Had Takaaki Morofushi and Tooru Amuro really never met before?
Why did Takaaki act like a stranger at the end of The 36-Cell Perfect Game?
The exchange between Takaaki Morofushi and Tooru Amuro in manga Volume 97 and Episodes 1060-1062 (Japanese episodes 1003-1005), The 36-Cell Perfect Game, raises both questions. After the case, Takaaki addresses Amuro and Kanenori Wakita as though he is meeting them for the first time.
Takaaki asks Kogoro Mouri who the two men with him are, despite having just seen Amuro. (unofficial translation)
He then invokes sayings about the value of every moment and thinks of the phrase “Time is money.” (unofficial translation) That choice of words makes the ending feel much more important than an ordinary farewell.
This article contains spoilers for The 36-Cell Perfect Game, Hiromitsu Morofushi’s death, Amuro’s identity, Hyoue Kuroda’s call, RUM, and Kanenori Wakita.
Were Takaaki Morofushi and Tooru Amuro Meeting for the First Time?
Takaaki and Amuro were not complete strangers.
The important distinction is the name. Tooru Amuro is an alias; the man using it is Rei Furuya, an officer of the Public Security Bureau who has infiltrated the Black Organization as Bourbon. Takaaki’s connection is to Rei Furuya, not to the public identity of Tooru Amuro.
Takaaki is a Nagano Prefectural Police inspector and the older brother of Hiromitsu Morofushi. Hiromitsu and Furuya were close friends and classmates at the police academy. From Takaaki’s perspective, the face before him belongs to his late brother’s friend.
That is why his moment of recognition matters. He has personal reasons to speak with Furuya about Hiromitsu, yet after the case he deliberately keeps his distance. The scene brings together a family loss, a protected identity, Kuroda’s intervention, and Wakita’s presence.
Takaaki Morofushi and Tooru Amuro Were Not Strangers
Takaaki had previously met the man now calling himself Tooru Amuro as Rei Furuya.
Hiromitsu and Furuya shared a particularly close bond at the police academy. That history gives Takaaki a reason to know his brother’s friend. It does not mean that Takaaki necessarily knew every detail of Furuya’s later work or every identity he used.
The scene carefully separates recognition of a person from knowledge of his current cover. Takaaki remembers Furuya when he sees Amuro, but the source does not establish that he already possessed a complete account of Amuro’s undercover role at that instant.
For Takaaki, the reunion is also painful. The man in front of him may know something about why Hiromitsu died. He would naturally have questions, but asking them openly could expose the very connection that must remain hidden. His silence is therefore both personal and operational.
Hiromitsu’s Phone and the “Zero” Envelope May Have Pointed Takaaki Toward Furuya
Hiromitsu’s phone and an envelope associated with “zero” may prepare the ground for Takaaki’s recognition of Furuya.
In manga Volume 96 and Episodes 1040-1041 (Japanese episodes 983-984), Kid vs. Komei: The Targeted Lips (Part 1) and Kid vs. Komei: The Targeted Lips (Part 2), Takaaki receives an envelope from an unidentified sender containing an item connected to his brother.
The envelope turns his attention back toward Hiromitsu’s death and the idea of “zero.” That clue may point toward Rei Furuya and give Takaaki a person from whom he may want answers. The package supports this connection, although it does not establish that Takaaki learned every fact about Furuya from the envelope alone.
Seen in isolation, Takaaki’s reaction to Amuro in The 36-Cell Perfect Game can feel abrupt. Seen after The Targeted Lips, it follows an emotional trail already in motion. Amuro is not merely Kogoro’s apprentice or a cafe employee to Takaaki; he is connected to the unanswered circumstances of Hiromitsu’s death.
The 36-Cell Perfect Game Brings Public Security and RUM Dangerously Close
The 36-Cell Perfect Game places a Public Security officer and the figure identified as RUM in the same investigation.
The story appears in manga Volume 97 and spans Episodes 1060-1062 (Japanese episodes 1003-1005). Conan, Kogoro, Amuro, and Wakita travel to an abandoned church in Nagano, where Kansuke Yamato, Yui Uehara, and Takaaki become involved in the case.
On the surface, this is a snowbound serial case. Underneath it, several main-plot lines converge: Amuro is present, Wakita is present, Takaaki recognizes something familiar in Amuro, and Kuroda calls Takaaki. The ordinary investigation doubles as an information-security crisis.
Wakita is not merely a sushi chef. He is RUM, the Black Organization’s second-in-command. Amuro, meanwhile, is a Public Security Bureau officer operating inside the organization as Bourbon. Any public clue linking Amuro to Furuya or the police could place his mission and life at risk.
Why Takaaki Pretended Not to Know Amuro in The 36-Cell Perfect Game
Takaaki acted like a stranger to protect Amuro’s identity in front of Wakita.
If Takaaki had called him Rei Furuya or treated him as Hiromitsu’s police-academy friend, he could have exposed a link between Amuro and law enforcement. Because Wakita was beside them, even a small sign of familiarity could be dangerous.
