Kano Shinya

Shinya Kano is a police detective and one of the main protagonists of the game.

Biography
Kano Shinya is a hot blooded rookie detective who tends to act before he thinks. He admires detective Tateno and aspires to be a detective like him. Kano is also dating Rumi and they will get married soon... if her father approves, that is. He is assigned to the kidnapping case of Maria Osawa and is initially only there as backup in case the kidnapper gets away during the ransom handoff, but turns out to play a much bigger role than anyone would expect.

Personality
Kano is an up and coming detective who tends to act quickly before he thinks things through. He follows his heart and emotions, and acts based on what he feels is right and not necessarily by what is ordered of him, defying direct orders multiple times due to this. He has a strong desire to become like his idol Tateno, and be able to protect people in Shibuya. His over eagerness may get him into trouble, but he does his best to deal with the situation. Over the course of the game, thanks to some advice, Kano learns how to keep a cool mind and a fiery spirit, and thus develops his skills as a detective. He has a strong sense of loyalty to the people close to him and would be devastated if harm fell on them.

Before the Scramble
Kano was dating Rumi before he became a police officer. He knew Shizuo, Rumi's father, was on the force and decided that he would become a policeman to impress her, as well as the fact that he felt his physical abilities would serve him well in that job. Though ironically, Shizuo would later quit the force and refuse to let Rumi marry a cop.

3 years prior, there was a man who was threatening to set a building on fire. Kano, at the time a policemean, witnessed Tateno walk in, doused in gasoline, and talk to the man to calm him down and negotiate. He saved several lives, which inspired Kano to become a detective.

Detective Kano is mentioned to have been with the enforcement arm of the Shibuya criminal department for a year before the case of the Osawa sisters.

The night prior at around 7:00 is when the kidnapping case happened. Maria Osawa, a student at Midoriyama academy was reported to be missing. She was last seen in the LL diner, and a man was forcing her into a van. Kano and Sasayama arrive at 7:15 to talk to her sister, Hitomi Osawa. She states that Maria and her were supposed to go to a party, but she showed up an hour late just to see a middle-aged man shoving her sister into a blue station wagon. Kano also talks to Leland Palmer, another eyewitness and lecturer at their school, who states that he saw the same thing and that the kidnapper got into the driver's seat after shoving Maria in, suggesting that he's working alone. Kano and Sasayama are then called back to the precinct by senior detective Kajiwara, as a response team is sent to the Osawa household. The kidnapper makes a call soon, asking for the sister Hitomi to bring 50 million yen to the Hachiko Statue at 10:00 AM as ransom money.

10:00 - 11:00
10:00 - 10:05: Kano is hiding behind a trailer, watching Hitomi at the Hachiko statue closely and waiting to see when the kidnapper will come to take the ransom money in the briefcase she has, since the agreed upon time to meet was 10:00. The place is also surrounded by other detectives from HQ, with Kano and his partner Sasayama being there to provide backup in case the kidnapper gets away. Sasayama plays the part of the homeless man, asking Kano for change, and after telling him to calm down they get an alert from Kuze, the HQ operations director, telling them to be alert.

10:05 - 10:10: After some time passes with no one arriving, they notice a man with an orange hoodie and bandana trying to talk to Hitomi. Kano observes the situation, and it turns out the man was trying to sell her something. He eventually goes his own way, and this reminds Sasayama of his wife, to whom he got recently married. He then shifts the topic to Kano's girlfriend and nabs his phone to see a photo of her. Coincidentally, she looks like a famous actress, which makes Sasayama think Kano is lying. He asks why they don't get married, and Kano doesn't have an answer, due to obstacles being there. This helps calm his nerves though.

10:20 - 10:35: As the detectives continue to wait, Kano wonders why a criminal would choose Hachiko for a handoff since the crowd can hide several policeman and is too risky. Sasayama shrugs it off as irrelevant and grumbles about the lack of recognition of policeman. Nonetheless, Kano continues pondering it due to advice from his idol, Tateno. Just then, Kuze alerts them that there's a suspicious foreigner in a black coat, a man in his 30s. Even though he doesn't match the description given by Hitomi, the man makes his way to her and grabs the attache case, which causes the detectives, including Kano and Sasayama, to spring on him. The foreigner runs with the case, barreling through oncoming traffic. Without hesitation, Kano runs through the traffic as well and stays on his tail, about to catch him when Kuze tells him to back off, stating that the real perpetrator is somewhere else and so they should just tail him. Kano realizes that they've already shown the police are onto them, and if the kidnapper has a way to escape through police then Maria has no guarantee of being safe. Thus, he defies the order and continues pursuit.

