As weeks went on, the name of the small detective, Edogawa Conan eventually became a memory. Living on only in the minds of those who remembered him or had the chance to meet him. No one knew where the little kid who had appeared mysteriously one day went to. The boy had pretty much vanished from the face of Japan without giving so much as a goodbye.

Rumours soon spread around the city like wildfire, mainly fuelled by the media along with their ridiculous assumptions. The most common theory was the boy had clandestinely returned to America with his parents. Reason unknown, but many say the boy had left due to the lack of Criminal Movement that had declined.

To be quite frank, that speculation was ludicrous yet at the same time, probably the most practical one the media had come up with, in Shinichi's opinion.

Another theory of that topic stemmed from media was the prediction that another organisation had surfaced. Whether the new organisation's intentions were good or bad also remained a mystery.
Ultimately, the public's interest in these two trending topics died down. And soon, many other stories took over the screens and newspapers.

Nonetheless, it came to the citizens' attention that upon the disappearance of Conan, another favourite of Japan had also seemingly vanished into the darknesses, leaving nothing behind.

The Great Phantom thief had been unusually dormant for the past few months, leaving the citizens and the Police force starving of boredom. Even the inspector of the Tokyo district, Nakamori Ginzo was puzzled by this finding, resulting in him becoming quite depressed as there were no KID heists notes for him solve.

Perhaps the thief had decided to travel aboard, taking interest in other foreign jewels.

And if that was the case...it would be very unpropitious for the other countries to give the white sinner the same adoration that he received in his own country.

Of course, when the public discovered the news of the return of the Great Detective of the East. Many rejoiced. At least one of their favourites was back in action. Because at the same time as the Detective's arrival, the casualties of murderings had strangely risen.

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>>PRESENT DAY<<<

Shinichi wrinkled his nose in apparent revulsion he spotted the dead man lying on his stomach, not three feet beyond the radius of the alleyway, in a pool of blood that was almost dried and gave the area a sickly-sweet butchershop odour. Police cars were distributed in every corner of the street since there was speculation that the culprit was still hanging around the area.

Policemen crowded around the body, snapping photos and taking any evidence they could find.

It was apparent in Shinichi's eyes that the man had been shot through the head, mostly by a skilled sniper. As he stood over the body, he noticed 3 distinct gunshots in the shape of a triangle. Strange. Shinichi crouched down, taking his time to analyse the pattern. If the man was shot, then there should be a remain of bullet's shell somewhere. Glancing around, Shinichi's eyes narrowed. When he failed to find his testimony. The frown deepened. It was very uncommon for murderers to take their evidence of the killing with them.

"Eh? Kudo-kun?!" a familiar voice made Shinichi glance over his shoulder; the man smiled when his eyes landed on the speaker.

"Ah! Long-time no see Megure-keibu!" the man waved to a plumpy man dressed in a brown coat, a fedora decorated his head.

The man waddled over, following behind him were the familiar faces of Wataru Takagi and Miwako Sato.

"You should have called me!" the man exclaimed in exasperation, as the group got closer to where Shinichi was standing.

"Ah! It was just a last-minute thing", Shinichi answered hastily, rubbing the back of his neck with definite discomfort. It was sort of the truth. He just happened to stumble upon the crime scene when taking his daily stroll to his favourite cafe.

Noticing the other's chagrin, Megure was quick to change the subject, to Shinich's delight.
"So Kudo-kun, have you found anything so far?" the man watched with jollity as the face of detective brightened up.

Folding his arms across his chest, Shinichi began his deductions in a voice full of confidence.

Shinichi was a little surprised when he found out the victim's former occupation. The man had been formally an ex-member of the Black Organization, according to one of the police's reports. The man had gone under another pseudo and was wanted by the police for being the main suspect of many other killings. Shinichi shuddered at his eyes skittered across the infamous name. Shinichi knew what the Black Organization was capable of, take it from experience.

Could it be that the culprits of this case were the Black Organization members themselves? But before Shinichi could voice out his opinion, his eyes fell on something embedded into the alley's wall. How could he have missed that?

As Shinichi approached closer, blue eyes widened in astonishment. It was a card. Yanking the card of the wall, Shinichi flipped it over as another look of awe laced the boy's face. He found himself staring at a Joker. Why would a playing card be at a crime scene?

Shinichi's eyes narrowly dilated as he took in the new erudition of the item in his hand. There was nothing suspicious so far. Lamentably, his examination was put to a halt as he felt the sensation of a headache rising. A clear sign that he needed his dose of coffee.

Spinning around on his heels, the boy sauntered over to exchange a few words with the rest of the group, promising to return to the site after his coffee break. Megure responded to the boy's decision with a wave of his hand, replying that he shouldn't push himself and he should put his health first. Shinichi returned the man's concern with another flicker of a smile.

Zing.

Shinichi let out a wheezy gasp as he felt his hair on the back of his neck spring up. He was no stranger to that feeling. The sound that had escaped the boy's lips, caught the rest of the group's awareness as they eyed the detective with unhidden concern.

"Kudo-kun? What's wrong?"

Someone was unquestionably watching them. Shinichi knew he could always trust his feelings. Peering over his shoulder, the boy narrowed his eyes as he scanned the area, hoping to find something out of the ordinary. The boy was abruptly met with dissatisfaction.

Maybe the lack of sleep was finally taking its toll on him.

"Ah, sorry about that Megure-keibu. My mind must have been playing tricks on me". Shinichi responded, hoping he sounded convincing.

"Or maybe it's a sign from your brain, telling you to stop relying on coffee as your main substance and start eating properly" Sato muttered, loud enough for Shinchi's ears to catch. Shinichi scowled.

"I know how to take care of myself, thank you very much" the boy huffed indignantly as he walked past the group. His comment earned an eye-roll from the female officer.

Why did the Great Detective of the East have to be so stubborn?

As Shinichi made his way out the alleyway, the boy could still feel the familiar feeling of being watched. If the Detective had taken the chance to glance up, he would have not missed the pair of predatory sapphire eyes almost identical to his, following his every movement from the building's roofline.