41. Frontal Attack
11-05-2023
A/N: Hey guys, thanks for all the support and comments! I know I'm pushing these delays out but life's pretty damn stressful when you're an adult in college, and you feel burnt out sometimes. I'm doing my best to keep myself mentally healthy.
Q: What do you do for your mental health?
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"From out of nowhere, the paper tank is now finished!"
It was the day of the planned invasion. You were watching as Senku was excitedly sitting on top of the newly furnished tank with a makeshift helmet. It was twice as big as before, and solid to a T. A childlike smile was plastered on his face as he drove it around for a test ride.
"Kukuku, this is exhilarating!" Senku cried out.
You asked as you inspected the vehicle, "Since there's a barrel on it, will you actually fire something out of it without gunpowder?"
The scientist leaned over to get a look at you from below. A smirk secured itself on his face when he held up a leather pouch-like item. "Sure will! Using this leather rupture disks, of course."
"Please explain, Mr. Sciencer," you lightly pleaded as you watched Gen sweating with confusion.
"We use electrolysis on the water, making it bubble up. The hydrogen and oxygen gasses that it expels fill the rupture disk up and it expands until it goes BOOM! And it ruptures!" He explained the everybody.
"Ah, I get it! ...Hang on... then after you fire it just once, it's gonna be wrecked and done for, right?!" Chrome asked with a surprised look on his face.
An expression of confidence appeared as he replied, "Yeah, that's fine though. If a tank comes barreling it with its cannon blasting, just one shot would be enough to make anyone lose all will to fight, ten billion percent!"
"Well...he's not wrong about that," considered Gen, you nodding with agreement.
Kohaku piped up, "If we're trying to overcome them without any casualties, then this blitz attack we're opening with will be the very thing that decides this battle!"
With a laugh, Senku then added, "Yeah, and we're gonna need him! The man with the number one toughness! I think you know who I'm talking about, right (Y/N)?"
You looked at him with bewilderment. Not knowing what he was talking about, he turned toward the forest and had a grin on his face as you noticed two figures approaching your group. Squinting your eyes to get a better look, you realized who they were when the sun hit their faces.
Speaking softly, the lioness said, "How strange...We've never met, yet I already know your name."
"Taiju...and Yuzuriha!" You blurted out as your mouth stayed agape. You whipped your head back at your boyfriend with disbelief, and he nodded, signaling that it was really them.
You welcomed your best friends with open arms and caught them in a massive bear hug, which Senku avoided completely. Tears were overflowing as you couldn't hold them in. "I really missed you, Taiju, Yuzuriha!"
"We missed you guys too, (Y/N)!" cried Taiju as he held you and Yuzuriha tightly.
"Oi, you're gonna kill them both with your idiotic strength, you big oaf," said Senku.
"How did you guys know where we were? Did Senku call you?" You asked.
"Yup!"
The brute let go of you and you then turned to the seamstress, who quickly grabbed your hands. She spoke as she clasped her fingers around yours, "We have so much to tell you!"
"I know! I have so much to talk to you about, especially about the village and all the things we made while we were gone," you exclaimed, wiping the tears from your shiny, (E/C) eyes.
"Yes, I'm going to tell you everything about the Tsukasa Empire, to my mission, to...what is that on your hand?" Yuzuriha gently turned your hand, palm facing down, and noticed the shiny ring around your finger. Her gentle appearance had turned to shock, and she begun trembling in place as she stammered, "I-I-Is that a ring?!"
"A ring?! Like for engagements or something?!" Taiju loudly wondered as he eyed the accessory with surprise.
You blanked out for a second, then your face began heating up. You had forgotten that you needed to tell Yuzuriha and Taiju that you and Senku had started dating.
"Ah... This is.... uh...um..." you struggled to form proper words, sweating profusely as your face darkened in color. You had forgotten about the ring's intended use in that moment, due to rising emotions.
Gen came up from behind you, leaning on your shoulder as he held the ring up like he was just engaged. "Senku-chan also made a matching ring for me too~! Get ready for a three-person wedding~!"
With wide eyes, they replied with confusion, "Uh... congratulations...?"
"No, you fools! As if I'd be engaged to this damn mentalist here," Senku hissed as he shoved the man off of you. He placed a hand on his hip, and his other hand sticking a pinky in his ear. With that action, both Yuzuriha and Taiju noticed the matching band on his ring finger. He explained, "It's to communicate through Morse code using reflected light."
With that, you let out a sigh of relief from your fading embarrassment. But you couldn't help but feel a little disappointed that your boyfriend didn't tell them that you were together at the same time. You didn't exactly know how to bring it up casually.
Best if we tell them straight-up, you thought to yourself. You took a deep breath and started, "Other than talking in Morse code...me and Senku's ring also--"
"It's also my promise to her."
With that, Yuzuriha, Taiju, and yourself had eyes as wide as the sun as you shot your head towards the boy once more. All of you were surprised by his sudden confession. Your primitive friends were confused, since they didn't know the significance of the ring in romantic terms. Meanwhile, Gen had the most mischievous smirk on his face as he watched you trying process everything.
