Disclaimer::::
I do not own Harry Potter or Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro characters. Only my OC Character (s).
I don't make any profit from any of my stories on this website.
Rated M for future sexual content and language
"Characters Speaking"
Characters Thinking
/Author Comments/
~~~Chapter Five~~~
~~~Previous~~~
A gunshot is heard. Sasazuka had made it over near the basket and shot the clock before it went off. "Looks like I hit the bull's eye."
"Sasazuka-san!" Yako exclaims.
"What have you done!?" She shouts. "It was the perfect chance for everyone to be who they really are! Don't you want to live as your REAL self?! To live free, like dogs!"
"Dogs live freely? Can't say I agree..." Sasazuka admits.
She growls but stops when Neuro puts his hand on her head. "As far as I know, seems that dogs are beasts which become submissive when they meet a creature stronger than themselves. Shall we test this theory? Sit! Itadakimasu!"
She lets out a whine and falls to her knees. "Seems that dogs really are submissive after all. Someone bring me a collar."
"Sorry, all I've got are handcuffs," Sasazuka says sarcastically as he walks off, handcuffs in his hand.
I let out a chuckle. "Those will have to do."
With that said, Ishigaki and Sasazuka take her away in the police car. "Well, it's all over, but it wasn't as filling as I had hoped."
"Yeah, but I kinda get the feeling we're forgetting something..." Yako trails off.
I shrug my shoulders. "You will remember if it's important."
Yako nods in agreement, causing me to chuckle as I get out my phone and text Godai to tell him everything is sorted and he can leave. As we walk away, I notice Godai leaving the building, sweating heavily.
~~~Present~~~
I am wearing my Japanese Violet and black dress with the same design as my others. My coat is a deep lilac instead of purple.
I head up to the roof along with Yako. Godai is up there. "Godai-san, Neuro was looking for you."
"Shut it. Like I'd even go..." He comments as he drinks his beer.
Yako and I share a smile before Yako sees the extra beer can. "It really feels like autumn now...It's been four months now, hasn't it?"
I let out a sigh. "It seems to have been much longer, don't you think?"
~~~Four Months Ago~~~
Come to think of it; I was wearing the same outfit that I am now four months ago when we first met Godai. Let's see...it first started when we were in the park.
I am at the park with Yako, sitting on a bench. Yako is, of course, eating again. "A detective's office?"
"Going out just to look for you is a waste of time," Neuro states from up in the tree. "Therefore, we will open a detective office so that I can summon you at any time."
"But opening a detective office isn't that simple..." Yako tries to point out.
"True, but we can find a building to use." I point out softly.
"I wasn't asking for your opinion." Neuro jumps from the tree and pushes Yako's ice in her face. "And I already know just the place."
He takes us to a building not far from my cafe. "This is it? This building is the 'place'? Yako questions, holding her head due to getting a brain freeze.
"I smell a mystery here..." Neuro trails off.
We go inside. When we get to the place Neuro mentioned, Yako goes pale. "Hey, Neuro...? Can we maybe not go ahead with this? Seems kinda...dangerous..."
On the door, it says the 'Saotome Financial Group'. Neuro doesn't seem troubled at all. "Open the door or have your brain crushed...Choose one."
I let out a chuckle. "It will be fine."
With Neuro holding her head, she grabs the handle and quietly opens the door. She pokes her head inside. A group of people is on their phones.
"Keep telling me shit like that, and there's gonna be a problem. If you don't return the cash by tomorrow, we'll kill you."
"Kaa-chan, I'm telling ya, it's ME. If'n ya don't transfer the money, we'll kill you."
"It looks a bit off...If ya don't fix it, we'll kill you."
"I knew it..." Yako mutters with a blank face.
The door is opened, and a man stands there with a scowl. "'The fuck are you three supposed to be? We're busy working here. So, get the fuck out."
"O, okay! We're going...!" Yako agrees and tries walking away.
Neuro moves his hand and grabs the back of Yako's pink short-sleeved school vest. She tries running, but he keeps her in place. "We would really love to leave you alone. However, Sensei here just won't listen. She says she would like to be of service to you."
"What the hell you sayin'?" The man demands.
"You're covering it up, aren't you? The incident that occurred here." Neuro comments, causing them to be surprised as their eyes widen, and two of them stand up. "And as you're likely in THAT line of business, you can't go to the inspectors, so you're stuck."
Yako grabs the side of the door and pokes her head around before looking up at Neuro. "Neuro, wait..."
"Keep talking bullshit, and we'll kill you!" The man in red states angrily.
