"No way!" Suika exclaimed in shock. "They spoke to us? Who is this mystery person?" She wondered to Ruri, who was holding a basket of sweet flag. She turned to the little girl with a small smile on her face.
"This may just be wishful thinking, but perhaps there's another group of survivors somewhere across the ocean," She suggested as she, Suika, and another villager were sitting in one of the spaces from the rocks. Yo, who was standing nearby, had heard them. He was holding a log over his shoulder.
"It could be a rescue request, right?" He pointed out to them. "Some ship lost at sea might've picked up our signal."
"Then the message would be SOS or something. But a million whys is more like asking what we're doing," Nikki reminded him while a sign was placed over a small hut next to the pagoda. It was labeled 'Kingdom of Science War Room.'
"Worrying's not gonna stop anything!" Taiju said confidently with a smile, clenching a fist. "Let's leave it to the thinkers. There's still plenty of work to be done! Now let's get to it!"
Francois smiled while adjusting their gloves. "Yes, I couldn't agree with you more, Taiju."
Kohaku nodded in agreement with the both of them. "Too many cooks spoil the broth as they say. We should leave the strategizing to the guys in the war room. They heard the message firsthand, after all. Plus, they're the six sharpest minds in the Kingdom of Science." And those six were Gen, Ukyo, Ryusui, Chrome, Sumi, and Senku. "Our generals. Well, I'm not sure about Chrome." He gave an annoyed look as heard, since Kohaku was right outside. "He's smart, but a little too goofy for the title in my opinion."
He then popped his head out, looking pissed. "I AM NOT GOOFY!" He shouted to her in protest.
"You're proving my point!" She retorted back to him.
"Okay, now I'm a little worried," Ruri spoke up in a bit of concern after she and Suika saw this. Sumi sighed tiredly as she stepped out, raising a brow with her hands on her hips. "Hey, Sumi! Where do you want the sweet flag?"
"Huh?" She blinked in confusion glancing to Ruri, taking a minute to process the question. It was as if she didn't know how to answer. "Um, I'll get back to you on that. Chrome, come on, we have things to discuss, goofy or not," She pinched his ear to drag him back inside and he yelped in pain. "Although some people I'm more wary of than others," She closed her eyes while releasing her friend.
"Oh, come the hell on..." Senku grunted in disbelief, the other four looking between the two awkwardly. They were still at it with the whole love potion thing...Ruri and Suika glanced to each other.
"Did Sumi seem out of it to you? Because she definitely looked like it to me," Suika commented to the blonde, who glanced to other people walking around with Sumi's tools and plants.
"Well, she has a lot of things she needs to place, but I guess even she wouldn't know...maybe it's tiring her out," Ruri told her quietly so Sumi wouldn't hear. Suika then frowned towards the war room in concern.
Senku and Sumi were at the opposite ends of the table, Ukyo and Ryusui surrounding Senku. Chrome and Gen surrounded Sumi as they looked at a map on the table. Chrome let out a small grumble while rubbing the ear Sumi pinched. "Alright, let's review what we know so we're on the same page. One day, a wave of light washed over the planet, and turned all of humanity into stone. There was no known technology capable of such a thing back then. At the time Senku and Sumi willed themselves to break out of the stone, 3,700 years had passed."
"Heh," Ryusui gave a sly smile. "So we're thinking our Why-Man was behind everything, then?"
"I guess that name is as suitable as any," Ukyo said, since they didn't have much else of an identity to go off of.
"But there's no way he'd be alive after 3,700 years," Ryusui pointed out to everyone. "That is...unless he petrified himself along with us."
"Everybody slow down a sec!" Chrome suddenly exclaimed at them. "I admit, I got freaked out before too. But how can we be sure Why-Man is an enemy? There's a chance he'll turn out to be an ally."
"Yeah, there is a chance," Senku spoke up, his arms crossed as Ryusui had a small frown on his face. "It's just that we have no reason to consider that possibility. Let's say he is friendly. All that means is that we'll have overprepared and can breathe a sigh of relief."
"Even if he is friendly, he's got a funny way of showing it..." Sumi let out a yawn, which didn't go unnoticed by Gen. "Scared the crap out of me, that's for sure."
"I suppose," Gen stated and they turned to him. "But like she said, he didn't seem particularly neighborly out there on the water. You remember?"
Senku gave a toothy grin while speaking into the speaker. "So are you the mastermind?"
"He completely ignored Senku's provocation. The endless onslaught of whys ceased and he's been radio silent ever since."
"An unseen enemy," Ukyo tipped his hat uneasily. "One that could come for us from anywhere at any moment. We're in a tough spot."
Senku's eyes widened in realization. "THAT'S IT!" He screamed while pointing to the alarmed Ukyo and Gen. Their eyes bulged out at him while he laughed, walking up to the entrance. "This makes things a lot simpler. We just need to see this unseen enemy...with the new eyes of science," He glanced over his shoulder with a smirk.
Gen noticed Sumi looking towards the table tiredly.
Once the meeting was over, she stepped out, stretching her arms with a pop. "Oh, Mire-chan?" The mentalist spoke up behind her and she glanced back at him. "Can we have a little chat, you and I?"
The two were then sitting at the pagoda a few minutes later. "I noticed you're looking errible-tay, no offense. What's on your mind? Is it Senku again?" He sweated a bit with his hands in his sleeves; if she brought up the love potion thing again, he had no idea how he was gonna handle it. Because if looks could kill, Senku would've been dead in that war room hours ago.
"No, not at the moment anyway," She pushed her forefingers awkwardly, looking annoyed. "Although yes, I'm still mad at him for that. It's just...well, I'm the doctor, right? And I know I'm Senku's partner in this whole thing, but now that we have you guys, I'm starting to lose my touch a little. I've got a lot of tools and herbs scattered around, and I'm starting to lose track of them all...hence why I'm so tired today, I kept running around before the meeting trying to figure out where I put all my stuff and barely made it on time...I'm trying to see if I can do anything to help with Why-Man with my expertise, but I'm not sure I can with my thoughts scrambled."
