"Hey! C'mon Akutagawa, aren't you supposed to be the mafias dog? What happened to our ravenous canine?" Laughed a man, his image blurred by the tears once used to lubricate the ravenettes eyes.
"I understand that you're stressed about that fight with that rich blond prick awhile back, and i know you stayed up all night looking for information about Higuchis disappearance... but it's three in the afternoon. Your back must be hurting by now."
Ryunosuke blinked a few times, allowing him to clearly see the man in front of him.
Chuuya Nakahara. The ginger renowned for his astounding height of 5'3 at the ripe age of twenty two, and his horrible ability to control his anger induced outbursts.
Ryunosuke sighed, lifting his head from his arms. He was sitting at his desk, papers surrounding him like soft wisps of snow. Among the paper was a foreign object to his desk, a laptop, the reflective black screen showing him how dark his eye bags have become.
He rubbed his eyes and stretched, the sound of his back cracking as he turned from side to side filled the silent area, making Chuuya cringe.
I must've fallen asleep here last night. Ryunosuke thought to himself, remembering how hard he had to fight to keep his eyes open, all while he tried to absorb the little amount of information they had on Higuchis disappearance.
Chuuya sighed and pulled an empty chair up to his colleagues desk, sitting down with his legs crossed.
"Did you have that dream again?" Chuuya knew the ravenette well enough by now, and he knew that when Ryunosuke was anxious, he had nightmares about the fateful night his family was murdered.
The mans bright blue eyes reflected genuine concern, understanding full well how he felt.
"More like nightmarish recollection." Ryunosuke murmured in response, albeit tiredly.
The red haired man grabbed a flask from a pocket within his coat, his name lovingly engraved upon the metals lustrous surface. Ryunosuke recognized the metal flask as a gift given to Chuuya from the brunette that used to mentor Ryunosuke. It was the last thing he had given the ginger before leaving, and never coming back.
"I'm surprised that thing still has alcohol in it, it is past three after all." Ryunosuke rested his head upon his hand, looking quite smug after his comment.
In response, Chuuya took a swig, trying not to make it obvious that he had filled it up a few times that day.
Soon after, Ryunosuke shifted with unease, wondering why the man was still lingering around.
"Why are you still here Nakahara-san? I'm awake, was that not what you came here to accomplish?" Ryunosuke raised an eyebrow, perplexed by the mans behavior.
Chuuya scoffed lightly, "How'd you manage to be rude yet formal? I've told you that you can call me Chuuya. Y'know I'm not one for formalities." Chuuya smiled, removing his fedora and placing it on his lap, allowing the afternoon sun to highlight his features. Freckles dusted his cheeks and traveled up the bridge of his nose, a few lone specks spread out on his forehead.
He pushed his ginger hair back with his fingers, letting each strand sit in a better position to both frame his face and to remove the dent his hat had left behind. With that, he was ready to continue. "Though to answer your question, I'm going to attempt to comfort you, since you obviously need it. I'm just preparing myself with some red wine."
"I don't 'need' comfort." Ryunosuke retorted.
"As blunt as ever Ryunosuke. At least that hasn't changed." Chuuya sighed in return.
"I would much prefer Akutagawa if you please."
"Yes sir!" The ginger mocked before taking another sip of his wine.
"Please don't patronize me..." Akutagawa uttered, turning back to his desk to organize loose papers.
"Plus, the more time you spend 'comforting' me, the more time we both lose in finding Higuchi." Akutagawa exclaimed sternly, stacking the papers he had gathered and subsequently tapping the bottom of the stack on the table to line them up.
He himself was not aware of how much he cared for the blonde woman, given how he ignored her most of the time.
"Akutagawa, Higuchi's a capable woman. Stubborn too. She can hold out." Chuuya countered, his tone wobbly.
"It's hard to believe someone when they don't believe themselves." Akutagawa expressed in his usual monotone voice, and obvious comment on the gingers confidence in his own words. Chuuyas wobbly tone of voice was what gave it away.
Chuuya had to think about his answer, something to say about Akutagawas pessimistic point of view. However, his mind felt empty and unable to create a legitimate way to reassure Akutagawa without being shot down.
