BWDC:SDDK Chapter 94: Bourbon Whiskey
Opposite the Mouri Detective Agency, inside Ren Ichimonji's home.
After bidding his farewells, Makoto Kusakabe drove away from Café Poirot, seemingly busy with other matters.
Mouri Kogoro, after a brief reminder from Ren, suddenly felt a wave of sleepiness wash over him. He asked Ren exactly what he had pointed out to Makoto Kusakabe, but after receiving a perfunctory answer, Mouri chose to head home for a nap, deciding it wasn't worth arguing with Ren until he was well-rested.
Conan, however, followed Ren back to his house and stood on the balcony. He looked across the street at Mao Lan, who was busy tidying up the house, and asked in a low voice:
"Was what you said earlier true?"
"Is Makoto Kusakabe really the kind of paranoid person who would nuclear-level level the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department and the National Police Agency?"
"And what did you point out to him? A person?"
--- Conan had many doubts in his heart that he wanted answered.
Ren replied with calm certainty, "Of course."
"I saw a man with blonde hair and dark skin—only slightly lighter than Hattori Heiji—standing there watching. Originally, I couldn't be sure of his identity, but Makoto Kusakabe's reaction was perfect. It told me the stalker's identity, name... even his code name."
The Batman of Beika City already knew the observer's identity.
He was Bourbon of the Black Organization, a member of the Zero Division of the Japanese Public Security Bureau, using the alias Toru Amuro—his real name being Rei Furuya.
The time of this individual's activity in Tokyo was a bit earlier than Ren had anticipated. Perhaps it was the butterfly effect caused by his actions since transmigrating, or perhaps this world wasn't exactly identical to the manga and anime records of his past life.
It didn't matter; he only needed to confirm that the information he required remained unchanged.
"A code name?" Conan muttered the fresh term.
If what Ren said was true and Makoto Kusakabe harbored such intense hatred for the Public Security Bureau, then the person who elicited such a strong reaction must undoubtedly be a member of that bureau.
However, the Tokyo National Police Agency wouldn't normally use code names unless they were agents on a special mission. It seemed the Public Security officer tailing Makoto Kusakabe was no small figure.
Conan frowned and asked, "Who is he?"
"An acquaintance you'll encounter frequently in the future," Ren said casually.
"An undercover agent from the Public Security Bureau inside the Black Organization, code-named Bourbon. He's technically a 'good guy.' His current name is Toru Amuro, but his real name is Rei Furuya. You might want to write that down; it might be useful later."
"For instance, if you're ever about to be killed by Bourbon, yelling 'Rei Furuya' three times might just make him let you go."
In Ren's memory, although Rei Furuya was on the 'Red side' and could be considered a good person, his style of doing things was actually similar to Makoto Kusakabe's. He operated on the principle of whatever was most advantageous.
To lure Makoto Kusakabe out, he was willing to use his Public Security status to forcibly arrest Mouri Kogoro, frame him as a bomber, and nearly send him to the Public Security Department's tribunal for sentencing.
To elevate his status in the Organization, after confirming Haibara Ai was actually Sherry on the Mystery Train, he planned to let Vermouth take her back, nearly causing Haibara to be blown to bits along with the train car.
In the manga, Conan was open with the FBI's Shuichi Akai early on but treated the Public Security's Rei Furuya like a potential thief. This was why.
The reputation of the Public Security Bureau within its own country was notoriously shredded. Ren didn't trust a secret police organization that even its own citizens couldn't trust. Unless necessary, he didn't plan on contacting Rei Furuya.
After all, Ren's actions as Batman against Teiji Moriya were technically in a legal gray area. In Rei Furuya's eyes, he was likely the type of asset that could be sacrificed. If they crossed paths, who was to say Furuya wouldn't sell Ren's information to the Black Organization as a promotion chip?
While that probably wouldn't kill him, it would be incredibly annoying.
"...By the way, I've been meaning to ask."
"Why were you cooking with Ran at the agency? And Mouri-san looked quite exhausted. What were you guys doing this morning?"
Conan dropped the previous topic and brought up the morning's events.
Ren raised an eyebrow and recounted the matter regarding Ryutaro Tsukigata. He then saw Conan speak with surprise:
"It was actually Mr. Saruhashi and the others? I remember them; they visited the agency to see Mouri-san back then."
Ren: ?
You remember them? Mouri Kogoro said they came six months ago.
Were you already shrunk and living at the Mouri Agency six months ago?
--- Forget it, better not to ask.
In the 'Conan-verse,' as long as the time span exceeds a month or a specific date appears in a memory, the characters' sense of time becomes chaotic.
Ren didn't intend to probe further into this topic. If he did, his own sense of time might get scrambled, and he'd end up as a rare case of a Batman sent to a mental asylum.
"Strange."
A hint of doubt flickered in Rei Furuya's eyes. He had already changed his identity and clothes, hiding once more.
Of course, in Ren's eyes, as long as Rei Furuya couldn't disguise his blonde hair and tanned skin, changing clothes was essentially useless—it would only fool the local Beika residents.
What confused Rei Furuya was the fact that his tailing had been discovered.
His reason for following Makoto Kusakabe wasn't to harm him or trade for interests. He was simply ensuring Kusakabe's safety.
--- Years ago, Rei Furuya had been responsible for interrogating Kusakabe's assistant, Fumikazu Haba. After investigating, he found that this upright prosecutor, who spent every day opposing the Public Security Bureau, had actually learned the Public Security's way of using illegal assistants for investigations.
Furthermore, Makoto Kusakabe was exceptionally reckless.
Public Security assistants have a formal structure, a binding system, and regulations stating that every officer must be responsible for their assistant, even to the point of bending laws within a certain limit.
In other words, the Public Security Bureau could protect their own.
But Makoto Kusakabe couldn't. His assistant had no protection. Thus, when Rei Furuya confirmed Fumikazu Haba's identity, he was stunned—if this man were simply released, he'd likely be hacked to pieces by others. If he wasn't released, he'd face a tribunal and prison.
Having no choice, Rei Furuya helped Fumikazu Haba fake his death to escape, giving him a new identity to start over, and integrated him into the Public Security's list of assistants.
His reason for ensuring Kusakabe's safety was naturally due to Haba's final request.
However, the current situation seemed a bit special.
"What is the background of that person who warned Makoto Kusakabe?"
"He was dining at Café Poirot, and Mouri Kogoro seems to know him... Should I find an opportunity to take a part-time job at Café Poirot as a waiter to observe him up close for a while?" Rei Furuya rubbed his chin, pondering.
Ultimately, he abandoned the idea for now.
The primary goal of the Public Security Bureau currently was to clear up the Teiji Moriya case and figure out what the "Bat" Moriya mentioned actually was. Everything else had to wait.
He had fulfilled his duty by ensuring Kusakabe's safety this far. Next, he had to return to his primary duties.
End of Chapter
Like this story Leave a review ; it would really help me out a lot.
Want to Read Ahead in Advance?
Join my Patreon!
+75 Chapters
Support me in
Patreon.com/BestElysium