Angel: Eeeeeeey! I just said two chapters ago to not ask me about the love interest for the My Hero Academia story. So laratrevisanello, knock it off please. I'm literally 4 episodes away from finishing season one, so everything's already set in stone. Seriously, I don't wanna get a plethora of reviews asking me to change it to their favorite or to spoil who it is. So if anyone else does that and they're a user, I might have to block you.
I'm still not gonna spoil who the love interest is, because then it's not a spoiler anymore if I do that. When it is revealed later this year and it bothers someone that damn much, my suggestion would be to write the story yourself with who you wanted as long as you ask me first. Honestly, no matter who I picked, I'd still get at least a few people trying to get me to change who it is. It's great that you love a certain character more than I did enough that you wanted that character instead-it's just that this is my choice here and I wish the best to people who wanted their choice more. I can't stress this enough for the life of me: I. do not. pick a love interest. based on influence lol Everyone else is free to guess, I'm just not gonna confirm or deny anything. If you ask me to have it be a certain person, uh, too bad! The answer is that I'm not making changes when I'm nine episodes in with a choice I'm sticking with. Sorry if it's really that much of a problem when it's my story. I'm still taking ideas for the story, you just can't have the love interest; and yes, that is my final answer.
Moz jumped up while wearing the cloak, the guards looking up in alarm. He was wearing the cloak that Yuzuriha had made for him. "It's all riding on your ridiculously powerful shoulders, Master Moz, at least for now," Senku told him from the cell phone. "This little night raid should beat some fear into the guards!" After he knocked them all down with ease, he looked up towards Oarashi, the only one standing. The man growled at the warrior, shaking. He then roared while racing forward, and Moz just stared at him.
Oarashi growled the next morning telling the story to Ibara and Kirisame. "I don't know who all these hooded warriors are, but they're beyond strong! Even with my miracle power, I, the great Oarashi, struggled to defeat them." Ibara and Kirisame both looked disinterested hearing his story, however. "So I'd reckon that they have to be on the same level as Moz..."
Moz just looked on with a small smirk on his face. They are on my level. Though fundamentally stupid, he's oddly perceptive. He then remembered something Gen told him before. "You'll wanna target the confident, braggart-types among them. Since they won't want to come off as weak, they'll make you sound that much more amazing!" He gave a small smile, as that was exactly what they accomplished with the night raider attacks.
"Alright. This sneaky operation is simple, but should still be effective," Senku explained to the Kingdom of Science, as they were looking at something. "Very soon, we'll be able to make our move."
"And in turn, we'll have the petrification weapon and stop the highest ranks from things getting too far," Sumi smiled, hands on her hips. "And then we can save the others from both the ship and on the island when that's done."
"Once our phantom warrior thoroughly freaks the enemy forces out, it's go time," Senku continued with one of his trademark smirks. "Step one: we'll discreetly plant our aerial combat drone somewhere that's sure to be a good spot for takeoff. Step two."
Figures in hoods popped up from the distance. "Look!" Moz had a devious smirk on his face from the bushes. "The hooded brutes are about to strike. Here they come!" He pointed at the group, alarming both Kirisame and Ibara.
"Step three."
Kirisame tossed the petrification weapon. "Never fear! I'll petrify them all!"
"Step four."
Senku and Sumi popped up with big trolling grins on their faces as the drone popped and put it into its mouth. "Oh no!" Kirisame cried out with white eyes in a panic.
"It's simple, yes," Gen spoke up hesitantly with a nervous smile. "But simple and likely are different things. You really should factor in your rotten luck since your plans don't ever go accordingly. Honestly, I can't even tell if it's you or Mire-Chan anymore."
"Probably the both of us," Sumi mumbled to herself, since she had lots of guys falling in love with her, and she fell in love with a guy who wasn't even interested in her at the start. And then she thought that with Ruri and Kohaku, she wouldn't even get to confess to him at all. Oh, and both Hyoga and Moz shared interest in her, even though she had no intention of siding with either of them. Because the former was a guy who practically killed Tsukasa and tried to do the same with her and Senku. While the latter was just an annoying pervert who she had to try and flirt with to get off their backs for now...She shuddered from the memory of him cutting open half her top just to get a reaction out of her, which he hopefully would never do again...
"Maybe," Senku turned to the mentalist with a small smile. "This is the only way, though. Although I hope you don't pass out on us when we're going through with this given the amount of half-naked dudes around here," He gave Sumi a teasing smirk and she flinched, blushing in embarrassment.
"I would not!" She pouted while protesting towards him. "You already know my limits, you're just saying that for the sake of it."
He chuckled at her and then patted her on the head. "Yeah, yeah, believe all you want..." In truth, he just wanted to see her pout again. He already knew that it was only 75 to 100 percent of someone being nude that she would have a reaction. Hence why she never reacted to Soyuz or any of the guards of the inner palace or even Moz himself. The way her pout gets is always exhilarating for me. Even when we weren't in this relationship together, it was one of the few things about her I had a reaction seeing.
Ryusui let out a small sigh. "It's as good a strategy as any, but there's one giant problem," He spoke up, getting their attention as he had a frown on his face. "Senku, Sumi...you know that Moz is gonna show up for the finale, don't you?"
Moz had a sly expression looking towards Oarashi, Kirisame, and Ibara. "How very unexpected. If these mysterious thugs are really so fierce, Kirisame and I will have to crush them ourselves."
"You will?!" One of the guards exclaimed happily while the crowd of them cheered.
"No one can beat the invincible tag team of Moz and Kirisame! Those fools are dead!"
Ibara was standing behind a guard, eyeing Moz closely as something felt very off to him. The way that Moz was going about this was setting off some alarms for the old man. "You said it!"
"So yeah, it's guaranteed," Ryusui could just picture it now. "The second our drone grabs the weapon from Kirisame, Moz will turn his blade on us and take his prize. Or should I say prizes since his intentions with Sumi aren't exactly a secret."
Some of them gave sounds of unease at the thought as Ryusui frowned deeply. Moz compared to Hyoga and Tsukasa was definitely way worse in terms of a threat...his power levels compared to them were vastly different. And unlike Tsukasa, he wasn't willing to kill every single one of them, just Senku for Sumi...