"What? That can't be true, you're plenty capable. Just by watching you, you've provided insight on him already," Gen placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Yes, but how am I supposed to help when I'm not even organized compared to the five sharpest minds around?" She sighed slowly while hugging her knees. "Keep in mind I'm not as smart as Senku. When I first met the guy, he wanted nothing to do with me. And during my childhood, I wasn't exactly wanted either. I guess I'll just have to find something quick before I start becoming a sixth wheel..."
Gen rubbed his chin in thought, humming with a small smile. Judging by how he had seen some of her herbs around, some people had started taking notice. So it was time for him to do a little digging...
A flask was sitting on the table a little later. "An Erlenmeyer flask?" Gen asked in confusion while Kohaku picked it up. She then looked into it.
"We're gonna see the enemy through this?" She wondered while her eye was bigger and she blinked, looking around with it like a magnifying glass.
"Oh, surely that can't be it," Gen stated in disbelief, Senku looking up at him with an innocent look.
"No, that's it," He stated simply while holding a bowl of something.
"I was right?!" Kohaku exclaimed with wide eyes that she ended up being correct in something that Senku could've explained easily. Sumi then walked up with her own bowl of the same mineral Senku had.
"Got a job for ya!" Senku called out to Nikki and Taiju. "Power team!" The two flexed their arms, glancing to each other. "First we're taking this stuff from Chrome's huge gym collection," He held up a rock with different colored particles all over it. "It's called Sphalerite."
Chrome blinked in realization at the rock Senku was holding up. "Oh, yeah. I remember when we found those." They had found them while looking for tungsten in order to make the cell phone.
"We're gonna smash the hell—oh!" A rock hit Senku right in the face and Sumi's hair stood up on end.
"Eek! Senku!" She called out in concern. Magma and Taiju pounded the hell into the Sphalerite in rapid fashion. Kohaku then quickly mixed it afterwards, and Nikki held it up as a powder to the two, to the shock of Gen.
"Powdered instantly!" Gen exclaimed with wide eyes.
"Gonna smash the hell out of it..." Senku finished while holding his face in pain.
Sumi sighed while taking the bowl herself. "Guys...we appreciate it, but please don't do that again in close proximity or at least without a warning..." She gave a sweat drop while walking over to a table to place it down. Taiju blinked and then saw Senku.
"Ha, you make a good point. Sorry about that!" He said with a sheepish smile as Sumi came back, standing in front of Senku.
"Are you okay?" She moved away Senku's hand to examine him. Part of his face was red right where the rock had hit him. "I don't see a cut or anything," She grabbed a cloth and started wiping his face. He blinked in surprise to see her not mad at him for a change. Maybe because he was injured. She just stared while wiping him off, not saying a word.
"Well, at least it's a start..." Gen murmured awkwardly as Senku didn't react either.
"Then we dissolve it in water, pour it into this flask and wait," He explained to them once he was okay. "We wanna let it stick to the bottom," He then held out the flask with white powder on the bottom. "And we've got fluorescent paint!"
"This next part's an old trick," Kaseki took it from him, starting to stir it. "We gotta turn the flask into an extra-large vacuum tube. Same way as usual. Whoo-hoo-hoo! It's easier with all the room to work!"
Sumi gave him a small chuckle through her tired eyes. The flask then sat on a table, connected to a switch as everyone surrounded it.
"Hmm...despite the explanation, I still have no idea what this is," Ryusui spoke up in confusion, his arms crossed.
"It's okay, I bet it'll make more sense when we turn it on!" Suika exclaimed and Sumi smiled a little, gesturing to it.
"Go on ahead, Suika," She encouraged the little girl. Suika ran up and pressed the button, causing a little green ball to come into the flask. Everyone gasped from the glow that came from it.
"Just like with a vacuum tube, we use electrodes to accelerate thermions, aka electrons emitted by heat. And the fluorescent paint to the bottom of the flask lights up," The electron beam touched the flask, displaying it to everyone. "And the particles hit it." Everyone gasped again, Yo's mouth puckered in shock. "It's the birth of the display!"
Cathode Ray Tubes acquired!
"Sumi and I had been planning on making these puppies so we could have a proper display for the GPS," He cleared his throat awkwardly while glancing at her. "But that was easier than I thought!" He double high-fived Kaseki while Sumi just had her arms crossed, and the two chuckled.
"Well, in any case, it's a cool display," Sumi gestured to it.
"Could you really call this a display?" Gen wondered while peeking at it closely. "It looks more like, you know, a dot."
"Yeah, I think Senku's finally lost it. All that mad science made him go crazy, and Sumi too that she likes this stuff," Yo whispered to the mentalist, but she still heard it.
"What do you mean, what's up with me and liking this display? Maybe Senku had me like it," Sumi retorted back with her eyes closed.
"I didn't have you like anything!" Senku exclaimed at her while gritting his teeth, sighing deeply to get back to the point. "The beam creates the point, but moving it around turns it into an image. It's gotta be done at a precise rate. Left to right, top to bottom. That's how those old CRT TVs worked back in the day. They just did it across the entire screen."
"But how are we supposed to move the beam around so precisely?" Chrome wondered to the green-haired scientist.
"That's a good question. We're calling upon the power of a magic stone, the crystal!" Senku explained and Yo leaned in towards Gen again.
"Yikes, now he's talking about seeing our enemy in a crystal ball? The guy's definitely cracked up, no doubt!"
"He might've also done that to me," Sumi pointed out and Senku closed his eyes, a red mark near his forehead.
"That I'm ignoring! But relax, I'm half messing around over here," He then held up a white crystal. "There seriously is some magic power to be found inside a crystal, though."
"Uhh, we're still talking science, right?" Gen wondered to him, and they watched him polish a crystal. Suika stood nearby holding some water as the others continued to watch.
"This is ten billion percent scientific. Apply some voltage to a crystal plate, and it vibrates. At a ridiculously consistent tempo, too," He held up a crystal plate attached to some wires. "Those precise vibrations lead to incredibly clean waves of electricity. Almost like magic. So we make a sandwich out of two crystal plates." The electron beams were emitted between the plates. "And the electron beam passing between them makes a perfect curve." The display then expanded to show a straight line.
