Chapter 9 – Aquamarine

Nakamori Ginzo was at the Fukuzawa Hall, watching the men that were hired to install Fukuzawa's trap for Kid when he came to collect the jewel. The Inspector could understand that Fukuzawa would rather hire people who knew exactly how this "security system" would work and who would know how to correctly set it up rather than let the Kid task force do it; that much he knew. But what Ginzo couldn't understand was the way Fukuzawa was planning on "catching" Kid.

The trap in question was for the main jewel room to be unoccupied as the security system was put to work. That was what he couldn't even begin to understand. It just didn't make sense.

"Ah, Nakamori-keibu," called a voice behind the Inspector. Ginzo turned around just in time to see the owner of the target swiftly making his way over towards him. When the owner reached him, he clapped a hand on Ginzo's shoulder. "How is everything going?" He asked whilst looking over at the people setting up the trap.

Ginzo turned to him for a second before glancing away to face the rest of the main jewel room. "The people that you hired are almost finished with setting the trap. But there is something that you haven't told me."

Fukuzawa Kakuzo glanced over at him, quizzically. "Oh."

Ginzo folded his arms across his chest, eyebrows slanting downwards. "You briefly told us all the plan in order to capture Kaitou Kid, but you never told us what this plan actually consists of. And you didn't tell us about the security system that you have planned out either. All of this just sounds a little... unprepared."

Fukuzawa laughed, "I am quite prepared, Keibu. I'm not going to explain the trap in thorough detail as I want it to be a surprise for both you and the infamous Kaitou Kid." He moved closer to Ginzo, "It's just to be on the safer side."

Nakamori leant away from him, finding the man to be slightly irritating. "You need to realise that, in order to catch Kid, you need to inform the people who are instructed to capture and take him in. Not keep the plan of operations to yourself."

The owner wagged a finger at the Inspector, tutting. "But that is the reason why I'm doing just that. You may not like it, but the less people I tell, the lower the chance of that thief finding out what I have in store for him."

The Inspector took a moment to take in what Fukuzawa was talking about, sort of understanding it but not looking forward to how it would blow up in not just the owner's face but the police's as well. Sighing, Ginzo pinched the bridge of his nose, "All right, but how about the security system you mentioned? As I recall, you told us that nobody was to be stationed within the main jewel room."

Fukuzawa nodded, "That is correct."

Ginzo drew back in surprise. "Wait. You were being serious? Are you insane?"

"It would be the best method for the trap to work." He stated, unmoved by the Inspector's previous comment. "The trap will be set up in this very room, where the jewel will be placed in the centre. No one will be able to stand at the sides as it will…" he paused for a moment, thinking of what word would be best to use. "… affect the way the trap works. But your men will be stationed outside of the building, surrounding it from all places. Two of my own men will be stationed outside of the entrance of this room, as that is the only way in. You and I will be stationed in the control room."

Ginzo raised an eyebrow, "Why in the control room?"

Fukuzawa grasped his arm softly, dragging him to the entrance and walking out into the hallway. Fukuzawa pointed to the two corners that were in direct view of the jewel entrance. "There and there," he spoke as he pointed to each corner. "Will be where two cameras will be placed, facing directly at this entrance. Two of my men will be stood here, on guard. They are heavily trained in self-defence, so the thief won't be able to get past the cameras or my men." Fukuzawa stepped closer to the detective, whispering to him again. "And do not tell anyone, but above the door of this entrance, there will be a heat scanner that will be put in place to measure, not room temperature, but body temperature."

"Why body temperature?" Ginzo couldn't help but ask.

"It will measure body temperature at that very point, so if the guards are moved then the temperature will drop. And I will have a remote notifier with me at all times, informing me that the body temperature has changed." After explaining, the owner stood away from the Inspector, "I'll leave that information with you, Nakamori-keibu." He then turned away to walk back into the jewel room.

Nakamori watched him go; still a little confused as to Fukuzawa's reasons of not wanting anybody standing in the jewel room that contained Kaitou Kid's next intended target. With only two days until the heist, the Inspector could only hope that Fukuzawa knew what he was doing.

…

"Apparently, according to Tou-san, Fukuzawa Kakuzo is a major dealer billionaire that owns multiple amounts of expensive ornaments, objects and jewels all over Japan. But he has his own hall, that is basically what holds all of the jewels that he owns in one place. He probably even owns priceless artefacts from all around the world." Explained Aoko as her and Kaiya made their way towards the Fukuzawa hall. She turned to Kaiya, "Hey, you seem pretty quiet. Are you okay?" She asked, concerned.

Kaiya turned to her, nodding. "Me? Yeah, fine. I'm fine. Just thinking."

Aoko raised an eyebrow to her, clearly not convinced. "Oh yeah, thinking about what?"

"Just about what you were saying about this Fukuzawa guy." Kaiya turned away from her to face forward, "I think he's just a normal collector. So, I don't understand why you haven't stopped talking about him since we left the train station."

Aoko turned away this time with a huff, "Well, if you must know, my father thinks that there is something going on with this normal collector, as you so put it."

Although Kaiya knew that something was definitely off about the man, she wasn't about to go into her own theory of what Fukuzawa Kakuzo was really up to, as it had begun making her sceptical about tonight's target owner. Pushing that aside and pretending to ignore the secretive behaviour of the owner, Kaiya lifted an eyebrow to her best friend. "What does he think is going on?"

Aoko's head bowed slightly, "Well, in order for Tou-san to catch Kaitou Kid, he needs to be informed of the securities and the systems that are put into place in order to catch him. That also goes for the plan that is being put forward; either that being the target owner's plan, or my father's. He needs to be told. But the fact that tonight's target owner hasn't really told my dad much is worrying."

Kaiya was taking in the information gratefully. Hearing a majority of her own theory being told to her from a different perspective was definitely a type of reassurance. "So, I'm guessing that the Inspector thinks that Fukuzawa-san is up to something?"

Aoko inhaled deeply, giving a nod. "Yeah. It wouldn't surprise me if this Fukuzawa Kakuzo had something else up his sleeve."

Kaiya turned to her and smirked, "Aww, Aoko, are you worried about Kid-sama?" She asked teasingly, holding the urge to laugh when Aoko groaned loudly.

"If I'm going to be worried about anyone, it would be Tou-san. Not that stupid thief," Aoko answered back bitterly. "But it's not like I want Kid to get hurt or anything, as he's not that bad."

Kaiya smiled, "I knew you liked him."

Aoko gave a loud hmph, "I wouldn't go that far, he's still just a stupid thief."

The magician nodded, hiding a warm smile from her best friend.

The two teenagers finally reached the Fukuzawa Hall, having a little trouble with some of the people standing guard outside by the gates. When Aoko asked if she could pass as she was the daughter of the Inspector that was leading the task force set to catch Kid, the guard didn't believe her. Thankfully, one of Nakamori's men noticed Aoko and Kaiya and came over to them, confirming the teens' identity so they could get through the restriction tape. Thanking the officer that helped them through, Aoko asked him if he knew where her father was so she could give him his dinner before the heist.

When given the direction of where the Inspector was, Aoko and Kaiya walked through the building, passing multiple police officers on the way. Aoko was looking around as she walked, "Wow, this place is huge, considering that it only holds the jewels that Fukuzawa owns."

"Yeah, well these rich people do like to show off the fact that they have a lot of money." Kaiya whispered to her as they rounded a corner. Kaiya slid closer to Aoko when a couple of officers came around the corner simultaneously to them, the two teens squishing closer to each other in order to avoid them.

After walking through another hallway, Aoko seemed to look confused; her eyebrows drawing downwards. "Where is he? Kaiya, have you seen him yet?" she asked her best friend, worry becoming ever so slightly audible in her tone.

Kaiya shook her head. She was about to respond when the two teens were shouted at by a man behind them. The girls turned around to come face to face with the owner himself. He looked furious.

