Chapter 8

In the afternoon, a rain fell over the new Tokyo, and after the rain stopped at dusk, the sunset broke through the overcast sky. However, the atmosphere below the apartment building where the Shinagawa Detective Agency was located was filled with a gloomy and sorrowful mood.

"Mr. Nishimaru, please control your emotions and cooperate with our investigation."

"Please, please find my daughter!"

"Alright, please rest assured, we will do our best to find your daughter."

After finally stabilizing the man's emotional breakdown, the two patrol officers from the Koganecho Police Station heaved a sigh of relief. They exchanged a glance, and one of them cleared his throat and clenched his fist.

"Mr. Nishimaru, please answer the following questions carefully and thoroughly, so we can help find your daughter faster."

In the crowd, Tōnohara looked at Nishimaru Shunsuke, who was sitting on the ground with disheveled hair and a haggard face, and nodded in agreement.

"Your daughter's name?"

"Nishimaru Mili."

"Age?"

"Five... no, wait! Six! She just turned six!"

"Alright, when did she go missing?"

"In the afternoon, the teacher called me and asked if I had picked her up from school, and I said no."

"Have you checked the school's surveillance?"

"There's no footage of my daughter at the school gate, and there's no footage inside the school either. It's as if she disappeared after lunch."

"What time did you notice she was missing?"

"Around one... it should be close to two. Let me check the records, yes, it was two."

One of the patrol officers questioned Nishimaru Shunsuke, while the other recorded the important time points and details.

"Alright, was there anything unusual about your daughter this morning?"

"Unusual? No... no, she went to school as usual this morning."

"Did you take her?"

"Uh, no, I work the night shift and can only get up at noon. Mili is very considerate of me, so she usually takes the school bus by herself in the morning."

"..."

After the general questioning, the two patrol officers exchanged a helpless glance, clearly not having obtained any useful information from Nishimaru Shunsuke.

"One of us can only say, 'Alright, Mr. Nishimaru, the information you provided is very valuable, but we still need to review the school's surveillance footage. Rest assured, we will do our best to find your daughter.'"

Nishimaru Shunsuke seemed to have calmed down from his earlier emotional breakdown, but he still anxiously grabbed the patrol officer's hand, "Please, I beg you! My daughter has a congenital heart disease, please find her as soon as possible, I can't live without her..."

As he spoke, Nishimaru Shunsuke began to sob again.

Congenital heart disease?

Tōnohara frowned when he heard this. Nishimaru Mili usually seemed frail, but the little girl had never mentioned it, and he had never thought she had a serious illness.

As for congenital heart disease, ordinary timely surgery usually improves the condition, but more complex or malformed cases may not respond well to surgery, and there is always a risk of arrhythmia or hypoxia leading to death.

...

After taking the statement, the two patrol officers felt somewhat helpless. Cases like this, with no effective clues, are the hardest to solve.

Recently, Tokyo has had several ongoing missing person cases, and they didn't have much time to waste here. They could only offer a few words of comfort and have Nishimaru Shunsuke sign the statement before leaving.

"We will conduct further investigations. Please keep your communication lines open, and we will contact you as soon as we have any news."

With that, the two patrol officers from Koganecho drove away.

The surrounding tenants, despite Nishimaru Shunsuke not being very well-liked in the building, found his daughter Nishimaru Mili to be very likable. Many of them patted his shoulder to comfort him, and some even said they had already shared the missing person information on their social media.

Nishimaru Shunsuke stood there in a daze for a moment, and when he came to his senses, he hurriedly thanked those who had offered to share the information.

Tōnohara watched him for a moment and quietly stepped back as the crowd dispersed.

Suddenly, someone pushed him from behind.

Tōnohara turned around and saw Shinagawa Satoru, wearing slippers and with messy hair, looking at Nishimaru Shunsuke with a smile.

"This guy... he's lying, right?"

He turned to Tōnohara.

Tōnohara recalled Shinagawa Satoru's mysterious appearance behind him that morning and nodded, "Yes, Mili didn't go to school by herself this morning. He got up very early."

Shinagawa Satoru crossed his arms, rubbed his stubbly chin, and showed a look of interest, "So, why is he hiding it? What do you think?"

Tōnohara knew that Shinagawa Satoru used to work at the Metropolitan Police Department and was even a chief in the Criminal Division.

Later, for some reason, he was dismissed and inherited the family business, opening this detective agency in the apartment building. But he probably still had connections within the police department, otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to get his daughter, Shinagawa Maki, an internship in the Third Investigation Group right after high school graduation.

After some thought, Tōnohara asked Shinagawa Satoru, "Did Mr. Nishimaru pay off his overdue rent today?"

"Uh... yes, he did, at noon. He even paid extra interest," Shinagawa Satoru hesitated for a moment and quickly added, "He said he won some money. What do you mean by that?"

"I don't know."

Tōnohara shook his head with a cold expression.

He never made baseless assumptions about the evil in human nature, but he also wasn't naive enough to believe everyone had a moral底线.

Shinagawa Satoru, on the other hand, was straightforward. After some thought, he took out his phone and made a call.

