Rum Arc Discussion Thread (Plot + Characters)

[HatiMMOS]

The RUM climax should have the following elements:

- The case starts with Conan, Ran, and Kogoro going on a trip on a cruise after they won tickets.
- Wakita or Momiji is the one behind it.
- The case might first appear Heiji-centered.
- Momiji, Heiji, and Kazuha are there. Iori too.
- Amuro will join them. The PSB too, especially Kuroda.
- Wakasa will be there.
- Momiji's life will be in danger (sorry Ran and Habri).
- Akai and Yusaku have already a plan.
- Shukichi should play a role too.

That Kuroda-Iori encounter was necessary before they meet in the climax.
Gosho will try to recreate Haneda Kohji's case in the climax. "This reminds me of the case that happened 17 years ago" they will say.

The case should be either too long 7+ chapters or broken into two separate parts, the first in the sea, the second on the land , or vice-versa, with the highest probability ever of having a Heiji confession.

Regardless of how Gosho will approach things, the characters mentioned above should take part in the events, and that doesn't stop other BO members like Vermouth and Gin from appearing at the end of the case. If that is true, then Minerva's intervention will be related to the Akai family, MI6, and probably Amanda Hughes's relatives.

This would be the perfect promotion for the next movie, so it's to be expected around that time. Gosho will probably base the theme of the trip on a famous mystery novel just like what he did with Bourbon's climax. Pirates-themed, to reminisce the raging fans of their Halloween arc? That's an option.

Everything that has a start is destined to end, and so is this 8+ years escalation.

[Anton-9]

The RUM climax should have the following elements:

- The case starts with Conan, Ran, and Kogoro going on a trip on a cruise after they won tickets.
- Wakita or Momiji is the one behind it.
- The case might first appear Heiji-centered.
- Momiji, Heiji, and Kazuha are there. Iori too.
- Amuro will join them. The PSB too, especially Kuroda.
- Wakasa will be there.
- Momiji's life will be in danger (sorry Ran and Habri).
- Akai and Yusaku have already a plan.
- Shukichi should play a role too.

That Kuroda-Iori encounter was necessary before they meet in the climax.
Gosho will try to recreate Haneda Kohji's case in the climax. "This reminds me of the case that happened 17 years ago" they will say.

The case should be either too long 7+ chapters or broken into two separate parts, the first in the sea, the second on the land , or vice-versa, with the highest probability ever of having a Heiji confession.

Regardless of how Gosho will approach things, the characters mentioned above should take part in the events, and that doesn't stop other BO members like Vermouth and Gin from appearing at the end of the case. If that is true, then Minerva's intervention will be related to the Akai family, MI6, and probably Amanda Hughes's relatives.

This would be the perfect promotion for the next movie, so it's to be expected around that time. Gosho will probably base the theme of the trip on a famous mystery novel just like what he did with Bourbon's climax. Pirates-themed, to reminisce the raging fans of their Halloween arc? That's an option.

Everything that has a start is destined to end, and so is this 8+ years escalation.

Would be the dream come true.

[HatiMMOS]

The potential that Gosho has in writing mysteries is insane but it was limited by the genre of the series and the manga industry in Japan: Bloody dark cases and Shonen doesn't match as a combination but Gosho still somehow found his way into it I but that was in the 90s when things were less "cute" in Japan. Just look at the detectives and characters recommended by Gosho in each volume to see the character's appearances that we could have had in the manga as BO members and how extremely sharp they look, but naah, the Japanese people like them... less sharp.

I'm dying to see a seinen manga from Gosho after finishing DC where he puts all his darkest wildest thoughts in a completely new story. It could compete with Death Note, he just has to work on the aesthetics and hire someone to draw for him.

Gosho has room for new BO members. I'm not asking for smart ones because it will only complicate things for him where everything is already complexly entangled and it would be impossible for him to deliver events that live up to their intelligence. The ones that look weird and tough like Korn and Rum are welcomed. I'm fed up with nice looking ones like Bourbon and Iori.