"Who the hell are you two?" he demanded, pointing accusingly at them. Aoko was drawn back by the action, clearly shocked, whereas Kaiya's eyebrows just raised as if to say, "oh hello." His mannerisms could use a tweaking.

When Aoko seemed too stunned to speak, Kaiya stepped forward, "We're Nakamori Aoko and Kuroba Kaiya. Aoko is here to bring Nakamori-keibu, her father, his dinner for tonight. We were told to come this way as this is where the police officer at the door told us to go in order to find him."

Fukuzawa sighed, seemingly relieved. "I apologise for my rudeness, I had no idea. I had no idea that Nakamori-keibu had children."

"Do you know where we can find the Inspector?" Kaiya asked, placing her hand on Aoko's shoulder, instantly feeling the other girl relax when she did so.

Fukuzawa scratched his nose, "The last I saw him, he was outside the room where the Aquamarine stone is being held." He then folded his arms, raising an eyebrow at the two teenage girls. "Okay, so which of you two is the detective that is going to be helping with catching Kid tonight?"

That caught both of the girls' attention. Aoko's because she had a boyfriend who would more than occasionally go to Kaitou Kid's heists to try and catch Kid, though he didn't tell her that he was going to tonight's heist. But the owner caught Kaiya's attention because she was currently talking to someone who had promised that he was going to be going to Kaiya's heists, though he hadn't told her that he was going. Probably just because she assumed that she would see him during the heist.

"Come again?" Kaiya couldn't help but retort.

The jewel owner didn't have the chance to answer as he was stopped by a voice behind the girls, "Aoko!"

The girls turned around to see Nakamori Ginzo walking over to them. Stopping to stand next to his daughter, Ginzo looked to her, "Aoko, I'm sorry I didn't meet you at the door, there were some things that needed to be checked over." Ginzo then looked to the jewel owner, "Fukuzawa-san, I see you've met my daughter."

Fukuzawa nodded, "Yes, we were just getting acquainted actually. I suppose your daughter is the teenage detective that is going to be helping with catching Kaitou Kid."

Ginzo's eyebrows slanted downwards, "No. That would be another kid, though I don't know if he's arrived yet."

"Right, my apologies." Fukuzawa said, looking to Aoko. "I just assumed that being the daughter of the Kid task force's leading Inspector, you would be following in your father's footsteps into law enforcement."

Aoko smiled nervously; she was incredibly grateful that Kaiya was there beside her. "Um, well, I'm not too sure if that would be the correct path for me." She answered, whilst trying to hide in on herself.

Kaiya, seeing – and feeling – the awkwardness between the two adult men, as Kaiya could tell that they didn't like each other very much, she grabbed Aoko's lunch-free hand. "Okay, well we'll be going now. It was nice to meet you Fukuzawa-san." She turned to Ginzo, as well as grabbing the lunch from Aoko and handing it to the Inspector. "This is for you, Keibu, I hope you enjoy it. All right, bye." Without wasting anymore time, Kaiya pulled Aoko by the hand away from the two men and began walking back the way they came. As they walked, Kaiya looked over at Aoko. "You okay?"

Aoko nodded slowly, "Yeah, thanks for that. That was kind of awkward."

Kaiya and Aoko slowed down, though Aoko's hand was still in Kaiya's. "Tell me about it. You could cut that tension with a knife, it was so thick."

Aoko's eyes narrowed, "I don't think Tou-san likes Fukuzawa-san very much."

Kaiya couldn't help but agree. "Maybe it's to do with what you were saying earlier, about how Fukuzawa-san wasn't telling the Inspector much about his plans on catching Kid."

The Inspector's daughter turned to her, "Yeah, that's probably it."

…

Walking out of the hall, Aoko and Kaiya were laughing about not realising that they were still holding hands. It was only funny when the both of them were swinging their intertwined hands whilst going around a corner and crashed into two of the Inspector's men. Even though they apologised to the two officers, as well as receiving an apology from the officers themselves, the two girls ended up laughing all the way out of the hall. They took a breather once reaching the late afternoon air, calming themselves.

They began walking to the exit when Aoko's phone began to ring. Pulling the device out of her pocket and saying that it was her father, she answered. "Hey, Tou-san." Aoko then turned around to Kaiya, mouthing 'sorry' to her. Kaiya just smiled in return.

Looking around, Kaiya noticed a certain someone standing a little distance away, talking to a couple of the Kid task force officers. Kaiya was about to turn away when that person finished speaking to the officers and began making his way into the hall, where he met the eyes of Kaiya. The person jogged up to her, a smile on his face.

"Hey," greeted Kudo Shinichi as he came to stand next to Kaiya.

Kaiya smiled back to him, "Hey. I didn't think I would get to see you until later."

Shinichi shrugged. "Yeah, well, I thought I would come hear a little earlier, just to scope out the place."

Kaiya raised an eyebrow to him, her expression suspicious. "That's not the only reason. Is it?"

The detective was silent for a moment before sighing and moving his face closer to hers, obviously about to say something he didn't want anyone else to hear. "You know the jewel owner, Fukuzawa Kakuzo?" he questioned in a whisper. Shinichi continued when Kaiya nodded. "Well, apparently, he's a lot more than he seems and knows a lot more than he says. I don't know what it is about this guy, but he doesn't seem to be good news."

Kaiya turned a little towards him, "Aoko and I have just seen him. He was quite intense, as a character himself. And he thought Aoko was the 'teenage detective' that was going to be working with the police in order to try and catch Kaitou Kid." When Shinichi gazed at her, confused, Kaiya began to explain. "Well, due to Aoko being the daughter of the leading Inspector of the Kid task force, he assumed that she was the teenage detective. And hey, don't underestimate Aoko, she's a lot smarter than she looks."

Shinichi drew back in defence, "I wasn't saying-"

"Calm down, I'm just messing with you," Kaiya teased with a prominent smirk. Though her smirk was short lived as she turned back to the Fukuzawa Hall. "Just be careful when you're in there, Shinichi. Fukuzawa hasn't really told anyone about the trap or how it works."

Shinichi walked to stand on the other side of Kaiya, "I think that if anyone needs to be careful, it's you." He leant closer to whisper in her ear. "The trap is made for you after all." Drawing away, Shinichi smiled, "Catch you later." And then walked into the Fukuzawa Hall.

Kaiya watched him go, her poker face slammed on, so she could control the heated colour that wanted to shove its way onto her cheeks. "Damn you, Meitantei."

After another minute of just standing there, Aoko came running over to her, turning off her phone and shoving it into her pocket. Kaiya met her eyes, "Everything all right?"

Aoko nodded, "Yeah. My Dad was just calling to tell me about what the jewel owner was talking to me about before he got to us. He also told me that the owner was sorry about making us feel uncomfortable when we met him."

Kaiya nodded, "I just wish the man had the guts to tell us to our faces instead of getting the Inspector to do it."

"Yeah, me too. Tou-san also said for us to take care of each other when we go home." Aoko added, zipping up her pocket.

Kaiya smiled, "Aww, tell the Inspector I love him too."

Aoko smiled warmly in return, linking her arm with Kaiya's as they began walking out of the property. "I think he already knows."

…

When the night fell, precisely at eleven o'clock, Fukuzawa called everyone together in order for a briefing. Probably just to give everyone a recap on what everyone's task was, as the jewel owner seemed to be giving more orders than the leading Kid task force Inspector himself, which only seemed to annoy, not only the Inspector, but the rest of the Kid task force.

Fukuzawa was the jewel owner and he also was the one that wanted this trap to work, just like most of them there, but the amount of men that he had compared to the amount of men on the Kid task force contrasted greatly. There were only six men under Fukuzawa's direct security order, which, when compared to the amount number of Kid task force members, didn't make sense at all. So, for someone with an entire collection of jewels under one roof, whilst sitting on tons of money, wouldn't it make more sense to have more men on your security team? Whether it be for protection of the owner or for the owner's possessions. But of course, in this case, it would be for the protection of the owner's possessions.

