Chapter 21 Section 5

Sayama waited until Yumi Nakamori left the reception hall, went to the intercom next to the counter, picked up the receiver and called the research and development section. He had made an appointment with Director Suzuki in advance. Suzuki picked up the phone and said he would be there right away.From the sound of his voice, it sounds like a cowardly person.After making the phone call, I returned to the desk and sorted out the results of my inquiries so far.According to Hashimoto's father, Hashimoto and Nishina Naoki do not seem to have a personal relationship.The father and son live separately, and it is reasonable to say that his father should not know the actual situation, but his father replied confidently: "No, the child Dunsi will not hide anything from us."

Sayama thought that this self-confidence was the trap, but he didn't tell the truth.He originally expected to get some news from Yue Nakamori, but his expectations fell through.She is the closest person to Nishina Naoki, so Sayama thinks that she should have some clues. By the way, the Komae Department is spreading a strange thing-it has something to do with Yumi. She used to stay in the design department, and it seems that she was transferred to the current department by Naoki.There seems to be a little gossip about this incident, but it is just a rumor after all. Yuue Nakamori didn't ask for leave that day—even so, when Sayama thought it would be better to investigate her, someone stood in front of him.He looked up, and the man with a shabby face bowed his head and saluted. He really gave the same impression as he was on the phone.

"So, Mr. Hashimoto worked overtime until nine o'clock in the evening that day?" Regarding Sayama's question, Suzuki from the first development section nodded frequently.He is Hashimoto's boss, but this is only a formality. Suzuki himself said frankly: In fact, Hashimoto conducted research according to his own ideas. "Have you been with Mr. Hashimoto?" "Not always, but I know he's still in the company. Because I saw him in the lab." "I see." Sayama also thought: If he had an alibi before nine o'clock, it would be useless to investigate him.Sayama was investigating Hashimoto's actions on November 10, the day Naoki Nishina was killed, but it seemed he must be at work.

"By the way, what kind of person is Mr. Hashimoto?" Sayama asked tentatively in a chatty tone. So Suzuki felt a little more relaxed, his attitude became calmer, and he talked more. "Well, he is a serious man with fine facial features and a fat body." "Is he ambitious?" Sayama asked. "Ambitious? Oh, he doesn't feel very ambitious, but he seems to have dreams." "What kind of dream?" "It seems that he wants to get in touch with the development of the universe in the future, so he hopes that the company can send him to MM in the United States. Because there are researches in this field there. In fact, I heard that his wish may be realized. So he is also very happy... But It's a pity that this kind of thing happened." Suzuki's mouth was moving non-stop before, and it immediately became slow when he spoke here.

"How is his relationship with Mr. Nishina Naoki? Have you heard him say anything about it?" Suzuki tilted his head. "There was a formal relationship based on work, but I don't recall them having a personal relationship." "Did Hashimoto-san say anything about the murder of Mr. Nishina earlier?" At this time, the director tilted his head again, unable to figure out what to do. "After all, he doesn't talk much." "Will he avoid the subject?" "Rather than avoiding the topic, it's better to say that he feels that the matter has nothing to do with him. He never thought that he would encounter such a thing. In short, he will not make enemies with others, and he is very filial. Every month I would go back to my hometown in Chiba several times and drive my parents for a ride, which is not something ordinary people can do.”

"Indeed." Sayama echoed, and noticed that there were some words in Suzuki's words that made him a little concerned. "Does Mr. Hashimoto like to go for a ride?" "It seems that he likes it very much. He said that he often goes to Izu alone." "What kind of car does he drive?" "Uh, he gave me a ride during the self-improvement event." Suzuki tapped his forehead with his fist, and said, "Oh, that's right. It's CROWN. He said it was because he wanted his parents to sit comfortably." "Crown... ah!" Sayama thought of the body of that car. Besides the seats, the rear compartment was also large.

"During that self-improvement event, he also took over the tiresome driver's job without complaint. He is a good person. I really don't understand why this happened?" Sayama listened absently to Suzuki's endless Say. Hashimoto's white crown is parked in the parking lot to the east of the apartment. It seems to be waxed diligently, shining like a new car. It seems that Hashimoto's character can also be glimpsed from this place.That being said, the inside of the car is usually cleaned carefully—? Sayama thought to himself: If this is the case, it will be a bit difficult to judge.

"Hashimoto who was at the company at nine o'clock is innocent, so it's useless for you to investigate his car." Taniguchi asked this question when Sayama asked to investigate Hashimoto's Crown car.Sayama also knew this was the right idea, but tried to hold on. "But just to be on the safe side, it's better to investigate. The prisoner used a car to carry Naoki's body. From the psychological point of view of the prisoner, I don't think he would use a rented car. Because it will leave evidence. I guess, that car The car may be the car next to the prisoner."

"Basically, I agree with you." Taniguchi nodded. In fact, he had forensic personnel thoroughly investigate Naoki's car tycoon.Because the prisoner may also use Naoki's own car to carry the corpse.However, the forensic personnel did not find any suspicious signs from the rich man, but learned from the testimony of the apartment residents that the rich man's car was parked in the parking lot on the day of the murder. "Let's investigate. Because Hashimoto may have lent the car to the prisoner." After thinking for a long time, Taniguchi accepted Sayama's proposal.

