(A/N: Thank you guest and PinkiePieParty122894 for your reviews! And to everyone who followed, favorited, and added this story to their alerts as well!)
After Atsushi was brought a cup of green tea to help calm her nerves by Kirako Haruno, another of the agency's clerks similar to Naomi, she was instructed by Kunikida to help clean up the mess-once he realized Atsushi was no longer upset-the Black Lizards had left behind in their wake.
It still greatly surprised Atsushi how easily Kunikida, Yoshino, and Kenji had swiftly dealt, and no doubt humiliated, such a formidable team of the Port Mafia. The agency truly was comprised of some incredibly powerful people.
Hearing a gentle jingling sound, the gray haired female peered up to see Ranpo sitting casually on one of the desks swinging an odd shaped blue bottle back and forth.
"Hey, hey, Harunocchi. Can you take the marble out of this bottle?" Ranpo asked the same brown haired intern who had brought Atsushi her tea.
"Sure, right away," Haruno replied back kindly, heading for the kitchen area.
Marble Atsushi pondered perplexed. She flinched when hearing a sharp shattering sound, feeling even more confused when Haruno returned holding out a rather pretty blue marble for Ranpo to take.
"Is this what you wanted, Ranpo-san?"
"Yes. Marbles are nice. aren't they?"
"Yes, marbles are nice." Haruno replied back amiably.
Practically sliding over to where Kunikida was putting books away on one of the shelves, Atsushi murmured out, "Um, isn't Ranpo-san going to help?" It seemed a little unfair how everyone was working while he was just sitting around leisurely drinking.
"Kunikida-kun," Ranpo sung out; causing Atsushi to jolt and almost drop all the books and files she held when believing she had been overheard. "I need to head off to a job soon."
"Oh, to help with the murder case?" Kunikida asked, turning around to look at the dark-haired male who was hopping off the desk.
"Indeed, the police in this city can't even nab a single criminal without my help," Ranpo insulted, a finger moving to the brown cap he wore where he gave it a small tap. "Still, my Super Deduction is the best ability in this agency, or even the whole nation. I guess it's no wonder that everyone depends on it."
"We're indebted to you, Ranpo-san," Kunikida voiced, his acknowledging tone causing Atsushi to look curiously at him than Ranpo.
"Good, as long as you're aware," Ranpo stated proudly, heading toward the door with his hands on his hips. "That's right, though you call yourselves a detective agency, you all can't deduce better than a single monkey. The only reason you can call yourselves a detective agency and function as one is because of my ability, Super Deduction."
He seems pretty conceited. Probably doesn't help that he's being overly praised Atsushi couldn't help but consider with a disapproving gaze when Haruno was commending the closed-eyed male's apparent ability. Atsushi was taken by surprise that even Kunikida was further complimenting him as well.
"Brat,"
"Y-yes?" Atsushi stuttered, almost afraid Kunikida might have seen through her thoughts and was going to scold her for being disrespectful toward her superior.
"Never mind the mess here. Go with Ranpo-san. The place is close by train,"
"Y-you want me to help as a detective's assistant?" Atsushi gasped out. She didn't know the first thing about solving crimes. In fact, she'd rather just avoid a grisly crime scene altogether. "That's too much responsibility!"
"Of course not. I'm not some two bit detective. I don't need an assistant," Ranpo mused with a small chuckle.
"Then why am I going with you?"
"Well, see, I don't know how to travel by train."
"Eh?" Atsushi squeaked out, actually dropping all the stuff she held simply from pure disbelief.
"Oi, brat! Don't make more of a mess for us to clean up!"
Having arrived at their destination, a grassy bank near a riverbed, Atsushi was still in shock. Considering how much the detective was going on about his intelligence, she didn't expect that Ranpo had no idea how to purchase a ticket or find which platform to get on.
Maybe he's more like a child than I first thought? To the point where he can't do anything without his ability Atsushi pondered, remembering how Ranpo had just been content to stare at his marble the entire ride over on the train.
