The showdown that began in File 1119—pitting Kaito Kid against Saguru Hakuba high atop the “Heavenly Observation Deck”—continues to gain momentum.
In File 1121, Hakuba’s razor-sharp insight drew attention not only to Kid’s tricks but also to several closely guarded secrets surrounding Conan himself.
With the narrative now balanced on a knife-edge, File 1123 (“Sleuth”) promises answers to the biggest question of all: Will Hakuba expose Conan’s true identity as Shinichi Kudō?
In this post I break down what to expect from File 1122, publishing in Weekly Shōnen Sunday Issue #1, and explain why the next chapter could redefine the Kid–Hakuba–Conan triangle.
Detective Conan 1122 “Sleuth” – Spoiler
The chapter opens with “Shinichi” announcing that he has solved the mystery and launching into a deduction show.
At the same moment Saguru Hakuba indicates he, too, has reached the truth—and, after getting Conan’s consent, begins his own presentation.
File 1122 Spoiler ① – Shinichi’s Deduction Show
“Shinichi” (in reality Kaito Kid in disguise) recaps the entire case for everyone.
Kid had slipped a looper lens in front of the security camera, creating the illusion that the door never opened.
The murderer anticipated this trick: if Kid could enter unseen, then a corpse placed on the “Azure Throne” beforehand would also escape notice.
Conclusion: the victim, President Yoshida, was killed before Kid ever arrived and his body was staged on the throne.
File 1122 Spoiler ② – Who Walked Out of the Chamber?
Questions arise: the camera also recorded “President Yoshida” re-joining the group and giving an OK sign to VP Kase—a sequence that seems impossible if he was already dead.
“Yoshida” was wearing a face shield that left only eyes and mouth visible, plus glasses and a fake beard—easy to imitate.
On playback the throne conveniently blocked the body, so the double waited until the door shut before moving.
Flow of events:
Killer, disguised as Yoshida, sneaks in alone, shoots the president, stages the body on the throne.
Killer exits, rejoins staff, and the group departs—trusting Kid’s break-in will mask the murder.
File 1122 Spoiler ③ – The 10-Second Body-Move Trick
How could the killer haul a full-grown man onto the throne in under ten seconds?
Hakuba points to the “fireman’s carry.”
Former firefighter Kuya Kamiji (the president’s secretary) can hoist a man instantly—Hakuba even demonstrates by slinging “Shinichi” over his shoulder.
File 1122 Spoiler ④ – Motive for Murder
Kamiji was having an affair with Yoshida’s wife, Satsuki.
The president discovered the affair and threatened dismissal once the Kid operation ended.
Kamiji lured the president to karaoke the night before to wreck his voice, making it easier to pass as Yoshida during the final inspection.
File 1122 Spoiler ⑤ – Hakuba Corners Kaito Kid
After the arrest, Hakuba still has “Shinichi” in a fireman’s carry. He already knows this is Kaito Kid and plans to haul him to HQ—but Kid slips free.
Outside the chamber Kid, still in Shinichi’s guise, apologizes to Ran.
Ran reveals she noticed the impostor: when “Shinichi” pretended to ask for a cheek kiss he pointed to the wrong cheek.
File 1122 Spoiler ⑥ – Hakuba’s Final Deduction About Conan
Ran complains that the fake Shinichi
Ran「said some awful things.」
Hakuba reassures her: those words actually came from the real Shinichi.
He then explains:
Conan fed instructions to Kid via microphone.
Therefore Shinichi must have been supplying the deductions remotely by phone.
Hakuba concludes that Conan was simply relaying Shinichi’s reasoning—allowing Conan’s secret identity to survive by a hair’s breadth.
Finally Hakuba muses:
Hakuba「All we detectives can do is solve the riddle in front of us.」
With that, the Kaitou Kid and the Azure Throne arc comes to an end.
Detective Conan 1122 “Sleuth” – Review & Theories
The Kid-versus-Hakuba mini-arc has wrapped at last. File 1122 turns out to be the real game-changer, because Hakuba gets closer than anyone to the deepest secret surrounding Conan.
Here are the key take-aways.
File 1122 Review & Theories ① – Hakuba’s Deduction Misses the Real Secret
That final twist was wild:
Hakuba manages to trace Kid’s deduction chain back to Conan, but then assumes the sequence is Shinichi → Conan → Kid rather than the unthinkable truth.
From an outside viewpoint his conclusion is perfectly logical—nobody would guess Conan is Shinichi.
Hattori only figured it out because he was literally put to sleep and heard “Shinichi” speaking through a voice-changer.
Without that personal experience, Hakuba’s “mistake” is understandable.
For now he remains Kid’s rival, not Conan’s ally; let’s see how long that lasts.
File 1122 Review & Theories ② – Ran’s Kid-Busting Instincts Keep Leveling Up
Ran caught Kid just by noticing he pointed to the wrong cheek for a kiss—another example of her uncanny “boyfriend radar.”
She has unmasked Kid several times in the movies, and the manga is clearly moving her in that same direction.
Finishing with Shinichi’s real words was a beautiful touch; kudos to Aoyama-sensei for that bittersweet payoff.
File 1122 Review & Theories ③ – Still No Progress on the Mysterious Elder Subplot
Fans were hoping the scar-faced old man would resurface, but this arc stayed completely focused on Kid.
So far we have two elderly figures:
- The cane-wielding man who smashed a phone after reading a Conan article.
- The respirator-wearing man who hired Amuro to investigate Conan.
Whether they’re the same person—or even the long-teased Renya Karasuma—remains unanswered. The suspense is killing us, but for now that thread is still dangling.
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