"Which is precisely why we're working on a counter-Moz plan," The green-haired scientist informed, pointing to the spinning wheels of the lab nearby. They whipped around to see Kaseki at work, wearing a mask while doing some metal work.
"Oh-ho! A damn shame. Dismantling my dear glass-blowing steel pipes just breaks my heart in pieces, too!" He lamented while concentrating and removing them.
"Don't worry, Kaseki," Sumi spoke up with a small smile. "We'll make new ones when we're able to make time for it!"
"Once we cut 'em into eight short, macaroni-shaped tubes, we'll stick 'em in a wheel!" Senku revealed a metal fidget spinner, with the eight tubes inside of it.
"Look!" Suika smiled while spinning it around her finger. "It just keeps spinning around!"
"We made another fidget spinner?!" Gen shouted in disbelief watching her.
"Yeah, what's wrong with that, Gen?" Senku popped up behind him with a devious grin on his face. "Those little gizmos are useful for way more than just distraction."
"Why do you like putting down fidget spinners so much?" Sumi popped up next and blinked at the mentalist. "We don't make anything for no reason, you know..."
"I built them like you asked," Kaseki spoke up while looking at the materials on the table. "But I have no idea what these are for. Honestly, I wanna work on the drone!"
Chrome popped up next to him, eyeing the objects in confusion. "I was imagining some kind of bad weapon since it's a counter-Moz thing." What they were looking at, though, wasn't unfamiliar to those born from the modern world. Ryusui and Ukyo gasped in realization, Yuzuriha having white eyes herself looking at it.
"Is this what I think it is?" She asked a little nervously.
Chrome was trying to figure out what exactly they were looking at. Suika hummed in thought while pointing at the three. "Everyone from the good ol' days seems to know exactly what it'll be."
"Of course," The brunet gave a knowing smile; it had been a while since he had this feeling of knowing what it was, and yet learning that Senku and Sumi had beaten him to it.
"It's not too complex, in terms of structure, at least," Senku commented while looking at the parts.
"Yeah, I guess not," Ryusui agreed with him. "I recall inmates fashioning some from junk they had on hand once."
"Back then, you didn't even need a license or registration or even a serial number to create them. At that point, they're seen as improvised. But it still had to be detectable by federal law in order to even keep one like this," Sumi hummed a little, her eyes a bit forlorn looking at the table.
"All the internal stuff is where things can get tricky," Senku turned to the blond. "Pack gunpowder made from nitric acid into a small pipe, shove a pachinko ball in, and cap it..."
"Oh!" Gen flinched in realization at what Senku was getting at. "Then the gunpowder packed into the pipe goes boom! And the ball inside goes zoom! Yeah?" He even demonstrated for them, placing a finger on his cheek while looking proud of himself. "I actually understand, for once in my life! It's really not that complicated at all."
Senku chuckled while Sumi blinked at him. She then giggled after processing this, a hand in front of her mouth. "You know, Gen, considering how you're my best friend, I'm really impressed that you caught on...mostly."
"Hm?" He blinked at her in confusion. "But isn't that how you'd put it?"
"You're on the right track," Senku then gave one of his mad scientist grins. "But in order to cause that boom and zoom, we need a detonator to ignite the stuff. We aren't creating matchlocks here, so what else can we use? How 'bout some good ol' mercury fulminate?"
Gen yelped in alarm, sliding away from the two while holding up his hands. "You're already back to words and concepts far beyond me! I would like to etract-ray my last statement!" He called out while waving his hands.
"Oh, mercury fulminate is a primary explosive," Sumi revealed while holding up a finger. "It's highly sensitive to heat, shock, or friction, not to mention it's a skin and eye irritant. So we have to be careful, although I have my doubts," She glanced towards Senku knowingly.
"Yeah, we could potentially get blown up from the smallest mistake," Senku confirmed for her. "That's why Sumi and I will be doing the honors," He had a big smile on his face as they both squeezed something into a beaker. "Just mix a little nitric acid, mercury, and alcohol together. Let the concoction dry, and you're finished! Except for the fun part. Hit the homebrew detonator with enough force, and..." The reaction would result in the same...as a gunshot. Ukyo looked terrified as Suika gasped.
"...At the very beginning of it all," Taiju spoke up after a few seconds. "We journeyed up to Mount Hakone and made gunpowder because we had no choice." That was when they were trying to fend off Tsukasa, and because of Taiju's strength, he...had caused an explosion with the rock. "How many years have passed since then, hm?"
Senku gave a small smile himself, since they hadn't needed to use gunpowder again until now...and now, they might have to use it again for a similar purpose. "Been about three years now. Took a while, but humanity still made it here after all," He gave a small chuckle as Sumi closed her eyes, frowning. "I bet they're keeping my spot in hell nice and warm..."
"Of course you'd say something like that..." Sumi murmured at him, taking a deep breath. "Might as well reverse a spot for me too..."
"This isn't just any creation, as some of you know," Senku spoke up again. "This is what allowed homo-sapiens to conquer the natural world." They all turned to the gun on the table. "An invention of gods and demons," The gun was then completed and they continued to stare at it in silence.
"Tools aren't divine or demonic. It's the wielder who chooses how they're used," Ukyo then gasped while looking up as they were all staring at him. He then realized that he might've been dampening the mood. "Sorry. I'm sure old platitudes are the last thing any of you wanna hear right now. Bottom line is, I don't wanna see anyone die. So please, think hard," He narrowed his eyes.
"A platitude?" Ryusui simply laughed at this, getting Ukyo's attention. "That wasn't mere lip service. Not killing isn't just cliché and ethical. It prevents people from bearing lifelong grudges, too. Which, of course, includes us. To avoid that, we avoid killing others," He then snapped his fingers. "It's only logical."
Ukyo hummed a bit in thought and then realized something, turning to Sumi. "Sumi...when you were at the Tsukasa Empire...was that why you couldn't kill him? Because you didn't want that grudge in your life?"
Sumi blinked and then let out a heavy sigh, looking to the gun. Senku glanced at her; at this point, she had long told him of everything that happened with Tsukasa when she went there with Chrome. And he honestly couldn't say that this time around, that she would even be able to stomach this if they ended up killing anyone.
