15. The Match-up
Dec. 17, 2022
A/N: The story broke 1k reads and 100 votes! Thank you so much, guys! I hope you guys stay for what's to come, despite it being a bit slow. â¡
I also finished my finals for this college semester, so I'm finally on break for a few weeks.
(* ; â½ ; *) I'm seriously dead inside.
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"We're back!"
All four of you were greeted by Kohaku, Suika, and Kaseki as you were carrying multiple jars of liquid.
"We finally got the hardest material, sulfuric acid!" You exclaimed, showing the lioness all the large jars you carried in your bag. Chrome and Ginro came up next to you and placed theirs inside the chemistry lab while Senku struggled to hold his one bottle.
With happiness and hope, she asked, "Does that mean we can finally make the cure-all for Ruri-nee?!"
"What are you talking about? You're jumping the gun. You saw that crazy road map to making the cure-all before we started, right?"
"Kukuku, that's not true at all. We've just collected everything we need to make the damn thing!" Senku informed all of you.
He then grabbed all the glass beakers and flasks needed to create the cure-all and took them outside. He then motioned you to grab some large bowls and more firewood. "Now that we've collected the items, all we need to do is shuffle through the dark blocks of the road map y illuminate them one by one on our way to the goal. And we'll knock them out all at once today! Kukuku... this is exhilarating!"
You took a bowl, lighting a fire underneath. Then Senku took one of the bottles of sulfuric acid and poured it into the bowl. He then sprinkled some salt over the top. He then took out a flask with two extra necks and a glass rod sticking from the middle of it.
"What's this glass rod sticking out of the middle of this cup? It looks weird!" Suika exclaimed.
Kaseki was frustrated and had tears pouring from his two eyes. "Do you have any idea how difficult the work you made me do was?! I was over here tingling with curiosity because I had no idea what you were gonna use it for!"
The scientist replied, "It's a water-dripping machine."
"The gas that's released from mixing salt and sulfuric acid will be caught by the dripping water," Chrome added, wearing a face mask as the chemicals were being made.
Once it was halfway full with a new chemical, Senku took the dripping machine and showed it to Suika. "This is hydrochloric acid! One brush of this against your eyes, and you can go blind!"
Suika shivered and avoided the chemical at all costs, as she was afraid of going near it. Kohaku looked concerned when Senku was explaining its effects.
Senku's trying to scare Suika away from the chemicals to keep her safe. How considerate of him... you thought with a smile, even though his method is a bit harsh.
He then poured some white powder into another flask and connected it to the flask with hydrochloric acid. "This is geyserite. It's found in hot springs, and with it, we can take a huge shortcut! Boiling it down and adding it to hydrochloric acid makes chlorosulfonic acid!"
He went up to Suika again, scaring her. "One drop of this, and your skin will turn green like a zombie in a flash!"
"Senku..." You sighed.
The boy just looked at you and laughed hysterically. "Now we need electricity! Kinro, Ginro!"
The two boys used the physical generator to create electricity for Senku. The scientist then licked the ends of the wires and dipped them into the salt water to break down the salt, creating sodium hydroxide.
"Now, this is super insane! The yakuza used this to dispose of corpses! PSA: Don't go using this to dispose of dead bodies, good children," said Senku, scaring Suika once more.
"There is no situation where children would need to get rid of dead bodies!" You told him.
Then you saw it. Kohaku had a smile on her face, but you knew that inside, she was angry.
"Ohhh, I see now! Chemicals to make someone go blind, zombify them, and then dissolve their corpse. I see..." She then glared at Senku and Chrome with her big, blue eyes. "And you're planning on having Ruri-nee drink that?!"
"Relax! We're using them to mix the medicine!" Senku informed her. "But don't worry! The last chemical is pretty easy to get! Let's go get some ammonia!"
"Where are you gonna get that from?" The blonde asked
"It's best if you don't know," he replied.
The boys then ran to the back of the lab, leaving you, Kohaku, and Suika inside. The three of you, out of curiosity, followed them and saw that they had pulled their pants down and whipped out their swords. They then began to urinate into a glass jar.
