Pathway to Japanese Literature

Discover Japan's stories—across time, across language.

Boy Detective ChiefAuthor: Unno Juza

Original Title	少年探偵長
Author	海野十三
Genre	Children's Literature
Author Type	Male Author
Summary	Haruki Kiyoshi’s quiet life in a coastal town takes a perilous turn during a mountain hike with his friend Ushimaru. Racing down separate trails, Haruki stumbles upon a gravely injured man near a thunderous waterfall. The dying stranger, Togura, entrusts him with a cryptic artifact—an artificial eye concealing a golden crescent fragment—and warns of approaching danger. Moments later, a helicopter descends, unleashing gunfire as shadowy figures abduct Togura. Forced into hiding, Haruki discovers the eye’s secret: a metallic relic etched with strange symbols and hints of a vast fortune. Meanwhile, Ushimaru witnesses the chilling aerial spectacle but remains oblivious to his friend’s plight. As night falls, Haruki grapples with the artifact’s mystery, unaware that ruthless forces hunt it—and him. With cryptic clues smoldering in his hands and enemies closing in, Haruki’s ordinary world fractures, propelling him into a labyrinth of danger where trust is scarce and every choice could be his last. What deadly truth lies within the golden crescent? The first page of his ordeal has only just turned.