Angel: Warning, there is a graphic scene near the end, it involves blood. So if you don't like it, I will leave a warning so that those not willing can look away. Actually, there's other not-great stuff in this chapter in particular near the end.
Tsukasa tore apart the statues of a family. "Shishio Tsukasa is an awesome guy," Senku spoke up as the pieces fell around him. Then he walked off, leaving the pieces of the statues behind. "Who happens to be a murderer."
Senku looked up with a chuckle. "If we can make some weapons of science before he realizes what we're really up to, then victory is ours. But if he gets wise to us? Game over."
"These weapons are gonna take time," Sumi spoke up as they arrived at the hot springs. "And if Tsukasa returns before we finish, it won't be enough to fight back."
"The race is on, you guys!" Senku then held up a finger gun. "The gun. We're gonna make some gunpowder," He then pretended to fire it. He gave a big smirk to the trio. "Time to get excited, you guys."
Tsukasa's eyes widened once he realized where the four were headed. "Hakone. If they make gunpowder, I don't stand a chance. Senku and Sumi can do it," His eyes were surrounded by shadow to make him look scarier. "So I have to stop them before that happens!"
Night fell after the group had arrived at the hot springs. Taiju and Yuzuriha decided to have a bath in them. Senku was mining sulfur, Sumi shaking her head in amusement in front of him. She looked up to the stars, not wanting to spy on her friends, assuming they were going to talk about what Taiju wanted to tell her at the camphor tree. And that was so long ago...
Yuzuriha had her hair in a bun. A divider was made between the two of them for privacy's sake. "Yuzuriha," Taiju spoke up after it had been silent between them for a while. "I think I should tell you about what happened while we were turned to stone." She let out a small gasp, lifting up her head. "On that day, long ago...when I had asked you to come and meet me over at the camphor tree..."
Taiju stepped up from behind, seeing her underneath the tree. "It's like this, Yuzuriha!" She gasped at his sudden statement, blushing. Her blush then deepened while looking at him. "I've kept this inside me for five years, and-"
She blushed again at the memory, a drip of water falling from her chin. "Well, Taiju?" He sighed a little while looking up. "You wanted to tell me something back then. What was it?" She asked him softly, waiting in anticipation. Then it was silence between the two again, Yuzuriha still blushing.
"Yuzuriha...for the entire time I was a statue, all I thought about was finishing what I started to say. For hundreds of years, thousands of years, but things have changed. And now this crazy stone world with nowhere to run to, I just wouldn't feel right as a man to tell you what I was going to say back then." She gasped while her eyes glistened, processing his words. They both knew that now just...wasn't the right time. They had Tsukasa to worry about, as well as restoring civilization. So to him it just...wouldn't feel like the right moment, he wanted to wait for it to be just right for them. She gave a small smile as she seemed to agree with him. "I-I'm sorry!" He turned around to look at the wall. "I realize that this is all super vague and confusing and you probably have no idea what I'm talking about."
"No," She turned around to him. "I'm pretty sure I do."
"It's up to us to bring back civilization," He said in determination. "But once we've saved humanity...when that's been done, will you let me say it then, what I wanted to say 3,700 years ago? Will you please?" He pleaded with her. She gave a small smile, looking up as she would be eagerly waiting to hear it.
"Yeah. It's okay. We are gonna bring the world back. I'm sure of it."
Sumi sighed to herself, getting Senku's attention. She imagined that Taiju wouldn't confess his feelings, but planned to do so in the future. But that just brought up the question...when would she do the same with Senku? She promised she would, but she didn't know if she could do it. There didn't seem to be the right moment just like with Taiju and Yuzuriha.
"You're thinking about something, aren't you?"
She jumped from Senku suddenly speaking, turning to him. He raised an eyebrow at her and then gave a small chuckle. She turned away with a small smile from his laugh. "It's nothing."
"Uh-huh. We both know you've never lied to me," Senku pointed out while cracking his neck. He stood up and walked over to sit next to her. She glanced upwards and decided to not argue with him on that one. She didn't respond as she looked up towards the stars, smiling as she and Senku could talk for hours about space. Once they did so almost all night on a weekend, she was just as interested as he was in it. She then finally spoke up a few seconds later.
"I realized that I never actually got to thank you. For saving me before we were turned to stone," She told him softly and he was the one quiet this time. "Although I am 3700 years late of saying that to you and I know you don't need to hear it."
"Well, you're right. You don't need to thank me," He closed his eyes before glancing at her. "But considering it was a lost cause because we both got petrified...you're welcome," He told her quietly and she giggled.
"Well, that too."
"...Are you thinking about your crush again?" He tried to guess, her eyes widening at him. She didn't say anything for a few seconds before nodding and humming. "Offer's still up for grabs, you know. To locate him and use the revival fluid on him."
She sighed while closing her eyes. "Sen, really, it's okay," She gave a small smile. "Just because Taiju and Yuzuriha are reunited doesn't mean I have to do the same just yet," Her hair flew a little while looking towards the moon. "And besides, I have Tsukasa to worry about for the time being. I don't think the guy would be safe if he figured out I like someone else when he wants me in his world," She gave a light shrug. She still technically wasn't lying to him since she never said it was anyone in petrification.
"No...he wouldn't, would he?" Senju gave a small smirk to himself. "But I'm sure he could handle himself against Tsukasa just fine," He reached out and patted her on the head. "And whoever it is, I can say he'd be in good hands."
She blushed as he removed his hand, looking back to the sky. Her heart raced a little from what he said, as he had never said anything like that before. She didn't want to get her hopes up by his words, but...the other part of her wanted to have hope too. Even if just for a fleeting moment...
Senku laughed the next morning while Taiju and Yuzuriha stared at him. Sumi put down some charcoal tied together for them to see. The two looked at the scientists curiously. "We have the three components we need to make gunpowder!" Senku smirked up at them.
"For real?! We got all of them already?" Taiju asked in excitement, Yuzuriha looking on happily.
"The only thing left is to mix it up," Senku answered with an evil smirk. "It's time for a gunpowder cooking class that'll be a total blast!"
"There he goes again," Sumi smiled a bit knowingly; that was his mad scientist part of his personality.
Senku held up a finger. "Gunpowder ingredient number one is sulfur which is good because there's plenty of it at this hot spring!" Both girls poured in the sulfur. He then held up two fingers. "Number two, charcoal!" He and Sumi both tossed that in. "We can get as much of it as we want just by burning wood."
"In this case, yes, but you could also use coal from a leftover fire or coconut shells even," Sumi added in with a smile and wink. Senku nodded at her and then held up three fingers.
"As for number three, it's not as easy to come by, but we need potassium nitrate. It takes a hell of a long time to whip up a batch, so..." He pulled out a big bag of it with a winky expression to show them. "Ta-da! Sumi and I took the liberty of making a bunch of it beforehand to save us some precious time!"