"You're late, agents," a gruff older male greeted, his arms crossed over the white shirt and green trench coat he wore. A younger police officer stood behind him, looking more sheepish as he saluted Ranpo and Atsushi.
"Oh, who are you? Where is Yasui-san?" Ranpo inquired with a frown; Atsushi peeking out from behind the slightly taller male nervously.
Pulling out his ID, the policeman explained, "I'm Minoura. I took over for Yasui. This case has been reassigned to our division. So we no longer need you or your agency."
Ranpo just laughed, not seeming bothered by Minoura's displeased tone. "How foolish! All difficult cases in the world should obviously be overseen by a great detective,"
"We won't need a detective today. Because the victim is my subordinate,"
Minoura had sounded more sorrowful, and Atsushi could understand why when they were led over to the body. She couldn't help but cover her mouth in horror when the officer pulled back a sheet to show a rather pretty female who's chest was stained a deep crimson.
There was such a pained look on her face that had already lost its probably once rosy color...
"A lady," Ranpo voiced softly, removing his cap in respect.
"She was discovered floating in the river this morning," the younger officer recalled.
"She was shot three times in the chest," Minoura added on. "We don't know when or where she was killed. We haven't even found the bullets."
"Any suspects?" Ranpo questioned.
"No. As far as anyone at the office knew, she wasn't in a relationship, either."
"Does that mean you have no leads?" Ranpo mused with a knowing smile while replacing his brown cap.
"Which is exactly why we can't let some amateur private eye handle this." Minoura announced with a sharp scowl, standing up from the crouched position he had been in.
"Oi! The net caught something!"
"What's that?" Atsushi asked with a small frown.
"We've strung a net across the river to catch any evidence," Minoura's partner replied, his features troubled.
"It's a man! There's a man in the net!"
"Could there be a second victim?" Atsushi murmured with worry. Following the others quickly over to where the crane pulling the net up was, Atsushi could feel her heart pounding away. Was Minoura wrong and the victim had been in a relationship? With the man she had been seeing killed alongside her?
Expecting the worst, Atsushi almost collapsed to the ground at the sight that greeted her.
"Hey, there, Atsushi-chan!" Dazai greeted jovially, waving despite the fact that he was hanging upside down tangled in the net. "What a strange coincidence."
"A-another drowning attempt?" Atsushi questioned in a tired voice, her right eye giving a small twitch. She had been wondering where Dazai had disappeared to. It was odd he hadn't been there to help when the mafia attacked...but she assumed he had fled before Kunikida could force him to tidy up.
Dazai gave a click of his tongue. "What, committing suicide alone? That's so passe, Atsushi-chan. I have come to realize that if I shall die, I must die with a beautiful lady! Ah, double suicide. What a sweet ring it has. In comparison, it feels so empty to bid this world farewell all by my lonesome. So, I'm currently on the lookout for a beautiful woman who'll die with me!"
"Huh? Then what was this all about?" Atsushi grumbled, while pointing at the smiling male.
"I was simply drifting along the river!" Dazai chirped out with a charming grin and wink.
"...I don't suppose you'd throw him back into the river so he can keep drifting along, would you?" Atsushi couldn't help but say, her features apathetic when she turned to Minoura; her words causing a bead of sweat to trail down the officers head.
"Ah hah hah hah hah! You have such an adorable sense of humor, Atsushi-chan!" Dazai chortled. swinging from side to side in his amusement. "By the way, what are you doing all the way out here?" He let out a gasp, his mouth forming into a perfect O shape. "Did you somehow sense I was out here and decide to come join me in the river for a romantic death?!"
"Wh-what! N-no!" Atsushi stammered out with a squeak, her face becoming completely red. "I'm on a job."
"A job? What kind?" Having been let down, Dazai's face took on a look of absolute horror when he was shown the crime scene. "Wh-wh-wh-what a tragedy. What a great tragedy this is, that a young beautiful woman in her prime has lost her life. Sorrow is crushing my heart! She may as well have committed double suicide with me!"