[Anton-9]

He needs to wrap DC up quickly for that. At least imo DC has enough fuel to burn for 7-8 years more at least.

Would he be able to churn out a Seinen manga after DC ? We'll have to see.

[Kor]

So just for the sake of trivia, now that we're approaching chapter 1100, here's a length comparison between the arcs (by which I mean, what we refer to as arcs in the fandom)

The Rum arc recently passed its 8th anniversary... Rumiversary. Making it the longest arc in the manga time-wise. Of course, this is primarily the fault of the infrequent schedule of the manga now.
What I find more interesting, though, is that the Rum arc also passed its 200 chapters mark (and will go on for however much longer), while the Vermouth arc had a bit less than 200 chapters. So now Rum is the second longest arc. At first place is still Bourbon with 276 chapters.

[MeiTanteixX]

So just for the sake of trivia, now that we're approaching chapter 1100, here's a length comparison between the arcs (by which I mean, what we refer to as arcs in the fandom)

The Rum arc recently passed its 8th anniversary... Rumiversary. Making it the longest arc in the manga time-wise. Of course, this is primarily the fault of the infrequent schedule of the manga now.
What I find more interesting, though, is that the Rum arc also passed its 200 chapters mark (and will go on for however much longer), while the Vermouth arc had a bit less than 200 chapters. So now Rum is the second longest arc. At first place is still Bourbon with 276 chapters.

Interesting. It's a good recap for the current state of release and story pace compared to previous antagonist-titular arcs.

[HatiMMOS]

Random thoughts:

- Rum isn't Impatient: This idea was enforced in the mind of the fans after Amuro told it to Conan; he was hinting to the Tokiwa Kanenari. Conan will come across this phrase at the right time. For now, he knows that anagrams are an option. But he still lacks info about Rum's real identity that will only come from Heiji who will play a big role in this discovery( and adding Momiji to the story stresses this and suggets the method he will use for the arc climax). The reason the fans were frustrated after 1066 is that it should be obvious for a genie like Conan to deduce that Rum is Wakita, he just seems waiting for something before he does it, a plothole from Gosho that can only explained by the following scenario:
Conan lacks the last piece of the puzzle that he will get at/just before the climax. The fans will think that the "Hah, that's it, I know who you are now Rum" is talking about Wakita, but no, it's much further than that. It SHOULD BE IN A CASE ON A BOAT.
The fans noticedd that Rum arc is a bit "Wakasa's arc"; she is more de tailed as a character than Rum. It' because the Rum character was built in Kir's arc.

- I said on Reddit that Tsutomu and Wakasa must have met while investigating the Haneda case. It was confirmed in the latest chapters. Wakasa is a detective and the aquarium case which was released around the beginning of the rum arc where Shinichi associated detectives with sharks was intended from Gosho as foreshadowing for Wakasa. It will be also revealed that the BO and/or Tsutomo's asses were kicked by Wakasa as the "demon of the darkness" but they don't know it's her because she fights in the darkness like pirates.
Wakasa is the pirate. In the Bourbon arc, the liquor was associated with Subaru with the intention to surprise the fans. The liquor of pirates this time is not a hint about Wakita.
Rum is more associated with " fisherman", very patient individuals. This explains the language used by Ethan Hondou( " Dive deep".)

- BO duos justification:
For Gin and Vodka, we can't deduce anything from it because at the time they were introduced , Gosho was probably thinking that making Agasa the boss is a good move.
For Chianti and Korn, after Gosho started drawing the lines of the story, they both have something in common, "snipers"
For Akai and Scotch: "rats" got along
For Vermouth and Amuro? What's in common?
I believe that "waiters" is the word linking the two. They must have met while disguising as waiters, with Amuro having the upper hand which lead him to figure out secrets about her.
She serves the Boss.

