Angel: Alright guys, I am back with Dr. Stone! I said this in my MHA story, and I'll reiterate it here. I will TRY to get these episodes out on time. However, I'm gonna be pretty busy with 2 schools, and I just agreed to a job that I can only work a night shift for from 3 pm to 11 pm. The harder part is that these episodes don't usually get released that early. As in, I'll most likely be at work or getting ready for work by the time the episodes get released online in dub. And even then, in the morning, I'm gonna be preoccupied with assignments or trying to do other stories. So, it'll most likely not leave me a lot of time to write until the morning. At best, I can tell you to just wait a day or two before I get these uploaded. If I don't upload by then, just know that I haven't forgotten and it's on the top of my to-do list. I'm just either busy or exhausted or the episode isn't up yet lol same thing with getting these on Quotev.
One other thing, the opening is uh…a rough translation because the lyrics were uploaded this morning, before I was even going to proofread. So sorry if it's not accurate! Although I already can point to one thing in the opening that is a plotline...if people aren't a fan of PTSD or depictions of it, you might wanna stop reading now. And I don't wanna hear any BS like I got last time for the plotline that I did in the 19th and 20th episodes of last season please. Oh, and uh...last disclaimer, I do not play poker, but I did look up the rules, soooo...if I get something wrong, I apologize.
On the ship Perseus, in the mobile lab, Senku and Sumi had fallen asleep there. He was nestled in his sleeping bag, and across the floor was Sumi. Despite what happened...last time, the reason they were staying apart was because they weren't ready to sleep in close proximity. They had when Taiju was revived, but never as a couple. And part of the reason also had to do with Sumi insisting Senku keep his distance, not that he would be tempted...
The girl was moving around, her eyes squeezed shut. Some sweat dripped down her face.
"You know, I said that you were quite doable, but I might have to take that back. She's just perfect, isn't she?" Ibara used his claws to tear off the fabric in front of her breast. He then tore through the bra too so that her left breast was on full display.
"Mm," Sumi moved her head around as it felt like she couldn't get it out of her head...anytime she closed her eyes, he was there with that creepy look on his face...
"You don't need her. So get the hell off," Senku snarled while his hand was shaking, trying really hard not to snap.
"Stop..." The black/red haired girl murmured quietly in her sleep, unable to get the event away from her mind...even if she tried to, she couldn't since it happened right in front of Senku. And she couldn't do anything to stop Ibara either...
"Stop touching me...!" Sumi pleaded in fear, tears prickling from her eyes. "Get off!"
"No!" Sumi gasped as she sat up, awake from her nightmare. She was panting heavily, sweat all over her face. The girl's eyes shook and she slowly looked over to Senku. Luckily, he was still asleep and hadn't heard anything. She then ran a shaky hand through her hair. What the...hell was that? I mean, I know what it was, but... Sumi took a deep breath and let it out, doing this a few more times. Once she calmed down, relatively speaking, she put her hands over her face. Ever since that day...it's coming back to me in bits and pieces. And they're more intrusive than anything. Damn it...I thought I was past this...wasn't I? I'm a scientist, Senku's partner. Things aren't supposed to be like this.
She laid back down on the ground, looking up at the ceiling. Even now...it's still so vivid...and it still sends me chills just being reminded of it. But...maybe it's just temporary? She moved away her hands, her eyes faltering. I've never experienced this before...it's better if I don't mention it. I'm sure that if I just move my focus elsewhere, it'll be less prominent She turned her head to the side to stare at the sleeping Senku. If I say anything, it'll just concern everyone when we have more important things to do. Besides...I'm sure that if I don't think about it, it'll go away on its own...hopefully.
"It's been thousands of years since all of humanity was mysteriously turned to stone. Those of us who revived into the primitive post-apocalyptic world have been working nonstop to rebuild civilization from square one. And at last, we've built a ship capable of crossing the Pacific Ocean." The Perseus continued on its way to America. A machine was moving a needle across a maroon cylinder, creating thin white lines on it. "To anyone listening to this recording, I'd like to say hello!" Minami was the one talking into the megaphone, which was recording her. "My name is Hokutozai Minami," She looked up with a smile. "And I'm making this recording for posterity! We're well on our way, to uncover the truth behind this mysterious phenomenon. The final stop is the enemy's homebase: the moon! Going from the Stone Age to space travel is an enormous undertaking. We'll need to gather materials from all over the world, starting in America! Don't you worry. Once you meet our crew, you'll know that we're in extremely capable hands!"
The first person she interviewed for the recording was Tsukasa. He was looking out the window from the steering section. "Once humanity has been revived...there'll be those who misuse guns. Those who'll seek power. And rely on exploitations of their fellow man. But I will not allow that. They won't stain science with blood. Now...my job is to make sure of that."
Minami cried and was fangirling on the inside. "So pure!"
The next person was Gen, who looked a little too happily during his interview. Probably because he was being a bit much... "America, huh? Yeah, I lived there for 10 billion years or so. Then it was packed to the gills with pretty girls! Oh yeah, the Statue of Liberty might still be around! Copper lasts, they say she's made of it. But what do I know?" He feigned innocence while waving a hand with a big smile, trying to make himself seem like a big shot.
"Stop messing around and get serious!" Minami scolded the mentalist in annoyance.
Suika looked very happy to be on the ship. "Since I helped out on the island, they asked me to come, and I didn't have to stow away!" She jumped around happily in front of the woman. "Sumi, my mom, made good on her promise with Ryusui! I'm gonna make myself even more helpful on this journey!"
"I've only ever seen you be extremely helpful, Suika," Minami stared at her sheepishly, since the little girl didn't have to push herself... "But that's so sweet you call Sumi your mom~!" She gushed at the relationship Sumi had with Suika. "Even though you're not biologically or legally related..."
"Sumi, Senku, and I will make it work! We already talked about it, though she got embarrassed when Senku said marriage first...?" Suika tilted her head in confusion. "I dunno why that specifically."
"Um," Minami gave a nervous look, as she had an idea of what Senku meant, but obviously neither explained it to Suika. "Let's just say that you're too young to know about that stuff..." She had heard about that recent phone call from Why-Man to put it lightly...
"Oh-ho-ho!" Kaseki gushed at the new recorder, while Ryusui was steering the ship behind him. "You're using my precious recorder! You are, right? You're recording right now?"
Chrome went up next to him in excitement. "We're carving sound into a urushi lacquer-coated tube! It works like a freaking dream if you ask me! Well, what do you think?" He looked up at Minami as he could hardly contain himself. "Bad design, yeah?"
"Listen, the whole gig here is to get your thoughts on our big departure," Minami knew that they could get excited about science, but that wasn't what she came here to talk about...
Next up was Kirisame in the hallway. "I was told to help you people out. So I'm simply following the orders that were given to me," She replied in a stoic manner, not even having a little smile on her face.
"Well, aren't you fun?" Minami gave her an anxious look, thinking she could provide something in a different tone. "Surely you have some personal thoughts or feelings you'd like to share for the record?" She then blushed as she looked giddy for gossip... "Maybe there's something to say about our other stoic member Kinro?" As soon as she heard his name, Kirisame yelped with a blush over her face. "You may have more in common! Sumiku is growing strong, but there's always more room for more couples~!"
"I HAVE NO COMMENT, THANK YOU!" Kirisame yelled, squeezing her eyes shut.