"That's because you need a cold pack of ammonium nitrate, potassium hydroxide, and water. And ammonium nitrate is already a slow process, while the mixture of potassium hydroxide and ammonium nitrate takes at least 2 weeks for evaporation," Sumi grinned and holding up a finger. "Though I can't say how exactly we made it, that's scientist privilege!"
"Is that really a thing?" Yuzuriha raised a brow at the duo.
"Trust us, it ten billion percent is. At least between us, anyway," Senku told her, Sumi nodding in agreement.
Taiju yelled while rolling his eyes up, as he struggled to remember something. He had heard of nitrate before. "Nitrate sounds familiar. I feel like I've heard it before." He then gasped in realization as Sumi held the bag. Senku was pouring in the potassium nitrate with the other ingredients. "Nitric acid! Miracle fluid! Did you get that stuff out of the cave?!"
"Surprisingly enough, you're right for once, simpleton," Senku told him with a small smile. "You get ten billion points for that. So now we'll blend our potassium nitrate in with the sulfur and charcoal. Let's sweeten the mixture by pouring in a pinch of sugar to give it a little more oomph, Sumi."
Sumi pulled out a bag full of sugar, opening it up. She then pinched some into the mixture. "Alright, coming along great," She smiled as Senku mixed it in.
"A bit of this glucose we extracted from grapes should do the trick," Senku stated while pouring in a small vial of it. Sumi stirred the mixture for him.
A robot Senku and Sumi popped up. "What's up, guys? My name is Mecha Senku."
"And I'm Mecha Sumi!" She waved a clawed hand with a big smile.
"The recipe we just put together is the real deal. Meaning it can actually create a bomb! So don't try this at home!"
"This isn't a joke, kids," Mecha Sumi held up a claw. "We'll be watching you ready to call the police! We'll be held responsible, and we're serious! Please don't blow yourselves up trying this!" The two then disappeared.
Senku then held up a tree trunk over his head. "Finally, pound it down till it's packed solid!" He exclaimed, ready to do so. However, Taiju picked up a giant boulder instead, lifting it.
"Need a pounding, bro?! Cause that sounds like the perfect job for me!" All his friends screamed while looking panicked. Yuzuriha rushed over to stop him, holding up her hands.
"Are you sure that's a good idea? I'm scared that if you use all your strength, you could make it spark and go boom! Like with flint!" She stated in concern for all of them, causing the two scientists to look up towards her.
"Yeah, no," Senku denied with a small smile. "Hitting stone with stone doesn't actually create any sparks."
"That's actually a myth," Sumi added in to her. "You'd need firewood, or fire logs, tinder like leaves or bark, kindling. It's really all in the friction that'll create heat to make a fire from what's inside. Or you could rub softwood with a stick or branch as fast as possible."
"Oh. I didn't know that," Yuzuriha commented and the black-haired woman smiled.
"Not everyone does. Used to make a lot of fire pits as a kid for s'mores outside in the yard. Taiju, go ahead and hit that rock here," Sumi pointed down to the rock in front of her.
Taiju made his way over to the two, pounding the rock against it a few times. "Hey, you're right."
"That's because flint is not your ordinary type of stone. As my science partner correctly put it, the metal in it is what makes the spark. Hot springs, volcanoes, iron pyrite."
"Wait, what was that last part?" Sumi flinched in alarm and Senku sweated in realization.
"Iron pyrite?!" He realized that Taiju was holding it, and considering his strength... "Wait!"
"No, no, no, no, no!" Sumi tried to stop him, rapidly waving her hands. But he slammed the boulder against the rock anyway. The bag he smashed was now ripped open and it began to spark. They all looked at it with wide eyes. "Haul ass!" She shouted nervously as they ran off, Senku grabbing her hand while running off. The four got caught in the explosion as they were sent flying. They all screamed while looking back, leaving behind smoke.
Senku sat up, the others looking back in shock. "No problem, you guys! This just proves our gunpowder cooking was successful."
The black-haired scientist sighed slowly, hanging her head. "That's great, but..." Sumi then pointed towards Taiju in a warning way. "You are never doing that again. Imagine what would happen if one of us had actually inhaled that stuff," She let out a small cough into her fist while dusting herself off. Senku turned to her curiously but she waved a hand. "I'm fine," She answered, knowing he was gonna ask if she had inhaled the smoke.
"That's scary stuff, we need to be careful!" Yuzuriha stated with white eyes.
"Yeah. It's been involved in a lot of experiments gone wrong," Senku explained as she stood up. "Not uncommon for some curious kid to lose a limb or worse." Yuzuriha sweated nervously while staring at him.
"Relax, we've experimented with this stuff outside behind glass shields 3700 years ago," Sumi waved a hand to assure her. "Never got close to losing a limb, though if people aren't careful with this stuff, then they'd need a trip to the hospital—if this wasn't the stone world that is," She sweated at that last part.
Senku then looked over his shoulder. "Don't forget, this is a lethal substance we're dealing with." Taiju and Yuzuriha stared at the two, as now that they had seen it firsthand...they were worried of what it could do against their current enemy.
"And we're planning to use it against Tsukasa?" Yuzuriha questioned in a bit of worry. Taiju gasped while staring at his friends, wondering if they were really going that far. Sumi stayed silent while glancing up at Senku. She then turned to her friend, shaking her head with a small smile.
"Not exactly."
"No, we'll make a deal," Senku answered, as neither of them would use a lethal substance against an actual person. Both of them stared in confusion. "Tsukasa isn't some sort of random, mindless murderer. Think back, when you had your scuffle, you remember what he said?"
"Let me make sure I understand you," Tsukasa had his eyes closed, processing what Taiju told him. "You'll let me pummel you as much as I like, so I stop breaking those statues. That's what you're saying?"
"Yeah! Exactly!" Taiju shouted at him loudly. Tsukasa looked up in confusion.
"I don't understand. You aren't making any kind of deal."
"In other words, under the right circumstances, we can negotiate with him," Senku spoke up again while they all looked towards the smoke. "And with a little gunpowder on our side, we'll have leverage." The two turned to each other with smiles on their faces. Senku then turned to Sumi, leaning down to whisper.
"However...if the negotiations don't work out in the end...then we'll have to..." She gasped as he paused, glancing up at him to wonder what he was going to say.
Tsukasa ran down the forest pathway, heading up to Hakone to find them. I know what Senku and Sumi are doing. If they've already successfully made the gunpowder...then I'll have to...
"Kill him," Senku finished while Tsukasa was thinking the same thing, both him and Tsukasa having distant looks in their eyes. Sumi dropped her mouth in horror, which he noticed immediately. Her heart sank as those words sank in for her. Was...was it really going to resort to that? She saw Tsukasa kill a lion, and what happened if they couldn't even do it? He'd go after the others, and then there'd be no one to rebuild civilization.
"No!" Sumi suddenly exclaimed, getting the attention of her shocked friends. "No, I don't wanna have to resort to killing Tsukasa!"
