Tokyo: Rabbit Officer and Her Evil Partner-Chapter 794 - 482: Invisible Man (Part 2)

Fortunately, these feelings came and went quickly. She secretly made up her mind that she would personally catch the killer and prove her abilities to everyone!

As long as her skills were strong enough, nobody would dare look down and play on their phones when she spoke!

"In summary, Mizutani Rika’s social circle showed no abnormalities before her death. However, it’s worth mentioning that I discovered other suspicious points during the investigation..."

Minamoto Tamako was about to explain her reasoning process but was interrupted by Murata An: "We all have limited time. Right after the meeting ends, we have to start investigating. Whatever suspicions you have, put them in the investigation report, and I’ll look at it when I have time."

"Understood," Minamoto Tamako replied.

And just like that, the meeting ended hastily.

Murata An wasn’t lying; all the criminal police were extremely busy and planned not to sleep for the next three days. As soon as the meeting ended, they rushed down the stairs to begin the next phase of the investigation.

Minamoto Tamako organized the investigation content into a report and submitted it.

When she finished, it was just time to clock out. Fushimi Roku packed up and clocked out on time. As he passed by Minamoto Tamako’s desk, he casually asked, "Are you going to be on surveillance tonight, or are you taking a break and starting fresh tomorrow?"

Minamoto Tamako was still sulking, feeling that the other criminal police looked down on her. Internally, she was determined to solve the case alone. Puffing out her cheeks, she said, "I’ll go on surveillance in a bit."

"Oh, okay then, I won’t prepare a dinner portion for you today."

Fushimi Roku nodded and was about to sneak off when Minamoto Tamako grabbed him: "We’re partners. If you’re not coming, how will you write the case closing report afterwards?"

"I’ll just say I organized personnel for the investigation. Isn’t organizing and mobilizing a contribution too?" Fushimi Roku claimed confidently. "Wasn’t it me who sent you on surveillance? Aren’t Kazama Tatsuya and Watanabe Shun my employees now? Didn’t I pay out of my own pocket for their work? How could that not be written in the case report?"

Minamoto Tamako felt a bit dumbfounded. What he said seemed reasonable, yet something felt off.

Without waiting for her to fully grasp it, Fushimi Roku broke free from her small hand and rushed off: "I’m off, I’ll drop Sakurako at school tomorrow. They say that if a man and woman work together, it’s not tiring. Don’t worry about things at home."

Minamoto Tamako was still figuring out how to argue back, but Fushimi Roku had already jogged away. She had no choice but to punch in her field duty card, and then paged Senior Kazama and Senior Watanabe, politely asking if they would be willing to help.

Kazama Tatsuya agreed, but Watanabe Shun was less willing.

Luckily, Fushimi Roku had already given a heads-up. If they didn’t go for surveillance, they’d be fired tonight, and he’d no longer be a company leech, lazing around for a paycheck.

For some reason, Moriyama Yasurou, having learned about the situation, also came to help. She didn’t join the surveillance, mainly responsible for delivering meals and drinking a little wine during shift breaks, treating it like an outing. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

The four of them agreed online, and Minamoto Tamako drove to pick them up.

"We need a small van for surveillance. You’re using a Lexus; it’s too flashy," Kazama Tatsuya reminded.

"But I don’t have a small van..." Minamoto Tamako was a bit at a loss, gripping the steering wheel and feeling momentarily bewildered.

Indeed, as a famous detective, how could she not have a small van for surveillance? A pink sedan and a luxury car were too conspicuous!

Clearly, she was still too amateur, her skills not yet mature enough. She had to always be prepared in life!

Watanabe Shun volunteered to borrow a vegetable delivery van from an izakaya.

The van’s appearance was low-key enough, with thick dust covering the windows, and the door adorned with a "Fuji Tofu Shop" logo—just a typical street van.

The interior was a bit dirty, reeking of a strong fishy smell, with vegetable residue in the corners, and the door handle well-worn.

Minamoto Tamako had no room for disdain. To her surprise, Sister Yalan didn’t back down.