"The dot grew sideways!" Mirai exclaimed in awe, she, Suika, and Ruri staring at it in awe.
"It just spread out left to right and turned into a perfectly straight line!" Suika shouted in amazement.
"I didn't follow all of that, but it sounds like we have a crystal TV?" Mirai wondered curiously.
"Whoa, crystals are bad!" Chrome exclaimed next to Ruri, pumping his fists. "That's all I know so far!"
"So much power can be from one small stone..." Ruri looked up with a blush on her face in wonder. "The laws of nature...they're just so mystical!"
"Yeah," Senku gave a small smile. "And when we discover those laws, and use them to our advantage, you know what it's called? Science." Everyone laughed in awe while Sumi gave a small hum from them being so fascinated. Reminded her of when she and Senku came across Ishigami Village. Senku and Sumi stepped up to the table, the latter reluctantly. "For the final step, we're adding some vertical curves. All we do is connect our radio antenna to a crystal sandwich, tilt it vertically." She handed him the tools necessary with closed eyes. The straight line then turned into curves in between, everyone gasping except Ukyo.
"Of course!" He exclaimed as he finally realized what it was. "I recognize this, it's obvious!" He then chuckled a little, embarrassed he didn't figure it out sooner. "What kind of sonar operator am I? I should've been the first one to catch on. Seeing an unseen enemy...through the eyes of science!"
"Don't beat yourself up over it, Ukyo," Sumi let out another yawn, crossing her arms. "No one's perfect." He gave her a small smile and Ryusui snapped his fingers as he came up with the answer.
"It's a radar!"
The six generals took off in the motor boat. And just like last time, Sumi was sitting in the back, in the middle of Gen and Ryusui. "Just have to swap out the antenna for a microphone, and we've got an underwater sonar system!" Senku explained to the five. "Ukyo, this is your territory."
"GPS, radar, sonar," Ukyo tapped a metal stick between the two crystal plates, causing a reaction from the display. "This has all the technology of a modern boat now!"
Senku gave a small chuckle while driving. "I told you, didn't I? Humanity's strongest weapon has always been telecommunications. We're gonna pull back the curtain on you, Why-Man. I don't care if you're on land, up in the sky, or down in the water," He looked up ahead with a smirk. "First thing you said when you saw us making moves was why, and I wanna ask you the same question. You have something to do with the petrification, don't you?" Everyone except Chrome and Sumi had pleased smiles on their faces, as they knew that they'd figure it out.
Gen turned to Sumi still mad. "Come on, Mire-chan, aren't you determined too?"
"I would be if someone I thought I could trust didn't mess with my brain," She retorted and the others flinched, looking pale. Senku bit his lip in frustration. He kept his eyes up ahead as he wasn't going to do this now, but this was getting to be annoying.
Chrome rubbed his chin in thought at the display, clearing his throat to change the subject. "This bendy line shows us what's under the water, I get that. But this flat part is the ocean floor?" He pointed to the line on the side. "So...then what's this part? The zigzag thing right in the middle?" He gestured to the lowest line from the display, gasping as he looked up. "Senku, Ukyo, there's something in the water! And lots of it!"
Ukyo laughed while turning to Senku, who glanced at Chrome with a small smile. "Nice job, Chrome!" The archer gave him a big smile and thumbs up while the green-haired scientist chuckled.
"Half the reason Sumi and I wanted sonar in the first place was for this..." He started off as Ryusui and Sumi threw a large net behind the boat. "It's gonna be a long trip. The other side of the planet is no joke. Bread's great, but we need to be able to source food on the go too."
Chrome let out a gasp as there were lots of fish underneath them. "This thing doubles as a fish finder!" Ukyo gave a small smile, hearing both Sumi and Ryusui grunt. They both yelled as they pulled, amazing the others as there was a HUGE pile of fish in their net.
"What a haul!" Chrome yelled in disbelief at the two.
Radar and Sonar acquired!
Ryusui snapped his fingers with a laugh. "So what you're saying is...with our radar and sonar, we can line our path all the way across the world!" Chrome and Sumi were holding the net of fish. "And track down the mysterious Why-Man!"
"Yeah...honestly, I feel like thanking Why-Man," Senku spoke up, Sumi blinking at him in confusion. "We didn't even know what we were looking for until he decided to drop us a line." He let out a chuckle while grinning widely. "But luckily our new friend chose to enter the game all on his own. Thanks to that, we're a major step closer to figuring out the petrification."
"You sure make this sound rather un-fay," Gen replied playfully, a drop of sweat on his face.
"Ha ha!" Ukyo just smiled in response. "And while the enemy could surprise us at any moment, if Why-Man's creepy message was meant to be a threat thwarting us off...it's pretty funny how much of the opposite effect it's had." Gen flinched and then smiled softly in agreement. "That kind of thing doesn't work on Senku or Sumi."
Gen then looked up towards their destination as they had arrived. "Yeah, you're right. Those are just the type of people our dear Sumiku are."
"Again?" Sumi groaned at him, looking away.
All the villagers gasped in amazement to see the haul that they had brought in. Suika gave a beaming smile while Francois tied their apron around. "Wow, I've never seen so many fish in one place before!"
"Between my bread and the radar, our voyage will certainly not lack for food," Francois held up some knives and then sliced up all the fish quickly. Everyone gathered at the Restaurant Francois, where they served elegant-looking food made out of fish. Ganen had a bite, looking happy, and so did everyone else eating it.
"What a strange device," Kohaku commented while blinking at the radar on the table. "We can catch all the fish that we'll need with it. Radar and sonar are powerful beyond belief!"
"Yup," Ryusui stated nearby, eating some fish himself. "Whether it's the dark sea or the cloudy skies, that tech will let us see through anything," He had a bite, and once he said this, Chrome and Ginro's eyes widened.
"Let us see through..." Ginro started off slowly.
"Anything?" Chrome finished for him.
"How very intriguing," Ginro had a sketchy look on his face. "Does that mean, and I'm just asking, it can see through clothes? Specifically girls? Uh, I mean, specifically for science purposes. I've always had an appreciation for science."