"You were right, miss. We should have thrown him back into the river," Minoura muttered, glowering at the brown haired male who was on his hands and knees unleashing loud sobs. "Who the hell is he?"
"A colleague at the Agency" Ranpo answered calmly. "That's just how he is."
"But rest in peace, milady. An extraordinarily amazing detective will avenge you," Dazai recited dramatically, a hand placed upon his heart. "Right, Ranpo-san?"
"But I have yet to get the job itself."
"What? Why?"
"Ask this man."
"We have no need for detectives. In fact, all my subordinates are far superior to any private detective," Minoura declared firmly.
"Oh! What's your name?" Ranpo proclaimed, pointing at the other officer.
"What? I am Sergeant Sugimoto," the younger officer answered with a salute once he'd regained his posture. "The victim, Ms. Yamagiwa, was my senior."
"All right, Sugimoto-kun," Ranpo said merrily, patting at the sergeant's shoulder, "solve this case in sixty seconds. Starting...now!"
"What?!"
Ranpo moved closer to an alarmed Sugimoto's face with a mischievous smile. "I can solve it in under a minute. If you're as good as he says you are, you should be able to do the same. Okay, give it a try, Sugimoto-kun!"
Is that what I look like most of the time Atsushi wondered, getting a sense of deja vu while watching Sugimoto badly panic. She felt very bad for the guy as Ranpo was holding a pocket watch, playfully counting down how many seconds the police officer had left and causing him to further lose his cool.
"Oh, right! Yamagiwa-senpai was pursuing a political corruption case and also investigating the Port Mafia," Sugimoto quickly brought up. "I believe the murderers M.O. is similar to the Mafia's method of executing retribution. Maybe she was killed by the mafia members she was investigating-"
"Incorrect."
"What?" Sugimoto gasped out, turning to Dazai in surprise that he was the one to interrupt him.
"The Port Mafia's retaliatory methods are as highly specific as a government-issued ID. First, the traitor is forced to bite the curb, then they kick the back of their head to shatter the jaw," Dazai explained solemnly. "As their victim writhes in agony, they flip him over, then shoot them in the chest three times."
Atsushi gripped at the tie she wore with a trembling hand. She had seen first hand how cruel members of the Port Mafia could be...but it was terrifying hearing how they dealt with their victims. She wondered if Dazai had seen their methods first hand? That was possibly why he had an almost haunted look in his chocolate brown eyes.
"If we're being specific, yes, but..."
"So this M.O. is similar to the Mafia's, but not the same. That means?"
"An attempt at a cover up?" Minoura gathered, turning to Dazai who simply nodded his head.
Sugimoto looked down at this. "Shooting two extra rounds into the body just for that? How cruel..."
"BEEP!" Ranpo abruptly shouted from behind Sugimoto, causing the male to shriek and jump a few feet off the ground. Ranpo gave a sympathetic pat to the sergeants quivering shoulder. "Okay, times up. Too bad, you've got a ways to go before you reach my level. At the very least, this proved your subordinates aren't all superior to me."
"Cut the crap!" Minoura snapped, narrowing his eyes at the 'irritating' male. "You've been going on and on about deduction and great detectives. You've been reading too much pulp fiction! Cases are solved by thorough investigations, interviewing persons of interest, and analyzing the scene of the crime."
"Huh? When are you going to realize it? Great detectives don't do 'investigations'. My ability, Super Deduction, can instantly identify the killer and when and how the murder was committed. Furthermore, I can see in my mind's eye how I can make the killer confess, and where the evidence lies, as if it's an epiphany." Ranpo opened his eyes to show a piercing green and smirked. "I am an ability user, after all."
"Given my line of work, I know about the existence of ability users. But if you have such a convenient ability, why do my colleagues and I still have a job?"
"Right on! You've finally caught up," Ranpo praised to the disgruntled detective.
"You bastard!"
"Now, now, Detective," Dazai intervened before Ranpo was physically assaulted, "Ranpo-san's always like this."
