Night had fallen over Beika City.
Neon lights flickered above quiet streets.
Inside the Mouri Detective Agency, the usual chaos had returned.
Kogoro Mouri was already celebrating the solved case with beer.
"Hahaha! Did you see Inspector Megure's face when I explained the trick?!"
Across the room, Ran Mori crossed her arms.
"You didn't explain anything, Dad."
Kogoro ignored her.
At the small table near the window sat Conan Edogawa, pretending to read a comic.
But his eyes weren't on the pages.
His thoughts were somewhere else.
Haruki Akizawa.
That name kept repeating in his head.
During the case earlier, Haruki had solved the key points quickly and logically.
Almost exactly the way Shinichi himself would have done it.
Conan tapped his pencil lightly.
"Who is that guy?"
Meanwhile.
Across town.
Haruki Akizawa sat quietly inside a small café.
Steam rose from a cup of black coffee.
Tokyo moved calmly outside the window.
But inside Haruki's mind—
A different calculation was happening.
He opened his system interface.
[ STATUS ]
Name: Haruki Akizawa
IQ: 138
Observation: 97
Deduction: 91
Psychology: 81
Memory: 90
Skills:
Observation Boost (Lv1)
Skill Fragments:
Micro Expression Analysis (2/3)
Items:
Micro Camera Lens
Evidence Scanner Lens
Relationships:
Ran Mori — Friendly
Conan Edogawa — Curious observer
Haruki reviewed the information.
"Two fragments left for Micro Expression Analysis."
Once completed, that ability would allow him to read subtle facial movements more accurately.
A powerful skill for interrogations.
But something else bothered him.
The system had gone quiet.
No new missions.
Which usually meant—
Something unpredictable was approaching.
Haruki sipped his coffee.
Then suddenly—
DING
[ SYSTEM ALERT ]
Threat Probability Analysis Activated
Unknown Observation Detected
Haruki's eyes narrowed slightly.
A second screen appeared.
[ PROBABILITY ENGINE ]
Possible hostile surveillance detected.
Observation Source Probabilities:
Unknown civilian: 21%
Local police interest: 9%
Criminal organization: 70%
Haruki slowly placed the cup down.
Seventy percent.
His mind instantly connected the most dangerous possibility.
Black Organization.
He replayed the events at Tropical Land.
He had been close.
Too close.
And Gin had briefly scanned the area.
Haruki thought calmly.
"So they might have noticed me."
That was dangerous.
Extremely dangerous.
Most people who caught the attention of the Black Organization did not live long.
But panic would achieve nothing.
Haruki began analyzing possible responses.
Option 1: Disappear.
But that would make him suspicious.
Option 2: Act normal.
Safer.
But risky.
Option 3: Control the information they receive.
Best option.
Haruki adjusted his glasses.
"If they investigate me…"
"They should find nothing unusual."
He would need a normal routine.
University.
Part-time job.
Occasional presence near the Mouri Detective Agency.
Nothing extraordinary.
Just another intelligent civilian.
The best disguise…
Was normality.
At that moment—
Inside a dark bar on the other side of Tokyo.
Two figures sat in silence.
Gin stared at a photograph.
Across from him sat Vodka.
Vodka spoke quietly.
"We checked the background."
Gin didn't look up.
"And?"
Vodka shrugged.
"Name: Haruki Akizawa."
Gin exhaled smoke slowly.
"A student?"
Vodka nodded.
"Tokyo university."
Gin's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Too clean."
Vodka looked confused.
"What do you mean?"
Gin leaned back.
"Anyone standing near us that night… isn't just a coincidence."
Vodka frowned.
"So what do we do?"
Gin crushed his cigarette into the ashtray.
"Watch him."
Back at the café.
Haruki finished his coffee.
His thoughts were already several steps ahead.
The Black Organization watching him wasn't ideal.
But—
It was also an opportunity.
Knowing the enemy existed…
Was better than ignorance.
Haruki stood and left the café.
The cool night air brushed his face.
Tokyo lights shimmered across the street.
Somewhere nearby—
Someone might already be watching him.
But Haruki walked calmly.
Like an ordinary student returning home.
Inside his mind, strategies continued forming.
One step at a time.
One deduction at a time.
The next morning.
Inside Teitan Elementary School.
A certain newly enrolled student sat at his desk.
Conan Edogawa.
His classmates chatted happily around him.
Ayumi Yoshida,
Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya,
and Genta Kojima.
But Conan wasn't paying attention.
His mind was somewhere else.
"Haruki Akizawa…"
A detective's instincts told him something important.
That man would appear again.
And when he did—
Conan wanted to be ready.
Meanwhile.
Across town.
Haruki walked toward his university campus.
Completely unaware—
That two different forces were now watching him.
One.
A child detective determined to understand him.
And the other…
The most dangerous criminal organization in Japan.
End of Chapter 8