Not beta read, sorry for any mistakes, I will edit this at a later time. Sorry for the late update, my aunt died and we attened her funeral and burial and then we almost got into a car accident but all is well, anyways, have fun reading this chapter!
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When the six of them came back, Lalaine was the first to greet them. Ana yawned as she stretch her arms up, her pet snake wrapped comfortably in his usual area around her neck.
Slinging an arm around Lalaine, Ana guided her friend towards the bottom of their storehouse.
"'Laaaiinneee...."
"Oh, you're finally whining. You tired?" Lalaine watched as Ana sat down on one of the steps on the ladder and groaned.
"No! It's just... I..." Ana hesitantly started, "I feel like I'm supposed to be doing something else, too!"
"Want me to list off what you've been doing?" Lalaine continued at Ana's nod, "Okay, you've been helping around our Kingdom of Science since the beginning, been helping Leek-hair even before the petrification, you've been training yourself, me and the bros..."
Lalaine hummed, trying to remember what else Ana has been doing lately.
"You got a pet snake-"
"I want more pets, I should tame a bird... I don't want a Paradise Flycatcher because too small." Ana pouted, "Maybe I'll look for a crow, we saw a few on our way to the springs earlier."
"-You've been cooking meals for us and don't even forget about Asagiri-" Lalaine stopped, "Hold up, did you just say you're gonna tame a fucking crow this time?"
"Hm?" Ana gave an innocent look.
"How about just find a rooster instead? Tame two so we can have a battle." Lalaine suggested, a grin on her face.
"That's illegal..." Ana contemplated, "But hey, all laws are basically expired now. BUT STILL! No..."
"Aw c'mon!! Why???" Lalaine was the one to whine this time.
"So we can scout some areas and send a letter to Athena? But that would take some time and will be a bit risky. Be right back, I'll just write on my journal."
Ana got up from her position and started climbing up the ladder.
"A bit?!?! I don't think you have a good sense of level when it comes to danger." Lalaine gave a tired look as Ana went inside the storehouse.
With nothing else to do, Lalaine went to where Senku and the others are. She saw Ginrou in a crouching position looking at his former Silver spear as if he was having some sort of traumatic flashbacks. Which, knowing Senku needed Ana to go to where they went, was not that far off.
"Where'd you guys go?" Lalaine asked casually.
"We went to check out the Sulfuric Acid spring, turns out Ana already knew from the start. At this point, I shouldn't even be surprised." Senku seemed to be deep in thought.
"Sulfuric Acid...?" Lalaine muttered, trying her best to remember all she knew about it, "Isn't that the one that can destroy skin, eyes, teeth, lungs and can basically kill you if you get exposed too much to it?"
"That's the one." Senku was still contemplating on what they're gonna do this, or how they will proceed.
At their words, Ginrou flinched and his body began shaking in fear. He was even more thankful to Ana now after she saved his life.
"Can't we make Ruri's cure-all without the Sulfuric Acid?" Chrome asked, not really that excited with the next material they have to gather.
"No, it's impossible." Senku immediately turned him down, "And on top of that, if we don't secure a source of Sulfuric Acid, then we won't be able to progress with any chemistry from here on either."
Before anyone else can speak their mind, Kohaku spoke up in a fierce tone.
"Then the only way we can get it is by force!" Kohaku announced, already carrying a bag filled with glass bottles, "If it's to save my sister then I'll risk my life as much as it takes! With my speed, I should be able to handle this...! "
Kohaku stopped in her tracks as she was met face to face with Ana, with the modern girl being taller than her for a few centimeters, she still had to look up. Ana only looked down at her with a small frown on her face.
"Listen to us first, Kohaku." Were the only words Ana uttered, never breaking eye-contact with the shorter girl.
Senku took that as his cue.
"... Back in the era we're from... There was a group of people that went out to investigate a similar Sulfuric Acid area." Senku began, "The man that was taking the lead needed to fix his shoelace, so he knelt down to tie it."
"And then he died." Ana finished as she placed a hand on Kohaku's shoulder, the image of William waking up around her neck did not help to quell the sudden fear they felt. Ana took the bag that Kohaku carried and made the other girl walk back to Chrome and Suika.
"Beneath where he knelt down, the Hydrogen Sulfide had accumulated." Senku continued, "This is an actual accident that happened. If Mother Nature were so inclined, she could wipe Humanity in an instant. This is regardless of what kind of super speed you may have, Kohaku."
Despite all the two Scientists said, and the sudden fear she was feeling, Kohaku continued to press on.
"Then in that case, what are we supposed to do?! I have to save my sister Ruri!"
"Isn't it obvious? Don't worry, Kohaku-chan." There were no traces of the apathetic expression she wore earlier on her face, Ana smiled at Kohaku and the others, "We'll be making some gas masks!"