[MAJOR]

Random thoughts:

- Rum isn't Impatient: This idea was enforced in the mind of the fans after Amuro told it to Conan; he was hinting to the Tokiwa Kanenari. Conan will come across this phrase at the right time. For now, he knows that anagrams are an option. But he still lacks info about Rum's real identity that will only come from Heiji who will play a big role in this discovery( and adding Momiji to the story stresses this and suggets the method he will use for the arc climax). The reason the fans were frustrated after 1066 is that it should be obvious for a genie like Conan to deduce that Rum is Wakita, he just seems waiting for something before he does it, a plothole from Gosho that can only explained by the following scenario:
Conan lacks the last piece of the puzzle that he will get at/just before the climax. The fans will think that the "Hah, that's it, I know who you are now Rum" is talking about Wakita, but no, it's much further than that. It SHOULD BE IN A CASE ON A BOAT.
The fans noticedd that Rum arc is a bit "Wakasa's arc"; she is more de tailed as a character than Rum. It' because the Rum character was built in Kir's arc.

- I said on Reddit that Tsutomu and Wakasa must have met while investigating the Haneda case. It was confirmed in the latest chapters. Wakasa is a detective and the aquarium case which was released around the beginning of the rum arc where Shinichi associated detectives with sharks was intended from Gosho as foreshadowing for Wakasa. It will be also revealed that the BO and/or Tsutomo's asses were kicked by Wakasa as the "demon of the darkness" but they don't know it's her because she fights in the darkness like pirates.
Wakasa is the pirate. In the Bourbon arc, the liquor was associated with Subaru with the intention to surprise the fans. The liquor of pirates this time is not a hint about Wakita.
Rum is more associated with " fisherman", very patient individuals. This explains the language used by Ethan Hondou( " Dive deep".)

- BO duos justification:
For Gin and Vodka, we can't deduce anything from it because at the time they were introduced , Gosho was probably thinking that making Agasa the boss is a good move.
For Chianti and Korn, after Gosho started drawing the lines of the story, they both have something in common, "snipers"
For Akai and Scotch: "rats" got along
For Vermouth and Amuro? What's in common?
I believe that "waiters" is the word linking the two. They must have met while disguising as waiters, with Amuro having the upper hand which lead him to figure out secrets about her.
She serves the Boss.

[MAJOR]

The RUM climax should have the following elements:

- The case starts with Conan, Ran, and Kogoro going on a trip on a cruise after they won tickets.
- Wakita or Momiji is the one behind it.
- The case might first appear Heiji-centered.
- Momiji, Heiji, and Kazuha are there. Iori too.
- Amuro will join them. The PSB too, especially Kuroda.
- Wakasa will be there.
- Momiji's life will be in danger (sorry Ran and Habri).
- Akai and Yusaku have already a plan.
- Shukichi should play a role too.

That Kuroda-Iori encounter was necessary before they meet in the climax.
Gosho will try to recreate Haneda Kohji's case in the climax. "This reminds me of the case that happened 17 years ago" they will say.

The case should be either too long 7+ chapters or broken into two separate parts, the first in the sea, the second on the land , or vice-versa, with the highest probability ever of having a Heiji confession.

Regardless of how Gosho will approach things, the characters mentioned above should take part in the events, and that doesn't stop other BO members like Vermouth and Gin from appearing at the end of the case. If that is true, then Minerva's intervention will be related to the Akai family, MI6, and probably Amanda Hughes's relatives.

This would be the perfect promotion for the next movie, so it's to be expected around that time. Gosho will probably base the theme of the trip on a famous mystery novel just like what he did with Bourbon's climax. Pirates-themed, to reminisce the raging fans of their Halloween arc? That's an option.

Everything that has a start is destined to end, and so is this 8+ years escalation.

The mystery of Haneda Kōji, specifically the sentence [put on the mascar] that led us to two characters Rum and Krasuma Renya, the boss of the organization, And I think he's trying to tell us something more than that through the phrase besides the strange way of death, what I want to say simply is that the sentence puzzle is not over yet......

By describing Wakasa-sensei in chapter 1051, he makes sure that the boss was present in the Haneda Koji case.Because her description seems accurate, and her face during the description was not normal, therefore, the peak of the arc or the climax that you mentioned will definitely be the leader present in it....

[HatiMMOS]

I expect a Heiji case soon, if not, then just a phone call between him and Conan.

