What was Tooru Amuro, also known as Bourbon, doing around the ending of Kogoro in the Bar?
Why did Conan suddenly look alarmed in the final scene?
Kogoro in the Bar is a case in which Kogoro Mouri encounters a poisoning at a bar.
The case itself is not the only reason these episodes stand out. After the mystery appears to be over, Conan learns one more detail and the atmosphere changes at once.
The reveal reaches back to the preceding case. A man who approached Jodie was not what he seemed, and Conan realizes that a dangerous investigator may have heard information connected to Shuichi Akai.
This article explains, with major spoilers, what Amuro was doing, why Conan was alarmed, and how the ending leads toward the Scarlet arc.
What Was Amuro Doing in Kogoro in the Bar?
The crucial Amuro reveal is that Tohei Benzaki, who appeared in the preceding case, was Tooru Amuro in disguise.
Amuro does not appear to be at the center of the bar mystery. The immediate story concerns a poisoning that Kogoro investigates, with Conan noticing the inconsistencies and guiding the deduction in his usual way.
Only after that case ends does the larger danger return. Conan learns enough to recognize that Benzaki was Bourbon’s disguise. That means the seemingly ordinary man who approached Jodie had actually placed himself near a conversation involving Akai and Rikumichi Kusuda.
At this point in the story, Conan has good reason to treat Bourbon as a serious threat. Later developments identify Tooru Amuro as an alias used by Rei Furuya of the Public Security Bureau, but Conan does not yet have that reassuring context here.
This is more than a clever disguise reveal. Information about Akai’s survival, Kusuda, the FBI, and Conan’s own actions may have come within Amuro’s reach. The ending therefore turns a self-contained poisoning case into another move in the Bourbon storyline.
What Kind of Case Is Kogoro in the Bar?
Kogoro in the Bar covers Volume 81, Files 3-5 and anime Episodes 791-792 (Japanese episodes 738-739).
The official episode titles are Kogoro in the Bar (Part 1) and Kogoro in the Bar (Part 2). The story begins when Kogoro and Conan receive a request from the bartender, Detective Fukui, at the Blue Parrot pool bar.
The immediate mystery is a poisoning at the bar. A popping sound, a citrus-like scent, an oddity near the ceiling, and material found on Kogoro’s shoe all become clues. The adult atmosphere and Kogoro’s comfort in a bar give the case a flavor distinct from a typical visit to the detective agency.
The focus here, however, is not the mechanics of the poison trick. It is the story-thread reveal after the case: Amuro’s disguise and his deliberate effort to gather information related to Akai.
Inside the case, small sensory details solve the crime; outside it, the disguise reveal pushes the Bourbon storyline toward the Scarlet arc.
Separate the Case Clues from the Main-Story Clues
The episode becomes much easier to follow when its two kinds of clues are kept separate.
The first group belongs to the Blue Parrot poisoning: the sound, scent, ceiling detail, and evidence on Kogoro’s shoe. Those details identify how the crime was carried out and remain within the boundaries of the bar case.
The second group belongs to the wider series. Benzaki was Amuro in disguise; Amuro was investigating whether Akai was truly dead; and he was deliberately observing Conan’s reaction. Those points do not end with the culprit’s exposure.
The contrast is what makes the ending effective. A routine case seems complete, but the final beat brings back the FBI, Bourbon, and the unresolved truth behind Akai’s apparent death.
Why Conan Was Alarmed at the End
Conan is alarmed because he realizes that Benzaki was Bourbon in disguise and may have overheard Akai-related information from his conversation with Jodie.
Conan and Jodie had discussed matters connected to Shuichi Akai and Rikumichi Kusuda. If Benzaki had been an uninvolved civilian, the risk would have been limited. Once Conan understands that the man was Amuro, every part of that exchange takes on a different meaning.
Conan is helping protect the secret behind Akai’s staged death. Bourbon has a strong interest in determining whether Akai is really dead, so even an indirect reference could become a useful lead. Conan’s change of expression shows that the danger lies not in missing a disguise alone, but in what the disguised observer could have learned.
The source supports the possibility that Amuro heard or inferred dangerous information; it does not establish exactly how much he understood at that moment. The cautious reading is that Conan realizes the investigation has moved uncomfortably close to their secret.
The Conversation with Jodie Points Toward Akai’s Staged Death
The conversation contains dangerous leads connected to the plan that made Akai appear to die at Raiha Pass.
Rikumichi Kusuda is important to that deception. Raising his name can bring an investigator closer to questioning whether Akai’s death was genuine, even though knowing one piece of the plan does not automatically reveal Akai’s present identity, location, or complete strategy.
If Amuro picked up that lead, he could ask several separate questions: Is Akai alive? If so, where is he? How much does Conan know? The episode does not show that he had already answered all of them. It shows why Conan fears that Amuro now has material with which to investigate.
That distinction matters. Conan is reacting to a serious exposure risk, not to proof that every part of the staged-death plan has already been uncovered.
Why Did Tooru Amuro Disguise Himself as Tohei Benzaki?
The source presents two purposes for the disguise: investigating whether Akai was truly dead and possibly observing how Conan reacted.
Amuro did not simply walk up to Jodie and ask for the truth. As Benzaki, he introduced the subject of a scarred man resembling Akai and watched the response. The disguise let him apply pressure through conversation without openly revealing Bourbon’s interest.
This indirect method is what makes the scene unsettling. Jodie and Conan are alert investigators, yet Amuro approaches them behind another identity and turns their reactions into potential evidence.