Taiju then asked, "Promise? As in a promise ring?"
"(Y/N)-chan, are you and Senku-kun together?!" Yuzuriha squealed with jubilation; it had looked as though stars were carved into her eyes as she stared directly at you.
With a face darkened with rushing blood, you slowly nodded. "Yes...Senku and I are dating..."
"I'm so happy for you guys! I knew this day would come!" The girl screamed with joy, shaking your hands up and down like the world depended on it.
You widened your gaze upon her, then questioned her, "Wait, did you know we were going to be together one day?"
"Of course! I've seen many signs between you both, but the two of you were oozing with so much romantic tension ever since you danced together! It was bound to happen!" The seamstress exclaimed, causing you to feel more bashful than you already were.
The mentalist suddenly chimed in, "Right?! You could just feel the tension between the both of them when they were together~! I'm so glad I could relate to you, Yuzuriha-chan~!"
"Ah, you noticed too, Gen-kun?" The brunette grinned.
Suddenly, both of your friends were having a discussion about you and Senku. It was as if you were the main couple of their favorite piece of media.
You stood next to your boyfriend as he just sighed, placing a palm on his annoyed face. "These utter fools...they're ten billion percent not gonna shut up about it."
"Maybe we should've kept it a secret..." you awkwardly laughed.
"Nah...they would've found out later anyways," he replied.
Then you noticed Taiju coming up to the both of you. He had a wide smile on his face as he gave the two of you a thumbs-up. With his proud, booming voice, the brute told you, "Congratulations, you two! I'm really happy that you guys are together! Make sure to invite us to the wedding, okay?!"
You covered your face as you heard those words leave his mouth, and Senku's eyebrows twitched. You sputtered out, "We're not gonna get married now, Taiju!"
"But you're still gonna get married in the future, right? Or is that not what the promise is...?" Taiju wondered, beginning to doubt himself.
Senku sighed and replied with something that made your heart race. "Marriage or not, the ring is meant to be a promise to stay with this slowpoke. Forever. You don't need marriage to stay together."
With that response, a smile curled up once more on his face. "Good! I was hoping that was the case! But you guys look great together!"
"Thank you...Taiju," you muttered.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Now that you're here, let's get this show on the road! No time to reminiscent right now!" The scientist cried out, glancing over to you. "We can only take them by surprise within the first 20 seconds, so we need to have a plan!"
~~~
For the first set of 5 seconds, the tank had barreled through the fortress traps, leaving the enemy by surprise.
For the second set 5 seconds, you, Kohaku, Kinro, and Taiju worked together to attack the soldiers that were heading towards the vehicle. It unfortunately toppled over after running over a hole on the ground.
For the third set of 5 seconds, Senku instructed Magma to take out the newly created copper dome for their sound bomb. Everybody in the Kingdom of Science needed to cover their ears in order not to go deaf or break their eardrums. Each one of Tsukasa's warriors in front of the bomb were knocked out. Ukyo and Nikki joined the fight to take down a few of their members as well.
Within the last 5 seconds, you and the rest of the Gorilla gang had taken out each of the warriors without spilling a drop of blood. Taiju had to scream into the dome to pick out every last one of them, especially since all the sound bombs were gone. Due to that action, the miracle cave was controlled by the Kingdom of Science.
"It's been a whole year since we split either Senku and (Y/N)!" Taiju exclaimed with joy, holding up a massive clay jar with liquid inside of it. "We finally got it back! The miracle water!"
"With this, we can make as much revival formula and gunpowder as we want!" Chrome added. "Now come on guys, we won!"
You spoke out, placing your katana back into its sheath as you stood by Kohaku, "It's not over yet. We still need to make the gunpowder."
"Kuku, using this sulfur and charcoal, and a little bit of nitric acid, it'll be complete! An impromptu gunpowder making kit!" The scientist explained with as he held a massive jar with sulfur and charcoal inside of it. He had prepared ahead of time to make sure that it would be done right away. "At last, gunpowder aquir--"
"RUN, EVERYONE! GET OUT OF HERE, NOW!"
In the corner of your eye, you saw something shiny heading toward Senku at an incredible speed. You instinctively ran over to him, as you had no time to take your weapon out. Before the object could come into contact with the boy, Ukyo jumped on front and took the blow, pushing him, the scientist, and Taiju backwards onto the ground. The sound of shattered glass resonated, and dust and charcoal began to fill air.
"Sen--" you called out before another object came flying in to hit you in the leg, lodging itself into your calf. Felled, you could feel your blood slowly pouring out as you held in a scream. You looked down to see that an arrow was what struck you and Ukyo, and it was a clean hit.
"(Y/N)!" You heard your friends crying out your name. Kohaku and the others took one step before you held your hand out for them to stop. Gen watched from the fallen tank with worry.
"Don't...move! They might shoot you...too!" You shouted at them as you kept your voice steady. You really didn't want to have any casualties.
