mtl008 Chapter 1285 I Became a Substitute
Chapter 1285 I Became a Substitute
Chapter 1285 I Became a Substitute
Makoto Yata intended to harm someone and had undergone plastic surgery to look like someone else. Logically and morally, even if we consider redoing the facial recognition, he should be taken away by the police, not to mention his illegal purchase of firearms.
Shinichi Kudo's expression was quite complicated as he watched Makoto Uta break down in tears.
On the one hand, it's really strange to see someone using his face to make expressions; on the other hand, he's not at ease facing such an unfortunate tragedy caused by chance.
"I also made mistakes in some aspects of my work."
At this point, Shinichi Kudo suddenly changed the subject.
"What did you do wrong?" Tang Ze almost lost his temper when he heard this. "You've already told the police the truth and handled the whole case very well. This is just a simple misunderstanding."
"In the end, I still made the decision for them." Shinichi Kudo shook his head. "Actually, it wasn't necessary. If I had seriously told the two children of the Nihara family, this misunderstanding wouldn't have happened today."
It's fine not to tell the villagers and not to affect the life of Nichihara Daiki later, but it's not a good thing to leave the two parties involved unaware of the true situation, as it is now.
The children of the Nihara family inherited a large sum of money from their parents. They have many ways to get rid of the influence of this problem, and they can make their own choices if they know the truth.
People tend to subconsciously underestimate the resilience of victims, and make the choice to avoid the situation under the pressure of walking on thin ice.
If he had sat down and explained things to them seriously, instead of just talking behind their backs after making a series of on-the-spot deductions, this misunderstanding might not have happened.
"Stop being so hard on yourself," Hattori Heiji said, giving him a couple of slaps. "They're already planning to harm you, is it really necessary?"
Others may not know the price he paid to stand here, but those who know his identity are well aware of it.
In theory, Kudo should have used the antidote very cautiously before Ai Haibara developed the final version.
Ai Haibara, along with Tang Ze who gave him the drug, clearly explained that the drug was a stimulation mechanism based on his body's reaction to baijiu when he was in a state of high fever. Not only does it have unknown safety effects on the body, but taking too much could also lead to drug resistance. If not careful, the antidote might not even work for him.
To deal with this extreme questioning and to resolve this case that did not end perfectly, Shinichi Kudo has already put in a lot of effort, not to mention that he went to meet with her with the intention of communication, only to be betrayed so badly.
"I just feel a little sorry about it—" Shinichi Kudo sighed as he looked at the wig in his hand.
Makoto Yata is definitely not a bad person, at least not when I met him a year ago.
He investigated the secrets of the Death God because something happened on the very day he arrived at Higashi-Oku Village. "Oh, so the reason that reporter lady knew about and wanted to report the truth was to prevent the villagers from misunderstanding the Death God?" Hearing Shinichi Kudo's explanation, Heiji Hattori understood somewhat.
Looking back now, when Hanoi Fukasato mocked them in the house, it was indeed at a time when the villagers of Hikawa started talking nonsense and trying to connect things to the concept of the god of death.
"That wasn't some legendary spirit; it was a self-sacrifice made by Mr. Yuta after careful consideration, after he lost his daughter." Shinichi Kudo said with some emotion, "Before he passed away from illness three years ago, he had been living alone in the forest and hadn't even seen his son much, all to make up for the guilt he felt over his daughter's death."
The first generation of Shirajin, who was also Makoto Yata's father, was a very serious forest ranger.
Just as in the primitive era before science was widespread, many legends and ghosts were created, such as water ghosts or monsters that appeared at night and snatched children, to warn humans to stay away from danger. He used the image of the god of death to make the children in the village feel awe for the forest. When he found that a child had actually run into the forest, he would put on this terrifying outfit to drive the child away and guide them back to the village.
He lived in the forest for six years, and before he died, he passed on this responsibility to his children.
"When you went to the hut, did you see the tombstone next to it? That's the grave of Makoto Uta's father."
As for himself, he would dress up as the Shinigami during school holidays and breaks. That was roughly the time when the village children had free time. "Kudo Shinichi explained how he met her, "Ms. Kawachi also received the Shinigami's help around that time."
