Fifth Murder Investigation

Nekomaru helped me to my feet, and I steadied myself on his shoulder. I yawned deeply, trying to get rid of the grogginess. Nekomaru did not say anything; he just stood there and looked at me, presumably to make sure I was ok.

Monorakun was standing on his hind legs, in front of Jack and Hiyoko. He looked over at me, then at Rantaro.

"Alright, Shishano's conscious, NOW can we have the Monorakun File, you stupid metal furbag?" Hiyoko nearly spat at Monorakun.

I looked at Sakura, quizzically.

"Monorakun would not give us the Monorakun File because you were not dead, but were not conscious yet either," Sakura explained. "I had to take that Nitrous Oxide tank off of you to wake you up."

So that's what knocked me out. I made a mental note of this.

Monorakun, meanwhile, replied. "Yes, NOW you can have the Monorakun File, Grandma's Girl!"

I heard my E-Handbook go off, but did not immediately see it. Sakura walked over to the biceps machine and picked it up, then headed my way to deliver it to me. Opening it, I found the Monorakun File.

"Victim: Kyoko Kirigiri. Cause of Death: Acupuncture Gone Wrong. Secondary injury also present on the victim's throat; serious, but not fatal. No other notable injuries reported."

I blinked hard. I am actually sensitive to Nitrous Oxide, and it leaves me drowsy for a while afterwards. I needed to stay awake, however.

Rantaro spoke. "Ok, so who's gonna do what this time? There's only 7 of us left now, so I don't think having two of us on guard duty is gonna work anymore."

"Kehehehehe...an astute observation, Rantaro. I believe you are correct. I recognize that device poor Shishano was strapped to; I believe it came from the Chemistry Room. I would suggest someone examine it, while myself and another head to the Chemistry Room. Perhaps you, Hiyoko?" Korekiyo asked.

"Seriously? That's not gonna happen 'cause you're a weirdo. You're not taking me anywhere alone, Mr. Mummy!" Hiyoko snarkily replied.

"Ah, c'mon Korekiyo, I'll chase your ass around the Chemistry Room for a while! Kyeehahahahahaha! Now move your ass!" Jack Syo cackled as she ran at Korekiyo. Korekiyo, unfazed, actually turned his back on Jack Syo and calmly walked out of the room, with her yapping his ears off.

"I'll handle guard duty," Nekomaru volunteered. "Shishano, you can handle Kyoko for us."

I stood up and took several steps, but suddenly felt dizzy and went down to one knee, shaking my head. "I...cannot. Not yet. Sensitive to...Nitrous Oxide. I...am sorry."

A hush fell over the room. Everyone remaining seemed to be glancing at one another, then back at Kyoko, then at me, then at each other again.

It seemed I would have to make the decision for them. "Sakura?"

"Yes, Shishano?"

"I trust you...to examine Kyoko's injuries. Until...this fog in my..." I yawned again. "Mind passes. I will take...over...when I can. Please?"

Sakura's face hardened, but she gave a slight nod. "I shall do my best. Having seen more than my fair share of combat, perhaps I may be the next best suited for this task. Please, let me know when you have recovered, Shishano. I shall do my best for you, at the meanwhile."

Everyone departed, except for Sakura, Nekomaru, Monorakun, and myself. Still trying to shake the cobwebs out, my eyes landed on a blood spray on the back wall, over the Gym Mat.

To me, it looked to be about 5 feet off the ground, and made from a small distance away. Not right up against the wall, but close to it.

"You ok over there?!" A male voice called out. Nekomaru, no doubt.

I turned around, feeling a little better after moving around. "Yes, thank you. Just noticing this blood splatter...Sakura, what are you doing?!"

Sakura had lifted Kyoko up off the weightlifting bench, under her arms, and was standing her on her feet. She then freed one hand, making an opened fist, and gently hovered it over my heel blades, making slow, mock overhand stabbing motions at different hand heights. Once she made a few motions that lined up with each handle, she nodded to herself, then gently laid Kyoko back down on the bench.

"Merely conducting a field test, if you will. I will explain at the Class Trial. Are you feeling better now?"

I nodded. "Yes, I...Huh? What's that?"

Some kind of glass tube, near where I was unconscious, was catching the overhead light. Walking back to it, it appeared to be an all-glass syringe, filled with a clear liquid. Even the needle was made of glass, and seemed very sharp.

Curious, I picked it up. The needle's contents were clear, and had no smell to it. I was not in any condition to examine its contents, however. Nekomaru or Sakura would have to.

"Guys? What is in this syringe? I think this could be important."

Nekomaru walked over to me, as Sakura was still looking over Kyoko. I handed Nekomaru the syringe carefully. He looked it over, and shook his head.

"Beats me. I should take this to the Chemistry Room and have the contents examined. Will you and Sakura be ok in here?"