[HatiMMOS]

“Whether we remain the ash or become the Phoenix, is up to us.” – Ming-Dao Deng, not the lacquer tray artist.

It has been an honor to share with you how I view the manga and how I created my own DC world.

It all started after 1066. After more than 7 years, I've managed to catch up with the anime and later the manga right before 1066 by watching just the BO and some crucial cases leaving behind important events while enjoying my time reading theories left and right. In December 2020, I decided that I need to give it a try and read it all from the beginning without skipping and try to make my own theories on my way to the last chapters.

I had my own impression of the Boss for being somewhat similar to Al Pacino from The Godfather II and, since Vermouth did it, probably the boss too, there is nothing stopping BO higher-ups from faking their death and rise from their ashes and I knew that Korn would be the one to look for.

It was a fun journey.

My first observation was the old guy from Sharon's funeral. The face was well drawn and the chapter was well-positioned vis a vis chapter 299. I was surprised there wasn't a popular opinion about that panel before.

A flashy "Italian" word appeared on a restaurant in a Heiji Case, It took me less than an hour to get the theory formulated before even finishing reading the case. It was amended multiple times over the following three weeks.

Chapters before chapter 500, a guy having the most resemblance to Korn made an appearance in a mysterious way. Again, the Reddit post was made, but this time, before finishing the chapter.

Fast forward a hundred chapters, and a suspicious deceased cook appeared. This time, I finished the case, I guess. After the RUM Chan Theory, I knew that with these theories in mind, I could've found something about Gin, Vodka, or other BO members before 500. I got fatigued in the early 700s. I couldn't go back and go through each case, and for the rest of the cases [700- 1060], I let my guard down and stopped paying attention. I accomplished what I wanted to do, the only thing that was bothering me was Itakura's software, I wasn't convinced by how it was employed exactly but the general idea was there, until some days ago.

I genuinely believe that If I summon the vigor I had at the start, I would've produced thoughts and theories about the events of [700-1060]. And yes, if you read the RUM arc with the mentality that each case must have a clue to solving Haneda Kohji's case that was put intentionally by Gosho, I guarantee you 100% that you will give a logical explanation for that "crime" scene's mystery. Just my first post here on the forum on Haneda's glasses, which is something I'm surprised that it doesn't figure in the current DC talk and debates, was hinted at multiple times by Gosho in the current arc; if someone gets hit to the head, a panel with something flying (glasses, cap) is present. "A guy in a photograph laying down with eyes closed faking what happened to him" ofc it's a reference to Kohji, and there should be many more of these. I skipped most of [700-1060] cases, you can still find curious stories to tell. Some might have connections to chapters [400-700] so you might have more work to do.

The downside of my theories are :

- Sticking to general potential events and neglecting intermediate steps.
- Fewer pieces of evidence, more imagination.
- The potential events are based on my personal sense and are dependent on my whims, and not on the whims of leakers (Spimer saaaaan please don't join these two posts XDDDD, last time I was excited let's keep it 69 to commemorate my 69th post in the forum shall we? )


And I would like to seize this opportunity to thank everyone who was involved in the diffusion of DC material on the internet, especially the scanlation teams and whoever keeps uploading DC clips and openings on youtube despite the copyright strikes xD. Thanks for providing us with the content to keep us and those after us informed of what's happening.

I'm grateful to everyone who has contributed to the making of DCTP, BSI, Korn Scans, and TMDCX chapters, thanks immensely for your dedication and your work quality.

Inside my DC world, the route is clear. I have absolutely zero doubt that my theories are relevant. I'm also grateful that they didn't boom when the opportunity was presented; it takes two to tango and I'm glad about what I got and that I deleted them at the right time.

Sorry for spoilin y'all.

[blackmoon]

“Whether we remain the ash or become the Phoenix, is up to us.” – Ming-Dao Deng, not the lacquer tray artist.

It has been an honor to share with you how I view the manga and how I created my own DC world.