"To tell you guys the truth, I don't really like guns..." She revealed while turning around to lean against the table. "Because as the only medic the stone world has currently...I value life above all else. Even those who are our enemies...my passion for science includes making sure that I don't let people die. Watching my grandmother, she shared the same sentiment...she didn't let Mirai die despite what people told her. Which is one of the reasons why I wanted to follow her example. So even though I know why it was made...I still can't really get behind it." Even when she was fighting, her intention was to never kill anyone, just to stop them from harming others. There were a few times that she had unfortunately thought that far, but...she could never bring herself to take a life still to this day. And that was why she tended to prefer her whip over her sword.
Gen hummed a little, hands in his sleeves. "That's our Mire-Chan. Always trying to achieve the best possible outcome...for anyone," He gave a small smile and she glanced over her shoulder with a smile of her own.
"Thankfully...bullets are the last thing we'd think of using here. So I can be okay with it in the long run..." She looked up towards Senku holding it.
"There's no way this gun could kill anybody, though," He revealed while examining it. "We didn't even put rifling in, so aiming's gonna be a heck of a chore. With its lack of power and precision, it's essentially a good luck charm. I guess it could be a tranquilizer gun, in the best case."
"Um, it shoots darts, then?" Gen blinked at the gun curiously.
"No, but it doesn't matter what we hit him with, right?" Senku had another devious grin on his face. "Cause we'll have the petrification device! We'll petrify, set him free, and he'll be healed! It's no different than a tranquilizer gun in that sense!"
"Even more reason for me to get used to the idea!" Sumi cackled with her hands on her hips. "The petrification device is all we're really after since we have a bunch of platinum for revival fluid! So when we set him free, we'll do it and then book it out of here since he'll try to kill us, it's almost like putting a bear to sleep!"
"That's ten billion percent correct, Sumi! Having you in this relationship experiment gets ten billion percent exciting when we're thinking alike!" Senku looked to her with a wide grin.
Gen gave a nervous laugh, white eyes as an eyebrow twitched. Ukyo swayed back and forth a bit. "That seems like a stretch, but I guess so..." The latter murmured in agreement.
"The way you two say that so pragmatically, you're starting to sound like a mad scientist, just so you know," Gen commented towards the two.
"He's always been mad!" Taiju told them, since he and Yuzuriha had seen this before many times in school. So this wasn't something they weren't used to, almost similar to when Senku would give out his lectures. "And when Sumi gets like that, it just means they're completely in sync and understand what the other is thinking!"
Ryusui took the gun from Senku to examine it himself. "Made it pistol-sized so it won't attract unwanted attention. Question is, who'll be the stone world's first gunslinger? Few Japanese people are trained, and it's clear that Sumi's not an option..." Despite her vast fighting skills, he wasn't going to ask her to use it since she already made it clear her opinion on using one. So while it would've benefited them, that would mean it'd take a lot more time for her to even learn how to use the thing. In fact, that fact applied to just about everyone old enough to even use it.
Senku turned to the side, Ryusui doing the same. "Oh no..." Sumi whispered knowingly with an awkward sweat drop on her face. The others all gasped while looking in the same direction as the other three. Minutes later, Yo was clothed and revived.
Senku gave him a smirk. "Who better to handle a firearm than an ex-cop? No one. So we're all agreed, aren't we?"
"No!" Chrome suddenly exclaimed in protest, gritting his teeth a little. "Think it through, you guys! Giving a bad weapon to a bad dude I-is a bad call!" Yo knocked Chrome and Sumi down at the waterfall from the Tsukasa Empire. That interaction, coupled with most of Yo's past actions, wasn't exactly helping matters either.
Yo then gave an awed smile towards the gun. "That's, uh, some face..." Soyuz murmured a bit nervously.
"You see?" Chrome pointed at him accusingly. "That look alone tells us all we need to know! It's the look of a bad guy!"
"I wouldn't necessarily say that," Gen spoke up as he, Sumi, Senku, and Amaryllis watched him. "Yo is more of a devil-may-care with a sizable need for approval than a real devil."
"Actually makes him ridiculously easy to control," Senku commented as the black-haired scientist sighed a little.
"I mean, there have been times where he's been...questionable to say the least," Sumi glanced away in annoyance, remembering when he and Magma were constantly brawling. Or when he wanted to find treasure just to get rich. "But he's also the only one who's got any real experience with the weapon, so it's not like we have any other options..." By the time she even learned how to use it, they'd be corpses thanks to Moz... "Thankfully we have ways to neutralize him."
Amaryllis gasped while looking at Yo. "It's history in the making, ladies and gentlemen," Gen waved his tongue, a devious look on his face. "I present to you the first sheriff of the new world!"
Sumi smiled towards the one person who could help here, a hand on her hip. Yo then saw Amaryllis, who nodded her head in understanding of what she had to do. He stared at her in awe as she stepped up, a blush on her face and gasping. She then hugged the former cop's arm. "Goodness me! That's, um, a rather nice rod."
Smoke came from his nose as he now had hearts in his eyes. "His face!" Gen pointed out in amusement.
Yo chuckled while placing three bottles onto the table. "Leave the sharp shooting to me, everyone! No sweat! I shot troublemakers all the time when I was a cop just because!" He bragged with a smile, rubbing his chin.
"That's not inspiring..." Yuzuriha muttered with sweat at the back of her head. Now she could see why he was an ex-cop.
"No..." Ukyo popped up in agreement, having the same reaction as her.
Yo chuckled confidently and they all stared at him. He held up the gun and fired only once. He then reloaded the gun, shooting again. He did the same thing of reloading before firing one last time, a smile on his face. The smoke cleared...and all of the bottles were still intact.
"Uh-oh," Suika gave a small frown. "Yo didn't even nick a single one."
"Well, that's disappointing," Chrome deadpanned, though wasn't too surprised. "He was as smug as could be, but he missed every shot he took."
Yo hummed, not fazed at all, because a snake fell to the ground with x's in its eyes. Amaryllis then poked it with a stick. "A snake?"
"Oh! I get it!" Chrome exclaimed in realization. "I get it. He switched his aim to the snake!"
"Ha ha!" Ryusui gave a pleased expression. "Now we can act instead of waiting to get bit. We're no longer the helpless sitting ducks we once were. Am I wrong?"