"Huh?!" Taiju and Yuzuriha flinched in alarm. Senku sighed as he didn't want them to know that. He then placed a hand on her shoulder.
"It's not gonna come to that," Senku tried to assure everyone and she frowned as it was still crossing her mind.
"And what if it does?" She pointed out and he didn't respond back this time. He looked away quietly as both sides he knew could only fight for so long because of their purposes for the stone world. They both conflicted with each other, so it was only a matter of time before one side got drastic. Her eyes saddened while looking at him as none of them could really say what would happen if they had to do so. Because taking a human life...clearly they had never experienced it.
"I'm sure it won't, Sumi. Not if we manage to negotiate like Senku said," Taiju explained gently while holding up his hands.
"Yeah, if we follow the plan, we could reason with Tsukasa," Yuzuriha spoke up to her.
"You guys don't get it," She sighed while walking past them and stopping in front of their smoke. She stared at the cloud and thought of someone being caught up in it, clenching her fists. "Think about this option, even if we don't end up doing it. If Senku and Yuzuriha aren't fighters, and Taiju wouldn't ever hurt anyone to the point he wanted Tsukasa to pummel him...who do you think has to kill him?" She pointed out quietly while her hair flew past her.
Senku's eyes widened as he realized what she was getting at. Only she really had any fighting experience, and they had seen Tsukasa fight, so gunpowder wouldn't kill him. It was merely just a tactic to get him to negotiate. Taiju and Yuzuriha both gasped, their eyes saddening.
"I've never...had to take a life," Her eyes were sad as well. "Even when we were dissecting a frog in science class, I handled all the data while Senku did it himself. To have to deprive someone of life, even if it is a murderer...I wouldn't be able to," She squeezed her eyes shut. "I've seen enough people die or be deprived of living. I don't wanna have to involve myself into causing it."
Senku stared at her, knowing what she was referring to. To put it safely, she...had a rough childhood, and out of the others, only Senku knew all the details of it. Mostly because of his own father telling him as he grew up as he had seen it himself. And Sumi never liked talking about it, she didn't want anyone to know. He frowned while everyone was silent and Sumi shook in fear. Just the thought of it was hard enough, she just...she just couldn't live on if she had to murder someone. Even if she had to face Tsukasa, he had fought off lions without even breaking a sweat, so she wouldn't have a chance of succeeding in killing him. And then it would've been all for nothing, and that would be on her.
Taiju and Yuzuriha stared at the girl, wondering just what she had been through. They were confused, but could tell that it really affected Sumi. And that if she did fail...she would blame herself for the rest of her life for letting humanity die. That was a risk she wasn't willing to take, or her friends' lives.
"I won't do it!" She whipped around to them, tears in her eyes. "I won't kill him with my bare hands or the spears." She covered them, kneeling onto the ground while continuing to cry. Senku had his eyes closed the entire time while Taiju and Yuzuriha stared at her sympathetically. Sumi wiped at her eyes, but the tears kept falling from her face. The two looked up as Senku silently walked over to the black-haired woman. He stared at her and then bent down in front of her to move her wrists away from her face. She looked up at him as she could tell on his face that he understood.
Sumi lunged forward to hide her face in his chest, gripping his sleeves while still crying. Senku sighed while patting her back gently. "It'll be okay," He whispered, looking down at her. "I won't force you to kill him if you don't want to, Sumi. I promise."
She nodded silently, sniffing and wrapping her arms around his neck. "T-Thank you, Senku...thank you," She whispered gratefully and he scoffed in a teasing way.
"Crybaby," He murmured while still patting her back.
"Shut up," She replied happily, pushing him away gently. Taiju and Yuzuriha smiled as she wiped her tears with the back of her wrist. Senku just chuckled at Sumi, closing his eyes. She was still afraid of what could happen, but she knew that she could trust him. She was just grateful that she had friends like them on her side.
The group were gathering water a few minutes later to put out the smoke. "Alright, just a little more and it'll be out," Taiju poured a bag and Senku chuckled.
"If Tsukasa's after us, there's a ten billion percent chance he'll find us," He stated while dropping his own bag. Sumi flinched as she caught a whiff of something. She looked up, gasping quietly. She nudged Yuzuriha, who looked up and saw it as well.
"Hey, Senku, Taiju?" Yuzuriha asked in shock at the sight.
"This is something you guys need to see..." Sumi added in and they turned around. They were both shocked as well. A couple of miles away...smoke was coming from the forest.
A smoke signal? Both he and Sumi thought at the same time. The black-haired scientist stood up as Yuzuriha whipped around to the duo.
"Is it Tsukasa?" She asked in worry, wondering if he was trying to trap them.
"No, he's in the opposite direction. And besides, he's got absolutely no reason to reveal his location like that. Well, maybe for Sumi, but he wouldn't think she's dumb enough to fall for that to attempt it," Senku stated as they kept looking up ahead.
"If he really wanted to seek us out, why would he do it in the opposite direction?" Sumi pointed out to Yuzuriha.
"So what then? A forest fire?" Taiju wondered next and Senku rubbed his chin.
"No," Sumi shook her head, sniffing the air again. "I only smell smoke. If it was a fire, there'd be an ash scent or even a heavier smoke aroma," She informed them, turning to Senku.
"I don't believe it's mere coincidence," Senku spoke up in thought. "The timing suggests it's a response to the smoke we created."
"You mean...?" Yuzuriha asked in shock, letting her question waver.
"Indeed I do," Senku walked forward a bit. He put his hands on his hips and looked up ahead. "It's time to get excited, you guys. Because it looks like...we found someone else in this stone world," He revealed and they all gasped.
"Whoa. There's more people? We're not alone?" Taiju murmured in shock.
"Did they wake up like the three of us did?" Sumi asked while glancing at Senku and Taiju. That could be a possibility...but then again, it had only happened three times. The nitric acid had something to do with Taiju's and there was no one else in that cave. Yuzuriha turned around to the smoke, as if they kept it going, Tsukasa would eventually find them.
"Don't you think we should finish putting out the fire?" She rushed over to the smoke.
"Yeah, you're right," He ran over to join her.
"No, hang on!" Senku called out before they could. The two glanced at the scientists as Sumi walked up to Senku's side. "As far as they know, our smoke could have been caused naturally by a small volcanic explosion," He then gave a small smile. "We need to send a signal back before they decide to give up and leave."
"I think I get it now!" Taiju stated happily, Sumi biting her lip hesitantly. On one hand, it would be amazing to have more allies. But at the same time...
"Wouldn't that mean trouble?" Sumi pointed out to him.
"Yeah, you sure? Won't Tsukasa be able to see it too?" Yuzuriha wondered what Sumi was thinking too.
"We'll be broadcasting our location to everyone, including him," Senku answered, earning a groan from Taiju. Senku let out a chuckle, glancing at Sumi. The least logical part of me, what some would call my gut, is talking. Lighting the fire is risky. I have to choose between safety and our future.
"What do we do, you guys?" Taiju questioned the duo. "Do we put it out? Or light it?"