Nakamori Ginzo was trying to focus on his task, even as Fukuzawa kept babbling on about the 'formations' that he had mentioned at least four times ever since this waste of time of a briefing started, but the Inspector couldn't help wondering about the jewel owner's true intentions. Though it was only a hunch, a feeling. So, the Inspector decided to keep it to himself, silently wishing for someone else to be thinking the same thing as him.

"When Kid appears, everyone knows their position and what their objectives are, correct?" Fukuzawa asked, bringing Ginzo out of his thoughts to where Fukuzawa was standing in his high-class dark mauve suit and silk burgundy tie.

"Yes sir!" everyone in the room called out in response. They then separated to leave and go to their places of position, wherever it was they were ordered to go.

When they were clearing out, Ginzo caught sight of Kudo Shinichi standing at the side of the room; leaning against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest. Ginzo wasn't aware of how long he had been standing there, or how much of Fukuzawa's briefing he had heard, but he could tell by the teenager's face that he had heard enough.

Ginzo knew that the teenage detective had a precise way of thinking, a way in which that worked as Megure-keibu was always more than happy for the kid to help him with multiple cases. But this division wasn't murder. It was theft and more precisely; the division set to capture the infamous Kaitou Kid. So, the reason for the young detective to be there was still unclear, but the kid's goal was acceptable.

Normally Ginzo didn't enjoy letting teenagers – which they were, they were the facts – interfering with his and his task force's work. Ginzo found it bad enough that his daughter's boyfriend was more or less always at heists, but to add another kid to the scene was just plain irritating.

But, Ginzo was actually sort of glad that the Detective of the East was at tonight's heist, only for reassurance really. It was one of the things that Ginzo respected about these teenage detectives, though he didn't know Shinichi as much as he would have like to, which also made him slightly uneasy of him at the same time, about how they kept an open mind to all possibilities. It was what made them good at what they did, especially with the boost of their imaginative youth. So, if he could question anyone about his uneasy disbeliefs in the jewel owner's plan, then his best bet would be the teenage detective.

When the room had cleared more, and he could see that Fukuzawa was busy talking to two of his task force members, Ginzo made a quick beeline for the teenage detective, hopefully not drawing the attention of the jewel owner towards him.

Shinichi was looking around the room, inspecting the exits and entrances and was about to turn around to leave out of the open doors that he was standing near when his name was called by someone behind him. Stopping and turning around, Shinichi was surprised to see the Inspector walking over to him with a look of determination. "Evening, Nakamori-keibu." Shinichi greeted politely when the Inspector stopped to stand in front of him.

Ginzo sighed before looking Shinichi in the eye, "Kudo-kun, can I talk to you for a minute?"

Shinichi's gaze drifted towards the jewel owner for a second before he looked back to the Inspector, nodding. "Of course."

The Inspector mimicked the young detective's own actions by glancing at the jewel owner over of his shoulder, "Well, I just wanted to ask you something." He paused to look back to Shinichi. "What are your thoughts on the trap for tonight's heist? The one that we're using to catch Kid?"

Okay, that was definitely a surprise and not what Shinichi was expecting. But the detective's mind instantly clicked at that moment as he stared at the Inspector, who was waiting for his response. "Normally, the Nakamori-keibu wouldn't even consider my opinion on how he was planning on catching Kid as he's never needed or wanted my input. But the fact that he's asking me now about the trap, only shows that he has suspicions about Fukuzawa-san's plans as well. Which also means that he doesn't trust the plan or the trap at all." Shinichi looked around, "Well, from what I've seen of it, it seems proficient enough, but this is Kid we're talking about. To Fukuzawa-san, his entire plan may seem fool proof, but I'm not too sure that Fukuzawa-san knows of Kid's capabilities." He explained, his voice low as he kept it between them.

Yeah it was bad to keep things from the target's owner, but Fukuzawa Kakuzo wasn't exactly telling everyone everything.

Ginzo sighed again, but this time it was with relief. "I'm glad you think the same. If anything, I'm kind of worried about what Fukuzawa-san has in store for Kid."

Shinichi nodded, cupping his chin. "I'm guessing he hasn't told you much about the structure of the trap."

Ginzo shook his head, not actually believing that he was consulting with a detective, a kid at that, about the heist that he was in charge of. "Kudo-kun, have you seen it?"

"No." Shinichi answered, keeping his voice near a whisper. "I only managed to catch a glimpse of the room that the Aquamarine Stonewas being held in, but one of Fukuzawa-san's guards told me that no one is allowed in there as it could compromise the trap, which could also affect Kaitou Kid's capture."

The inspector, knowing the clock was ticking and that there was now less than an hour before Kid was to appear, decided to finish the conversation with the detective. He placed a hand on the boy's shoulder, "Be careful, Kudo-kun. I would never normally worry about harm being caused to anyone as I confidently know for a fact that Kid is against that. But, I have a feeling that this heist is different. So, be careful and you look out for yourself. Got that." When he watched confusion and shock grow on Shinichi's face, Ginzo couldn't help but laugh a little. "Look, I'm a father first. Be. Careful."

Shinichi nodded, "Will do, Keibu."

…

In the hallway, standing beside the open double doors, near where the inspector and Shinichi were standing, was one of Fukuzawa's men. Their face was shielded by their hat, their entire form being shadowed by the dark hallway. Some of the generators in some parts of the building had been altered in order to provide enough power for the trap, so some of the corridors didn't have powered lights so Fukuzawa's men were given torches.

The security guard standing beside the door kicked themselves off the wall, hearing enough of the conversation between the inspector and teenage detective. Unhooking their torch from their belt, they switched it on to walk through the darkened hallway.

After walking through a couple of more rooms, the guard knew that they were approaching the target room, also to where there was lit corridors, so they turned their torch off and hooked it back onto their belt. Entering the long corridor that held the only entrance to the jewel room, the security guard slowed down their steps ever so slightly. At the same time, they began massaging their left shoulder, using that moment to throw up a small metallic device on to the security camera on the left side of the corridor. The metallic device stuck to the camera, making the guard internally relieved. As they were reaching the other end of the corridor where the other camera was in the opposite corner, the guard threw another small metallic device onto the opposite camera when they were under it, disguising the action with a sudden stretch and a yawn. Again, the small metallic device stuck to the camera, making the guard want to smile. Instead they remained looking tired.

Exiting that corridor, the guard was in the opposite direction to another one of Fukuzawa's security guards. When the other guard approached, they nodded to them. "All right, Yoshifumi?"

The guard nodded with a smile, "Yeah, you, Nissho?"

Nissho nodded in return, "Yeah. The rounds are almost done." He and Yoshifumi passed each other, turning around to walk in their different directions, only backwards so they could continue their short conversation as they walked further away from each other. "The boss wants us in position at 11:50pm. No later."

Yoshifumi gave a two finger salute to the fellow guard, "Got it. Though I'll still be making the rounds."

Nissho nodded in response. "See ya later then," he offered with a wave.

Yoshifumi turned away to keep walking in the opposite direction, giving a wave over their head. "Yeah, catch ya later."

When Nissho turned the corner, Yoshifumi looked around to make sure everyone was out of sight, the action being done discreetly of course. Yoshifumi ducked into another dimly lit corridor, stopping outside part of the wall that was hidden by the shadows cast by other parts of the building. Pulling a key out from their pocket, the guard lifted up a small section of wallpaper, revealing a tiny – almost pea sized – key hole. The guard fit the key in, turning it to hear an almost silent click before pulling opening a door and slipping inside before they were noticed by any other security guards and pulling the door closed.

The guard rummaged in the pocket of their uniform jacket to pull out a small earpiece, placing that into their ear and turning it on. After waiting for a moment, the guard spoke, "Crystal Zuku."

Another moment passed before a reply was heard through the earpiece. "Takomi Amethyst. Is everything in place?"