"You are unbelievable!" Kohaku hugged herself, her eyes white with some lines underneath her right eye.
"Ginro, stop it!" Kinro hissed at his little brother.
"X-rays can kinda do that," Senku dug his pinky into his ears. "But you'd see through more than just the clothes."
"So it can see through...like anything?" Chrome murmured in thought, though not for the same reason as Ginro.
"That's not fair!" The blond pointed at him accusingly. "Chrome's thinking the same thing, and you're not berating him!"
"You guys...why are you like this...?" Sumi gave a large sweat drop at their behavior.
Kaseki then popped up. "Ah, he's not like you, Ginro. He's got that look in his eye. The one that means he's coming up with some new, exciting project! Not that I'd know what it is."
Senku then turned to Ukyo rubbing his chin. "You're the expert here. Any thoughts on our radar, Ukyo?"
"I think the biggest issue will be the output. We're gonna need more than just regular batteries," He stated while gesturing to the display.
"Don't worry. We're packing the ship with a bunch of huge-ass engines. They're gonna generate a ton of power," Senku explained with a smirk. "Anything we can add on, Sumi?"
"Whoo-hoo!" Kaseki jumped up before she could speak. "You two sure know how to fire me up with all of these impossible tasks!" He pumped a fist and the black-haired scientist giggled at his behavior.
"Okay, well...oh," Sumi faltered while crossing her arms. "Is this gonna be something that I suggest or is it gonna be something you want me to say because you used a love potion on me?"
"Ahh, Sumi, I keep telling you that I did not use it on you!" He growled with white eyes.
"Ehh...this just had to come up again..." Gen gave them a nervous look. The others started backing away nervously as they could tell this was not going to end pretty.
"I can't believe you're still on this ridiculous assumption," Senku placed a hand over his forehead. "I told you ten billion times, I didn't do anything. Even if I wanted to, which I didn't, I only made the gasoline. So you're not under a love potion!"
Sumi stomped her foot with her fists clenched, both of them glaring at each other. Sparks flew from their heads. "Then why did Taiju ask you if you were gonna use it on me?" She demanded to him angrily.
"How the hell would I know?!" He shouted in frustration.
"This is so awkward..." Everyone murmured while looking pale, blue lines over their heads.
"Come on, you two," Ryusui walked up with his hands on his hips with a small smile. He wrapped his arms around their shoulders, both of them frowning. "Didn't you wait 3,700 years to be together? I don't think he'd use a love potion on you. You don't trust him?" He turned to Sumi, who turned away with a huff.
"I trust him. I just don't trust the mad scientist side," She retorted while glancing back at Senku, her hand on her hip.
He scoffed, turned away from her also while his eyes were closed. "Well, I still wouldn't use it on my girlfriend," Once he said it, both he and Sumi gasped, their eyes wide. Sumi sweated a little at what he said, slowly turning to him. The others looked at him with wide eyes as well.
"Whoa. Did Senku say what I think he just said?" Chrome blinked rapidly at the two as her heart was beating fast. Hearing him say that for the first time...she didn't know if she should be happy or still angry.
"Ohhh!" Gen grinned widely at them. "So sweet, and he didn't even have to think on it!"
"Mm..." Sumi blushed while looking away from him. Senku had some slight blush lines over his cheeks, a hand over his mouth. He couldn't believe he blurted that out all of a sudden. It was unnecessary for the timing, but also he didn't hate it either.
"Heh," Ryusui grinned at the two of them. "If I were you, I'd use my greed to remedy this, seeing as how he wants you to be his girlfriend."
"Not one person is like you, Ryusui," She gently removed his arm and walked off. "So excuse me if that's not an option." Senku blinked as the others stared in silence. He then ran after her as she walked into the lab and he closed the curtains to the structure for some privacy. It was now total silence between the two as Sumi bit her lip, as she kinda blamed herself. If she wasn't mad at him, he wouldn't have felt the need to say it in a moment that was ill-timed. She bit her cheek as she walked over and sat on the workbench. He sat next to her and it was still continued silence until he broke it.
"I didn't mean to make things uncomfortable. But I didn't use anything on you. I don't need to...if it means that you still feel the same as you have for thousands of years," He stared at her, clearing his throat as his cheeks were flushed.
"Of course I do, it's just...Senku, did you...did you mean it when you said that...I'm your girlfriend?" She looked up at him with a frown.
"If I say yes, will you stop insisting I used a love potion on you? Because that's ridiculously troublesome of me and you know it," He deadpanned and she stood up with white eyes.
"That doesn't mean anything if it's from a deal! Can you answer the question, please?" Her frown deepened, as she had no idea how to take it. Was it an impulse on his part, or was he going to take it back?
He let out a long sigh, his eyes closed and he opened them seconds later. The only thing he could do was be honest. "...I...I think I did. I still can't tell if I'm doing this...relationship with you the way you want. But calling you my girlfriend is an illogical option..." She let out a sad gasp, about to say something when he chuckled. "Because after so long...you were always that from the whole start," He looked up at her with a smirk and tears welled up in her eyes with a happy smile.
"Aww! Senku!" She tackled him onto the ground and they both landed on the floor. He placed his elbows down to prop himself up, looking up at her sitting on his lap.
"Ha ha! Calm down, would ya? Sometimes it's hard keeping up with you," Senku replied while patting her head affectionately.
"I'm sorry, I can't help it," She gave him a closed-eyed smile. "I'm just so happy that my heart is pounding..." She confessed shyly and he hummed with a small smile.
"Good. I prefer it when you're excited. Gets me to feel the same way," He held her cheek and Sumi smiled at now being his girlfriend. She leaned down to kiss him, their lips about to touch as she pressed her forehead to his.
"Awww!" They both flinched, looking up to seeing the others gushing at them from outside, having pulled the curtain. Sumi yelped and jumped off of him as he turned around, still on the wooden floor. He had white eyes as they both looked really embarrassed.
"What the hell?! Ever heard of privacy?" He exclaimed in defense.
"We're just so happy for you guys, man!" Taiju shouted with tears flying from his eyes.
