Leap to Relatively Unknown Chapter 11: File2: Subfile5, a detective conan/case closed fanfic

A/N: I'm back! Sorry I've been dead for so long. I was struggling with school stuff, feeling lazy and away from computer for extended amounts of time. Yeah... I'll try to keep writing this and DoN despite everything though.

About this chapter... You can't even imagine how hard it was to write this. I've had this chapter in my mind about since I began even considering writing this fic. But putting my thoughts in written form in a way that it's believable to actually have happened in DC verse... *sigh*

So, some cameos and lot of feels later on. Cliffhanger naturally in the end and... yeah. Better not spoil anything.

The second file: Changes in life
Sub-file five: Fated competition

Three years later

Shugo was excited. But he was nervous too. For three years he'd practiced Yabusame under Kai's tutelage and was quite good for his age. And on this year he would be able to show off his skills for the first time. That was why Shugo was excited. But this year was also when Kai Kuroto would die. That was why Shugo was nervous. After all being only eleven years old in the eyes of the rest of the villagers meant that there wasn't much expectations for him yet. He was just a little boy trying to be a grown-up. Or something like that.

The boy tied the belt of his kimono-like top and reached for the extra sleeve that ensured his clothing wouldn't be on the way of the bow string when it snapped back into position once the arrow was released. Shugo tied it around his left arm. During the years he'd made an interesting observation of his skills… Shooting the right-handed way – the way that Kai and Akira used, and was mandatory in a sense when performing Yabusame – Shugo was much more accurate with his shots, even on horse. But when he changed hands and shot the left-handed way, he could pull the string further and thus make the arrow fly further.

He probably should strengthen his right arm and work his aim with it.

"Shugo. We need to get going." Yamato was knocking on the door.

"Coming!" The (pre-)teen called back. Shugo hesitated a moment before opening his desk drawer and picking the Magician's Knife from there. He had had the knife with him all these years at every single village festival. It would be weird if he left it home this year.

One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Seven. Eight. Nine. Ten. Kai hit all the targets.

One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Seven. Eight. Nine. Ten. Akira hit all the targets.

That was the first round. Other contestants hit as well or less. Naturally. Kai and Akira were the best of both of the villages.

"Alright, Shugo. It's your turn now." Yamato told the boy. Shugo looked up from his bow that he'd just put the string on.

"Hai…"

"You are borrowing Akira-san's horse for this, right?"

"Yeah. The stirrups are easily adjusted and I know Ginboshi well enough. And she is experienced on the track."

"Nervous?"

"No."

"Not even a little."

"No."

"Seriously?"

"No… Yes! Seriously. Stop bothering me." Shugo pushed past the blonde man, towards Kai and Akira with their horses. Yamato just laughed.

"Ready?" Kai asked.

"Ready." Shugo nodded and hoisted himself on Ginboshi. Good luck wishes were exchanged and with a slight grin the boy rode to the beginning of the track. He only needed to hit five targets unlike the contestants. Villagers were whispering. Some with excitement, some with skepticism. Not many knew just how good Shugo was. But about everyone did know that Kai Kuroto himself had taught him and that Tatsuo Akira also sometimes watched his practices when the police officer was too busy. So the expectations were high.

Shugo fingered the five arrows he had before drawing the first one from the quiver.

"Alright Ginboshi, you know the drill." He muttered and patted the horse's neck. Then with his heels, the boy encouraged the horse onwards. To the track on constant speed like she had done hundreds or maybe even thousands of times. And the pre-teen focused on the targets. Breathe in, breath out. Draw, aim, release.

One. It hit the middle and cut the target in half.

Two. Not on the middle but halved board anyways.

Three. The same than two.

Four. Shugo's fingers slipped when reaching for the arrow so he released the arrow too late. It missed.

Five. Bullseye.

It was over as soon as it started. People were clapping. Shugo grinned when he spotted familiar faces in the crowd for the first time after mounting Ginboshi. Yamato was there with Kai and Akira. And apparently Morofushi Taka'aki had come to this village fair. Shugo had met the man a couple of times, usually with Yui and Kansuke, and taken to call him Koumei too.

But he digressed.

Shugo rode the horse out of the track and once Akira got the reins, he slid down from the saddle straight on Yamato's arms.

"There you go! Our genius archer. You were brilliant." The platinum blonde grinned, hugging the boy tightly.

"Yamato-nii, you're embarrassing me!" Shugo complained but was grinning too.

"How did it feel?" Kai asked. "Shooting in front of all of them?"

"I…" Shugo paused. "I didn't even notice the audience. I only focused on doing my best and it was great! Of course I messed up with the fourth arrow but I made up for it with the last one."

"You did very well. Maybe in a few years you can participate as an official contestant." Akira suggested. The statement made Shugo feel something cold settle in his stomach but he just smiled and nodded.

"Maybe. You definitely did better than some of those contestants." Yamato stated, finally letting the boy on the ground where Shugo turned to address Morofushi.