"Yeah, everything's ready." The guard reached into their jacket pocket again, this pulling out a medium sized tablet. Tapping on the screen, causing it to light up and illuminate the guard's face, making their brown eyes visibly bright. "I just need to adjust a couple of things." The guard added before opening a couple of windows on the tablet in their hands. Two windows opened up to reveal the two different viewpoints of what the two cornered cameras that faced the jewel room were seeing. The guard nodded to themselves to seeing that two guards were already standing outside the jewel room. The guard then looked at their watch, "Almost time. Where are you?" The guard asked the other person on the other end of the line.

"I'm with the rest of the task force, on the south-west side of the building." Came the reply.

The guard looked away from the screen for a moment, "That's close to the building's entrance. That's good," The guard added as they turned their attention back to the tablet screen.

"Is there anything else you want me to do?"

"No, I've got a handle on things Jii-chan. When you get the chance, leave out of the closest exit," The guard instructed, though their voice was soft when they spoke.

"Okay, but please be careful Wakai-okusama. I don't trust this Fukuzawa Kakuzo."

The guard smiled to the other's concern. "You too, Jii-chan." After that, the guard reached up to remove the earpiece, placing it into their pocket, turning their focus onto the screen. They checked their watch, before tapping the screen on both of the open windows, pressing the record button for both of them simultaneously, stopping the recording at a minute and a second, keeping the recording piece of footage on a loop for both cornered cameras.

Smiling to themselves, the guard clicked the tablet off and placed it back into their breast pocket, turning around to exit the dark tiny room. Making sure that no one was making their rounds, the guard slipped out of the slim doorway, walking down the corridor towards the jewel room. A knowing smirk on their face to know that no other guards would be circling the corridors as they were all stationed elsewhere, except for the two security guards standing either side of the only entrance to the jewel room. "Now it's showtime."

…

For whatever reason, Fukuzawa didn't want Shinichi sneaking around, as he so put it, when Shinichi went to go off and check out all the exits and entrances, as well as the airducts. The jewel owner only seemed to insinuate that Shinichi was either up to something, or that he was Kid himself. Of course, that was understandable because Kid could be disguised as literally anyone at the Fukuzawa Hall. But the fact that Shinichi knew that the jewel owner himself was hiding something only seemed to offend the detective.

About an hour before, Shinichi was talking to a couple of the Kid task force members. They were more than happy to have such a great detective helping them catch one of the most elusive criminals of all time (which Shinichi had only wished that Kaiya would have been there to hear it as she would be more than flattered). It was then when Fukuzawa approached him, asking for a private word. Straight away, he wasn't in Shinichi's good books.

The jewel owner had walked him to a small secluded area of one of the other jewel rooms, more or less empty except for a few small jewels which were far from the target, in order to ask Shinichi what his exact plan for the night was. Usually, Shinichi remained calm and collected when answering a question as simplistic as that, but he suddenly felt put on the spot when the jewel owner looked at him as if Shinichi was about to rat him out. And Shinichi hated that feeling, as it wasn't often.

The young detective only told Fukuzawa that he was there in order to work with the Kid task force to try and help them catch Kid. Shinichi went on to tell him that he was recommended by the leading inspector of the homicide division at The Tokyo Metropolitan police department, just in case he wanted proof, Fukuzawa could give him a call and ask for a reference. Shinichi could also tell that the underline tone of cockiness that he had used when stating his answer only seemed to piss the jewel owner off, but Fukuzawa managed to keep a cool enough head in response.

Before he had turned away, the jewel owner had whispered to him: "Don't think I'm going to let you roam around as freely as you please as this is my building with my security. I don't care how good of a detective you are, this isn't part of the homicide division, it's theft. So, I'm not going to give you that much freedom." With that, he turned on his polished leather heel and walked away, leaving Shinichi to his own devices. Though that threat only seemed to raise the detective's suspicions of this Fukuzawa Kakuzo.

So, there Shinichi was. Standing at the back of the control room, watching the backs of Nakamori Ginzo and Fukuzawa Kakuzo, as well as a couple of other members of the Kid task force, as they worked and watched the multiple screens from security cameras.

Shinichi was bored out of his mind to say in the least. If anyone were to see the way he currently was, he would look like a stroppy teenager that didn't get something that he wanted, deciding to strop at the back of the room when his mother instructed him to come and socialise with the family. Well, that was what Shinichi felt like he was doing right now and he didn't really care if that was what he looked like. He was kind of pissed off.

The teenage detective looked at his watch, "Six minutes until midnight." Crossing his arms over his chest, he released an audible huff; the sound echoing through the small room. Shinichi took note of how both the inspector and the jewel owner turned to him. Well, the inspector turned to him fully, meeting the boy's eyes, "Is everything all right, Kudo-kun?" Ginzo worriedly questioned as he straightened slightly from his hunched over position. The jewel owner however just glanced at the detective from the corner of his eyes for a second before looking back to the monitors.

Shinichi nodded to the inspector, "Yeah, I just feel a bit cramped in here. I feel kind of useless, being in here instead of out there."

Ginzo gestured towards the control room door with his thumb, "Well, if you want to go out and keep a look out, that's fine. It would be a good thing to have a keen and experienced eye out there whilst I'm in here."

Shinichi jumped at the chance to leave the room, already shouldering off the wall to walk out. He was stopped when his hand wrapped around the handle, the jewel owner holding a hand up as he called out the word 'stop'. Everyone in the room had turned to look at the jewel owner when Shinichi had finally turned around to face him. Fukuzawa's back was still facing Shinichi when he spoke again. "You can't go out there and disrupt the plan. And you also don't know what will happen if you encounter Kaitou Kid out there, as we all know what that thief is capable of."

Ginzo drew back a little from where he was standing beside the jewel owner, clearly surprised to hearing such an accusation. "Yes, we know what Kid is capable of. But if you are accusing him of causing physical harm, then you're wrong. The most Kid has done is knock us out with sleeping gas. No harm has come to any of us during a Kid heist."

The jewel owner looked up at Ginzo from where he was hunched over the control desk. "Nakamori-keibu, he's a criminal. Which is something that all of us can agree on. True criminals will do whatever they need to in order to get their prize. Kid is no different."

Ginzo clenched his fist, getting ready to raise his voice, like he usually did at any Kid heist, but Shinichi spoke first. "It just seems that someone didn't do their research before planning this out." There was a moment of silence. Everyone in the room turned to now stare at the teenage detective who was still stood by the control room door, one hand still on the handle while the other was tucked into his trouser pocket. "If you knew anything about Kid at all, you would know that he has a No-One-Gets-Hurt policy. Everyone knows that. And the fact that you don't, is worrying."

Fukuzawa's eyebrows drew together as he looked to the digital clock beside the monitors, "Look, it's one minute to midnight, so we don't have time to mess around with accusations and research. Our main goal right now is to capture Kid." Fukuzawa took out a device from his pocket which displayed a temperature reading.

Ginzo glanced down at the device, raising an eyebrow. "What's that?"

"This is the temperature monitor I told you about earlier, the device I would have to read the temperature above the entrance of the jewel room." Fukuzawa explained, turning away from the device to look at the digital clock, which read 00:01. "Okay, it's past midnight which means that Kid will be making his approach very soon."

Ginzo leant down to squint at the screens showing where cameras had been placed in and out of the building. He was checking every one of them but he didn't see anything strange, suspicious or even out of the ordinary. "There's nothing. There's no blackout or unconscious officers laying around... it's as if he hasn't even entered the building."

At that, Shinichi lunged forward to almost glare at all of the screens. Seeing that Ginzo was right, he turned to the jewel owner. "Fukuzawa-san, why were some of the corridors in the building left without lighting?"

Fukuzawa sighed, "It was for the Kid trap." He paused to stand up straight and fold his arms across his chest. "It takes a lot of electrical energy for the trap to work, so some parts of the building were left without power for the lights."

Ginzo glared at him at that, "That wasn't what you told me. You told me that the bulbs in some of the lights in some parts of the building had blown at the last minute, and that you didn't have time to replace them."

The jewel owner scratched his cheek, almost nervously, "Yeah, I'm sorry, Nakamori-keibu, but that wasn't entirely true."