"And it was all for seeing Sumiku being happy and in love!" Kohaku gave a teasing smile and Sumi heaved a sigh, covering her face with one hand.
"Yeah, we're definitely not having these kinds of things happening in the lab anymore..." She muttered to Senku, standing up and waving her hands forward. "Alright, shoo! You guys have food to finish, don't mind us."
"You heard the woman! Come on, everyone, show's over," Gen ushered everyone away, some looking disappointed.
"Aww, but it was just getting good..."
"Ugh..." Sumi looked annoyed and then moved the curtain back, turning around to him with a blush. He was sitting on the ground, his pinky digging into his ear. After all of that, it was honestly gonna be a funny story looking back. "I'm sorry for how I acted with you...I should've trusted you."
"Heh. You know, I thought that this whole love potion thing was gonna bring more trouble than it did. But with you...it's not so bad," He admitted while standing up, hands on his hips.
"That's just how it works. We had our first...disagreement," She waved a hand and he scoffed playfully, a look of mischief on his face.
"Yeah, right after we even put this relationship to the test. Not the best first impression, I must say!" He replied gleefully and she froze, a fearful shadow over her eyes. She let out a scream of horror, as this might be where they break up. I should've known he'd change his mind and then break up with me after all of this! It's gonna be so awkward just being friends with how long we lasted!
"I-I just know you too well! I didn't mean to make things worry, I'm sorry!" She whined while panicking and waving her hands. "But even then, that's no excuse, I shouldn't have been so mean to you, Senku!"
"Heh heh," He chuckled and looked down at her with a small smile. "Calm down, I was just joking with you. I have no plans to break up with you. We're still trying things out, remember? So relax. And I can't say I blame you for assuming such ridiculous ideas of me," He gave a small shrug. "We've been science partners for years, after all."
"Kyaaaa! You're such a jerk!" She screeched and then pouted at him.
"Hey, you chose me of all people," He remarked and she let out a sigh, smiling. She was just glad that they were able to work past this. Sumi stepped up and hugged him with a smile. He blinked as he slowly wrapped an arm around her, and only one. His arm felt stiff against her back, but she didn't seem to mind it.
"Yeah, and like I said before, I'm willing to wait to see how things go," She looked up at him, beaming and he noticed her tired eyes for the first time. "So I'll be patient as long as things go in ways we're both okay with."
He decided not to push it as they had other things to do. Heh, what are you doing to me, Sumi? Getting me all distracted is gonna be the death of me because of you. He then leaned down with his eyes half closed, pressing her lips against hers. She blinked but then returned the kiss, a small blush on her face.
Once the two stepped out, the others were relieved to see them back to normal and not fighting. Kaseki was pumped up as the two came to a stop near the table. "Ha ha! Now that you two have made up, these massive engines are the last step we need to complete before the ship's ready?"
"Yeah..." Senku answered, giving a look of thought. "There's just one teensy little problem, though. We're talking about producing gigantic steel machines. Not the kind of tiny creations we whip up in the lab. We're now in the realm of manufacturing. And we're gonna need mountains of iron and oil to make this happen."
Suzu, Kohaku, Suika, and Sumi were in the river, trying to collect iron sand with their magnets. However, they weren't coming up with much. Kohaku looked at the tiny amount in her hand. "Looks like we're starting to run out of iron sand," Suika whined a bit with tears in her eyes.
"There's only so much we can scoop up from the river," Kohaku murmured and Sumi sighed.
"Dang." She placed her hands on her hips, blindfolded as she looked to the side. And yes, it was because of Kohaku being almost naked. "Iron from the river is starting to deplete because of previous projects. We need to find another place to gather the amount we'll need, or else we're not going anywhere."
"Oh, Senkuuuuu~!" Gen called out and he turned around from the table he was standing in front of. "I have something that needs your upmost attention!"
"What is it? We have work to do, remember?" He raised a brow at the mentalist. "We've gotta find a solution to our iron situation."
"Oh? Even if it doesn't have anything to do with our dear Sumire?"
Senku blinked at Gen, wondering what he was talking about.
Chrome was standing in the lab, rubbing his chin while looking at the radar system. The radar sees through things...like the sky and the sea. Well, what about land? Could we see through the dirt to find iron and other stuff, then? He gave a small smile from his deduction. I need this coil thing to shoot out those...magnetic waves or whatever they're called. What if I attach it to the radar screen?
He then picked up the coiled wire and put his other hand over the switch. "Alright. Time to give it a shot!" He pressed the button and the radar turned on to be a straight line. "Better run a test by putting it up to some rocks," He waved the wire over the iron nearby, causing a reaction in the radar. His eyes bulged out in shock looking at it.
Kohaku peeked into the lab, but didn't see anyone inside. She turned around to Suika approaching. "Any idea where Chrome disappeared to?"
"He ran off," She explained as he was speeding in the forest. "And he had this crazy big grin on his face. He was like this is bad! It could actually work! Or something."
Meanwhile, Senku, Ryusui, Gen, and Ukyo were busy building something with help from the villagers. The green-haired scientist grinned while looking at the blueprint in front of him.
Chrome panted when he stopped, looking up at a mountain, but not just any old one. 'Man...this place takes me back...' Kohaku slammed Kinro's golden spear into the ground, having used her rope hair-band to have tied the lightning rod to the spear. She jumped out of the way as lightning struck the spear.
Senku chuckled breathlessly staring at it, Sumi at his side. "Well, take a look at that! The lightning god descends!"
"Now we've got lightning for our generator," Sumi smiled as she looked on.
'It's the bald mountain where Kohaku, Senku, Sumi, and the rest of us captured lightning together!' He had a big grin on his face while looking at the piece of iron in his hand. I've rigged the radar to react to magnetic iron. And this is the spot where it came from!
Chrome held up a pot of water that had a magnet on a leaf. "I just so happened to find this bad boy on top of that bald mountain one day!" The cell phone was nearby as he placed the coiled wire around his waist. Try to remember. Where did I find it when I explored here as a kid? There's gotta be more under the ground! He then pointed it around, trying every single spot he could find. The radar didn't react, however. This didn't stop him one bit, though, and when he still hadn't gotten something, he stood up. He wiped his forehead with the back of his wrist. Then there was a buzz as the line moved, for a few seconds, but it still caught his eye. He gasped sharply at this.
