"Wow, that's amazing!"
"His face hasn't changed much, but..."
"Seriously!"
As the scanner rose and Hayashi Yoshiki stepped out of the machine, he saw several girls gathered around a printout, marveling over it.
They glanced back and forth between the photo and him—clearly comparing.
"What's going on?"Yoshiki asked with a light smile.
Ran grinned and handed him the photo.
"Here, Brother Yoshiki—look!"
He raised his eyebrows as he took it.
The face in the picture hadn't changed much—just a touch older, a bit sharper around the jawline, the eyes calmer and more knowing. But the most noticeable change was his hairstyle—pulled back neatly, with a certain elegance and power.
The smile remained… but somehow, it looked more dangerous.
Yoshiki gave a soft chuckle.
"Interesting... It gave me a good reference. I'll try this hairstyle sometime."
Despite the refined look in the photo, the real Yoshiki still gave off warmth and polish.
"You look a little different, but I like it."Ran smiled.
"Yeah! You look cool!"Sonoko chimed in cheerfully.
The two girls then eagerly lined up to try the machine themselves.
As their scans printed out to general acclaim, Yoshiki tucked his own photo away.
Just then, Tokiwa Mio's secretary approached, informing the group they were invited to the banquet hall on the 75th floor.
The sightseeing elevator, built along the tower's outer wall, whooshed upward, offering a stunning panorama.
While Mōri Kogorō was reminiscing with his old college flame, Yoshiki leaned closer to the window—his eyes settling on Mount Fuji, majestic in the evening haze.
But his thoughts were elsewhere.
The Tokiwa Group controls much of Japan's software and hardware markets…
That meant one thing:
Noah's Ark—the artificial intelligence rumored to soon make waves—was almost certainly backed by Tokiwa.
The sheer power needed to house that AI—along with the development of the virtual world Cocoon—couldn't come out of nowhere. The pieces were falling into place.
Buzz—
Yoshiki's phone vibrated softly in his pocket.
He cast a quick glance at Conan, who was distracted with the others, before pulling out his black burner phone.
Vermouth:"What a cruel man you are! You didn't seriously want to kill me after that, did you?"
Yoshiki smirked and typed back:
Cointreau:"Of course not. After all... isn't there a clear rule against killing fellow members in the Organization?"
On the other end, Vermouth chuckled coldly at the message.
"What a clear prohibition against killing companions…"
That was rich, coming from him.
The man she'd called to help carry her shopping that day? He'd died shortly afterward in a freak accident—a falling air conditioner, of all things.
It hadn't been subtle.
That message was as clear as a knife to the throat: "I could have killed you."
And what did Gin say?
Nothing. As far as he was concerned, the loss of one peripheral was no issue—he even seemed impressed that Cointreau had shown enough restraint not to kill her outright.
If Vermouth had made a fuss, Gin would've dismissed it with one line:
"Cointreau probably didn't know he was one of us."
Back in the tower, two maintenance workers came out from the staircase, chatting:
"Man, I can't believe we saw that car."
"Which one was it again?"
"A black Porsche 356A. Real classic."
Conan, who had been casually listening nearby, froze.
He suddenly spun around and rushed up to the men.
"Excuse me! Where did you see that car? What color was it again?"His voice was urgent.
"It's parked just outside this building. All black."
Conan's face drained of color.
Without hesitation, he darted toward the elevator.
"Conan?!"Ran called out, startled—but he was gone before she could follow.
Haibara Ai stared after him, her expression tense.
Yoshiki stepped beside her and spoke quietly:
"Don't worry. Their target isn't you... or Conan."
She glanced up at him.
"Then who are they after?"
"That... I can't say."
He smiled.
But his gaze shifted subtly—landing on Hara Yoshiaki.
He had his suspicions. If Hara had tried to blackmail or expose the Organization, someone like Gin would want confirmation that he wasn't acting under someone else's orders.
Letting him walk around was a kind of bait.
No need to get involved—for now.
Besides, if they were already willing to use Hara as a decoy, the data he'd stolen probably wasn't of major importance.
What mattered was something else:Any link to Noah's Ark.
"Jun..."Haibara opened her mouth, then hesitated.
As a few other kids approached, she changed her wording.
"Yo... Yoshiki—Brother."
"What was that?"Yoshiki crouched down.
"What did you call me just now?"His voice was teasing, but warm.
He stared at her directly, tilting his head just enough to keep eye level—like someone gently coaxing a shy kitten into conversation.
Haibara Ai suddenly looked away.
Her expression grew subtly embarrassed, and she mumbled:
"Hayashi Yoshiki."
"Tsk, tsk—nope, that won't do."
"Ai!"Ayumi marched up, hands on her hips."You're being rude! You should call him Brother Yoshiki!"
"Ayumi is right."
"Ehehe!"Ayumi beamed at the praise.
"And when Ai-chan talks about him to us, she always says 'Yoshiki-oniisan,' you know!"
"...Is that so?"Yoshiki blinked, surprised.
Haibara Ai showed no reaction... but her ears were a little red.
Why is this so embarrassing...?
Mitsuhiko, standing nearby, frowned as he watched the two girls chatting with Yoshiki.
He tugged at Ran's sleeve.
"Ran-neechan, can I ask you something? Could we... talk in private later?"
"Of course."She smiled kindly, not quite sure what was going on—but touched by his sincerity.