Work Text:
Kishibe Rohan was having his first meal of the day at Deux Magots when he saw a police car parked in front of the establishment. He sipped one last sip of his coffee, organizing a pile of sketches in his arms that mentioned the month's manuscript, without really paying attention to what was going on around him. Most likely, some theft had occurred nearby or was just another regular patrol that the mangaka used to see from the car wandering around the suburbs. Anyway, Morioh was not that noisy: if it weren't for the event seven years ago, when a serial killer was defeated by Kishibe and the other stand users. Thus, the place could definitely be considered as the stage for a tranquility of gold.
He went on with that thought, dismissing it mentally. Rohan was more concerned with Pink Dark Boy now, and the way it was tight on his deadline. As soon as he returned to his work, a large shadow landed in his view over all those important papers.
"I've been looking for you, Rohan."
The sound that pricked his ears was enough to make Kishibe's face contort in a disgusted grimace. He didn't have to look up to see Higashikata Josuke of all people, staring at him with that silly and smug look in his older face - if not more mature and firm in his new muscles acquired by his training at the police academy.
It was endless stress when Josuke graduated and became a police officer, forcing Rohan to see him every day wandering the city streets in his impeccable uniform and properly fitting his body. Certainly, like all the rest of the group of the three unbearable guys (except for Hirose Koichi, because Rohan genuinely liked him), Josuke had grown up and achieved a certain degree of maturity over time. The young adult seemed more tolerable now, although his greedy personality and dubious mood had never really disappeared from him. Rohan just ignored him in those years, distracted by the same chores he always had and being forced at one time or another to interact with the youngest on special occasions.
Rohan looked away from him quickly after the short contact, returning his focus to the sketches of his panels. “What do you want, Higashikata? I thought you were more busy with your tasks at the police station at this time of the day.”
He heard Josuke snort above him and, unfortunately, the empty chair in front of him creaked in a brief signal that said the youngest did not plan to leave so soon.
"Ugh, you are adorable." He joked, in a sick voice that made Rohan tighten the pencil more in his fist so that for a second he thought he would be able to break it without even realizing it. "And I'm still working, in a way."
If he was really working as he said, why waste your time taking the artist's peace like that?
"I'm also busy with my work, including, I'm leaving right now. I wish I could say it was nice to see your stupid face today, but I would be wrong." He rose from his seat with a certain lack of delicacy, making Josuke's eyes widen with movement.
Endure Josuke while they were in a circle of friends was one thing, now putting up with him while they were alone was quite another.
The cop beat his hands over one of the papers that Rohan was about to collect, preventing him from taking it. Kishibe frowned at the highest, one step away from invoking his stand to make him disappear from his sight when he moistened his lips. "I have a request to make, and you must imagine that it is serious because I would not be coming to you without a compelling reason."
"Don't make me regret leaving home today." Rohan spat, not listening the bullshit that the annoying, stupid-haired man was saying.
Josuke curved his lips in a mischievous smile, releasing the pressure of his left hand from the paper at the same moment that he settled in his seat. "It can help you with your manga."
The artist backed away, finally hesitating after taking his first step away from Higashikata. He turned to the youngest, somewhat confused as he processed the information calmly in his head.
Kishibe gave up, knowing that Josuke had hit his Achilles' Heel, turning around and sitting back in the chair. "I hope you're not lying to make me hear you, Josuke."
"I also didn't want to be using you, of all people." Higashikata's voice sounded more serious now, as if he was finally tired of playing. He put his blue cap on the table, giving Rohan a chance to see his shorter locks and the sweat that came down on his forehead from the muggy weather. "Just be a little less hostile today and try to listen to me, okay?"
The mangaka crossed his arms, conveying how insensitive he was to anything that was about the other.
Josuke continued: "A new case appeared on the city's criminal record last week, and yesterday it was finally resolved after they found the person responsible for it." He bit his lower lip, running a hand through his hair in a kind of weary display as he cracked the joints in his back. The artist watched it all with a curious face, thinking about how it was a good natural reference for his manga. "It turns out that I don't believe that the man who was caught was truly to blame."
Rohan raised one of his thin eyebrows, somewhat confused after hearing the younger policeman's brief explanation. "And how can this benefit me with my manga?"
“Well, you always say that reality is what gives energy to your creativity and inspires you to do your job. Whatever that means, I thought that participating in a police case could give you a dose of that.”
Rohan opened his mouth to refute it, but he only realized that he had no argument too late.
When did Josuke become so smart? The mangaka put a hand on his face, staring at Higashikata as if trying to intimidate him. “You can't do your job and you're asking me to help you? I didn't think you would reach such a low level.”