But as everyone gathered in one place, everyone instinctively knew that two people--or monsters--stood there before them. In that single moment, hopes of victory from the Kingdom of Science had vanished. You watched as Tsukasa and Hyoga revealed themselves with their intimidating aura. Your fight or flight senses were going haywire. However, you couldn't move an inch with the risk of being shot by the young archer that hid in the trees with them.
"Yo, Senku, (Y/N)," you heard Tsukasa greeting you calmly. Hearing his voice struck fear as were reminded of what he did to you a year ago.
You dug your fingers into the dirt to calm yourself down. Then you felt a hand lightly pressing on your back. Looking behind, you saw Senku trying to bring you comfort through touch. He echoed the primate, "Yo, Tsukasa."
"It's been a long, long battle, hasn't it? It's been a year since then," the man replied with a serious grin on his face. "How lamentable that, for a second time, I should have to end your life with these hands."
"How cruel of you," you said with strain.
"Kukuku, you're so cold. Even though I crawled my way outta hell...just for our little rendezvous with an insanely thin rope of science, that is," said Senku, flattered by the primate himself.
"Don't worry!" You heard Gen speaking in Lillian's voice.
The manipulated army from Tsukasa's side heard his voice, believing that Lillian Weinberg was in the tank. They all planned to protect and fight for their American army, but Hyoga shut it down. He threw a broken cellphone at the tank, and it shattered on impact.
"That was all a lie. Come out and end this farce, Gen. There's no way a primitive cellphone like this could connect all the way to America," the spearman scoffed with annoyance.
"We've been exposed...!" You mumbled.
Your boyfriend agreed. "Kukuku... right. And stupidly fast, as well."
The mentalist slowly revealed himself from the tank, causing people who were manipulated to be in disbelief.
"Gen?!"
"An imitation?"
"Why?"
Tsukasa chuckled. "Indeed. It was a paper-thin imitation at that. But now, as we speak, we shall arrive at the conclusion."
"It's your loss, Senku-kun," the white-haired man added. "Now, on that note, I'd like to suggest something to you--"
"Yeahhh, you don't have to spell it out for me. I know," the green-haired boy interrupted him. "...in exchange for guaranteeing the safety of everyone here, only I, the man of science, will die, right?"
You shot your head back at him. That wasn't what you wanted. However, there was something in his crimson-colored eyes that made you believe in him.
"It's good that you're making this quick. As expected, you really do things properly," the spearman answered.
"No! You can't, Senku! This...this'll be the same as back then!" Taiju started tearing up as he protested. "I never wanna go through that again--"
"Get that gross crying face outta here, ya big oaf. Take your eyeballs out and wash'em," Senku snapped at the brute. He sighed and explained, "Back then, when the three of you didn't make it in time, I was alone. But there's a whole bunch of us, isn't there? You guys, and the Kingdom of Science's allies as well!"
"Yeah! You're right, Senku!" Kohaku cheered, then started rushing toward the "monsters." She spoke, "I'm going to protect the Cave of Miracles! This is a siege! Even if we can hold out for a little while, Senku and the rest of the science users will definitely create a key to victory!"
Soon, all the fighters followed through, giving hope to the Kingdom of Science. As they rushed in, Senku leaned down and started dragging you into the cave, Chrome helping after seeing him struggle. Adrenaline started coursing through your veins after hearing the lioness' words. You couldn't just stand by.
"Senku, I need you to break the arrow. I need to go out there and help them!" You declared.
"HUH?!" He widened his eyes, but then furrowed his brows as he wanted to make sure this was your resolve. "Are you sure?"
"Yes! Just break the two ends off, but keep the middle part in there so I don't bleed out!" You blurted out, then turned to the brunette. "Chrome, you help him too!"
"What?!" Chrome shouted. He nervously put some extra rope he had and put it in your mouth. Then, he went over to your leg, where Senku already had one hand on your calf, and the other on the arrow. The boy copied the scientist and awaited the signal. "Ready? This is gonna be bad..."
"Yeah, this is gonna hurt a lot, and pray you don't get sepsis later--"
"Shut up and break it! I know the risks!"
With that, a loud roar echoed throughout the cave as the wood snapped, and only the middle portion stuck out. Spitting out the rope, you stood up with the help of Senku. Your leg hurt like hell, but the adrenaline was keeping the pain at its lowest.
"(Y/N), at best, you will only last a few minutes with that injury. Stay safe," said Senku as you were facing the cave's exit.
Turning back to him, you quickly ran up and pulled on his shirt to give him one quick, final kiss. This left him quite surprised, and Chrome disgusted. You spoke up as you pulled away, "I know. I'll be back after we win. I promise."
The scientist smirked. "That's my girl."
"Yeah, yeah, okay, get the hell outta here! Y'all can kiss later!" The young brunette stated with repulsion.
With a smile, you turned heel and shouted,
"Book it, sciencers!"
-To be Continued-
A/N: Ahhhh, I posted it. I'm sorry this was late! I'm trying not to fall behind because of college, but they pump out assignments like it's nobody's business.
I think that when I finish the Stone Wars arc, I'm gonna take a short break before starting the Treasure Island arc. It won't be too long. Maybe a month or two.