Yo put the gun into a pouch at his side. Chrome, Suika, Amaryllis, and Yuzuriha all cheered while dancing around. Senku smirked as Sumi gave a small smile, her hands folded in front of her skirt. "Pretty nice shooting there. Least for an outlaw," The green-haired scientist commented at him.
"No wonder why you passed the police officer exam," Sumi gave a small smile. "Kinda makes me regret having to threaten you to stop doing dumb stuff sometimes in the past."
He simply scoffed at the compliments, turning his back to the duo while looking proud of himself. He then gave a panicked look, which thankfully no one saw. Play it cool! Don't blab and admit you hit that stupid snake by accident! I gotta practice my aim, stat!
It was now nighttime as Senku and Sumi were explaining the steps to their plan in more detail. "In order to cut this Medusa's head off, we're gonna need four items," He held up four fingers. "As soon as we've got these crucial pieces of equipment, our mission can begin."
"Luckily, we've already made headway with one, though it's still not gonna help anything if Yo doesn't get any practice," Sumi stated with her hands on her hips. "The others are gonna take some hard work from people playing their strengths, but I know we'll pull it off," She gave a small smile with a hum. Senku glanced at her with a small smile, glad that she was keeping her emotions in given what happened to Kohaku and Ginro. Not that he didn't want her to, but she had to remember that it wasn't her doing that got them petrified.
"We'll have hooded warriors serve as bait in order to lure Kirisame out," Senku informed them with his arms crossed. "Gotta think of a way that has ten billion percent chance of her throwing the weapon, or else we're doomed."
"Yeah, almost forgot about how she fights..." Sumi gave a sheepish smile; if Kirisame used the skills that they saw with Kohaku, there was no way they'd be able to fend off against that. Even worse if she teamed up with Moz.
"Right. Five hooded warriors oughta do," Ukyo agreed with the two.
The next morning, an old man was sitting in front of the storehouse, where they kept portions of food, cloth, and extra clothing. Such as the clothing from the crew of the Perseus that Ibara had stolen from them. "Hmm...what's the world coming to? Both food and clothes keep disappearing from the storehouse every time I turn around."
As he spoke, Amaryllis was wearing a black mask, hauling away supplies. She was doing it to help the Kingdom of Science, especially since their numbers were growing, and they needed ingredients to feed everyone...plus, sometimes Yuzuriha needed cloth.
Once the crafts woman had everything she need, she quickly made five cloaks. Suika was snuggled up into one, making this the second item out of four. Sumi smiled while looking over the little girl, hands on her knees.
Then a bunch of grinding was coming from the mobile lab. Amaryllis was walking in the forest while listening to it, looking unamused. So loud. I better think of a way to camouflage all the noise coming from the cave lately... She got an idea as she stepped slowly into her village.
"It's the truth!" The three men who had proposed to her turned around to see the woman heading right for them. "Amaryllis!" She got onto her knees.
"What are you doing here?!" The second one wondered as they all flocked towards her.
"Did you escape?"
"Yes, but please don't tell anyone!" She pleaded with them, earning gasps from the trio. She then bent over in front of them. "I-I had to run away. My mind was consumed with thoughts of the manly suitors who proposed to me, and my heart dared to hope you were still waiting! I need a strong man. Someone I can run off and elope with!" This got their attention immediately as they all gasped with bated breath, blushing. "Someone who...can demonstrate his strength and passion by banging the drums at the next festival loud and hard!"
She then gained an embarrassed look seconds later, sweating with white eyes. Aaah! I sound ridiculous right now! This'll never work! Drumming interrupted her thoughts, looking up to see the trio of men aggressively drumming in front of her. All of this for something that she was only charming them about... She then gave them a blank look. Oh. I stand corrected.
Several guards covered their ears in pain, everyone confused by the loud drumming. And thanks to the noise, Yo was able to fire and hit the three bottles with ease.
"Ha ha, yeah! I can practice all I want now!" He exclaimed with glee. "And look how much straighter I'm shooting already!" Amaryllis gave him a blank look in silence.
The six generals of the Kingdom of Science were at the mobile lab. Senku and Sumi were the only ones inside. "So I know this gun weapon's supposed to slow Moz down, but there's one part of this plan I still don't get," Chrome spoke up to the five.
"Yes, how do we obtain the dreaded Medusa itself," Gen said what Chrome was getting at, his hands behind his back. "You said it'd be a midair battle using the drone, but it's a ramshackle pile of scrap. Her toy's tied to a rope, too," He imagined that if Kirisame did throw it the way the drone was now, it'd get tangled up in a propeller. "We'd be lucky if said rope gets tangled in the propellers."
"Ayy, ten billion points to the mentalist!" Senku gave a small grin.
"Which means it's gonna be a tug-o-war," Ukyo realized that they were gonna snatch it from Kirisame's hands with the drone. "Might be nice to have a little muscle. Don't get me wrong, Sumi is pretty tough, but neither her or her whip alone would fend off Kirisame." He hadn't even seen Kirisame fight like some select others, but he knew just based off word of mouth.
"Nah, I get the precaution," Sumi tilted her head out into the open with a small smile. "We are dealing with some pretty strong cards on this island."
"How right you both are!" Senku gave a wide smile as he and Sumi revealed that they were making revival fluid the whole time. The two then threw one beaker each to splash it onto Kinro, Nikki, and Magma. "Rise and shine! Our power team is on deck!" Nikki had a new white and pink dress while Kinro and Magma had on the same outfit, just in different sizes. All of them gasped in shock from being woken up. They then glanced behind them to see the plethora of restored statues behind them. Kinro eyed them...and noticed that Ginro wasn't among them. Not to mention he had a feeling that Ginro could be alive while he was still stone...and now he felt the opposite after being revived. Like something had happened to his brother.
"...Tell me," He prompted without turning around. "I promise I can handle it," He turned around to the others. "Something's happened to Ginro, correct?"
Sumi immediately flinched, which he noticed. Ryusui and Senku frowned, glancing at the woman as she turned away from all three of them. Her eyes were shaking at the memory that was still plaguing her mind...
A single tear fell into the water of the cave. Kinro leaned against the wall, having been told every single detail of Ginro's both injury and petrification. "I'm sorry," Amaryllis frowned sadly, a hand in front of her chest. "The only thing I could do was watch."
