"Senior Mizunashi," Aki Asano called out.
"Mm." Rena Mizunashi nodded and asked, "Asano, did you get in touch with Mr. Mouri?"
"Yes. This is Mr. Mouri's daughter." Aki Asano gestured toward Ran.
"Heh." Rena Mizunashi smiled and teased, "They say Kurosawa-kun and his girlfriend are inseparable—wherever his girlfriend is, he's there. I wonder if Kurosawa-kun is here too?"
Ran's face turned red as a ripe apple. She quickly said, "Miss Mizunashi, please don't tease me. It's embarrassing."
"All right, all right, I'll stop." Rena Mizunashi raised an eyebrow at Kurosawa Hoshino, then looked at Ai in his arms. Seeing the child's hair color, she immediately thought of the little girl from last time at Kurosawa Hoshino's house—the one who ran away the moment she saw her.
She had noticed earlier when she arrived: the moment this child heard her voice, she ran to Kurosawa Hoshino for protection.
"Why is she so afraid of me?" Rena Mizunashi asked herself. She had never imagined that the child in front of her was once an adult. She even thought back over the past six months—she hadn't carried out any missions for the Black Organization, let alone done anything bad that a child might have witnessed. So Ai's rejection of her made her feel somewhat hurt. She truly couldn't understand what about her this little girl disliked.
"Sigh—" Rena Mizunashi sighed. Since she couldn't figure it out, she decided not to think about it anymore. It was just one child who didn't like her; the other children all liked her, so her problem probably wasn't serious.
"Asano." She looked at Aki Asano and said seriously, "If you have something to say, you can tell Ran directly. She'll relay it to Kurosawa-kun."
Ran smiled. "Miss Mizunashi, Miss Asano already said she wants to invite Hoshino onto the program."
"Ran, it's more than just that." Rena Mizunashi said softly, nodding at Aki Asano.
Aki Asano took a deep breath and was about to speak when her phone rang.
"Sorry, I need to take this." She took out her phone, moved a little away from the group, and answered.
A short while later, she walked back, looking troubled. She said to Ran, "Um, I have something to take care of. Miss Mouri, please don't leave. I'll be back soon." Then she looked at Rena Mizunashi and said apologetically, "Senior Mizunashi, I'm sorry. I may have to ask you to look after them for me."
With that, she hurried off.
Rena Mizunashi watched her back disappear and shook her head helplessly. She said quietly, "She's had it rough too. Just because she reported one news story, she's under so much pressure now."
"Miss Mizunashi, what exactly did Miss Asano want to say to Hoshino?" Ran asked. Conan and the others were also very curious.
Rena Mizunashi didn't answer right away. She just smiled at Kurosawa Hoshino.
"All right, it seems Miss Mizunashi has recognized me," Kurosawa Hoshino said.
"Heh." Rena Mizunashi chuckled, then her expression turned serious. She glanced at the other people passing through the lobby and lowered her voice. "Actually, after Asano reported a story about a politician's misconduct last time, she's been receiving threats. So she wanted to find you, Kurosawa-kun—not just to invite you on the program, but also to ask for your help in finding out who's behind it."
Hearing this, Ran and the others were very surprised. They hadn't expected that just reporting a politician's news would lead to threats.
"I have a bad feeling about this." Kurosawa Hoshino gently stroked Ai's back and spoke slowly. "That phone call Miss Asano just took made me very uncomfortable. I think something might happen to her."
He had already felt the flags were stacked high, and then suddenly there was a phone call, Aki Asano left abruptly, and told them to wait. He didn't need to guess—Aki Asano probably wouldn't be coming back, and the person threatening her was clearly Kazumi Tsukumo, the one who was hostile to her.
"Oh no!" Kurosawa Hoshino's words made both Ran and Conan cry out in alarm.
Rena Mizunashi was startled and asked, confused, "What's wrong?"
Ran explained, "Miss Mizunashi, you might not know, but Hoshino's intuition and premonitions are extremely accurate. He says that when he solves cases, he relies on these feelings, and he's never been wrong."
Rena Mizunashi's eyes widened. She looked at Kurosawa Hoshino in surprise, not expecting him to have such an ability. At the same time, it dawned on her—no wonder Kurosawa Hoshino's deductions were so fast and accurate. It wasn't just that he had the mind of a murderer; he also had this ability.
"This is bad." At that thought, Rena Mizunashi turned to look in the direction Aki Asano had gone and frowned. "She's gone. Where do we look?"
"Follow me. If she hasn't gone far, I might be able to catch up to her by intuition."
After saying that, Kurosawa Hoshino bounced Ai up in his arms and walked in the direction Aki Asano had left, activating his "Scene Replay" superpower.
Ayumi, Genta, and Mitsuhiko were quite excited, feeling they were witnessing something amazing and had to see it for themselves.
As Conan walked, he thought, Really? Intuition can be used to locate people?
Of course, Kurosawa Hoshino didn't know what Conan was thinking. If he did, he'd probably say, In the later seasons and movies, you guys have even more ridiculous feats. Mine is nothing.
Rena Mizunashi, skeptical, silently followed Kurosawa Hoshino.
And then they saw it. Kurosawa Hoshino turned left and right through Nichiuri TV, and at every fork, he chose a direction with absolute certainty. Gradually, there were fewer and fewer people around, and the area became more and more remote.
Rena Mizunashi glanced at the end of the corridor and said quietly, "Inside is the large prop warehouse. Would Asano come here for no reason?"
Without turning his head, Kurosawa Hoshino said, "I think it's very likely. Besides, Miss Asano left after receiving a phone call. Someone probably asked her to meet here."
Finally, they reached their destination. In front of them was a half-open rolling shutter door.
Just then, a "Help!" came from inside, then cut off abruptly. Rena Mizunashi's expression changed. Without a word, she rushed in, and Conan quickly followed.
"Wait, let's not go in yet." Kurosawa Hoshino stopped Ran, who was about to follow.
Before Ran could ask why, a scream came from inside.
"All right, let's go in now."
Hearing the commotion, Kurosawa Hoshino ruffled Ai's hair and strode inside. With Rena Mizunashi—a woman with a distillery codename—inside, the person in there had probably already been dealt with easily. That was why he only entered after hearing the noise.
Sure enough, just as he thought: a figure in a ski mask was lying on the ground, and Rena Mizunashi stood beside them completely unharmed. At the same time, they saw Aki Asano sitting on the floor, gasping for breath, still shaken.
"Wow, Brother Hoshino is amazing! You really found Miss Asano!" Ayumi, ever the one to appreciate others, looked at Kurosawa Hoshino with admiration.
Mitsuhiko and Genta nodded vigorously, their eyes filled with both admiration and envy—probably wishing they had that ability too.
Even Ai was somewhat surprised. She hadn't expected Kurosawa Hoshino's intuition, or sixth sense, to be this strong.