That only seemed to make the inspector furious. He slammed a hand on the table in fury, glaring at the other with Shinichi between them. "Dammit, what else aren't you telling me?!"

Shinichi turned to screens, "You do realise that you've only made it easier for Kid to sneak in with all of these darkened hallways and corridors. You really are an amateur." The jewel owner turned to glare at the detective now, but it didn't seem to phase Shinichi at all as he turned to face the man in the eye. "If what you just told me is true, and that, in order for the trap to work, you need a lot of power. How much is actually required? The Fukuzawa Hall is an enormous building with at least three power generators to stabilise all of the electricity within the building. These would all work in their own separate ways of course, such as a generator for heating, one for security systems and another as the main power generator which could also count as the back up generator in case of a blackout. And I know that you have a separate generator for heating as it is more than a little welcoming-warmth in the hallways. It's almost at the usual temperature you would expect in your own home because it is enough to fill the entire house. But the power to generate the heat in the Fukuzawa Hall is spread via a massive scale."

When Shinichi had finished his explanation, he placed his hands in his trouser pockets, staring straight at the jewel owner, "Now, what kind of trap is it that needed so much power?"

…

The area around the jewel room was quiet. Too quiet. The guards standing either side of the jewel entrance were following orders, remaining positioned at the entrance, underneath the heat scanner. Even though both guards were given a strict precise order to follow, they began to grow restless. The guard on the left of the jewel room entrance cleared his throat, hoping to break the awkward silence. And It did... for about three seconds before the dead silence filled the space around them again.

It was then when the guard on the right sighed, sliding his sleeve up his arm to reveal his watch for the time. Another sigh released him as he let his arm drop to hold his hands together behind his back. "It's two minutes past midnight."

The other guard turned his dark eyes to his colleague, "Wasn't he supposed to arrive at midnight?" he questioned, sounding a little worried, which was understandable as they had never encountered a criminal such as the infamous Kaitou Kid before. They didn't know what he was capable of.

The guard on the right nodded, "Yeah, he was." There was a moment of silence between them before the guard on the right looked at both hallways, his wavy caramel hair following in the wake of his movements. "But no one's appeared. Not even a guard has done their round yet."

The dark eyed guard turned away from him, looking forward. A smile appearing on his face, a look of optimism suddenly replacing his worry. "Well, maybe the boss scared him off. I mean, come on, Akiyama. It wouldn't be the first time the boss has scared someone off."

Akiyama wasn't facing his colleague when he answered, his eyes straight, facing the plain white wall opposite the jewel room entrance. "Yeah, but apparently, this guy doesn't back down from a challenge."

Just then, a guard came around the corner from the right corridor, drawing the guards' attention to the newcomer. The dark eyed guard spoke first, "Ah, Yoshifumi. Finally a familiar face."

Yoshifumi nodded in his direction, a professional but welcoming smile curving his lips as he walked past the two stationed guards. "Yeah, I know. It seems pretty dead out there. Any sign of Kaitou Kid yet?" he asked as he passed them, heading for the opposite corridor to continue his round.

Akiyama shook his head at Yoshifumi, "No, but Furuta here thinks the boss scared him off."

Yoshifumi gave a shrug as he approached the other darkened corridor, calling over his shoulder, "Well, like most criminals, they don't keep their word."

Furuta and Akiyama nodded, agreeing with that statement.

Furuta turned to Akiyama, opening his mouth to say something when he was cut off but the sound of something metallic clanging against the ground. Both guards turned towards the sound, watching with bemusement as a small silver oval shaped ball rolled to their feet. Furuta stopped it with his shoe, bending down to pick it up, holding the object in his hands.

Akiyama looked ready to question the object but his chance was brought to naught as the object opened in the centre and released cloudy grey smoke. Akiyama drew back, clearly alerted, "What the-"

His eyes, as well as Furuta's began to droop, their bodies unexpectedly growing limp as they unintentionally inhaled the smoke. When Furuta fell, his hand released the metal object, making it bounce off the ground. Before it could clang against the ground again, a gloved hand caught it.

Yoshifumi lifted the object, smirking devilishly at the two now slumbering bodies at his feet. "But, if you had done your research, you would know that I am not like most criminals."

Yoshifumi knelt down beside the guards, placing the sleeping gas canister on the ground to reach for his pocket; pulling out two red medium sized heat packs. Yoshifumi placed one on each of the guards before dragging their bodies to remain aligned with the heat scanner. Once the guards were lined up underneath the heat scanner, Yoshifumi carefully stepped over them and into the jewel room, being careful to remain on the literal edge of the room. "Now the real fun can begin."

Removing a pair of goggles from his pocket, Yoshifumi turned to face into the large, high-ceilinged jewel room. "Let's see what we have here," Yoshifumi whispered to himself, pulling the goggles on to see what this "trap" really was. After making sure they were on correctly and comfortably, Yoshifumi examined the room, reaching up to the side of the goggles to click a switch.

As soon as the switch was flipped, the view changed. What seemed to be a dark room was actually a smoked deception to what was actually going on in there. In the renewed view of the goggles, the dark room was suddenly filled with lasers, spreading out through all directions. Yoshifumi frowned to the sight before him, "That's letting off an extremely high heat signature, even for normal scanning lasers. I guess this means that it has to be done without the cape on for now. Shouldn't be a problem."

Yoshifumi stretched his arms out carefully, avoiding a laser that was just above his curled fingertips. "Oh, Kaa-san, you're gonna be so proud of me after this." Yoshifumi thought to himself, smirking all the while

Without wasting anymore time, Yoshifumi set to work.

Crouching down, he slid underneath the first wire, whilst approaching another, which was lower than the first. Yoshifumi leant back on his hands, bringing his body up to remain still in a handstand, before folding his legs backwards over the wire, coming to stand on his feet. He then did a round off in-between two wires, but tucked in his legs as he came dangerously close to another wire that was slightly higher.

He reached back to one handedly back walk over another wire that was positioned diagonally across the space of Yoshifumi's personal bubble, sliding into the scissor splits, as there were a few lasers criss-crossing each other awkwardly. Seeing a chance of an opening, Yoshifumi inhaled deeply before lowering his head to his knee, holding it there as he rolled, whilst still in the splits, onto his back before carefully pushing himself up into a crab and back walking over a laser.

Crouching under another couple of lasers as they were only medium length, Yoshifumi realised that he was only about six steps away from the casing holding the jewel. "If I coordinate my moves correctly, I'll get there in a couple of somersaulting strides." So, with that thought in mind, Yoshifumi looked around at the lasers surrounding him before deciding that if he aimed straight at the casing from the diagonal direction that he was currently at, he could literally go straight for it.

With another deep breath, Yoshifumi tuck jumped over one diagonal laser, landing on his hands which gave him the boost to back handspring and then cartwheeling, with tucked legs, over more lasers, finally landing about a step away from the glass casing. With one final forward handspring, Yoshifumi had his hands on the glass casing, using all of his strength (which would take a lot) to curve up and stand on the class casing, but turned on his hands to land his feet on the glass, also turning so that he could face the only entrance to the room.

Releasing a breath of relief, Yoshifumi reached into his pocket to pull out a card gun. "Better tell them that their guest of honour has arrive," he said quietly to himself before aiming the card gun towards a laser and firing, only to frown when the card was singed in half.

…

Back in the control room, Fukuzawa, Ginzo and Shinichi were waiting with prolonged anxiety. The digital clock beside the monitors read 00:10. This only added to their growing anxiousness.

Ginzo was growing angry and irritated, for the fact that another chance to catch Kid might have been blown away by the jewel owner's secrets and suspicious actions. Ginzo wasn't stupid. And it seemed that Fukuzawa thought him to be so. But another problem for him was that he should be in the building, checking the security by hand. Being stuck in the control room was only proving him to be useless.