It all started after 1066. After more than 7 years, I've managed to catch up with the anime and later the manga right before 1066 by watching just the BO and some crucial cases leaving behind important events while enjoying my time reading theories left and right. In December 2020, I decided that I need to give it a try and read it all from the beginning without skipping and try to make my own theories on my way to the last chapters.

I had my own impression of the Boss for being somewhat similar to Al Pacino from The Godfather II and, since Vermouth did it, probably the boss too, there is nothing stopping BO higher-ups from faking their death and rise from their ashes and I knew that Korn would be the one to look for.

It was a fun journey.

My first observation was the old guy from Sharon's funeral. The face was well drawn and the chapter was well-positioned vis a vis chapter 299. I was surprised there wasn't a popular opinion about that panel before.

A flashy "Italian" word appeared on a restaurant in a Heiji Case, It took me less than an hour to get the theory formulated before even finishing reading the case. It was amended multiple times over the following three weeks.

Chapters before chapter 500, a guy having the most resemblance to Korn made an appearance in a mysterious way. Again, the Reddit post was made, but this time, before finishing the chapter.

Fast forward a hundred chapters, and a suspicious deceased cook appeared. This time, I finished the case, I guess. After the RUM Chan Theory, I knew that with these theories in mind, I could've found something about Gin, Vodka, or other BO members before 500. I got fatigued in the early 700s. I couldn't go back and go through each case, and for the rest of the cases [700- 1060], I let my guard down and stopped paying attention. I accomplished what I wanted to do, the only thing that was bothering me was Itakura's software, I wasn't convinced by how it was employed exactly but the general idea was there, until some days ago.

I genuinely believe that If I summon the vigor I had at the start, I would've produced thoughts and theories about the events of [700-1060]. And yes, if you read the RUM arc with the mentality that each case must have a clue to solving Haneda Kohji's case that was put intentionally by Gosho, I guarantee you 100% that you will give a logical explanation for that "crime" scene's mystery. Just my first post here on the forum on Haneda's glasses, which is something I'm surprised that it doesn't figure in the current DC talk and debates, was hinted at multiple times by Gosho in the current arc; if someone gets hit to the head, a panel with something flying (glasses, cap) is present. "A guy in a photograph laying down with eyes closed faking what happened to him" ofc it's a reference to Kohji, and there should be many more of these. I skipped most of [700-1060] cases, you can still find curious stories to tell. Some might have connections to chapters [400-700] so you might have more work to do.

The downside of my theories are :

- Sticking to general potential events and neglecting intermediate steps.
- Fewer pieces of evidence, more imagination.
- The potential events are based on my personal sense and are dependent on my whims, and not on the whims of leakers (Spimer saaaaan please don't join these two posts XDDDD, last time I was excited let's keep it 69 to commemorate my 69th post in the forum shall we? )


And I would like to seize this opportunity to thank everyone who was involved in the diffusion of DC material on the internet, especially the scanlation teams and whoever keeps uploading DC clips and openings on youtube despite the copyright strikes xD. Thanks for providing us with the content to keep us and those after us informed of what's happening.

I'm grateful to everyone who has contributed to the making of DCTP, BSI, Korn Scans, and TMDCX chapters, thanks immensely for your dedication and your work quality.

Inside my DC world, the route is clear. I have absolutely zero doubt that my theories are relevant. I'm also grateful that they didn't boom when the opportunity was presented; it takes two to tango and I'm glad about what I got and that I deleted them at the right time.

Sorry for spoilin y'all.

Well... i guess thank you for your thanks to everyone and thank you for your passion in Conan as well as being grateful and open minded in everyone's input and contributions? At least it seems to be peaceful interacting with you although i never did say much anyways

Let's see... about RUM arc and that new old man that appeared in the latest chapter... some ppl think the cane he holds is the shape of a raven, but more believe it is the shape of an eagle or falcon. Well the pet bird on his shoulder does look more like a hawk, and the way he stares at the space in front of him also seem like a hawk staring at a prey. Maybe the guy is a war-hawk like character looking to prey on Conan?
Yet, i think the real boss of B.O. wouldn't be an impatient or impulsive character as RUM though

It would be too easy for the Akais or the reds if that were the case... and even Tsutomu Akai referred to someone as a monster in RUMI's flashback... so RUM or the Boss definitely wouldn't be so simple i think. Just my speculation though...