The pages within Akutagawas hand crinkled with the pressure of his grasp, the silence was deafening, sounding the alarm bells in his head telling him to either say something or make a run for it.
"Higuchi is a nuisance, and her one-sided crush on me can be extremely annoying, but she is a capable and respectable woman. It is true that she is highly skilled with her firearms," Akutagawa began, his expression changing from discomfort to helplessness as he paused. "She isn't an ability user like you and i. Against several criminals, she could easily take them all out with copper casings to spare. Though without her guns..." Akutagawa trailed off, he could see that Chuuya got the point, and was contemplating something with his brows furrowed.
"Dosen't she always carry a gun though?" Chuuya placed his fedora back onto his head as he watched Akutagawa stand to his feet.
Chuuya pushed the chair he had been sitting in back to its proper spot, following Akutagawa as he ambled past all the vacant desks.
"She very much could, i wouldn't know. I never really payed attention to that detail." Akutagawa answered when chuuya began to walk along side him.
"Well, if she had her gun with her at the time, she prolly would've been here. At work. Maybe she didn't feel threatened at the time? Plus, videos taken from the shops nearby would've picked up the sounds of gunfire..." the ginger rambled, his rough voice ricocheting off the dark walls and down the dim hall to be swallowed by the shadows.
"If this theory of yours was true," the ravenette started, being interrupted by a cough that seemed to be a perpetual thing that followed him subsequent to his time in the slums. "We may be dealing with someone, or perhaps even a group of people who have been trained in the art of manipulation and they could have been watching Higuchi for some time to have figured out where she would go and where to ambush her properly. "
"Who would want Higuchi though? And why?" The ginger sighed, rubbing his temples.
Akutagawa shrugged in return.
"I'll do some more digging around then, while i do that, you should go see Gin in the lounge. They asked me to come get you in the first place. Something about not eating?" Chuuya looked up at the ravenette with an eyebrow raised.
Akutagawa pursed his lips, looking away with a nod. He covered his mouth with his hand and cleared his throat before handing chuuya the stack of papers he had been holding.
"Could you please photo copy these and hand them off to Hirotsu-san and Tachihara-kun? And could you lay the originals on my desk afterwards?" Akutagawa asked, looking down at the older man.
"What am i? Your dog?" Chuuya growled, snatching the papers from the ravenette.
"Well, you are as small as one." Akutagawa grinned, jabbing at the gingers height.
The vein in the mans forehead grew bigger as he frowned. "If these papers weren't important, they'd be in shreds right now!" Chuuya shouted, flipping off the ravenette before pushing past him.
"Good dog!" Akutagawa yelled after him, smiling as he moved to the side to dodge a vase that was being thrown at him using Chuuyas gravity defying skill.
The ravenette heard the vase shatter behind him, but quickly walked off before he was associated with the mess.
Akutagawa sauntered into the somewhat welcoming lounge room. As dark as it was, it had its own type of charm, something about the rooms atmosphere was soothing. To an extent.
A violent cough erupted from his lungs, directing everyones undesirable attention to him. He covered his mouth as he walked through the lounge, avoiding eye contact with some members, while others looked away with intimidation.
Near the back wall of the lounge was a ragged couch that had grown wooly with age, on it was his sister Gin who was sitting with their legs crossed and their arms resting comfortably on the back of the couch.
She waved her brother over, using her pointer finger to pull her mask down below her chin. Her amiable smile lit up the room, although, no one really got to see it due to how quickly they pulled their mask up over their face once more. They always covered their face and was not fond of others seeing her features.
The elder ravenette collapsed beside his sibling, letting out an exasperated sigh. He was beyond tired, both mentally and physically.
"I know that you said you'd be working late, but i expected you to at least return home." Gin expressed quietly, barely above a whisper.
Akutagawa adjusted his posture before apologizing, knowing full well how scornful his little sister could be, especially when he did not eat. Which is exactly why he was summoned.
"How're you doing Ryu?" The petite ravenette Inquired, their voice close to a whisper.
"Wouldn't you like to know." Akutagawas gravelly voice had a teasing tone to it, as he grinned slightly at his sister.