"My thoughts?" Kinro was asked the same question on the deck, though he did seem a little awkward of it being brought up. "On her? Quite a skilled warrior. Which means we'll have to train harder. We cannot fall behind." Minami gave an awkward laugh as that wasn't the answer she wanted, plus it was a bit intense... "Now Ginro, on the other hand...I mean...how would he fare without Matsukaze's tending to him?"
Matsukaze didn't seem to be offended once Minami brought this up to him. "Tending to Master Ginro? Nonsense. Though I did briefly serve as his legs. Nothing out of the ordinary."
Ginro was hiding somewhere away from Minami, rubbing his knees. "Oh, man...right before we were heading out, my legs started hurting like hell. I was like 'no, what do I do?!' I mean, it's not like I don't wanna go on this super-long voyage, but I seriously don't think I can!" And he looked terrified at the thought of being on the ship with nowhere to escape to... "Of course, right then, Matsukaze...was all like 'Master!' Then just scooped me up and brought me on board! That just makes me so happy!"
He then cried out after saying this, as he was definitely not happy. "I hate it so much! I'm gonna die of boredom down here!"
"It's only when the skies are clear, though," Ukyo tried to calm him down.
"How long is this gonna take, anyway?!" And then they managed to reach a storm like the first time they voyaged to Treasure Island. The Perseus sailed over a big wave. Ginro yelped while hanging onto one of the masts. "Like seriously! This sucks so freaking bad, this kinda work is gonna kill me for real!" He was tasked with putting the sails down, but it was hard to do that with the shaking...
"It's only like this in a storm, though," Ukyo once again tried and failed to calm him down.
"When is this horrible journey finally gonna end?!" Ginro cried out, to the displeasure of Minami...
As the guitar riff played, Senku, Gen, and Sumi stood in darkness. Then Ukyo, Ryusui, and Chrome were in darkness as well. As the trumpet came in, all six posed in front of 'Dr. Stone: Science Future'. Sumi was in between Senku and Ryusui, a hand on her hip. The other one was reached out to her hair accessory as she smirked. Stage lights flashed all around the six.
(A new era of rain of flowers)
Senku and Sumi clapped in unison, moving their arms back and forth. Sumi herself was swaying her head and hips to the music as she clapped on the left side of Senku. Lights moved all around them. Sumi still had her new dress and hair.
(Let the voice reach the moon, seeds fly)
Chrome and Gen smirked while clapping along to the music as well.
(The ruler is not asleep yet)
Ryusui and Ukyo clapped along together.
(Head wing, glare, dedicate my life)
Kohaku and Tsukasa clapped while standing back to back.
(Every cell of depression, count, gaze, to an uncertain love)
Kaseki, Francois, Suika, Yuzuriha, and Taiju all clapped in sync with each other.
(Let the light dwell)
Ginro, Kinro, and Matsukaze all stood in a line while clapping.
(Forgot how to fake smile)
Minami, Magma, Yo, and Nikki all clapped, the men standing back to back behind the women. Then Homura, Hyoga, Moz, and Kirisame were gathered together to clap.
(Is this exhilarating?)
Luna, Carlos, Max all watched as the spotlight shined over them.
(One)
Then it shined over Maya and Brody.
(I got the two)
And then over a mysterious person with a mask...
(I got)
Dr. Xeno folded his claw-like hands under his chin with a smirk.
(I will change my life like magic)
Ryusui and Chrome appeared in front of a green light, smiling. Their bodies flashed with science formulas over them.
(Shine on me, shine on me)
Tsukasa and Gen appeared next while smirking.
(Every guilt is singing about the night of rude)
Kohaku posed while Yuzuriha and Taiju smiled next to each other. Suika sat on Kaseki's shoulder like she was a navigator. Kinro and Ginro appeared, and then Hyoga with Homura.
(I will stop my lonely imagine)
Ukyo and Nikki were next to appear, then Yo, Minami, and Magma.
(Our graces sing this melody)
Francois adjusted their gloves while Moz and Kirisame stood together.
(Shine on me, shine on me)
After Matsukaze appeared, Senku and Sumi appeared at the end of the line. Senku smirked as Sumi had an amused smile, leaning against Senku. He had a casual arm around her as she hugged herself.
(Save me, save me)
A light shined on Sumi specifically as a projection of Ibara appeared behind her, reaching out his hands. She turned around in alarm as he disappeared.
(Orale, orale, I won't let you down)
Behind a bunch of science formulas, the Six Generals, Suika, Kohaku, Taiju, Minami, and Yuzuriha all had a dance party in the dark. Sumi and Senku were even dancing together, holding each other's hands as they sashayed their bodies together.
(Orale, orale, oh vente conmigo)
As they continued to dance, a silhouette of Dr. Xeno appeared behind them.
(C'mon here, and c'mon near, I won't make you down)
Senku, Dr. Xeno, and Sumi stood in front of the moon while in shadow, facing opposite directions.
(Take it slowly, come on now, like a)
Stanley Synder was engulfed in a dim blue light with a smirk.
(Casanova posse!)
Senku and Sumi smirked in darkness. The six generals stood in front of 'Dr. Stone: Science Future' again, this time joined by Kohaku, Suika, Hyoga, and Tsukasa. As the music stopped, they faded away in tune with it.
The storm continued as lightning struck from above. Not only that, there was a storm happening inside the ship too... "In 70 days!" Ryusui insisted with narrowed eyes.
"I say 40 days!" Senku retorted, and this caused them to clash... Minami and Suika stared at them nervously.
"Uh-oh!" Suika cried out and ran off, going down the stairs. "This is bad, you guys!" Taiju, Chrome, and Sumi turned to her in alarm. "It's Dad and Ryusui!" She thought of the two brawling and Chrome could tell what she was thinking about.
"Oh shit! They're not fighting, are they?!" Chrome wondered, which angered Taiju.
"Oh no," Sumi looked at her high-school friend wide-eyed as she knew what he was gonna do. He growled and zipped up the staircase, causing Suika to fly off of it. Sumi yelped and reached up to catch her, running up the stairs herself.
"No fighting allowed, you hear me?!" Taiju screamed as he pushed Senku and Ryusui away from each other. The two screamed while flying away and spinning around.
"Taiju! You need to be more careful, and even then, this is Senku we're talking about!" Sumi reminded him in annoyance while still holding Suika. Taiju should've known that Senku wasn't even a fighter anyway—that was her job.
Ryusui landed near the windows, looking up. "Fighting? We're having a gentleman's discussion!"
"Like this?" Taiju stared at him with a skeptical eye. "You were dissing each other?!"
"Heh heh!" Senku gave him an amused look, picking at his ear. "Yeah, that's what's happening, you big oaf. It's a real, serious fight," He stated in a sarcastic tone, which Taiju did not pick up on.
"I just said...there's no fighting allowed!" He screamed, standing between them again.
The end of Sumi's whip caught his left arm, pulling it away. Taiju yelped as they looked to see an annoyed Sumi responsible. She had put Suika down at this point.
"Dick-measuring contest or not, are you really gonna take Sen's word for it? Look at him, he's not even serious," She pointed out while looking irritated that Taiju insisted on butting in. When really, it wasn't even a fist-fight...
"I think they may have earned their esson-lay," Gen murmured anxiously towards them.
"Have they really?" Sumi asked him skeptically, sighing heavily and readjusting the accessory from her newer hairstyle. Which she implemented before they left Treasure Island when Yuzuriha gave her the new dress. She then released Taiju from her whip.
"Talking about the route to America?" Ukyo walked up with a smile, tipping his hat.
"Heh heh heh," Senku chuckled while glancing towards him. He was surrounded by Kohaku, Sumi, Gen, Taiju, Chrome, Ryusui, Francois, Suika, and Minami. "The submariner picks that up right away. Sharp as ever."