[Anton-9]

“Whether we remain the ash or become the Phoenix, is up to us.” – Ming-Dao Deng, not the lacquer tray artist.

It has been an honor to share with you how I view the manga and how I created my own DC world.

It all started after 1066. After more than 7 years, I've managed to catch up with the anime and later the manga right before 1066 by watching just the BO and some crucial cases leaving behind important events while enjoying my time reading theories left and right. In December 2020, I decided that I need to give it a try and read it all from the beginning without skipping and try to make my own theories on my way to the last chapters.

I had my own impression of the Boss for being somewhat similar to Al Pacino from The Godfather II and, since Vermouth did it, probably the boss too, there is nothing stopping BO higher-ups from faking their death and rise from their ashes and I knew that Korn would be the one to look for.

It was a fun journey.

My first observation was the old guy from Sharon's funeral. The face was well drawn and the chapter was well-positioned vis a vis chapter 299. I was surprised there wasn't a popular opinion about that panel before.

A flashy "Italian" word appeared on a restaurant in a Heiji Case, It took me less than an hour to get the theory formulated before even finishing reading the case. It was amended multiple times over the following three weeks.

Chapters before chapter 500, a guy having the most resemblance to Korn made an appearance in a mysterious way. Again, the Reddit post was made, but this time, before finishing the chapter.

Fast forward a hundred chapters, and a suspicious deceased cook appeared. This time, I finished the case, I guess. After the RUM Chan Theory, I knew that with these theories in mind, I could've found something about Gin, Vodka, or other BO members before 500. I got fatigued in the early 700s. I couldn't go back and go through each case, and for the rest of the cases [700- 1060], I let my guard down and stopped paying attention. I accomplished what I wanted to do, the only thing that was bothering me was Itakura's software, I wasn't convinced by how it was employed exactly but the general idea was there, until some days ago.

I genuinely believe that If I summon the vigor I had at the start, I would've produced thoughts and theories about the events of [700-1060]. And yes, if you read the RUM arc with the mentality that each case must have a clue to solving Haneda Kohji's case that was put intentionally by Gosho, I guarantee you 100% that you will give a logical explanation for that "crime" scene's mystery. Just my first post here on the forum on Haneda's glasses, which is something I'm surprised that it doesn't figure in the current DC talk and debates, was hinted at multiple times by Gosho in the current arc; if someone gets hit to the head, a panel with something flying (glasses, cap) is present. "A guy in a photograph laying down with eyes closed faking what happened to him" ofc it's a reference to Kohji, and there should be many more of these. I skipped most of [700-1060] cases, you can still find curious stories to tell. Some might have connections to chapters [400-700] so you might have more work to do.

The downside of my theories are :

- Sticking to general potential events and neglecting intermediate steps.
- Fewer pieces of evidence, more imagination.
- The potential events are based on my personal sense and are dependent on my whims, and not on the whims of leakers (Spimer saaaaan please don't join these two posts XDDDD, last time I was excited let's keep it 69 to commemorate my 69th post in the forum shall we? )


And I would like to seize this opportunity to thank everyone who was involved in the diffusion of DC material on the internet, especially the scanlation teams and whoever keeps uploading DC clips and openings on youtube despite the copyright strikes xD. Thanks for providing us with the content to keep us and those after us informed of what's happening.

I'm grateful to everyone who has contributed to the making of DCTP, BSI, Korn Scans, and TMDCX chapters, thanks immensely for your dedication and your work quality.

Inside my DC world, the route is clear. I have absolutely zero doubt that my theories are relevant. I'm also grateful that they didn't boom when the opportunity was presented; it takes two to tango and I'm glad about what I got and that I deleted them at the right time.

Sorry for spoilin y'all.

Thanks for your contribution. Your ideas were enlightening.