"It moved...I-I'm not just seeing things, right?" He stammered in disbelief, placing the coil inside of a bamboo tube. "No, it definitely moved! Alright, let's do this!" He had the tube attached to a rope, moving the radar down. "Come on, underground bamboo radar!" There were radio waves coming from the radar the further he moved it down. As he continued moving the rope, it slipped, but he managed to catch it in time. "Aw, bad. This is tricky work, but it's kinda fun too! Feels like I'm up to some next level treasure hunting!" The waves got stronger and the radar reacted to it. He laughed as he stood up in excitement. "YEEEEEEEEEEEEEAH!"
Senku, Sumi, Suika, Ryusui, and the power team were heading to his location by Steam Gorilla after he called them. "SENKUUUUUUU! SUMIIIIII!" He waved to them from the entrance as the car skidded to a stop. Chrome pointed to the radar display in excitement, steam coming out of his nose. The two looked it over and Sumi gasped in shock.
Senku gave a wide grin, chuckling. "You made a metal detector! The electromagnetic waves make it a radar for the Earth, basically." The power team ran up as he was moving down the rope. They had rope for Taiju to climb down there. "Since the coil's magnetized, the induced current gets pulled in by magnetite when it's near some. Resource King Chrome does it again." Taiju dug further down with a big smile on his face. "You used science and your own two feet..." Senku stood up, both he and Sumi holding out some iron in their hands. "To explore your way to an iron deposit."
"I'm so proud of you, Chrome! You've really helped us out in getting us more iron for the ship," Sumi smiled happily at him. "And you didn't even know what it was just like with the water wheel! You've learned so much in science, you'll be catching up to us in a year," She chuckled and he gave a happy smile. The others all cheered for their find.
Later that night, the iron deposit was lit up as they were moving around all the iron that they found. A seesaw tilted back and forth in the center.
Mine acquired!
Chrome was smiling proudly while overlooking it all, steam coming out of his own. Kohaku and Ginro looked up at him smugly. "Look at him being all smug!" Ginro teased a little.
"I know. Nobody build him up too much, or he'll never come off his high horse," Kohaku stated knowingly and he turned to them.
"You don't have to worry about that," He replied back playfully, pumping a fist. "Not gonna start acting like some big-shot. It's just that I got this idea in my head, so I ran an experiment, and wha-bam! It actually worked, and just like I thought!" He placed his hand over his eyes with a small blush. "This is bad! It's crazy fun!"
Senku gave a small chuckle while Sumi gave him a pleased smile. "Oh yeah, we know that feeling. Success is rare, so enjoy it while you can. Sumi used to always be so relieved and then pass out from excitement of getting stuff done. Especially when I quizzed the hell out of her when she first started."
"That's because it was so rewarding," She closed her eyes at the memory, humming. "You used to drill me nonstop just so I'd be ready to tackle on your model rockets with you."
"Ha ha! You'd look like a zombie by the time we were finished," He laughed while hugging his stomach and she grumbled a bit. She knew he was just joking and decided not to remark at that one.
"I've gotta admit, this is quite the haul we've got here," Kohaku commented at the giant pile of iron in front of her.
"I told you," Senku and Sumi walked over to her. "We're entering the age of industrial manufacturing. Which means we need way more resources than before." One of Tsukasa's men tripped and fell, dropping all the iron from the basket. The two looked over and then turned around to Yo, who placed down his own haul. Sumi turned around and ran over to help up the man who fell.
"Holy hell!" He cried out on the ground. "No way am I gonna be able to carry this all the way back!"
"Oh, yeah," Chrome realized that carrying this all back would be way too much to ask for. "That's right. We haven't thought about how we're gonna haul off everything where it needs to go. This stuff's weight is no joke."
"That's a good point," Kohaku agreed with the brunet. Sumi helped up the man and quickly put the iron back in the basket, almost at the same speed as Yuzuriha. The man's eyes were shaped like hearts as she didn't pay any mind to it. "It's hard enough carrying it through this cave, and that's just the beginning. We're surrounded by mountains, and we need to cross the sea..."
Sumi glanced up at Senku, who smirked and she gave a knowing expression as she joined his side. Chrome and Kohaku turned to the duo in confusion. "Did you know the Kingdom of Science is over 100 people strong now? That's enough to split up and handle multiple projects."
"Thanks to us integrating Tsukasa's men, we have plenty of hands to assign this stuff too. Should be easy once it's all sorted out," Sumi gestured to the men nearby still working.
"Senku! Sumi!" Kaseki called out, getting their attention. "How are these pieces looking to ya, good buddies?" He was holding some iron bars, wearing a construction hat. And his shirt was off, so Sumi just looked upwards.
"Great. They're perfect," Senku stated in approval. "Ten billion points to you. Alright. We're leaving you in charge, Kaseki," Senku placed his hand over Sumi's back and gently guided her away. She sighed in relief once she put her head back down.
"Thank you for all your help, Kaseki! We'll check in on you later, okay?" She called out without looking back.
"Whoo-hoo! You got it, no problem at all! Getting me fired up the way you two do is a reward in of itself!" He pumped a fist as Chrome, Magma, Yo, and Kohaku all joined him to carry the bars. "I hope you're ready to put some work in, Chrome! The craft team is about to get stuff donezo!" This earned a look of confusion from Chrome.
"Guess the two of us should check on how things are moving outside too, yeah?" He asked the black-haired scientist.
"Mm-hm. Can't have everything work if we don't look at progress," She agreed with him.
"What are you guys talking about, Senku?" Kohaku ran up to join them. "Wait," She examined the two, hands behind her back curiously. "Are some of our people working on something else?"
"We're making a huge, fancy distribution network," Senku revealed to the blonde.
"That way it'll be easier to move around everything we need for the ship," Sumi smiled with a hand on her hip. "In fact, Gen and Ukyo should be on their way over to the next meeting point right about now," She looked towards the sky.