"You make it so hard to be related to you." Gin rolled their eyes, subsequently handing her brother a bento box filled with various food items, the dessert being figs which Gin knew was his favorite.
"Please try and eat it all this time, not just the figs. Next time you leave the apartment without eating, I'm force feeding you." She said with an ominous warm smile.
"Yes boss." Akutagawa scoffed, opening the bento box to see some tonkatsu.
"Brat." She responded, flicking his forehead with her nail.
"Let me eat will you? Since you insist on it." Akutagawa mumbled, mouth filled with food.
"By the way, Mori-san said that we can leave early today," Gin stated, releasing their hair from the elastic that held her ebony hair in an updo.
"He said that we didn't have any missions coming up, and that you deserved a break. Though that last part seemed like an after thought." Gin finished, combing her fingers through her long black hair.
Akutagawa grumbled in acknowledgement, slowly chewing on a small portion of tonkatsu. Although, he was content with his bosses decision. Eventhough he was slightly worried about Higuchis whereabouts, he knew that the case was being handled by Hirotsu-san. Akutagawa just needed some proper rest to be of any use.
Gin subsequently excused herself, walking away to change into her everyday attire.
Akutagawa sat stationary for a moment, contemplating wether or not to solely eat the figs and throw the rest of the bento box away or attempt to eat all of it.
He looked down at the uneaten rice within the box. In soy sauce, a faded picture had been messily drawn on top of the rice. Despite everything, he could tell that it was simple drawing of a tigers head.
Gin had made this lunch specifically for him, and he would be lying to himself if he thought that Gin would not check the trash can nearby. In addition to this, he could not deny that his weight was not healthy for someone of his age.
The ravenette let out a sigh, beginning to dig into the rice with a plastic fork. Eyes still layed on the tiger, he stopped.
That weretiger... he began, thinking once again about the boy that has been on his mind for a few weeks now.
His thoughts began to wander, no longer focused on anything but the weretiger.
The truth was, he had seen something. Felt something. It made his brain twist for answers.
As the sun set over the airborne Moby Dick, Akutagawa slammed his shoe onto his to called "partners" face, changing the latters expression from relief to pain and annoyance. He remembered saying a few taunting words to the boy, but that all felt like static to him now.
"You're going to pay for this when we next meet." Mumbled the boy in return.
Akutagawa removed his foot and watched as the boy stood and brushed the dirt from his lightly scarred face and his slightly ripped clothing, paying attention to the peices of debris and cement that stuck to his peach skin relentlessly.
With furrowed brows, the boy gazed at the sky, the deep warm colors of the sunset being reflected into his partners eyes portrayed strong emotion, but also his gentleness.
His heterochromatic eyes looked back towards the ravenettes stormy ones. Akutagawa watched as the boy spoke, now having time to study the boys features.
The boys silver hair was chopped unevenly, but somehow made it so it was framing his soft features. Where his bangs became shorter, was a scar running through his eyebrow, accompanied by other small scars that seemed to be caused by past beatings, scars perhaps being made from his skin being forcefully ripped open. While following the white scars down the silverettes cheeks, his uneven dimples appeard when the boy said something Akutagawa was not listening to.
Suddenly it went quite for a moment.
The silverettes white eyelashes fluttered before he closed his eyes and let out an audible sigh.
"You aren't even listening to me are you?"
Akutagawa looked down with a scoff.
Where had he seen that combination of purple and yellow before? It was beginning to give him a headache.
Suddenly, something had caught his eye. Taking shelter under his shoe was a small scrap of faded sapphire fabric. The ravenette pulled it out from under his shoe, subsequently rubbing it between his fingers. He got a mild feeling of nostalgia and comfort from the shred of material, which was strange enough by itself.
"C'mon Akutagawa! We gotta go!" The weretiger called, but then noticed his partners fixation on the fabric. He then frantically checked his tie before rushing towards the ravenette and snatching the fabric from him.
Akutagawa observed as the boys bloodied knuckles turned white as he cupped the sapphire scrap in his hands.
For a second the ravenette held a shocked expression as the silverette shoved the fabric into his fingerless glove.
The fabric had originally been pinned to the boys tie above a pink pin. It must have fallen off during the scuffle.