Regarding the glasses, yes it seems like either a clue or Gosho's failure. If it's a clue then someone managed the crime scene by putting the glass on Kohji. (cause someone hit on the face can't keep their glasses on) Though I think it's Gosho's mistake just like some other stuff happening around.

[MeiTanteixX]

Boss Suspects' True Identities (Theory)

We have been introduced to two new mysterious old men so far that are framed to be Black Organization Boss suspects.

Spoiler:

As previously mentioned, I suspect that "Vader" (the old man with the respirator) is Haneda Yasuharu, since he has both reasons to find the police incompetent (File 1090), due to failing to catch his son's killer, as well as for him to recognize Mary and protect her from getting exposed publically through the news (File 1096-1097), since he is Tsutomu's friend.

Spoiler:

Spoiler:

As for the newly introduced Hawk Elder (who is clearly being framed to be Karasuma Renya through his Crow-resembling Hawk pet), he was revealed to have some kind of anger towards someone connected to the recent Kid Killer News with Conan & Jirokichi photo in it, since he used his staff to crack the phone showing it (File 1102).

Spoiler:

After thinking through all the possibilities, I think it makes the most sense that Hawk Elder's true identity is the Ōoka retiree, Momiji's Grandpa who was acquainted with Haneda & Kuroda (who was also foreshadowed in File 1088).

Spoiler:

He is the only mysterious rich old man that we haven't been introduced to. Also, in the M21 guidebook, Gosho revealed that the Ōoka family are a rich family just like the Suzuki's, only that Sonoko's uncle Jirokichi is slightly richer.

Spoiler:

This could be setup and cause for some intense rivalry between Ōoka retiree & Jirokichi, where Ōoka retiree could be harboring ill feelings out of jealousy towards Jirokichi, who keeps getting more publicity and gaining more wealth. This would explain why he cracked his phone with Jirokichi's photo open out of anger (that is meant to mislead us into thinking his target was Conan).

To summarize my speculations, we now have three silhouetted rich old figures, and their identities are:

Spoiler:

[MeiTanteixX]

"Kuroda Hyoue = Akai Tsutomu" Theory (Updated)

This is my current speculation on Kuroda Hyoue's identity, I will keep it updated as we get new developments.


I think that Kuroda Hyoue is indeed Akai Tsutomu's current identity. Kuroda shares many similarities with Akai Tsutomu and especially his son (Akai Shuuichi). They both have similar fashion sense, with a contrasting white-coloured tie to a dark shirt and a brown overlay, and when it comes to Shuuichi, we got visual cues where they not only stood the same way with hands in their pocket, but also demonstrated the same leg sweep technique (File 989 & 1016), which is most likely intended to indicate that they share the same martial arts (Jeet Kune Do) that Akai Tsutomu was revealed to have mastered (File 1099 & SDB 90+).

Spoiler:

Kuroda was also especially interested in the Kohji case, to the point of seemingly noticing a dying message-like name in the news (File 980 & 987). This fits with Akai Tsutomu's interest, that started after Haneda Kohji's father (Haneda Yasuharu), who is Tsutomu's friend, requested that he solved his son's murder (File 1037).

Spoiler:

Here is how I currently suspect he turned from a seemingly deceased MI6 agent from Britain to a member of the NPA's Public Security in Japan in the last 17 years.

We know from File 1048-1049 that Tsutomu had a confrontation with Vermouth 17 years ago after his investigation on the Kohji case, and that clash lead to him being presumed dead by the BO. We then learned in File 1099 that Wakasa and a "monster" (Rum) was involved in what potentially was that same incident that lead to his presumed death 17 years ago.

Spoiler:

As I speculated before, I think that Tsutomu's investigation lead him to finding out that Kohji's dying message revealed "Karasuma" to be the culprit, and that the prime suspect Asaka is innocent. I think that Rum found out about Tsutomu's investigation and baited him to a location using Vermouth, who disguised as "the innocent bodyguard Asaka" and carried Kohji's shogi piece charm as proof to convince him. Before going to the meeting location, Tsutomu warned his family about making enemies with bad people and told them to move to Japan, so that his family's whereabouts aren't discovered (File 972), in case he doesn't survive the planned meeting with "Asaka" (similar to Mary's contingency plan of having Masumi contact MI6 about fake Tsutomu in case Mary didn't make it back in File 1049).

