Chapter 12: Burning Butts
Naval Archives - Evening
CRASH!
Just as Natsukawa stepped out of the archives, a thunderous crash echoed from inside the village office.
It must be coming from the meeting hall!
Damn it!
Natsukawa's expression darkened instantly. Anya was still inside.
Although his daughter was adopted, she'd been calling him "Papa" for long enough now that they'd developed a genuine bond.
Meeting Hall Entrance
"Are you alright?"
Standing at the meeting hall entrance, Natsukawa looked at Anya, who appeared completely unharmed, and breathed a profound sigh of relief.
"Bond saved me!"
Anya's feet dangled in the air, her collar firmly gripped in Bond's teeth, swaying like a doll suspended on strings.
"That's good. Where are Conan and the others?"
"They're probably still inside. Bond ran out with me so fast that Anya didn't even have time to say goodbye to Ran-neechan!"
"It must be the Navy's vengeful ghost starting to haunt us!"
"I told everyone not to trust the village chief! He's only doing this for himself!"
"What do I care?! Just don't let the ghost come after me!"
One by one, the villagers rushed out of the meeting hall like panicked refugees. Within moments, nearly everyone had evacuated.
Only then did Natsukawa enter.
Inside the Meeting Hall
The conference hall reeked of fire extinguisher powder, and the air was thick with choking white mist.
There was also a distinct burnt smell. The ignition ball that had fallen from the stage ceiling now lay on the floor, charred to black ash and emitting a foul, acrid odor.
Uncle Mouri was hunched over awkwardly, his backside completely covered in fire extinguisher powder. Judging by his thoroughly dejected appearance, he'd probably sobered up considerably.
Perhaps Ran should carry a fire extinguisher with her everywhere, so she could spray him whenever he got drunk.
"Are you alright, Uncle Mouri?"
Natsukawa jumped onto the stage and crouched beside Kogoro Mouri.
"I'm fine? How could I possibly be fine with a burnt backside?!"
Well, that's certainly one way to put it.
Natsukawa suppressed a smile and walked over to examine the black ash.
"Such a strong gasoline smell..."
What's this?
Natsukawa casually picked up something Conan had just extracted from the debris and examined it closely.
"It's a battery! The culprit connected the battery terminals to the ignition ball's trigger cord. Pulling the cord discharged the battery, which detonated the ignition ball instantly."
"Hmm? I didn't expect Conan-kun to be so knowledgeable. You're nothing like an ordinary first-grader. Look at Anya—she's completely different from you."
Natsukawa gestured toward Anya, who stood nearby with an appropriately frightened expression on her face.
See? This is how a proper elementary school student should behave.
Conan clearly realized he'd been acting too precocious and quickly scratched his head with a sheepish laugh. "Hehe, I learned this stuff from watching Uncle Mouri work!"
"I thought you learned it from TV. Or maybe in Hawaii."
Whether the speaker intended it or not, the listener certainly took note.
This seems like an excellent excuse for future situations.
Learned it from TV, or from Hawaii.
After all, he genuinely had learned numerous skills in Hawaii with his father during childhood—like flying planes and operating various vehicles.
Guesthouse on Shikishima - Evening
The daytime incident had sent ripples through this previously peaceful island, accompanied by Kogoro Mouri's continuous groans of pain.
His burned buttocks weren't catastrophically serious, but they certainly weren't insignificant either.
He was curled up like an earthworm, lying face-down, glaring furiously at Mikami Takeo.
He couldn't sit, couldn't stand comfortably—any movement whatsoever caused burning pain to radiate from his rear.
"Are you alright, Uncle Mouri?"
Natsukawa was also present in the room, covering his mouth with his hand while trying desperately not to laugh.
He'd examined the wound earlier. It was located on the tailbone—just a small patch where gasoline splatter had caused burns. It wasn't particularly serious; a few days of rest combined with proper ointment would heal it completely.
"Remove the ice pack periodically, with intervals. Don't keep it applied continuously—the tailbone is dangerously close to major nerves. Be careful not to cause further damage."
Ran nodded obediently and carefully removed the ice pack.
Mouri Kogoro took a deep, shuddering breath and cautiously shifted his position. The movement pulled at burned skin, causing his lips to twitch involuntarily.
"Village Chief, please don't kneel like that. Prostrating yourself won't solve anything. Fortunately, I reacted quickly enough—otherwise that exploding ignition ball would have definitely killed me."
"I'm profoundly sorry, Mouri-san. I never anticipated you would be involved in such a dangerous accident. Please accept my sincerest apologies."
"This was probably not an accident, Village Chief Mikami."