"The starting point was Tokyo here," Ryusui pointed to a spot on the map for Francois to mark.
"And the end?" Kohaku asked him curiously, sitting near Senku.
"USA, right?" Taiju turned to Sumi and Senku.
"Yup. Right here," He marked specifically the state of California. "Naturally, we're gonna take the quickest route to San Francisco!"
"For those who aren't from 3,700 years ago, it was the fourth-most populated city in California," Sumi spoke up, pointing a finger to the red thumbtack Senku put down, giving an awkward cough. "Though I'm not sure if that still rings true now...anyway, it was called the City of the Bay, and was known for its beautiful landmarks. The Golden Gate Bridge, the Painted Ladies...Alcatraz Island," She glanced away with a bit of dread from that last part. "I went to LA once with Lillian, pretty fun."
"Oooh!" Suika, Kohaku, and Chrome stated in unison, in awe of her explanation.
"So we just wanna go in a straight line? That's easy!" Taiju seemed delighted by the easy navigation.
"Even I could've figured that one out!" Suika smiled, knowing that Senku would've wanted to make things quicker. That was what he did with things like the space ramen, the cell phone, and the blacklight.
"Hang on a sec!" Chrome protested as he felt like this was too easy. Senku would've put in a lot of hardships with this... "There's no way it's that simple!" This baffled both Taiju and Suika. "It's gotta be some kind of trick question, yeah?"
"Ha ha!" Ryusui laughed from Chrome's deduction, snapping his fingers. "Excellent answer! That straight route is what's called the rhumb line! You just travel in the same direction for the whole voyage! It makes navigation easy, and it's how ships have been doing it for most of history. We'll be taking that route for 70 days to the US!"
"Aw, nailed it!" Chrome gushed that he was on the right track.
"Bzzzt!" Senku mimicked a wrong buzzer noise with his mouth, to the alarm of everyone except Sumi. "How about the actual correct answer? If we want the shortest route...it's this!" He revealed a curved line instead of a straight path.
"Seriously?!" Taiju, Suika, and Chrome yelped in unison with wide bulging eyes.
"I choose to not comment on this," Sumi deadpanned at the two differing routes.
"That'll obviously take longer!" Taiju pointed out to his childhood friend.
"Can't believe what you see?" Senku gave him a small smirk. "Check out the globe, and tell me what you think then." They looked towards the globe nearby, wondering if it really was shorter than it seemed...
"We can use two pieces of thread, blue for Ryusui's route and red for Sen's to test it," Sumi noted their faces, getting them from one of her pouches. She handed them over to Taiju and Chrome, who got them set up with thumbtacks.
Suika was holding a pair of scissors, Sumi picking her up gently. "Suika?" Chrome turned to her once they were ready. Sumi walked over so Suika could cut the ends of the thread. Chrome frowned as he examined them...and sure enough, the route Senku wanted was shorter.
"What in the?!" Taiju shouted as he, Suika, Kohaku, and Chrome were bewildered. "It looks so much longer on the map, but on the globe, it's shorter?!"
"Yeah, you're right..." Kohaku muttered, wondering how it was even possible.
"Well, that's because it's a sphere," Senku explained to the four.
"This route in particular looks that way differently between a globe and a map because of the distortion," Sumi told the four, pointing at the globe. "Map projections are exclusive only to a map, and it flattens what you would see on a globe, which is the sphere. And because on a globe, it's representing the Earth's curvature."
"So the map has different angles or something like that you wouldn't see from a sphere?" Suika asked curiously and the black/red haired woman nodded with a small smile.
"Ha ha, ten billion points to both of you!" Senku complimented the two. "So the quickest way for us to get there...is the great circle route! And we'll be using that awesome circum-navigational shortcut to get to the US in 40 days!"
"It's 70 days!" And Ryusui went right back to the argument from the start... "We're taking the rhumb line. The great circle route means constantly having to adjust your bearing depending on your position! It's the most difficult route to take! And it'll put extra stress on the crew!"
"We're getting there in 40 days with the great circle!" Senku argued back to him, hands on his hips. "This is a scientific vessel! And it may be janky, but we have old professor GPS! So we're gonna stay ten billion percent on course!" The two then started growling at each other, and it was obvious that neither was gonna let up...
"You two need to ill-chay!" Gen looked at them with a scared smile.
Ginro next to him was freaking out. "Yeah, I really don't love seeing the guys in charge duking it out!"
Sumi rolled her eyes at the two in silence. Doesn't this defeat the point of putting extra stress on the crew if they're stressed watching this play out...?
Ryusui slammed his hand down on the map. "They may have had some training, but we're a band of newbie sailors, and we could go down! We're not crossing the Pacific on armchair idealism!" He slammed down his fist on the map again. "70 days and that's it! As a sailor, I'm telling you that's how we're getting there! Am I wrong?"
"We won't be able to make it in time to harvest the yellow-dent corn," Senku pointed out to him, to the captain's shock. He knew how important it was to get that corn that the amount of time it took to grow didn't cross his mind... "Even taking 40 days will barely get us in by fall...that's as late as we can be if we wanna make revival fluid. Dick around at sea for almost double that, and we'll hit winter. Which is way too late. We'll be waiting a whole year for fall, and we don't have that kind of time. We gotta get there in 40 days. And it's not rocket science, it's the only logical way. Am I wrong?" Senku implored, as Why-Man could attack again in that amount of time. Any produce was hard enough to grow in winter time, and they couldn't afford to miss the fall deadline.
Ryusui gasped and then fell silent, the others murmuring while watching. "You know...I'm not an expert on this stuff, but it kinda sounds like they're both right to me," Chrome stated, as he didn't even know if he could choose.
"Yeah," Ukyo nodded in agreement with him, watching the two continue to argue. Ryusui's cautiously pragmatic for the sake of our crew. And Senku's as logical as always for the sake of the future. Seems like there's not just one right answer here...
"Hm? But Senku, aren't you forgetting about another opinion on this?" Taiju blinked at him in confusion.
Senku and Ryusui then flinched as they realized that Taiju was onto something. Senku wasn't the only leader around them...because he founded the Kingdom of Science with someone else. They both turned to Sumi in a devilish way.
"Eek!" She yelped from the sudden change, as she definitely didn't want to know where this was going. "Why does it look like I'm going to hell right now?!"
"The big oaf actually makes a good point! We haven't heard Violet's stance on this and she is my equal here. So her vote has just as much standing as ours." Senku gave one of his signature chuckles, confident that she'd chose his route. As my science partner and lover, I have the advantage. Say goodbye to your 70 days, Ryusui!
Ryusui grinned while snapping his fingers. With my conglomerate by my side, I'll gain the upper hand! The win will be mine as I want!
"Uh oh...Senku has that creepy look again! And Ryusui too," Kohaku looked at the trio wide-eyed.
"Hey Violet..." Senku started off as he approached, looking like a sneaky snake. "You agree with my argument, don't you?"
"Uh..." Sumi stared at him wide-eyed, feeling like she was put on the spot here.
"With mine, we can help out the crew more! And as the doctor around here, physical health is within your reasoning!" Ryusui reminded her while looking just as sneaky as Senku and she looked very awkward standing in front of them.
"Well, yeah, but..." Sumi looked between the two of them wildly, not knowing what to do.
"Maybe you shouldn't have said that..." Ukyo murmured to Taiju, but he had a good feeling that it was gonna come to this even if it wasn't brought up...