"I couldn't stop Ibara in time...or convince Kohaku to at least let me do it in her place..." Sumi blinked, Senku blinking in shock at her that...she was willing to let herself be petrified...because of Kohaku protecting her in the inner palace. And because Ginro had stepped up to get valuable information to help them...
Kohaku leaned over Ginro, both of them statues.
Amaryllis shed a few tears as Sumi clenched a fist. She was shaking from remembering Kohaku pushing her to safety...and her having to watch as she fell further away. Amaryllis then glanced up at Kinro, seeing him gritting his teeth. It was like...he felt relief.
"You thought he was dead, huh?" Senku guessed correctly at Kinro.
"...Yes," He answered shakily to the green-haired scientist.
"Thanks to Kohaku and Sumi, he'll live to see another day," She blinked in confusion while turning to him.
"Yes..." Kinro agreed slowly again, a shadow over his eyes.
"Did I really make the right choice?" Sumi's voice broke a little and Senku glanced down at her. Her face was full of doubt, as she was questioning if it was even still the right thing to do...to just let them get petrified.
"Heh. Of course you did. I'm sure the two of you came to your own conclusion that...it was the only way to save him, right? So as our only doctor...you made the right call," He gave her a small smirk. "I'm proud of you, Sumi."
She sniffed, a small blush on her face as she gave a small smile, some tears falling from her eyes. "Oh...wow, I don't even know what to say," She turned to the ground with that same expression, reaching out to wipe her eyes with the back of her wrist. She then clenched a fist, having that same smile. "But I promise, Kinro, we'll do everything we can to get him back...just like with Tsukasa!"
"...You've done more than enough for him," Kinro gave her a small smile of his own. "Thank you, Sumi."
She gave a closed-eyed grin as Ryusui walked up to him. "Kinro. Here's the deal. We need you to lead the decoy team for our plan. If we don't have a skilled spearman out leading the fight, they'll see right through our bluff."
Senku let out a chuckle. "But bear in mind, there's a ten billion percent chance the squad leader will get thrashed."
Kinro glanced over his shoulder with a determined look, to save not only his brother, but the island as well from Ibara. "Fine. Bring it on..."
Sumi smiled while walking up to Kinro, her eyes wistful. "I said one day we'd make this again...and here it is," She revealed a golden tipped spear from behind her back. Kinro looked up at her, a tear falling down from his eye to see it again. He also had a smile of slight joy on his face. "I figured it was the least I could do when I returned back from the cave with Amaryllis."
He then took it from her, standing proudly while looking towards the entrance. "We're going to save them. We'll triumph in battle...and save everyone!"
"And I'll help with my whi-" Sumi patted her side, only to find that her whip was completely gone. The last time she had it was when she was with... "Sen...what'd you do with it?" She turned to him knowingly, though still looking annoyed.
"Don't even think about fighting when you're still on that sprained ankle," He warned while not even looking at her.
"What?! How is that fair? My ankle's fine!" She insisted to him, gesturing to her ankle that had a more loose splint. She had been keeping it iced and elevated when she could. "I twisted my anterior talofibular ligament, one of the most common, you know! That can be treated easily."
"And that tells me you're ten billion percent lying because those take days to heal," He closed his eyes, his arms crossed. "Look, I'm not putting you down, but rest is the most logical thing right now. Not charging in like a dumbass." The last thing he wanted was for Moz to notice her injury and use that to his advantage, since he saw her sprain it. So if she were to go up against him again, it could be way worse. He didn't want her to get seriously hurt this time. At least with Hyoga, she wasn't injured, and he only worried further after the bridge fight. He just didn't need a worse repeat even though he trusted her skills this time.
"...Do you just not take me seriously at all?" A shadow was over her eyes as she didn't seem to come to that conclusion. "I wanna fight for Kohaku and Ginro...if it wasn't for them saving me, I wouldn't even be here. I can't just-"
"Heh heh heh," He interrupted, getting her attention. "What kind of question is that? I hold your life, remember? So fighting them when you're still injured isn't something I'm keen on doing. You'll get your whip back once that ankle's healed."
Sumi blushed in embarrassment at how much he actually cared, though he hadn't directly told her. And he didn't need to, given that taking matters into his own hands showed it perfectly to her. "But K-"
"Look, you're fine just the way you are. You don't need to prove anything to anyone, so relax," She blinked rapidly at him. She then narrowed her eyes, slamming her hands on the table while blushing from what he said.
"Sen, I'm gonna train even harder so that I won't let this happen again! I'll do everything in my power for us and the Kingdom of Science! I'll succeed at whatever it takes, okay? I promise!" She clenched a fist with a pout. She wanted to prevent not just what happened with Kohaku and Ginro, but to be able to actually win against stronger opponents. Sometimes, she felt like she wasn't strong enough and wanted to improve her fighting skills so that stuff like this wouldn't happen. After all, Senku wouldn't take her weapons away if she hadn't sprained her ankle to begin with.
"Eh? Well, if that's what you want," He then gave a small playful scoff. "But what did I say about that when we needed your detective skills? You've already exceeded expectations like I keep telling you. That's why the both of us are still lasting in this relationship, dummy. You've earned more than enough ten billion points in just about anything."
"...Really?" She tried not to cry at the fact that he had nonchalantly said they might've not lasted when they started dating. But now that he told her the reason why they were even still together...was because she was enough for him as a partner. Meaning...deep down, he really had come around on this kind of stuff. He sighed while standing in front of her, placing a hand on her head. He gave a small smile while using his wrist to wipe at her eyes. She gave a small whine from this as she felt like a child at that moment.
"Eh, stop getting so worked up. You really like doing this a lot lately, huh? Don't get your face all gross over something like that," He told her teasingly.
"It is not, and I am not a dummy..." She pouted at him, although made a mental note to not make herself so obvious, this was the third or fourth time she needed cheering up. She was just glad that no one seemed to be pointing it out since...it was just really getting to her as time went on. Senku himself didn't seem to mind doing it either if it meant getting a smile out of her.
"They can be really sweet, you know?" Amaryllis smiled a little towards them. "Once you get past the wit and his reluctance to show his affection..."
