Oliver's hands had remained loosely tucked in the pockets of his hoodie, his expression flat as he walked at Hiroki's side, staring ahead as the voices of reporters in the distance grew louder by each stride in the detectives steps. He let out a small scoff in disgust at the sight, looking away with a frown.

  Hiroki meanwhile was much more focused on the task at hand rather than the distraction of news journalists trying to do their jobs, albeit a bit too intrusively. He had already slipped out a notepad from his back pocket along with a pen, spending time flipping through the numerous papers from previous cases until he landed on an empty page.

  An officer stood before the yellow tape concealing the entrance to the narrow and dim alley, face stern and his pose domineering, holding his hands firmly behind his back with his legs spread a couple feet apart. Other officers were a few meters ahead holding back the onslaught of reporters and the few stray citizens who happened to be walking by.

  Dozens of voices could be heard, throwing out questions left and right but due to the wide variety of input, each question would only be tuned out by another. Oliver had felt the corner of his lip twitch out of frustration due to all of the commotion and Hiroki took notice, a grin forming on his lips as he glanced over.

  "You didn't sleep last night, did you?" He suddenly asked as they approached the officer.

  Oliver focused on what was ahead of him, slipping out some disposable gloves from his front pocket and beginning to slide each one over his hands.

  "Two nights, for clarification. I already have a headache from that and you. Those reporters are about to become a statistic." He grumbled out.

  Hiroki sighed.

  "Yeah, I have to admit, they are irritating me as well."

  Oliver's partner wasted no time doing the same, retrieving his own gloves and carefully slipping them past his fingers, giving the rubbery texture a small yank to push through it's friction upon his palm.

  As the two finally reached the officer on guard, Hiroki slipped out his wallet, smiling. He raised his arm forward, the wallet falling open to reveal a golden badge with the detectives name plastered just below it.

  "I'm detective Hiroki Akiyama and this is detective Oliver Young. We are here to investigate the scene."

  Oliver meanwhile, lazily tugged out his own wallet from his pocket, only showing it to the officer until he had a clear look before concealing it once more.

  The officer looked at both forms of identification, his demeanor sinking as he grinned.

  "Ah, Hiroki! It's a pleasure to formally meet you!"

  Hiroki's popularity on the force never ceased to end. Even at a fresh murder scene, officers would look on in awe just by the presence of their top detective. Oliver, on the other hand, preferred being in the shadows of his colleague. He didn't have time for superficial admiration and knew it would only break his focus.

  Hiroki chuckled at the officer's response, giving an affirming nod.

  "You as well, could we go in?"

  "Of course sir!"

  The man on guard was quick to scurry over to the right end of the tape, carefully lifting it to clear the barrier for the two detectives.

  Oliver had stared into the narrow, crooked alley's deep abyss, the depths of darkness seeming boundless in its hold over the crime scene. It felt as though it's hold would breach and consume anything it touched, only to take a retreat in response to the flashing lights behind the detectives, protruding inwards of the alley's entrance.

  Oliver slipped his phone out from his pocket, being sure to turn on its built in flashlight, quickly illuminating the entrance to the crime scene. The brick walls that confined the tight space were covered in small cracks, dirt wedged between them. The concrete sidewalk had been cracked as well, filled with potholes that still had water from the mid-day rain that had occured earlier. A green dumpster was layed against the alley's right wall, one of the lids left open and likely filled with water as well.

  "Yeesh..." Hiroki responded to the sight, a frown coming to his lips.

  "Yeah, thank god wearing gloves is protocol."

  After his statement, Oliver took a step forward, Hiroki soon following right behind. As the two ventured into the alley, the sound of reporters grew distant once more, eventually becoming obsolete as they were met with a right turn.

  Upon making said turn, the detectives were met with two officers, glares of glow coming from the flashlights attached to their chests. An ambulance could be see in front of the alley's exit, ready to get to work once the investigation was complete.

  "Alright, you guys can go take guard. We have it handled from here." Oliver suddenly called out to the two men.

  The police on guard both glanced up with wide eyes, a look of bewilderment on their faces. Oliver's brows furrowed in response, watching as the two scurried off as they were told. He knew officers would accept any commands thrown at them, but he didn't expect the two to run off like children being scolded by their parents. The two officers brushed past their superiors, both Oliver and Hiroki turning to glance back at the men as they walked off hurriedly. The detectives shared a glance, shrugging in unison before they approached the body in question. The body of Ren Sawaya.