In the interrogation room, Tomokazu Yamashita had maintained his defiant composure for hours. But when Taiga entered with bank statements, surveillance footage, and a psychological profile that laid bare every secret the man had tried to hide, his nightmare truly began.
Yamashita would later swear he had never encountered anyone as terrifying as Taiga. The interrogator didn't raise his voice, didn't make threats, didn't even touch him. Instead, he methodically dismantled every lie, every excuse, every desperate rationalization with surgical precision. Within two hours, Yamashita had confessed to everything.
The truth unfolded exactly as Gustave and Conan had deduced. During his time accompanying Takuya Fujiwara on overseas business trips, Yamashita had developed a crippling gambling addiction. Las Vegas became his personal hell, a place where he lost increasingly massive sums over several years. As his debts mounted beyond any hope of repayment through legitimate means, desperation drove him to embezzle funds from the Fujiwara Group.
What started as temporary borrowing spiraled into systematic theft. Soon the gap exceeded one hundred million yen, and panic set in. That's when Makoto Saionji made his approach, offering salvation with strings attached.
Yamashita had recognized the malicious intent immediately and rejected the offer. But as months passed without finding any way to cover his crimes, and with Makoto's persistent overtures wearing down his resistance, he eventually capitulated.
Makoto's motivation was pure family politics. As Hajime Saionji matured and showed increasing promise as the family heir, Makoto felt his own position threatened. The breaking point came when he overheard a private conversation between his father and younger brother—one that convinced him there could be only one successor to the Saionji legacy.
The deal was simple: create a racing accident that would eliminate Hajime permanently. To demonstrate his commitment, Makoto immediately covered thirty million yen of Yamashita's embezzlement, with promises of handling the rest after the job was completed.
After careful planning, Yamashita selected the ultimate showdown between Takuya and Hajime as the perfect opportunity. He commissioned a special stimulant designed to amplify with emotional intensity—the more excited the user became, the more drug-like effects would manifest.
The plan worked flawlessly until the final moments. Yamashita had given Hajime the drugged water bottle, and after the spectacular overtaking maneuver through the drainage canal, the young racer's euphoria triggered the stimulant's peak effects. But Yamashita never anticipated that Fujiwara would accelerate desperately in those final seconds, refusing to accept defeat.
When both racers died in the resulting collision, Yamashita's world collapsed. Fujiwara's death was never part of the plan, and the shock of killing someone he genuinely respected caused him to faint on the spot.
Once Yamashita broke, the rest of the conspiracy unraveled quickly. The forensic accountants confirmed the embezzlement, and when Makoto Saionji learned of his co-conspirator's confession, he abandoned all pretense and revealed his own role in the plot.
The Metropolitan Police had achieved a stunning reversal, solving what initially appeared to be an impossible case within their deadline.
The aftermath proved costly for the Saionji family. To protect their sole remaining heir, they paid an enormous price in political influence and business concessions. While Makoto retained his position as Speaker, the family withdrew from numerous profitable ventures. In the end, only Tomokazu Yamashita faced the full consequences, abandoned by his conspirators as the sole scapegoat.
Gustave returned to the Bamboo Staff the following day, satisfied with his brief foray into detective work. He'd been away from his own world longer than usual, and the familiar sounds and smells of his floating restaurant felt particularly welcoming.
The Aston Martin Vanquish Zagato he'd purchased remained parked at Dr. Agasa's house—the Bamboo Staff simply had no space for a car, and he could retrieve it whenever the mood struck him. As a gesture of gratitude, he'd taken the good doctor on a brief interdimensional tour, allowing the inventor to experience the One Piece world and meet the crew.
It was several days later when Chu Zihang approached him with a request that caught Gustave off guard.
"Gustave, I'm ready to go back," the young man announced, his tone carrying a finality that immediately got the chef's attention.
"Go back? Then go back," Gustave replied automatically, still half-asleep from his afternoon nap.
"What I mean is, this time when I return, I won't be staying on the Bamboo Staff for extended periods. I'll visit occasionally, like the other guests."
Gustave blinked, trying to process this unexpected development. "What?"
Chu Zihang sighed, recognizing the chef's post-nap confusion. "During my training with Po, my strength has improved dramatically. I've essentially mastered the Six Powers and all three types of Haki. But I've hit a wall—I can't seem to break through to the next level, and I don't understand what Po means when he talks about that final barrier."
"So I thought... maybe I should return to my world. Maybe something different will happen there, some opportunity I can't find here."
The young man's reasoning was sound. His current power level had reached Admiral candidate status, putting him among the strongest individuals in the One Piece world. Further progress would require either extraordinary circumstances or insights that might only come from his home dimension.
"Well, alright," Gustave said with a yawn. "If that's what you want, I won't try to stop you. The Restaurant's always available when you want to visit."
Gustave wasn't particularly concerned about Chu Zihang's safety. With his current strength, the young man could easily match Ladon, the dragon Gustave had previously killed. Even facing a complete Dragon King wouldn't be hopeless, especially considering how weakened they typically were immediately after revival.
Thinking about dragons sparked an idea, and Gustave's expression brightened. "Actually, I'll come with you this time. See you off properly."
Chu Zihang's eyes narrowed suspiciously. After spending so much time together, he knew the chef's personality perfectly. Recent weeks had seen Gustave in peak lazy mode, so this sudden offer to travel definitely had ulterior motives.
"There's something you want, isn't there?"
"Haha!" Gustave laughed, not even trying to deny it. "Well, I did just buy that car, and my wallet's feeling a bit light. I thought I'd ask Anjou if there are any additional business opportunities available."
"The last dragon you killed netted six hundred million dollars from Principal Anjou, right? You've already spent all of that?" Chu Zihang looked genuinely shocked. He'd rarely seen Gustave make major purchases.
"No, no, I still have more left," Gustave clarified with a wave of his hand. "But watching that money flow out like water makes me nervous. I'd like to earn a little more, just to soothe my anxious heart."
The truth was, with his electromagnetic abilities, Gustave could easily manipulate bank systems to increase his account balance. But despite his casual attitude, he maintained strict ethical boundaries in other worlds. Such tasteless criminal behavior was beneath him.
Still, his financial reserves were genuinely shrinking, and dragon slaying offered the fastest legitimate income in Chu Zihang's world. A quick business trip to negotiate with Anjou seemed like the perfect solution.
"I knew there was something," Chu Zihang muttered. This was exactly the Gustave he'd come to know.
"Don't say that, Zihang!" Gustave protested, throwing an arm around the younger man's shoulders in an exaggerated display of friendship. "Making money is just a side benefit. My main purpose is seeing off my dear friend!"
"Sure, sure, I understand," Chu Zihang replied dryly, shrugging off the chef's arm. The money Gustave earned from dragon slaying came from Anjou and the various mixed-blood families anyway. Why should he care how much the chef extracted from their coffers?
"Excellent! Pack whatever you need, and we'll head out together later."
"Got it. I'll let you know when I'm ready."
With that settled, Chu Zihang went to say his goodbyes to the rest of the Bamboo Staff crew. After all his time aboard the floating restaurant, these people had become like family. Leaving wouldn't be easy, even if it was the right decision for his continued growth.