Will there be any clues?Even if it's a hair - Sayama watched the forensic personnel work, praying that his intuition was correct. "How?" Sayama tried to ask the forensics personnel who were investigating the rear compartment. But the young forensics personnel were working while tilting their heads. "Evidence of recent cleaning. Not a single scrap of paper on the car." "Oh..." Sayama thought to himself: There are signs of cleaning, which can be interpreted as hopeful.It is impossible for the prisoner to abandon the car that transported the dead body without cleaning it.However, it is also a headache to find no evidence of the crime because it has been cleaned.

Sayama went around to the seat.There are also forensic personnel here who are carefully collecting fingerprints.If the prisoner had borrowed the car, the steering wheel might have fingerprints from someone other than Hashimoto. "It's a very clean car." The forensic officer said to Sayama: "The resin part is coated with a special protective fluid. The car is spotless. It really doesn't look like a car that has been bought for two years. It seems that the owner cleans it quite often." "Could it be cleaned temporarily recently?" "I don't think so. If you don't maintain it regularly, you can't keep it like this." "That's it." Sayama thought, this is not fun.If there is any sign of temporary cleaning, things are easy to handle. Sayama said, "I'm sorry to trouble you." Just as he was about to leave, the forensic personnel let out a cry of surprise.Sayama took a look and found that the forensic personnel were staring under the car seat. "What's wrong?" "Well, I found this kind of thing." What the forensics staff handed to Sayama was a piece of paper about one square centimeter. "There are numbers written on it," Sayama said. The number "1150" is written on the white paper.It seems to be stamped, and the font is a little crooked.There is an orange word "gold" above the number.This is clearly printed. "What is this?" Sayama murmured. "I don't know, I feel like I've seen it somewhere." "Well," he nodded, "I thought so too." Then he ran his fingertips over the paper, trying to let the sunlight penetrate it. The Xindang detective, who likes to go for a drive, easily answered Sayama's question.When Sayama brought the question paper back to the investigation headquarters of the Komae Bureau, he glanced at it and said, "Oh, this is a highway receipt, it must be correct." "Receipt?" "Well. I think I have it." Xintang took out a blank piece of paper from his wallet, with "receipt" printed on it.When Sayama saw this, he immediately figured it out. This was very familiar, and it was a receipt that he would definitely get at the ticket station. "That's right. 'Gold' is part of the two printed words 'fee gold (expenses)'. Then, '1150' is the amount stamped with a seal?" "Even if there is only a part of something you are used to, you can't recognize it. This is an example." Xintang rubbed his nose and said. "That's not important. I'm sure Hashimoto has walked the highway recently. No, it's not necessarily Hashimoto himself driving the car." Sayama said to himself. Taniguchi's voice came from the side: "Hey, what are you thinking? Even if the piece of paper was found in Hashimoto's car, it can't be said to be related to the murder case. No matter whose car it is, if you look for it, it will run out. , Two receipts. Besides, there is no key sign of moving the corpse, right?" But Sayama stood in front of Taniguchi and retorted: "You are right, but we can't let go of the fact that we found this kind of paper scraps from Hashimoto's car. I checked with the residents of the apartment where Hashimoto lived, and I heard that The guy washes the car once or twice a week, and when the car is washed, he probably cleans the inside of the car as well. In this way, it should be considered that this piece of paper was dropped on the car, not too long ago." "Maybe it wasn't too long ago, but it's not necessarily the day when Naoki Nishina was killed." "But it may not be the day he was killed." Taniguchi stared at Sayama for a few seconds, and instructed the young policeman beside him to bring the road atlas, then held it in his hand, flipped through the pages behind, and handed it to Sayama.The title is a list of highway tolls. "How much does it cost between Tokyo and Osaka?" Taniguchi asked. After checking the watch, Sayama replied: "More than 10,000." When he answered, he understood what Taniguchi wanted to say. "That's right, but that piece of paper says 1,150 yen. In other words, it's not a receipt for traveling between Tokyo and Osaka." "It's not necessarily going straight. You may get off the interchange halfway and get on the expressway." "Why did you do that?" "I don't know, maybe it's to hide some secret. Another point, I want to focus on why the receipt is shredded. If you want to throw it away, it should be fine to crumple it into a ball and throw it away. The feeling of shredding is This receipt must be destroyed." Perhaps because of the shock of Sayama's tone, Taniguchi remained silent for a while, then relaxed the muscles at the corners of his mouth, showing an expression of abandonment. "I always feel that you are a bit far-fetched, but you won't give up if you don't investigate and see." "My old problem." "This is a good habit. What are you going to do first?" "I want to investigate which section this receipt was for." "The interval of 1,150 yen, it would be great if this is the key to solving some kind of problem." After speaking, Taniguchi pressed the expressway toll list to Sayama. -------------------------------- Note: