A bird flew off in the sky while Senku and Sumi explained the plan to the group. "People..." Suika started off in shock.
"Flying..." Kinro continued while sweating a little.
"Way up in the sky?!" Ginro finished, earning small chuckles from the scientists.
"If we're gonna take on the rest of the world, we gotta start with this new Japan Mount Fuji made for us," He walked over to a paper, followed by Sumi. "So yeah."
"Hot air balloons weren't even the start of flight," Sumi gave them a small smile over her shoulder. "But it's the easiest way to go about it. Otherwise it'd take just as long as the ship to get it done."
Magma laughed while pointing at them. "Don't make me laugh, Senku and Sumi, not even you two could make that happen! You won't fool me into thinking humans can fly-" He then flinched as he remembered what Yo said.
"Okay, no need to be mean. I shouldn't laugh at the underdeveloped."
He then glared towards Yo right next to him, daring the man to laugh. He seemed to know exactly what Magma was thinking as he waved a hand. "Chill out, dude, I'm not gonna laugh. I don't know how this will work either. Flying's gotta be way more complicated than sailing, and we're not even past that."
"Ha ha!" Ryusui held up his cup full of wine. "This is getting better and better by the minute!" He exclaimed as he watched. "The sky? I want it!"
Senku and Sumi held up one side each of the paper once they had drawn the road map. "Here it is. Our next road map that'll take humanity airborne!"
"And our next step to making that map," Sumi grinned at it.
"Oh great," Ginro whined while sagging his shoulders, expecting a lot of work.
"I can't wait to get to work!" Kaseki exclaimed in excitement while Suika was shaking in a bit of fear. "This is gonna be the longest one yet, I'm sure! But that just makes me more excited, so bring it on!" There were only three steps...and that was it. Not to mention that it was pretty tiny on the paper. "That's it?!"
Senku chuckled as Sumi gave a small smile towards him. "You'd be shocked how easy hot air balloons are to make. You could pack up a whole flight kit and fit it into the trunk of your car with ease!" That just made Nikki and Gen feel uneasy, which was the opposite effect.
"Why do you think the six on the Soyuz managed to survive in space during petrification?" Sumi added while hugging her arms underneath her chest.
"I never thought flying could be such a casual activity..." Gen murmured nervously to them.
"Wait, hemp cloth?" Nikki asked the duo skeptically. "That doesn't exactly sound airtight. Aren't you guys worried?"
"A little leaking's fine," Senku waved it off, Sumi glancing towards him with a raised skeptical eyebrow. "The first-ever hot air balloon was made the same way, actually."
"Joseph and Stephen Montgolfier created it way back in 1783," Sumi held up a finger. "Modern-day hot air ballooning was used with propane burners and nylon, so it's not like we have any other options. But also, a little leaking could prove fatal, so we have to make sure to be careful," She pointed a finger at Senku's chest in a scolding way.
"Psh, it's just part of science," He gently moved her hand away.
"Wow..." Gen murmured while Sumi pouted at him.
"Though there is one massive hurdle to overcome," Senku glanced at Yuzuriha, who gave a knowing smile.
"Uh-huh..." She held up a nervous hand. "You need...a ton of cloth, right?"
He pointed down at her with a forked-tongue evil grin. "What do you know? Looks like it's up to the crafts club again!" He then gave an innocent look, rubbing the back of his neck. "Didn't think of that, not even for one millisecond. Oopsie."
"Sen..." Sumi sighed at him as Yuzuriha ground her fist into his chest while trying to keep it together. Senku and Kaseki bowed in front of her between Sumi. She blinked down at them in surprise, Yuzuriha feeling the same.
"The science team will be busy making the basket..." Senku told her sheepishly and Kaseki looked up.
"But if you need any new tools, we'll do our best to make them!"
"We'll do everything we can to make it smooth for you," Sumi added in as well with a pleading look.
"Can Sumi and I count on you to lead the charge on the cloth making?" The green-haired scientist looked up at her. "You and your team are the best shot we've got."
"Please...?" Sumi gave her puppy eyes while clasping her hands together. Yuzuriha stared and then hummed with a small smile. She, Senku, and Sumi all shared a high-five. She swung her arm around to give them a peace sign.
"Of course you can!" She assured the two of them.
"Thanks, Yuzuriha!" Sumi lunged forward to give her friend a hug, the two women laughing.
Soon, the hemp was getting flattened by Taiju, who had a small smile. "Leave it to me to crush all the hemp! I've got this!" He assured as Magma picked up a strand in confusion. Another villager was also crushing some nearby.
"I'm still totally lost. Are we really gonna fly with this grass stuff?"
"Ha!" Yo scoffed a little. "You don't fly with grass. We gotta make it into thread first." Magma glanced back at him with a small growl. Yo then gave him a smug smile. "What?" A smoke cloud surrounded them as they started fighting. Yuzuriha looked on with a small sweat drop at the back of her head.
"And we're doing it using a spinner," She informed while holding up a finger. The two stopped fighting as they both had head bumps on their heads. Magma, Yo, and Suika all stared at her in confusion.
"Spinner...?" They murmured in confusion.
"It's Yuzuriha's...easy hand crafts! Episode one! First, we take these scraggly looking hairs of fiber that we pulled off the hemp's core. Gather a bunch of them together and tie it tightly around the spinner. Then place it through the slot like so, and after a little diligent spinning, it's done!" Magma, Yo, Ginro, and Suika gasped from the demonstration she just gave them. "See? It's pretty easy, right?" She smiled as she watched Yo and Suika do it.
"Kinda fun in a weird way, too," Yo commented while spinning the hemp.
"And all we need is...thousands of kilometers worth!" Yuzuriha revealed, earning an agonized yell from Yo.
"I knew there had to be a catch!"
"This is never gonna end, is it?" Ginro complained as he and Kinro spun the hemp.
"Just do it, and it will," He retorted to the blond.
"Okay, the grass is string now," Magma looked at a thread between his hands. "Still don't see how this is supposed to get us flying."
Yo then popped up behind him. "Nah, man, you can't fly with thread either. We gotta make it into cloth now, idiot."
Magma growled from the insult, and the two went back to fighting. Yuzuriha decided to ignore it this time. "Okay, on that topic, let's make cloth. It's Yuzuriha's...easy hand crafts! Episode two! Step one, stretch out some of the newly made thread vertically, kinda like a harp. Step two, do it horizontally! Go over and under the vertical ones from before, back and forth, up and down...do that over and over...like a lot of times! Then it starts to become cloth!"
"Huh?!" The same four from before exclaimed in shock.
"Are you telling me we have to make the cloth one thread at a time?! You can't be serious!" Ginro cried out in disbelief.
"Yeah, it's gonna take forever..." Yo complained at her.
"Crafting takes patience!" Yuzuriha reminded the four.
"What happened to this being easy crafts?!" Magma exclaimed and her eyes turned white, a single tear in both.
"The work itself is easy. It's just doing it non-stop that makes it a pain. But you're not wrong," She gave a sheepish smile. "Doing it by hand probably will take us forever. Maybe we should ask the science team for help."
"A loom, eh?" Senku glanced to her, giving a chuckle and a smirk.
"We'd be glad to make you a loom if It'll help you out!" Sumi smiled at her friend.
A bit later, Yuzuriha sat on a stump, waiting in excitement. She could hear the work being done in the lab. She could just imagine it now. Finally! A real loom!
"Hey, it's done," Senku called out to her. She gasped while turning around...and seeing a giant machine, with the loom actually in the middle. The three stood by proudly while Yuzuriha grew pale. She fell to the ground in shock, as she wasn't expecting it to be so big.
"Whoa..." She murmured while looking up at it, and they noticed her expression.
"Mm, what's wrong, Yuzuriha?" Kaseki gave a small frown, a hand on the side of his head. "Is this not what you were expecting?"
"Sorry, this was kinda on short notice," Senku glanced up at it, putting his pinky into his ear. "Bet you wanted an electric one, huh?"
"Yeah, we had to speed through this if we're gonna make the basket so we can make the map as soon as possible," Sumi rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. "But if you want, we can go back and-"
"No, no, not at all!" Yuzuriha assured, waving a hand. "This is perfect! I couldn't be happier!"
"Well, if you're sure," Sumi closed her eyes with a smile. "Good luck to you and the crafts team! Oh, we'll probably need the power team to help move this thing," She turned to the loom in realization.
"Oh, speaking of which...I almost forgot. Sumi, I need your help with...that," Yuzuriha jerked a thumb behind her and they peeked to see Yo and Magma fighting again for the third time. Sumi sighed while glancing upwards.
"Do I really have to...?"
"I can't find Nikki anywhere," She revealed sheepishly to the black-haired scientist. "She must be busy gathering more wood for the ship."
"Okay…let's get this over with." Sumi pulled out her whip, stepping forward as the other three watched. "GET AWAY FROM EACH OTHER AND HELP YUZURIHA!" She screamed as cracking sounds were heard and they all flinched in fear. Yo and Magma let out shouts of pain. "AND NO MORE FIGHTING!" Once she was done, her hair was slightly a mess and one of the shoulders from her outfit was ripped. "Whooooooo, okay," She let out a sigh of relief, trudging past them, and they immediately moved away from her. She then reached out to move one of her bangs away from her face. The three all turned as they watched her walk into the lab, the woman smoothing out her outfit. Magma and Yo were shaking in pain on the ground.
"...Is it illogical that I was a bit excited from that?" Senku asked the others quietly, a light blush on his face.
Yuzuriha then proceeded to use the loom, a happy smile on her face. "This is the life!"
The sun then started to set, Mirai and Nikki in front of a field of flowers. Nikki picked one up into her fingers. "Wanna pick these and make some dye? Could be nice to have around."
Mirai turned to her with a smile. "I knew you had a soft side to you, Nikki!" She commented as the blond woman sniffed the flower.
Yo and Taiju crushed more hemp, though the former could barely keep up. Taiju laughed happily since he wasn't affected at all. Suika, Ginro, and Kinro spun more hemp with the spinner. Ginro looked absolutely bored out of his mind. Yuzuriha looked tired using the hemp, but she knew that they were on a deadline, so she kept going. Ryusui stood on top of a cliff, his arms crossed as he looked out to the sky. He knew that the group would pull it off.
Minami beamed the next morning, clasping her hands. Suika landed on one of the bundles of cloth. "Wow, look at how nice it is!" She cried out happily, laughing.
Cloth acquired!
Senku, Gen, and Sumi all held one up. "Great work, crafts team, you rock!" Senku complimented them with a small smile.
"Yeah! Couldn't have done this without you, thank you everyone," Sumi smiled down at them, blinking at the sight.
"You must be almost done by now, huh?" Senku turned to them, and everyone looked dead. Ginro's soul was about to escape and half of them looked like they hadn't gotten any sleep in at least two days.
"Well, we should be, but we messed up a few along the way..." Yuzuriha spoke up to them, waving a hand. "So we're a teensy tiny bit behind schedule...we don't wanna hand you the ones that turned out too thin to hold air."
"Looking forward to the final batch!" Senku gave a small smirk.
"But how are we gonna get more thread if they're already tired from this batch?" Sumi leaned in while whispering into Senku's ear. "Look at them, they're practically zombies...everyone's working on the ship, too, so if we keep working the crafts team like this, they'll pass out from exhaustion..."
Gen looked away and rubbed his chin. He then gave a small evil grin as an idea came to him. Sumi dropped the cloth to check up on everyone.
"Did you guys hear?" Gen spoke up to a few of Tsukasa's men, getting their attention. "We don't have enough thread to make the hemp cloth we need. So I was thinking we'd have a friendly thread-spinning competition. What do you say?" He then clapped his hands together. "Enter our fun little contest and make the longest thread...and you'll walk away with 10,000 drago!" He revealed a big stack of them between his hands.
The next thing everyone knew, a whole bunch of thread was getting spun in a line. Senku approached Gen while pointing an accusing finger. "Hey, what's the big idea, Gen?" He demanded as Sumi approached from behind. "I mean, sure, you got them all fired up and helping out. But where'd you get this cash?" He lifted up one of the bills to reveal that only the first one was actual drago. The rest were completely blank. He and Sumi stared at the whistling mentalist as he was looking away from them. "Really?"
"It's official, he's hit a new low..." Sumi deadpanned at the mentalist.
"Oh, calm down!" He turned around to them with a sinister look. "We'll have all the money we'll need soon enough. Think about all that extra cloth. The fabric that's a little too breathable? Why not transform it into something we can sell?"
The two blinked at him in confusion. "Eh? But where would we sell it?" Senku raised a brow.
"Food and drawings aren't gonna be enough to cut it this time," Sumi crossed her arms.
Gen then gave an evil look, pointing a finger. "Sumiku's Department Store!" The two flinched in alarm and Sumi grunted in embarrassment. "The name's trademarked, so not changing it!"
"That doesn't even exist!" Sumi exclaimed in protest with white eyes and a toothy snarl.
"If we're gonna do this, change the crappy name!" Senku agreed with her, a red mark near his forehead.
"Fine, fine," Gen told them, though looked away with a grin. He was definitely keeping it.
Well, if anything, I know she's gonna love this...
Gen, Senku, and Sumi stood in front of Yuzuriha. They had just told her what they planned to do, and so far there was no reaction. Probably because she had just finished another batch of cloth and she had to process this. "Are you interested?" Senku asked and then she let out a gasp as her eyes went white.
"OF COURSE!" Her eyes shined as her head got bigger with pink on her cheeks, alarming the three. "I WOULD LOVE TO!" She then got right to work, the three blinking. Senku glanced down at Sumi, deciding to finally get the kiss thing over with. He had enough of Gen teasing them almost nonstop and didn't need the extra stress.
"Sumi, can we talk?"
"Eh?" She turned to him curiously. "About what?"
"In private."
The mentalist blinked and then gasped in realization. "Oh, Sumi, I think Suika needed some help making some thread!" Gen linked his arms with hers, confusing both her and Senku.
"Right now? Can't it wait until after I talk with-"
"Nope, no it can't!" Gen then dragged her off, to her disbelief. Senku blinked in utter confusion. He then leaned in towards Sumi. "As your best friend, I think I have a good idea of what happened between you two. Senku wants to have a serious chat about the events, but out in the open is not the way to go about it."
