SailorStar9: With Chapter 33 uploaded, this is Chapter 34 of this fic. (Sighs) Guys and girls, is it too hard for you to leave a review, instead of just putting this fic up on your favorited list and story alerts?

Disclaimers: I own absolutely nothing, except this plot and the pairing.

Pairing: Developing!Furuya Rei/Mizuno Ami

Chapter 34: Kogoro in the Bar, Part Two


"You didn't find any traces of poison?" Megure echoed after Takagi reported. "Did you check the darts and ice pick?"

"According to the forensics team's report, there wasn't any traces, and the blood samples were clean, too." Takagi replied. "And you inspected those three there."

"None of them had anything resembling the crime weapon or a poison container." Megure added. "The weapon is nowhere to be found. Just like what happened in the pickpocket case."

"Regarding that case, Inspector." Takagi voiced. "Did you talk to Jodie-san about it?"

"No, she's not a member of the police and doesn't need to know." Megure replied.

"Detective Takagi, what are you referring to?" Conan wondered.

"Takagi." Megure cut in before Takagi could reply. "Check everything again."

"Yuzuki-san," Conan voiced, noticing something on the ceiling. "What's that hanging on the ceiling?"

"It's what's left from the silky decoration." Fukui replied. "It was installed on the ceiling. But it was cut when I tried to remove it. This place was reserved by customers for a party last week. Since the ceiling is a bit dark, I thought no one would notice it."

"I'm used to raising my head since I always talk to people taller than me." Conan explained.

"But since you always raise your head, you don't pay enough attention to what's under you, right?" Fukui asked. "See, under Mouri-san's shoes, there's gum stuck on it. It wasn't there when he bent next to the body before. I wonder how it got to him."

"Did you find anything?" Megure asked.

"Nothing yet." Mouri replied.

"Don't move." Conan cut in. "You stepped on something with your foot, oji-san."

"Take that off, Takagi." MEgure instructed.

"This isn't gum." Takagi peeled off the piece off Mouri's shoe. "It's clay. It seems it has writing on it. Reversed English words: E, P, D, H. There's also a bulge above them."

"It's closing time already." Fukui sighed. "I want to shower while singing."

"I figured it out, Inspector." Mouri declared. "The identity of the culprit who killed Usuda Chikafumi-san. It was the guy who had a fight with the victim. But he left the bar already, unfortunately. If we assumed he carried the poisoned needle with him, everything would make sense. That's what you might think, but it's not the truth."

Just then, Conan knocked him out with this tranquilizer dart.

"Mouri-san." Fukui shook Mouri awake. "You finally opened your eyes. Everyone left already." she looked at the now empty bar.

"What about the case?" Mouri yawned.

"What are you talking about?" Fukui chided. "Didn't you just finish your 'Sleeping Kogoro' show?"

"So, the culprit is the one who was annoyed by the victim?" Mouri was puzzled.

"Didn't you say that guy couldn't have had the poison in his possession?" Fukui rebuked. "I totally got your deductions; your explanation was clear and easy to understand. I was surprised by how the culprit hid his weapon. It was fun when you performed the experience with Conan. Using the camera film containers that Detective Takagi brought, we fill one third of the container with water and we use a sponge with a sugar cube that he brought, too. We put that inside the container, then close it, and if we flip the container over, then wait around two to five minutes..."


Flashback to Conan's deduction...

"Just like that." Conan demonstrated the air rocket trick. "I call this, the film's 'container rocket'. When the soapsuds react with water, carbon dioxide is produced. When the gas spreads within the container, the cap gets pushed and the container fires like a rocket."

"This scent is of yuzu." Fukui noted.

"Since the culprit used a yuzu-scent sponge." Conan confirmed.

"Then, the 'pop' sound I heard before..." Fukui blinked.

"The culprit is performing simulations before committing the crime." Conan explained. "To check if the weapon he put over the container would fly over and get glued to the ceiling of this bar."

"He put the weapon over the container?" Megure echoed. "Wasn't it something like an ice pick?"

"It doesn't matter if you tried." Takagi pointed out. "You can't install something like that over it."

"The tip of hard darts can be taken off and it weighs around 18 grams." Conan stated. "Something that slim can fly with no problem. The culprit also fixed the clay under the container and installed the dart tip over it. He used the poster in order to direct the needle and to hide it. That way, even if it strayed a bit, the container is bound to reach the ceiling. Am I wrong, the one who brought a present over to the birthday: the owner of the hard darts, Kogure Monpei-san? It's not difficult for you to poison one dart and return it to the case later. As for the rocket trick, you were the only one capable of doing it as you were close to the poster. You used the victim's vulnerability after he got drunk. You lost on purpose in the games you played with your friends, in order to have a shot alone with the victim. You pretended to put a coat over him and used your poisoned dart to stab him in the back of the neck. You then took off the tip of the dart and replaced with another one you already prepared. Afte that, you installed the tip to the film container using the clay. If you had kept that with you a little longer, then you can just wait until your friends to look away before performing the rocket trick. That was after you ordered the champagne bottle. Finally, you only took the cork off at the same time you hear your rocket launching. And if the champagne was spilled over the poster, then he could easily wipe out what's left of the soapsuds that remained on the table. The proof of that is the part of the poster that got wet. A scent of yuzu should arise from there."

"That's true." Megure took a whiff. "But this poster belongs to Kishiura-san, doesn't it?"

"It seems that the victim was urging her to buy it for him back in the company." Conan revealed. "If she didn't buy it, then Kogure would have done that. When he gave the victim the dartboard, he was waiting for him to ask for the darts. Since he was aware of the victim's hobby of posting his photos on his blog, his colleague buying new film was part of his plan. Moreover, that thing hanging from the ceiling; is the weapon that will confirm everything. Since if it wasn't Kogure who bought the darts, it's impossible to have a tip of the same brand as the original."

"If only the tip is up there, then the container along with the clay piece is bound to fall to the ground." Megure reminded.

"That may be true, but since everybody were worried over the wet poster, they would think the container falling is merely their fault." Conan reasoned. "Also, the clay piece that fell off the container got stuck to my shoe and the letters HDPE were carved in reverse because they were originally printed under the container."

"Then, what about the soapsuds that were splattered over the table?" Megure asked.

"He must've used his glass to hide that." Conan surmised. "Since it was beer, no one would notice anything strange. However, his complete crime has completely vanished along with the foam because 'Sleeping Kogoro' was here at the time."


Back at present...

"Did you also forget the culprit's motive was to avenge his deceased friend who committed suicide after being mistreated by the chief?" Fukui sighed.

"I totally forgot that." Mouri stammered.

"And here I thought you were cool." Fukui pouted. "I wonder if Conan is feeling all right?" she wondered. "After he talked to detective Takagi about something, his face changed and he went flying from here. I heard something about a pickpocket 'suuri'.


At daybreak the next morning...

Amuro reached over to the passenger's seat of his Mazda RX-7 and readjusted the sweater he had covered the dozing Ami with. Looks like the breakfast I prepared is going to go to waste. He sighed, taking a quick look at the wrapped tuna mayonnaise sandwiches in the backseat. Guess I can't really blame her; working overnight for two days in a row, it's too much for anyone, even for someone as resilient as her. He brushed a stray lock away from Ami's forehead.


SailorStar9: Any OOC-ness is regretted. *Sighs* Don't you just hate plot bunnies sometimes? Read and review.