Shinichi felt slightly similar to the inspector's uselessness, but he was focusing more on the live security footage before them. Something wasn't right. He just knew it. He had been staring at the two screens that showed the entrance of the jewel room. The guards stationed there hadn't moved, which Shinichi knew was for their orders as they were meant to be placed underneath the heat scanner above the entrance. But these two guards hadn't moved the slightest inch.

Another thing that bothered him was the answer to his question earlier when he asked what the trap in order to catch Kid actually was. Fukuzawa had only said that it was a light beam trap, that would set an alarm if any of the beams had been triggered. If that was the case, then why was he so tight lipped about the trap to begin with? Why keep that a secret? Clearly it had something to do with a trigger as traps more or less consisted of those in order for them to work, so the fact that Fukuzawa decided to hide that from the inspector didn't take him off of Shinichi's suspect list. And even if Fukuzawa had willingly told Nakamori about the trap, Shinichi highly doubted that Fukuzawa would tell him about it as the jewel owner made it perfectly clear that he didn't trust Shinichi.

"Something isn't right. There should have been a sign of Kid by now," Ginzo complained as he closed his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest tightly.

Fukuzawa's lips twitched (as if he was resisting the urge to smile), as he turned to the inspector. "Maybe, he chose not to come. My security is definitely enough to scare off criminals. It's happened before."

"No." Shinichi cut in abruptly, his hands on the edge of the monitor display and his eyes fixed on the two screens that viewed the jewel room entrance. All the men in the room turned to him, the Kid task force members turning to listen in, clearly interested. "Kid has never backed down from a challenge. And I don't think Kid would miss this opportunity."

Fukuzawa's eyes widened, slightly aghast to the teenage detective's words. "Opportunity?! You're saying that as if I'm handing the Aquamarine Stone to him on a silver platter!"

"Well, isn't that what you've kind of done?" Shinichi calmly shot back, looking at the jewel owner from the corner of his eye; azure blue reflecting the lights from the monitor screens.

"What are you suggesting?!" Rage began to rise in Fukuzawa, his fury becoming evident in his posture and voice. And it was clear by Shinichi's face, he didn't care that he was pissing him off.

"You've left so many hallways open without security cameras or stationed guards and even without lights. Kid knows how to sneak around," Shinichi notified. "And knowing the phantom like I do, darkened hallways are Kid's favourite place to hide and use for his advantage. Do you see what you've done by focusing all of your security on this," he gestured a waving finger to the two screens viewing the jewel room entrance, "part of the building? Kid could even be in there right now and we wouldn't even know."

Fukuzawa shook his head, reaching into his pocket to check the heat scanner readings. The measurement being the same as it had twenty five minutes ago. He shook his head again, "That's impossible. There's only one way in there and it's through that entrance right there." He said in denial as he pointed to the screens. "And anyway, the guards are still standing there. They haven't moved."

Now Ginzo was glaring at those two screens, "But don't they look a little too still to you?" He asked aloud as he zeroed in further on the screens, as if he was playing spot the difference.

Fukuzawa rolled his eyes, "Yes, they were their orders as they need to remain positioned there so that the heat scanner can measure their combined temperature as well as that of the area that they are standing in."

"Can I see that monitor that you keep so close to you?" Shinichi inquired as he straightened his posture to face the jewel owner.

Fukuzawa raised a suspecting eyebrow, "Why?"

The detective resisted the urge to role his eyes at the ridiculous comeback. "Because I need to check something."

After a moment of reluctance, Fukuzawa handed the device over to him.

Looking at the screen for a few moments, Shinichi's eyebrows drew closer together. "If this is the temperature reading for those two guards, why is it so high?" He asked, mainly to himself.

Fukuzawa cocked his head to the side, slightly confused by the question. "What are you talking about?"

Shinichi handed the inspector the device, letting him get a good look at it, before turning back to face the jewel owner. "The human body normally registers to the temperature of 37°C. But the temperature reading that is radiating off those guards is at 41°C, which is unhealthy for the human body unless they have a fever. But something is making these guards hotter than their normal body temperature." He turned to the monitor screens, looking at the guards standing at the jewel room entrance from both angles. "But they don't even look like they are sweating or becoming uncomfortable. Then that also means that their body temperature is combining with that of the area they're in, and I'm going to guess that that unnecessary heat is coming from the jewel room where you are holding the trap for Kid." Shinichi paused to looked back to Fukuzawa with his eyes narrowed, "And that isn't good for the safety of your security guards. That's an abnormal level of room temperature, as well as body temperature combined."

Ginzo's head shot to Fukuzawa, "Just what kind of beams do you have in there?!"

"Fukuzawa-san!" Called out one of the Kid task force members that were sat at the monitor desk, closest to where Fukuzawa was standing.

Ginzo, Shinichi and Fukuzawa turned to him. Fukuzawa me his eyes, "What is it?"

"The trap has been triggered," the task member declared as calmly as he could.

Fukuzawa's eyes shot open wide as he pushed past Shinichi to look at the jewel room entrance screens. "That's impossible! There's no way he could have gotten in there. The guards are still there, they haven't moved at all."

Shinichi sighed, "It seems that we have all been played from the beginning." When Fukuzawa and Ginzo turned to him, Shinichi began making his way to the control room door. "The footage was put on a loop, so what we were all staring at was what the guards had been sometime ago. But it was hard to pick up as I would guess that the loop is about a minute long."

"How long have you known about this?!" Fukuzawa demanded, though to Shinichi, it seemed that the jewel owner was taking the role of the loud inspector tonight. "Why didn't you tell us?!"

"I just pieced it together now, going by the monitors still showing that footage. Which would also explain the fact of those two guards remaining so still, accept for the one hand movement that's only brief and almost unnoticeable." Without saying another word, Shinichi pushed the door open and fled the room. Ginzo was quick to follow him, Fukuzawa not far behind him as they rushed to the jewel room.

…

There was an entire group of people running to the jewel room, the group had only gathered due to Ginzo calling out to as many of his task force members that he passed; many that had been standing outside being called on the radio. Fukuzawa was in front of the group, beside Shinichi who was almost passing him, which seemed to tick Fukuzawa off as he kept glancing at the teenage detective from the corner of his eye.

The group turned the corner of the jewel room, the only light in most of the hallways that they had just run through keeping the jewel room entrance hallway bright for everyone to see. However, they all instantly froze to the sight of Furuta and Akiyama laying unconscious by the large entrance door frame. Purposefully placed under the heat scanner, a visible red patch on their chests.

Shinichi was the first to act, striding over to where the men lay and kneeling down to examine the red patch, picking one up in his hand. "A heat pack?" He then looked up to see into the darkened jewel room. On closer observation, Shinichi could just about make out the darkened figure that was crouched on top of the display case. "Kid?" He questioned rather then identified.

Hearing the name caused Ginzo to dash over to where Shinichi was, with full intention of darting into the room in order to catch the thief. "Kid!"

Just as the inspector was ready to step into the eerily darkened jewel room, a hand shot out to grasp a handful of the back of Ginzo's suit jacket, "No!" Then Ginzo was flung back into the wall facing the jewel room entrance. When the inspector looked up to glare at the culprit, he was a little surprised to see that it was Fukuzawa standing there staring back at him. "You can't go in there." Ginzo was ready to protest when Fukuzawa turned away to step closer to the entrance door frame, staring with a hard and cold scowl into the room, directly at the figure shadowed by the room's darkness. Fukuzawa turned to one of his men who had accompanied them in their pleasant run. "Kirigoya, turn off the trap's power and turn the lights on for the jewel room."

Kirigoya, narrow green eyes and swept back black hair, nodded and straightened where he stood. "Yes, sir," he answered before running back through the way all of them had come through. Fukuzawa turned back to the darkened figure.

The darkened figure's head moved slightly, "That's right, we wouldn't want anyone to get hurt now, would we?"

It was at that moment that the lights turned back on, revealing the jewel room's exterior to everyone who could see through the doorway. The lights being turned on revealed the figure to be a man crouched on the display case, wearing the uniform one of Fukuzawa's security men, hat shielding their face.