After a few "hello"s, he laughed and hung up, then smiled at Tōnohara, "I just contacted a friend at the Metropolitan Police Department. He'll drive over, and we'll scare this guy a bit."

Scare him a bit?

Tōnohara didn't expect Shinagawa Satoru to come up with such an unconventional idea and couldn't help but ask, "Is that legal?"

Shinagawa Satoru smacked his lips and said matter-of-factly, "That depends on whose law. In my book, as long as it helps obtain evidence and serves justice, it's not illegal."

He looked up at the sky and said, "Tōnohara, remember, to get things done, you can't always be aboveboard."

No wonder you were dismissed—Tōnohara couldn't help but think sarcastically when he saw Shinagawa Satoru's guru-like demeanor.

But he also wanted to find the little girl who called him "big brother" as soon as possible, so he had to rely on this middle-aged man with connections in the area.

Before long, a police car pulled up to the building, and a young man in his twenties, wearing a police uniform, got out.

On the third floor, at the Shinagawa Detective Agency.

Tōnohara was surprised by the young man's efficiency when he saw him enter.

However, the young man's expression turned sour when he saw Shinagawa Satoru, but he held back from lashing out and then looked at the high school student Tōnohara.

"I didn't expect you to be so quick, don't worry, he's one of us," Shinagawa Satoru, lying in his chair, waved his hand and smiled.

Tōnohara had occasionally helped Shinagawa Satoru with some tasks, so he wasn't really an outsider. Besides, he was very invested in this case, so he smiled and nodded.

"Let me introduce you, this is my former star student, Ato..."

Before Shinagawa Satoru could finish, the young man, Morita Ato, frowned and complained, "Master, please! Let me off! I might get a promotion next year, and if I keep doing these things, what if someone catches me? Do you want me to be a chief like you for the rest of my life?"

Shinagawa Satoru's smile froze, and he scolded, "What are you talking about? I had the potential to be a superintendent! Besides, I only ask you... cough... five, six, seven, eight times a year?"

"Ato, you've changed... when you first joined the team and hugged my leg, calling me 'Master,' you weren't so impatient..."

Faced with Shinagawa Satoru's slickness, Morita Ato was no match and could only sigh in defeat.

"Alright, who is it this time?"

Shinagawa Satoru's expression changed instantly, and he smiled, "Good to see you, my former student. I'm proud of you. Let's go upstairs, it's the resident of 505. Here's the information I just prepared for you."

He typed a few keys, and the printer quickly spat out a few A4 papers with Nishimaru Shunsuke's photo and personal information.

Wow... that fast?

Tōnohara had just seen Shinagawa Satoru lounging behind the computer, thinking he was watching some weird variety show, but he was surprisingly reliable when it mattered.

Morita Ato, resigned to having such a master, took the papers and frowned, "His daughter... went missing today?"

Morita Ato worked in the Criminal Division of the Metropolitan Police Department, mainly dealing with fraud, counterfeit money, and corruption by public officials.

He had never handled a missing person case before.

"Yes, don't worry."

Shinagawa Satoru stood up and led Morita Ato upstairs.

As they walked, he said to Morita Ato, "When you knock on the door, don't say anything. Just accuse him of large-scale fraud, and I've prepared the evidence for you."

"What evidence?"

Tōnohara, following behind, interjected.

"Oh, I just forged it on the spot."

Shinagawa Satoru said without turning around.

"..." Tōnohara.

Was this guy really a detective before?

...

When they reached the fifth floor and stood in front of Nishimaru Shunsuke's door, Shinagawa Satoru and Morita Ato, the master and apprentice, immediately became strangers.

Knock, knock, knock!

Nishimaru Shunsuke's voice came from inside.

"Who is it?"

Outside, Shinagawa Satoru said casually, "Excuse me, Mr. Nishimaru, it's me. A police officer was looking for you downstairs, and I brought him up since I had nothing to do."

"Oh? Alright... please wait a moment."

After a while, the door to 505 opened, and Nishimaru Shunsuke, who seemed to have washed up, looked less haggard than before.

"Is there any news about my daughter?" Nishimaru Shunsuke asked, looking at Morita Ato in the Metropolitan Police Department uniform.

Morita Ato didn't speak but stared sharply at Nishimaru Shunsuke for a while. When Nishimaru Shunsuke's eyes darted away, he finally said, "Mr. Nishimaru, we suspect you of large-scale fraud. Please cooperate with our investigation."

Nishimaru Shunsuke looked up in shock.

"What... what?"

...

The subsequent developments...

Tōnohara could only describe as incredible.

Nishimaru Shunsuke, of course, denied the fraud, but the relentless Morita Ato immediately presented the evidence—large sums of unknown origin had recently flowed into Nishimaru Shunsuke's bank account.

Shinagawa Satoru, standing at the door, added, "Officer, Nishimaru did pay off his overdue rent today, and he's planning to move soon. Ah, not that I'm saying he's a fraudster, I just remembered this, not that Nishimaru is definitely a fraudster!"

In the hallway, Tōnohara was speechless, and Nishimaru Shunsuke, facing off with Morita Ato, became anxious.