"After all, my motto is, 'All's well that's well for me!', hah hah!"
I've never heard a more convincing motto in my life Atsushi decided while slumping where she stood. Did Ranpo not even care that he was about to be decked if Dazai hadn't shielded him? He really was like a mischievous kid.
"Since you praise it so much, let's see this ability of yours," Minoura scoffed.
"Oh? Are you asking if I can handle the case? You should have just asked me from the start,"
Minoura couldn't help but snort, giving the brash 'brat' a challenging smirk. "Heh, you have a lot of confidence about this difficult case despite the lack of evidence. Want me to count to sixty?"
"I don't need that long," Ranpo retorted with a grin, a green glow seeming to surround him.
"Watch closely, Atsushi-chan. This is the ability that keeps the Agency going," Dazai informed with a smirk of his own. "Once he puts on those glasses, Ranpo-san's Super Deduction is active."
Ranpo-san's ability reveals the truth about a case. Does such an ability really exist Atsushi pondered, a small droplet of sweat trailing down her face while her eyes were wide.
"Ability: Super Deduction!" Ranpo announced after donning a pair of square black-framed glasses. He pushed up his specks with a knowing smile after just a few seconds of remaining completely still. "I see."
"I see, my ass. You're trying to imply you know who the killer is?" Minoura mocked, shoving his hands into his coats pockets.
"Of course. The killer...is you, Sergeant Sugimoto," Ranpo declared, his narrowed green eyes staring straight at the young officer.
"What?"
"Ranpo-san?" Atsushi questioned, feeling just as baffled the way Sugimoto naturally was.
Minoura let out a derisive laugh at this. "Sergeant Sugimoto is my subordinate,"
"Sergeant Sugimoto is the one who killed her,"
"Don't be stupid! It's impossible that the killer would appear nearby in the first place!"
"It's because he's the killer that he wants to stay close to the case," Ranpo shot back in a matter of fact tone. "Besides, didn't I mention this? I also know where the evidence lies. Lend me your gun, will you?"
"Y-you've got to be kidding. The punishment for handing a government-issued firearm to a civilian is far worse than a pay cut," Sugimoto claimed, his features having paled a little.
"And here I was hoping you'd have a point. Are you detectives just talk?"
"If we examine that gun and come up empty, then sure, I'm just a dumbass running my mouth," Ranpo agreed with an enigmatic smile.
"I've had enough of listening to you! Show him, Sugimoto!" Minoura instructed, looking forward to taking the cocky male down a peg.
"But..."
"He's dug himself a deep hole. If we disprove him, he'll shut up and go home. We can't waste anymore time. Show him your gun!" Minoura frowned when his fellow officer lowered his head. "Hey, what's the matter, Sugimoto?"
"Even in this city, it's not easy for an amateur to get spare ammo. It's even harder if the firearm was government issued," Ranpo mentioned, his glasses seeming to glow almost ominously.
"Why aren't you saying anything, Sugimoto?!" Minoura yelled, becoming frustrated.
"He's thinking hard right now about the three bullets he used, and how he'll explain there absence,"
"Sugimoto! You can't be the killer! Show us your gun, now!" Seeing Sugimoto slowly unlatching his gun holster, the doubt Minoura had started to develop began to falter. That was, until a desperate Sugimoto was aiming his gun directly at Edogawa. "Sugimoto!"
"Atsushi-chan! Go!"
"Eh?" Atsushi said confused, only to squeal when Dazai actually shoved her hard enough where she crashed straight into Sugimoto, knocking him to the ground. Though she quickly reacted and put him in an arm lock, causing Sugimoto to drop his handgun.
"Let me go! I have nothing to do with this!" Sugimoto begged when the other officers surrounded him.
"Running away won't help. The murder took place early yesterday morning at the abandoned shipyard 140 meters upstream from here," Ranpo stated, moving to stand in front of Sugimoto.
"How'd you know that?"
Ranpo knelt down so he was eye level with the culprit. "If we go there, we should be able to find yours and the victim's footprints, as well as the bloodstains you fully couldn't clean."