Sumi looked up at Senku, and the look in his eyes said it all. Senku raised a brow on whether or not she had an answer. She gave a small grin and nodded with a hum. As much as they would be risking their lives...more allies were important for the fight against Tsukasa. They would have to rush their altercation with him sooner than they thought...but for the good of humanity, they were both willing to take their chances.
Sumi turned around to them in determination. "Okay, we've made a decision!"
"Let's light it up! Fire the smoke signal!" Senku told the both of them.
Soon, three booms went off as the scientists gave the smoke more gunpowder. Senku looked up at Taiju and Yuzuriha. "We're running out of gunpowder! Grab anything that'll burn and throw it in!" All three ran off together in the opposite direction.
"Alright, I'm gonna go get some firewood!" Taiju called out while looking over his shoulder. The girls were running behind him.
"Get any dry, brittle pieces of grass, leaves, or bark, and small to medium sized pieces of wood! Large logs and branches will help too!" Sumi told the two of them. Senku stood up to stare at the smoke, debating his choice.
This is a double-edge sword. We're telling anyone in sight exactly where we are. And if Tsukasa's figured out that we're making gunpowder...
Tsukasa was still running down the forest. Senku and Sumi are definitely making gunpowder. That bit about the shells tipped me off.
Sumi and Senku briefly glanced to each other in rapid fashion. Senku held up four fingers with a smile. "Check it out! There are four super useful things you can do with it." Later he held up three that night. "I said three earlier, didn't I?" He placed a hand on Sumi's arm. She kept her mouth shut, having an innocent look on her face.
That look they gave each other earlier...the way he put his hand on her arm, and that face she had. Senku and Sumi hid one big piece of info from me because they realized I was a potential threat. Which means...the fourth useful thing you can do with seashells is craft some kind of weapon. I can guess what that is. Producing potassium nitrate for use in making gunpowder.
He looked up ahead and gasped, coming to a stop. He could see the smoke signal from their location where he was standing. There they are. From early on, Senku and Sumi knew they'd need something more advanced to fight me.
Sumi and Yuzuriha were gathering branches from the ground. "Will these do?" She showed Sumi, who examined it.
"Yeah, they're dry-"
They both gasped as a blade cut through Yuzuriha's pink scarf. They didn't even have to turn around to know who it was as the scarf fell onto the ground. A strand of Sumi's hair fell right next to it, her eyes widening in fear.
Senku was standing in front of the fire when a foot stepped up to the rocks above him. Everything changed as he was holding his blade to Yuzuriha's neck with his left arm. A frightened Sumi was standing next to him as he held her left arm tight so she couldn't escape. She tried not to show her fear on her face being near the man. Senku glanced behind him, his eyes widening in shock to see Sumi there. His heart hammered in worry and dread, remembering what Tsukasa said about...having her. He then let out a chuckle to disguise it.
"When one uses science to create a weapon..." He stood up, turning to look at them. "That's when the strongest man is no longer the most powerful. I'd say you're looking especially grumpy today, Tsukasa." Yuzuriha let out a small gasp, and Sumi gave out a small worried sound for what would happen.
"Yeah, I suppose that is an accurate way of putting it," Tsukasa chuckled a bit. He then gripped Sumi's arm just a little tighter, as if that would convince her to go with him. "If you go down this road of developing weapons, and start reviving older generations...then they'll begin fighting over established interests. And then we'll be right back in a tainted world. I don't mind getting my hands dirty, if that's what it takes to stop that from happening. Or to stop you from limiting Sumire's potential. She's a smart girl," He gave a small smirk. "Clearly too good for you."
Sumi gritted her teeth as she wanted to punch him right in the face. But she knew that if she attacked him in any way, he would hurt Yuzuriha. So no matter how much she wanted to attack, she had to remember that her friend's life was in her hands right now. And she couldn't risk it doing anything, so unfortunately she had to stand and listen to this crap. Senku wasn't fazed by the last sentence, however. He didn't need to be since he already knew Sumi wasn't going anywhere anytime soon.
"And by that, you mean killing Senku the science man, right? Heh," He turned around, letting out a few laughs. "I'm sure the whole world would be moved to tears after your merciful death sentence."
Tsukasa hummed in response, tilting his head a little. "But before that, would you mind giving me the recipe for the revival fluid?" He brought his spear to Yuzuriha's neck. Sumi glanced at her wide-eyed in worry. Tsukasa gripped Sumi's arm tightly and she whimpered in pain, squeezing her eyes shut. She had to keep protecting her friends and the saddest part was, to be able to do that meant to do nothing. In one fell swoop, he could kill her friend, and she already couldn't allow that to happen. Because that would still be taking a life, even if she didn't actively do it. Any actions taken from her, and she'd lose Yuzuriha...
Senku's eyes darkened as he stared at the two girls. He then stood up, cracking his neck with a smile. "Nope! Sorry, I guess I'm not as kind as you are. I could only look at things logical or illogical," He then turned around to face them. "So, I don't care one millimeter what you do with those girls. There are plenty of other females to revive—"
(This is the graphic warning, everyone! Look away now, stop reading if you don't want to read this! I'll give you a few seconds, okay? We good? Okay, now onto the guy I wouldn't want to be ten feet nearby during this scene)
Tsukasa moved rapidly, using his spear to cut off Yuzuriha's hair to being just a short bob. Sumi turned to her in shock...and then he looked at her. Her eyes widened as he raised up his spear and sliced at Sumi's lips in a quick blitz attack, letting go of her. "Ah!" She let out a gasp as blood shot out from both her and Tsukasa's blade, losing her balance. Senku gasped sharply, horrified by the sight from the both of his friends. Yuzuriha turned around and saw Sumi falling to the side.
"SUMI!" She shouted as she watched her friend landing roughly onto the stone. Sumi landed face first with a limp thump, and she shook in pain. Everything was dead silent now as Tsukasa stared at her. He didn't want to do it...but Senku forced his hand by trying to get out of this. He could only hope that she would forgive him.
"...AHHHH!" She let out a strained cry, her two friends staring at her in shock as she started downright sobbing by how much it hurt. The sounds of her clear suffering was the only thing heard for a few minutes. She clenched her fist against the stone as it felt too much for her to get up right now. Senku could only stare with wide eyes, his heart hammering in horror. He felt anger, fury even, but also upset to hear her like this, sweating as his eyes glistened. Even when she sometimes caused chemical reactions, it was never to this extent. And now only her sounds echoed in his mind, he didn't even register Yuzuriha's crying or Tsukasa putting away his blade. Senku couldn't help but think why? Why did he do this? If it was just to get to him or spite him, clearly it worked. Her pain...he hated hearing it, having to watch it because of him trying to bluff his way out. And now she had paid the consequence for it...and he didn't know how to handle it anymore.