"Well, he still needs work at it, but I'd say he's almost an expert when it comes to romance," Gen smirked at the duo. "Think of it from his perspective. By preventing negative emotions in Sumi, both of them still stand to focus on their goals up ahead. He may say and act as if he doesn't care to us, but to her, she's the only one he'll show that side to."
"Yes!" Taiju held out a rope to Magma. "Gotta train the power team up, though! Better not go easy!" He and Magma tugged until the rope snapped seconds later.
"And to ensure the rope holds, we've got the science team working on task," Senku grinned while digging his pinky into his ear.
Suika smiled at the cotton candy machine being put to work. "It's the cotton candy machine again!"
"Okay," Chrome bent down while taking a sniff. "Why's it stink, though? And what's that goo?" He noticed a black substance being made instead of the wispy strands from sugar crystals.
"Heh," Senku smiled a bit, hands on his hips. "No sweet treats to enjoy this time."
"Unfortunately," Sumi complained while crossing her arms underneath her chest.
"Those are the dregs of brunt coal, or tar," He then tied the tar strand to a spinner. "Spin this black cotton candy around a bit, and what you get is a light, unbreakable rope! This is the rebirth of carbon wire!" He grinned while holding it into his hands.
"If we tried using regular rope, it'd break instantly thanks to the strength of the power team," Sumi gave a sheepish look. "And then our plan would fall apart in no time..."
"Uh-huh," Gen nodded in agreement with a nervous smile. "Which is great. Know what's not great?" Tears flew from his eyes as he, Suika, and Amaryllis spun around the black thread. Almost just like when they had to spin around hemp into thread for the hot air balloon. "Hours of this! When the rebirth of your tools mark the return of our labor! It never ends...!"
Chrome gasped while looking at them, noticing something. "Senku, Sumi, those tops they're using. Um, they're all spinning in midair, and yet they're stable as a rock."
"Yeah, the gyroscopic effect. Things that spin at high speeds wobble less. It's why bikes don't fall over, and why the Earth isn't rattling around in space," Senku explained to him.
"With this effect, things are able to keep a steady direction of rotation. Each top precesses around vertically, because the object itself is horizontal and perpendicular," Sumi pointed up at the tops as a chibi head. "Earth itself does this in a slow process once in 26,000 years."
"Aw, man!" Chrome's eyes widened in realization. "I just got one of my crazy bad flashes of insight! The main issue with our Mach One drone...is that it's shaky, right?" He pointed down to it nearby.
"Well, yeah," Ryusui stared at it. "But it's just really an electric bamboo copter right now."
"Oh-ho-ho! Don't you worry," Kaseki boomed a little. "Trial and error will lead to improvements!"
"And I've got a trial idea!" Chrome smiled while holding up a finger. "Let's put a fidget spinner at the drone's core! The jai-ho-whatchamacallit thing will help keep it steady!"
Senku and Sumi both flinched in alarm, sweating in disbelief. "Chrome! You're dead on!" The former exclaimed at him. "Making a controller that can stabilize it would be a pain! Your idea is not only easier, it's good!"
Chrome chuckled with a small blush, expecting some praise. Sumi rubbed the back of her neck a bit awkwardly. "Ahhh...but uh, how do I wanna put this?" She hummed while rubbing her chin with only one finger.
"So good, in fact..." Senku held up another drone...with the exact scenario Chrome just described to them. "That Sumi and I took the liberty of installing such a spinner in our Mark Two!" Chrome then fell over comically with a yell, landing on his back. Sumi bent down in front of him, patting his head with an awkward smile on her face.
"Sorry...and you were so proud of coming to the same conclusion, too..." She murmured to him.
Everyone gasped as once it was moving, it wasn't constantly hitting the ceiling or out of balance. "Wow! Much more stable than Mark One!" Soyuz commented as Senku then held something up covered in coil.
"And the finishing touch!" He exclaimed with a playful tone in his voice.
"Da-da-daaaaa!" Sumi gestured to it above her head.
"Ah!" Gen cried out with tears flying from his eyes. "I don't know what that is, but it clearly involves much more winding! Please! Enough spinny type work!"
"I think Gen has been traumatized..." Ukyo murmured with an awkward knowing look. "Spin-based shock..."
"I feel your pain," Sumi sighed a little towards the mentalist. "Senku did the same to me when he tore up our beautiful mobile lab..." She whined a little with a tear in her eye, still traumatized herself of when he told her. And it was honestly giving her nightmares of the same possibility happening all over again if they reached a new destination soon.
"Welp, suck it up, cause each propeller needs one, guys," Senku informed the three. "Got a wirewound variable resistor right here," Senku moved the metal circle up and down. Sumi looked over his shoulder, hands behind her back.
"It sure is a mouthful!" Chrome looked it over as well with shocked white eyes.
"Drone won't work without it," Sumi glanced up at him. "It's to control the resistance value. It used to be in circuit breakers and fuses. Although don't trust this thing at high frequencies," She gave a small sweat drop.
"You can adjust the voltage by sliding this switch up or down," Senku stated and soon, they had a controller for the drone. "For example, you can increase the juice for a single propeller," He moved a lever up, and the drone moved to the left.
"Bad! It swerved!" Chrome exclaimed as Ukyo watched Senku testing it. He handed it to Sumi so she could test it too. She smiled while flying the drone a bit further down.
"So..." Ukyo looked down at it in thought. "To keep the drone balanced as well as airborne, someone has to control this manually, right?"
"Yeah. Exactly right," Senku turned to him. Suika looked at the controller anxiously since it couldn't be just anyone.
"That's, um, probably really tough..."
"Not really if someone knows what they're doing," Sumi gave the controller back to Senku. She walked up to the little girl, bending down to her and petting her on the head. "Though not me or Senku, steering isn't our strong suits."
"We need someone used to steering, then," Ryusui pointed out while staring at them. "Someone with a talent for reading wind patterns on the fly. But who?" Gen, Ukyo, Sumi, Suika, and Senku all stared at him with white eyes and knowing looks. "Oh, right." He soon had the controller and worked his fingers, looking up intensely at the drone moving around. "Ha ha! I'm a freakin' natural!"
"Is he for real?" Senku deadpanned towards the blonde. Sumi shook her head slowly, a hand pinching her nose.
