The promise under the red maple tree?

Fujino looked puzzled.

He felt a little dazed.

The girl in front of him was definitely Ooka Momiji, but why was she looking for him?

Ooka Momiji did indeed come looking for him after saying those words; logically, she should have been calling him.

But when did he Ooka Momiji's future husband?

He remembered that she was looking for Osaka Black Chicken... Could she have mistaken him for someone else... That shouldn't be possible... There's no way she could mistake someone with such dark skin.

He hasn't done anything like philandering; he's innocent...

Fujino was completely baffled.

Suddenly, his thoughts were interrupted.

He looked down and saw that Ooka Momiji had pulled his arm into her bosom.

That's outrageous.

I should have worn a T-shirt.

The people around looked at each other in bewilderment upon seeing this scene.

Sonoko and Ran were completely stunned.

Ran blushed and, regaining her composure, spoke first, "She said Fujino- Senior is her future..."

"Husband?!"

Before Ran could finish speaking, Sonoko interrupted her.

Her voice involuntarily rose a few decibels.

In a daze, it seemed as if the Girlish Heart had shattered into pieces again.

"Hmph hmph hmph..."

Conan stopped to watch, a genuine smile spreading across his face.

Unexpectedly Fujino actually encountered such a romantic encounter. Instantly, he felt that the heavy burden that had been hanging over his head for a long time was much lighter, and he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Finally, I don't have to worry about being poached anymore.

Tsk tsk tsk!

Conan took out a handful of sunflower Sunflower Seeds that Fujino had just given him, ready to start cracking them open. He paused, then, just like Fujino had done, turned to Hattori Heiji and said, "Want some Sunflower Seeds too?"

"..."

Hattori Heiji was a little confused as to why Conan was smiling so broadly.

But since there are free sunflower Sunflower Seeds, there's also this...

He silently took the Sunflower Seeds and looked at Fujino not far away.

Two dogs watching a show. jpg

Fujino noticed Conan and Hattori Heiji watching from a distance.

These two bastards are actually just watching the drama unfold.

They're eating his melon, and they're also cracking open his Sunflower Seeds.

Hateful!

He cursed inwardly, and suddenly realized that one of the two bastards was German Shepherd and the other was a Husky.

"After many years, Tongzhi, we finally meet again."

Ooka Momiji's voice came through.

Fujino looked down when he heard the sound and saw that Ooka Momiji still had his arm around his chest.

She gazed at Fujino, her face flushed, and her eyes seemed to well up with tears. She said with great emotion, "As promised, I've come to confess."

"Forehead..."

Fujino froze on the spot, somewhat at a loss.

Question: What should I do if a girl I don't know suddenly confesses her feelings to me?

I need help urgently.

"Wait, what's going on here?"

After regaining her composure, Suzuki Sonoko looked at Ooka Momiji and frowned, saying, "When did Fujino- Senior become your fiancé?"

"That story goes back a long time... It happened under a Momiji tree..."

Ooka Momiji said something to herself.

Immediately, she turned to Suzuki Sonoko and asked, "But speaking of which, what is your relationship with Tongzhi?"

Suzuki Sonoko raised her head and said, "I am Fujino Senior, Suzuki Sonoko's classmate."

"My classmate, Suzuki..."

Ooka Momiji touched her lips lightly, as if she had remembered something. "Oh... I remember now, she's the second daughter of the Suzuki family."

Suzuki Sonoko seemed a little surprised. "You know me?"

At this moment, Ran also came over.

She first looked at Fujino, then at Ooka Momiji, and then asked with a puzzled expression, "Excuse me, who are you...?"

"My name is Ooka Momiji, and I am the future bride of Emperor Tongzhi."

Ooka Momiji tilted her head, a happy smile spreading across her face.

"So, when did he become your fiancé, Senior...?"

As she spoke, Suzuki Sonoko had just received no response, muttered a speechless complaint.

She then turned her gaze to Fujino and asked, "Senior, are you aware of this?"

"I can't reach it."

Fujino frowned. "I don't remember making any promises with this Ms. Ooka."

"How could this be... Have you forgotten?"

Ooka Momiji was taken aback. She released her arm from Fujino and quickly pulled out a photo to show Fujino: "You said that you would marry me the next time we met."

Fujino turned his gaze over.

The photo displayed by Ooka Momiji is an old photo that looks quite old, even a bit yellowed.

In the photo, under Momiji tree, a little girl with brown hair wearing a kimono is holding hands with a disheveled boy, as if they are making a promise.

Fujino examined the photo, raising an eyebrow.

That boy looks familiar... he seems to be younger... no, younger 'Fujino'.

Oh no, he's become a stand-in!

No, according to his memory, even if a certain Osaka Black Chicken knew Ooka Momiji, they should have met at a karuta tournament.

What's wrong with him?

Fujino frowned, his brain starting to work at an unprecedented speed, trying to deduce the current situation.

