Toichi Kuroba and Yusaku Kudo / Conan, Look Who's Here

Upon hearing Jiang Hang's words, the man in front of him knew that Jiang Hang had completely seen through his identity.

He couldn't help but clap his hands softly, and a smile appeared on his disguised face, which could be considered as an admission of his identity.

"Truly worthy of being the heir to the Pioneer Foundation, this insight is truly frightening."

"However, it seems you don't know that I'm also an unofficial employee of your Foundation?"

As he said this, Toichi Kuroba deftly took out the Pioneer Foundation work ID from his jacket pocket.

"Ah?"

Chapter 501: Chapter 497: Toichi Kuroba and Yusaku Kudo

Jiang Hang fell silent upon seeing the work ID that Toichi Kuroba pulled out.

The Pioneer Foundation reappears at this time, doesn't it?

He felt that this wasn't the first time he'd seen a similar scene.

Just like when I met Vermouth before, I suddenly heard about the Templar Knight from her.

Based on the system's track record, it's highly likely that 8 years ago, when Kaito Kid was being targeted by that mysterious organization whose members all had animal code names, he was rescued or helped in some significant way by the Pioneer Foundation, who happened to be passing by.

In short, after faking his death and escaping, in order to better investigate the situation of that mysterious organization, Toichi Kuroba may have signed some kind of contract with the Pioneer Foundation and become an unofficial employee of the Foundation.

So, is this original Kaito Kid really one of our own?

He wasn't worried that the other party would use a fake work ID to deceive him.

Since he was nominally still the heir to the Foundation, these things were obviously things that he could easily find out with a simple investigation, so there was no need for him to lie.

Moreover, he can directly ask the system in his head for verification.

In the blink of an eye, Jiang Hang had already reconstructed what had happened back then in his mind, and he didn't even need to ask the first Kaito Kid in front of him anymore.

He looked away from the work ID, indicating that he had confirmed the other person's identity.

"Actually, I don't know much about the Foundation. My status as the heir is just an empty shell. So what is your role in the Foundation?"

"Is it all in name only?" Toichi Kuroba seemed to have a different opinion, and a smile appeared on his face. "Perhaps that's the case."

"As for my work at the Foundation, it's really nothing special."

"Back when I was targeted for my life by a mysterious organization, it was the Foundation that warned me and prepared several escape plans for me."

"In return, I became an unofficial employee of your Foundation and received some basic training. In the following years, I trained a group of employees who were reasonably competent for your Foundation."

"However, I am just an unofficial employee after all, and your Foundation has not imposed too many restrictions on me, so as long as I do not intentionally leak this information to others, I am relatively free to act."

Listening to Toichi Kuroba's words, Jiang Hang carefully examined the other party a few more times.

Simple training?

It's probably a complete assassin training program.

However, given the opponent's strength, they could indeed complete those cultivation tasks relatively easily.

Toichi Kuroba world-class magician, and also one of the most famous phantom thieves in the world.

Now that he has the skills of an assassin, it's unknown how strong he has become.

Jiang Hang focused his gaze on the other person's sleeve, but did not see the hidden Hidden Blade in the other person's wrist.

Seemingly sensing Jiang Hang's gaze, Toichi Kuroba offered an explanation.

"You mean the Hidden Blade, right? It took me a lot of effort to get my hands on that thing, but because of personal habits, I still prefer my magic card gun. So, except when I'm training new recruits for your Foundation, I basically don't use that thing."

This is normal. Over the years, Kaito Kid has never killed anyone, at most only causing minor injuries. This is Toichi Kuroba, and his son has continued this practice.

Although Hidden Blade is usually quite concealed, it can still evoke a sense of fear when it is revealed.

Jiang Hang carries it with him mainly because he is proficient in the hidden Hidden Blade skill and can use it to perform a hidden Hidden Blade bullet-slicing maneuver when needed.

"Speaking of which, the Foundation's benefits are indeed quite good. No wonder so many intelligence agents around the world want to be assigned to missions at your Foundation," Toichi Kuroba casually remarked, speaking of classified information that seemed to be known to anyone in the know.

"However, after hearing that a new Kaito Kid had reappeared, I returned to Japan to secretly observe what my still-good-for-nothing son was capable of."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Hang couldn't help but ask if the other party, who had been hiding his identity with the Foundation for so many years, had ever thought of using the Foundation's power to investigate the whereabouts of the mysterious organization that wanted to kill him.

He had barely uttered the question when he saw Toichi Kuroba shake his head.

"The Foundation will not take action against other organizations unless it is threatened, and you should know that."

"Although I have suspected that the Pandora Gem that the mysterious organization wanted to seize was also one of the Eden Shard the Foundation had been searching for and protecting all along, there is no conclusive evidence to prove it."

"Moreover, that organization forced me to fake my death to escape back then, and I still want to get my revenge. So in the end, I decided that it should be me, and at most my son, the two of us, to deal with that organization that tried to seize the Pandora Gem."