"Hm?!" Sumi flinched while blushing. "W-What are you talking about? Nothing happened."
"So you two keep saying, but mentalist, remember? You've both gotta wait for the right moment, he's too blunt to make it romantic!" He stated as she pressed her fingers together nervously and looking away.
"But what if it's not romantic?" He looked at her in confusion. "This is Senku, remember? So I already expect what he's gonna tell me."
"I know it is!" He assured her with a small smile. "He just doesn't know how to express it to you."
"Mm..." Sumi frowned a bit as she wasn't so sure.
A tee-pee near the lab was shaking, a few pops occasionally occurring. Ginro stared at it in confusion. "The heck's going on in there...? Yuzuriha," He moved away one of the flaps, as there were drawings covering them. "Everything ok-" He froze at the sight while Kinro popped up behind him.
"Hey, it said keep out!" He whispered and Yuzuriha poked a piece of clothing with a yell. She had a shadow over her eyes while working intensely on her task. The two stared at her as it was like she was a different person.
"Look who's gone off the deep end..."
"She's nothing like the Yuzuriha we know," Ginro commented while Taiju walked past them. He then stopped and looked back at them with a smile.
"What do you mean? She's always like that when she's working on her crafts," He assured, since he had seen this before many times. So this didn't really faze him at all. Sumi walked past them holding a blueprint and Yuzuriha stopped, looking outside. Kinro and Ginro yelped as they moved away and she peeked out.
"Hey, Sumi?" She called out from outside. The black-haired scientist blinked as she looked up, coming to a stop. Yuzuriha smiled while waving her over. Once she was inside, her friend looked up at her. "I wanna make a dress that has to do with science. You think you could help me?"
"Huh?" Sumi tilted her head in confusion. "Why do you need a dress like that for?" Yuzuriha then whispered into her ear, and once Sumi heard it, her entire face went red. "WHAT?!" She screamed as the little tee-pee shook from her shout.
"Shh!" Yuzuriha placed a finger in front of her mouth. "You're gonna alert everyone! It's just that...I know you and Senku have...romance problems so I just wanted to give you guys a push!" She stated while sweating a little. It was obvious to practically everyone that something happened between the two, and Yuzuriha could only guess why, even if no one else could figure it out. Plus she had spoken with Gen.
"I appreciate it, but I don't think he'd even care. He's been acting almost the same since-" Sumi let out a small choke as the kiss was something neither her or Senku spoke about to anyone else. And she'd rather keep it that way. "Since nothing! Nothing happened!" She waved her hands rapidly with an awkward laugh.
Yuzuriha decided to ignore this and continue further. "He would if it was science and came from you! Please, Sumi, promise me you'll do it!" She clasped her friend's hands pleadingly. "And we need this for Ryusui anyway. He might pay more for it if it's gonna help out the science team."
Sumi closed her eyes while looking away. She did make a good point...if they didn't have enough drago, then there was no way they'd be able to have oil for the ship. And she knew that if she got involved, Ryusui would probably put more money towards it because it was her. She then sighed in defeat, holding up a finger. "I'm only doing this for science and that's all. Find someone else to wear this, though."
Yuzuriha sweated a little without saying a word. If only she could promise that...
Later that night, three men played the drums, while three women played some horns. The stage was set up once again, with four spotlights on stage. They all faded away and then merged into two, in the center of the crowd. The curtains were moved to reveal Ruri, wearing a red skirt and yellow sweater, along with a blue scarf. Everyone gave sounds of awe as she stepped forward slowly. She came to a stop with a small sigh.
"This is so embarrassing..." She murmured to herself with a light blush on her face, but she was doing it for Yuzuriha.
"Aiming for an exotic look?" Gen asked off stage from a mic. "Why not add a touch of elegance by topping it off with a scarf?"
Kinro was next, walking awkwardly as he wasn't expecting this. "Kinro?!" Ginro exclaimed from the crowd.
"You don't swing with the arm you're stepping with!" Magma called out to him. Kinro gave a nervous expression, his hands in his pockets. He had on black pants, a green jacket, a white button-up, and a scarf.
"Execute confidence with this knitted turtleneck sweater. And accessories that show off your fun side, for the man who knows what he wants," Gen announced to them.
"Dude!" Yo exclaimed with wide eyes. "Did she make all of this with just hemp?! That's unbelievable!"
Suika was next, wearing a pink skirt, and a long-sleeved white sweater. And her watermelon mask was off. "Try an adorable design with a dash of street fashion for a contemporary look."
"That is so cute!" Mirai gushed with her eyes shining, holding her cheeks.
"Do I kinda want that?" Nikki thought while rubbing her chin. "Yes, I do."
Kaseki was next, wearing a black suit and shoes. He had a dark red button-up, a spiked bracelet, and some jewelry on his ears. Part of his beard was braided as well. "Specials occasions demand a suave three-piece, but that doesn't mean hiding your inner rocker."
"So expensive!" Mirai cried out and he opened his eyes.
"Try not to fall for me," The whole crowd cheered at the fashion show. Kaseki then turned around and walked off.
"And now for the grand finale!" Gen announced, but nothing happened, confusing everyone. He blinked while looking around behind the stage. "...Where's the grand finale?" He asked in a bit of embarrassment after a few seconds.
"Get out there!" Yuzuriha hissed a bit to Sumi, who was hugging the pole next to her. Yuzuriha was trying to drag her out onto the stage...as she was the grand finale herself. Which she remembered telling her friend that she was not up for at all.
"I told you no, I'm not doing this!" Sumi whispered in defense.
"You promised!" Yuzuriha whispered back while pulling her arms.
"I didn't promise to wear-" She was then pushed by her friend and slid to be seen in the shadows by everyone. Her eyes widened as it was complete silence and then she let out a deep sigh of defeat. She might as well, or else she'd disappoint everyone. Sumi slowly stepped out onto the stage, wearing a yellow sundress with sunflowers as part of the chest area, the skirt stopping at her knees. Her shoulders were showing and the dress was sparkling. Her hair was still down as well as Senku's eyes slowly widened at her appearance. Gen gave her a small chuckle.
"Wow. I guess science applies to even clothes, huh?"
"...Science has no restrictions, remember?" Senku gave a small smirk, though his heart was beating.
"This summery ensemble can make you feel like you're with the flowers. And for the big finish...!" Gen trailed off as Sumi held up a vial with white liquid. She tossed it into the ground and it gave off smoke. Everyone gave a sound of awe as they couldn't see anything. Once the smoke cleared, the dress was now much different. It was a big ball gown, as a halter cut of dark blue, but it faded towards light pink at the bottom of the big skirt. There were two big blue curl patterns to make it look like the bottom of a butterfly's wing before it was faded into pink. And there were more subtle sparkles on the dress as Sumi blushed in embarrassment. The whole crowd gasped in awe as she stepped forward again. Senku's eyes widened further by her new appearance, his heart rate accelerating faster. His eyes shook from how...how it looked on her. And he wasn't one to care about physical appearances, but something about the way she appeared now...
"That's right, folks!" Gen announced while Sumi held up a piece of skirt from both sides for people to get a better look. "This one of a kind dress can turn into a gown whenever you want! Vial of Sumi's own created chemical requires additional purchase."