"You came to watch the fair too, Koumei-san? Are Kan-chan and Yui-san here too?" There was a quirk of a wider smile at the way Shugo still addressed Yamato Kansuke but otherwise Morofushi didn't show any further emotion than satisfactory congratulation. Bloody bastard was always so calm and composed. Like Shugo on most days.

"They are unfortunately at work. My shift ended earlier so I decided to come and see the festives of this year. Congratulations, Shugo-kun. You performed admirably."

"Thank you, Koumei-san."

The talks progressed from there and the topics ranged from the activities of the fair and going-ons of village council to Yamato's work(photographer journalist and occasional odd job) and Shugo's future plans. The quintet was only interrupted when Akira's wife, Ayaka, came to tell the two older archers that the next round was about to begin soon.

And so it did. More participants were weeded out on the rounds until only Kai and Akira were left. They shot the five targets over and over again, not missing a single shot.

Until one was missed. Kai missed the last target. But it didn't matter. It was almost dark and hard to see the targets. Not that would deter Kai. Shugo and Akira both knew it. So Akira inspected the ground around the last target while Torada Naonobu ranted at Kai. The police officer just listened with a smile.

Because the day had ended with a draw (Akira had also missed a shot), it was decided to continue the competition on the next day. Kai was about to leave when Shugo walked up to him.

"Hello, Shugo-kun. Are you coming with me?" The man had learnt to read the boy and his intentions well. Though Shugo let him purposefully see them. Everyone else had just surface scrapes due his acting. But with Kai he was honest. Just like he had been with Yusaku, Toichi and Hidemi. And of course with Yamato. And how Yamato had been honest with Rei, Akemi and Ethan.

"Yup. I need to train more too." The boy grinned, and with a fond smile and amused shake of head Kai gestured him to follow. Shugo waved a goodbye to Yamato and went with his mentor to get Yukari (Kai's horse).

Shugo mounted on Yukari and settled in front of Kai. It was late. Really late and his arm were tired. But now was time to head back to village.

"Akira-san told me one of the targets was moved." Shugo stated when they were going along the path right above a cliff. He glanced nervously down there but averted his eyes then. It wouldn't really be that place, right? And no he hadn't forgotten or anything, he just…

"I thought so too." Kai hummed. "I've heard of the betting. Not directly of course but…"

"Your success is ruining their game."

"Yes. I suppose you could put it like that."

"I hope when I show my skills next time, there won't be any moved targets. It's unfair."

"So it is. Tatsuo Tamefumi-san and Torada Tatsue-san will probably see to the situation."

Shugo snorted.

"You disagree?"

"Tatsuo Tamefumi-san thinks too much of the reputation of the village. And… Torada Tatsue-san is one of the ring leaders of the betting. They won't do anything." The boy said quietly in the case someone was there within earshot.

"And how do you–…?" But the question was never finished.

Whiiist… Bang!

That was the firework from the quartet who'd die in six years. Yukari neighed in alarm and rose to her hindlegs. Kai tightened his grip on the reins and told Shugo to hold on as he tried to calm the horse down. She was used to fireworks but not on that close of a proximity. Shugo twisted to look over the man's shoulder while gripping onto his kimono. He saw a shotgun between the trees.

Bang!

That was the gunshot from Torada Tatsue. The bullet hit Yukari's leg right when Kai almost got her calm down. She slipped down from the cliff with Kai and Shugo with her. The boy was only vaguely aware of Kai holding him tight when they fell before everything went black.

Shugo should've been back. It was way too late for him to be outside. Despite Yamato knowing that Shugo was with Kai and thus should be safe, the man couldn't help but worry. Not to mention the feeling he'd had for a while of the village. It was a stifling tension waiting to be released. The ex-assassin had had the feeling before. Once was before his parents were murdered and other time was right before Jin had gone and murdered Organization agents in his attempt to get Cordita. Of course there had been other situations but those two were most prominent. Along with his own successful assassination of the woman. But then he'd been the catalyst.

But he digressed. Shugo had left something unmentioned. Something crucial. There was a reason the boy had a curfew despite his mental age and capability of taking care of himself. The kid was physically still only eleven years old and the crime rates in Japan had only been in raise.

The blonde (he had tried dying his hair black but by then the villagers had gotten used to his blond hair and didn't recognize him anymore) took his jacket and went out to see if anyone had seen either Shugo or Kai. Or even the horse, Yukari.

No one had. The searching began.

Shugo opened his eyes. He was hurt. All over. His back hurt, his head hurt, his arm hurt. A lot. His throat was dry when he swallowed. He wanted to cry. It hurt so much.

The boy blinked. He tried to remember what had happened and where he was. There was leaves around him and on him. He was lying against something. Someone.

"Kai-san…?" Shugo croaked. That's right. They'd fallen. And Kai-san… Kai-san had probably protected him. Shugo lifted carefully his arm that didn't hurt that much and wiped leaves out of his face. His had was shaking. He swallowed again and wet his lips. Good, at least his jaw wasn't broken. And it didn't feel like his neck was either. Yamato had taught him to assess damage even though it was very subjective process and couldn't be fully trusted. Shugo looked at his hurt arm. It was twisted oddly. Broken. And his white sleeve had been bled through. Open fracture then or some really bad scrapes.