"Did anyone ever teach you to keep your hands off someone else's things?!" The latter snapped.
"Oh please weretiger, it's just a damn peice of fabric. What's so special about it?... is what i would say if i cared." Akutagawa exclaimed snarkily.
He had to admit, he was indeed curious, but he decided not to pursue a conversation with the boy so he could keep his pride intact.
"It was from someone very special to me..." he whispered, almost as if he were reminding himself on why he still had it.
"Let's just get down from here..." the boy finished, avoiding eye contact with Akutagawa.
Before he knew it, he was looking up to see his sisters proud smile, ecstatic that her brother was actually trying to eat everything.
It was not long before he had finished everything but his figs, which was being saved for last.
Gin took the empty bento box and shoved it into their purse, ambling towards the door afterwards.
Akutagawa followed close behind, biting into the fig every now and then.
Before leaving the hideout, the eldest ravenette made sure to zip up his trench coat and wear his black tinted glasses that came from a case in Gins bag.
Gin glanced over for a second and giggled.
Akutagawa raised an eyebrow before Gin continued.
"Am i more than you bargained for yet? I've been dying to tell you anything you wanna hear~" they sang, with a smirk.
Akutagawa groaned, knowing that his sister was teasing him for all the black he wore.
Gin giggled as Akutagawa shoved them.
After minutes of bickering, Gin finally had the chance to talk about something she had been thinking about since Higuchi was declared missing.
"I was thinking Ryu... why don't we pay a visit to the Armed Detective Agency?" They suggested, earning a confused look from the eldest ravenette.
"Where'd this come from?" He questioned.
"Well, my first thought was, of course, that Higuchi-san had been kidnapped. At first i thought perhaps the agency had something to do with it. After thinking it over however, i knew that it wouldn't make sense." Their voice was quiet, but became slightly louder as they continued rambling. "They would have to have a reason, and as far as i know, we haven't done anything to directly affect them lately."
"Yes, you do have a point. Though, why do you want to visit the agency?"
"All of that had me thinking about that detective boy they have. With his ultra deduction, we may be able to find Higuchi-san." they finished, seemingly confident in their idea.
"Do you really want to associate with them?" Akutagawa asked, seeming to hate the idea.
Gin frowned and stopped walking, causing her brother to look back at her. "Yes Ryunosuke! Our colleague is missing! We have hardly any clues on what may have happened to her, so we need all the help we can get! Please Ryu, it's worth a try."
A second of silence went by before Akutagawa rolled his eyes. "Fine, but you're going in without me." He said plainly, beginning to walk ahead.
Gin caught up, pulling on his sleeve with a stern look. "You know more than i do. You're coming in with me Ryunosuke."
"I'll just tell you what i-"
"Will you stop? I don't want to mess up any of the information, so you're coming in with me, and that's final."
"You don't scare me Gin. So drop the subject. I'm not going in." He glared down at his sister, his voice gravelly and low.
"I know you care for her. Wether you think so or not. You always go on about her being annoying but you never request a new bodyguard." Gin stated.
"So?"
"So, if i go in alone and find her, I'll tell her that you're head over heels in love with her." Gin threatened, using a look that told him that they were serious.
Akutagawa shiverd at the thought. "You know I'm gay Gin, i would never feel anything like that for her."
"Yes, i do know. But she doesn't." Gin smirked, knowing how much he'd suffer if Higuchi was told that her unrequited love was actually requited, Eventhough in reality it was not.
Akutagawa twirled his hair around his finger, thinking of the consequences of both decisions. Nevertheless, he did think one was better that the other.
"Fuck- fine. I'll go in with you." The ravenette crossed his arms, feeling the awful sting of defeat.
Gins serious look then turned into their usual gentle smile. "Good choice."
The two began walking once more, changing routes to one that would lead to the agency.
Gin initiated a conversation soon after, acting as if nothing had happened. Akutagawa contributed somewhat, but was more focused on not bumping into anyone.
"Thank you!" Akutagawa heard, but before he could look over to see who he had to avoid, he abruptly banged into someone, sending them both to the ground.