They all cheered again and she turned around, walking towards the end of the stage. She let out a huge sigh of relief once she moved past the curtains. "Oh thank god, I wasn't sure if I could handle that much longer," She held her arm, blushing a bit. She couldn't see what Senku thought of it...would he even say anything? Speaking of, he approached her from the side and she looked up.
"That dress is pretty impressive, Sumi," Senku commented with his arms crossed and she blinked.
"Really?" Her blush deepened a little, Gen watching them with a sly smile.
"Yeah...you throw sodium hydroxide and phenolphthalein on there, causing a color change in the fabric. Now more people will wanna buy clothes from us."
"Don't you wanna say something about how she looked?" Gen wrapped an around her shoulder as she blinked at the mentalist. She looked back to Senku as he stared at her, knowing that he was just trying to get a response out of him. He then dug his pinky into his ear.
"No," Senku replied nonchalantly, and Gen looked at him with white eyes.
"Eriously-say?! You're impossible! I will break you..." He gritted his teeth as Senku just turned around and left.
"Whatever you say."
"Umm, I have no idea how to feel anymore..." Sumi blinked in confusion at what was going on. Yuzuriha then gave a sheepish look from behind. She should've known it wouldn't have been that easy to pull off...
The next morning, the store was set up in front of the lab. Everyone was looking at the clothes on the racks. "What do you think of this?" Magma held up a suit in front of Mantle.
"Another good pick. You'd look awesome in that, Magma!" Mantle exclaimed in encouragement.
"It's pretty, but the price is a little high..." A brunette villager commented at a skirt. Ruby was holding up a sweater.
"Same for this, but I think I'm gonna go for it!" She smiled a bit.
"Really?"
"Uh! You're right. I shouldn't rush to a decision," Ruby realized what she said, Gen looking on with a small smile.
"The Sumiku Department Store's first offerings are on the pricy side. So it may be a while before we sell out the entire line," He gave a nervous closed-eyed smile. Senku and Sumi walked over to him, and he had his arms crossed.
"Might as well give the leftovers away to the workers. We're making bank now that King Mitus over here has opened up his bottomless pockets," Senku revealed, Gen giving a pleased smile.
"I thought we said to change that name," Sumi gave an annoyed grunt towards the mentalist and he looked away, chuckling. She and Senku gave him deadpanned looks in unison as he pretended to not notice them.
Senku then glanced down at his science partner, a small smirk on his face while remembering her in that dress. "Sumi...that dress you wore...I don't think we can sell anymore," He revealed, Gen turning around to him in confusion.
"Huh? Why?" She blinked up at him.
"Because you're the only one I wanna see wearing it," He replied nonchalantly, his smirk growing a little.
"Eh?!" Sumi flinched with a deep blush on her face, her mouth open. Smoke then came from her head. "O-Only on me...?" Did he really just say that about me? Is Senku...actually complimenting me? But why?
"Ohhh! What's that I'm hearing?" Gen wrapped his arms around both of them before she could comment. "After thousands of years, it's finally happening?"
"Wouldn't you like to know?" Senku pushed him off and walked away.
"Not air-fay!" Gen cried out, whipping around to Sumi, who was still blushing. "We're best friends, aren't we? You need to tell me all of the details!"
"Umm...I-I don't know what you're talking about," She waved off, crossing her arms. "There aren't any details, none at all!" Gen gave her an annoyed sound while looking at her. One of these days, he was gonna find out...
Yuzuriha was wearing a dress while smiling. "Thank you, sir," She then bowed, holding her hands. "I hope you'll come again."
"Ha ha!" Ryusui laughed while holding up one of many purchases he bought from the store. He then looked up nervously while realizing something. "Giving 'em a ton of money's only gonna hurt me...isn't it?"
And just like he predicted, Senku and Gen were laughing evilly while being surrounded in drago, both of them practically devils. Sumi was between the two, having white eyes as she shook in fear. At the very least, they had enough for some oil...
Senku and Sumi approached the batch of cloth. "That's it for our biggest obstacle. We've officially gathered the insane amount of cloth we need. Time to get this thing built, and into the sky!" A bird flew towards the sun, Sumi looking up with a smile.
"We should tell the others the plan, get them caught up," Sumi turned to him and he nodded in agreement. She glanced at him and remembered what Gen said about his possible intentions, letting out a small sigh. "Senku...about what you wanted to talk about..." She started off and he turned to her silently. "Is it about...you know?" She blushed a little as there was a shadow over her eyes. He blinked and then glanced away briefly, blushing as well.
"Yeah...about that-"
"Could...could it wait at least for a little while?" She pleaded while closing her eyes. "I...I don't think I'm ready, and...we've been busy with a lot of stuff lately...so can you just be a little bit patient with me?" He blinked from what she said as he could tell on her face that she needed to be mentally ready for what he was going to say. Although Gen's teasing and the dress thing certainly wasn't helping matters...
"...Yeah. Okay. You don't need to explain yourself," Senku gave her a small smile. "I was actually gonna ask you the same thing. We're ten billion percent too wrapped in the ship and the hot air balloon. So it can wait."
She gave a happy smile towards him for him understanding. "Thank you!"
"Eh, no need to thank me. Come on, let's go tell the others."
The phone rang at the observatory in Ishigami Village. Chrome picked up and listened to what they had to say. "Hold on! A flying machine?!" His eyes bulged a little while Ukyo and Kohaku flinched in shock. "That's bad!" He jumped right out of the window, a big smile on his face.
"Where are you going?!" She called out after him.
"We're flying, that's bad!" He screamed in excitement as he dashed out of there, not even listening.
"Hey Senku, Sumi," They glanced back as Yuzuriha approached them. "What are the measurements for the balloon supposed to be?"
"Let us think..." Senku placed a finger near his head. Sumi closed her eyes in thought. "Suppose it's 2 thousand cubic meters and we heat 15 degree air up to 90 degrees. We get 520 kilograms of lift. Air temperature drops 6.5 degrees every thousand meters. We can't exceed one hundred degrees, or we run the risk of burning the cloth. But we wanna make it climb to 1,500 meters, just below the jetstream. Which means..." He opened his eyes, holding up a hand. "A diameter of 10 meters, for a max of four people."
"The balloon would still rise the same way with a bigger basket given the drop in temperature," Sumi hummed in thought. "But keep in mind that we still can't go past 100 degrees even with an added person. Considering the average height and weight of all four, we have to make sure we're extremely careful with the hemp cloth of the balloon too..."
Yuzuriha gave a determined look.
Yo poked himself with a needle, already having done so multiple times to have bandages. He yelped in pain while standing up. "Ow, I poked myself again!" He whined in pain, Ginro and Suika doing it with ease. "Gotta admit, I'm jealous," He complained at the two. "How are you primitives so good at this?"
"We've all had plenty of practice sewing. Weather clothes don't make themselves!" Suika turned to him with a small smile.
Magma laughed down at Yo. "You modern people are useless when it comes to manual labor!"
"Why are you being so condescending?" Ginro looked up in annoyance. "You're not even doing anything."