At first, he insisted he had won the money through gambling, but under Morita Ato's relentless questioning, he couldn't clearly explain when, where, or how he won it...

A few minutes later, Nishimaru Shunsuke's speech became incoherent, "I... I really am not... Officer, I really didn't commit fraud!"

"That's not up to me to decide, Mr. Nishimaru. From the current situation, you might need to come with us to the Metropolitan Police Department. Our professional colleagues will handle your case, and you can return once you've clarified everything."

As he spoke, Morita Ato took out a pair of handcuffs.

Nishimaru Shunsuke's face changed.

He hesitated for a while, then suddenly decided, "Alright, I'll confess. I... I lied earlier. The money is actually... my daughter's clinical trial fee."

Clinical trial fee?

Morita Ato frowned, and Shinagawa Satoru and Tōnohara exchanged a glance.

"What kind of medicine? How much?" Morita Ato asked.

"My daughter has a congenital heart disease, and they said it was a special medicine for her condition," Nishimaru Shunsuke's eyes darted around, and he said in a low, guilty voice, "The fee is... five million yen."

Hmm... about two years' salary for an average worker. For someone like Nishimaru Shunsuke, who had been in arrears for half a year, it was indeed a significant amount.

Morita Ato's gaze turned cold, "Who introduced you to this person? Didn't you think they might be a fraud? The medicine might be fake?"

Nishimaru Shunsuke was taken aback, seemingly not having considered this, but he defended himself, "No! No, they're not a fraud! A friend from the nightclub introduced me. They're very wealthy and even paid me half the fee in advance. My money came from there. If you don't believe me, I can show you the transfer records. I really didn't commit fraud, Officer!"

As he spoke, he hurriedly took out his phone.

Wealthy people can't be fraudsters?

Tōnohara sighed. It was tragic for Nishimaru Mili to have such a father.

Morita Ato glanced at the transfer records, which showed two transactions, one last night and one this morning, totaling five million yen. It seemed he wasn't lying.

He looked at the panicked Nishimaru Shunsuke with disdain, then turned to Shinagawa Satoru, who nodded in thanks.

Morita Ato patted Nishimaru Shunsuke's shoulder, "Alright, congratulations on clearing the fraud suspicion. I'll be on my way."

Morita Ato was efficient, turning and leaving immediately.

Just... left?

Nishimaru Shunsuke was stunned.

At the door, Shinagawa Satoru leaned against the door frame and asked, "After the clinical trial this morning, did you take your daughter to school, Mr. Nishimaru?"

"Yes, that's right. I even bought her sushi on the way," Nishimaru Shunsuke said quickly.

Shinagawa Satoru glanced at him, "But Mr. Nishimaru, why didn't you mention this to the police when you reported her missing?"

"I... I..."

Nishimaru Shunsuke opened his mouth.

After all, making money from his daughter's clinical trial wasn't something to be proud of... especially since she went missing from school in the afternoon. How could he bring it up?

But people always find reasons for themselves.

Nishimaru Shunsuke stammered, "The clinical trial organization told me it was a gray area and they didn't want to deal with the police. One million yen was a hush money. I thought... it had nothing to do with my daughter's disappearance, so I didn't mention it..."

He added in a low voice, "Those people... they looked very intimidating, and I was afraid of getting into trouble with them..."

"Do you want to find your daughter?" Shinagawa Satoru asked.

"Of course I do," Nishimaru Shunsuke said quickly, his expression anxious and genuine.

Shinagawa Satoru said, "If you really want to, I suggest you contact the police again and report this matter in full. It might be a clue to solving the case."

"Really?" He looked hesitant.

"Don't you want to find your daughter?"

"I... I do!"

Nishimaru Shunsuke hesitated for a moment, then, under Shinagawa Satoru's half-smiling gaze, he suddenly clenched his teeth, "Alright! I'll report it! Anyway, I won't be living here anymore."

As he spoke, he took out his phone.

Soon, the sound of police sirens came from downstairs—the two patrol officers from the Koganecho Police Station had returned after receiving a call.

Nishimaru Shunsuke, uneasy, closed the door and went downstairs.

In the hallway, Tōnohara, pretending to pass by, met Nishimaru Shunsuke's gaze and casually asked, "Mr. Nishimaru, I overheard something... if you don't mind, could you tell me about the special medicine for congenital heart disease? Is it really effective? I have a relative with the same condition back home."

Nishimaru Shunsuke looked at Tōnohara, recognizing him as the high school student who had taken care of his daughter the night before, and nodded.

"It's a plate of peeled oranges. They said it's a fruit-based medicine with a patent from the World Government. The effect... Mili said it was sweet on the way back..."

Oranges?

Why oranges again?

Tōnohara was taken aback.

His mind involuntarily recalled the image he had seen in the analysis of the Tigress girl, Charlotte, which was also a smooth, plump, and vivid orange.

What... is going on here?

...

...

(Thank you very much to Zhuge Wanjun, Zichenxing, Foul Lian, Wei Yu Ai Jin, Qian Hui, and finally, the one who started reading the official version, the one who paces on the bridge, the little bird, and Tan Zong, who really has something, and Xiong Pupu for your support