The group began to filter in slower, gathering around the display case whilst also keeping their distance.

Fukuzawa clenched his fist, "How did you get in here?"

The crouched figure's shoulders dropped as if sighing to themselves, without the noise. "I don't think that's the question you should be asking, Fukuzawa-san." The figure lifted their head to reveal their face. "Wouldn't you agree?" Their tone was soft and calm, almost a gentle whisper that was only patronising the jewel owner.

Fukuzawa looked to the space of where the night's target was held, smirking to seeing the Aquamarine Stone glinting on the white silk cushion. "Hmph, you clearly haven't acted as your reputation makes you out to be. You haven't even stolen the jewel. Is it because you can't, Kaitou Kid?"

Kid let out a cough of laughter, "Oh no, I only waited here patiently because I like performing to an audience. What's a magician without the show themselves?"

The jewel owner and the inspector's eyes widened, surprised. "So, you just... waited here?"

Kid hummed, moving to stand on the display case, looking directly at the jewel owner, "I am a gentleman after all, unlike you."

Fukuzawa's eyes narrowed as he looked to the thief's now heightened gaze. "So, you took the disguise of Yoshifumi." His expression then changed into that of disdainful as he gazed up at Kid. "I'll admit that I'm surprised by your progress tonight, especially making it through my trap."

Kid's own eyes narrowed down at him, face turning ever so slightly sour to the man. "I am a man of my word. My warnings are also promises that I keep." Kid paused, turning away to look around the now lit room. "But your trap could have hurt anyone standing in this room."

The jewel owner faltered, his cocky physique changing instantly, quite aware that many people had turned to gape at him. Fukuzawa knew that he would need to lie. "Well, now, that's absurd. My trap was completely harmless."

Kid turned to the inspector, who seemed to be a little dumbstruck to everything that was going on. Kid then turned to see the exit, seeing the eastern detective sneak out of the jewel room, identifying that as her cue to leave. Kid reached up to grasp the front of her hat, pulling it down slightly to overshadow her contact-covered eyes. "Well, as much as I have enjoyed this wild night of enjoyment, I really must be going."

"But... you haven't even taken the gem yet," Ginzo pointed out as he stepped closer to the display case.

Kid peered back to him with her left eye, clouded brown with its own individual facade. "I never disappoint, Nakamori-keibu." With that, Kid reached down to grasp her uniform, pulling back white fabric to transform from the security guard Yoshifumi, and into the infamous Kaitou Kid. Cape, suit, hat and monocle in place to face the others in the room. Kid bowed to them, holding her cape out to the side of her, "I will wish you all a good evening."

Just then, everyone pounced all at once towards the display case. Kid however, knowing their predictable actions all too well, winked to them before spinning on the tip of her left shoe, the white shoe sliding gracefully over the polished glass, before throwing down a smoke bomb, filling the room with pink smoke.

While they were all busy trying to breathe through the smoke, Kid had shot her grapple gun upwards towards the ceiling windows, zooming up there before climbing through the windows and making a break for the top roof.

After a couple of minutes were spent trying to breathe through the smoke and bumping into the other task force members as well as Fukuzawa's men, Ginzo and Fukuzawa had both reached the display case only to find it Kidless and empty. The Aquamarine Stone missing from its space on the white silk cushion.

Fukuzawa slammed his hands on the glass, desperately staring at the now empty spot in disbelief. "That's... That's impossible!" he choked out, not believing that he had actually lost.

Ginzo turned away from him, face filled with agitation. He felt no sympathy for the man. Ginzo would even go as far as saying that the jewel owner deserved it, for keeping all of his secrets and keeping his true plan away from Ginzo, as they could have caught Kid but the jewel owner blew it. Ginzo was now going to do things his way.

Turning to his men, Ginzo gestured with a hand to the task force members, "Check all of the exits and entrances! Check the fire escapes!" He pointed to a group that were stood to the side, "You guys, come with me to the roof. Kid couldn't have gone far," He ordered whilst half running out of the jewel room, leaving the now angrily sulking Fukuzawa to himself.

…

Shinichi made it to the roof, thankfully before anyone else did. He wasn't too sure if Kid was already there or not but he had a feeling that she was, as it took him nearly five minutes to find it himself. But knowing that Kid had her skill of finding different ways, it wouldn't surprise him. So, with a deep breath, Shinichi pushed the door leading to the roof open, instantly being engulfed by a chilling breeze which was quite refreshing due to his previous run.

The detective took a step onto the open roof, glancing around in search for the mysterious thief in white; stunned when he didn't see her.

He took another step before a voice sounded somewhere above him. "Ah, Meitantei. I had a feeling you would come here to see me off," purred the thief, who was sat on top of the box that held the roof door, a fanning generator to her right.

Shinichi turned around, smirking a little. Even though he knew what the true person under that monocle sounded like, it was still weird for Shinichi to hear the masculine tone come out of the thief's lips. Though he had to admit, the voice was definitely charming. "Did you wait for me?" He questioned in return, pushing his hands into his trouser pockets.

"Hm," Kid sounded, pushing herself up from the box to flip over Shinichi and stand before him, the roof door behind the detective so she could see if anyone was coming through the roof door, that was still open. "How did you enjoy tonight?" She asked, glancing at him from the side, moonlight causing her suit to glow bright against the darkened sky.

Shinichi's smirk changed into a frown as he thought of all the things that the jewel owner had kept from everyone, including Ginzo. "I'm going to be honest. It wasn't as enjoyable as it normally is. Fukuzawa had too many secrets and his motives for you weren't exactly Kid-heist material."

Kid turned her head away at that, facing off into the darkened night. Shinichi could see that when she did so, her hat obscured her eyes from his view. "I can only agree with you on that, Tantei-kun. That trap wouldn't have been safe for anyone." Kid paused, thinking over what she had to do in order to get close to the display case. "Fukuzawa-san was far too reckless. He had full knowledge of what that trap could do to anyone, and yet he still put it forward as part of his plan."

Shinichi wanted to step closer to her, but thought better of it, deciding that it would be better to remain grounded. "Fukuzawa told us that the trap was filled with detector beams."

Kid wanted to laugh, but only showed a smirk instead as she turned to the detective, "Oh, is that what he called it?" Her tone was almost patronising, which alerted Shinichi that she was probably irritated with the jewel owner's plan. Sighing, the moonlight magician closed her eyes and gently grasped the rim of her hat. "I will admit, tonight has most certainly been eventful, but I was a little discouraged by your absence, Meitantei. What happened?" She questioned, playfulness rising in her tone again.

This time, it was Shinichi's turn to get annoyed. The eastern detective released an agitated grumble, running a hand through his hair as he did so. "That would be because Fukuzawa had me by his side for a majority of the night. Due to him not trusting me, he didn't want me out of his sight so he made me stand in the control room with him as we waited for you to show up."

Kid placed a hand on her chest, acting out appreciation. "Aww, Meitantei! You missed me didn't you?" Shinichi rolled his eyes to that, but was grinning none the less. Though Kid added with a feminine hand gesture towards him, "Don't worry, I missed you too."

The eastern detective could see in the darkened view Kid wink at him, even though his face warmed beautifully into rose. So, in an attempt to shield his heated embarrassment, Shinichi put a curled up hand to his mouth and cleared his throat. "Anyway, moving on. Where's the jewel?" He asked, remaining as professional as his rosy cheeks would allow.

The white phantom thief tutted her gloved index finger at him, "Uh-uh-uh, Meitantei, patience is avert you." Kid was ready to reach for her breast pocket that held the jewel but froze in place, hand half-way up to her chest as she turned her eyes to view the tall building about a mile away from her left. The building over shadowed the Fukuzawa Hall by about seventeen floors, those floors being designed with floor to ceiling windows; creating a mirror to everything that surrounded it in the night time.

Kid's eyes narrowed slightly, though her body was still facing the detective. "I could have sworn I saw a glisten of light over there... though it's probably just the moonlight. I hope it's just the moonlight."