"Don't try to negotiate, Senku," Tsukasa finally said in warning. The black-haired woman was still shivering, reaching out to her bloodied mouth to stop it from flowing. Some of it appeared over the back of her palm as she forced herself to look up at Senku, her eyes stained with her tears. All she wanted to do right now...was hug him. Tell her crush that she'd be alright, but...with the way things were looking now, she knew she couldn't promise that. She could see the horrified look in his eyes looking right at her, wanting to reach out and embrace him.
"Sen...ku..." She cried out weakly to the scientist. Tsukasa then sighed for his actions.
"You never buried Yuzuriha or gave up Sumi like you should've. Your best move would've been to take her while she was still covered in stone and put her deep in the ground somewhere. In a place I couldn't find her. While you should've just let Sumi go with me, and everything would've been fine." Sumi was still shaking, squeezing her eyes shut while her eyes prickled with tears. "And if I thought of that, there's no chance in hell it never crossed your mind. But for some reason, you didn't do it. Was it for Taiju's sake? Sumi's? Or for Yuzuriha's? No. I think it was for all of them." Yuzuriha gasped as she realized that Senku could've buried her at any point. But he couldn't...because he still wanted to save humanity. Because he actually cared for them deep down, even when he didn't show it much to Taiju or Yuzuriha.
Sumi let her tears fall as more blood seeped from her lips. She knew that Senku's feelings for his friends was a weakness that Tsukasa knew about...and he had now used it to his advantage. Senku glared at Tsukasa, his eyes glancing over to Sumi. His hand shook from having to see her suffer anymore.
"You call yourself logical, but you have your precious friends to care for. Your superiority over Sumi is another factor. I always had tons of admirers but nobody I say is precious to me...no one except Sumi who has been kind to me. She never saw me for my status or my strength." She clenched a fist at the reminder that she knew him from back then, but he still didn't...how sadly ironic. "And because of that, this is my win!"
Yuzuriha let out a giggle, and he turned to her in shock. Sumi looked up in a bit of confusion, starting to cough as some blood was seeping into her mouth. Senku flinched in worry for her, Yuzuriha pressing her lips together to take a second to worry. But she knew that Sumi would survive this. "I appreciate the haircut," She held her head. "It'll be a lot easier to care for in this world." He looked in shock as she took the tip of his spear to point at his neck. Sumi's eyes widened in shock at her, sitting on her knees. Senku was just as shocked as she was at Yuzuriha. "Please...don't give him the recipe, Senku. As long as he doesn't know how to make it himself, he'll have no choice but to let you and Sumi live. He can't kill you two." He gasped a little from her words, processing what she said. She put the tip of the weapon closer. "I'm not important at all. But you...you have to survive. For everybody's sake. To make sure they have a future."
"Senku..." He looked at Sumi next, who was shedding tears and then she let out another cough. Some blood dripped onto the cliff. She still had her hand over her mouth. Senku gritted his teeth a little, angry at Tsukasa still. "You have to make the right choice...even if I have to go with him, please don't say the recipe. The secret of the revival fluid is more important than my freedom...I'll be okay. But please don't do it..."
Senku closed his eyes, thinking about it...the recipe wasn't worth losing his friends for. Or having Sumi be miserable for the rest of her life. She had already been though enough...if he sent her to go be with Tsukasa, he could never wash that regret away. They were polar opposites on the outside, but inside...she was a partner he could never give up. And if she were met with this choice, she probably would say the same thing he was about to. He took a deep breath as he made his decision, grinning through his clenched teeth.
"The revival fluid...is a combination of nitric acid and alcohol," He started speaking, causing the girls to gasp. "First, you gotta filter the miracle fluid from the cave. Then mix it up with alcohol that has been distilled up to as close as 96 percent as you can get it." Tears appeared from both the girls' eyes as Senku continued explaining. Sumi squeezed her eyes shut while looking downwards. "The ratio is 30 percent miracle fluid to 70 percent alcohol. And if you're off by just a few points, the reaction won't happen. So you should fine tune it by testing it on a petrified swallow feather."
"No..." Sumi whispered in horror as Tsukasa moved his spear away from Yuzuriha.
"Thank you so much, Senku," He smiled happily to him. "And now...I no longer have any reason to let you live."
Sumi gasped in dread that someone would die...and that it would be Senku. Her heart hammered as she clutched her chest, shaking uncontrollably. After all of that, Tsukasa was still going to harm someone...
Away from their location, Taiju was still collecting sticks. He held them up in his arms. "Good. I think this should be enough," He gasped as he looked up to the skies, seeing something. There were three smoke signals in the distance now instead of one, in response to the three booms from earlier. "Now there's three smoke signals! They must be responding to the three shots we fired with the gunpowder! There's no doubt about it. We're not the only ones here. SENKU! SUMI! YUZURIHA!"
Unfortunately, he was unaware of what was going on with his friends...
The person behind the smoke signals was wearing shoes made out of stone, controlling the fire. Her blue eyes stared at the fire-pit in front of her. "Three..." She murmured while looking up ahead at the smoke from the mountain.
Tsukasa pushed Yuzuriha to the ground and she let out a grunt. She then gasped and rushed over to Sumi in concern. "Sumi!" The girl cried out, moving away her hand. She gasped from the bloodied scar, going diagonally starting from the right side of her cheek, and ending to right above her left lip. "Oh no...!"
However, Sumi wasn't focused on that to really respond back. Instead, she watched Tsukasa jump off the ledge and landing in front of Senku. He came to a stop right in front of the man. Yuzuriha looked at them as well. "Let's say I did let you live, right? You would let civilization develop just like before. Can you promise that you won't do that?"
Senku just chuckled at the question. "The hell are you talking about? I could promise anything to stay alive-"
"No," Tsukasa interrupted sharply. "You would never lie. Not when it comes to science. So will you promise me, here and now for all eternity...that you'll abandon science?" Senku stared at him silently while Sumi's eyes widened. "Because if you can make that pledge...you can live. And then I won't be forced into killing you."
Yuzuriha let out a small gasp, Sumi's eyes shaking a little. For as long as she had known Senku...science was his passion. He could never dream of his life without it...
"Alright, next up is Senku," The teacher from fifth grade science class prompted. A younger Sumi glanced up at him from behind his seat.
"I'm going to space," He stated without hesitation, everyone astonished by this. Sumi gasped, her eyes slowly shining.
"So an astronaut, then?" The teacher responded, as he had asked the class to state what they wanted to become. "That's an excellent dream, young man. Work hard and when you grow up-"
"No. I'm going there as soon as possible," He interrupted, and then the class was silent. He walked down the halls with a chuckle after class was over. "Then again, I'm just a kid who doesn't know the first thing about science," He said to himself, people staring at him in confusion.
"Hey!"
He flinched at the voice and turned around to see Sumi running up to him from up ahead. She then waved to him. He looked at her silently, blinking. He knew of her, she was Sumire Maeda, but they hadn't ever talked before. The two stared into each other's eyes as it felt like they were the only two around. He clenched a fist though while looking at her. He just found her cheeriness and friendliness to be annoying. He didn't really have friends, and he didn't see the point. He had seen her interact with other kids, though she didn't really approach him until now. She finally stopped in front of him with a friendly smile.