He was driving the Steam Gorilla, but was coming across a bunch of bumps in the road. "Y-y-y-you know, if they g-g-g-get the I-I-iron through the aves-cay, w-w-we might be able to d-d-drive the rest of the way by c-c-c-c-ar!" He hit a huge bump, Ukyo's hat falling from his head as the car was forced to come to an immediate stop. And some iron fell from the car as well. His hat landed over the pile and he grabbed it. He then sat up from the back wearily.
"I'd be more on board if the road wasn't so rough..." He murmured with a small frown.
"My body agrees..." Gen whined with tears in his eyes. Some black substance was being poured up ahead, and they both flinched in shock. Kohaku, Taiju, Nikki, and Magma were pouring asphalt onto the ground in front of them. All of them had cloth over their mouths, Nikki and Taiju wearing protective gear. Gen's eyes bulged out in utter shock. "WHAT?! No, we can't possibly be at paved roads already!"
Ukyo chuckled sheepishly behind him. "We've made the jump from a primitive stone community to widespread infrastructure quick."
"Yup," Senku confirmed as he and Sumi arrived. "When the world started using oil, it changed the whole game. Though to be fair," He leaned against the car while Sumi leaned in front of it. He dug his pinky into his ear as they both had mischievous smiles on their faces. "Asphalt is 90 percent gravel, so we were always pretty close to it, anyway."
Gen was shaking as his eyes bulged out yet again. "Are you for eal-ray?!"
"Uh-huh!" Sumi turned around with a bright smile. "You just need to distill petroleum, dry aggregate, have sufficient fluidity of the asphalt, heat both, and boom! We get asphalt pavement," She gestured to the work the power team was doing. Yo was wearing a gas mask while stirring.
"That's surprising," Taiju spoke up as while pouring hot asphalt. "Since it's dark, and flows out all goopy like mud...I was sure it'd be mostly oil."
"Indeed," Gen murmured, both his and Ukyo's eyes closed.
"We're not wasting our precious oil like that, you big oaf," Senku retorted with a big grin.
"Yeah, we're not planning on wasting all the oil we recently found. Ryusui has the rights to the oil field, we already had to buy it off of him," Sumi gave a small sweat drop.
"Gravel and waste byproduct, right?" Ukyo guessed correctly. "Can't get more bang for your buck than that!"
The four then stood on top of the machine, both Senku and Sumi stirring. All four had cloths over their mouths so the two could see how it was done. "When we boil down oil...asphalt is what gets strained out. Firm it up with some gravel, and spread it." The power team and Yo started pouring it.
"Go!" Nikki called out as they tossed the barrels of it into the air. "Gorilla!" Gen's eyes bulged out a third time, going even wider at the sight. "Gorilla, Gorilla, Gorilla..."
"Smack the heck out of it, and it's done!" Senku revealed as the power team chanted 'Gorilla Team while pounding with mallets.
"Whoa..." Gen's mouth opened wide at the sight in front of him. "The road's being built in the blink of an eye...so scientific, yet still a tad primitive," He admitted as within seconds, the road in front of them grew more and more in pavement.
"Who needs heavy machinery when you've got the power team, huh?" Ukyo wondered while watching.
Sumi stood on her tip toes while waving to the team getting further away. "Thank you, power team! Looks great!" She called out encouragingly. "Keep up the good work!"
Ukyo then pulled Senku up so he could sit in the back. "Making a whole network of roads would be too much to ask," He started off as he turned around, reaching out his hand. Sumi grabbed it and he used up his flea-like strength to pull her up. She landed on his lap, and he didn't really mind or react to it. "But just covering the worst part on the shortest route should be plenty."
Gen then took off, and it was indeed much easier to drive through. "Oh yeah! This is way better, and very much appreciated!" He told them as he came up to the next point, a boat containing Kinro, Ginro, and Jasper.
"You're welcome! I figured my very good friend needed a bit of a break from the worst of this route," Sumi gave a small smirk and he whined.
"I thought I was promoted to best friend now that you and Senku are together-together...!" He cried out and she sweated awkwardly.
"Now that you've made it to the river, you can leave the rest to us!" Ginro bowed to them. He then moved his hair around like he was a model or something. "Who better to take it from here than the people of the water?" He giggled as there were sparkles around him.
"You hardly even rowed that boat, Ginro," Kinro corrected him in annoyance. "Sit down!"
"Transporting stuff by water is smart," Ukyo gave a small smile while picking up a bag. "I mean, it's at least a lot more efficient than doing it all by land."
Ryusui popped out of nowhere, alarming Ginro. "Ain't that the truth!" Sumi blinked as she silently wondered where he came from. "It's one of the upsides of this long, narrow island we call Japan. And fun fact, the Nanami Conglomerate got its start in nano-period, cargo vessel sales!" He gave a proud smile, Gen giving a nervous smile behind him.
"Suddenly everything makes a little more sense. Is that how your ancestors got rich?"
"Yup!" Ryusui answered with that grin still on his face. The three took off, Kinro rowing in the back. Ginro was sitting on top of the haul, not even rowing just like his brother said. Sumi waved to them from her spot.
"Everything outside is ready," Gen stated as he and Ryusui walked inside of the bald mountain. "But now we have to prep this orribly-hay bumpy hill so it's easier to carry that painfully heavy metal up it..." He came to a stop, thinking that they had to do more work just to get the iron out of the mountain, which had a lot of inclines just to get out. He then gasped as he looked up ahead in shock. Ryusui came to a stop next to him, his arms crossed.
"Now that we've reached the age of manufacturing, we're at the point where a single team of two geniuses won't cut it. We need someone with leadership qualities to bring out the best in everyone. We need...someone trained for the job," He then remembered all of his study sessions of when he was a boy. "I had lessons drilled into me from an early age. Keep your emotions in check. Never indulge in passions."
The younger Ryusui gave a small smirk. He then ripped up what was on the table, holding up a model ship to the shock of his tutor. "But I never believed in any of that crap! My leadership style is different! A real leader's gotta know how to have fun. No one will follow a stiff. The best leaders have one thing in common: they know how to bring joy to their people, to the rest of the world!" Gen gave a small smile, taking in what the captain said.