"Eriously-say?!" Gen laughed out loud at this. "You're gonna try and sway Mire-Chan on your sides?!" Given that she is a leader of the Kingdom of Science, her opinion is going to break the tie-breaker, so to speak. As a mentalist, I can't say it's a bad strategy...
Will it even work, though? Ukyo gave them a sheepish expression at the whole thing. Sumi's always keeping our health in mind when she's not pissed off, but she does also know the importance of the corn...
"Uhh..." Sumi rubbed the back of her neck, trying to be careful with her answer here. She then cleared her throat. "Well, time is relative here. So even though we do need that corn...I do actually want some more downtime."
Senku was both flabbergasted and a bit nervous to hear her answer. Because it sounded like she was going to side with Ryusui. Crap! I'm losing her!
Ryusui took note of this and grinned. "Well, isn't that sweet?" He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, causing her to flinch and push his arm off. "Seems like you haven't been spending enough time with Senku as a couple, huh? And you deserve it! I couldn't agree with you more, Sumi!" He was gonna say his nickname for her, but given how she had responded to them, he wasn't going to use it. Not if it meant convincing her. Ha ha! Sumi's word goes to me!
Senku let out a grunt at this, wondering if there were any cards he could play. He was her lover, after all, so he had to do something before it was too late. Think, Senku! You didn't experiment in a relationship with her to have things end up like this! What can you do? Any wrong move, and she'll side with Ryusui... He then blinked as he came up with something. If she wanted more time with him...then he would just have to promise that to her. Even though it meant he had to act a little out of character to do it, but it was the only thing he could think of. Senku let out a chuckle as he approached her, hiding his face. "So...you want more time with me?" He then hugged her from behind, grabbing her hand. He also tried to look very seductive as he smirked. "If that's what it takes to change your mind, we can negotiate that. I would be willing to put in, hm, 35 of those days together? All you gotta do is choose my route!"
"Eh?!" Sumi's entire face turned red, while the others yelled in shock with their mouths open.
"The art of seduction!" Gen shouted in surprise to see this side of Senku.
"Does that mean those rumors about them are true?!" Minami gushed a little towards them.
"I had no clue Senku could even pull something like that off..." Kohaku murmured as she stared at them.
"I can't tell if he's doing it for her or for his own benefits..." Ukyo gave them a weary look.
"I suppose we can check a few things off our list, if that'll seal the deal too! After all, I have the advantage of giving you things Goldilocks here can't even do!" Senku grinned towards the baffled Ryusui, who knew that he was done for. There was no way he could compete with that, and if he attempted to, Sumi wouldn't go for it coming from him. Plus...Sumi wasn't one for extravagant things, despite being the adopted daughter of a former pop star...
This is ten billion percent not my style at all, and even then, I don't care for doing this kind of behavior. But I've got her hook, link, and sinker now Senku chuckled and gently caressed her side for added measure. This is sure to earn her favor if it means taking the more logical route. Sumi closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. She knew exactly what his tactic was, and...
"Mm..." She then had both Senku and Ryusui on the ground, hitting them rapidly with her whip. "NOPE! NOPE! NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!" She shouted while waving her arm back and forth, both of them shouting in both pain and dismay. "I'm not joining either side! Hmph!" She stormed off while still blushing, as she couldn't believe Senku would even resort to that...and she didn't hate it, but she would rather not be a pawn between him and Ryusui just to get her to agree with either side. If you were using that in any other situation, I might've caved, but I knew exactly what he was doing! Did he really think I'd be that swayed? Must've been a last resort, the jerk...I didn't think he'd pull that on me. Ugggh, and he was so close to me that I almost gave in...
"Well, that didn't work..." Most of the other people murmured as they stared at the two men on the ground.
As they helped Senku and Ryusui up, Gen stood behind Ryusui. "I think if both approaches are right...I've gotta side with Ryusui on this one. It sounds like there'll be less hard work involved," He stuck out his tongue, wanting to get a little payback for all the work Senku made them do on Treasure Island. Plus, he found it better if there were less grueling tasks with more time on their hands.
"Ha!" Kohaku gave a small smirk. "Well, I agree with Senku's strategy. It won't be worth the journey if we don't make it there in time. Plus, I think I can say that for Sumi too...maybe," She gave Senku a sheepish smile as he was rubbing his smoking back.
"I doubt that if she reacted like that on me," Senku hissed in a bit of pain, cracking his back. "Just another case of trial and error that comes with the romantic entanglement..."
"Of course you'd say that, Kohaku," Gen gave her a small playful smile. "You're always a fan of immediate action..." And he knew this from experience too...
"We're gonna have to double everyone's rations," Ryusui pointed out to Senku.
"You're right. Sounds good to me," Senku smiled; he didn't care how it was done as long as they could pull it off. The ship itself wasn't finished without hard work or labor.
Francois then stepped up to speak. "Doing that will cut our maximum voyage time in half. Are you positive?" They wondered, since they were preparing for at least a 10 month journey on the amount of time the food would last. So it would be a waste of resources...
"As long as we get there earlier," Senku answered, looking over his shoulder.
Ryusui let out a frustrated sigh, knowing now that Senku wasn't going to change his answer. "We can shave off ten days from the trip, but that's it. Try for more, and you're forcing my hand. I'll have to stand up for the crew, one of which is your lover, by the way. Hear me? I'll fight you if that's what it takes!"
"40 days!" Senku insisted to him, not changing his answer. "We're on nature's timeline here! Besides, I've got 3,700 years on Sumi you'll never get!"
Ryusui gritted his teeth, letting out a pissed growl. He then looked super furious as half his outfit ripped off, looking like someone from hell...
"Looks like we'll need to battle!" He and Senku shouted, the latter's top half of his outfit also ripped off.
"Oh no, this situation just got way worse!" Suika cried out in worry for them.
"They're doing it for real, aren't they?!" Chrome yelped towards the clashing duo.
"It's a duel!" Ginro was very terrified looking at them.
Sometime later, Ryusui and Senku were dressed up in blue and red fancy suits. Ryusui had no hat, and Ukyo...was dressed like he was about to moderate a poker game, to his bewilderment. There was even a poker table in front of him...there were chips, cards, and everything. Senku gave a small smirk to his opponent, and Ryusui returned the favor.
"Uhh...heh heh..." Ukyo looked like he didn't want to do this at all, as he felt like he was in the middle a little bit...now he had an idea of what Sumi went through when Senku and Ryusui tried to sway her.
There was a whole crowd in front of them to watch, all of them murmuring in awe. "Wha..." Suika was very surprised to see the display.
"This is the duel?" Yuzuriha gave a terrified smile.
"Poker, eh...?" Nikki eyed them closely, wondering how this would go. Senku would know how to play, but Ryusui had been a gamer for a long time...he also had probably went to a lot of casinos given his money and lifestyle.
Senku took his seat first, followed by Ryusui. He was basically forced to wear the suit, and Francois gave him the clothes. "Why obsess over the fancy clothes, you dumbass?" He muttered in annoyance, since they were definitely not his thing...
"Ha ha. Come on, isn't it obvious? I mean, it's a pretty clear way to show the gallery that this is a formal game. Makes them more likely to follow the victor's orders," Ryusui looked pretty confident that he was gonna win, though... "And by the victor, I mean me, obviously. You know why?" He then looked to the side.
"Hey there, Senku, old friend!" Gen sung a little while bringing his own deck of cards. He shuffled them while walking up in purple fancy attire. "So orry-say, but this time, I'll be riding with Team Ryusui!"