"Back off, Godai! Just who are you three? Where did you get that information?" The man at the back desk demands.
Neuro pulls Yako so she is standing in front of him, his hands on her shoulders. "It was the intuition of Katsuragi Yako-sensei, schoolgirl detective!"
Yako looks pale with the attention on her and Neuro's hand on her shoulders. "I didn't actually..."
"Her 'intuition' is it?" The man in the chair queries.
"Shall we present this to the police then? If Sensei's intuition is correct, they should be able to find traces of the incident..." Neuro trails off.
"W-w-wait! It's true that something happened the other day, and it's also true that the culprit hasn't been found." The man says with a sigh.
"This incident wasn't a petty matter either, was it?" Neuro questions.
The man squeezes his entwined fingers. "It was murder."
"Washio-san!" Godai shouts.
"Our boss...was killed here three days ago," Washio admits.
Yako lets out a low shriek and pales. "Seriously?!"
"So, what exactly is it that you three want?" Washio queries.
"That's obvious. Sensei will solve this matter for you all, starting now." Neuro offers.
"What'd you say?" Godai demands as he points a knife at Yako, who pales. "Don't even think about moving one step forward! This is our company's proble-"
Neuro's eyes glow green before Yako's arm moves by itself, sending Godai to the other side of the room, unconscious and foaming at the mouth. "She might look like an innocent schoolgirl, but Sensei's been in quite a few brawls in her day..." Neuro says before pointing at me. "Her sister is much stronger…So how about it? Why don't you leave this one case to Sensei? She'll show you that she can definitely solve it."
Washio stands up. "Just what are you three? Whaddya want for solving it? Probably cash, right?"
"Oh no-" Yako trails off.
"We don't need such a thing." I deny.
"Of course, we don't need money." Neuro denies. "In exchange, how about if we solve this incident, you give us this office?"
The four men look surprised. "You want our office?!"
Washio lets out a laugh. "Sounds interesting..."
"But we're wagering the office...And on top of that, you beat up one of our guys." The man with spiky silver hair points out.
"If you guys can't solve it, we're going to have to have you give us some suitable compensation..." Another person comments.
Neuro takes Yako by her shoulders with a chuckle. "In that case, Sensei will do whatever you want for the rest of her life, for free! How does that sound?"
"I don't agree with that," I state, but I am ignored.
The four men put up their thumbs in agreement. "Alright! The bet is on!"
Yako's eye is twitching as she pales. "D-did I just get sold?" She grabs onto Neuro's jacket. "Wait a second, Neuro! Isn't there some other, better place than this?"
"What are you saying, this is a fantastic place, is it not? I happen to enjoy the foul air around here..." Neuro states with a smirk.
"But...!" Yako trails off.
"It's close to the station, the view is nice, and there's a convenience store right next door. So, what exactly are you unhappy with?" Neuro comments as he walks forward.
"It's near my café as well," I add softly.
"You have surprisingly normal standards when it comes to housing..." Yako says sweatdropping. "But that's beside the point! What are we gonna do? What if..."
Neuro stops. "What if we can't solve this mystery?" He turns to look at us. "Who do you think I am? You're looking at the man who's consumed all the mysteries in the Demon World." Neuro looks away from Yako and me and looks back at the men. "Now, everyone, if you would tell us about the incident."
Washio lets out a sigh. "The victim was our boss, Saotome Kuniharu. It happened after work in the middle of the night. After that, the four of us and Godai, who just got back from collecting funds, waited for the boss, but he never showed up. The boss had the habit of locking the door to the office when he was working, and that day was no exception, but... The difference was that he didn't come out or even respond...He was inside, after all, only...The boss, who was normally in one piece, was divided in two. It was a clean, sharp cut. The murder weapon is likely a katana of some kind."
"Is it possible that someone among the five of you could be the culprit?" Neuro asks.
"At the pub, everyone left their seat at least once, but it was for a few minutes. In that short amount of time, even if you could go back to the office and kill the boss, there'd be no time to hide the murder weapon. The only thing that could get through the windows was the draft, and the boss was the only one with the key to the door." The man with glasses states.
"So, the room was completely closed off...Any thoughts about who would kill the boss?" Yako questions. "What do you guys call them...A rival gang or something like that?"
"Or someone trying to get out of paying the money back?" I query.
"We belong to a larger organisation, so rival gangs are out of the question. But you never know what someone might do to meet a quota... " The man with purple sunglasses admits.
"Then, someone may have had a grudge against him, right?" The man with spiky hair adds, taking a drag of his cigarette.