"Your name is Senku, right?" She asked with her hands behind her back.
He blinked at her knowing his name, and then snapped out of it soon after. "What do you want?" He asked her with a blank look.
"Oh," She flinched and then extended a hand. "I'm sorry, I should introduce myself. My name is-"
"Sumire Maeda," Senku interrupted with his eyes closed and she gasped a little from him knowing her name. "You sit behind me in class." He then gently moved her hand down. "I'm going to ask you again. What are you after?"
"Um..." She scratched her cheek nervously from how blunt he was being. "Well, yeah, but you can just call me Sumi. I heard what you said in class, and I think it's cool you wanna go to space!" She smiled brightly at him. "So I thought-"
"Do you just have a crush on me or something?" Senku questioned while trying to figure out what her deal was. She blinked in confusion at him. "I don't have time for that kind of stuff, and besides, you're bothering me. Go find someone else to follow around," He left her there alone and she stared at the back of him. For some reason, he just intrigued her, she wanted to know more about him, why he was like this. And why he wanted to go to space so much. "I'm gonna need to study. Every last thing."
In the library, he read a bunch of science books, Sumi staring at him from behind a bookshelf. He snapped his book shut, looking back at her with a small glare.
He then was tinkering with something in his bedroom. "I'm gonna try everything." He yelped as some parts fell out of the device. A man was standing in the doorway, his back turned. He then knocked on the door, Senku turning around to him.
"There's a girl named Sumire on the phone asking for you."
"Tell her to go away!" Senku snapped a little, looking back at his desk. "She's this annoying girl that won't leave me alone."
He sighed and put the phone back to his ear. He then walked off down the hall so that Senku couldn't hear him. "Sumire, was it? I'm sorry, Senku's busy right now and can't come to the phone. But I'm sure you'll see him at school. Don't let him get to you too much, alright? You do seem like a nice girl."
"Thank you, sir!" She responded happily at him. "Sorry again to bother you."
"No, not at all. You take care now."
"Yeah..." She murmured while a bruise was on her face. "Yeah, okay..." She hung up while hiding underneath her bed, flinching as she heard crashes from the living room. She held her head while shaking. Her father...had a drug addiction problem and he would always lash out during one of his episodes. And whenever he saw her in the house...it was never a pleasant interaction. Always screaming at her, pushing her, hitting her...as cheerful as she was to everyone else, on the inside...she felt like she was trapped and couldn't escape him...
Senku was reading in the car while the man was driving. "I can't help you all that much," He spoke up, getting Senku's attention. "But if you're serious...I firmly believe you can accomplish anything to the diligent application of science."
"Where are you, you little brat?!" Sumi flinched from the booming voice from the living room. She silently sobbed as she didn't want him to find her again. "There's a man who has a kid that I want you to surpass, and I'm not accepting anything less from you!"
The next day, the man handed over his car to sell it. "I've got a feeling that this Christmas, Santa Claus will give you all the tools you'll need." He was handed a bunch of money for the car.
Sumi looked at the present in her hands, a bandage over her cheek. She gripped it into her hands, as she had snuck out to go get it for Senku...but her father found out and punished her. With this present, though, she really hoped that he'd like it…and maybe they could be friends. She turned to the man asleep while cocaine was on the table. Smoke was coming from the pot on the stove and she coughed, knowing he was cooking something. But the smell of it was starting to affect her, and she had to turn it off before it got worse. She slowly looked at her father again, seeing him snoring...he wouldn't be able to wake up to see her, right?
Senku opened the door to his room, seeing some presents and all the science equipment he could ever want. He gasped happily, a faint blush on his cheeks from everything.
Sumi stepped on her tiptoes to grab the pot. She was almost there...almost there...
Until he grabbed her arm. She gasped while looking up at him. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" He asked her in a low tone and she shook in fear.
"T-The pot was too much for me to inhale, s-so I just-"
He slapped her across the face and she landed on the kitchen floor. "When Daddy is cooking his drugs...you don't ever touch the stove again no matter how much you whine about it. You hear me?!" His voice boomed at her. She flinched and started crying while looking up at him. He then glanced at the present, gritting his teeth. "That reminds me…where'd you get the money for that?"
"N-Nowhere," She stammered in fear and he picked it up. He opened it up to reveal a microscope, glaring down at her.
"Is this for that Senku kid?" Her eyes widened from him guessing correctly. "It is, isn't it? You think you can just buy him this and everything will be fine? You're supposed to crush him in grades so that I can live off of that money!" He then threw down the microscope and it broke to her horror. He started stomping on it with his foot. "I don't know why the hell I keep you around..." He grumbled while storming back to the couch, leaving her there on the kitchen floor while coughing from what he was cooking. "And shut up over there!"
She just wanted to survive and make friends...but not like this...
Senku was out in the park, using his magnifying glass to burn something. "So you can burn things with the point of light from a magnifying glass."
"What an adorable little scientist," An old man commented from up above on a small hill.
"Senku!"
He grunted as he looked up to see Sumi running over to him. He sat on his knees to look up at her, confused by why she was wearing a mask and sunglasses. "It's over 80 degrees out, and you're wearing those?" He raised a brow.
"Well, if you're wearing a lab coat, is it really so bad for me to wear this stuff?" She pointed out and he glared a bit.
"I told you, I'm not interested in an romantic entanglement. So it would be more logical if you just go home," He responded and she looked over his shoulder curiously.
"What are you doing?"
"If you must know, I'm testing to see when this paper combusts once this magnifying glass has light through it," He responded blankly at her. She gasped, her eyes shining in awe.
"Cool, can I try?"
"No," He stated quickly and stood up, walking away from her. She blinked while staring at him, frowning a little. She then walked off, grunting a bit in pain while holding her arm. She took a deep breath while walking to fight it off. The girl just had to stay positive...that was the only way she could justify her existence anymore.
Senku dripped something into a beaker, and then he was sitting behind a glass shield. A pot was burning in front of him as he was wearing goggles. "Ha ha ha! Iron sand and aluminum foil are awesome! The thermite reaction is melting the frying pan!"
"Not sure that's adorable..." The same old man commented at this. Sumi came up from behind again.
"Whatcha doing?"
He sighed from her question, looking up as she now had a bandage over both cheeks. "Watching a reaction when iron sand and aluminum foil are combined. You should leave, it's not safe for annoying little girls."
"Senku, I know that you think I like you, but I just want-"
"Yeah, I know what you want, and it's not gonna work on me," He stood up and then pushed her far away from the area. "So you just stay over there while I get back to the experiment." She turned around to stare at him go back behind his screen, sighing.
He then crafted something in his room, testing it on some plants back at the park. "The liquid oxygen for the injector boils off at ten billion percent a normal temperature." Taiju stared curiously while the old man stared at the machine with white eyes. "But freezes when too cold. I'll keep trying with that for now until I switch to kerosene."