You ended up having to hold Kohaku back just so she wouldn't kill them while their hotdogs were out and about. "YOU'RE GOING TO MAKE RURI-NEE DRINK THAT?!"
"Kohaku, please! It's to mix the medicine, we promise!" You begged, and you wrapped your arms around her waist to stop her.
"She's right!" Senku stated. "But we've got everything we need! All we need are three ingredients left, which are sodium bicarbonate, aniline, and acetic anhydride. But all those require alcohol."
Chrome began to storm off. "Alright, let's go make some booze!"
Old man Kaseki was already outside of the laboratory as you were going to head out.
"Booze? If you guys win the Grand Bout tomorrow, the village will give you all the alcohol you can drink!" He reminded you all.
Everybody cheered, but you had realized, "The Grand Bout is tomorrow?! Shouldn't this last a few more chapters, though?!"
"Kukuku... don't worry about it. We've progressed through enough. We have no choice but to win tomorrow, even if it kills us," said Senku.
"Right..."
-----
It was the next day. You and Senku were chilling inside the chemistry lab, waiting for Kinro and Ginro to finish signing up for the Village Games.
"Senku, (Y/N), I have news for you!" You heard Ginro cry out.
You poked your head out to see him running towards the lab, holding two sticks with large padding stuck to the end of them. His eyes were full of determination.
"What is it, Ginro?" You asked him.
"I was able to sign the both of you up into the village games!" The blonde sneered.
You raised your eyebrows in surprise. "Isn't that against the rules?"
"Kukuku, based on the rules Kohaku mentioned, there is no rule against us!" Senku snickered, and took one of the weapons from Ginro, inspecting it.
You took the other stick from Ginro to get a feel of it. "I guess you're right then--"
"(Y/N), Senku, you're joining the Grand Bout?!" Kohaku blurted out of nowhere. She barged into the lab with Suika out of shock.
"Yup! I made the request myself!" Ginro proudly announced. "After all, you're above the age of 14 and not married, right, Senku, (Y/N)?"
Senku joined in, "Damn right we are! It doesn't say a single thing about being a member of the village!"
"Oi, when did the two of you get so buddy-buddy?" You questioned them as they bumped arms together.
Kohaku sat down to calm herself as she realized that the only reason they are getting along was because of their sleazy nature. But then she looked up and realized something. "Wait, this is a good thing! With (Y/N) on our side, there is a higher chance of winning the games! However...there's also Senku's fighting ability."
"I don't plan on winning. I just need to tire out the enemy and we can go on from there," said the scientist.
"Plus, if we have to fight each other, Senku or (Y/N) can fake out the loss, and I bust through that round, EASY PEASY! The most friends we got in the runnings, the better!" Ginro smugly shouted with his tongue sticking out like a snake.
Kinro, who was listening to the entire conversation, had butt in, "You guys are fixing the games?! You're the worst, Ginro! Tsk, no matter how troublesome they may be, rules are rules! I'm not gonna lose on purpose to help fix the match--"
"GO RIGHT ON AHEAD!" Senku and Ginro began to cackle loudly. "After all, all you need to do is beat Magma! So save you're strength while you keep winning till then! You don't need to participate in any fixed matches at all! You do you, while we do us!"
The brunette had sweat dripping down his temples. He then turned to you and Kohaku. "Kohaku, (Y/N)! What will you do?! Are you okay with sullying the games for this kind of foul play?!"
You both looked at him, then at each other. You showed him a small, apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, Kinro, but I will side with Senku and Ginro for this..."
Kohaku nodded. "If it's to save Ruri-nee, even just a little..."
The both of you went over to the side of cheaters rather than the side of fairness and just, leaving Kinro in the dust.
But despite choosing a side, it was time for you to enter the village. Your entire group headed for the village, you and senku stepping inside for the first time. As you made it past the first bridge, you could see how small the village was up close, and how all the villagers had stared at you with different emotions, ranging from shock and fear. You and Senku had ignored them, appearing confident as you headed towards the tournament arena.