Senku spit out to see Gen not on his side on this for once, and for betraying him for real this time. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" He stood up furiously while Francois gave Ryusui some wine. "There's like a ten billion percent that this shifty dude's gonna cheat! His whole deal is that he's a fraud!"
"What an ugly thing to say!" Gen stuck out his tongue playfully.
"Heh. Everybody's free to take their seat. Am I wrong?" Ryusui gave a smug smile as he had no problem cheating if it was gonna give him the win.
"Oh my," Kohaku spoke as she walked up in a gold dress. "We've got a little tag team, huh?" Gen and Ryusui turned to her in confusion. "If that's the case, you boys wouldn't mind me playing with Senku, would you?"
"Sounds great," Senku smiled up at his new team player. "Once again, your eagle eye will come in handy. Keep a watch on Gen for any slight of hand." Kohaku giggled a little, giving a small smile at him.
And now, it was the first game of the Perseus Luck Casino: Gen and Ryusui versus Senku and Kohaku.
"High stakes are on the table tonight!" Minami was both recording and being an announcer. "It's a showdown between our ship's captain and one of our science captains to decide our route across the ocean!"
"Man, crazy," Chrome looked at the game wide-eyed, although a majority of them didn't know how to play poker. "This is hard to call."
"Yeah, you said it!" Nikki looked a bit excited. "No telling who will win."
"Ha ha ha ha!" Yo laughed as he grinned, holding out his drago. "It's gambling time!" He slammed down his bet first. "All in on Ryusui! Cause with Gen on his side, they're gonna cheat their way to victory!"
"I don't know what gambling is," Suika spoke up next to him. "But Ryusui seems like he might be better at games..." The others then dashed over to place their bets as well. Well...aside from Chrome, Minami, Kinro, Yuzuriha, and Tsukasa...
"There's no way that Senku would lose a battle of wits!" Taiju was obviously on his friend's side.
"Did you even know that Kohaku's got like super-powerful eyes?" Ginro retorted, holding up his own money.
"You guys are having way too much fun! Don't forget that your lives are on the line here!" Minami yelped towards the two groups, wondering why they were even having this discussion.
Someone cleared their throat, all of them glancing back as they stepped forward. Senku, Gen, Ukyo, and Ryusui were caught off guard to see Sumi walking up. She was dressed in a black satin/tulle mermaid-style corset dress. Off-the-shoulder straps were around her arms, and the v-neckline had rhinestone beading around it. There was pleating on the dress as well, with a high slit on both sides to show off her legs. There was also a sweeping train behind her, revealing stiletto heels with closed toes, covered with rhinestones. The back of the dress was tied up with lace. She had taken off her hair accessory, instead having a thick braided bun that was tied with a rhinestone hair-clip. And finally, she had a purple tear-drop necklace around her neck.
"OHH!" All the men who betted on either side stared at her wide-eyed, blushing deeply. Then all of the men aside from Taiju and Chrome betted on Sumi winning just because of looks alone... "SO HOT! SUMI FOR THE WIN!"
"Seriously...?" Sumi looked at them in a bit of dread. If she didn't have a reason, she wouldn't even be doing this...and formal wear wasn't her thing at all. But she did have to dress the part, so here she was...Yuzuriha had made her outfit for her. And an added bonus was that she could put her focus on this instead of...other things she didn't wanna think about.
"What the hell? If you're playing just to get my hormones up, you already failed," Senku rubbed his pinky into his ear as she walked up, because it had no effect on him appearance-wise. With the other men, he was annoyed that they were gawking over her, but that was about it. "Because unfortunately for you, I still don't get a reaction out of your appearance!"
"HOW?!" All the men betting on Sumi yelped at him in disbelief.
"Heh," Sumi gave a small grin, coming to a stop between him and Ryusui, crossing her arms. Gen was flabbergasted while Ryusui was blushing to see her like this. "For Ryusui, sure, it'd work on him. You and Gen, not so much. But this isn't to affect you," She got in close with a small smirk. Senku blinked as she gripped his chin. "It's because...I'm playing too with my own argument here, and relying on my trusty wits. So I wouldn't be too smug during this game."
"He's so freakin' lucky!" Ginro shouted in disbelief at the display.
"Uh!" Senku turned away, hiding his red face with his arm. Damn it...what is she playing at?
"Sumi looks just perfect!" Yo gushed, causing the girl to freeze. Senku did as well because...that was what Ibara said to her on Treasure Island. Gen and Ryusui stared up at her in confusion, wondering why that got to her.
She snapped out of it, shaking her head rapidly. Sumi slammed down her hands, looking up confidently. "Deal me in, Ukyo...with 50 days on the line!"
"Huh?!" Everyone shouted at her in alarm.
"50?!" Senku and Ryusui stared up at Sumi, wondering why she extended it to an extra 10 days. Especially when she would know the importance of getting the corn before winter.
She then sat down between Gen and Senku, one leg crossed over the other. And unfortunately for them, she wasn't going to answer why. Luckily for me...I've got my own plays here. This should hopefully put an end to things...and I really hope that Sen doesn't try to seduce me again like last time.
Ukyo stared at her a bit suspiciously as well for something that seemed like a throwaway line. What Yo said...her reaction seemed a bit off...but why? He thought to himself staring at her. Sumi didn't make eye contact with him. Nevertheless, he nodded in agreement to let her play and shuffled the cards. "Well, are we ready to play? I'll go and deal the first five cards," He gave each team and Sumi five cards each. She eyed them carefully for some reason. "Moving forward, we'll take turns dealing each round. Let's choose the first dealer with a game of rock-paper-scissors."
"Okay," The three arguing teams agreed as they stood up. "First comes rock. Rock-paper-sci-"
Gen suddenly landed on the table, messing up the deck and landing between the three. "Whoopsie! Pardon me," He apologized, though Kohaku was already suspicious. "I wasn't trying to get in the way of the rock-paper-scissors game. I can't believe I did that," While moving the cards back, he moved the Ace of Hearts sneakily, but Kohaku noticed. Once he had the full deck, she reached out to grab his arm. He gasped, looking up at her anxiously. He KNEW what she could do to him...
"Well, that was kinda weird. But, unless I'm mistaken, that looked a lot like you put a specific card on top of the pile. However, if that first card is anything besides the Ace of Hearts, I'll be willing to admit that I was wrong~" She said innocently, waiting for him to show the card.
Gen gave an anxious laugh as she let go of him. He looked up at Sumi, who crossed her arms in silence. No way was she gonna let him get away with cheating, even if she wasn't on a team. So she would make him reveal that card if he didn't do it now. He caved and then revealed the Ace of Hearts. "Mm? Oh my! What a shocking twist! We've got ourselves a heart-shaped ace! Must be a coinky-dink~!"
"Whatever you do, don't let this cheating bastard touch those cards," Kohaku warned while pointing at him.
"Little bitty old me?!" Gen kept up his innocence.
"Yeah, don't worry, he's not going to," Sumi stated while closing her arms.
"Mire-Chan, I thought we were besties!"
"I also know how you act, remember? That friendship has nothing to do with the game," The woman huffed, closing her eyes.
"I raise," Ryusui increased his chips.
"I call," Senku did the same.
"I call," Sumi moved her own chips forward.
Senku then showed his cards. "Full House!"
Ryusui laid down his own. "Three of a Kind!"
Sumi showed that she had four fives of diamonds. "Four of a Kind."
"Ooh!" The crowd shouted behind them as Ukyo swept the cards away.
"Got a Straight!" Senku glanced towards his opponents.