"How? No one could have known..." Sugimoto voiced quietly, sounding almost on the brink of tears.
"Let's hear the rest back at the station. It may be the last time it's your place of work." Minoura uttered, pulling a pair of handcuffs out of his pocket.
While Ranpo had been allowed into the interrogation room, Atsushi stood outside with Dazai. Though as she watched and listened from the two way mirror, she felt her heart twist in her chest.
"I didn't intend to shoot her. She...she was going after a certain politician for corruption. What they didn't predict was that she actually found evidence of a major Diet members crime. However, the Diet member was savvy and tried to use a mole inside the police to get rid of the evidence,"
"And you're that spy," Ranpo confirmed more than asked.
"I'd always wanted to become a police officer. After I failed the exam three times, I was depressed. That was when a man reached out to me, asking me if I was willing to do anything to become a cop," Sugimoto lamented, his hands shaking while he had an almost maddening looking in his dark eyes. "After joining the police force with the Diet members help, I had to follow his orders in return."
Minoura slammed his hand upon the desk, his features livid. "So you killed Yamagiwa as one of his dogs?!"
"That's not it! I was trying to warn her. I told her she'd get herself killed if she didn't give up the evidence. But she..."
Sugimoto recollected his meeting with Yamagiwa. How he pleaded with her to hand over the evidence, that another hitman would target her if he failed...And when she refused, he threatened to shoot himself. In her desperation to stop him, Yamagiwa reached for the gun. This caused it to go off, shooting the woman directly in her chest.
"If you did nothing, you'd be convicted. You'd be fired from your job," Ranpo specified. "In a panic, you could only think of one person to go to for help. How ironic. When you called the Diet member, he told you how to destroy the evidence. Just as you were told to, you fired two more shots in her chest to make it seem like the Mafia had done it. You set her adrift in the river to delay discovery."
"Where is the evidence Yamagiwa obtained?" Minoura interrogated, shooting up from his seat. "That Diet member is responsible for Yamagiwa's death! Tell me, Sugimoto!"
"Hey, Sugimoto-kun. Want me to guess what her final words to you were?" Ranpo said, moving behind the male and leaning in close to his ear. "It was 'I'm sorry' wasn't it?"
Tears flowing down his cheeks, Sugimoto buried his face upon the desk. "You really see through everything, don't you...? The evidence is in my desk drawer."
Noticing tears were in Atsushi's own eyes, Dazai reached into his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief. "You really are too kind, Atsushi-chan. He made the decision, and now has to live with the consequences of his actions,"
"I-I know. It's just...I can't help but feel awful for him," Atsushi confessed softly, squeezing the handkerchief in her hands instead of using it right away. "And...he also reminds me of myself in some ways..."
"Funny, I don't think you're anything like him at all," Dazai voiced, shoving his hands in his pockets. "You don't strike me as the type who'd betray someone you care about. If anything, you'd end up putting yourself at risk to protect that person if you did find yourself in a similar predicament like Sugimoto-kun there."
Then again, I suppose that is concerning in itself Dazai considered, his eyes hiding a hint of sorrow as he watched Atsushi wipe at her face.
Once outside the police station, Minoura shifted his eyes to the side, refusing to make eye contact with Ranpo.
"Thanks, I guess. Also, I'm sorry I doubted your capabilities. If we run into another problematic case, we'll ask for your help,"
"If you need my abilities, ask me anytime," Ranpo spoke with a close-eyed smile. "I'll give you a discount next time."
"That'd be helpful." Minoura chuckled out, giving Ranpo the first friendly smile since they'd met.
Ranpo walking ahead as they set off for the agency, Atsushi lingered behind with Dazai, walking with her arms behind her back.
"Ranpo-san was amazing. I had no idea he'd figure everything out," Atsushi admired with a smile. "His ability, Super Deduction, is incredible."
"I might've figured out half of it, too," Dazai professed, looking up thoughtfully.