Akutagawa had fortunately caught himself with his hands, if he had not, he would have landed face first into the persons collarbone.
With one hand between the persons arm and chest, and the other near their neck, it was mere seconds before Akutagawa pushed himself away, seeing the persons face as a result. He wished he could push himself away faster.
"I'm so sorry! I wasn't paying attention!" The boy apologized, rubbing the bridge of his nose in pain. "Here, let me get your glasses for you..." Akutagawa looked away, his expression being one of embarrassment and irritation.
Gin sighed and began picking up all the mail the boy had dropped, seeing as he came out of the post office.
He reached for the glasses, looking up to the person helping him. He stiffened, but was met with a gentle smile nonetheless.
"Hello Nakajima-kun." Gin greeted the silverette awkwardly.
"Um..hello Gin-kun..." Atsushi peeked around the unusually gentle ravenette to see the more violent one. "Hi Akutagawa." The silverette smiled wryly.
"Weretiger." Akutagawa acknowledged with gritted teeth, continuing to avoid eye contact.
Atsushi got back to his feet and handed Gin their brothers shades, subsequently dusting himself off.
The silverette thanked Gin as he bent back down to procure the agencys mail for the second time. Gin layed a somewhat heavy package into the boys arms, pressing the remaining letters between his forearms.
"There, sorry for all the trouble." Gin expressed with a bow, her voice at its usual level of quietness.
"No need to apologize," Atsushi dismissed anxiously. "It wasn't your fault anyway..." he trailed off, side eying the older mafioso over the tall package in his arms.
"Well anyway, i better get going. I'll uh... see you guys around..." the silverette turned around and began walking, half expecting to feel something sharp peirce his back.
"Um actually, weretiger!" He heard a sweet voice call, causing him to spin on his heels.
Gin pulled her contesting brother forward towards the confused silverette.
"We actually... need your help. The agencys help that is." Gin looked away.
Atsushis eyes widened.
Port mafia members asking for help? The Akutagawa siblings asking for help?? Whats going on???
"Why would you need our help?" Atsushi was officially dumbfounded, was this a trap? Or was it genuine?
Akutagawa sighed with frustration. "Higuchi has gone missing and clues are scarce to say the least. I know you're suspicious, but attacking the agency would be stupid, so perish the thought you fool." Akutagawa snarled, moderately offended that the weretiger would suspect them of doing something so ridiculous.
Atsushi bit his lip, thinking for a moment.
Akutagawa was getting rather impatient, tapping his foot to distract himself.
"Fine, but you're walking next to me Akutagawa. I trust you least of all."
"Excuse me? I'm not one to go back on a promise. I told you that six months from now you'd-"
"Mhm, I'm totally listening!" Atsushi called, already a few steps away from Akutagawa.
Gin giggled as she followed behind, causing Akutagawa to grunt, hence sending him into a coughing fit as he rushed to catch up.
Gin pushed Akutagawa to Atsushis side, earning them a glare.
They walked in uncomfortable silence for awhile, before Atsushi decided to speak. "Hey Akutagawa?"
"What is it weretiger? I'm really not in the mood to listen to your aggravating voice at the moment." The ravenette furrowed his brows, a look of discomfort playing upon his features. Gin elbowed their brother as Atsushi tried to ignore the comment.
"I just wanted to say sorry for snapping at you on the Moby Dick. I know it was awhile ago but i just thought that I'd apologize." The apology was forced, but Atsushi was trying his best to get along with the ravenette so this partnership could be easier on the both of them.
"Please, i couldn't care less. There's nothing to apologize for, so this conversation is utterly useless."
Atsushis eyebrow twitched, asking himself if that was some sort of twisted reassurance or if he was just trying to make the silverette feel foolish.
"Well, here we are..." Atsushi mumbled towards the two.
Gin pulled open the door for the two boys, since Atsushi had his hands full and Akutagawa could not stand to be courteous towards the silverette.
With a light chime of the doors bell, the three entered the warm Cafe. Their eyes sparkled with the reflection of the new fairy lights Lucy had installed. She insisted that they were popular in America and they always made a place feel more "homey".