Sumi was approaching as she looked up and saw the machine, beaming in excitement. This time, she had a bandage over her nose. Some kids noticed the machine when Senku had his back turned, the three seeing the older kids starting to destroy it. Senku let out a scream of horror.
"Stop it right now!" Sumi screamed while trying to pull them away. One of them elbowed her and she fell to the ground with a grunt.
"Sumi!" Senku shouted at seeing this. He was about to run up to her when Taiju came up and blocked them off, sending the two flying. Senku landed roughly, his eyes swirling around.
"Ow..." Sumi winced while sitting up. Senku snapped out of it and turned to her, seeing a small bruise on her ankle. He gritted his teeth, having had enough.
"That's it!" He stood up, looking down at her. "Listen, I don't want you following me around anymore, okay?" She looked up at him in shock. "You're annoying, stubborn, and distracting me all the time! Stop acting like we're friends and just go away!"
She gasped as she let his words sink in, looking towards the ground sadly. All that time, she thought if she kept trying, she could make her first friend...but now he was angry and didn't want anything to do with her. Tears appeared in her eyes and she stood up, running off. She didn't look back as he stared at her silently. He might've been a little harsh, but he just didn't want her hovering over him anymore. Especially since she got hurt.
"Alright, move it along," An adult waved off the older kids and they grumbled while leaving. Taiju panted as he was tired, but otherwise okay. He then walked up to Senku.
"Hey," Senku glanced back at him in confusion. "Shouldn't you go check up on that girl?"
"Why should I? She'll find someone else around school to hang around, won't she? Her stubbornness is sure to appeal to someone."
Taiju blinked at him, a bit shocked by his answer.
He opened up the door to his home just as the man hung up the phone. He turned around to the boy, sighing. "Senku, have you seen Sumire Maeda today?" He wondered before Senku could go to his room, the boy looking up at him.
"At the park, annoying me as usual. I told her to leave me alone."
"Well, it's just that...a neighbor of hers found her phone outside her apartment. She found my phone number, called and said that her father asked her to bring Sumi home for dinner. And when she went to the park...Sumi wasn't there," Senku froze while standing in the doorway, the man grabbing his coat. "She's not at home, and there's a storm coming. We should go down to the police station and-"
Senku didn't know what it was, but he threw open the door and rushed out. "SENKU!" The man shouted while running out into the hallway. "Wait, stop! You'll get sick from the rain, it'll be faster if we catch a ride!"
"No time!"
He blinked and then sighed knowingly with a small smile. "Then I guess I have to trust you this time, huh? Okay, Senku," He whistled and Senku turned around. The man tossed him an umbrella and he caught it. "But you better be safe out there!"
Senku blinked at the man, who nodded in encouragement for him to go. Senku stared at him for a few minutes before turning around and running off with the umbrella over his head. "So he's finally found someone he cares about, huh?" He chuckled knowingly while staring down the sidewalk. "Sumi...I know you'll be a great friend to Senku. He could really use one."
Senku continued running as the rain was pouring down. He didn't think she'd take his statement seriously and just disappear all of a sudden. How could she be so careless? And yet...her consistent kindness, her persistence to know more about science...it was just like him, despite the fact that their personalities clashed a ton in his eyes. Now, because of what he said, if she got hurt...
He gasped as he came to a stop in the park, looking around. He couldn't see anyone, so if Sumi was here, she was hiding really well. So what were the best hiding spots in the park? He had only one option, hoping that it wasn't for nothing to come all the way out here. He ran over to the bridge that went towards another section of the park. He looked down at the small trench down below, gasping as he saw Sumi hiding out underneath the bridge. She was hugging her knees, her face hidden in them. He gripped the umbrella, staring at her. Seeing her like this...something definitely changed in him. It definitely wasn't romance, that was illogical. But...he could sense something in her that other kids didn't share...
He slowly stepped up to her, holding the umbrella over them. She slowly looked up, shocked to see him standing there. There was silence between them, the only sound heard being the thunder from above. Her hair was a wet mess; he deduced that she must've got caught in the rain and hid here.
"Senku...?" She whispered and then looked away sadly. "What are you doing here? You wanted me to go away, remember?"
He closed his eyes, letting out a small sigh. He then moved to sit next to her, glancing at the girl. She had a broken look on her face as the rain fell in front of them. "Look...I didn't mean all that stuff I said to you earlier. I just wanted you to stop annoying me." She closed her eyes, resting her cheek on her knees. "...But then when you got hurt, something in me just snapped." She gasped, turning around in confusion as she wasn't expecting those words out of him. "And when I heard you were missing...it would be illogical if I let you disappear because of something I ten billion percent shouldn't have told you."
"Well, I'm still here. But now I think I should go," She stood up and he stared at her.
"Don't you think you should tell me why exactly you were following me? When I told you all that stuff, it technically made me responsible for you...so tell me what your deal is with me," He narrowed his eyes a bit.
Her eyes widened and she turned around to him slowly. The rain kept falling around them as they were now both silent. He continued looking at her, expecting an answer. "...Not that it matters, but I wasn't following you because I like you. I was following you...because I wanted to do experiments like you." He blinked at her honest answer, as he wasn't expecting her to be interested in science. Girls his age weren't usually into the subject. "And I wanted to learn more about what you were doing."
"...And that's the truth? You weren't having a crush on me?"
"No...I just wanted to be...friends," She said softly, a shadow over her eyes. He had the same expression, gripping a fist. That was what she kept trying to tell him...and he just kept dismissing her over and over again. No wonder why she felt like she couldn't go home. He didn't see her with anyone in school, so he knew she didn't hang out with anyone else on a daily basis. The only person she wanted to be friendly with was him, and yet he treated her like her opinion didn't matter. "But you want me to leave you alone, so..." She turned around to leave and he looked up at her slowly.
"...Hey," She glanced back at him in confusion. He gave her a smirk. "I have an important question for you. How'd you like to be my science partner, Sumi?"
She blinked and then slowly smiled as hope came back to her, which he now preferred over seeing her upset. "Really?"
"Well, I could learn and study science with help. And it'd be illogical to not have someone to share it with. But I'll tell you here and now...if you still want to be friends with me...I'm not gonna hold back from teaching you everything. If you say yes, you'll learn alongside me as an equal and I'll test you every week until we're caught up and you'll be a scientist your way. If you say no...I'll understand."
He stood up with the umbrella over him, looking at her surprised expression. He couldn't determine what was going on in her head. But for him...he could tell that she really did have a drive for science, the same one he had now. And it was rare, he had to admit...but he wasn't going to let her chance pass just because he dismissed her so many times. He really hoped she would agree, and silently forgive him for what he did.
"I accept your offer!" She pumped her fists happily and he gave a small smirk. "I promise I won't let you down or get in your way!"