Usually, Sister Yalan was extremely neat. She had noticed this when working at the Nakagawara Police Station. To avoid dirty and messy environments, Sister Yalan even frequently skipped work.

She probably endured it to support her.

Minamoto Tamako felt touched, her determination to solve the case even stronger—she must not let her friends down!

She drove the van with the three of them to Horie Kei’s workplace.

Horie Kei worked at a convenience store. For someone with a criminal record like him, it was hard to find a stable job, leaving him with temporary gigs like convenience store work.

Minamoto Tamako parked at the convenience store entrance, providing a clear view of the store’s door through the van window.

Horie Kei was inside, mechanically repeating the action of sticking price tags. Oil from prepackaged rice balls stained his fingernails, and the steam from the hot drinks cabinet had left his uniform sleeves wrinkled.

The surveillance monitor beside the cash register reflected his pale face; occasionally, when a customer entered, he would wear a forced smile, bowing and saying, ’Welcome.’

"I’ll take the first shift," Kazama Tatsuya said, leaning against the window, "You guys sleep first; I’ll wake up A-Jun in the morning."

Before coming, Minamoto Tamako had prepared sleeping bags and instant foods in the van. It was only a bit past eight, and none of them could sleep. Watanabe Shun suggested they drink and chat.

Minamoto Tamako disagreed; they were on assignment, and couldn’t afford to slack off. Even if they couldn’t sleep, they had to try. She pulled out a sleeping bag and got inside, leaning on the back seat first: "Everyone, rest. We need to stay sharp to avoid losing focus during surveillance."

"Alright." Watanabe Shun was a bit reluctant, but he obediently lay down.

The two slipped into their sleeping bags, leaning one on each side of Minamoto Tamako. They closed their eyes, but as hard as they tried, sleep eluded them.

Minamoto Tamako vaguely heard the scuttle of cockroaches and recalled Sister Yalan’s neat habits, prompting her to open her eyes and softly say to Moriyama Yasurou, "Thank you."

"Thank me for what?" Moriyama Yasurou asked.

"Thank you, Sister Yalan, for coming to help. You didn’t have to come; the three of us were enough for the surveillance," Minamoto Tamako said.

"No need to thank me." Moriyama Yasurou paused, lowering her voice: "Actually, this is nice too."

"Isn’t it tiring?" Minamoto Tamako asked.

"Of course, it’s tiring, but..." Moriyama Yasurou glanced at Kazama Tatsuya and said, "Tokyo is such an indifferent city, and the social distance between people is too wide. If you don’t live with people you know, it feels awfully lonely."

"Is that so." Minamoto Tamako thought about it. Indeed, colleagues at the police station always kept their distance.

Socializing in Japan is like hell difficulty.

"Rest now," Moriyama Yasurou closed her eyes again.

Minamoto Tamako nodded, forcing herself to sleep.

She lay there for over two hours. In between, Horie Kei got off work. Moriyama Yasurou followed him from a distance to his residence but found nothing unusual and then detoured to meet the others.

The van parked on a street corner. Ideally, surveillance of the workplace and home would use two vehicles, but Watanabe Shun couldn’t borrow a second van, so they made do.

Minamoto Tamako gradually sank into a dreamland. The next morning, she was awakened by the sound of a shift change. Kazama Tatsuya was waking Watanabe Shun to take over.

"Be vigilant; this person is a bit special," Kazama Tatsuya reminded as he crawled into his sleeping bag.

Watanabe Shun yawned and asked, "What’s so special about him?"

"Especially ordinary," Kazama Tatsuya lay down.

"Ha, how is that a trait..." Watanabe Shun was saying when suddenly he sat up straight: "He’s coming downstairs!"

The other three quickly sat up and looked out through the van window.

It was the morning rush hour, and the streets were crowded with pedestrians—high school students walking to school, office workers rushing for the train, and some joggers. The bustling crowd meant they couldn’t spot Horie Kei.

"Where is he?" Moriyama Yasurou asked, "Are you sure he came downstairs?"

"I’m sure. He came out of the hallway entrance, but in the blink of an eye, he disappeared." Watanabe Shun was a bit flustered; he finally understood what "especially ordinary" meant.