Upon hearing the bell, Lucy turned towards the door from her place behind the counter. "It's about time tiger-cat, you've-" she was caught off guard at the sight of the horribly Disguised Akutagawa and a woman she did not recognize.
'I'll explain later.' Atsushi mouthed towards his friend as he headed towards the stairs.
With the two following behind, they ascended to the forth floor of the building where the agencys headquarters was located.
This feels like a huge mistake...
Atsushi thought before turning to the siblings.
"Can you wait here for a moment? I need to make sure that they don't shoot first and ask questions later." Atsushi asked nervously.
The youngest ravenette nodded, as the other hummed in exasperation.
Atsushi pushed the handle down with his knee, leaning on the door slightly to open it. Once inside, he hit the door with his back to close it.
"Hello Atsushi!" Dazai called, spinning in his office chair.
"Hello Osamu..." the silverette sighed as he seen all the unfinished work the man still had laying on his desk.
Atsushi layed the mail on an empty desk, stretching his arms once he was finally free.
"Oh Atsushi! Perfect timing!" He heard a voice call, seeing the slanted eyes of Tanazaki Junichiro. He often sorted the mail when he was not busy with a job.
"Anything incredibly important?" Tanazaki inquired, now standing next to the silverette.
"Mostly bills and complaints about Dazai i think. As well as Ranpo-san's American snacks." He smiled, but it soon faltered as he looked towards the door.
"Is everything alright Atsushi?"
"I... don't know. Could you do me a favor and go get the president? It's important."
"Uh sure... i don't think he's busy..." Tanazaki scrambled towards his office, noticing his coworkers demeanor and deciding to ask questions after.
He walked up to Kunikida who was tapping away on his laptop, focused on the documents glowing on his screen.
Atsushi tapped his shoulder, gaining his attention. "What is it lad?" The blonde man raised a brow before pushing his glasses further up the bridge of his nose.
"We have clients..." Atsushi uttered.
In response, Kunikidas eyes lit up.
He got to his feet and cleared his throat, directing everyones attention onto himself.
"We have a client, which means that i want everyone on their best behavior. Especially you Dazai." Kunikida glared at the brunette.
Atsushi took a deep breath, and opened the doors and stepped out to see the two ravenettes leaning up against a wall.
"Put your hands up, so they know you...probably... aren't armed." Atsushi whispered, feeling his heart beat fasten.
"Awfully demanding today." Akutagawa spat.
"Just do it, please." Atsushi begged, fed up with his partners behavior.
Atsushi reentered the office, smiling nervously at his coworkers.
As soon as the two ravenettes entered with their hands raised, everyones eyes widened. Except for Dazai and Ranpo, who seemed to have seen this coming.
"What's the meaning of this?" A stern gravelly voice bellowed. The president, standing next to him was a surprised Junichiro.
"A member of the port mafia, Higuchi, went missing sir." Atsushi started, standing in front of the siblings to sheild them from the presidents death glare. "They asked if we could help them find her...sir."
"You owe us a favor," Gin attempted to speak up, "the port mafia helped you take down Fitzgerald. Now it's your turn to help us."
"Wow, that's the most I've heard you speak in awhile Gin!" Dazai piped in with a smile.
"That's Gin? Hm, interesting..." Yosano smirked while some of the others contemplated their view of the world.
"Okay! I've become a tad bored anyways. This case shouldn't be hard to crack." Everyone looked towards Ranpo as he tilted back in his chair, enjoying a lollipop.
The president sighed, looking towards the Akutagawa siblings.
"I believe we do indeed owe you a favor." Fukuzawa furrowed his eyebrows, he was hesitant to work with the port mafia again, but his morals ment more to him.
"I'll allow it. If there is anything you need to find this woman, it will be provided. My sole condition is as follows: Akutagawa will be working with Atsushi and no one else if it comes to a solo mission. As for you Gin, you are to work with other mafia members." The president finished, nodding at Atsushi before excusing himself.
Atsushi could already feel the withering look being given by Akutagawa, though all he could do was tilt his head to the side in confusion.
"Okay then! I'm pretty comfortable right now, so we'll talk in here." Ranpo called out, now chewing on some gummy bears.