"In this line of work, everyone has a grudge against them?" Yako queries.
"But at the very least, we respected him. He took us strays in and gave us a way to survive." Washio admits sadly.
"I'm grateful to him even now."
"I'm grateful as well."
"Well, I'm not," Godai states as he sits up. "You bitch! I'll get you back for this a thousand-fold, hear me?!"
Tears stream down Yako's cheeks as she clings to my arm. Washio gets out of his seat. "Oi, Godai! We all have an obligation to the boss; what's your problem?"
"Obligation?" Godai stands up and lets out a scoff. "Working us like dogs on meagre salaries...If I'm grateful to anyone, it's the murderer. Thanks to him, you're the boss now, and I'm next in line. Wanna know what I think? Who gives an honest fuck whether we find the culprit?"
I narrow my eyes. It couldn't be…could it…I look back towards the ghost of the boss, who hasn't left yet. He glares at that person and looks at the other person with worry. My eyes soften, and I let out a sigh. It was…
Washio grabs Godai's shirt and shakes him. "Godai!"
Neuro walks over to us and places his arms on our shoulders. "This little introduction could go on quite a while, so why don't we just begin the investigation." The cuffs on Neuro's jacket glow as he lifts his hand in the air. "777 Tools of the Demon World, Evil Blind!"
The star above us goes over our bodies, from our heads to our feet. "What did you do?" Yako queries.
I look at our bodies. "Invisibility?" I question.
"I've drastically lowered our physical visibility within a 10-meter radius. The only drawback is that it doesn't last very long. Let's hurry and get started preparing this mystery for me to eat."
Yako turns to look at the men. "I'm thinking the culprit is one of them..."
"Why do you say that?" Neuro asks, amused.
"My intuition, I guess." She looks around when she doesn't see Neuro.
I let out a sound of agreement. "They are suspicious. And it can't be anyone else."
"A slug-like YOU having intuition?!" Neuro scoffs from up on the ceiling. "No, you're even lower than a slug."
"What's with you all the sudden?" Yako asks, confused.
"I'm looking down on you. If I don't observe the mystery from high above, I won't be able to consume it. Looking at the mystery purely from an intuitive point of view, it seems best suited for a low-sighted, slime-excreting, floor-crawling lower creature like you." Neuro has his foot on Yako, pushing her head down.
"Shut up! You stupid freakshow!" Yako yells as she takes a step forward.
"WHO'S a stupid freakshow? Godai demands.
"You can see me already?" Yako exclaims, surprised.
Neuro jumps near the door, taking me with him. "Everyone, it would appear that Sensei has already figured out the trick to the murder as well as the culprit! She needs to make a few preparations to solve the mystery, so Yuuki and I are going to go and pick some things up for her."
"You're not planning to run away, right?" Godai queries.
"No need to worry yourself over that. If we run away, you can boil, bake, and do whatever you like to Sensei." That said, Neuro closes the door, dragging me along with him. "I still don't agree with that," I comment.
~~~3rd POV~~~
Yako pales before she ends up sitting in front of Godai as the other men return to doing what they were doing in the first place.
"Well, you've done it now. We WERE trying to keep this incident from becoming common knowledge."
"Even if you stay silent, it'll be exposed eventually, won't it?" Yako points out. "I mean, the boss has family, right?"
Godai puts his beer can on the table and lets out a scoff. "You naïve bitch." He leans back, his arms over the back of the chair. "Not one person in this office has a family, which is exactly why we're here. The dirtiest and most dangerous work is given to us, and since we don't have a family to make a racket over it if we die, we're all just conveniently disposable resources."
Yako's eyes widen as Godai continues talking. "Even though our boss is dead, those bastards from the brass'll just act like he never existed. That much is obvious."
Yako lowers her head. "That's awful…"
Godai looks at Yako before picking up his beer can once more. "Just goes to show how much we mean to them." He takes a sip before getting lost in a flashback where he and the boss are on the roof.
Godai was sitting on the floor with the boss standing next to him. "Boss. What are we, disposable rags?"
"And isn't that a luxury in it of itself? Who do you think has been raising you up until now?" The boss states, causing Godai to scoff as he continues. "Don' worry. Even if you died, at the very least, I'd sacrifice some beer to you, just like this." He pours it, and it goes over Godai's head. "There's no work in the world that you can be entirely satisfied with, Godai. Rather, we're pretty damned satisfied. In this work, we don't have to worry about starving, and it's not boring." He looks down at Godai. "What else could you want?"
