Begin!

~Normal POV

Naoto asked Kanji to hang out with her again after school today. If she was going to find this phantom thief, she'd need to start as soon as possible. There had to be something important about that blank card. And they needed to figure out what it was. So the two went to their usual spot to mull it over. Kanji wasn't too confident in being able to help her with it, but he was prepared to try his best. At the moment, Naoto was staring at the two cards side by side, trying to find something she might have missed.

"The first thing I can tell is that these cards came from Shiroku Store." She began, "I talked to the owner before school, and she said the man's description matched the one you gave me."

"So it was definitely that same guy?"

"Yes it was." Naoto answered, confidently. "This Phantom Thief purchased these cards mere days before handing this one to you…"

Kanji chuckled. "Sounds like he planned ahead."

"They are known to be thorough at that. However, if that is the case, then it's hard to imagine any elaborate process was performed on the card."

So that meant it could just be a blank card. Kanji had a thought that maybe it was just to get her attention, and was about to say so, but Naoto interrupted with a very odd question.

"By the way, do you happen to wear cologne?"

He gave her a confused look. That came way the hell out of nowhere. "Uh, no- why?"

"Well, I noticed that the one you gave me has a faint, lingering scent of citrus. I thought it could have come from a cologne."

"Ohh. I didn't notice that." Kanji said, shrugging. "But I had an idea. What if that one was blank on purpose? Just to get your attention?"

Naoto looked thoughtful. "That is a possibility…"

Before they could ponder it any further, they heard a voice call out to them. One they recognized instantly.

"Oh, hello!" Nanako, Yu's little cousin, jogged up to their table to greet them.

"Hey, Nanako-chan," Kanji greeted back smiling.

It was rare for Nanako to approach her cousin's friends without him around, so this was a somewhat new experience. Naoto had only recently been introduced to her, but thought she was a sweet child. She could see why everyone enjoyed her company.

Nanako looked between them curiously. "What are you doing?"

Naoto frowned at the idea that she didn't know how to respond to that question. "Hm… What are we doing really…?" She muttered, quietly.

Nanako didn't seem to hear her. She thought for a moment and then gasped. "Oh, I'm sorry! Are you guys on a date?"

The two teens blushed at the question. Why on earth would she ask that?! Kanji quickly avoided looking at Naoto to hide how red his face was. And he didn't notice how flustered Naoto was, as well.

"I can leave you alone, if you are! Don't worry, I won't tell anybody!" Nanako added, smiling cheerfully.

Finally, Naoto found her voice again and replied, "W-We're not on a date. We're trying to do something, and I asked Kanji-kun for assistance."

"Y-Yeah, that…" Kanji added, sheepishly.

"Oh…" Nanako then happened to notice the cards they had laid out before them. "That card is blank. Are you writing a letter?"

"No, we received this…" Naoto said, vaguely. She then got a wild idea. One that wasn't guaranteed to help really, but she decided to try it. "This card holds a secret… perhaps. What do you think, Nanako-chan?"

"A secret?"

Naoto smiled. "I'll give you a hint: it smells like citrus… er, like an orange or a lemon."

Nanako tilted her head in confusion. "It doesn't say anything, but it smells like an orange or lemon?" She pouted a little as she thought about it and then perked up with a big smile. "I know! It's invisible ink, right?!"

The teens looked at her in shock. "What?!" They said, simultaneously.

"We did that in our science class!" Nanako added.

Naoto looked a little mad now. "Impossible… he used such a basic ruse?!" She then remembered that she didn't want to explain what was going on to anyone who didn't need to know and calmed herself. "Thank you, Nanako-chan. You're a better detective than I."

"Really?!" Nanako gasped, "Thanks, Naoto-san!" With that, she decided to leave them alone once more. (She had been on her way to meet up with her friends anyway.)

"So how do we get what it says if it's invisible ink?" Kanji asked.

"We'll have to hold it up to a flame or some other heat source. I'd suggest going to my house, but it's a little far from here…"

"Then we can go to my place, it's closer." Kanji said, simply.

He blinked. Wait. Did he just… invite Naoto over? His face was getting hot again. Damn it, he didn't mean to say it like that! Not yet anyway! When was he gonna learn not to open his mouth-

"Oh, good idea," Naoto replied, smiling. "Let's go. I've only been to your store once before. I wouldn't mind seeing it again."

Kanji felt relieved that she didn't get offended by the suggestion. The two got up and started walking to the shopping district.

~...

Upon reaching the store, Kanji led Naoto inside. It wasn't busy at all today. The only person here was his mother tending the front as usual. She greeted the two warmly.

"Kanji, dear, welcome back. And you are… wait, I know I've met you before, what was your name again?"

