's… it's nothin'."

Hakuba narrowed his eyes, "No, you called him 'Kudo' several times before for it to be 'nothing'."

"I call 'im that because… because he reminds me of Kudo," Hattori tried to explained.

"Then why was Kudo Shinichi's finger prints found along with ours when he hasn't been working on this case," Hakuba asked, eyes shifting between the two, not quite sure to believe the idea that was starting to form in his mind.

Hattori tried to come up with an excuse, looking to Conan for help, but the shrunken detective looked straight at the British detective, debating. He did not want someone else dragged into this, but he really didn't need Hakuba going around looking into something he shouldn't, which he knew he would; he was a detective after all.

Sighing, he looked straight into Hakuba's eyes, "How much are you willing to believe?"

Hakuba regarded the change in the 'supposed' child. It was a change he vaguely registered the few times they worked together. He always knew Conan was a bright child, but the air around him at times was far older and experienced for a mere child to have. But now, the pieces were being put together in an unbelievable way, but, the more he looked at it, the more it made sense.

"How?" he asked quietly.

Hattori looked at Conan questioningly. After all, Conan tried his best to keep people from finding out his identity. However, it looked like Conan was willing to let the Brit in on the secret.

Conan sighed and gave a brief history on how he was in his sorry state. He explained the day at Tropical Land, finding out about the Black Organization, Ai, and how he's been using Kogoro as a means to solve cases. Hakuba listened patiently, eyes widening at the more unbelievable aspects, but never interrupting. When Conan finished, the Brit was silent for a moment, before asking, "So, should I call you Conan or Kudo-san?"

Conan smirked, "Conan, I don't need another Hattori."

"Oi!" Hattori protested, but the Brit smirked, "I can see that. I'm surprised that no one has found out besides me with him around." Hattori just glared at him.

However, Hakuba seemed to remember something and looked at Conan questioningly, "Wait a minute, Conan. If Edogawa Conan is fictional, who is Edogawa Toshiro?"

Conan opened his mouth, but closed it. He should have saw this coming. But he really didn't want to explain to the other detective that his older brother was none other than the thief that drove both of them crazy. In the corner of his eye, he could see Hattori trying his hardest not to laugh.

Conan was about to explain, but a sly, dark voice beat him to it.

"Well, it would stand to reason someone with great disguising skills would be playing the part of our dear Conan-kun's older brother."

All three detectives turned to see a smirking Himura in the doorway.

"What are you doing here?" Conan glared at the man.

Himura gave a lopsided grin, walking into the room as if he was just invited in, "Now, now. That's no way to greet someone. Didn't brother dearest teach you manners?"

"As you know, good manners isn't his strong suit," Conan bit out harshly, "but he did tell me about you."

The unnerving man cocked his head, "Did he now? Well, I guess he's just being a good older brother, isn't he? Quite dedicated for someone who was blackmailed into playing big brother for you."

Conan clenched his jaw. This guy was dangerous, loved playing mind games according to Kid. He would have to tread carefully.

"He may be a no-good and annoying thief, but even I'll admit he's not a bad guy," Conan said, leaving the unspoken unlike you in the air. He ignored the look Hakuba shot him. He knew he just gave away the identity of his "brother," but right now was not the time to argue with the Brit about it.

Himura's smile widened as he started walking around the detectives, "How sweet. Such brotherly bonding between a thief and a detective. It warms my heart. I can only imagine how he'll act once he hears about his little brother's finger prints on a murder weapon."

The detectives visibly flinched, shocked. He knew? But how- Conan's eyes widened, "It was you! You're the one who frame us."

Stopping, Himura had the gall to look offended, "Now that's not a very nice accusation. I can honestly say I didn't frame you detectives," he paused, then smiled far too innocently, "but… I may have told someone that the teenage detectives snooping around were far more dangerous to them than the police. What they did afterwards is completely of my hands." For good measure, he gestured his hands as if he had nothing to do with it. All of the detectives glared at him, not buying it for one moment.

Seeing the look in their eyes, Himura raised his finger and chided them, "Don't believe me all you want, but I am a man of my word. Your Brother Dearest can vouch for that."

"You may not have directly framed us, but you wanted something like this to happen," Conan stated, remembering Kid's words about this man's manipulative nature, "You wanted us off the case. Why?"

"Come now. Surely, you of all people can understand wanting to help out a friend in need," Himura replied in a mocking tone, but when the disbelieving glares were aimed at him, he shrugged, "I was merely giving a tip to someone I owe."