10:35 - 10:40: The foreigner runs through an alley and then upstairs to a bridge. Kano chases him up to there, where the man then drops the attache case down to another man waiting on a motorcycle. Kano quickly attempts to descend and catch the man on the bike, but he speeds away in the direction of Yoyogi, and the man who initially took the case gets away too. Kano makes his report to Kuze, having failed to apprehend either of them.

11:00 - 12:00
11:00 - 11:05: Kano continues to wander the street alleys in search when he then is informed by Kuze that the suspect handed off the attache case to an accomplice, something that he finds strange since there doesn't seem to be a reason to. Kuze states that the new suspect is headed to Dogenzaka and suspecting that they're dealing with a foreign syndicate, gives orders for the police to tail him without apprehending him, to see where he goes. Kano is near that area so he decides to follow too.

11:05 - 11:15: However, just then Kano's cell phone rings. He sees it's from Rumi, his girlfriend, and picks it up. Rumi tells him that she and her father, Shizuo, have come to Shibuya because Shizuo wants to meet with him, even willing to wait until Kano is finished with his work. Kano is shocked by this since Shizuo has refused to talk to him before. He is now conflicted about whether to take a few quick minutes to meet with them or to continue with his work. Ultimately Kano decides to stick to his job, deciding that Maria's life on the line as a hostage is more important.

11:15 - 11:25: Kano notices the man with the attache case and follows him. The man loops around back to Shibuya station and hands it off to another accomplice, which gives Kano the sense that they are just throwing off the cops. He tries talking about this to Kuze but he remains firm in his orders. Kano trails the 3rd accomplice and happens to cross café Lautrec, where Rumi and Shizuo are. He stares into there briefly before resolving to wrap up the case quickly.

11:30 - 11:40: Kano tails the foreigner accomplice to the JR Yamanote line and follows him inside along with other investigators, doing his best to be inconspicuous. He looks around, noticing a man in a purple necktie carrying a similar attache case and taking a phone call. Kano watches him briefly, suspecting something might be up, and as the man walks back the way he came from they make eye contact. They stare at each other but only briefly, as the other man apologizes for talking on his phone in a train and walks away. Sasayama, now disguised as an anime nerd and on the train, tells Kano to blend into his surroundings more and be less nervous.

11:40 - 11:50: One stop away from Shibuya station at Harajuku, the accomplice walks out and waits on a nearby bench. The detectives follow and go down the stairs to not raise suspicion but Kano talks to an attendant, claiming that he left something on the train, while keeping an eye on the man. Soon enough, the train going back to Shibuya station approaches, and the man boards it, to which Kano has no choice but to follow again. The man gets off at Shibuya station, leaving him back where he started. Kano relays this info to Kuze who nonetheless orders to keep tailing him. He does so, now following someone new who took the case and is also wandering about Dogenzaka. While Kano is doing this, he runs into Leland Palmer. They briefly talk and Kano is unable to learn anything new. He then continues his tailing.

11:55 - 12:00: Soon, Kano gets another phone call which shows Rumi's name. He picks up, only to be greeted by Shizuo's voice, which startles him. Shizuo angrily asks why he hasn't showed up yet and then goes to hang the phone, saying that he'll never marry Rumi to Kano. However, Rumi shows up then and starts arguing with her dad on the phone. Kano is caught in an awkward situation but luckily Rumi is understanding. After he hangs up, Kuze talks to the investigators and states that the man who first took the attache case from Hitomi is named Tariq al-karawan and belongs to a foreign crime syndicate operating in Shibuya.

12:00 - 1:00
12:00 - 12:05: Kano has been trailing the syndicate and watching them hand off the attache case for an hour and a half now. Sasayama joins him and the two wonder what their objective is. Kano remembers the dick dictum that irrelevant things can be relevant, and decides that they're stalling for time due to how their actions only serve to run up the clock. Kano then gets the idea that the real case could have been swapped out while the investigators were more focused on the individuals. He shares his hunch with Sasayama, who acknowledges the possibility and tells him to radio Kuze. However, Kuze is dismissive, stating that he put an ID tag in the case that they have been tracking, a detail Kano forgot in his all nighter, so there is no doubt that the case they're trailing is the real case.

12:10 - 12:15: Kano and Sasayama continue trailing the man as he heads back to Shibuya Station where he started, frustrating the two investigators. Then they see a girl (Chiaki) with a notepad holding it up to the man and saying something. The man looks at the notepad and then speeds onwards and left her behind. Sasayama notes that it looks like she passed him a message and suggests that they go question her. Kano is reluctant, however, noticing her ineptness and having the feeling that she isn't involved with the syndicate. Sasayama relents and says he'll look into the girl while Kano continues tracking the attache case, to which he agrees.

Behind the Scenes

 * Shinya is portrayed by actor Kousei Amano, who is otherwise best known for his portrayal of Sakuya Tachibana / Kamen Rider Garren in Kamen Rider Blade.