They suddenly heard a noise, turning to see Yuzuriha sewing like it was nothing in rapid fashion. Magma gave a look of shock, shaking towards her. "Yo, what was that about modern people being useless again, big guy?" He pointed at Magma with a big grin.
"Why are you the one being so condescending now?" Nikki looked at them with a small sweat drop.
Sumi walked up, her whip ready as she had a shadow over her eyes, and they sparkled towards the two men. "You guys better not be fighting again..." She warned darkly and they went back to work, sweating immensely as they recalled what she did last time.
Suika jumped up into the sky with a laugh. "It's finally done!" She slid down the completed hot air balloon being held down by rope.
"Whoo-hoo! This thing will fly?" Ginro laughed while swinging from a rope.
"It's freakin' gigantic!" Magma exclaimed, him and Yo utterly bewildered.
It was lunch time as people were heating up meat. "So who's gonna be testing this thing out?" Gen wondered to Taiju, Senku, and Sumi. "It holds four people, right? I'll pass myself," He glanced away while Sumi put down more plates for everyone.
"Well, it was supposed to seat three, but Sen insisted I have to be there too, so we had to expand the width of the basket," Sumi spoke up while taking a meat kabob and eating it.
"Pfft, we make a hot air balloon and you get left out of not experiencing it? Come on," Senku scoffed a little.
"Senku and Sumi know how it works, so they're a given," Taiju spoke up to Gen. "Who's the next best two?"
"We can't let the balloon choose its own path. And navigating relies on reading the wind. Meaning our pilot needs to know his way around a gust or two," Senku explained, taking a bite out of his food.
"That makes sense," Taiju gave a small smile and Gen rubbed his chin.
"You know, if it was just the two of you, that'd make this a date, wouldn't it?" He pointed out, Taiju looking at him in shock. Senku coughed while dropping his food as Sumi swallowed the meat in her mouth whole, dropping her fork. She put both her hands on her throat, coughing while looking away. Gen smirked at their reaction as both of them had wide eyes.
"I'm just gonna...yeah," Sumi didn't even come up with an excuse this time as she walked off. She let out a small sigh, as she knew it wasn't gonna be like that. Not when she already knew how Senku felt...
"Gen..." Senku groaned at him. "Hilarious. But that's not even the point..." He rolled his eyes a bit. Besides, even if it was, having two extra people wasn't exactly the definition of a date—and he didn't even think it'd come to that anyway right now.
"Well, back on topic, hey, Ryusui!" Taiju cried out, Gen jumping in front of him while shushing. Taiju flinched as the man came out of a tee-pee, looking at the group expectantly.
"You and Taiju's negotiation tactics are way too straight-forward!" Gen said through gritted teeth at Senku accusingly. The green-haired scientist just dug his pinky into his ear. "Ryusui's gonna rip you off again, you idiots!"
"I'm well aware, which is why you'll be the one dealing with him," Senku retorted back, earning a small whine from Gen. "Yeah, all that time you spent teasing me and Sumi is finally coming back in full force!" He grinned widely at the mentalist.
Gen then held out his arms in front of the crowd. "Okay everyone, gather round! We need two more people to man the balloon, so we'll make this fair," He held up a set of cards, although the ones in his right hand only had two joker cards. "We each pick a card and whoever draws one of the two jokers wins." He laid out the cards, Kinro picking one. Nikki then took one, followed by Yo and Suika. "You're up next, Ryusui," He slid out one particular card, the blonde raising a brow. Yuzuriha gasped in realization, standing between Sumi and Senku.
I see. So Ryusui's going to win by sheer coincidence. She gave a sheepish smile while Senku just stared.
That way we can make him work for free. If he buys it, that is.
Sumi bit her lip glancing between the two men. Is he really gonna fall for that, though? He saw through Senku and I earlier with the lumber.
Ryusui gave a small knowing chuckle. "I see through your tricks. If you wanted my help, you could've just asked, you know? Gen, out of respect for your clever ruse, I'll pilot for a mere one million drago!" He took a card and then held it up. "Ha ha! The winning joker card is mine!" However, it was the three of hearts, and he gave a mortified gasp. Sumi, Senku, and Yuzuriha turned to Gen in surprise, while the mentalist had an evil look.
When people lose what they were convinced they had, that's when the loss hits hardest. Psychological tests have proven as much. It's often seen in matters of the heart, like with Sumi. He then revealed the joker card from his sleeve, holding it up. "Oh darn, it seems I drew a joker! I can't say I'm thrilled about it, but a deal's a deal." Everyone gasped while Senku had a knowing smile on his face.
"Oh yeah?" He then slid over with white eyes and a small innocent frown. "Why the long face? You didn't wanna win? You realize some people would kill to have their hands on a ticket like that. It makes you one of the first to take flight in the new world."
"Yeah," Sumi popped up next to him with the same expression. "You sure you don't wanna think it over, Gen? You are my bestie, after all, it would've been fun with you around. But I can't force you to do it if you don't want to. Even though it is a once in a lifetime opportunity!"
"I know," Gen whined a bit, waving the card while Ryusui was shaking the whole time. "Guess I'm just a little afraid of being at the winds of the wind."
Ryusui then snapped his fingers with a laugh. "If you're that scared, I wouldn't mind taking your place!" He offered immediately to the mentalist.
"For eal-ray?" Gen gave a beaming smile with a blush on his cheeks. "Although...I did win this ticket with my own two hands," His eyes sparked while looking away innocently. "I'm afraid that I can't just give it away..."
The next thing he knew, he was hit with a ton of drago, to the shock of Yuzuriha and Taiju. Gen laughed maniacally as Ryusui looked proud of himself holding the card. "We thought we'd be paying him! How did we get what we wanted and profit from it?" Taiju asked in disbelief.
"Watching Gen work his magic is kinda terrifying," Yuzuriha admitted with white eyes.
"At this rate, we'll have our oil funds in no time!" Senku hugged his stomach, pleased with the results.
"I'm surprised Ryusui hasn't caught on..." Sumi murmured with a hand on her cheek.
"Alright!" Magma punched his fists together. "There's one more winning card left, and it's mine!" He quickly snatched one, but didn't get the Joker card. "Damn, I really thought I had it."
Gen glanced over his shoulder to Senku and Sumi. "We really leaving the final slot to chance?"
"Why not?" Senku replied casually while raising a brow. "Anyone who won't freak out mid flight and is interested."
"Well, the one person I know who would be is all the way in-"
"HEY, I'M INSANELY INTERESTED!" Chrome shouted at the top of his lungs, piercing their eardrums. Gen, Sumi, and Senku all looked up in surprise to see Chrome standing on top of the rocks. "I WANNA FLY SO BAD!"
"Yup, there he is," Sumi picked at her ear a little as she felt like they were shot. "Ow."
Chrome panted heavily while looking down at them. "I'm drawing, you can't stop me! I'm not passing up a chance to ride that flying machine! I'm gonna draw the winning card with sheer willpower!"
"Did you...run all the way back here, Chrome?!" Kinro asked him in surprise.