Conan was starting to understand why Kid tried to avoid this guy. It was clear as day that this guy was up to something, but trying to understand what he was up to was as clear as mud. Just what is he aiming for? Kid had mentioned he liked pitting people against one another for his personal entertainment, especially criminal organizations. Was that what he was trying to do? But why get us off the case? Kicking them off the case seemed counterproductive if he wanted the detectives to go after the organization. But surely he'd know that they wouldn't give up so easily. But what if he was expecting that? Conan remembered him saying something the first time they met, "Add a little more difficultly just makes it more interesting, don't you think?" Was the bastard really just playing with them? Trying to make the case harder for them just so he can watch them struggle? The more he thought about it, the more and less it made sense, and the angrier he got.

Apparently he wasn't the only one thinking this, as Hattori yelled, "Don't screw around with us! Just what are ya tryin' ta do? Just usin' us ta mess with 'em? Usin' 'em ta mess with us?" Clearly, Hattori was just as confused and angry about it as Conan.

Hakuba remained silent, not fully understanding the connection (honestly still trying to understand Kid pretending to be Conan's brother), but he could understand that this man was trying to get under their skin and was, unfortunately, succeeding.

Himura, clearly knowing full well the effect he was having on them, just smiled, "I'm merely curious. I only want to know if you are willing to go to extreme measures for what you think is right. To catch the bad guy. After all, you three are the great teenage detectives."

Conan narrowed his eyes at that, "Like how you want to know how far Kid's willing to go for what he wants?"

"Oh? Did you figure that out yourself? Or did Brother Dearest tell you that?" Himura asked slyly. When Conan didn't respond, he smiled again, "So, he still hasn't told you why he runs around at night stealing precious gems? Have you ever wondered, why?" All of them were silent, torn between anger and curiosity. While they did want to know, they really doubted Kid would be too pleased learning that they found out via the guy he wasn't particularly fond of.

Conan stated, "I have, and I know he's looking for something, but for now I'll leave it at that." And he meant it. Kid made it damn clear that he did not want Conan involved with whatever he was doing. While there was no way in hell that Conan was going to follow that demand, he had other things to worry about at the moment, most presently, the person standing in front of him.

"Aren't you just a little bit curious?" Himura taunted, knowing full well that they all were, "Aren't you curious what he's after? Why he's after it?" he paused before almost whispering darkly, "Why for eight years he disappeared from the face of the planet, only to resurface latter with new and exciting vigor?"

The last taunting question struck all of them, particularly Conan and Hakuba. For the last year or so, both detectives had to suffer through the thief's crazy riddles, stunts, and heists. Conan couldn't say for Hakuba, but he had only vaguely considered that piece of information once or twice back when he first met the thief. Thinking on it now, it was a gaping question that he should have thought about, particularly due to how young Kid seemed. If his initial gauge of his age was correct, Kid should have been only a child when he first disappeared. But if that was the case, then that would mean that there were two different Kids: the one started in Paris almost nineteen years ago, and the current one. And if that were so, what happened to the first Kid? And why was the current Kid, well, Kid? Conan tried to ignore the dark smirk of Himura's as he rack his brain for an explanation. In the corner of his eye, he could tell Hakuba and Hattori would questioning the same thing. Clearly, there was enough similarity between the two Kids that there had to be some connection; then again, as masters of disguise that might be a moot point. But still, there was something. He remembered that there were rumors that Kid, what he now understood as the first one, had died. Maybe that was true, and it would explain the eight-year gap. But why did the current Kid take up the mantle then? Was the current Kid just a crazy fan of the original Kid? No, that was too simple and while Kid was crazy, he wasn't stupid, and showed that there was a deeper reasoning than that. So, master and apprentice? No, if he was going by what he thought the current Kid's age was, he'd be too young, and besides, if he was taking up the mantle for his master, wouldn't he done it right away? Wait a minute. Kid had once alluded that his mother was the Phantom Lady. The Phantom Lady's last appearance was roughly the same time as when Kaito Kid started in Paris. If that's so, then could- Conan froze. The current Kid was the son of the Phantom Lady and the original Kaito Kid? As bizarre as it sounded in his head, it made sense. No wonder he was such a pain to deal with: he was the son of two of the greatest phantom thieves in the world. But there was still the question as to why he started. Clearly, he was too young when his father supposedly retired or died, so why start now and why start at all?

Conan looked up at Himura, who was merely enjoying watching them trying to figure out one of the most elusive thieves on the planet with a smile on his face. Seeing the unspoken question in the shrunken detective's eyes, his eyes lite up dangerously, coolly saying in his sly voice, "Death of a loved one can be a powerful motivator, especially if you find out they were murdered."

All the detectives snapped their heads to Himura, shock in their eyes. However, Himura just continued as if he was commenting on the weather, "And most especially if you were there to watch them die at a tender young age. Isn't that tragic?"

"Not as tragic as someone who has to mess with people to find some sort of meaning in their lives."

Everyone turned to the doorway, Kid leaning against it, arms crossed, and carefree smile. His smile, however, was hollow, almost hateful, and by the looks of it, he wasn't trying to hide it.

Disclaimer – I don't own Detective Conan.