Amuro is a Public Security Bureau officer infiltrating the Black Organization as Bourbon. Discovery by the organization could be fatal. On this reading, Takaaki suppresses the questions he wants to ask and adopts the safest public posture: he treats both Amuro and Wakita as men he has not met.
The scene is powerful because the protective act costs Takaaki something. He may finally be near someone who can speak about Hiromitsu, but the circumstances make that conversation impossible. He protects his brother’s friend by refusing to acknowledge him.
What Did Hyoue Kuroda Say on the Phone?
Kuroda may have warned Takaaki not to reveal that he recognized Amuro, but the full content of the call is not disclosed.
What is confirmed in the package is that Kuroda calls Takaaki. Afterward, Takaaki behaves as though Amuro is a stranger. The sequence strongly suggests that the call influenced his guarded response, but it does not provide a verbatim order or define how much Kuroda told him about Wakita or RUM.
A plausible reconstruction is that Kuroda told Takaaki not to show any connection to Amuro while Wakita was present. That reading fits the change in Takaaki’s behavior. It should still remain an inference, not a confirmed transcript of the call.
It is also important not to collapse several different kinds of knowledge. Takaaki could understand that he must conceal his familiarity with Amuro without knowing Wakita’s complete identity, the full scope of Amuro’s mission, or every detail of Kuroda’s intelligence.
Wakita’s Presence Made It Necessary to Protect Amuro’s Identity
Wakita’s presence explains why Takaaki had to pretend that he did not know Amuro.
Kanenori Wakita is RUM, the Black Organization’s second-in-command. Tooru Amuro is Bourbon within that organization, but his real allegiance is to the Public Security Bureau under the name Rei Furuya. Treating Amuro as Hiromitsu’s friend could expose his police background to the worst possible observer.
The source does not establish exactly what Kuroda told Takaaki about Wakita. Takaaki may have been warned only that the man was dangerous or that any familiarity with Amuro had to remain hidden. His behavior suggests that he understood an immediate need for discretion.
This makes his apparent introduction more than a clever cover. Takaaki wants answers about his brother, yet chooses not to seek them because doing so could endanger Furuya. The false distance can be read as an act of protection.
Did Amuro Ask Kuroda to Intervene?
Amuro may have prompted Kuroda to warn Takaaki, but the source does not confirm that chain of communication.
Amuro may have understood that the envelope containing Hiromitsu’s phone had reached Takaaki and that a meeting could lead Takaaki toward Furuya’s identity. With Wakita close by, that possibility would create an obvious danger.
One explanation is that Amuro asked Kuroda to caution Takaaki. Another is that Kuroda assessed the risk himself and acted without such a request. Neither possibility is established as the single confirmed answer in the provided material.
What can be said more safely is that Kuroda’s call and Takaaki’s subsequent behavior point to a Public Security interest in preserving Amuro’s cover. The scene shows coordinated caution without revealing the exact origin of the instruction.
The Meaning of “Time Is Money” at the End
Takaaki’s “Time is money” thought strongly suggests RUM and Wakita at the narrative level.
The phrase is associated with RUM, and Wakita is standing there when Takaaki invokes sayings about the value of time. That makes the line too pointed to dismiss as an ordinary proverb. For the audience, it functions as conspicuous RUM-related foreshadowing.
That does not prove Takaaki already knew that Wakita was RUM. He may have received only a warning that Wakita was dangerous, or only an instruction not to expose Amuro. The reader-facing clue and Takaaki’s in-world knowledge should be kept separate.
The line can also carry emotional resonance for Amuro: this is not the safe moment for Takaaki to ask about Hiromitsu, but another time may come. That second reading is interpretive, not a confirmed secret message.
Is “Time Is Money” a Clue About RUM?
As a clue for readers, “Time is money” strongly suggests RUM and Kanenori Wakita.
The phrase is tied to RUM, and Wakita is present throughout The 36-Cell Perfect Game. Wakita is later established as RUM. Placed at the end of this particular case, the wording intensifies the connection between the apparently ordinary sushi chef and the Black Organization’s second-in-command.
However, the line cannot by itself establish that Takaaki had fully identified Wakita as RUM. Kuroda may have warned him that Wakita posed a threat or may have shared limited information. The exact extent of that briefing is not shown.
The cautious conclusion is that the clue is strong at the narrative level, while Takaaki’s own level of knowledge remains unclear. That distinction preserves both the foreshadowing and the unresolved information inside the scene.
It May Also Suggest “We Will Talk Another Time” to Amuro
The line may also be read as an indirect acknowledgment that Takaaki and Amuro must postpone their conversation.
Takaaki would have reason to ask Furuya about Hiromitsu’s death, but Wakita’s presence makes any reference to Hiromitsu, Furuya, or the police dangerous. The value-of-time language therefore carries a possible emotional implication: now is not the time, even if a later conversation is necessary.