Godai snaps out of his flashback as he stares at the beer can in his hand. "Boss…Even in this mess, can you still say you're happy?"
A smile appears on Yako's face. "I'm actually kinda relieved. Earlier, you were speaking as if you were glad he died, but all this time, you adored him."
Godai leans forward with a scowl on his face. "'Adore'? Don't use a fuckin' word like that!"
"Getting all embarrassed…You're just not honest with your feelings." Yako states, causing Godai's eyes to widen before he takes a knife and holds it near Yako's cheek. "Thank you SO MUCH for the compliment."
~~~Yuuki's POV~~~
It isn't long before we head back to the office. Godai and Yako are sitting on the couches, and Godai is threatening her. "In return, I'll open a hole for straws in your face!"
"So glad you two have become so friendly in the time we were gone!" Neuro states, appearing next to them, causing the pair to jump slightly in surprise.
"Neuro! Yuuki-nee!" Yako exclaims, surprised.
"When the hell?" Godai demands.
"Creepy bastard..." The man with glasses mutters.
"So, you DID come back," Washio observes, surprised.
"I will now prepare the trick, so please wait outside." Neuro orders.
"Do you really know who the culprit is?" Yako whispers.
Neuro's eyes glow. "Don't worry. This mystery is already on the tip of my tongue."
I nod my head. "It is obvious after all the clues have been put together."
Neuro has Yako sit on the chair, a muskmelon in her hands. Stars appear in her eyes when her gaze rests on the muskmelon. "Muskmelon-chan!"
Neuro lets the men back in. "Now, everyone, I apologise for the wait. First, the culprit wanted everyone to falsely believe that the murder weapon was a large blade."
"It's not?"
Neuro looks to the side. "Yes, those without time to hide murder weapons are naturally less likely to be suspected as the murderer."
"And?"
"In other words, the murder weapon is the key." He leans down to whisper to Yako. "The melon goes above your head, where all the higher animals can see." She does as he tells her and lifts the melon above her head. "According to Sensei's theory, the culprit killed the boss from the room below, just like this."
He pulls the rubber near the window, causing a wire to pop off the wall, cutting the melon in half. "That was a splendid cut, wasn't it? He placed a wire between strips of reinforced rubber...you could almost call it Guillotine Pachinko."
Yako is shaking and is ghostly pale. "A g-guillotine..."
"Beforehand, the culprit placed hooks in the four corners of the ceiling and strung up the murder weapon. He arranged the rubber, wire, and hooks to be the same colour as the crossbeams in the room...If you spend time in the room normally, you surely wouldn't notice. And if you pull on the rubber from behind, the rubber will become unhooked at a set angle and travel in a straight path to the victim's neck."
The five men gasped in disbelief and surprise as Neuro continued. "Moreover, about these streaks of bloodstains that continue outside of the window...These stains were likely left when the culprit was pulling the murder weapon down. If he cut and then rolled the murder weapon up and put it in his pocket...it would take less than 5 minutes." He puts his hand on Yako's head. "And so, the person that Sensei has concluded to be the culprit is..."
There is a gunshot, followed by Neuro falling to the floor. "No...! Neuro!" Yako screams from her seat.
I kneel beside Neuro while looking at Washio, who fired the shot. "What the hell did you shoot him for!? I still wanted to hear them out!" Godai yells.
"Are you stupid? These guys know our secret...and if we let them leave and they involve the police..." Washio trails off.
"Liar, that wasn't why you shot your gun," I comment.
Neuro moves, and I help him sit up. He stands up slowly, hand over his right eye. "You were scared."
"Neuro!" Yako and I exclaim, surprised.
"That's why you tried to shut us up. Because you knew that if I continued with Sensei's deduction, Washio-san...You'd be exposed as the culprit." Neuro comments.
"I'm the culprit? On what ground?" Washio demands.
"With this trick, there was one other advantage. From the reflection in the window in the front of the building, the culprit was able to observe this floor from the room below, letting him gauge the appropriate timing to pull the band. He could even confirm that the victim actually died. And despite the fact that if it were anyone else, they would have gone downstairs and run away, there were footprints faintly stained with blood leading UP the stairs. That person couldn't come down...and it's because the culprit had to wait until everyone else arrived at the floor above."
Washio's eyes widen and twitch. No doubt shocked that Neuro is shredding apart his lies.
"He lied about the boss not answering his phone, left the pub, and killed the victim. You said that at the pub, everyone left their seat once...but there was only one person who needed to climb the stairs. The very last person to leave his seat at the pub...and the very person first to arrive at the scene. In other words, Washio-san...there's no one but you who could have done it." Neuro states.