Sakura and I exchanged glances, then nodded. Nekomaru made haste to the Chemistry Room. Monorakun, who had remained silent up to this point, scurried out the door with Nekomaru.

Feeling much better now, I asked Sakura if I could take over for her on examining the body, so she could check the room for other clues. She accepted, but refused to tell me anything of her discoveries. "I do not wish to taint your own investigation", she claimed.

Very well, then. My head feeling pretty much back to normal, I decided to start with the obvious; my heel blades in Kyoko's body. I pulled the blade out of her chest, and carefully took off her jacket and blouse, so I could better examine the puncture wound. It was done pre-mortum, meaning she was still alive when she was stabbed. However, the blade appeared to miss any major arteries, as well as her lung. While undoubtedly painful, this stab wound did not kill Kyoko, but such an injury would greatly incapacitate her.

As for the blade in Kyoko's throat, there were actually TWO injuries; a slash across her throat, and the stab itself. Both had also been done pre-mortum, and the stab appeared to be the killing blow. I noticed blood around Kyoko's lips and chin, likely coughed up while Kyoko struggled to breath in vain.

The slash appeared to be a failed attempt to slit Kyoko's throat from behind; it was in the right spot, but not deep enough to do more than break skin. Fortunately for Kyoko, my heel blades were not meant for slicing, but for stabbing.

The stab wound however, was another story. It pierced through her esophagus and trachea, causing fatal injuries. Kyoko would have been choking on her own blood, and would likely have died even faster if the blade was removed. However, from what I could tell, the blade in Kyoko's throat was never removed while she was alive, as there would have been much more blood around the room.

This struck me as odd, but judging from the skin and muscles around each injury, the slash across the throat happened first, then the stab in Kyoko's chest, and finally the stab in Kyoko's throat. Perhaps her murderer did not see the point in removing the blades at that point, or was too worn out to be bothered with it. I did not care to consider those options.

I noticed two large bruises on Kyoko's stomach. While not fatal injuries, it appeared that Kyoko had fought with whoever killed her, as these were common injuries to be seen in fights. Whether a fist or a knee, I was not certain. There was another bruise in the small of Kyoko's back, about the same size as the ones on her stomach.

I carefully removed Kyoko's boots and skirt and examined her feet and legs. While I saw nothing notable around her feet (likely due to the boots she wore), I did notice a slight scrape on Kyoko's right knee. It seemed likely she used her knee to strike something, and scored a hit on whatever she drove her knee into. This scrape was on the hardest part of the kneecap when I bent Kyoko's right leg; this seemed to further prove that Kyoko fought with someone. I noticed nothing else notable on Kyoko's legs.

I moved back up Kyoko's body and examined her head. I noticed a small bruise on the top of Kyoko's forehead, a common injury seen when the victim headbutts their assailant. From the size of the injury, I would guess Kyoko struck either her attacker's mouth or nose.

Examining Kyoko's arms revealed little, except for another small bruise on Kyoko's right elbow. It appeared to be a self-defensive wound, but not a major one.

Finally, I took off Kyoko's gloves, but I was not prepared for what was beneath them.

Kyoko's hands were horribly scarred and burned, and these looked like very old injuries. Perhaps this was why she never took off her gloves. However, upon examination, there were no other injuries, so out of respect, I put Kyoko's gloves back on her.

Noticing no other injuries on Kyoko's body, I decided my investigation of Kyoko was finished, and I redressed Kyoko properly.

I then turned to Sakura, who was examining the barbells. "Ok, I am finished. Do you want to discuss-"

Monorakun's face appeared on the monitor. "Alright, everyone seems to be done investigating all the evidence they've found. Time to move it to the Courtroom, for the Class Trial! Oh, and try not to look too glum, boys and girls. I've got a lovely wager waiting for you all!"

Sakura wordlessly walked with me out of the Equipment Room, heading with me towards the Courtroom. We met up with Hiyoko and Jack Syo on the stairwell going down to the First Floor.

Korekiyo, Nekomaru, and Rantaro met up with us later, and as usual, the fountain dried itself up and slid backwards, revealing the staircase leading to the Courtroom. Silently, we all descended.

At one point, there were 16 of us. Now, only 7 remain, and at least one more of us would die at the end of this Class Trial. That person would be the one that murdered Kyoko Kirigiri, the Ultimate Detective.

But so many questions ran through my mind as I walked down the staircase with everyone else. Who attacked me? What was in that syringe near where I woke up? Why was Kyoko killed in the same room with me?

And...I shuddered at the next thought that passed through my head. Did Kyoko Kirigiri, somehow, know that someone was going to attack me today? Was she planning on trying to stop this plan, somehow?

Did Kyoko end up sacrificing her life, trying to save me?