Ryusui then snapped his fingers. "Ha! It's like a video game! My pro-gamer training paid off, a few thousand years later." Since he was rich, he had lots of gaming stuff and did spend some of his free time gaming.
"I forgot," Senku muttered while sweating. "This kid had the cash to buy cheat codes for anything and everything..."
"Makes sense since he could buy all of the latest systems and spend hours on them whenever he wanted..." Sumi muttered, dragging a hand down her face. And it did kinda look like a video game controller now that she was thinking about it...
"Ooh," Yo went over to Ryusui in interest. "That sweet helicopter looks crazy fun!"
"I could say the same thing about your shooting range," He complimented the ex-cop back.
"Don't treat this like some game!" Senku warned the both of them while standing between them. It's practice, okay?"
"Yeah, and we are practicing!" Yo responded while unbeknownst to everyone, Magma was eyeing the gun closely. Sumi sighed while stepping up to the three, her eyes closed.
"This is serious, you two," She stated, her hands on her hips. "Our plan rests on you guys perfecting your skills so that we can pull off this plan," She waved a finger. "So please just continue practicing like normal."
"Jeez, you sound like a mom," Yo commented, earning an annoyed look in response.
"Never say that again..." She groaned at him.
"Hey Sumi, gotta tell you something," Senku placed a hand on her back, guiding her away towards the lab. He then turned to the black-haired scientist, hands on his hips. "I've been thinking on this for a while, and I wanna try it out."
"Huh?" She blinked in confusion at him. "Try what out?"
"You know how you give me a pet name? I wanna know...if you'd be okay with me calling you one," He blinked and she flinched in shock. She then chuckled, a hand in front of her mouth.
"It's not really like you to do that sort of thing. You'd say it's ten billion percent nauseating or something like that," Sumi glanced up at him with an amused look.
"You're right, I'm not the type and I'm not some shy middle-schooler type either," He closed his eyes in acknowledgement and then gave her a serious look. "However...knowing you, you'd ask me why I never gave you one. I already have one from you and it probably would benefit our partnership if I came up with something of my own. So I'm gonna call you violet."
"Ohhhh," She gave an embarrassed groan with a dusty blush over her face. Not because she hated it, but because he was using what her name meant. Which in hindsight, she should've expected this if he was insistent on giving her a nickname. "I mean, it can't get any worse than Ryusui's dumb nicknames for me."
"Oh yeah! I could've used that one, but I'd rather stay alive!" He gave a malicious grin. "So then it's settled given your somewhat approval! And you can't get mad when I say it in public either," He poked her forehead. "Otherwise it'd be missing the entire point."
"If you really think you need to use it, then I guess I can be okay with it," Sumi gave him a small smile. "Even though you and I both know you'd rather not do anything like that. And I would not beg you to give me one, what kind of question is that to expect out of me?" She gave him an annoyed pout.
"Yeah, sure," He gave a small grin while rubbing the top of her head and she grunted a bit. He just didn't wanna tell her it only made sense that he used a nickname on her as well. Plus, it wasn't like it was too cheesy or stupid, so he felt like he could get used to saying it. If it'll help keep her morale up about Kohaku and Ginro, I'll stick with it, even if it does feel unlike me. And it would keep her happy during the relationship, which she doesn't need to know.
And the stabilized drone was the last thing they had to complete. Senku chuckled as he, Chrome, and Sumi were sitting on a cliff to use the phone that night. "We've acquired every piece of equipment that we need. This all goes down when the sun comes up," He informed Moz, who was standing in a tree. He gave a small chuckle to himself, a grin on his face as he was ready. Not only to get rid of Ibara, but also to get his rewards...
"I really hope we can get out of this unscathed," Sumi murmured, though she bit her thumb nervously as she didn't know what to expect out of all this.
"Our battle will be waged at the cliff of the howling seas," Senku stated as the group of Gen, Kinro, Amaryllis, Chrome, Senku, Sumi, Suika, Ukyo, Magma, and Yuzuriha were all heading there now. All of them were wearing the black cloaks to disguise themselves. Sumi herself had her hair tied into a bun, bangs included, or else they'd recognize her from the inner selection. Kaseki, Nikki, Yo, Taiju, and Ryusui were in the mobile lab. As they stepped forward, the wind and waves were very loud.
"Smart move," Amaryllis commented at their choice of location. "The crashing waves and roaring wind are loud enough to drown out the sounds of our drone."
Ibara and Kirisame were standing around, while Moz was standing on a tree branch. He patiently waited and then heard static from the earring. Senku informed him of something and he listened. "Oh, hey!" He smiled a little once he understood. "Seems like the hooded warriors have reemerged. It appears they've arrived at the cliff of the howling seas."
Kirisame and Ibara turned to him curiously. "I suppose we have no choice. Kirisame and I will fight," He gave a small smirk.
Oarashi let out a yell while standing in front of the group of guards. "Here we go, men! Take no prisoners!" He shouted and then took the lead. The other guards let out yells of agreement, raising their weapons in the air. "There is no way we're losin' this time! We have Kirisame and Moz and my miracle power!" They headed down the bridge together, Ibara having a deep glare on his face...
"All the bad guys will be here soon," Suika spoke up in worry behind Senku and Sumi. "How long will it take for them to grind us into dust...? Or for them to seriously hurt Sumi?"
Senku chuckled a bit while glancing over his shoulder, holding a spear. "We would ten billion percent get creamed if we tried to fight them head-on. That goes for you too, violet," He gave Sumi a warning look, who rolled her eyes in a bit of amusement. She looked away to hide her blush, the others silently smirking to themselves.
"Relax, you already checked my ankle earlier and you have my weapons. Besides, with our plan, we won't even have to resort to that," She waved it off a little, earning a gasp from Suika towards the both of them.
The waves then crashed again. "Let's be clear. The only condition that will decide if we win is if the petrification device gets thrown our way," He gave another smirk, Chrome and Ukyo bending down to the little girl.
"Don't worry, Suika," The archer gave her a small smile. "The real action's gonna take place in the air."
"Yeah, and it'll go off without a hitch," Chrome had a smile of his own. "Our drone is gonna intercept the weapon and get her rope all tangled up. Then the power team hiding in the mobile lab will tug on that wire like their lives depend on it, cause they kinda do."