"In order to take down a chemical opponent... We'll fight Chemistry with Chemistry...!!"
At Senku's orders, everyone began working to make gas masks. With a master craftsman like Kaseki, it didn't take that long until Senku have a gas mask in his grasp.
Senku chuckled in his mind, 'I wonder how much this will be able to withstand. It's not like we can afford to go with trial and error here.' He glanced at Ana's direction that was a good distance away from him with Lalaine, 'If we do, we're just gonna die if it turns out it's a fail.'
"Here, Error = Death." Senku muttered under his breath, a sweat dripping down the side of his face due to nervousness.
"Alright!! Next up is my mask..." Chrome cheered, excited to be able to wear his own one.
"Ahh, you won't be needing that." Senku interjected, "Chrome, you won't be coming along with us to collect Sulfuric Acid anymore. Stay here." The last two words were said as if there were no room for argument, which Chrome would like to do in this situation. Before he could speak, Senku continued. "Shut up and do what I say. A gas mask like this is no guarantee of safety. The same way I'm not allowing Ana to come along. If worst comes to worst and all the the Scientists are wiped out, who will save Ruri, then? With Ana having knowledge in the medical field, you'll have a chance of saving her even without me."
'All humans will die some day, but their wisdom will live on forever. It's been passed down time and time again for the last two million years.' Senku thought, taking in the fairly confused and bewildered look of Chrome.
"As of right now , I am going to pass on to you all the Science I know. All the Science of two million years of Humanity...!!"
{A sudden confession...!}
{Their meeting was a miracle.}
"W... W-W-W-WAIT!!" Chrome stuttered, not at all ready for this, "YOU'RE THE ONE THAT NEEDS TO CARRY ON SCIENCE!!! WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? I couldn't possibly be the one! What about Ana?! She's your assistant!"
"Ohh? Pretty sweet words there... Are you my girlfriend, suddenly?" Senku couldn't help but to tease the flustered former sorcerer, "Don't worry though, I don't even have a millimeter of an intent to die, so relax. As for Ana, I'm pretty sure she already knows all I could tell. Won't be much of my assistant if she wasn't." When he said those words, Chrome swore he could hear a hint of pride in his tone, but it was gone as soon as he continued, "But in order to cure Ruri's illness, we're going to need to rush headfirst into the poison gas area and collect this Sulfuric Acid. If, by some chance, the worst should happen and I should succumb to it... In that instant..." He trailed off.
Chrome allowed a moment of silent to surround the two of them.
"So in case you die, Senku, I need to stay behind?"
"Yes. So that you can carry on the knowledge of Science..."
"IF THAT'S THE CASE, THEN I AIN'T CARRYIN' NO SHIT!"
"What?!"
At Chrome rejection, not only was Senku surprised, but also Kohaku who was sitting on a branch of a tree just near the two, eavesdropping on their conversation.
"What are you, a kid?!" Senku asked in disbelief, "You getting all sulky because I'm making you stay behind...?"
"That's not what I'm talking about." Chrome replied, "'With this, it'll be okay even if my friend dies!!' I don't have any intent of helping out with a plan like that!! So sorry to say, but I WON'T CARRYING ON ANY KNOWLEDGE FOR YOU. Which means if you eat crap and die Senku, then it's game over for Science!" He got closer to Senku, now face to face with him, "Which means Ten Billion percent... YOU NEED TO COMEBACK ALIVE! YOU HEAR ME...?! SENKU?!"
It seems that Senku wasn't convinced yet, so Chrome continued on with his argument.
"And besides, If we're essentially going on a suicide mission into the poison gas, then why would we send you, Senku, our key Science man? You could just sacrifice me, anyone else, or heck, even Ana, I'm sure you won't even need to ask her to! That would be 'most efficient' as you would love to say, right?" Chrome did not miss the minimal twitch on Senku's brow at that and he thought, perhaps, maybe, he'll have to exploit that. "And yet you say... 'Chrome, you and Ana stay behind'? Did you even tell her?! It's way too obvious that you're just trying to protect us! What am I, your kid?! Don't look down on me, you son of a bitch."
"Ehh? I'm not looking down, or up at you, moron." Senku replied dismissively after a second, "It's simply the most efficient and logical course. Since I understand the theory and principles behind the gas mask, and I know all about the materials that we're trying to, me going myself would give the highest probability of success. That's all." Senku finished, completely ignoring all the things Chrome said that included Ana.
"That is not the highest chance of success! Two Sciencers teaming up and going in together!! If anything happens, one of us will be able to save the other!! That's the most efficient, isn't it...?!" Chrome argued back, once again.
Senku pondered on Chrome's words, before his eyes curled and a manic grin appeared on his face and he chuckled.