He sweated anxiously while looking at the crowd. "I wanna see with my own eyes...the sky, what the world is really like. I know what you and Sumi told me, Senku. That the planet's round..." He slowly approached the mentalist, while Taiju, Yuzuriha, and Sumi looked at him in concern. "But...we've lived our whole lives in one spot...we'd never know...even now, we're still just taking your word for it at the end of the day," He kneeled over while Gen held out the cards. "So please..." Senku, Gen, and Sumi all watched in silence. One particular card stuck out to him and he gasped. He quickly grabbed it...and then shook. He held up the winning card. "ALRIGHT!" He screamed as Senku and Sumi left.
"Dude, no way!" Yo grinned at him.
"Chrome actually got the winning card with sheer willpower, that's incredible!" Suika shouted in excitement.
"OH YEAH!" Chrome screamed as loud as he could.
A few minutes before the sun was supposed to rise, they had started checking to make sure they were ready for flight. A deer gut was inflated with a piece of paper tied to it. Taiju was handling the inflation while Sumi and Senku held onto the balloon. Ryusui was standing nearby as they were standing on top of the rocks. The two scientists then both released it into the sky.
"Hey," Gen greeted as he joined them. "What are you three gents and lady up to over here?"
"We made a pilot balloon out of nitrogen and a deer's gut," Senku explained while looking up, his arms crossed. They watched it float up towards the moon.
"What's its rate of ascend?" Ryusui questioned the two while the three watched closely.
"At that size, I'd estimate it at roughly 70 meters per minute," Senku answered the captain.
"Roughly 2.6 miles per hour," Sumi added while glancing at him.
"Okay, and does that mean something?" Gen looked up in confusion.
"You can see the wind by how it moves," Ryusui told the mentalist, and then grinned. "What I'm seeing is looking good. These are the perfect conditions for take-off!"
Fuel burned into the engine as flames shot up, and the basket lifted off the air. "Whoa!" Chrome shouted in awe. "We're really floating! This is so bad!" Everyone else looked in either surprise or astonishment, especially Magma.
"I can't believe they're actually flying!"
"Ho ho!" Kaseki laughed as Sumi waved down to everyone with a smile. "We pulled it off, everyone!" They ascended higher into the sky. "Human beings are amazing..." His eyes glistened a little. "We're greedy, we're utterly relentless, and when we want something bad enough...we get to work and make it happen." A single tear flew down his face. "Even if it takes science millions of years..."
"I can't believe how small that huge thing looks already..." Suika murmured and Ginro noticed something.
"Hey...what's that light?" He could see a small glint coming from the right side of the balloon. Chrome covered his eyes from the brightness, but then got a closer look. It was actually the incoming sunrise in the distance. Sumi walked up to the edge, her hands in front of her as she admired the view.
"It's beautiful..." Sumi smiled as her hair flew behind her. Senku stared at her silently, noting how the glow illuminated her body and hair a little. He gave a small smirk while looking away from her, his arms crossed.
"Yeah, it is..." Senku murmured to himself.
Chrome's eyes glistened as he joined Sumi's side. He then looked down below at the others. "It's still pitch black for everybody down on the ground..." He pointed out and Senku turned to him.
"We're 1,200 meters up. We're experiencing dawn 7 minutes earlier than they are," He informed the brunet, who stayed silent for a few seconds.
"It's true..." He stated quietly, Sumi glancing up at him. "The world's round..." He bent down, his voice breaking. "It really is..." Tears were flying from his eyes and onto the basket in happiness. "And I...saw it with...my own eyes! Oh, crap. I want more! I wanna know everything about this world of ours!"
Sumi bent down to Chrome, hugging him with a small smile. "And you will, Chrome. I promise. So don't cry just yet. There are more amazing things out there just waiting for you to see it," She assured in a soft voice and he wiped at his eyes, sniffing and nodding.
"This is as real as it gets. There's nothing between us and the sky! We won't get this feeling anywhere else! This is a unique luxury!" Ryusui said and Sumi stood up, laughing while holding out her arms like a plane. A bird flew past her and Chrome and he laughed as he saw multiple of them around.
"We're with the birds!"
Senku placed down Sumi's arms and she blinked in realization. "Sure are. But I wouldn't be too happy about that," Senku commented as an eagle flew right up to them. Senku grabbed Sumi gently and bent down with her, the eagle passing right above them. Chrome yelped and ducked his head as well. "You see what I mean?" He asked as he helped Sumi up. "Birds used to be responsible for tons of plane crashes."
"Oh yeah...and the balloon is made out of cloth. If we don't rise above them, they could make a hole through it," She looked around as she realized she needed to be more careful.
"Oh man," Chrome looked back at the birds nervously.
"Heh," Ryusui tossed more wood into the fuel. "We'll be fine if we just get out of their way," He then looked up as he noticed something. "On second thought...we're not rising all that quickly. The way the balloon moves depends on the wind. It's basically a sailboat in the sky. Which is all the more reason for me to master it and guide our maiden voyage to the finish line!"
"Uh," Chrome flinched in a bit of confusion; he didn't realize until now that he had no idea where they were headed. "Finish line? Where is this thing headed, anyway?"
"Ishigami Village," The other three answered without hesitation.
"WHAAAT?!" Chrome screeched from this as they were flying above the river. "That's a two-day walk, even if you book it!"
"You made it to where we were in no time flat from Ishigami Village, remember?" Sumi reminded her friend while raising a brow.
"Well, yeah, but that was my adrenaline!"
"Yup, and about 2 hours by balloon," Senku informed Chrome as Sumi gave a small smile.
"That's the power of wind, my friend!" Ryusui gave a confident grin.
"We wore ourselves ragged making this trip, and now it'll only take a couple of hours?" Chrome looked up with an excited grin. "Traveling by air is bad. And so easy too."
"Mm, not really," Sumi shook her head.
"It's a little tougher than it appears," Senku started off, causing him to look up towards them. "We gotta go west to get to Ishigami Village, which is tricky." Chrome recoiled back a bit, not knowing what he meant. "We're dependent on the wind, if you recall. And in Japan at this altitude, it always flows eastward."
"Typically, airplanes don't fly over the Pacific Ocean because the curved routes are shorter than straightforward ones," Sumi held up a hand. "It's the same for hot air balloons. And straighter routes don't offer a short distance."
"Yeah," Ryusui agreed with the both of them. "A novice could fly this craft east."
"Okay," Chrome rubbed his chin in thought. "But like you said, we're flying west, so how's that possible?"
Ryusui turned around, snapping his fingers. "Low pressure! Low pressure systems produce storms. They rotate counterclockwise. So we're taking advantage of that hitching a quick ride to the west!" He laughed while tossing in more wood. "With the experience I'm sure to gain as captain on this journey, we can go even further. Finding that oil will be easy once I've mastered this." The balloon then started to rise higher. "It's dangerous, hard work. But a professional adventure overcomes everything, am I wrong? With me leading the charge, you amateurs are free to relax and enjoy the view, okay? Especially you, Mimi," He gave her a wink.
"Stop calling me that!" She gave him a frustrated look, groaning.
He's a professional adventurer? Chrome looked at Ryusui in disbelief. Did this guy just call me an amateur? Me? The adventure king?
He then cleared his throat, a shadow over his eyes. "Okay, Ryusui...maybe you're a pro when it comes to adventuring the seas..." The blond glanced back at him in confusion. "But when it comes to exploring the land, I don't know...I'd say you're about as green as those lavish tree-tops. The terrain affects wind patterns this close to the ground. We're coasting on the wind right above the river."