Purpose 1: Investigating Whether Shuichi Akai Was Really Dead
Amuro’s clearest purpose is to investigate whether Shuichi Akai truly died.
The suspicion continues from the Mystery Train storyline. Amuro had appeared to accept Akai’s death, but later signs gave him reason to question that conclusion. The possibility that Akai survived was not something he could ignore.
That is why he approaches Jodie, an FBI agent tied to Akai, rather than making a direct accusation. In disguise, he mentions seeing the scarred man and observes whether she becomes unsettled or takes action.
His method is to test a hypothesis through other people’s reactions. Jodie’s response and Conan’s behavior could both help him decide whether the official account of Akai’s death was incomplete.
Purpose 2: Watching What Conan Would Do
Amuro deliberately watched Conan’s response to learn what Conan was protecting.
If Conan recognized a threat, his next move could reveal what he was protecting. He might contact Jodie, become more protective of Ai, or move toward another person connected to Akai. A reaction can expose relationships even when no one states them aloud.
This does not mean Amuro knew that Conan was Shinichi Kudo at this point. A more cautious conclusion is that Amuro had noticed Conan’s exceptional intelligence and initiative and may have regarded him as an important ally on Akai’s side.
The reversal is effective: Conan usually observes the culprit, but here he is the person under observation in a much larger investigation.
The Preceding Case Makes the Reveal Clearer
Amuro’s role in Kogoro in the Bar is clearest when the episode is viewed together with the preceding cherry-blossom case involving Jodie.
In that earlier story, Jodie and Conan discuss Akai’s status. Benzaki approaches them and raises the subject of a scarred man. At first he can look like an ordinary person connected to the case.
The later reveal changes the entire encounter: Benzaki was Amuro. His presence was therefore connected to gathering reactions and information, not merely to chance. The earlier episode sets the trap, while the ending of Kogoro in the Bar tells Conan and the audience who had been behind it.
The structure is especially effective because the bar poisoning seems to move away from the FBI plot. Just when the audience relaxes into a self-contained mystery, the disguise reveal reconnects everything to Bourbon.
How Does It Lead into the Scarlet Arc?
Amuro’s part in Kogoro in the Bar is a preliminary step toward his investigation of Akai’s survival in the Scarlet arc.
He approaches Jodie, introduces an Akai-related subject, and watches Conan’s response. Each move gives him another way to test the story of Akai’s death. The later arc brings those suspicions into a much more direct confrontation.
The Scarlet arc also clarifies that Tooru Amuro is an alias and that his real identity is Rei Furuya of the Public Security Bureau. He works at Café Poirot, presents himself as a private detective, and operates inside the Black Organization under the codename Bourbon.
Those overlapping identities make the Benzaki disguise more meaningful in retrospect. Amuro is not simply a villain, but from Conan’s perspective at this stage he remains a highly capable and dangerous investigator pursuing a protected secret.
A Standalone Case That Still Moves the Main Plot
The poisoning is self-contained, but the final reveal advances the central storyline.
The bar setting, Kogoro’s presence, and the sensory clues make the immediate case entertaining on its own. Then the mood abruptly cools: Benzaki was Amuro, he had been close to Jodie and Conan, and he may have gained a lead concerning Akai.
That shift pulls the audience from a resolved crime back into the conflict involving the FBI, Bourbon, and Akai. Rewatching the preceding case after the reveal makes Benzaki’s words and behavior feel entirely different.
Important Episodes to Watch with Kogoro in the Bar
The Mystery Train storyline, the preceding Jodie case, Kogoro in the Bar, and the Scarlet arc form the clearest viewing path for this thread.
Mystery Train provides context for Amuro’s doubts about Akai. The cherry-blossom case shows Amuro approaching Jodie as Benzaki. Kogoro in the Bar reveals the disguise and Conan’s alarm. The Scarlet arc then develops the investigation of Akai’s staged death and clarifies Amuro’s identity.
Seen in that order, Amuro’s pursuit develops through conversation, disguise, and observation rather than a single sudden deduction. That slow accumulation of clues is a major source of tension in the Bourbon storyline.
Watching It Before the Scarlet Arc Shows Amuro’s Method
Before the Scarlet arc, this case shows how carefully Amuro tests the people around Akai.
He does not begin by confronting the FBI with a complete theory. He develops suspicion, adopts Benzaki’s appearance, approaches Jodie, and watches for a reaction. The source strongly presents this as a deliberate investigation, while the precise extent of his conclusions at each step remains limited.
His intelligence and persistence appear in quiet choices rather than action spectacle. On a rewatch, the reveal makes it clear that he was already pressing toward Akai’s secret before the later confrontation.
Summary
Conan is alarmed at the end because he realizes that Tohei Benzaki was Tooru Amuro, or Bourbon, in disguise.
That disguise placed Amuro near Jodie and Conan while they discussed information connected to Rikumichi Kusuda and Shuichi Akai’s staged death. The danger is not merely that Conan failed to recognize him; it is that Bourbon may have acquired a lead toward the secret they were protecting.
Amuro’s objective was to investigate whether Akai was truly dead, and he deliberately observed Conan’s behavior for clues. That does not mean he already knew every detail of the plan or Conan’s identity as Shinichi Kudo at this point.
Kogoro in the Bar begins as a poisoning mystery at the Blue Parrot, but its last scene reconnects the story to Bourbon and the FBI. That sharp change in scale is why the ending is so memorable.
The episode works both as a satisfying standalone mystery and as a tense bridge toward the Scarlet arc. The closer Amuro gets through disguise and observation, the more precarious Akai’s carefully protected survival becomes.
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