"If you're on speaker during a call, it's not impossible to commit murder at the same time!"
Genta looked at Yasuhiro Miyauchi with a serious expression and said it with utmost sincerity.
"How is that possible! I can't possibly possess such advanced skills, can I?"
Yasuhiro Miyauchi responded to Genta's words, feeling both irritated and amused.
"Do you think I'm as skilled as Kamen Yaiba?
How could someone directly kill a person and the person on the other end of the speaker call doesn't hear any sound! It's not a TV drama..."
"Alright, what about Mr. Kinoshita?" Seeing that Genta was still not convinced and wanted to refute, Senichi, with a black line on his forehead, directly interrupted Genta's words and continued to ask.
"During the performance, I was alone in the room, counting the sales of surrounding merchandise."
Kinoshita's expression turned serious when he mentioned money, and his eyes gleamed: "Regarding money matters, I trust no one but myself. It absolutely won't pass through other people's hands. Otherwise, I can't be at ease.
Also, Detective, I really am not the culprit. Now that Kujou is dead, I'm troubled. If we can't perform, I'll suffer a huge loss. The person who killed Kujou should be someone who can profit from it!"
As he spoke, everyone in the room involuntarily turned their eyes to Kuriki Tomoyuki, who remained silent on the side. The meaning behind this gaze was evident.
From the current perspective, the person who benefited the most from the death of Kujou was Kuriki Tomoyuki.
After all, as the only substitute, if Kujou died, he would successfully take his place.
"What are you all thinking! Mr. Kujou was my respected senior. I absolutely didn't kill him!"
Noticing the strange looks from everyone, Kuriki Tomoyuki couldn't help but get angry. "Even if he did have a difficult personality, as Mr. Hoshi mentioned, I still respect him!
Moreover, the 'spinning shuriken' has too high of a failure rate for me. I dare not use it on stage. Occasionally substituting without using the signature move is fine, but if I can't use it every time, then Kamen Yaiba is finished!
What's the use of becoming a stunt actor for Kamen Yaiba in that case!"
Regarding Kuriki Tomoyuki's defense, Senichi, like Kinoshita's defense before, maintained a neutral stance.
He looked at Kuriki Tomoyuki and asked, "During the performance, where were you?"
"I am the substitute in case of emergencies. Usually, when there's nothing going on, I sit alone in the back row of the audience seats and watch Kujou's performance to learn his moves and actions."
After hearing Senichi's question, Kuriki Tomoyuki explained earnestly, "I've been sitting in the back row all along, and I do have a witness. He's just been outside and not here.
Our performances here are always recorded by a photographer and then posted on the promotional website. He was nearby the whole time and should be able to testify for me."
Among the alibis of the three, there is evidence to support Yasuhiro Miyauchi and Kuriki Tomoyuki's absence. Although Kinoshita's defense seems weak, his motive is the least obvious.
Indeed, it is the classic three-choice case, and even the level of suspicion is so consistent...
"Alright, we're done with the questions. Can we go on stage now?"
Kinoshita didn't wait for Senichi to speak, as if he was just informing him, then looked at Kuriki Tomoyuki to finalize the matter directly and urged, "Hurry, hurry! Prepare to go on stage. The second part is starting soon!"
"Impossible!" Kuriki Tomoyuki shook his head again and refused, "Kinoshita-san, please don't pressure me anymore. My mind is a mess right now, and I really can't perform!"
"You..." Kinoshita was annoyed as looked at Kuriki Tomoyuki, but he had no solution.
"You better stay quiet for now!" Genta looked at Kinoshita and said without reservation, "After confirming Mr. Kuriki's alibi, there are only two suspects left—both of you!"
"No, it's still three people!"
Without waiting for Kinoshita to get angry and try to refute, Mitsuhiko, on the side, shook his index finger and said with a triumphant smile, "Actually, everyone has overlooked someone. The person who performed on stage can also be the culprit~"
"Eh? Really?" Ayumi looked at Mitsuhiko in surprise. "Who is it?"
"It's you, Mr. Hiroshi!" Mitsuhiko pointed his index finger at Hiroshi Sanba. "We were watching your performance from below the whole time.
In the recent performance, there was a long period where you didn't appear on stage—that scene where you fell into the villain's trap and dropped into the abyss!
During that time, you had more than enough opportunity to run from the stage, commit the murder, and then return to continue the performance!"
"I was rehearsing lines with the actors who came off stage together!" Hiroshi Sanba said with a dark face. "I was so pressed for time that I didn't even have time to go to the bathroom. How could I have time to commit murder!"
"Is, is that so?" Mitsuhiko, feeling awkward, smiled embarrassedly and immediately stopped talking.
Senichi also felt a bit of a headache about this. These kids have poor deductive abilities, but their ability to complicate the case is quite strong, comparable to Kogoro Mouri, that dog-headed detective.
To prevent the kids from causing more trouble, Senichi decided to ask Yasuhiro Miyauchi to take Conan and the kids to find the photographer outside the venue.
In response to Senichi's assigned task, the kids, immersed in Senichi's "sweet words," felt grateful for Senichi's trust and were excited about being able to question witnesses like a detective.
Like escorting a prisoner, the kids, along with Yasuhiro Miyauchi, went to ask the photographer for statements.
Conan glared at Senichi fiercely, feeling dissatisfied with being treated as a babysitter. But despite the discontent, Conan didn't say much.
Perhaps because it involved whether the performance of the Kamen Yaiba could proceed smoothly, the trio of kids were getting a bit anxious. Rather than letting them stay and cause chaos, it was better to follow Senichi's approach.
This way, Senichi could focus on investigating, and the kids were happily playing their roles as tools.
The task was quite simple. Due to Yasuhiro Miyauchi's presence and after explaining their intentions, the photographer readily cooperated and answered Conan's various questions.
"From what it looks like, Kuriki-san's alibi is quite convincing," Ayumi said. "So, the culprit must be one of the other two..."
"Hey, I'm not the culprit!" Yasuhiro Miyauchi's face darkened. "I really was working at that time!"
"If it's not you, then it's Mr. Kinoshita!"
When Genta saw Yasuhiro Miyauchi shouting at Ayumi, he gave Yasuhiro Miyauchi a displeased side-eye and uttered this soul-probing sentence.