"Nah..." He chuckled, confusing her. "I wouldn't stress too much about either of those," He held out his umbrella and she slowly grabbed onto it. Both of them walked out of the bridge together, the girl talking excitedly at being given the chance to learn. He only listened as he figured...it was the most logical thing to do.
He laid down a blueprint in his bedroom and Sumi stood next to him, wearing her very own lab coat. She pointed to something on the paper to ask a question and he answered it calmly. She handed him a part, watching him connect two pieces together. He then had her read some science books for what they would be doing, quizzing her afterwards.
The next day, Senku stood behind those bullies from before. He grinned while pointing a ray gun at them, Sumi putting down some goggles. He then used it to shock them and Senku smirked. Sumi lifted her goggles back up as the three fell to the ground in pain. "Maybe we should've dialed it back a bit," She sweated a little bit.
"Hey, what's that?" Taiju walked over to the duo as Senku was holding something.
"This thing's an ablator," Senku answered for him, Taiju silently smiling as he saw Sumi sitting in front of Senku. "It keeps the chamber from burning up."
"But won't it overheat?" Sumi wondered and then a flash occurred. And just like she predicted, the thing blew up and they all ran away screaming.
Taiju walked up to a man in the store. "Just a few things, sir. A raspberry Pi, and a transmitter module, and something called a gyro," He returned to Senku's room with the items, seeing Senku building something. Sumi held out a tool for him to use, though Taiju noticed that her wrist was shaking a little. She held it for a bit and then shook it off, sighing.
In a clearing in the park, the trio watched as a rocket attempted to launch, but then got out of control.
Taiju smiled as Senku and Sumi wore goggles, sparking an antenna. "For the receiver, we'll use a Yagi antenna. Like on an old TV," Taiju suddenly dropped something and it emitted smoke everywhere. An explosion then occurred in the room.
Taiju opened the door, followed by Yuzuriha. The four were now a bit older, around 13 or so. "Yo, Senku, Sumi!" Taiju called out, the two looking up from their experiment. Sumi looked up and smiled as she had no bruises or pain to speak of unlike other times. "Didn't you guys say you wanted to test it out with a light payload? Well, I got some help from Ogawa Yuzuriha! Check it out!" He gestured to the girl. "She used her crafts club skills and made us these!"
Senku glanced down to see stitched up dolls of the four. "To be honest, it's actually kinda embarrassing to have a doll of myself," She admitted, Senku sweating a little. Sumi clapped her hands with a smile at them.
"Thanks, Yuzuriha! This is exactly what we need!"
"So what are you gonna do with these guys anyway?" She wondered to the three.
The four headed up a hill, Taiju carrying a rocket. Meanwhile, Senku and Sumi carried all the equipment they needed. Senku looked exhausted and Sumi handed him a bottle of water. He took it and gulped it down.
He then placed the little dolls inside the rocket. They all sat down in front of the third rocket, which was labeled Senku + Sumi 3, which was a mouthful, but combining them would've been weird. Senku lifted up the cover of the button, and pressed it. The rocket launched off and they looked up at the sky. The rocket went all the way out to space, and then exploded.
"Exploded at high altitude," Senku informed them while watching from the monitor.
"We failed again?!" Taiju scratched the sides of his head in frustration. Sumi smiled and Senku smirked, both of them turning around.
"Heh. No, not entirely."
"Come and have a look!" Sumi smiled encouragingly and he turned the computer around to show them. They looked and both of them gasped. The four little dolls had survived, without a scratch on them.
"I'm going to space...as soon as possible."
Sumi looked at him in admiration as...what she said about falling in love...wasn't true. When she heard his passion...that was when she fell in love. But she knew his stance because he stated it clearly to her, so she had to keep up the fact that she wasn't in it for that. If she could just suppress her feelings...then she wouldn't lose him as a friend. And that was all she could really ask for.
"You can accomplish anything..." Senku spoke up with his eyes closed. "Through the diligent application of science," He stated slowly, Sumi flinching while looking at him. The day she met him...was the day she became fully interested in science. Without it...she never would've met Senku. She never would've learned so much from him and work as well as she did with him. And what he said...was exactly what he told her later that day when she agreed to be his science partner.
"Senku...you know that I'd rather not kill you," Tsukasa spoke up quietly. "I'll ask again. Will you promise me, right here and now...that you'll give up on science?" Senku smiled and then looked up. He briefly glanced at Sumi. Without science, he wouldn't have realized how much Sumi was willing to do for it. How much she respected him as a person. He was her mentor first, and later became someone she looked up to, rather than follow like Tsukasa was stuck on believing. And Senku...well, he couldn't have asked for a better partner. Science gave him a drive, a passion...gave him Sumire Maeda.
"No, I can't. I can't do that."
The two girls looked at him silently, knowing that this would be his answer all along. Tsukasa let out a deep breath. "Of course not. I knew that would be your answer."
Senku just chuckled at him. "Now don't go giving me that crap. No matter what I said, we both knew you were gonna kill me at some point. You'd find a reason...but you already have one...don't you?" He glanced up at Sumi, who gasped silently. Was he implying that...Tsukasa would kill him...just to have her to himself?
"Maybe," Tsukasa answered simply, Sumi squeezing her eyes shut. She couldn't help but feel that part of this was her fault...
Senku cracked his neck one last time. "Just kill me in one blow. Because leaving me to suffer till I die...is both illogical and inefficient," He then looked up with a small smile, turning to Sumi who stared at him with wide eyes. "Everything's gonna be alright, Sumi," He murmured even though she couldn't hear him. "I know you'll pull through in the end."
"Don't worry, Senku," Tsukasa had his eyes closed. "I'm going to sever your cervical nerve. It'll be instantaneous. You'll be knocked unconscious and die without suffering. I won't miss."
Yuzuriha and Sumi gasped sharply upon hearing this. Tears mixed in with dried blood fell from Sumi's face as they looked on.
Taiju...
He looked up as Yuzuriha wished for him to be here. He gasped while looking at the smoke signal. If they needed it for the people out there...it was already a red flag that the smoke wasn't put out yet. And he could sense that Yuzuriha needed him. "Something's wrong. I gotta get back now!" He tossed away the firewood and ran off.
Tsukasa opened his eyes, ready to strike. "You know, I have a feeling that if we met each other 3,700 years ago...before all this..." He remembered meeting them, hunting, Taiju's excitement over his skills. "Before this all turned into a stone world..." He then recalled protecting them from the lions, and Senku looking over his shoulder. Tsukasa then gave a small smile. "I think you might've been my first real friend."
Senku had a wistful smile of his own. "Maybe..."
Taiju let out a yell while running over. Tsukasa narrowed his eyes, raising his spear. He stepped forward and Sumi acted on a whim. She slid down the ledge to Yuzuriha's surprise. "SENKU!" Senku braced himself as Tsukasa lifted up his arm...he then gave Senku a death blow to the neck with his spear. Sumi froze in her spot once she heard the noise of his neck snapping. Her eyes turned horrified as her heart sank while watching...
No...