"Flush here!" Ryusui grinned at the two of them.
"Full House," Sumi planted down her own cards, baffling the two that she managed to get higher than them twice.
"From what I can tell, they're all neck and neck so far!" Chrome grinned towards the three.
"Maybe, but it looks like Ryusui has a few more chips then Senku," Suika pointed out, which was true. "And Sumi's in the middle!"
Ryusui gave a small smirk at his cards. Gen tried to peek at Sumi's, but she pushed his face away. "Raise," Ryusui increased his bet again.
"Now that's a hefty raise by Ryusui!" Minami pointed out, as Ryusui was looking confident. Senku was getting a little nervous. Sumi didn't seem too fazed at all. "Will Senku accept the challenge, or will he fold? And what strategy is going through Sumi's head?"
This guy's the epitome of cocky, so it's ridiculously hard to tell if he's bluffing or not...
Sumi opened her eyes, no expression on her face. "I raise as well."
Ryusui and Senku yelped in alarm, looking at her wide-eyed. The crowd behind gasped sharply. She's raising even though she knows what's at stake? That's a huge risk on Violet's part...
"I call," Senku declared, since he didn't want to lose by not matching their bets. Gen glanced towards the two and moved his fingers above the deck. Kohaku's eyes widened as she smacked his hand away. He recoiled back in fear...because there was something white on Kohaku's hand.
"You sprinkled something onto the deck. Care to explain?" Kohaku demanded with an intense look on her face.
"That's sugar?" Senku blinked as he recognized it.
"He must've gotten it from somewhere on the ship..." Sumi murmured in realization, since sugar wasn't an easy thing to come by.
He could be trying to make the cards slide a bit differently... Senku stared at Gen suspiciously.
"Oh, come now, Kohaku!" Gen protested while waving his hands. "I never even touched a single card!"
"No waving your hands over them either!" She warned and he stood still, feeling like she was a police officer...
"Yeah, okay..." He reluctantly sat down in his chair, looking away. "Mire-Chan, don't you have any seduction tactics up your sleeve?"
"I'm not doing a damn thing, not that it would work on your target," Sumi pointed out while still hiding her cards from him. "In fact, I'd say I have more of a chance distracting Ryusui than my own lover with this attire."
"Yeah, no, even if we're playing against each other, I'm not here for that kind of bullcrap," Senku grunted at Gen's failed tactic. Ryusui blushed in embarrassment because he had been staring at Sumi, looking away.
"OH, COME ON!" All the men, once again except Taiju and Chrome, shouted from behind that Sumi wouldn't at least try to seduce Senku so they could see how she would do it...
Senku then eyed Gen's right sleeve as something felt...off about it. Sumi smelled something and narrowed her eyes at Gen. Senku then gave a knowing smirk; Sumi just managed to confirm it for him, even if indirectly. I see what's going on here. "You mind checking his sleeve for me?" The green-haired scientist asked his teammate, who gave a delighted cat-like grin. Sumi and Senku slid their chair back as she watched Kohaku move up Gen's right hand. A little green bug crawled out of his sleeve.
"A beetle?!" Taiju yelped at the sight.
"How are you supposed to cheat with that?" Yuzuriha was very confused by it.
"Once it senses the card with the sugar on it, those antennae will twitch just a little bit," Senku informed his two school friends.
"Mmhm," Sumi nodded in confirmation for him. "It's most likely a kanabun or a drone beetle. Their diet includes fruit and sap. It's the moisture of ripened fruit that attract them. Oh, and of course, fermented sugar, which has a yeast and fruit aroma, and hints of alcohol, like fresh bread dough. Which isn't hard to come by if we have stocks of stollen bread!" She glared towards Gen knowingly.
"Seriously?!" Kohaku clenched an angry fist, looking like she wanted to kill Gen. "How sketchy can you be?!"
"No more tricks, I swear! I don't know how the little fella got there!" Gen protested, hoping that she wouldn't do anything. Damn it! I didn't know Mire-Chan's scent was that powerful to tell all the ingredients and where I got it from...
"Yeah, no, they're mostly native to the southwest. Or for the kanabun, deciduous forests and parks in Japan. So he's probably preserved that beetle as one of his mentalist tricks," Sumi deadpanned, causing him to shush her angrily.
"Anyway! Give those cards a looksee! Go on and examine the whole deck! Each and every last card. Very carefully...you too, Mire-Chan. You can even sniff them if you want," Gen looked a little creepy stating this. Sumi glanced at Kohaku and Senku, relenting and pulling a card after they did. Senku then flinched as he realized...that Gen wouldn't ask them to for no reason.
Everyone, including me, Violet, and Kohaku has our eyes glued to the deck right now! He looked up too late to see Ryusui putting in all of his chips.
"Ha ha! How about I raise it to the max?!" He replied in a cocky way, to the disbelief of his opponents.
"Ryusui has put even more chips on the table!" Minami yelped while the crowd cheered. "Are we watching him pull off his finishing move?!"
Thanks to her eyes, Kohaku noticed something about Ryusui's cards. Ryusui's hand changed position while we were distracted! Didn't it? She could remember clearly that he had extra cards instead of five like he did now. She gritted her teeth and clenched a fist. "You switched out his cards, didn't you, you cheater?!" She shouted towards the mentalist accusingly.
"Oh, I can't believe you'd accuse moi!" Gen looked at her, feigning innocence once again.
"You started by averting everyone's attention with your little sugar bug, an overly dramatic card check. Pretty basic magic technique," Senku pointed out to the mentalist. Gen and Ryusui stared as they didn't deny it. "I should've caught on much sooner. All that stuff seemed usually careless and sloppy for you. You gave us confidence, catching an obvious trick, and had everyone focused on the deck. That's when you had your chance to swap four of his cards. So all that nonsense before was just to pull this one big move...similarly, Violet here keeps raising her bets, and somehow keeps getting higher rankings than either of us." Sumi glanced up at him with a small smirk, not denying her strategy either. "So she must have her own secret way of playing this her way without any tricks that we can see...but the method still escapes me. She wouldn't be doing so unless it was a scientific strategy. So which one is it? Did you pour something over the cards? Or do you have outside help from these two in a secret alliance?"
Gen and Ryusui chuckled evilly at him. "I can assure you, I'm not allied with them. I'm here on my own terms," Sumi admitted with a small hum. "But you're right on my strategy. Too bad I'm not gonna tell you~"
Ukyo stared at Ryusui suspiciously. If he's been setting it up this whole time, all four of them have to be aces. The strongest four of a kind...
Nikki gave a small frown. The only way Senku or Sumi can pull ahead now...is if he's got a straight flush. Or if she has a royal flush too. The odds aren't looking good...
Ryusui and Gen flinched in shock as Senku placed two fingers to the side of his head, rubbing his temple. He racked his brain of what to do next. They looked at the scientist wide-eyed, wondering if he really could use science to help him out here. Sumi smiled towards the two, having faith in Senku's smarts. "From the top." Kohaku turned to him immediately. "The second, and the fifth. And the second from the bottom."
Senku...you're gonna have to fold, man. Sumi too! Ukyo stared at the two, as surrendering was the only way...
"Alright then," Senku spoke up, to the shock of Ukyo and Gen. He raised his own bet. "I'm going all in!" He grinned maliciously at his move.
"Now Senku is going all in! A bold move. But will it prove to be worth the risk?!" Minami yelped, Chrome and Suika looking up ahead wide-eyed.
"Whoa, what could he be thinking?!" Ryusui stood up in alarm.