"Oh yeah? That philosophy puts me at ease," He said knowingly, since with Senku and Sumi around, combined they technically were what Ryusui had described. Senku, Sumi, Chrome, Nikki, and Yo all shouted in excitement while riding a mine cart. "Because our Kingdom of Science is a perfect match!"
Senku chuckled as they rode down the track they had built earlier. "There's only one way to get around in a mine!"
"Mine carts!" Yo cheered as they jumped over a hill. Sumi jumped a bit from the height, hugging Senku's waist instinctively. She then laughed by how fun the ride was, her hair flying behind her.
Mine cart complete!
"This is bad!" Chrome exclaimed as they landed and continued their speed. "But in a fun way! You know what? I don't care if you're the mastermind behind the petrification. We're coming for you, Why-Man!" Senku had a big grin on his face, thinking the same thing. "After we gather enough resources to do some insane science, you're next on our list!"
"It may have taken a lot of work, but the Kingdom of Science's resource network is complete!" Senku exclaimed with his bangs flying around.
"Time to really get to work, you guys! Next stop, the first clue of our mystery!" Sumi smiled brightly up ahead.
Once they had returned from their trip in the mine, Senku, Chrome, Ukyo, Gen, and Ryusui told the black-haired scientist that she needed to see something. Sumi was blindfolded while walking, guided by Chrome and Gen. "Why exactly am I being blindfolded again?" She tilted her head in confusion as the others all just smiled.
"If you see it beforehand, you'll ruin the surprise," Senku spoke up with a chuckle, looking over his shoulder. "And you do love those, don't you?"
"I do love surprises..." She pressed her hands together while smiling. She then dropped her smile, clenched fists as she looked annoyed. "But if they involved you, that doesn't make it easier on me! Especially when we have important things to do!" She exclaimed with a red mark near her forehead.
"Relax, Mire-Chan," Gen grinned at her. "This is very important, you know!"
"Anything involving you already is not easing my suspicion," She deadpanned and he looked at her with wide eyes.
"Eriously, say?!" He exclaimed in disbelief; though, could he really blame her? Almost always, Gen was up to something.
"Ha ha!" Ryusui snapped his fingers while he and Ukyo were walking behind Senku. "And don't you worry your little head, this one's free of charge!" He boasted confidently to her.
"Money isn't on the table here, you know," Chrome looked at him in annoyance.
"We just need to show you something, Sumi," Ukyo assured with a small smile and they finally came to a stop.
"Alright, we're here," Once Senku stopped walking, he turned around to grab Sumi's hand, pulling her forward. He stood behind her to remove the blindfold and she gasped at what she was looking at. The war room had been extended...as she was standing in the doorway of a medical bay, filled with medical equipment and herbs. The dock had been extended towards the left side to include the expansion. "Sumi, allow us to introduce the Kingdom of Science's first medical wing." She slowly turned to the sign above the entrance.
"We'll add one to the ship as well. And we all agreed that you'd be perfect to be in charge of it~!" Gen sung a little, hands in his sleeves.
Tears were in her eyes as she silently looked at the sign: Six Wise Commanders' Clinic. "Gen told us what you said to him, so we wanted to help," Ukyo spoke up with a smile.
"It's got all the medical herbs, tools, and supplies you'll need," Senku smirked at her. "Now you don't have to worry about your things scattered everywhere or having to organize everything."
"And it's connected right next to us, so you won't be too far away if you need anything," Chrome stated while pumping a fist.
"It'll be taken from your cut of the oil, though," Ryusui commented and they gave him a glare.
"I love it..." She finally spoke up, turning around to them happily. "Thank you so much..."
"And another thing I need to tell you..." Senku stepped forward, causing her to twitch. She looked up at him, wondering what he was going to say...and then he grabbed her ears, pinching them hard. "Stop second-guessing about what you could do to help against Why-Man around here! You think it's easy for me to get anything done without you constantly hovering over me?" He asked while towering over her. The others all sweat-dropped as they were expecting something...a little more romantic. But then again, they should've expected this since it was Senku. Even if it was Sumi as his girlfriend, didn't mean he completely changed or did stuff like that in public all the time...
"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, owwwwwwwwww!" She complained while tears streamed down her face. She eventually pushed his hands off. "Why'd you have to go and do that for?" She whined while rubbing at her ears.
"You're such an idiot sometimes," He placed his hand on her head and she looked up. "Of course we need you. Who else would be my science partner? I could've chosen anyone, and yet I picked you to keep around. So don't ever forget that, Sumi. It'd be illogical if you did."
Sumi beamed up at him happily, as the other four smiled. "I won't. I ten billion percent promise!"
Later it was now nighttime. Both Senku and Sumi were asleep in sleeping bags when someone approached them. They then bowed while standing in front of the duo. "Senku, Sumire." They both flinched in alarm, waking up immediately to see Francois standing with Ryusui. He had a big grin on his face looking at them, and already they didn't like where this was going at all. "Greetings to you both."
"What the hell is this?" Senku muttered while rubbing at his eyes.
"Can't this wait until morning?" Sumi yawned a bit while looking up at them.
"Ha ha!" Ryusui snapped his fingers, alarming them again. "Not when you two have made it official!"
"Master Ryusui has reserved a table for Restaurant Francois specifically for your first date," Francois revealed to them and their eyes widened comically big in unison. Sumi gave out a shocked sound as the two were dead serious about this.
"...I'm sorry, what? First date?!" Sumi's face turned red while Senku was not amused at all.
"You woke us up for that?" He dug his pinky into his ear.
"Yup! You wanted privacy, and the greediest man gets what he wants to make that happen," Ryusui revealed and Sumi could only sit there in bewilderment.
"Well," Senku sighed while getting out of his sleeping bag and then stood up. "I guess tonight's a good time as ever since we've been putting in a lot of labor lately. Heh heh heh," He then looked down at the baffled Sumi, a hand on his hip. "Time to really get to work on this relationship of ours. Get excited, Sumire, you and I are experiencing our first date tonight."