I'm writing a fictional immortality script in Detective Conan.

Chapter 311 Secret Techniques: Chinese Gift Giving

Boom!

"Ouch—" "Little Zhenren, is your foot alright?!"

A flurry of activity erupted on the other end of the headset, followed by Narumi's long, drawn-out breaths. Daoxie asked a question in the distance, and Kuromon Haruya could almost hear the notification sound of automatic deductions for medical expenses upon returning to base.

After the noise was cleared, Asagi's voice returned to normal; he seemed to have moved to a place far away from the scene.

“Makoto won’t die, continue talking about Makoto Kyogoku,” she gasped again, unable to accept it, “...What do you mean he’s stronger than you and Gin?!”

If Asano had known these words before heading to the Desura villa and being attacked, he would have imagined Kyogoku Makoto as one of those martial arts masters often seen in the news; but after being completely overwhelmed and crushed by the vampire, he could only find one word in the shock that washed over his mind.

—Awe!

It's not cowardice, but the literal meaning.

In Asano Minoru's understanding, Gin is the ceiling of combat power in terms of information, while Kuromon Haruya is the ceiling of combat power in terms of related concepts:

Swimming across half the bay in the full moon tide, he leaped onto a three- or four-meter-high height restriction barrier on a motorcycle, carrying a sniper rifle, and used a 1000-yard ultra-long-range unassisted rapid-fire sniper shot to single-handedly take down the vampire-turned Torakura Daisuke.

Aside from being a little slow on the uptake (specifically, he gets infatuated with Gin and Vermouth, and occasionally comes up with some really outlandish ideas), Haruya Kuromon is practically at the pinnacle of his understanding of humanity. He would believe it if his dear team leader said he wasn't human.

Hearing Kuromon Haruya himself admit that Gin is stronger than him, Asano Minoru could accept it, given their undeniable killing intent and status. But how come Kyogoku Makoto is stronger than Gin?

"How terrifying." Fan Ze's connection was restored, and his voice trembled.

"Let me think," Kuromon Haruya said after a moment's thought, her gentle tone filled with amusement, "It was probably a casual kick I just parried that almost broke my forearm! Luckily, I managed to deflect the force in time."

Swah——

"Ah! Mr. Fanze, watch your step!" "Little Master, are you alright—"

Kuromon Haruya: "...Is he alright?"

“Uh,” Asagi’s voice was hesitant, “My leg is fine, it’s just that I slipped on the paving stones and did a split. From a medical point of view, it’s most likely that I pulled it.”

"..."

"Then I'll buy him some medicine while I'm at it. See you at the Fanze residence later."

"it is good."

......

Kogoro Mouri put down his watch and looked at the figure carrying large and small bags as he walked out of the general store, his brow twitching.

"Sorry to keep you waiting! I bought some souvenirs."

Sonoko blinked, embarrassed: "...Slightly?"

With the index, middle, ring, and little fingers of each hand, one hand hooked onto the handle of a carton of organic milk, a total of four cartons; the right elbow was also not idle, with a plastic bag containing two trays of free-range eggs hanging at the joint, next to a fruit basket.

"This should be enough, right?" The limited-edition Christmas tree gift set, Kuromon Haruya, looked around, muttering with lingering satisfaction, "Why didn't I think of bringing some souvenirs from Tokyo before I lost my memory? How rude of me..."

The crowd remained silent, staring at them with awe.

Noticing everyone's expressions, Kuromon Haruya belatedly realized, "Ah, isn't it a bit of an exaggeration to say it's the first time we've met?"

"I learned this from my Chinese friends during my studies abroad. The gifts are all very practical! It's a pity I didn't see any boutiques here, otherwise I could have bought some sake or sweets according to Japanese custom."

"I see!"

Ran Mouri, who is quite knowledgeable about Chinese culture, suddenly realized what he meant and circled around him excitedly, saying, "This is really Chinese-style gift-giving! The variety, the way it's presented, it's amazing!"

“Right~” Kuromon Haruya raised his head and turned around a few times to give her a better look.

"Humph!"

On a sunny afternoon, a strong smell of vinegar suddenly filled the fresh country air: "Chinese-style gift-giving is too troublesome. In my opinion, it's more elegant to follow the Western way and give pens, chocolates, and flowers."

Conan pouted as he adjusted his bow tie and suspenders on his suit jacket, exuding a sophisticated, capitalist air that made Kuromon Haruya's brow twitch.

"Tsk, you pro-American brat! Do you even know your ancestor was Chinese? You're practically rebelling against the heavens! You should be punished by kneeling in the Karasuma family ancestral hall!"

"Hehe, Conan, can you help me carry a case of milk?"

With an air of absolute authority, Kuromon Haruya shoved the milk he was holding with his left hand into Conan's hand, then leaned down and whispered meaningfully, "Be good later, little gentleman."

"Wait!"

The moment Conan took the milk box, his arm suddenly felt heavy, and he almost lost his grip. He instinctively bent his knees to steady himself, but the edge of the box still dug hard into his forearm, making him gasp in pain.

Gritting his teeth and adjusting his posture, Conan tried to grab the plastic handle, but his skin quickly turned pale from being squeezed by the thin handle. He changed his position and hugged the bottom of the box, but then his upper arms ached.

Why is a milk carton so hard to carry?!

"Alright! Mr. Fanze's house is nearby, everyone follow me!"

Seemingly oblivious to his predicament, Kuromon Haruya waved the gifts and strode forward with the others, leaving Conan alone behind, stumbling along.

Haruya Kuromon: ^_^

Sure enough, when visiting relatives during holidays, it's customary to have children carry the most difficult and awkward gifts – this is an indispensable part of traditional Chinese gift-giving!

Half an hour later, at Fanze's house.

Ding-dong-

"right away!"

Master Fanze opened the door and hurriedly welcomed the group, who were drenched in sweat, into the house: "You've finally arrived! I was just wondering if I should find someone to lead the way!"

Kuromon Haruya, his face expressionless, put down the bags and said, "Someone will lead the way."

"Huh? Not lost, could it be that we stumbled upon a case along the way?"

The others stammered and hurried past, none of them responding.

In the end, Conan shakily put down the gift: "But, it was Kuromon who led the way."

"Huh? Mr. Kuromon leading the way is just getting lost, isn't it?"

A chill ran through him, and Master Fanze immediately turned around, laughing and skipping over the conversation. He limped and gasped for breath as he leaned on his cane and fled quickly toward the gift.

Led into the hall, the sliding doors swung open with a "whoosh." Faced with a huge, dark mass of people, Conan didn't even have time to make out who they were when he heard a whooshing sound behind him, followed by a loud "slap" on the back!

The slap startled Conan, and Kuromon Haruya, with her arm around his shoulder, smiled brightly, her face radiant with sunshine and the warmth of spring.

"Come on, Conan! Stand up straight and don't slouch. Introduce yourself to these uncles and aunties with some auspicious words!"