"All in for me too," Sumi pushed in all her chips, all of them yelping except Senku.
"Mire-Chan too?! Ah..." Gen looked a bit scared now... They're diverting everyone's attention. A basic magic technique!
"And we're gonna draw three new cards from the top of the deck!" Kohaku announced, moving her hand so fast that they couldn't even confirm if she did so. "Of course."
"Slow down! Did you really take those cards from the top or from the middle?!" Gen accused and she looked up innocently.
"From the top! You'd really accuse moi?" She replied in the same manner he did earlier, catching him off guard. Sumi smiled in amusement at Kohaku.
"I'm only gonna take one," She took her own card from the deck as well.
"Huh," Tsukasa commented as he approached Chrome's side, getting his attention. "Those cards were from the middle of the deck."
"Yeah? I don't get why they'd wanna do that," Chrome looked up at him in confusion. "It's not like they could see which ones they were or anything."
Gen and Ryusui examined the deck for themselves. "Upon closer inspection, I'm not seeing any kind of markings on these," Gen regretfully informed his teammate.
They still looked suspicious, though. Sumi looked a bit annoyed as they were sitting right in front of her, invading her space. "So there's a good chance he'll sink or could just be bluffing," Ryusui stood up, the two men smirking at each other. Sumi glanced between the two of them closely, humming to herself. "Ha ha! This is fun! Let's settle this thing right here and now! I'm gonna go all in too!" Ryusui put down all his chips.
"This just got real, folks!" Minami's eyes shined while the crowd murmured in shock.
"I've got Four of a Kind!" And this was proven by having four aces.
Senku smirked and put down his cards...revealing a straight flush. "Straight flush will beat that, though. Alright, Violet, let's see them."
She still was so calm as she looked up with a small smirk. "You know, Sen...it's a good thing right now that your luck is crap," He flinched from what she said. "Kohaku and gentlemen, I present..." She turned around her hand to swiftly reveal her cards...and had an ace, king, queen, jack, and ten of hearts. "A royal straight flush," Sumi gave a big grin.
"WHAAAAAAAAAAAT?!" Senku, Gen, and Ryusui all shouted at her.
"The highest cards in the rank?! How'd she do that?!" Senku yelped while looking at his lover in disbelief. The woman got onto her feet with a small smile.
"We're done here," She replied smoothly, taking in her win. "All these are mine now, please and thank you," She took her chips as the crowd cheered behind her. Ukyo stared at the cards, chuckling nervously at Ryusui's cards.
Looks like we've got five aces in play. Guess it doesn't matter now...
"HUH?!" Gen took Sumi's cards, shuffling through them. Senku looked over his shoulder. "How'd you pull it off, Sumi?! I don't see anything, this is crazy! You had to have done something! You've never even expressed interest in poker, have you been practicing behind our backs?!"
"Meh," She scoffed, waving it off. "None of your business is what I would tell you, but I had previous experience thanks to Byakuya! We used to play together on weekends, plus...I've gotten better in my counting." Senku blinked, looking up in surprise at that last part.
"You counted all the cards?!" Gen and Ryusui yelped towards her.
"More like memorization. It's a lot of mental hell, but knowing Gen, he would play tricks. So I had a good hunch of what he would and wouldn't do. All part of being a beginner mentalist!" She winked, though at this point, beginner wasn't the right word...it was honestly kind of terrifying with how she was able to have that good of a strategy for the game...
"Yeah, but science isn't sloppy. And sometimes, it's practically invisible," Senku smiled knowingly at his lover. He then showed his sleeve for his strategy. "Urushiol," He revealed to everyone, as he had lacquer on his sleeve the whole time. "There happened to be some urushi lacquer lying around, so I took a smidge. I'd been looking for these key cards in the beginning, and rubbing lacquer onto the edges."
"Hm, pretty good strategy. You could've won if I didn't have one of your lacquer cards that I smelled from the deck," Sumi smirked a little at her lover. And that was why she only took one card.
"But why was that stuff lying around?" Minami couldn't help but wonder, gasping...as that was what her recorder had.
"We're carving sound into an urushi lacquer-coated tube!" Chrome stood next to Kaseki in excitement.
"But...you didn't use lacquer?" Ryusui looked at Sumi in disbelief, who nodded in confirmation. "But you must've done something! Counting all those cards would've been impossible without some sort of clue!"
Senku stared at her wide-eyed...as something she was wearing was a good clue. "Heh...heh heh heh," He chuckled, covering his face with his hand. "Being a sly fox on me once again, huh? You used a blacklight...that's why you're dressed like that..."
"Hm," She reached out to the necklace she was wearing, holding it up. "Yeah, pretty much. I used the powder to mark each card from lightest to darkest. Then I memorized which card had which hue. So even if they got smudged, I'd know which one was which if the hues didn't match with what I remembered. I used the invisible ink trick that my mom used on my adoption papers so that no one else would see them but me."
"Yup, you're my violet, alright!" He kissed the top of her head, smirking. She got her poker and science skills from his dad, counting skills from him, and combined them together for her plan. "All the ten billion points to you!"
She hummed a bit happily from the contact, as it gave her a little comfort compared to...the nightmare she had earlier.
"But I don't understand how anyone could even see that urushi stuff or whatever if it's invisible," Suika couldn't help but point out. "How could Senku tell which cards had it on them-?" She looked up ahead and yelped in alarm...to see his face puffed up like a marshmallow. Sumi let out a scream upon seeing him like this.
"Oh, yeah..." Gen remembered this reaction from when Senku made the generator back on Ishigami Village... "I'd forgotten that Senku is super allergic to urushi. It affects his delicate skin."
"Seriously...?" Sumi covered her face with her hand in disbelief. Ukyo then held up that hand, the win not feeling as good now...
"The winner is Sumi!" Everyone behind them cheered for her.
"Of course you're willing to risk your health for the game, even if you didn't win..." Gen deadpanned at the green-haired scientist.
"We're taking Sumi's route across the Pacific Ocean! I don't know what she has planned, but probably a little harder! We'll coordinate with Ruri and the others back home. And GPS our way across the Earth! Our unknown and exciting pathway of science!" Senku muffled through his big lips.
"I win all the drago!" Ginro shouted since he betted the most money out of everyone. Leaving all the men disappointed...well, despite Ginro hating being on the ship, at least he could have some good memories out of it...
"I blew almost all of my money on that stupid game! Damn it!" Yo cried out in dismay. He then stood in front of Senku. "Hey, what do you guys say to one more game? Double or nothing, I gotta win back my cash!"
"Obviously not gonna happen," Kohaku picked at her nose.
"No way! I've gotta take Sen to the medical bay," Sumi grabbed his hand, walking off with her lover. "If I don't get him check out immediately, it'll just get worse on his skin. And I'll be damned if he keeps playing with that lacquer trick."
"You've got it!" Ryusui snapped his fingers with a greedy smile.
"Seriously?" Nikki and Yuzuriha looked up at him wide-eyed.
He snapped his fingers again. "One condition." They set up shop outside on the deck. "We're taking it out here!" He gestured to a newly built casino somehow behind him.
Yo's eyes shined while Ginro was determined to win more money...
And so, everyone started to play on different tables. Well, mostly everyone...Senku smirked towards all the people. The five players from before were out of their fancy clothes. "Well, what do you know? You've always wanted to have your own casino and here it is! Luck's on your side, after all," Senku replied playfully at Ryusui. "It definitely wasn't on mine back there like I wanted..."