Ran, Sonoko, and Kazuha, who were standing nearby, all chimed in with their gossip.

Ran looked at the two people in the photo and asked in confusion, "Who are the people in this photo...?"

"It was me and the Tongzhi Emperor."

Ooka Momiji explained, and continued, "This photo was taken by a photographer who happened to be passing by after I was rescued by Tongzhi when I was a child."

As she spoke, a smile appeared on her face, "Back then, Tongzhi-kun, who was bitten by a stray dog, said to me, who was crying out of fear, 'Next time we meet, I will definitely marry you.' After that, we made a promise. So, Tongzhi-kun is my future aunt!"

"Well?!"

The group of people were taken aback upon hearing this.

"Is that so?"

Fujino looked up, equally bewildered, and asked Ooka Momiji, "Ooka-san, when exactly did this happen?"

Without a second thought, Ooka Momiji said, "Just ten years ago..."

Fujino was speechless for a moment. "Ten years ago?"

How could she remember something that happened ten years ago so clearly?

Ooka Momiji, still holding up the photo, asked, "So, Anada, do you remember now?"

Fujino recalled the memories in his mind once again.

However, there was no useful information.

"No."

Fujino shook his head helplessly. "I really can't remember."

"How could that be? I clearly remember it."

Ooka Momiji frowned. "Could it be that this private promise of lifelong commitment is so insignificant to you?"

"A lifelong commitment?"

Ran sensed that something was amiss and said, "But, after all, this was just a promise made when we were children, wasn't it?"

"That's right, it was so long ago... Back then, Fujino- Senior was just an eight-year-old child."

Sonoko nodded in agreement.

But before the two of them could finish speaking, Ooka Momiji interrupted them.

"Whether it's a child or an adult."

With a serious expression, Da Gang Momiji said, "A man should always keep his word when he makes a promise that concerns his entire life!"

As she spoke, her eyes trembled slightly as she looked at Fujino, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Or are you just going to pretend that this promise from so many years ago never happened?"

Fujino raised an eyebrow, feeling speechless.

How did he inexplicably become Chen Shimei (a notorious figure in Chinese folklore known for abandoning his wife)?

He glanced at the tears streaming down his face and felt a pang of pity...

It doesn't look fake.

There was no need for Ooka Momiji to fool a detective with no connections or expertise.

—For a young lady like Ooka Momiji.

However, he didn't remember ever seeing Ooka Momiji before, or even making a lifelong promise with her...

Moreover, given his original personality, he shouldn't have casually said anything about taking on a lifelong commitment.

He felt that, most likely, it was a misunderstanding similar to that of Osaka Black Chicken, but because he didn't remember exactly what he said at the time, this misunderstanding was a bit difficult to explain.

I can't remember...

We need to find a reason to get by.

We'll clear up the misunderstanding when we remember it.

After a moment of contemplation, Fujino decided to use his specialty.

You're kidding me!

"No, it's just that I really can't remember."

Fujino took a deep breath and, looking somewhat helpless, began to lie, "Actually, I was in a car accident a while ago..."

"A car accident?!"

Ooka Momiji was stunned by what she heard.

"Yes, a while ago, I was in a motorcycle accident."

Fujino nodded seriously and began his fabricated story, "It was a big truck that hit me, and I was thrown out along with my motorcycle... I probably injured my brain, so now, I can't remember some memories from a long time ago."

This was Fujino's contingency plan, fabricated to deal with the possibility of his sudden change being noticed by others.

He is an orphan in this world and has no acquaintances around him. But if he were to run into someone he used to know, his personality would change drastically, which would be hard to explain. He might be directly diagnosed with schizophrenia and sent to a mental hospital.

Although amnesia caused by a car accident can be considered a mental illness to some extent, it is at least a pathological cause and does not require admission to a mental hospital.

Ooka Momiji's gaze swept over Fujino, and she opened her mouth, asking with concern, "The injuries on your body..."

Fujino replied, "That happened some time ago, and the external injuries have already healed."

"Fujino- Senior, when did you get into that car accident?!"

Ran and Sonoko asked with concern upon hearing this.

"Probably after I finished recording the show 'The Perspective Japan Detective'."

Fujino pondered for a moment and then said truthfully, "That very night, I was hit by a truck."

Change is not fabrication, and detailed explanation is not nonsense.

He, Teng, was indeed injured by a large truck.

It's only natural that someone would lose some of their memories in the Conan World after being injured, right?

No wonder you didn't come to school those few days!

Suzuki Sonoko pondered for a moment, then suddenly realized.

Meanwhile, Ooka Momiji had already taken action. She pulled out her pink flip phone and ordered the butler on the other end, "Iori, contact the hospital affiliated with Kyoto University... contact the best neurosurgeon... yes, that's right, he lost his memory in the car accident..."

Fujino was taken aback. "A neurosurgeon?"

They just made a phone call and wanted to take him to see the neurology department at Kyoto University Hospital?

Outrageous...

Why doesn't she play by the rules?