Besides being a journalist, Hanoi Shinri is also a single mother.
She brought her daughter to work with her, but her daughter ran into the forest and disappeared.
Before Shinichi Kudo could lend a hand, her daughter came out on her own, saying that she had encountered the god of death in the forest and was chased all the way in a panic, and didn't know how she ran away.
"Following the clues she provided, I discovered traces of human activity in the woods, and then I found Makoto Yata, who had just finished playing the role of the Death God and was taking off his disguise. This is no easy task; he is trying his best to fulfill his father's wishes and contribute to the village."
Since that tragedy nine years ago, despite being adjacent to such a large natural area where accidents are prone to occur, Higashi-Oku Village has not experienced any similar incidents and has developed well under the management of Takitoku Nihara.
This was originally a beautiful story that perfectly captured the local character, but it's a real shame that it's ending in this way.
"Oh, no wonder you knew where to find this outfit." Hattori Heiji's focus was not quite right.
"—Makoto Yata took all my things. I can't just run around naked in the forest, can I?" Shinichi Kudo slapped him twice in annoyance. "Even so, I'm starting to catch a cold."
He wasn't unconscious for long from the time he was knocked unconscious until he woke up, but in this weather, he was left in just his underwear in the small house, so it was hard not to catch a cold.
"Hmm, so that means the incident is basically over, and there are no problems?" Kogoro Mouri, who had been listening for a while with a helpless and disdainful expression, interjected at the right moment, "Now we can play here for a couple of days, right? The hot springs are quite nice."
"Indeed, there are still some things that need to be dealt with." Shinichi Kudo nodded.
In addition to providing the police with detailed information and cooperating with the investigation—basic tasks—he also had to deal with issues concerning Makoto Yata himself and Fukasato Kawachi.
Shinichi Kudo cannot yet be linked to any case in his own name, but it must be admitted that Makoto Yata has actually provided a good angle.
He could ask Hanoi's Shen Li to shift the focus of the reporting on the incident.
Thinking of this, Shinichi Kudo secretly observed Goro Akechi, who was discussing something with Nanakoshi Koshimizu.
This technique was inspired by that show back then.
The detective's communication and maintenance of media relations also have their significance. For example, at this time, he could have completely changed the way Hanoi Shinri wrote the report.
The story goes that she came because she heard about a case that Shinichi Kudo had handled in the past, and she followed the news to find out that it was a fan who had undergone plastic surgery to look like Shinichi Kudo because of his excessive idolization that had misunderstood the case. This not only eliminates the impact of the case in the local area, but also whitewashes the rumors about his past and possible future appearances.
If there are other beings who deliberately imitate Shinichi Kudo, then even if a living Shinichi Kudo is sighted, it cannot be concluded that it is the real person.
This method of handling problems effectively without telling any lies can be considered a skill that needs to be learned.
"How do you plan to resolve Makoto Uta's situation?" Tang Ze noticed something amiss in his expression and leaned closer to ask.
I always felt that Shinichi Kudo's "ending" was a very complicated issue.
"He's already had so much plastic surgery, we can't just let him go back to the way he was, can we? Even if we did, his face would never be the same again." Shinichi Kudo sighed again. "I need to discuss the future with him."
Breaking into someone's room with the intent to cause injury and illegally possessing firearms are both serious offenses that are difficult to handle lightly. Makoto Uta could very well face prosecution.
If Shinichi Kudo's face were to appear in court, that would be even more significant; a reasonable solution needs to be devised.
"What, you're not planning to pursue the issue of portrait rights?" Tang Ze caught on to his subtext, his eyebrows shot up, "You're not actually planning to have him act as your body double, are you?"
You know what, that's actually a good idea. In fact, to some extent, he and Hoshikawa Teru are doing pretty much the same thing now.
However, given Makoto Yata's loyalty and abilities, it would be too difficult for him to be a suitable stand-in for Shinichi Kudo.
"How could that be?" Shinichi Kudo waved his hand. "It's just that he really owes me a huge favor this time, and he'll have to help me out if I need anything in the future."