"Mm?" Senku glanced down and so did Sumi. "Now that you mention it, we are being drawn along the river somewhat."
"Given where water can lead us, land or sea, I don't think it's a good idea to be along the river like this," She commented in thought. And she would know; Hyoga taught them that when he tried to take over the Tsukasa Empire.
"We don't wanna be blown out to sea, we'd never make it back," Ryusui took a look himself. "Better gain some height."
Chrome gave him a suspicious and judgmental look. "Any real professional adventurer who surveyed the land with his own two feet would know this stuff! It's something we just get a feel for while exploring, understand?!" He and Ryusui then stared each other down intensely. "Who am I kidding? As someone who needs a boat to get anything done could never wrap his head around it!"
Senku and Sumi popped up behind them. "Enough of this dick-measuring contest," He deadpanned towards the two.
"Yeah, we didn't build this hot air balloon so you guys could fight..." Sumi gave a big sweat drop near her hair ribbon, groaning from what Senku said. "And thanks so much for the mental image. Totally needed that in my life..."
Senku just gave a small chuckle at her, sighing and tying a rope to a small cloth bundled as a pouch. "To be safe, we'll check. All we gotta do is drop something weighted but light, and we'll see what the wind's doing," He dropped it and the object flew around out of control. Their eyes widened at the movement and Ryusui sweated a little.
"Wasn't expecting such a dramatic change...I guess our westward flight is against a real sky god, isn't it?" He asked while Chrome was looking up ahead, his eyes shaking at the sight.
"It...it's huge," He said in fright as up ahead were grey clouds. A flash of lightning occurred nearby.
"Allow me to introduce...the storm-making demon of the clouds...the Cumulous Nimbus!" Ryusui explained as a creature made out of clouds roared at them, lightning coming from out of its mouth. Sumi flinched backwards a bit in disbelief, and they headed right towards it. All of them looked uneasy as the rain was now pouring over their balloon, the wind strong.
"Okay, this is bad!" Chrome exclaimed as they all held onto the edge. "What now?"
"Any closer and we'll get sucked in by its overwhelming force!" Ryusui shouted over the wind. "Our balloon would be torn to shreds! We need to prepare for an emergency landing, now! Pull that rope, Chrome! It'll open the top of the balloon and release hot air, making us drop fast!"
"On it!" Chrome reached out, but Sumi and Senku noticed something, gasping.
"Wait!" Senku grabbed Chrome's arm before he could pull the rope.
"You can't do that!" Sumi stood in front of him with a serious look on her face.
"What's wrong?" He asked the two in confusion.
"It's already popped," Senku informed as Sumi pointed upwards. Chrome looked up to see that there was a tear in the top of the balloon. It wasn't fully open, as they were still flying, but releasing hot air with it punctured was no longer an option. "If you pull it and the cloth tears, we'll crash."
"What the...?" Chrome muttered in disbelief.
"Must've been those birds from earlier..." Senku realized while staring at it, frowning.
"One of them must've gotten out of range and flew right into it," Sumi said in worry, biting her lip.
"Huh..." Ryusui gave a knowing look. "No wonder we were having trouble ascending before." They got closer to the sky god, and it opened its mouth at the balloon. They were then swallowed up, the balloon now flying a bit out of control while surrounded by lightning.
"This is bad, you guys! We're going higher, even though we already shut off the flame!" Chrome shouted as Sumi hung onto a rope, her hair flying behind her as she looked up.
"That damn cloud! We're caught in its insanely strong updraft!" Ryusui informed as they looked up while gritting their teeth.
"Is there any way we can descend?!" Chrome exclaimed while the basket swayed back and forth.
"I wish. We don't have any escape route left!" Ryusui then gave a glare towards up ahead, trying to come up with something, anything. But there was no other way that they could land safely, not with the popped balloon. Lightning struck in front of them as the storm was even stronger now.
Come on, brain, think...think! Senku thought to himself. How can science get us out of this situation? Once this deadly ascent causes my brain to crap out from altitude sickness, we'll be out of time!
Come on, Sumi, there has to be something! Sumi frowned deeply, her bangs flying around. How can we get out of this sky god safely without risking our lives? And once we're high enough for altitude sickness, it'll be too late for us!
Ryusui had a big grin on his face, not fazed in the slightest. Ha ha! The perfect challenge! Overcoming this cloud demon will force me to master this craft! I'll find us a way out. There has to be a hole in the wind!
Chrome meanwhile was sweating. This is really bad, we gotta escape! But there's no clear path...wait...an escape? Is that really the right move? He then remembered the time he encountered a bear while exploring. Humans are pretty damn weak. He had ran, of course, but the bear was moving at a faster speed then he was. Out in nature, if we turn our backs from a threat and run, it's game over! He had stopped and stood in front of the bear to intimidate it. So we can't! That was enough for the bear to run away, and Chrome took out a stick. He used it to open up the fuel supply.
"The only option we have is to force our way out with our brains and hearts! We gotta attack this thing head on!" He exclaimed to the trio, who all turned to face him. He stared at them for a few seconds. "Bad idea?"
"Good bad," Senku chuckled at him. "Since dropping down's not an option, we can try our luck and shoot up another few thousand meters instead. Do it right, and we'll pierce straight through this growing Cumulous Nimbus! It's an insane altitude, but we'll just barely avoid suffocating."
"That's actually the best option we've got," Sumi blinked at Chrome and then beamed at him. "Wow, you've really learned a lot from the Kingdom of Science, haven't you? And you didn't even know anything about this sky god!"
Ryusui had frozen, but replaced it with a smile a few seconds later. "That'd work. Not bad, Chrome. In that case, throw in all the fuel we have left!"
"Kay!" Chrome agreed and bent down. Senku and Sumi stepped up to him, and he looked up at the duo. The former chuckled as Sumi gave a knowing smile.
"We're gonna need a huge burst of height to beat that cloud, right?" He held up a jar of revival fluid with a smirk.
"Isn't that...?"
"The revival fluid that broke me out?" Ryusui finished for Chrome.
"Yup. We still had some extra leftover, thankfully," Sumi answered with a hand on her hip.
"It's a mix of alcohol and nitric acid. Naturally, it burns like crazy. Our last bottle..." He tossed it into the fuel. "Wish we didn't have to waste it...but it's worth it. You're about to witness the awesome power of liquid fuels!" The jar of revival fluid cracked inside before breaking and letting out a huge burst of air. Senku gave a nervous look as it was heading for him. Sumi reacted immediately and jumped in front of Senku, holding up her arms. She gasped as she was blown away off the balloon with wide eyes.
"Sumire!" All three shouted while looking at her.
Senku immediately jumped onto the handle, using that to gain more momentum as he leaped off from the basket. Ryusui and Chrome both gasped in shock, looking over the edge themselves. Senku reached out his hands to the surprised Sumi, grabbing her whip with one hand and her waist with the other. He then tossed the whip onto the edge, causing both of them to jerk to a stop once it went around the handle. Sumi instinctively hugged his neck, her eyes closed as they swayed back and forth a bit. Once she opened her eyes, she saw that her face was close enough to touch Senku's nose.