Spoiler:

That lead to Tsutomu finger jabbing Rum's left eye (as hinted by Gosho in the OdaxAoyama interview and File 972) and ultimately getting defeated by Rum after letting his guard down around Vermouth (Fake Asaka/Wakasa).

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I suspect that Tsutomu's confrontation with them lead to him surviving (like Mary) and changing his identity and appearance (likely through plastic surgery). Afterwards, to pursue the organization further, it makes sense that he would have moved to Japan, where the culprit(s) "Karasuma" originate from, just like the other overseas agents (i.e Hondou Ethan from the CIA). Just like Mary, who got ahold of a fake pass to fly to Japan (revealed by Gosho in SDB 100+), Tsutomu had also gotten ahold of a fake pass with the alias "Kuroda Hyoue".

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I think that he then decided to investigate the Karasuma Group/Black Organization, by becoming a public security officer of the Japanese police (in order to extract information easier, as referenced in File 1033).

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In order to get a pass into the police academy in Japan (disregarding of his blank background), I suspect that Kuroda/Tsutomu secretly relied on his relationship with the head of the Ōoka Group (who is currently retired) that was revealed in File 1088, similar to how his friend Haneda Yasuharu did in File 1039-1042.

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The Ōoka family has been shown and hinted to have great influence and connections with people in high positions, like the Tokyo governor (File 992), making them more than capable of helping Kuroda/Tsutomu join the japanese police.

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In other words, the same time as his eldest son started to work towards becoming an FBI agent 17 years ago (File 972), Kuroda started to work towards getting accepted by the National Police Agency (File 913). He then built himself up and became what I think is the backstage administrator of the NPA's security planning division (who recieves all the classified reports of their NOC:s), all within 7 years.

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Seven years later (since his disappearance), Kuroda/Tsutomu has made a name for himself within the NPA and has diligently kept his safe distance from his family, but before the status quo with his family could change, an incident took place around 10 years ago, that lead to his 10-year-long coma (File 914). We recently learned that Iori Muga, the current butler of the Ōoka family, was a former coworker of Kuroda within the Public Security, who went with the alias "Sakakibara" while undercover, which was likely before Kuroda's 10-year coma (File 1090).

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I think that what lead to Kuroda's burn-scar-causing and right-eye-losing incident 10 years ago was that Iori Muga (who is actually Rum's true appearance) deemed Kuroda as a threatening and formidable enemy to the black organization. He therefore secretly orchestrated the incident that made Kuroda fall into a coma. Kuroda's hair colour changed due to the stress of the incident (his hair was perhaps shaved off for surgery purposes and white hair grew instead) and he didn't wake up until 10 years later (File 914).

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I suspect that when Kuroda/Tsutomu woke up from his coma, he suffered actual memory loss to an extent, which is why he was perceived to have become a different person (As Yui mentioned). This concept was already foreshadowed as a possibility through Vermouth's disguise cover story when she faced Mary as Tsutomu (File 1048).

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This would also explain why Kuroda immediately reacted to Wakasa Rumi in the news in File 980, while also still acting unaware of her identity as if he is trying to confirm suspicions of her being a criminal tied to the Kohji case in File 987-989, despite potentially having met her 17 years ago as Tsutomu. The amnesia could have made him forget her potential role in his demise 17 years ago, but he still found her familiar enough to the point of investigating her and making the connection between her name and Kohji's dying message.

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While he may have forgotten significant things from his life as Tsutomu, his goal to take down the BO and find out who Kohji's killer is hasn't changed. Although the NPA had him move to Nagano to ease back into his work (before he moved to Tokyo MPD as the new superintendent), I think they gave Kuroda permission to still keep his Backstage administrator role active and stay in contact with their NOC ("Bourbon"/Furuya Rei) by Kuroda's request (File 1017).

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