"We got this!" Taiju held up a fist.
"Thanks, power team!" Sumi called out while waving a hand from her spot.
"Last but not least, we beat back the enemy," Ryusui stated while Yo had a big grin on his face. "Yo, I hope you brought your a-game."
"Duh! I always do!" He bragged to the captain.
"Good, you're gonna need it. Because you'll have to counter Moz. Be careful," Ryusui warned, since they had seen him fight with Sumi. And even though they tied, the outcome of another possible battle between them...could prove fatal. "He's the biggest threat out there. As soon as we snag the weapon even he fears, we'll go from being his allies to his mortal enemies. And with Sumi not having her weapons..." He trailed off as Suika frowned in worry. She didn't want Sumi to die if she had to face Moz again since he would be there...
She ran up and hugged Sumi's leg, hiding her face into the fabric. "Huh?" Sumi glanced down at her in confusion from this sudden action from the little girl. "Suika, you've gotta stay back. We can't have you getting hurt."
"But what about you?" She murmured and the black-haired scientist blinked. Senku stared at the two of them as it was now dead silence. "What if the bad guys...try something now that you don't have anything to fight with? I...I don't like that...knowing that I might lose you."
"Suika..." Senku murmured as he and Sumi glanced to each other. "Our violet will be just fine."
Sumi gave a soft smile, bending down to Suika. "Know why? Because I have all of my friends to fight for...and I have you to look forward to seeing your smile once we win," She patted Suika on the head happily. "Just because I don't have my whip and sword doesn't mean I'd lose my life today...not when I have my purpose right in front of me," She grinned while clenching a fist. "So let me do all your worrying, okay?"
"Okay..." Suika nodded and gave Sumi a hug. She returned it and patted her head softly. The others besides Senku gave a small smile towards the two. Senku gave a small hum, his hand on Suika's shoulder lightly. He could see just how much the two cared about one another...like family. In fact, it wasn't too far off from how Sumi described being with her mother Lillian. He removed his hand with a flinch, a light blush on his face looking up ahead. He then replaced it with a chuckle.
Here I am...thinking about stuff that's not happening for a long time. How cliché, and of course it was because of my violet. Ahh...it's honestly so baffling that I'm thinking about this now when we have other things to bide time with.
The group then all put up their hoods. "Three forces have gathered," Ukyo spoke up while placing a mask over his face. "The petrification kingdom, bent on killing us. The Kingdom of Science, here to claim the petrification device. And the almighty Moz, who wants the device and our heads..."
Senku narrowed his eyes a little as Sumi sniffed something, immediately turning back in alarm. She stood up while gently moving Suika behind her so that she wouldn't be seen. But the little girl was able to peek from behind a bit. "So it begins...the three-way battle that will decide it all."
"And where it'll all come to an end..." Sumi murmured as she and Senku put up masks as well, glaring up ahead. "Yeah...I know exactly what I'm smelling here..."
A whole group of shadows approached from the distance, as she could smell the sweat and weapon residue from them. Suika was shaking looking at them. "They're here! And they're fully armed!" She cried out anxiously, Sumi reaching out from behind to grab her hand. Suika held it back in fear, but the black-haired scientist's squeeze of her hand slightly assured her.
They walked up closer, Amaryllis blinking in shock at just how many had arrived. There were at least 2 dozen or more of them...compared to their measly 8 in the hoods. Yet for some reason, Gen and Magma were nowhere to be seen near them. The group of guards stepped even closer, Kirisame and Moz staring them down as well. Soyuz, Yo, and Ryusui looked up from their spot. Taiju and Nikki stared from the mobile lab as it was a tense silence in the air. Oarashi walked between Kirisame and Moz, thinking that he was multiplied in power now. They eventually stopped, each and every single one bearing holes into the smaller group.
None of them said a word, the masks and hoods blocking their faces. The sun then stared to rise right behind them. Moz gave a small hum at what was to come...Senku let out a chuckle. "How much scientific equipment does it take...to capture an elusive gorgon like Medusa?" He wondered as the wind slightly blew into his bangs and Sumi's.
"That answer can be revealed in just minutes and yet it's still a scary thing to witness. Greek mythology and Medusa don't hesitate, so it's fitting..." Sumi closed her eyes, the sun and wind getting stronger. Oarashi growled in anger, his eyes bulging a little. He looked at Kinro specifically, and thought it was the night raider he had encountered before. This was thanks to the cloak and mask making it easier to give them similar appearances to Oarashi...and also, because he was just not that smart to tell the difference even if he looked hard enough.
"Miracle power...revenge!" He screamed at the top of his lungs, about to charge right at them!
"What gives?" Chrome recoiled back in shock. "He's attacking from the get-go?"
"Overwhelming us immediately works to their advantage," Senku explained for him, Sumi sweating a little. "Meatheads are stupid strong in these situations. Tch, Violet and I should've learned that damn fact from Taiju!" He narrowed his eyes for not expecting this.
"Makes sense, too, if we follow the mentalist's explanation for this. Oarashi really is threatened by the power of the Night Raider...I can smell his anger right off of him," The black-haired scientist stated while eyeing the man, her hand twitching for her whip, but she still didn't have it. Damn, Senku still has my weapons hidden away...even if I did have them, there's no way I can fight all of these guys by myself. It'd be an instant death sentence for all of us, especially with Moz around.
Kinro then stepped up in front of everyone else. "Allow me," They all gasped at this sudden change. "Now it's for a true battle, not some petty bargain." Senku grabbed Kinro's spear and dipped it into the mercury liquid. Sumi waved her hands while trying to assure him once they started burning it. "It's for myself." Senku and Sumi then held it up to him as they looked at it, along with Chrome and Ginro. "This time I fight...using what the Kingdom of Science granted me." He turned to the duo to demand what it would even do for him.
Sumi walked up to him in the cave, her eyes wistful. She revealed another golden tipped spear from behind her back. He looked up at her, a tear falling from his eye with a small smile on his face.
Kinro then held it up to the sky, the tip shining. "And with this golden spear...shining like the sun itself..." He then pointed it towards Oarashi, ready to fight for not only his brother, but for himself and the Kingdom of Science. "I will protect us!"