"Are you okay?" He asked her seriously.
"Y-Yeah, I'm fine..." She stammered and then realized his strength. She looked up at the whip to see his grip slipping. That, and the rain, meant that he couldn't hang on much longer. "Senku, the handle, you'll slip in seconds!" She saw the other end of the whip sticking out and grabbed it, wrapping it around his wrist tight to tie a knot. Now the two were secured to the basket, though were still underneath it. Ryusui and Chrome both sighed in relief.
The balloon let out another huge burst of air, Chrome and Ryusui bracing themselves. The balloon rocketed off towards the sky, soaring high. Meanwhile, Senku and Sumi hung on for dear life, the woman having squeezed her eyes shut as he hugged her tight.
"Alright!" Chrome smiled while standing up. "It's working!" He looked at the clouds around them. "That's it, where are you?"
"Heh," Ryusui gave a confident grin, a shadow over his eyes. He then took off his hat and threw it into the sky. He watched it soar towards a hole in the sky god.
"Ryusui, what are you doing?" Chrome wondered in utter confusion.
"Finding a more favorable updraft. A hole in the wind!" The brunet gasped, the captain glancing back at him. "Now! Give it the rest of our fuel!" He tossed some in himself. "Let's bust our way through this cloud demon's skull!" Chrome held onto the basket as a big burst of air shot up. They were getting farther and farther away from the sky god.
"Let it up, Ryusui!" Chrome shouted at the top of his lungs. They reached the hat and Ryusui grabbed it with a laugh, holding onto the rope.
"Another challenge conquered! The skies are mine!" He declared as they finally got away from the Cumulous Nimbus and into clear skies again.
At Ishigami Village, the sun was out as Kohaku was standing on top of the observatory. She was holding the flag as sort of a finish line flag. She waited patiently as the wind blew in her hair, and she saw something. Her eyes widened as she let out a soft gasp. "They're doing it..." She could see a balloon in the distance. "They're actually flying..." She gave a small smile, relieved to see them okay. "Hey Chrome...Ryusui...SENKUUUUUUUUUUU! SUMIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!" She laughed as she waved to them.
Gen was on the phone while overlooking the construction. He smiled as he heard the news, looking over to the crowd. "Everyone! Senku, Chrome, Ryusui, and Mire-chan made it to the village safe and sound!"
"Wait, what?" Ginro asked in utter shock, Magma and Kinro having the same expression as him. "How'd they get there already?"
"Seriously?! It's only been like a couple of hours!" Magma commented in utter disbelief.
"The world suddenly feels a whole lot smaller, doesn't it?" Kinro turned away with a small smile.
"Alright!" Taiju grinned while pumping a fist. Kohaku then flipped into the observatory. "The rest of us better get working too!"
"Heh. Everyone over there sounds spirited. Science elevated the balloon and their hearts!" The blonde gave a small smile.
"Ha ha ha," Gen gave a small laugh. "You're right! Everyone's excited as ell-hay. Imagine what they'll do if we complete the ship early."
That reminded Ukyo of something as he gasped. "Gen...on that topic, I've been wondering. It was obvious to everyone who would win the ship design contest. Why'd you bother?"
Gen gave a few seconds to think before giving a closed-eye smile. "Forcing is this thing in magic. You make a person choose a certain card," He held up his deck of cards, bringing up the joker. "Know why? Because making people choose for themselves, or at least making them think they chose for themselves, is incredibly important. People can't truly come together if their leaders don't let them become a part of the process."
Ukyo closed his eyes with an impressed look. "Oh, man. If you had sided with Tsukasa or Hyoga, I don't know what we'd do. I'm happy we've got you."
"The finish line..." Chrome looked towards it with some water dripping down his face. "We made it. No big deal for you though, eh Ryusui? With your skills, this must've been easy."
"Heh," Ryusui turned to him with a small smile. "You guys are no slouches either. Get a couple of pro adventurers together, and we can do anything. Finding that oil field will be a piece of cake." The two then shared a high-five, and bumped their fists together.
"Uhh," Senku called out from down below, getting their attention. They looked down to see Senku struggling to hold onto both the whip and Sumi. Both of them looked a bit annoyed as Sumi reached out her hand to take over for him. "The whole enemies to friends shtick is cute and all, but can we focus please?! The two of us are kinda holding on for dear life here! Think you can give us a hand?" The other two glanced at each other. "Hey!"
"Not until you two kiss," Chrome teased while looking down at them. Both of them looked shocked as Sumi blushed, though she replaced it with a growl, a red mark near her forehead. They really weren't gonna kiss just to save their lives over here. And in Senku's case, it was a dumb tactic to begin with, and he could tell Sumi wasn't mentally prepared for that.
"PULL US UP NOW!" The two scientists shouted up in unison. Ryusui and Chrome chuckled before bending down to grab the long end of the whip.
"Worth a shot," Ryusui commented, to their annoyance.
"Senku and Mire-Chan are smart. They know what gets people motivated," Gen told Ukyo and Kohaku, while the others were still working on the construction. "People...are power." Yuzuriha walked up to Taiju, Kinro, Ginro, and Kaseki with drinks.
The two jumped back into the basket. "Thank god we're back in this basket...and thanks for saving me, Sen," Sumi turned to him with a grin as she put her whip back around the hook.
"You thought I'd let you die? Not on my watch," Senku revealed with a small smile. "Because then I'd be breaking my promise. That's why you jumped in front of me, isn't it?"
"Yeah..." She revealed with a sheepish smile. "I'm just glad that you remembered my whip. Otherwise I'd go splat."
"Don't go saying stuff like that again..." Senku placed a hand over his face in exasperation.
"I'm sorry," She replied with a small giggle.
"You two are very close, huh?" Ryusui pointed out, getting their attention. "And yet you constantly clash in both how you act and what you're both like. Ha ha!" He snapped his fingers with a grin. "I always thought it was a mystery...but watching you two, I've solved it! Am I wrong?"
"Heh. No, not really."
"The whole yin-yang thing is too overused, I'd say. I guess you could call it night and day," Sumi shrugged a little.
"That's also overused too, you know," Senku gave her a semi-blank look.
"That's also overused too," She mocked and he rubbed the top of her head with a chuckle. "Hey!"
"Anyway, I agree with what you said, Chrome."
"What?" He asked in confusion and the two turned to him with smirks.
"There's a lot to learn about the world, and we wanna know it all too," They looked up ahead, their bangs flying past. "First and foremost, what's on the other side of it. Where the petrification beam came from."
"And then after that, wherever the journey takes us," Sumi smiled at their destination up ahead. "No matter how many years of science we learn, there's still a lot out there just waiting to be discovered."
"You can count on me, Senku and Sumi! I can take you to the other side of the planet!" Ryusui declared to them confidently. "Nothing's too far for me!" Sumi blinked at him using her actual nickname and not Mimi this time. She hummed, she and Senku approaching the edge.
"Alright. We'll milk this hot air balloon for all its worth. And find petroleum, the king of fuel. This is exhilarating..."
"Get excited!" He and Sumi said in unison while the others joyfully looked up from down below. A rainbow was also nearby.