The four men look at Washio in disbelief. "It can't be..."
"Now, all that's left is to compare your shoes with the footprints on the stairs," Neuro adds.
"Was it really you, Washio-san?!" Godai demands. "Why'd you kill the boss!?"
Washio bows his head. His skin goes tan, his hair grows in length, his mouth becomes a beak, and his eyes widen and become gold. He has the appearance of a bird. He lets out a loud shriek.
"All this time, I just couldn't stand it. The fact that within my nest...someone aside from me was the leader! Isn't it natural to want to be number one? I just want to be the leader of the nest! We were all indebted to him, but to me, he was just an undeserving squatter! Godai! It's because of your calculation error that the boss had to work overtime! I really need to thank you!"
Godai grabs Washio's shirt. "You bastard! You killed him for a stupid reason like that?!"
"Really now...This truly is stupid. Like kicking out baby birds just because they aren't yours, start getting confident that this nest is all yours and well...When you shot me, luckily, I blinked..." Neuro removes his hand from his face with a smirk.
"You've got to be kidding me..." Godai trails off in disbelief.
"...and was able to catch the bullet just in time." Neuro finishes.
Three men let out gasps. Yako's eyes pop out of her head in disbelief. "No way, no way, no way!"
Washio backs up, gun still in his hand. He lifts it and points it at Neuro, who stands on the floor instead of crouching on the desk. "You don't understand anything." Neuro throws the gun away. "You're a baby bird that wants to rule over a nest somehow, but you're completely powerless against an attack from a predator." Neuro's hand glows green as he grabs hold of Washio's neck. "From this day forward, this nest is mine. "
"Stop fucking around! I finally became bo..." Washio is cut off as Neuro's face changes.
Neuro's face changes into a purple bird, like a toucan or parrot. He has a large yellow beak with sharp teeth and small beady eyes. He has a pair of yellow twisted horns on the back of his head, and his ears appear covered in dark brown fur.
He opens his beak wide. "Itadakimasu." He closes his beak around Washio's head. He wipes his glove over his mouth. "Gochisousama."
Washio is sitting on the ground, a few bald patches on his head, staring at the floor. He lets out a shriek before legging it out the door. Godai goes to go after him. "You asshole, you think you can run away!?"
Neuro moves his arm out in front of Godai. "I believe even your dead boss would be satisfied. What more could you want?"
Godai's eyes widen before he looks the other way. "I don't know what the fuck you three are supposed to be but don't expect any thanks from me!"
"We don't need your thanks. It would be enough for us if you would simply leave this office." Neuro states.
"Say what?" They demand.
"We had an agreement, didn't we? You said that if Sensei solved this case, you would give us this office." Neuro comments.
"We don't remember any 'agreement'..." They take out their weapons.
A smirk appears on Neuro's face. "In that case, how about I try and jog your memory...personally." His eyes glow green as the same glow fills the room.
They are quickly beaten, and they run out the door. Godai is the last to leave. "We'll remember this! We'll fucking kill you one day!" He slams the door shut.
I let out a soft chuckle. "He is an amusing person."
"That dull-witted Godai seems like he would be useful as a servant...isn't that right, Servant Number One?" Neuro comments as he looks at Yako.
"The heck is Servant Number One supposed to mean?" Yako demands.
Neuro ignores her. "In any case, seems everything is in order now." He sits on a couch, legs crossed, a hand in the air, and a smirk across his face. "A place for me, Yuuki, you, and our mysteries. The Demon World Tantei Agency is born."
~~~Present Time~~~
I lean against the railing, watching Yako and Godai out of the corner of my eye. "Godai-san, why are you here?"
"Who knows..." He takes a sip of his beer. "As long as I have a place to keep living...It doesn't matter where."
Yako and I share a smile before Yako looks at the setting sun. I looked towards where Neuro was coming from. "You servants, who barely get any work done as it is, seem quite adept at skipping out on the work you're supposed to do." He appears below the railing, scaring Yako and Godai. "Now GO and hand out fliers."
"Shut up! Like I would!" Godai shouts.
"Now, now, Godai-san...Let's go, shall we?" Yako persuades.
"I don't wanna!" Godai denies.
"Oh, you don't?" Neuro queries sarcastically.
I softly chuckled at the three of them and their actions. A pulse of pain goes through my body, causing me to freeze, but I push the pain away and ignore it for now.
/Thank you for reading this chapter. Please leave a review. Your opinions are appreciated.\