This should not be treated as a confirmed coded message. The package does not state that Takaaki deliberately promised a future meeting. It is a reading created by the painful circumstances around the two men.
One is a brother seeking answers; the other is his late brother’s friend, now living behind an undercover identity. They stand close enough to speak but cannot safely do so. That unresolved silence gives the ending its emotional weight.
Has the Relationship Between Takaaki and Amuro Advanced in the Latest Manga or Movie?
The 2025 movie makes the proximity of the Nagano police and Public Security easier to notice, but it does not change the basic reading of the earlier case.
Takaaki and Amuro were not strangers. Takaaki hid their connection to protect Amuro’s identity in front of Wakita. The movie material can reinforce how viewers perceive the relationship, but movie-only evidence should not be used as proof of an undisclosed manga-canon conversation.
The 2025 movie Detective Conan: One-Eyed Flashback includes Takaaki, Amuro, Kuroda, and Yuya Kazami, placing Nagano law enforcement and Public Security in close narrative proximity.
The 2025 Movie Reinforces the Nagano Police and Public Security Connection
On a movie-only level, the 2025 film reinforces the visible connection between the Nagano police cast and Public Security characters.
Takaaki is a Nagano Prefectural Police inspector, while Furuya belongs to the Public Security Bureau. Hiromitsu links them personally as Takaaki’s brother and Furuya’s close police-academy friend. Kuroda and Kazami add further Public Security context in the movie.
This later movie context can make Kuroda’s phone call in The 36-Cell Perfect Game feel even more significant on a rewatch. It highlights how near the two law-enforcement spheres already were, despite the need for Takaaki and Amuro to maintain distance in front of Wakita.
The reinforcement is thematic and movie-specific. It does not establish that the movie retroactively supplied Takaaki with information he demonstrably lacked during the earlier manga case.
Did the Latest Movie Change the Explanation for Their Pretended First Meeting?
The movie-only material in the package does not change the core interpretation of Takaaki’s behavior in The 36-Cell Perfect Game.
The explanation still comes from the earlier sequence: Takaaki begins to connect Amuro with Furuya, Kuroda calls him, and Takaaki then treats Amuro as a stranger while Wakita is present. That sequence makes protection of Amuro’s identity the strongest reading.
The movie may deepen the audience’s sense that Nagano and Public Security are connected, but it does not confirm the unrevealed words of Kuroda’s phone call. Nor does it confirm that Takaaki and Amuro have already had a complete private conversation about Hiromitsu.
A future direct conversation remains possible, but it is not confirmed by the provided package. The tension persists precisely because the questions between them have not been safely resolved on the page.
The Lingering Link Between Nagano Police and Public Security
The false first meeting becomes a quiet point of contact between Nagano law enforcement, Public Security, RUM, and the police-academy past.
Takaaki belongs to the Nagano Prefectural Police. Amuro is a Public Security Bureau officer undercover as Bourbon. Wakita is RUM. Hiromitsu’s death supplies the personal bond between Takaaki and Furuya, while Kuroda’s call supplies an operational intervention.
These layers converge without becoming identical. Takaaki’s recognition of Furuya does not automatically mean he knows Wakita’s full identity; Kuroda’s warning does not reveal its exact wording; and the audience’s RUM clue does not prove Takaaki possesses the same information.
The case therefore moves the larger plot through restraint. Takaaki may become more involved with Public Security or the RUM storyline later, but the provided material does not establish him as a formal collaborator. His choice to conceal their familiarity protected Amuro at a critical moment.
Thoughts on Takaaki Pretending Not to Know Amuro in The 36-Cell Perfect Game
Takaaki and Amuro were not strangers, but acknowledging their past in front of Wakita would have been dangerous.
Takaaki had known Rei Furuya as Hiromitsu’s close friend, while Amuro was operating under an alias and infiltrating the Black Organization for the Public Security Bureau. He feigned a first meeting to prevent Wakita from connecting Amuro to Furuya and the police.
Kuroda’s call likely mattered to that decision, but its precise content remains unrevealed. It is possible that Kuroda warned Takaaki not to show recognition. It is also possible that Amuro first asked Kuroda to intervene, but the source does not confirm that communication path.
The “Time is money” wording works most strongly as a narrative clue linking the scene to RUM and Wakita. Takaaki’s complete knowledge of Wakita is not established, so the line should not be used to claim that he had already solved RUM’s identity.
The same words can also suggest that Takaaki and Amuro must wait for a safer time to discuss Hiromitsu. That emotional reading remains an interpretation, but it fits the tragedy of the scene: a bereaved brother and his brother’s friend finally meet again, yet protecting the undercover officer requires silence.
The 36-Cell Perfect Game is therefore more than a snowbound mystery. It ties Takaaki, Amuro, Kuroda, Wakita, and Hiromitsu into one tense line while carefully withholding what each person knows.
A small social oddity becomes a major piece of character drama. Takaaki appears to deny the connection precisely because he recognizes how much that connection could cost.
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