Josuke's serene countenance was compressed into something that Kishibe interpreted as a kind of scorn.
"Believe me, it's disgusting to me as a police officer to have to deal with someone who was caught stealing last year in a national department store."
This infuriated Rohan without end. He wasn't really stealing, it was just an analysis for his manga.
“Don't use that disgusting tone with me, Higashikata! It was research related to references, nothing that an ignorant person like you can really understand!”
“Yeah, everything about your manga. Now tell me, are you in or not? I have no time to waste.”
Rohan sighed, settling on the chair once again. “You said the case was closed, however, continuing this investigation even after the case was resolved would be considered illegal. How do you plan to move on?”
Josuke accused him of doing something against the law, but there he was proposing things like that.
The bigger one scratched the back of his head, smiling again nervously. "Let's say that this is where you will be entering."
“And why should I accept it? It would not be very interesting to use my stand to manipulate the judge in favor of a single warrant.” That is, it could give him some margin of inspiration, however it was not worth the effort he would be making.
"Although you are a selfish octopus, I admit that your skills and your investigative sense would be useful later." The policeman confessed, sending a strange feeling behind Rohan's back for the sudden compliment. “You won't be doing this just for me, anyway. There is a little girl who is in the hospital in an induced coma, with a desperate family looking for justice. Doesn't that seem eloquent to you?”
Rohan didn't have to answer. Seeing Josuke this way, with a determined look burning in his blue irises surrounded by empathy and thirst for punishment, was what he needed to know that this experience would be giving him a great influence directly in the pages of his story.
It wasn't because he let himself be carried away by the little he learned about the victim of the case that Higashikata was investigating, or because he wanted to see more of that aura in the tallest police officer: definitely not. He was still The Great Kishibe Rohan, after all. He didn't need sensitivity and all those other sentimental things. It was all just to provoke Josuke and prove how he was better than himself in his specialty.
Higashikata left back at the police station after they finished, shortly after Rohan agreed - with a certain reluctance - to be part of his plan. He made sure to take time to visit the S-City court as he agreed with the youngest previously, having the name of the magistrate who would need to manipulate through Heaven's Door to grant them the necessary warrant in order to continue the investigation criminal: more precisely, so that they could obtain full authorization from the law and finally invade the residence of the main suspect appointed by Josuke.
The mangaka had no idea what it was about. Higashikata just said he was supposed to be in the inner Morioh at eight o'clock, where one of the largest high-end condos in the suburb was.
When he arrived at the agreed location, properly equipped as Josuke informed him, he didn't have to wait long. The policeman appeared minutes later, dressed in something other than his uniform. Kishibe could admit that Josuke didn't have an especially bad sense of fashion in things, but the model he was wearing now was... Old-fashioned (like everything else in him).
"You looked better in your uniform." Rohan commented, wrinkling his nose as he wrapped the scarf around his neck. It was cold, however it was still autumn.
"I had to disguise myself a little more this time." Higashikata winked at him, getting closer to the artist as he watched the mansion across the street from behind the bushes. "I'm sorry if I let you down by looking less attractive tonight.”
Was that a flirt? Rohan wanted to laugh at the thought of that possibility. His stomach itched in a strange way when he reflected on it more seriously.
He gave the cop's broad shoulders a little push close to him. "I'm inferior for meeting you.”
Josuke let a nasal laugh fill the silence after that, just annoying Rohan again.
"I still haven't told you anything about the case, right?" Kishibe shook his head, moving away from the same to get a better perspective on the construction. “Well, we are waiting for the owner of this luxurious mansion to come out for his physiotherapy session. He is a retired international Paralympic athlete and Morioh is his homeland.”
"And what is his relationship with the victim?" Rohan questioned, narrowing his eyes to try to see what was happening at that distance. He didn't know that other celebrities like him lived in the city.
Josuke seemed to have paused to organize his words, blowing on the icy air when he heard him. “Our victim is also a Paralympic athlete. She was brutally beaten and her brain damaged during the attack. The attacker wore a silver medal that would have been won by her on the day of the crime where an important game was taking place.” He seemed sad to describe it all. The artist was genuinely surprised by these facts, and a little scared too. He did not think that there were still people capable of committing such atrocities in Morioh, at least not after everything that happened seven years ago. "The point is that the fingerprints of any drug dealer who had no particular reason to hurt her were found on the medal, and I don't believe that."
"Can't you believe he did this to her?"