"Senku-san, (Y/N)-san...I presume?" The two of you heard a voice call out as you walked over the second bridge.
You both turned to see a young woman with a long, blonde hair and green eyes. Her face was exactly like Kohaku's, except it was more delicate and soft. She wore a purple dress and had a rope around her neck.
"You're the famed priestess, Ruri?" You questioned her.
"Kukuku, we finally meet at last," Senku slightly chuckled.
She stepped forward as she spoke, "There is something I must absolutely ask you. Senku, (Y/N), what are your family names...?"
The two of you had widened your eyes. Even the surrounding villagers were confused to what she had asked.
"A family name is a name that would precede your other name--" Ruri tried to explain.
"Yeah, yeah, we know what a family name is," said Senku. He turned to you with a questioning look on his face. "This village doesn't practice the culture of family names."
"If that were the case, then how would she know?" You wondered.
She began to speak once more. "Could it be that you both are Ishi--"
The priestess then stopped speaking, her sentences interrupted by violent coughing. She fell to the ground, and three villagers, who you assumed that one was the chief, surrounded her. You and Senku instinctively tries to help, but they begun to scream at everyone to back away from the girl. The men immediately carried her back up to a large hut.
"Kukuku, seems like we got a load of questions for her, huh, slowpoke?" Senku looked straight at you with a grin.
"Right. After Kinro wins and marries her, we'll be able to go over it together," you said.
"BWAHAHAHA! This is perfect!" You heard a man cheer out. You turned your head to see Magma grinning ear to ear. "I won't even need to go out of my way to kill Ruri! If she drops dead right after we marry, I'll make sure and please her real good up until then!"
Chrome grit his teeth together. "Damn it, Magma! You of all people will never--"
You put your arm out in front of him before he tried to attack. "Do not give in. If you attack now, all the training you did will go to waste."
"Chrome did some training?" Kohaku wondered.
"Uh-huh! He was practicing a loooooot," said Suika. "All he was doing was hitting a target nonstop."
"Yeah! I'm gonna target that bastard's vitals!" The brunette exclaimed proudly, holding up the padded spear. "And by his vitals, I mean his dick!"
"I agree. If you were to go all out on lowering his stamina, then pounding his testicles is the way to go!" The lioness informed him. You nodded furiously, causing Kaseki to shake in fear.
"I may have no chance of winning, but at the very least, I can deal some damage before Kinro or somebody else fights Magma!" He cried.
Kohaku then said, "That's fine, but it's going to come down to what the tournament pairings are..."
"Yeah, if we really wanna rig these matches," you added.
Ginro cackled. "Cheating? Rigging? Fixing? Who cares! All we're after is winning!"
Senku played along, "Fair and square, my left nut! These are the village games of schemes!"
You sighed, and then noticed all the men participating started lining up. They were picking sticks to see who would fight who. You and Senku lined up to pick sticks, though the man who was handing it out slightly raised an eyebrow when he had noticed you joining. But he said nothing. However, the only thing on your mind was how to rig the games. It could only be rigged if Magma and Kinro were in different blocks.
"Please let Kinro and Magma be in different blocks. Please let Kinro and Magma be in different blocks. Please let Kinro and Magma be in different blocks..." Suika chanted as she prayed.
You saw a young child then write out the charts for the blocks. The very first round was...
"Kinro versus Magma!"
The entire Kingdom of Science had the face of disappointment. The entire chart was the exact opposite of what you all had hoped for.
1. Kinro versus Magma.
2. Chrome versus Mantle.
3. Senku versus Kohaku.
4. Ginro versus Argo.
5. (Y/N) versus Titan.
"How amusing..." you chuckled out of instinct.
You were quite concerned with the match up, but there were multiple different ways it can go. You could only hope what could happen next.
-To be Continued-
A/N: Sorry for delay guys! I know I usually post on Thursdays PST, but would it be better for me to post on the weekends instead?