Eventhough the agency had an interview room, they never opposed Ranpos wishes.
The Akutagawa siblings were ushered towards empty chairs, while other agency members either stood or sat around them.
Atsushi had sat near the side of Ranpos desk, facing towards the two ravenettes with open ears.
As Akutagawa reluctantly gave as many details as he could, such as dates and times on storefront security cameras, he noticed that Atsushi kept fidgeting. He could not keep himself still, causing him to bounce his leg and bite his nails.
Dazai seemed to notice this, getting the silverettes attention by tapping his shoulder softly and then handing the boy a few pens and paint pens. Atsushi smiled at the brunette, now contently drawing white stars on the cuffs of his pants.
Akutagawa felt slightly jealous, knowing full well that Atsushi has a better relationship with Dazai than he ever had.
"So that's all you got?" Ranpo asked after a moment of enduring Akutagawas awkward silence.
"Yes." Akutagawa sighed. "This is just information that a few mafia members have dug up."
"So i assume that Mori has no part in this 'investigation'?" Ranpo opened his eyes, showing his deep emerald irises.
"No, he is unfazed by the situation. He Dosen't care when his men are killed, let alone if someone were to just vanish..." Gin chimed in quietly.
"Yup, that sounds right. He's always been that way." Dazai expressed, his eyebrows furrowed.
Kyouka nodded. "He dosen't care for anyone but himself." She remarked, her monotone voice being a clear indication of her experiences with him.
Atsushi looked up from his little drawings and to kyouka who stood beside him. He gave her a reassuring smile that greatly showed his uneven dimples. The girl smiled back, the light once more returning to her cobalt blue eyes.
Akutagawa sneered at them for their comments on his boss, but kept his mouth shut. They were right after all.
"Well, guess it's time to use my skill," Ranpo proceeded, placing his glasses upon his face proudly. "Ultra Deduction!"
"The last camera to of video taped Higuchi was on the front of a store. This store was attached to other buildings so there was nowhere for her to go other than straight or across the street, which we know she didn't do. Cameras were installed on that whole strip, so it's incredibly strange that no other cameras caught her walking by." Ranpo started, digging in his box of new snacks. "It's safe to assume that the cameras were tampered with before Higuchi even set foot on that sidewalk. Also, this street has another strip behind it, and to get to that strip, a lot of people use an alleyway to cut through. That alley is made by the buildings splitting. And where do they split? In-between two buildings that had their cameras tampered with." Ranpo smiled, pushing his glasses up with his pointer finger.
This power of his truly is impressive. The two Akutagawa siblings looked at each other, seemingly thinking the same thing.
"Why would someone tamper with store cameras though? And how?" Kenji inquired with his head tilted.
"That, my dear Kenji, is simple! Of course they tampered with the cameras to throw us off and get away with their crime, but also because it was more convenient. It's obvious that they were watching her for awhile, otherwise they wouldn't have known which route she was going to take that particular day. Now, how they did it is where it gets a bit complicated. This is a large group of people we are dealing with, an organization even. And with organizations, they often have someone specific for every field. In this case, a hacker. I'll have to do some more investigations on the cameras tomorrow to see how they did it though."
"What makes you so sure that it's an organization?" Asked Atsushi, clicking the cap onto the paint pen.
"Well, I'm doubtful that many people would go through all that trouble to kidnap someone if there weren't money involved. So, i believe that this may be the work of a human trafficing Syndicate."
╔══ ≪ °❈° ≫ ══╗
Glossary
╚══ ≪ °❈° ≫ ══╝
patronize- treat in a way that is apparently kind or helpful but that betrays a feeling of superiority.
vacant- empty.
perpetual- occurring repeatedly; so frequent as to seem endless
amiable- having or displaying a friendly and pleasant manner.
tonkatsu- breaded, deep-fried pork cutlet.
ebony- black.
stationary- not moving.
scuffle- fight.
procure- obtain (something), especially with care or effort.
courteous- polite, respectful, or considerate in manner.
Syndicate- a group of individuals or organizations combined to promote some common interest.
A/N: Gin goes by she/they! Hopefully i used the pronouns right, even though I go by the same ones I'm still not sure if i used them right.