Higashikata took a deep breath, pointing to the details of the building. "Take a look. Don't you think that this house could only have been financed through money laundering? Yes, he was a renowned athlete, but it's been decades since his fame disappeared from the spotlight. An amount of money like that doesn't appear all of a sudden.”
The artist's physiognomy contorted with interest at the feet of the young man's well-regarded accounts.
Pink Dark Boy was a manga that depicted scenes of horror in suspense, with psychological, emotional plots, and realistic characters. The police genre was also widespread throughout this medium, so Kishibe barely noticed when he began to feel a creativity and desire to have a sketchbook by his side to make several sketches at that very moment.
Rohan didn't want to admit it, but accepting Josuke's proposal was a great idea.
"He's leaving." The policeman said, drawing the mangaka's attention. The two huddled behind the rocks, aware of the way the suspect was driven to the taxi he was supposed to have called before they got there.
When the vehicle was a considerable distance from the mansion, Josuke advanced in front of him, hurrying around the garden and reaching the entrance. Rohan went right after him, feeling strongly disappointed in himself for having forgotten to bring his camera in order to capture all that incredible landscape.
In just a second, Higashikata materialized Crazy Diamond and destroyed the door in one stroke. Rohan watched him make his way through the rubble of demolished wood, passing through the entrance with no obvious difficulty. Seeing Josuke's stand so closely still sent him fresh memories of the day he met the young adult, almost a decade ago. He chose not to remember that so much, shaking his head to ward off the thought.
Kishibe still saw no sense in the theory that Higashikata developed. Something about it didn't fit him. "Why would this man have hired someone to try to kill her?"
Josuke gave him a confused look as he repaired the door behind him. “I wouldn't say that he hired him, in fact. It looks more like he framed him, since I imagine he did it with his own hands. Only, anyway, it is too late to conclude this. Let's say he has a son who is also in the gaming business and who participates in major competitions. By chance, the game that his son played last week and won as the first place was exactly the same as our victim was participating.”
Okay, now it had some connection. It was actually quite plausible for Rohan.
They went up all the stairs together to start the search on the second floor while they turned on all the lights and made sure they were alone in the spacious mansion.
"And what are we looking for?" Rohan hissed, watching Josuke toss the furniture in the room like a big, uncontrollable dog.
Higashikata outlined a new amused smile on his lips. "The medal."
Oh. He finally understood what Josuke meant. After spending all this time trying to connect the points of the case in his head, he was able to understand the reasoning that the other was doing.
Obviously, there were two medals in the story. In one of the baseball game awards that Rohan participated in, he was able to discover that the medals given to the winning participants did not have any type of identification in name or date: the only relevant part of the material was whether it was made of silver, gold, or bronze. That is, there could be countless identical copies between one game and another. The son of the athlete whose they were looking for concrete evidence to report could have received one of these just like the crime scene. In this way, the original medal could have been replaced later without anyone noticing.
It was scary to think that it really happened: even so, they were all particularly large and heavy. It made sense that someone had managed to cause such a serious injury to someone with just that. He swept his sharp, emerald green eyes quickly across the room, watching the frame on the yellow dresser that held a loving photo of father and son. Ironic, Rohan thought.
His vision wandered to the wheelchair beside him, in addition to all the other low tables that existed there.
“We are in the wrong place. The medal is on the first floor, specifically in his room.”
“How did you make it so easy? I'm doing my best here!"
The mangaka clicked, guiding the youngest in his own findings. “He's a handicapped person, so you're wasting your time looking for him in such high places. The only one who could keep evidence like this would be the criminal himself, and the place with easy access would not be here on the second floor where there are a huge amount of stairs and obstacles for him to get around. If I were the aggressor, I would make sure to keep the medal as close to me as possible.”
Josuke hissed, shocked by Rohan's quick thinking.
"Good thinking." Higashikata stood up, giving up trying to stack the books on the shelf he was searching. He gave the other a friendly look: "You would be a good partner."
The mangaka felt a little embarrassed and confused by the way he was particularly grateful when he was praised again by the tallest.
That brat… Or rather, that man, was playing with him.
"Are you saying that because you feel humiliated?"
Josuke's smile gradually faded. "I'm not feeling humiliated."
The police didn't know when the host would be arriving, so they had to be careful with all the details.
As soon as they got to the door, the mangaka grimaced at Josuke. "Don't start turning things around again or I'll be leaving here."
"What is your guess, then?"
Kishibe rolled his eyes, entering and checking the suite. The walls had a neutral tone that harmonized with strong colors between the furniture and the floor covering, in addition to the bathroom that had a huge mirror and exuberant lighting everywhere. Rohan might have been known to have a high net worth, yet even he was envious of such details. "You're a forensic officer, aren't you?"
