### Chapter 101: Is Frozen Fish Also a Sword?

"However, flashbangs are truly a nuisance."

Fujino squinted as a wave of dizziness swept through his head. After taking a deep breath, the dizziness gradually faded.

He then began to examine the letter from Kaitou Kuroba that had been 'shot' to him:

**April 19th, I will take the genuine Black Star from the Seryushin Maru leaving Yokohama—Kaitou Kuroba**

"April 19th, huh?" Fujino glanced at the date on the letter and furrowed his brow.

To be honest, he wasn't quite sure which day April 19th was. It could be tomorrow, the day after, or even the day after that.

The timeline in the world of Detective Conan, though he had become accustomed to it, still left him feeling perplexed.

*Ding-ding-ding!*

At that moment, a loud bell rang out.

Fujino looked in the direction of the sound and saw a large, ancient clock tower.

If he wasn't mistaken, that clock tower was where Kaitou Kuroba's complicated relationship with Shinichi Kudo had begun, right?

Retracting his gaze, he pulled out his phone.

The time on his phone displayed that today was April 1st.

"Looks like sometimes, like during consecutive events, the timeline is normal?" Fujino murmured as he looked at today's date on his phone.

He then turned his attention to the system interface, which indicated: **[Swordsman Soldier Skill Effect Triggered]**

Looking at the triggered skill effect, Fujino couldn't help but comment with a strange expression, "So, is a frozen fish considered a sword or blade weapon too?"

Indeed, the system had classified the frozen fish as a sword weapon.

The frozen fish Fujino was holding had cost him 10,000 yen—9,000 yen after discounts—when he passed by the seafood market earlier in the afternoon.

The moment he touched the frozen fish, the Swordsman Soldier's skill had activated.

To be honest, Fujino didn't understand how this worked.

A frozen fish as a sword?

But since the system said it was, then it must be.

Even Kaitou Kuroba, who claimed to be a magician, was out there.

Fujino had already lost the will to question this world of Detective Conan.

He then stored the frozen fish in his personal space and drove towards the Cup House Hotel with the letter.

---

"Did Kaitou Kuroba really get repelled by you?"

At the entrance of the Cup House Hotel, Nakayama Ginzo, dressed in a gray suit and resembling Kogoro Mouri, examined the letter from Kuroba and looked at Fujino with a puzzled expression.

"Yes," Fujino confirmed, while his gaze wandered over Nakayama. If he remembered correctly, this Nakayama Ginzo was the father of Nakayama Aoko, whom he had met yesterday.

"How did you know that Kaitou Kuroba would be at Tokyo Tower…" Nakayama Ginzo eyed Fujino suspiciously. "Are you pretending to be Kaitou Kuroba?"

"These are merely conclusions drawn from my reasoning," Fujino explained calmly. "Kaitou Kuroba would need a landing point before appearing on the Cup House Hotel rooftop at midnight. The closest point from which he could glide to the rooftop quickly would be Tokyo Tower."

"I see!" Nakayama Ginzo suddenly understood. "If that's the case, then if Kaitou Kuroba wanted to reach the Cup House Hotel rooftop, he would have to go to Tokyo Tower first… How did I not think of that?!"

"If that's the case, then you could use this idea to catch Kaitou Kuroba off guard in the future!"

Realizing this, Nakayama Ginzo looked as if he had discovered a new continent. He furrowed his brow and asked Fujino, "By the way, to deduce all this… You must be a detective, right?"

"Yes," Fujino nodded. "My name is Fujino Tomoji, and I am a detective."

"Fujino Tomoji, huh?" Nakayama Ginzo rubbed his chin and, after a moment, suddenly recalled something. "Aren't you the Fujino that Meguire often mentions?"

"That would be me," Fujino said with a light smile. "Actually, I've also seen you, Inspector Nakayama, in the newspapers. To me, you seem like a natural adversary for Kaitou Kuroba…"

"Oh, flattery!" Nakayama Ginzo was pleased with Fujino's compliment. "You, Fujino-kun, are the impressive one. To repel Kaitou Kuroba on your first encounter is quite remarkable."

Given the example of the previous failed high school detective, Nakayama Ginzo's attitude towards high school detectives wasn't very positive.

However, a detective who understood his hardships and helped capture Kaitou Kuroba was different.

That was a brother!

"Inspector Nakayama, what should we do with this child?" At that moment, a man's voice came from behind.

Both turned around to see an officer in plain clothes holding a small student, who was no taller than his thighs.

"Conan?" Fujino recognized the student immediately.

It was none other than Conan, who had just sneaked out of the Mouri house.

"Fujino?" Hearing the familiar voice, Conan looked up and saw the familiar figure. 

As if grasping at a lifeline, Conan, in a childish voice, exclaimed, "Fujino, what are you doing here?!"

Originally, Conan intended to catch the thief known as Kaitou 1412. However, he had not only failed to catch the thief but had also been captured by the police.

If the police took him home like this, he would definitely be in for a scolding from Ran.

"You know this kid?" Nakayama Ginzo asked, puzzled.

"This child is Conan, who stays next to my detective agency," Fujino explained.

"Since you know him, could you please take him home, Fujino-kun?"

---

On the way home with Conan.

"Fujino, did you already know the content of the letter?" In the backseat of the Ford Taurus, Conan, who had just escaped danger, asked Fujino, his glasses seeming to gleam with an unusual light.

Fujino looked up and met Conan's scrutinizing gaze in the rearview mirror, narrowing his eyes slightly.

"I figured it out."

"Then why didn't you tell the police?"

"And what would telling them have changed?" Fujino snorted lightly. "Even if I told the police, they might not have caught Kaitou Kuroba. Besides, Kaitou Kuroba didn't actually intend to steal the Black Star this time."

"Didn't intend to steal the Black Star?"

Fujino nodded. "In fact, Kaitou Kuroba had already figured out that the Black Star on display at the Miha Museum was a fake."

Conan frowned, feeling something was off. "A fake?"

"The Black Star is a black pearl collected by the Suzuki family decades ago. Didn't you notice that?" Fujino explained.

"Is that so?" Conan suddenly realized.

How could he have overlooked that? Over time, the Black Star should have faded and couldn't possibly shine like the displayed one.

In other words, the displayed Black Star was entirely a fake.

Thinking of this, Conan suddenly felt a sense of déjà vu.

This felt a lot like how he often gave hints to Kogoro Mouri!

Oh no, he had become a stand-in!

"But speaking of which, Conan-kun," Fujino suddenly smiled. "You're out so late. Does Ran know about this?"

"Ah?" Conan looked up at Fujino, his mouth twitching.

Fujino's expression seemed familiar. 

Oh no, was he having one of those moments again?!

*(End of Chapter)*