For example, if something unexpected happens and you are forced to appear on camera using your own identity, you will have another option to bring in someone to save the day.
Considering his background as a fan of Shinichi Kudo, the situation could be handled more reasonably.
It's perfectly reasonable for a cosplay enthusiast like him, who's even willing to get plastic surgery for his idol, to do a detective cosplay, right?
If it happens a few times, it will reduce the organization's suspicion. After all, he is indeed a famous detective, and no one has witnessed his death. It is not unreasonable for imposters with their own ulterior motives to appear.
"You've been clever for once, aren't you? How cunning!" Hattori Heiji clicked his tongue a few times.
Shinichi Kudo smiled but didn't say anything.
Besides these things, he also had to contact the Joker to ask about the situation "over there".
I don't know if explaining the true identity of the Death God to the villagers and revealing part of the truth would help the situation, but in any case, having Makoto Uta himself clarify things and letting them see the cabin with their own eyes would surely dispel the so-called legend.
Whether this will be effective is unknown, but doing something is better than doing nothing.
In this extraordinary world, sometimes ignorance and giving up thinking can truly be a profound sin, one that needs to be corrected by the phantom thief of the heart.
"Let's not talk about that anymore. Can you lend me some clothes? Uh, um, my luggage was all lost by Makoto Uta."
'
"Tsk, I lent a set to Makoto Yata, and now I have to find another set for you to wear. I'm almost out of clean clothes."
"Can't you borrow from someone else?"
"Tang Ze and I are a bit different in size. Do you want me to borrow him from Ming Zhi?"
"There's something wrong with what you're saying. Isn't Ms. Koshimizu dressed in men's clothing?"
"Hey, hey—"
Watching them start joking around again, Kogoro Mouri rolled his eyes and turned to go back to his room.
These kids are so reckless and heartless; worrying about them is completely unnecessary.
It's the middle of the night, you should go to bed early.
"Does explaining the details of this case really take this long? Don't you still need to—hiss, what are you doing, Kazuha?"
Heiji Hattori, who had been waiting for a while in front of the police station, saw Shinichi Kudo finally come out. He had barely started to speak when he was dragged away by the girl next to him.
"Hey, don't you have any sense of atmosphere?" Kazuha Toyama clung tightly to his arm, lowering her voice, "Ran hasn't seen Kudo-kun in so long, it's already difficult enough for her to dedicate time to explaining the case, don't bother her!"
Based on her understanding of Shinichi Kudo as described by Ran Mouri, this guy is now elusive and might disappear without a trace again at any time due to problems in the investigation.
With such a short meeting time, why not make the most of it and leave it for their childhood friend? Going up there and ruining the atmosphere will surely give you a sty! Heiji, you rascal!
"Uh—" Hattori Heiji paused for a moment, then realized that there were indeed people present who didn't know about Kudo's situation, so he had no choice but to shut up with a complicated expression.
How can he say that Ran Mouri hasn't separated from anyone at all, and that the two of them are in great sync now, so there's absolutely no need to worry about such things?
Noticing their movements, Ran Mouri's naturally flowing gait paused for a moment, she smoothed a strand of hair behind her ear, and blushed slightly.
She guessed what Ye had interpreted it as, and then belatedly felt ashamed.
Seeing Shinichi is indeed a situation to cherish —
"—So, how long can you stay this time?" She walked up to Shinichi Kudo, who was looking around anxiously, and pouted. "Aren't you sure you're okay? Why don't you take this opportunity to deal with some more problems?"
"I don't know how long it will be." Shinichi Kudo gave a slight smile, then coughed twice, covering his mouth with his fist as he smiled. "This is kind of an experiment. Anyway, I'll try to stay in Ran's place as long as possible—"
Don't push yourself too hard.
"Don't worry, I feel fine."
Ran Mouri tilted her head, unsure how to use veiled language to force herself to express her true concerns.
Too direct a statement would seem abrupt, while too subtle a statement would appear overly suggestive.
So in the end, she simply asked, "Um, so, can I ask you that question now?"