"I am a community police officer." Josuke corrected. "But I think it's there, in the bottom drawers of the wardrobe."
Rohan maintained his skeptical vision when he went there and opened the compartment, feeling somewhat surprised to realize that Josuke was right. There was a small package in which the youngest eventually collected carefully, noting traces of damage to the material and traces of some blood droplets on the length of the silver piece.
Josuke looked at him sideways in the corner of the room, looking relieved and happy with himself that his clues had indicated a correct course. He looked at the mangaka, smiling again as the older man could see a pink trail appear on his cheeks (or maybe it was just his imagination?).
"Thank you, Rohan. You know, for helping me with all of this. I know you followed me on the pretext of getting experiences for your work, only I know that there is a part of you that is good and you wanted to help me to do justice, even if your pride prevents you from admitting it.”
"Don't glorify yourself so much, Josuke." Kishibe warned him, trying to hide his eyes in the position he was in. He was sure his face was blushing too, although he didn't know exactly why.
"Seriously, I could really spend more time with you."
Rohan felt his heart racing.
The front door made a long, loud noise and the two spontaneously turned around in shock, facing the figure of the mansion's owner on his support for paraplegia. Before the man or Josuke could react in any way, Rohan drew in the air within reach of the ex-athlete, manifesting Heaven’s Door in a couple of seconds. Josuke was quick enough to use his stand and prevent it from falling and collapsing on the floor, causing Rohan to arch his thin eyebrows.
Despite being aware of the other's actions, Higashikata never ceased to be the empathetic idiot he was.
"Jeez, I didn't think he was going to arrive anytime soon!"
"People never expect." Said Rohan, shrugging as he knelt beside Josuke to gain access to the older man's memories. He read some pages and more important information, gaining a good knowledge of his life through his experiences:
His name was Sugawara Raiden. He was 57 years old and his blood type was O negative. He started his history in the sport when he was a child, dedicating himself from an early age to keep his body healthy and perfect his skills, which was his greatest ambition throughout his life and this being the dream in which he realized throughout the years. He was born in Morioh, but moved to Florida after his success reached its peak at the age of 30 and, in the same period, he married and had his first child at 39. His parents died of senescence shortly after that and, mysteriously , as if some kind of chaos cloud had hit him in that same decade, Raiden was diagnosed with a spinal cord tumor in 1992.
Rohan found an intriguing point regarding recent events that he thought it would be in Josuke's interest to hear it: “My son didn't like the sport that I encouraged him to practice. When I was a kid, I always liked games and, the moment I saw him that way, with his full ability to move his legs and refusing to be proud, it was terrible for me. I forced him to train. After he grew up a little more, I was able to introduce him to other sports so that he could work in which he had more aptitude. So, I developed his competitive sense and he soon started participating in several tournaments. I was proud, until I realized that my son was always second in the games. Never in the first place. Never number one, as I was. After discovering this, I encouraged him to improve even more. He spent all of his free time devoting himself to improving his physical abilities, and I couldn't feel better seeing him make a real effort at it. However, there was still that girl who always hindered him. At some point, I felt sick of it and realized that if I wanted my son to not become a loser like me, I needed to do something about it ... ”
Kishibe stopped at that point, unable to read any more. Something about Rohan was relieved that he would have the punishment he deserved now, despite all these distressing and intoxicated thoughts of regrets.
"I believe we have enough evidence now."
Rohan nodded, disabling the effect of his stand so that Josuke could handcuff the man below him.
They had a little work to move the criminal's unconscious body into the police car, however Higashikata's force assured them that they would not have so many problems with it.
Josuke was ready to get into the police car when he gave Rohan one last look, with an unreadable expression on his face. "You didn't come here with your motorcycle, did you?"
The mangaka shivered a little outside, not sure if it was because of the overwhelming cold or the fact that he forgot to tell Josuke that he no longer had his motorcycle due to the simple reason that he had recently bankrupt and needed to sell it to recover. "... No."
The artist had gone there via one of the night line buses, but he was not very aware of the availability of another one anytime soon.
When Rohan looked at Higashikata again, he had a welcoming smile on his face. "Get in the car, I'll take you to your home.”
Kishibe didn't think twice. He walked around the vehicle in a matter of seconds, sitting on the padded passenger seat and smiling sarcastically in a way that confused the officer. "I thought you would be inviting me to dinner before that, Higashikata Josuke."
The way Josuke blushed in response to his line was a lovely answer.