"If it is finally confirmed that the Pandora Gem is indeed a lost Eden Shard in history, I think I should also learn from the methods of those master assassins in the history of the Foundation and hide it in a place that only I know, and let it reappear in the world when humanity is truly able to master its power in the future."

It has to be said that Toichi Kuroba, this unofficial employee, probably knows more information within the Foundation than all the intelligence agencies in the world have gathered infiltrated the Foundation for half a century.

According to the system, those undercover agents could not possibly access the Foundation's deep secrets. At most, they could only find out about the Assassin Brotherhood and the Templar Knight. It was impossible for them to be like Toichi Kuroba, who not only received complete Assassin training but also knew about the Eden Artifacts.

Even Jiang Hang himself hasn't seen a trace of Eden's magic yet.

It seems that in the system's judgment, this Toichi Kuroba really meets the Foundation's standards. They really want him to become a modern assassin master, which is why they revealed all this information to him.

The Assassin System, equally bewildered, replied, "Ah, I don't know either. I'm currently sweating profusely as I try to figure out my own code."

Seeing Jiang Hang's silent demeanor, Toichi Kuroba, who hadn't confided in anyone for many years, seemed to relax considerably.

"Originally, I wanted to take matters into my own hands to make my son's career as a phantom thief more challenging and help him grow faster. But now that you're here, I've saved myself the trouble of doing it."

His gaze fell on Jiang Hang's eyes. "This must be the Eagle Eye that your Foundation has passed down through generations. Eyes that can see through all disguises. Such an ability is simply the nemesis of us phantom thieves."

"I learned the art of disguise from my former teacher, and then received corresponding training at the Foundation. I am quite confident in my disguise skills now, but even so, you, with your Eagle Eye, saw through it at a glance."

"It's a real pity. After your tests, it turned out that my genes don't meet the learning requirements for Eagle Eye. This is one of the few things I haven't been able to learn in your Foundation."

Hearing that Toichi Kuroba had not learned Eagle Eye made Jiang Hang breathe a sigh of relief, but at the same time, he felt a little regretful.

What brought him a sense of relief was that, as an assassin, he at least possessed some unique skills that others couldn't learn, skills that were exclusive to him.

The unfortunate thing is that he has been thinking about how to make others also have his Eagle Eye vision these days.

If the members of the Assassin Brotherhood could also acquire Eagle Eye's abilities, even a simplified version, given their own capabilities, they could probably grow into capable individuals in a very short time.

Unfortunately, aside from letting them use the Animus to experience the lives of those master assassins of yesteryear, he hasn't yet found any other way to let them feel what it's like to have Eagle Vision.

Therefore, Jiang Hang could only shrug and indicate that perhaps the technology has not yet developed to that point, and it may take a considerable amount of time to find a way to enable most people to awaken Eagle Eye vision.

However, Toichi Kuroba himself is not the kind of person who is persistent.

Since he couldn't acquire Eagle Eye, he trained his eyesight in other areas to try and catch up with those who Eagle Eye.

"So you're here now because of the deceased Kutsuku Motoyasu?"

"What is your relationship with him? Is it going to be another classic case of fellow disciples turning against each other?"

After discussing Toichi Kuroba's experiences over the years, Jiang Hang finally brought the topic back to the present.

Toichi Kuroba shook his head. "It's not that complicated. It's just that Kutsuku Motoyasu has been a pillar of the Japan magic world for many years. Although we're not exactly friends, and there may have been some conflicts that caused him to misunderstand me."

"But when I faked my death in an accident back then, the other party did attend my funeral. Afterwards, it seemed that he had let go of those obsessions from back then. Now that I hear the news of his death, I naturally want to see what happened."

Toichi Kuroba briefly explained how he infiltrated the Tsukumo family's villa through disguise, and how he discovered the suspicious circumstances surrounding the death of Kutsuku Motoyasu through the clues left behind.

In the end, even the magician who had faked his death for many years couldn't help but show a sigh of regret.

He achieved fame and success at a young age.

In a romantic encounter, he unlocked his secret identity as the Kaito Kid, a magician, and naturally, he couldn't understand how his existence was a devastating blow to his peers.

At the time, he truly had no idea that Kutsuku Motoyasu harbored such deep resentment towards him that he would even kill his most proud disciple because of it.

Speaking of Kichiro Kinoshita, Toichi Kuroba also left a deep impression.

After all, the other party was a disciple who was almost a one-to-one replica of his own life path, except for his career as a phantom thief.

"If he hadn't had that accident back then and had successfully entered the International Magic Federation competition, I would have been a judge for that competition."

"I was originally planning to meet with him after the competition and talk to him about his future development, so that he could try to find his own path."

"I never expected that Kutsuku Motoyasu would choose to kill his disciple with his own hands because he suspected him. As a result, I never actually spoke a word to him until he died."

After a soft sigh, Toichi Kuroba revealed the purpose of his disguise.

It was no different from what Jiang Hang had thought.