Naoto smiled. "I'm Naoto Shirogane, ma'am. I don't blame you for not remembering, it has been a few months since I was here last…"

"Oh, that's right! The detective friend Kanji told me about." Mrs. Tatsumi said, "It's nice to see you again."

Kanji stiffened at the mention. It hadn't occurred to him that he did talk to his mom about Naoto… more than once… He was teased a little for it too. Hopefully, this wouldn't end with her embarrassing him. But that hope was bleak at best.

"May we use your kitchen for a moment?" Naoto asked, "There is something we need from it, it shouldn't take long."

"Of course, go right ahead. Just go through the back there, and you'll find it."

"Thank you," Naoto replied.

She slipped off her shoes, and went further into the shop. Kanji was about to follow her, but stopped when he noticed the look his mother was giving him.

"What?" He asked quietly, so Naoto wouldn't hear.

Mrs. Tatsumi smiled. "She's very pretty…"

Kanji turned beet red. "Sh-Shut up!"

"Don't talk to your mother that way." She replied, sternly. "And you make sure you treat her well, understand?"

He grumbled a soft 'yes, ma' to appease her before quickly going to the kitchen, where he found Naoto waiting. He couldn't handle any more embarrassment, especially after what Nanako said earlier. In the back of his mind, he wondered if Naoto was bothered by it. She didn't seem upset at the idea, so that was a good sign.

"Did your mother need something?" Naoto asked.

"N-Nah! Just telling me something… about the store. Nothing important!" Kanji lied, nervously. "Anyway, how do we do this thing?"

She gave him a look like she didn't really believe him, but decided not to pry. She asked him for a pot they could use to boil water on the stove. The heat from it should make the note visible for them. He complied right away. They let water boil on the stove while Naoto held the card close to the pot. Sure enough, the heat made some words start to show up on the paper.

"It really was invisible ink…" Naoto commented.

"That's amazing."

"The citrus juices staining the paper burn first, making it legible…" She explained. "A grown man employing such childish tricks?!"

Kanji glanced at her. She sounded annoyed, but he couldn't help thinking she wasn't, not entirely at least. He got the impression that she was kind of enjoying this little case. Not that he was gonna say it aloud. He didn't want to embarrass her, but it was just a hunch he had. After all, he knew Naoto enjoyed being a detective, it was her dream. So it only followed that she got some enjoyment out of working to find clues like this. He felt that way when he made his crafts. No matter how difficult or time-consuming it was, he enjoyed every second of making them.

"What does it say then," He asked.

She held it up a little longer to ensure all of it was visible before answering. "This sentence here… 'Eating letters with a red face.'"

Kanji figured that must be a riddle or something. He wasn't good with riddles, they often flew over his head. But this was one case where he had a shot at guessing it.

"Letters, huh? Like a mailbox or something?"

Naoto looked at him with a bright smile. "Ahh, indeed it is! You're good with riddles, I see."

He blushed. "Really? I just guessed…"

"And you were correct." Naoto replied, encouragingly.

Seeing that big smile on her face made his doubts seem to vanish. She was proud of him, and she did seem to be having fun. It felt good to see. The two cleaned up their work in the kitchen before heading back out of the house. Naoto remembered that there was a public mailbox close by in the shopping district, so that would be the best place to look next.

~...

The mailbox was located between their weapons store and Shiroku Store. It was also red, so it had to be the one the clue talked about. The two were also the only ones around it, so that likely meant whatever was done to it hadn't been discovered yet.

Naoto looked it over carefully and found something hidden behind it. She pulled it out, but Kanji couldn't see what it was right away. She looked down at the mystery object in her hand, seemingly surprised by it.

"This is… Grandpa had this? Why did he keep it…?"

Kanji was curious now. "Oh, it's one of your things? That's good, you got it back!"

"Huh?" Naoto seemed to have forgotten that Kanji was still with her. She turned bright red and quickly hid whatever she was holding behind her back. "Y-Yes…"

"What is it?"

"...Nothing…"

Kanji couldn't help laughing a little. And he thought he was a bad liar! Apparently, Naoto was a lot worse at it than him. He could tell she was embarrassed by whatever she found.

"You can tell me," He said, smiling. "I won't tell anyone if you'd rather keep it secret though. And I ain't gonna judge ya."

She stared at him, blushing and keeping her hands behind her back. Well… she did involve him with the case. And there was no guarantee that she could keep this hidden forever, especially if they were likely to find more of her things later on. And his big smile… She trusted that smile. Kanji wouldn't look down on her for this. He wasn't like that. But it was still embarrassing. She'd never shown this thing to anyone before.

"V-Very well… Um, I made this… when I was a child." Fidgeting a little, she shyly showed him what she was holding. "It's a- a… detective badge…" She said the last part so quietly he almost didn't hear her. Her face was still very red.

