Dumb Cop, Liar Cop (Continuation!)

Searchlight in the Storm

All Kaito could do... was stare.

Eyes wide, fists trembling, there were a thousand things he had been expecting when he walked into that apartment: a thousand things he thought he would have to do, or say, or act upon. But that... that was nothing he could have imagined.

And that symbol-

It looked just like... his teddy bear?

He crouched in front of it, relieved that the small amount of blood that was present was contained by the suitcase; the odd graffiti in question seemed to be spray paint. He moved over to the suitcase, trying to stay calm and treat the situation like any other case, lest his worry get the better of him.

He could not tell how long was being packed for, the job being half-finished, but it was clearly desperate. Items from the bathroom were thrown around, mixed in with sloppy piles of clothes. The blood was nowhere near the suitcase, simply cuddled just by with that thin trail skating towards the window, dying off just before the opened glass. At the very least, it was not a fatal amount, so he could rest assured there was at least a chance Kokichi was alive.

If that was a good thing... Kaito was still deciding.

He pushed his head down the window, unsurprised to see nothing amiss, just a busy street down below. He took the moment with the cool wind rushing through his hair to breathe, deep and dismayed as he rested his head on the windowsill. Even for someone as impenetrable as him , this was way, way too much to handle...

His partner, both evil and now- presumably- kidnapped, who could be responsible... well Kaito had a few theories.

Miu had been planning to Kill Kaito, he really could not be surprised if someone as smart as her had a back up plan or two in case she failed. If it was the case that she hired a hit man, Kokichi was in a lot more danger than he thought.

But of course, that would hardly explain the giant ass bear in the same design as the plush he received from... Kokichi? It seemed more likely now, seeing as he was clearly in some way connected to that figure but- how he was... Kaito could hardly fathom.

Of course, there was always the option that Team Danganronpa was at play. Kaito was not sure how close Kokichi was to the organization, if they even knew that Kokichi was trying to take them down. Well- he knew it had something to do with Kokichi's investigation of his parent's murder, so they had to know Kokichi in some way, right?

If only he had seen the bear anywhere other than that stupid plushie, he may have more of a lead.

Of course, now that Kaito had deduced the possibilities, a new question was in the air. What was he supposed to do? Was he supposed to call it in like any other crime? That seemed the most... reasonable. But honestly, he doubted a single detective would take the case, at least in the 53rd precinct, so it would get passed along to the higher ups... probably end up on Kyoko's desk and-

Who knew what she would do, if a second one of her appointed lieutenants was missing.

Maybe- he thought as he looked into the vacant apartment- maybe he could find Kokichi before the situation got... out of hand. Maybe he could take the case... make the case, do a little bit of- underground investigating.

Because he needed answers. He could not let the situation get slipped under the rug the way he sure it would be when the higher ups learned that Kokichi had been an accomplice to murder. And who knows what would happen if Kokichi was found by them, ended up in prison. He would never get his answers, how he could- why he would even do such a thing, and- and the investigation against what supposedly is the biggest crime syndicate in Danganronpa City would be- finished.