"Ha ha! Recreation is a vital part of our strategy. If the goal is to shave 20 days off this voyage...we'll make up for it by improving conditions for the crew," He revealed as Sumi was walking up to them, holding the map of her route. "More generous rations will buy us the first ten days. Letting them have a little fun will get another 10. We just gotta get one more component to cover up any missed days in case we fall behind as a precaution."
"Yup," Sumi popped up between them, looking onto the others.
"But wait...with 50 days, there has to be a different route you're not telling us," Ryusui pointed out to her, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion. "How'd you figure that out?"
"You'll know eventually," She smiled a bit, as thankfully she managed to settle this on her own.
"Heh heh...what's left after food and fun? I guess we've gotta have some drinks," Senku suggested to the two of them.
Francois put down some wine glasses. They were doing something near the casino, getting Suika's attention. "Francois is setting up another shop or something here..." Everyone turned around to see a new establishment. "Bar Francois..."
"Hold on, are we getting a real bar?" Yo frowned and then got pumped up with the men.
"Filled with booze?!" They all shouted, running over to the bar. Suika looked up in confusion as they swarmed the counter eagerly. Sumi and Senku looked back while having barrels of wine in front of them, thanks to the extra alcohol they had stored up before. Senku held up a pitcher and Yo gasped happily. He watched the green-haired scientist serve a cup, to the shock of the men and Suika. It had foam and everything like a real beer, causing the men to look delighted.
"Ha ha!" Ryusui cheered while clinking his beer cup with Yo's. "Let's drink to rejuvenation!"
"Cheers!" Yo shouted along with him, everyone taking a taste. And it was the real thing too, holding up their mugs.
"Another round!"
And so, they were all laughing, having fun, and drinking. "I think this should cover those potential missed days," Ukyo pointed out while Ginro was already drunk... "Everything ended up going Sumi's way...perhaps a little too perfectly, Senku's gonna have to deal with those extra ten days. Seemed like the perfect compromise if you ask me," Ukyo smiled a little at Gen. "The poker game got everyone excited for the casino. And the crew gets a bar as an added perk. The route may be tough, since we don't know what route Sumi has in mind, but we'll survive now. I get the feeling that if Ryusui or Senku won...things probably would've worked out pretty much the same way. Seems to me...that from the moment those two started fighting, they were both working on getting us to take the faster route. Uh...well, it didn't work on Sumi, though," Ukyo gave a sheepish smile, remembering Senku's...seduction. "One might suspect it was all choreographed by a certain mentalist, with a flair for the dramatic. Fun little theory, at least."
"Hm," Gen gave a small playful smile. "Well, sometimes things just happen, Ukyo. I wouldn't read too much into it." Ukyo blinked in confusion, wondering if that was confirmation or denial. "Although...I'll let you in on a little secret. The poker game was actually legit. I was really trying to win, but I ost-lay. I'd be lying if I said it didn't bum me out...that one stung, especially coming from Mire-Chan. Just a little. You got me, bestie," He looked to Sumi protesting to hold onto the map.
"Come on, not even a little peek? We're trusting your route here!" Senku reminded his lover in annoyance.
"I said no! Back off!" She hissed a little and he grunted in defeat. He then looked out to the moon and she joined his side.
"We're gonna be in the new world in no time...even if I did lose," Senku would feel embarrassed if it was like him to do so... "This is exhilarating. Get excited," He smirked a little.
"We're testing our limits, Why-Man. Just you wait..." Sumi smiled, hands on her hips while staring at the sky still.
"Hey Sumi!" Ginro called out while drunk, a big grin on his face. She looked over her shoulder curiously. "How goes it with Senku when you're alone? I bet he loves having someone with experience, huh?"
Sumi flinched at that last part, narrowing her eyes. Because it reminded her of Ibara again and the fact that Senku had to watch it. "You're such an idiot," She grunted as she threw her map down onto the floor and stormed off towards the back of the ship. Everyone stared at her wide-eyed for her reaction. Gen especially took note of it. Senku picked up the map, though he didn't open it, despite that being something he'd normally do. He was more concerned with Sumi's behavior than the route she picked...
"Huh?" Ginro blinked, very confused himself. "What'd I say?!"
"GINRO!" Kohaku shouted while punching him in the face. "How could you say that?!"
"You should know better than to pry!" Kinro scolded him furiously as Ukyo, Chrome, Ryusui, and Senku watched Sumi reach the back, looking out to the sea. "It's not our business what Senku and Sumi do alone!"
Kohaku glanced towards the woman with a small frown, as she noticed lately that sometimes Sumi wasn't herself. She'd get more on edge, she'd be short with people depending on what they said, and the dress thing when she and Senku beat Ibara...she knew something happened for it to be torn and for Sumi to discard it afterwards. "What's wrong with Sumi?" She murmured in concern, getting the attention of Gen.
"It might just be the win getting to her. No worries, though! I'm sure she'll be fine with her best iend-fray to help!" Gen waved a finger to ease her, and it had the opposite effect actually.
"You know, just because you run your mouth, doesn't mean you've been entirely helpful to her," Kohaku deadpanned, earning a pout in return.
Sumi had her arms crossed over the edge while looking out to the water, her hair flowing. She gripped her arm tightly as the flashbacks were getting worse. And she just wanted it to stop, she felt like she was making it too apparent what was going on. She placed a hand over her head wearily. I shouldn't even be thinking about him, guy was an asshole. And yet...I still can't stop these from happening. I don't know why, it's like they're coming at speeds I can't control...ugh, this is getting annoying.
"Oh, Mire-Chan~!" Gen called out as he walked up, leaning against the spot next to her. She didn't look at him, though. "Still salty about what Ginro said? You could just run into your dear Senku's arms and everything would be fine!" He said with a teasing smile to try and get a reaction out of her. He knew that when she got teased about him, it always had an effect on her.
"Ha ha, hilarious," She rolled her eyes, scoffing and turning away. "You know, my whole life doesn't revolve around him, Kingdom of Science be damned."
"Hmm..." Gen took note of this as he stared at her curiously. "Your behavior suggests that something's wrong. Is it someone who hurt you?" He looked back up ahead with a knowing expression, since everyone besides Senku from the Six Generals had a good feeling of what happened. But they wouldn't dare say it out loud, not unless it was for her sake. "Maybe...Ibara?" She flinched from the name and looked back at him in disbelief. "You know, he's not worth it."
"Oh my god, I'm not having this conversation," She muttered while rubbing her temple, as this was the last thing she wanted to talk about.
"...He's petrified now, Mire-Chan," Gen turned to her with a comforting expression on his face. "He can't harm anyone else."
"Yeah, I know," Sumi pinched her nose, looking up ahead. Just because he was a statue now didn't make it any easier.
"All I'm saying is that maybe you should talk to Senku," She did a double take as she finally looked at him. "He was there, that much is obvious. You're not the only one Ibara affected. If you wanna tell others too, we can support you-"
"Gen, do me a favor," She interrupted with a look of annoyance on her face. "Please shut up," She then stormed off past him, to his bewilderment. Senku stared at her as she went to head inside and be alone.
Hm...her change in behavior isn't something that's natural. Something tells me that she's been experiencing some new things. Otherwise, she wouldn't act this different. I have no way of knowing unless I just outright say it to her. But...knowing her reaction earlier before the game, there's no way she'll give us a straight answer. Even I'm not immune to this Her reaction to his flirting earlier was a pretty good example of that... But still...how much of this can she hide or take attention away from? Her symptoms are steering towards the right prognosis, but it's too soon to tell. I'll have to keep an eye on Violet...