"'If anything happens' we'll already be dead from the poison gas! You'd have better chance of bringing the shit you took last night back to life!"
"Ahhh err..." Chrome does not have a comeback for that, "Well, what if you crazily tripped! That might happen, y'know...!"
"Indeed, you're right." Senku exhaled, "There's less than 0.1% chance of it happening... But you're right, it'd increase our chance of survival."
Chrome kept quiet for a while, "... It was Taiju, Yuzuriha and Athena, wasn't it? Who you and Ana sent into Tsukasa's empire to spy? That was truly risking their lives, wasn't it? Which means, they completely had your back and were fully supporting you, right? We're just the same! If I'm not below or above you, but if I'm really your comrade, really your friend, then I'll protect you! Right? Go on, tell me I'm wrong...!!"
"Gee... Thanks to you... Now we have to make another gas mask, Chrome." Senku smirked, "My life is in your hands, Chrome."
"Right!! And mine is yours, Senku...!"
Senku was about to turn in for the night when a certain someone wrapped their arms around Senku and Chrome's shoulders.
"Wow, all that talk that included me and you didn't even think of also adding me to the group?" Ana popped up without any warning, a coy smile on her face.
"GAAAHHH!! WHERE DID YOU COME FROM?!" Chrome was the one to scream, which caused Ana to let go of him, she didn't let go of Senku, though. Both Kohaku and Senku almost did the same, they settled to having mini-heart attacks.
"Ana, listen, we're gonna have to collect Sulfuric Acid and-" Senku was cut off by Ana.
"Senkuuuuuuu!!!" Ana whined, shaking Senku from his shoulders and willed tears in her eyes. It didn't even took her much effort because she already wants to sleep, and when she's tired, she'll whine and cry when others mess her resting time.
"Agh! Fine! Two gas masks, then!" Senku gave up almost instantly.
Ana cheered, and Chrome did not share her enthusiasm, not because she'll be coming with them, but at the fact that...
"HOW COME I HAD TO LAY ALL THOSE ARGUMENTS TO CONVINCE YOU BUT IT ONLY TOOK ANA TO SAY YOUR NAME?!" Chrome himself seemed to be in tears now, as well.
"My Assistant Privileges." Surprisingly, it was Senku who said that as he took Ana's hand and walked out along with her towards the storehouse.
"Good night, Chrome, Kohaku!!" Ana waved goodbye, chuckling as she saw the surprised looked of Chrome looked up to the direction Ana waved to Kohaku, where the girl has been eavesdropping since the beginning.
"Seems like the two of them will have some heart to heart talk, or he'll receive some shovel talk from Kohaku." Ana observed, not at all minding the cold breeze of the silent night around them.
"Knowing those two, they probably do." Senku agreed.
"Don't think I didn't hear all what you said about me to Chrome." Ana gave a side-way glance to him, "You talked about Chrome suddenly being your 'girlfriend' when he said all those sweet talks, but you sound like you're entrusting me as your wife to a trusted friend after you die." Ana teased, fidgeting with her hands and looking anywhere but Senku.
"It wasn't like that!" Senku countered, crossing his arms and narrowing his eyes at her. "And drop the shy act! Aren't you normally the one who's flirting with me?!"
"AH!" Ana smiled with a blush on her face, putting her hands on her cheeks, still looking away from him, "So you do remember that it's always me who start it! Since you used to word 'normally', does that mean this time, it was you? Aww, we made some progress, my dear~"
The dark haired girl snickered as Senku did not even bother to reply and sped up towards the storehouse.
[The next day...]
Everyone got to work first thing in the morning, needing to work faster while also making sure they did it with utmost quality to be on the safe side. Now that they acquired two more gas masks for Chrome and Ana.
Senku chuckled as soon as the three of them have their gas masks on, "This time, we will have it. The most difficult material, Sulfuric Acid...!!"
"It's Payback Time!!" Ana cheered before she turned to Lalaine, "I feel like I've forgotten something, but I already left William to play around with Suika and Chalk."
"If you forgot, then it wasn't important." Lalaine replied casually.
"You're right."
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"HAHAHAHAHA!!!"
Czar wanted to smack the shit out of this shorty, said shorty being Athena, who was laughing obnoxiously at him.
"YOU MEAN, YOU'RE TELLING ME YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO SURPRISE US BY TRAVELING HERE AND AS SOON AS YOU WERE ABOUT TO STEP FOOT INTO OUR SCHOOL, THE ENTIRE WORLD GOT PETRIFIED?!"
Athena laughed even more, if someone were to have superhuman hearing, their ear drums would be hurting by now.
"Shut the fuck up." Czar stared at her, "Please shut the fuck up."
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