It was a small badge sitting in her palm. He didn't think it'd be a good idea to try taking it from her, so he just looked at it. It wasn't like the ones he'd seen on a real cop. It wasn't shiny enough. And it had her name on it. He thought it was kinda cute. So she made that herself?

"It has no real function though…" She tried to regain her composure and looked a little annoyed at their discovery. "A petty challenge…" She said, grumpily. "And the prize was this stolen detective badge…"

"You made that all by yourself?" Kanji asked.

Naoto pocketed her badge before anyone else could see it. "Y-Yes, but I don't do that anymore! Not since I was little, I mean…"

"I- I was gonna say it's really cool…" He replied, looking rather red himself now.

Naoto felt a little jolt in her heart from hearing that. She didn't expect him to say such a thing. It… felt nice to hear. More than nice, actually. What was this feeling? Was something wrong with her? It was just a simple compliment. Compliments were normal between good friends. Yes, that must be it.

"Th-Thank you…" She said, quietly. "Ahem… Upon thinking about it, I have an idea who the Phantom Thief might be, but none as to his motive…"

"Damn, you already know? Just from one clue?" Kanji looked very impressed.

"It's more of a likely suspect." Naoto said, modestly. "I need more proof first. And it wouldn't do any good to tell you my theory right now. I can assure you, it's no one you would know."

He figured he shouldn't ask then. It was just a theory.

She looked up at him with a determined expression. "This is an important case to me. And yet… without you and Nanako-chan, I'd never have cracked it. Rather, I wouldn't have bothered…" Her face softened as she smiled at him. "Thank you, Kanji-kun."

Kanji blushed again. "O-Oh, no problem! I mean- it was nothing, really! I didn't do much."

"You did plenty, and I'm grateful for it."

He gulped. "I-If you say so…" He couldn't think clearly when she was smiling at him like that, but it made him happy.

Naoto was a warm, lovely girl. She was extremely smart, and skilled at her passions. She was also really cute, no matter what he saw her wearing, he always thought she looked cute. Who cared if she wore the boy uniform to school? And he was an expert on cute things, so he should know. Ok, he didn't think his other female friends were unappealing, or anything, he could see why other guys liked them, but Naoto would always be the cutest to him. She was brave, dedicated, and honest, albeit sometimes reckless and stubborn, too. But nobody's perfect. He couldn't say he wasn't stubborn either. And he'd done his fair share of reckless things in his life. If he was being honest with himself, crush might be an understatement at this point. No, there was little doubt about it. He'd had these feelings for months now, and who cared when they started or how. They were still true all the same.

Kanji Tatsumi was in love with the Detective Prince Naoto Shirogane.

And that thought was both comforting and terrifying at the same time. What would he do about it? He'd need some help figuring out how to deal with these feelings. He wanted to tell her, but god knows he wouldn't know how to do that. No, it could wait. There were more important things going on right now, with the murder case at a stand still, and this weird phantom thief stuff. He doubted she'd be in the mood for such a thing, assuming she would reciprocate. He'd just have to be patient for now. And luckily, being an expert at sewing and crafting, he was more patient than most people assumed.

He snapped out of his thoughts as he heard her speak again.

"Normally, I'd think this isn't the time to play along with such games, but…" Naoto couldn't bring herself to look at him, and he could see her blushing. "I, er… I think I'll let this play out… And, um, if possible…" She couldn't bring herself to finish for some strange reason.

"We'll do it together!" Kanji blurted out.

"Huh…?" She stared up at him with wide eyes. "Oh, y-yes… Let's." She was still blushing and went to pull her hat down embarrassedly.

There must be something wrong with her, she thought. Sure, it was often difficult for her to ask for help, but she had an unusually tough time simply asking Kanji to keep assisting her with her problem. There was this feeling she had, one she found no explanation for. She tried to calm herself down and think it over. She couldn't help it, she was an academic and a detective. It was like a habit with her, when she found a mystery, her brain got to work figuring it out. If she tried to ignore it, she'd get upset at missing out. This was no different. She enjoyed learning things.

But the fact was: she had no idea what this strange feeling was or what was causing it. It wasn't an unpleasant feeling, far from it. It was… nice. Rather warm. It felt good, so she couldn't say she disliked it. But where did it come from-?

She froze. A thought had crossed her mind. She wanted to dismiss it, but it was the only explanation that made sense…

This nice feeling came from wanting to spend time with Kanji.

"Hey, it's almost dinnertime, ya want me to walk you home?" Kanji asked suddenly, snapping her back to reality.

"Hm? Oh, sure, grandpa would be worried if I were late."

On the way to her house, Naoto pondered this dilemma in her mind. This was one mystery she'd have to think over on her own.

~End of Chapter