"Kai-san?" He asked again and turned his head towards the man. Kai was still breathing. Good. Probably. Shugo had been unconscious for a while and he knew that a man couldn't survive without any water longer than three days. Without food could go on longer if only water was available. He wasn't sure how those figures applied then to unconscious people. But probably it had been day or two max since the fall. People were surely looking for them.

Shugo heaved himself to sit, with his right arm limp in his lap. He could feel his legs aching but they weren't broken. And because he could feel his legs, he knew that his spine wasn't injured. But now Shugo could also discover why his back did hurt though. He had been lying on the Magician's Knife. Thankfully not fallen on it though. Probably.

Kai's kimono and dougi were soaked in blood that had rusty color now. With those wounds he wouldn't be going anywhere. Especially considering that he probably had hit his head as well. Starvation, dehydration or intracranial bleeding? What would take Kai's life first? Shugo sighed and looked to his right. Poor Yukari was lying right there. Already dead. And her head falling on his arm was probably what had broken it. Maybe. He was tired. He wanted to sleep and stop thinking. But sleeping was dangerous. Yamato kept saying so. And Shugo might've had a concussion.

"Shugo-kun…" Kai's voice pulled the boy out of his thoughts.

"Kai-san, are you…" But Shugo didn't know what to say or ask. This was a dying, doomed man in front of him. The man had hours, days left.

"Thank god that you are alright." The police officer smiled in relief and closed his eyes briefly before opening them again. "You need to get to the village." More leaves fell on them from the trees.

"But you…"

"Shugo-kun. Your safety is more important. You have your whole life in front of you. I… Well, I'm passing my prime." The man chuckled weakly.

"No! I can help. I'll go and alert others and…-" Shugo swayed. He felt so weak.

"Get to village Shugo-kun. Get yourself help. I wait here for rescuers."

"No…" The boy sighed. "You will die here Kai-san… They won't find you in time. Formless like the dark…" Shugo pressed his hand against his forehead. There had to be something he could do. But what could he? The Plot demanded Kai's death just like it had demanded Toichi's.

"Who was it, Shugo? Who shot Yukari?" Why did he think that Shugo knew? Why did he drop '-kun'? Why should Shugo answer? "I know you saw it. I can see it on your face."

Kai knew he was dying.

"T-Torada Tatsue." Shugo stated while an idea formed in his mind. No dehydration. No starvation. No intracranial bleeding… The boy reached for the Magician's Knife at his back. To think it would be used for something like this.

"I see. You never were a normal kid, were you?"

"My name is what I chose for myself. I knew since before I met you that you'd die below this cliff to where sun doesn't shine." Shugo spoke emotionlessly. "I know when people die. And I know six years from now on the four people who lit the firework will also die by Torada Tatsue."

Kai noticed the knife. His face was the picture of calm and peace though his breathing was labored because of the pain. "And what are you going to do then?"

"I can make it quick."

Yamato looked up when he heard rustling. He had come back to the place where the Yabusame competition had been held two days ago. There was only few people with him. They hadn't heard anything. They didn't have ears trained to hear the slightest of sounds.

The rustling came closer.

"Yamato-nii…" It was just the barest of whisper but it was enough for the man finally locate what he was looking for. Shugo was heavily leaning against a tree trunk, his clothes dirty, bloody and ripped. His right arm dangled limply on his side and the boy looked like he was about to collapse any second now.

"Shugo!" The blonde's cry of alarm was enough to alert the other people nearby when Yamato was already running to the boy. As soon as he was close enough, Shugo promptly collapsed on his arms.

"Somebody get a car! We need to get him to hospital!" Yamato shouted. The next moments were a flurry of movement when people were running to alert other people that the boy had been found and which direction he had come from. Yamato meanwhile hurried to the car that coincidentally Shugo's class's teacher drove.

And it was on those moments when the boy leant closer to the man's ear and whispered three words before fainting.

"Hide the knife."

Yamato looked into the folds of Shugo's loosened kimono and saw the Magician's Knife hidden in there, neatly in its sheath. He didn't know what had happened or why he needed to hide the knife but he swiftly removed it and placed it into the inside pocket of his own jacket. He trusted Shugo and couldn't phantom what possibly could have happened. But right now he needed to make sure the boy would stay alive to answer to his questions. And yes, he did care of the kid.

Dammit, he was going to be as grey as Jin by this rate.

A/N: Ta-daa... I hope you liked it. Or hated. Depends what of the chapter you are focusing on. Shugo's inner struggle(quite short though) was something needed to do to push towards his future choices. Something to have a deep impact on him. Like Ran with New York case and Shinichi/Conan with Moonlight Sonata case. Heiji probably has Naniwa serial murder while Kaito... Well, Kaito was emotionally messed up since the beginning but Black Knight was especially hard on him. Which is ironic considering how recent of a case it is in Magic Kaito. Though MK was meant to be a gag manga... Yeah, I'm rambling.