He was indeed somewhat worried that Mako Miyoshi might take advantage of the innocent girl based on the last words left by Kutsuku Motoyasu.

So he borrowed the identity of one of Kutsuku Nanae's friends and, while attending the funeral, suggested that if she had any doubts about her husband's death, she might be able to find a detective to help investigate.

After a few gentle reminders, Kutsuku Nanae sought help from Eri Kisaki, with whom she had interacted a few times before, and eventually, naturally, she approached Kogoro Mouri to request his services.

At the last minute, some problems arose because Conan was shot, which led to Kogoro Mouri entrusting the case to Jiang Hang.

So, Kuroba Toichi, who was secretly protecting Tsukumo Fumiya Toichi Kuroba, had his identity exposed by Jiang Hang.

However, since Toichi Kuroba already had the status of an unofficial employee of the Foundation, after confirming that Jiang Hang could easily see through his disguise, Toichi Kuroba stopped pretending and simply revealed his identity to Jiang Hang, so that he would stop trying so hard to greet him.

The only thing that bothered Jiang Hang was that Toichi Kuroba seemed to know about Kogoro Mouri's situation as well.

"Although my brother and I haven't had any contact for many years, it shouldn't be difficult for me, as your uncle, to recognize my nephew."

"Speaking of which, it seems that you've tricked both my son and my nephew quite a few times lately."

Hearing Toichi Kuroba drop another bombshell with a blank expression, Jiang Hang's eyelids twitched.

"You're Yusaku Kudo's younger brother, his biological brother?"

Toichi Kuroba held up one finger and shook it. "I am his twin brother."

"To be precise, Yusaku was his original name, but after our parents separated, he took his mother's surname and changed his surname to Kudo."

Chapter 502: Chapter 498: Conan, look who's here!

So you really are a family?

After listening to Toichi Kuroba recount what happened back then, and then to how his younger brother, by a twist of fate, gave him the codename "Kaito Kid," he even went so far as to appear in front of his younger brother and nephew as Kaito Kid, jokingly referring to the young Shinichi Kudo as "the other's younger brother."

He then went on to say that he faked his death for eight years, and when he returned to Japan, he discovered that his long-lost nephew had also followed his example and faked his death to escape.

However, compared to his situation back then, Shinichi Kudo's situation is more dramatic, as his body has shrunk for some unknown reason.

Fortunately, he remembered what Shinichi Kudo child, and like Miyano Shiho, he noticed that Shinichi Kudo's childhood clothes were missing from the Kudo family home, which led him to conclude that Conan was Shinichi Kudo.

So, perhaps the other party has already tested Conan by appearing around him in disguise more than once before?

However, Jiang Hang didn't ask about these things.

After all, he didn't have a high degree of control over Eagle Eye before, and he couldn't use Eagle Eye's power as freely as he does now. Back then, it was naturally difficult for him to find the traces of Toichi Kuroba, who had received assassin training.

After listening to the other party's description, Jiang Hang mentally scoffed.

It's been serialized for almost 30 years, and suddenly this news breaks out. Isn't this a bit too hasty?

But after hearing the news, Jiang Hang didn't feel much emotional fluctuation.

After all, he had known since childhood that Shinichi Kudo and Kaito Kuroba had the same face, and that their fathers looked exactly alike.

Even their girlfriends look strikingly similar.

The speculation that the two are cousins has been quite popular ever since Kaito Kid first appeared in the Conan storyline. However, Aoyama has never given a direct response to this question throughout the many years of serialization.

Now, after transmigrating, he personally confirmed this news with Toichi Kuroba, and he only felt a sense of taking it for granted.

To be honest, what really bothered Jiang Hang was, given the setting that the older generation is always more awesome than the younger generation in Conan's world, what kind of awesome characters must the parents who gave birth to the two brothers be?

Moreover, to be honest, the surname Kuroba seems to have some connection with Karasuma Renya, the founder of the Black Organization.

Since Yusaku Kudo took his mother's surname, perhaps the Karasuma Family and the Kuroba family had some unknown connection decades or even longer ago?

Even if someone suddenly appeared and told him that Karasuma Renya was actually Yusaku Kudo's great-grandfather, Jiang Hang felt that he could completely accept this fact.

In short, after recounting all these matters, Toichi Kuroba felt that he had said almost everything he needed to say during his meeting with Jiang Hang.

He is still a "dead man" after all. Even if he has a disguise skill that is one or two levels higher than his own son's, it is not appropriate for him to appear in public for too long.

However, Jiang Hang was, after all, his "superior." As an unofficial employee, after confirming that the other party's Eagle Eye could see through him, he still had to come over and greet him to avoid an awkward situation if he were caught on the spot.

After exchanging their secret contact information and Jiang Hang revealing the location of his secret hideout in the art museum, Toichi Kuroba bid farewell to Jiang Hang.

"In short, please continue to keep my affairs a secret from my two good-for-nothing juniors. When the time is right, I will confess to them myself."