"Half of what?" Atsushi asked with a tilt of her head.
"About the case just now. About how Ranpo-san figured it out."
"Oh, but he said his ability lets him figure it out instantly,"
Dazai let out a hum as his eyes met Atsushi's. "That's right, you don't know yet. Actually, Ranpo-san doesn't have an ability,"
"Huh?!"
"Ranpo-san is a very rare ungifted civilian at the agency," Dazai continued with an amused smile at the girl's flabbergasted expression. "He himself seems to believe he's using an ability but...Oh, and despite his appearance, he's 26 years old."
"What?" Atsushi wheezed out. She knew he was older than her, but she never would have guessed by eight years!
"The reason why everyone at the Agency respects Ranpo-san is because they know his Super Deduction isn't an ability. I'd heard of it myself, but I only witnessed its power first-hand today. To tell you the truth, while he was 'using' his Super Deduction ability today, I was secretly pinching his hair behind him. As you well know, I can neutralize anyone's ability if I touch them. I have an anti-ability. No ability user can ever use their ability while I'm touching any part of them, no matter how strong their powers may be. In other words, his Super Deduction is not an ability."
"It's not? The how'd he..."
"It's just deduction, pure and simple."
"But how? He figured out who the killer was in such a short amount of time!" Atsushi voiced in disbelief. "Is mere deduction enough to make such a thing possible?"
"Right. I could tell too, actually. Remember what Sergeant Sugimoto said?" Dazai said, referring to when Sugimoto mentioned the rounds being fired. "Anyone who saw a body with three gunshot wounds would assume they were fired at the same time. In other words, he knew that the victim had perished from the first shot. How could he have known that before an autopsy?"
Atsushi lowered her head and spoke up sadly, "Only if he was the killer...But he also knew when it happened, early yesterday morning."
"That's because the body was still in good condition. So, at most, it'd only been floating in the river for a day," Dazai explained with a knowing smile. "Yesterday was Tuesday, a weekday. But the victim wasn't wearing any makeup. A detective working long hours, often late into the night, would only be like that on a weekday if the murder had occurred in the early morning."
"I see," Atsushi agreed. Though she really couldn't say because she never wore makeup herself. Another thought suddenly hit her. "But how did he know the crime scene, and that she was threatened with a gun?"
"That I don't know," Dazai admitted with a small laugh. "Ranpo-san probably caught a lot more details than I could hope to."
"Th-that's true. He even managed to guess her final words," Atsushi said with a sheepish chuckle of her own, rubbing at the back of her neck.
"Oh, that. She supposedly wasn't seeing anyone, but her wristwatch was an overseas brand-name item," Dazai spoke up quietly. "It's not something a single woman would buy for herself. And Sergeant Sugimoto's watch was the men's version of the same model."
"Then they were..."
"She went to meet him early when he called, without bothering to put on makeup. And their watches are of the same model. They were dating. That's why he couldn't kick her in the head, even though he knew it wouldn't look like the Mafia's work."
Noticing Atsushi's eyes were getting a little damp once more, Dazai gave the empathetic girl a light pat on top of her head.
"The ability to see through all that would be par for the course if it were an actual ability. Nothing more, nothing less. But if it's due to his personal powers of deduction, that's a different story. He's solved dozens of cases in the past. In every case, he was able to instantly determine the truth of the matter with the slimmest of leads. He's never been wrong, either. What a great man." Dazai concluded with a serene smile.
"Hey, guide! I can't find my way back to the Agency on my own, you know!" Ranpo called out, waving his arms in the air in frustration.
"I think I kind of get it now," Atsushi acknowledged with a gentle smile after wiping at her eyes, the girl's words making Dazai blink down at her. "Why everyone at the Agency trusts Ranpo-san so much."
Dazai just beamed at this, turning to look at Ranpo who was giving them both a friendly grin; gazing up at setting sun, a strangely beautiful sight after the rather dark day, as he continued to trail behind while Atsushi ran ahead to lead the way back for the both of them.