Natsukawa walked up to Mikami Takeo and placed the battery directly in front of him with deliberate emphasis.
"A battery combined with gasoline... The perpetrator was clearly targeting Uncle Mouri specifically."
"That was merely an unfortunate accident—"
Mikami Takeo attempted to explain, but Natsukawa interrupted smoothly. "Uncle Mouri is one of Japan's most famous detectives. He can easily distinguish between genuine accidents and premeditated murder attempts. Isn't that right, Uncle Mouri?"
"Of course! Ouch!"
"Dad, please don't move around so much!"
Mikami Takeo remained silent for an extended moment before slowly rising from his kneeling position on the floor.
"I'll compensate you properly, and you must solve this case! Otherwise, I cannot guarantee you'll leave here safely. After all, the sightseeing boats and transport vessels here all require my explicit approval to depart. You'd better consider your situation carefully."
Natsukawa nearly laughed from pure indignation. Who gave this fool the audacity to speak to me like that?
It seemed his previous assessment of the man had been somewhat mistaken. This guy hadn't invited Kogoro Mouri for Shikishima's benefit—his primary objective was undoubtedly that gold.
His earlier promise to hand over payment after recovering the treasure was probably empty rhetoric. He'd likely renege the moment he secured the gold.
"So if we fail to locate your precious gold, you're planning to imprison us all on this island indefinitely?"
Natsukawa's expression gradually turned glacial, and even Anya instinctively retreated two steps backward.
Papa is angry!
"My daughter was nearly struck by that gasoline explosion just moments ago, and you can't even provide a reasonable explanation—yet you have the nerve to threaten us?"
The unconsciously emanating aura from Natsukawa absolutely terrified Mikami Takeo, who collapsed to the floor and desperately shuffled backward until he reached the doorway, finally pressing himself against the wall.
"Y-you... don't come any closer! This is... this is Shikishima! My... my territory!"
Natsukawa completely ignored his pathetic protests and shifted his attention to Kinoshita Goro standing in the doorway.
Just as he was preparing to take action, he noticed Kinoshita Goro positioned not far from the entrance. This man looked like he'd been standing there for quite some time.
What was this guy doing here? Something's suspicious—he was probably eavesdropping.
"I sincerely apologize. The village chief only spoke so harshly because he cares deeply about the island and desperately wants to develop it into a successful tourist attraction. Please try to understand his position." Kinoshita Goro stepped forward diplomatically. "If you wish to leave immediately, I can personally arrange a small boat for you tomorrow morning."
"Kinoshita!"
Mikami Takeo wanted to protest, but after receiving another withering glare from Natsukawa, he immediately fell silent.
At that moment, Kogoro Mouri's voice resonated from inside the room. "I'm not leaving anywhere! He's done this to me, so I absolutely must bring that murderer to justice!"
"Ouch! Ran, be more gentle, please!"
Natsukawa coughed twice to regain everyone's attention. "Mouri-san and I share the same determination. This murderer cannot be allowed to escape. However, regarding medical expenses..."
Natsukawa wasn't particularly short on funds, but this village chief was insufferably annoying. He wanted to demand additional compensation purely to irritate the man.
Once the gold was recovered, he had certain ideas brewing—and he would definitely make this village chief absolutely furious.
And that murderer had nearly harmed his family. Completely unforgivable!
"Don't worry, I'll provide another ¥5 million. But only after we successfully recover the gold."
Having delivered this ultimatum, a thoroughly terrified Mikami Takeo was practically carried away by Kinoshita Goro.
This Kinoshita Goro... he definitely has his own agenda as well.
Later That Evening
"Ran-neechan, I want to go investigate the watchtower!" Conan's deliberately cute voice drifted from inside the room.
"It's so late already. Let's just forget about it."
Ran wanted to continue caring for her father, and she was genuinely apprehensive about the 'Naval Ghost' legend she'd heard that afternoon.
"But Anya wants to go too!" Conan pointed decisively at Anya.
Anya's mouth dropped open in astonishment.
Me? Want to go?
Anya said that?!
Before Anya could voice her protest, Conan leaned close and whispered conspiratorially, "I'll treat you to roasted peanuts when we get back to Tokyo."
"Anya wants to play games too!"
"Then I'll share some of those game tokens we got from the treasure map hunt with you!"
Instantly, the two children struck a deal.
"In that case, Anya wants to go too!"
"Then I'll escort them. Ran, you stay here to care for Uncle Mouri. Please look after Bond for me as well."
"Alright, thank you so much, Natsukawa-san."
"We're neighbors and friends. It's no trouble at all."
[End of Chapter 12]
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