Chapter 151: Positions in Place
On a high-rise building, a white cape billowed dramatically in the wind with a rustling sound. Kid stood on the edge, overlooking the entire panorama of Ekoda. Directly in front of him stood the clock tower that had been Ekoda's landmark for fifty years.
Built half a century ago, the clock tower was now surrounded by scaffolding and scheduled for demolition.
"Young Master Kaito, perhaps we should reconsider. There are three helicopters circling overhead, severely disrupting the airflow and wind patterns. If we get too close, the hang glider might malfunction."
The elderly man behind Kaito—his butler Terai Konosuke—earnestly advised caution.
"I'll infiltrate from the inside instead. No problem, Jii-chan, don't worry. There won't be any issues. I don't believe there's anything in this world that I, Kaitou Kid, can't steal."
"But how do you plan to escape? Even if you obtain the jewel, you can't leave by air. You'll be trapped! The police have already surrounded the entire clock tower—even their own people might not be able to get out!"
"I have a method. Magicians never reveal their secrets. Jii-chan, just watch—this is going to be a spectacular performance."
Kuroba Kaito spread his arms, looked up at the night sky, and closed his eyes. "This is also a challenge... a promise."
The clock tower was where he and Aoko had first met. He wouldn't let it disappear. Kitano Tomoaki's scheme would surely fail!
He already knew the man had secretly sold the genuine jewels. Today's main objective was to ensure the survival of this clock tower.
Besides that, he had a lingering question.
He remembered what Koizumi Akako had told him yesterday after school:
"When the 20,000th chime rings, traversing past and present, the Demon of Light will descend from the eastern sky and destroy the White Sinner!"
Heh. He acknowledged the existence of magic, but he never believed prophecies were set in stone. What "Demon of Light"? That sounded unreliable. The person who could catch him, Kaitou Kid, hadn't even been born yet!
Demon of Light?
Fine—let's see who dares challenge me, Kaitou Kid!
His cape billowed dramatically as his body leaned forward, and the white-clad figure swooped down toward the ground.
A moment later, white wings unfurled, and the phantom thief rode the wind currents away.
"Just like Master Toichi... Young Master Kaito, you must return safely!"
"Everyone, prepare yourselves! There's less than half an hour until Kaitou Kid's announced heist time! Stay vigilant, maintain your positions, and absolutely do not give Kid any opportunity!"
Inspector Nakamori's voice echoed throughout the clock tower, and everyone received the order through their radios.
Outside the clock tower, the three helicopters that had been circling had somehow multiplied into four. Several police officers wearing earpieces were scattered along the edges of the crowd surrounding the tower.
Sato Miwako?
What's she doing here? Isn't this a Division 2 case?
Natsukawa glanced suspiciously at a tall woman wearing sunglasses. He recognized her immediately—her disguise was far too crude, incomparable to his own infiltration skills.
After passing her and walking some distance, Natsukawa spotted more suspicious individuals who resembled plainclothes officers.
They all wore headsets, their eyes constantly scanning the crowd—clearly not fans.
It seemed Division 1 was indeed involved, though Inspector Nakamori appeared unaware.
Sato occasionally communicated through her headset, but he couldn't intercept Division 1's communications with Division 2's radio frequency.
So were Divisions 1 and 2 operating separately this time?
After forming this hypothesis, Natsukawa looked overhead. Initially there had been three helicopters; now there were four. If his theory was correct, one must belong to Division 1.
Natsukawa pondered for a moment, guessing this might be related to the Black Organization's involvement in the Azure Wonder incident.
After all, that incident had involved significant firepower. The Organization's weapons and helicopter access would definitely be considered terrorist-level threats by Japanese standards.
So while Division 1's participation was unexpected, it was also quite logical.
"They're here?" Natsukawa's gaze suddenly shifted toward the crowd.
Among them, Koizumi Akako stood out prominently.
She wore a red off-shoulder top, black jeans that accentuated her long legs, and bright red lipstick—exuding an alluring yet mysterious charm.
Seemingly sensing someone's intense stare, Koizumi Akako looked in Natsukawa's direction.
"What's wrong, Akako-sama?"
"Nothing." Koizumi Akako frowned and shook her head. She hadn't noticed anything unusual, but she had an unsettling premonition.
"That helicopter... is that the Demon of Light?" she murmured softly, looking upward.
"There's no mistake. That aircraft exudes the same pure yet penetrating aura as Kuroba-kun. The pilot is as cunning as a demon and possesses eyes that can see through people's hearts.
Who exactly is this person? My red magic can't even perceive them clearly.
The only other time I've encountered something similar was with that little boy I met at Mountain Mist Temple."
"My lady, if the Demon of Light is about to appear, shouldn't we retreat to safety?"
Koizumi Akako shook her head. The Demon of Light was a title, not necessarily indicating the person was a magician.
Kuroba Kaito really doesn't listen to advice at all. Instead of hiding at home safely, he insists on walking into danger.
Natsukawa moved through the crowd and headed toward the van that had been prepared in advance.
This was part of what he'd asked Franky to arrange.
He didn't plan to reveal his identity tonight. He wanted to maintain control while overseeing the entire operation. He could simply pose as a random passerby and provide Inspector Nakamori with some anonymous intel.
"Aunt Yor, look how many people there are! Everyone's here to see Kid!"
The sudden familiar voice nearly made Natsukawa stumble. Turning around, he saw Yor carrying Anya as they pushed through the crowd.
What are they doing here?