The sudden silence from the thief had instantly made Shinichi on edge. This was the Kaitou Kid. The always collected thief that was always in control in her own ground, knowing all of the strengths and weaknesses of her plan as well as her surroundings. And she was someone who wasn't fooled easily. So, when Shinichi had seen her eyes redirect towards something that was at the left of her, it couldn't have been good.

As though she had sensed the detective's uneasiness, Kid quickly turned back to him with her traditional Kid smirk. The hand that had been reaching for the jewel falling to her side. "It seems that I will have to give you the pleasure of taking the jewel next time." She turned the side ever so slightly. "I will have to bid you goodnight, Meitantei. And please make sure you go straight home tonight."

To the sudden turn in conversation and underlined worry in the thief's voice, Shinichi was nonplussed. He could only stand there and gawk at her. With the steadiest amount of breath that he could conjure, Shinichi nodded, turning to walk back into the Fukuzawa Hall. He stopped to turn to the moonlight magician, "Why did you-"

"Watch out!" Kid called out, suddenly darting towards the detective to push him back into the building.

Shinichi only managed to acknowledge the feel of Kid's hand pushing him backwards into the roof's doorway entrance hard and the whispered sound of metal being hit. Once he was in the roof's entrance, he looked to the roof's door-frame where he was able to clock a yellow flashing spark. Upon closer inspection, he could see a bullet hole denting the metal. He turned to the thief, "So, that's why you-" his words died on him as he saw Kid fall against the white tiles, a hand grasped tightly over what looked to be blood stained material. Her face morphed into that of annoyance, clearly trying to hide the pain. The detective stepped forward, hand held out to her, "Kid?"

The thief held up the hand that wasn't holding her bleeding arm, though she instantly regretted the movement. "I'm fine, Meitantei." She turned to glance through the open roof door, seeing only the edge of the multiple-windowed building. "Though it seems we have company. It could either be some irritant or a friend of Fukuzawa's."

Kid's words made sense to the detective, being reminded of the earlier hours of the evening where Fukuzawa had more or less cornered him, keeping an eye on him, making Shinichi remain in the control room with him and Nakamori. "Do you think Fukuzawa built that trap to kill you?"

Kid pushed herself off the white tiled wall, hand still grasped tightly against her still bleeding right arm, but her expression was showing that she was paying the pain no mind. Instead, she positioned herself beside the detective, who was staring at her wound with worry. "That trap was at a level of dangerous I have never encountered before when it comes to traps in general. It was engineered with lasers that can cut through flesh and bone; like a hot knife cutting cheese. I knew there was something off about the jewel room before I even entered it. And I knew that the level of working electricity had been tampered with, as so many places in the building were dark, being left without working lights. Going back to the lasers, that would be another reason for the heat scanner above the jewel room door. It wasn't just to measure body temperature, it was to measure body temperature with the combined heat radiating from the jewel room, so they would appear a lot warmer than they were naturally. But when asleep, our body temperature tends to drop a few degrees, due to it being at a natural healing function."

"So, that's why you put down those heat packs on two of Fukuzawa's men, so that the heat scanner wouldn't pick up the difference in body temperature," Shinichi added on to her explanation, his head lowered as he played back all of the clues and things that Fukuzawa wanted kept under wraps. "That heat scanner was ultra sensitive, so if the guards had just been knocked unconscious, the heat scanner would pick up the slight drop in temperature."

Kid nodded. "When I passed the room holding the jewel, I was able to feel the slight heated wave of air that flowed out of the room." She turned to Shinichi, "When you were in the building, did you feel an unusual amount of heat?"

Shinichi nodded, glancing outside to try and see where the sniper was coming from through the gap in the open roof door. "For a place like this, the heating throughout the building would be almost cooling, as Fukuzawa holds multiple tours here, so it would need to be turned down in order for guests to feel comfortable when in large groups. But I picked up on the fact that it was rather hot in the hallways and corridors, as well as the large touring rooms. When I confronted Fukuzawa about it whilst we were in the control room, he didn't seem to have anything to say." The detective then lowered his head, sudden guilt enveloping his face. "I just wish I could have confronted him sooner about it."

There was silence between them before Kid closed her eyes, a shaky sigh escaping her lips. "Don't beat yourself up over it, Meitantei. There was no way you could have predicted anything that Fukuzawa-san was doing, especially if he didn't speak a word of his plans to anyone." Kid stepped closer to the open door, stepping on the very edge of the door-frame, observing more of the tall building now to her right. She could see out of the corner of her eye, Shinichi taking a step closer to her in order to do the same, but she quickly put her wounded arm out to stop him, grimacing when she did so, when another bullet pinged off the door.

Shinichi's azure eyes were darting to and from at Kid's face and at her wound... that was still bleeding.

"It doesn't make sense," he heard her mutter to mainly herself. Shinichi remained silent when she continued, "If they were after me, why didn't they shoot me when I was sitting above the roof door? Unless they weren't there at that point. And if they were, then why did they only shoot when Meitantei was about to leave the roof?" She turned to half face the detective, "Maybe, they were after you, Meitantei?" She suggested, hoping that she was wrong.

Shinichi's eyebrows lowered, "It's a possibility, but it doesn't change the fact that they shot you and not me, when they had a clear shot."

There was a loud bang that came from a few stair levels below them, along with the unmistakable call of "Kid!" from none other than Nakamori-keibu. The sound of multiple hurried footsteps informed both thief and detective that they didn't have long.

Kid quickly turned to Shinichi, "Meitantei, you stay here and hold them off. I'll run out and fly away on my hang-glider."

"But what if-" Shinichi protested, staring intently at Kid, clearly not liking her idea.

"We don't have time, Meitantei. We can't risk Nakamori-keibu or any of the task force members getting hurt, now go!" That was all she said before she ran onto the roof, closing the door as she did so.

As the door was closing, Shinichi watched her white cape transform into a hang-glider before the door slammed closed. The footsteps were just a level of steps below him and Shinichi looked around, quickly dashing over to the wall Kid had leant against when she was shot, also where her blood had accidently smeared against the bright white tiles. So, thinking quickly, Shinichi lifted the inside of his jacket to wipe the blood away with the inside corner. He just managed to rid the tiles of Kid's blood as Ginzo and his men approached the top.

Ginzo grew surprised to seeing Shinichi there. "Kudo-kun? Where's Kid?"

Shinichi gestured to the roof, "He left just as I arrived," he answered confidently; lying was like second nature to him now.

Ginzo glared towards the closed roof door, storming over to it, "Damn you, Kaitou Kid!"

Shinichi quickly stood in front of the door, arms outstretched to his sides, stopping the inspector. "Wait, Nakamori-keibu, you can't go out there."

Ginzo drew back slightly, again surprised. "What? Why?"

Shinichi took a deep breath, meeting the inspector's eyes. "Because there's a sniper shooting at this building."

Multiple gasps were heard from the task force members. Ginzo's eyes widened in shock. "A sniper?! Why would a sniper be here?! At a Kid heist no less?!

Shinichi, though he had a good idea of who the sniper might be, still gave the inspector (who was kept in the dark about snipers and the murdering organisations) a person to take aside and question. "I'm not too sure, but you might want to question Fukuzawa-san of his true intentions for tonight, as I don't think the trap that he had built was intended just to capture Kid."

The inspector was beginning to get nervous, "But if Fukuzawa-san didn't intend on capturing Kid, then are you saying that he meant to..." he trailed off, not wanting to finish the sentence as that kind of news was too harsh and unsettling.

Shinichi nodded, "Yes. I think Fukuzawa-san had built that trap to kill Kid."

…

Author's Note: Here is Aquamarine, and I know, it's long. But I hope you enjoyed it. If you did give me a comment and tell me what you thought, I love hearing what you all think.

The next chapter is called "Horrid Result", so please look forward to it, but until then, stay beautiful my lovelies!

*MANY KISSES* AMCDeBurgh ^_~