Natsukawa sighed, rubbing his forehead. He'd been wondering why Anya hadn't cried or made a fuss when he left tonight—she'd seemed quite excited instead. Turns out she wanted to watch Kid's heist performance.
But wait—weren't Kid's official fan colors white? Why was Anya dressed all in black?
With Yor protecting Anya, and considering that most Kid heists weren't genuinely dangerous—just flashy performances—Natsukawa wasn't particularly worried. He simply glanced at them a couple more times before continuing on his way.
Tonight was the full moon—the day Anya temporarily lost her telepathic powers.
But Anya wasn't sad about it. Kid had too many fans here. If it weren't for the full moon, she wouldn't have come at all. She didn't want to overload her brain with so much mental chatter.
Natsukawa entered the back of the surveillance van.
The vehicle was equipped with numerous electronic screens. The left side displayed architectural cross-sections, while the right side showed infrared thermal imaging.
Combined, Natsukawa could clearly monitor the distribution of people throughout the entire building.
However, due to technological limitations, infrared thermal imaging wasn't as advanced as one might imagine. It could only display red heat signatures and couldn't visualize detailed human figures on the computer.
For example, if two police officers stood close together, the infrared system would only show a single merged red dot.
This was a drawback, but not a critical flaw. Once Kuroba Kaito was identified as a specific heat signature entering the clock tower, he could be marked with a distinctive color, making it unlikely they'd lose track of him.
"This is the main entrance. One of our officers has spotted Kid's top hat and cape. I have reason to believe Kid has infiltrated the crowd!"
A tense report came through the radio.
Immediately after, Nakamori Ginzo's voice responded: "Excellent! Everyone remain on high alert! Also, retrieve that cape and top hat immediately. All of Kid's belongings need to be fingerprinted!"
At that moment, Nakamori Ginzo set down his radio and sighed. "Although it's always fruitless, we still have to follow procedure. Maybe he accidentally left prints this time."
"What was that, Inspector?" asked a subordinate.
"Nothing."
Nakamori Ginzo, whose temporary command center had been set up in a room halfway up the clock tower, walked to the window and peered down at the crowd below.
So many people!
Wait...
Is that Aoko?
Nakamori Ginzo squinted, grabbed his binoculars to zoom in, and immediately spotted his daughter's distinctive sign.
Unlike the Kaitou Kid fans surrounding her, Aoko's sign read: "Down with Kaitou Kid!"
As expected of my daughter! Don't worry—Daddy will definitely catch that annoying thief!
Immediately afterward, Nakamori Ginzo scanned the crowd, trying to identify Kaitou Kid hiding among the fans.
Kid's disguise skills were exceptional—the possibility of him concealing himself among his own fans was extremely high.
"Hmm?"
Nakamori Ginzo stared intently for several seconds before a confused expression appeared on his face. He turned to his subordinate operating the computer terminal. "Did we place any plainclothes officers among the fan crowd?"
"Plainclothes? No, sir! All our officers are positioned within the security cordon in front of the crowd—they're only responsible for crowd control, not infiltration."
"That's strange. I'm seeing several individuals wearing communications headsets, and they look vaguely familiar." Nakamori Ginzo looked up at the ceiling, lost in thought once more.
"What's wrong, sir?" His subordinate hurried over.
"There's an extra helicopter. I remember only requesting three helicopters, correct?" Nakamori Ginzo's expression changed drastically. He grabbed his radio and bellowed, "Why didn't anyone report the additional helicopter to me?! What were you three doing up there?!"
He couldn't help his fury. How could no one have noticed such a large helicopter? Were they all blind? How could they call themselves pilots? They should all go home and get their eyes checked!
This situation reminded him of the Azure Wonder incident. Although he'd been unconscious during most of it, he'd heard from officers that two mysterious helicopters had appeared. Was this the same situation?
Damn it! Who are these people? Could Kaitou Kid's reappearance after eight years be connected to this mysterious organization?
"Uh, the fourth helicopter is mine, Nakamori-kun."
Inspector Megure's voice came through the radio, sounding somewhat embarrassed. He'd just arrived and was about to greet Inspector Nakamori after positioning his officers when this confrontation erupted.
"Inspector... Inspector Megure?! It's you!" Nakamori Ginzo raised his binoculars to examine the helicopter more closely and confirmed it bore the Metropolitan Police Department's insignia.
He turned and glared at his subordinates, the meaning clear: Why wasn't I informed that Division 1 was involved?!
"I only just learned about it myself! The department was concerned that the terrorists from last time might reappear, which is why they deployed Division 1 officers as backup."
"How is that possible?! Those people didn't appear after Kid's subsequent heist notices—they probably won't show up this time either!" Inspector Nakamori stared incredulously at the helicopter overhead, awaiting Inspector Megure's explanation.
"Ahem, Nakamori-kun, don't worry. We're simply preventing that force from interfering. If it's only Kaitou Kid, Division 1 will absolutely not interfere with your operation. You have my word."
As he spoke, Inspector Megure's voice lowered slightly before adding, "However, I've brought a powerful asset to assist Division 2—someone I believe will be extremely helpful in capturing Kid."
Inspector Megure wasn't ruling out any possibilities. Although he had high hopes for Kudo Shinichi, someone as cunning as Kid definitely wouldn't be easily caught.
Moreover, Kudo Shinichi didn't know Kid as thoroughly as Inspector Nakamori did, and many operational details might not be as refined.
(End of Chapter)
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