7. Teaching With Nostalgia
Sept. 22, 2022
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"Okay! Tell me, Senku, (Y/N)! How do we make the cure-all medicine?" Chrome questioned. "I'll defeat Ruri's illness!"
"If it's to cure my sister, I'll cooperate however I can!" Kohaku added.
Senku had his knowing grin on his face, meaning he had been calculating what to do for Ruri. He began to draw out a map as you talked to Kohaku and Chrome.
"Well, the most basic cure-all in our time was called 'antibiotics,'" you informed them. "In this case, if Ruri has bacteria growing within her, it will kill the tiny cells and prevent it from coming back to make her sick."
"Correct. Since its creation in the 20th century, it has saved hundreds and thousands of lives. We can't do a blood test or discover the name of the disease, so making them is worth a shot!" The scientist declared.
"Alright! Let's make it now!"
"What do we need to make it?"
You told them, "We don't have anything to make it right now. It will be hell of a long process."
"Yeah, the 'act first' mentality reminds me of a certain blockhead, so listen up," said Senku. "We can make penicillin from organic matter, or we could make sulfur drugs from rocks. The most famous example of this would be making penicillin out of blue mold. Since it has been beneficial, sulfur drugs have faded away into history. However, the route of making penicillin is the equivalent of winning the lottery in this stone world because finding the super blue mold is difficult."
"So, in this case, we need to do the sulfur drug route," you added.
"Yes. We will need an insane amount of patience and effort, but we will eventually create the cure-all."
Chrome shouted, "So the answer is clear now!"
Senku smirked. "Do you see now, Chrome? We aren't gods or natural geniuses. We've made it this far, step-by-step, struggling on our own."
The scientist finished creating his large map listing all the needed ingredients to develop antibiotics. It was a summary of two million years of science, so going through that again was not an option.
"Whoa! Let's start with iron, then! What is it? Teach me everything about it!" Chrome's eyes sparkled with wonder and curiosity.
Senku replied, "That's not easy to obtain either."
"How about this? Ask us what you need to know. I'll explain the basic stuff to the best of my knowledge. Senku will explain the more difficult things," you told the boy.
Kohaku added, "This will be... Senku and (Y/N)-sensei's sorcery-science class? I'll listen, but I don't think I'll understand..."
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"Awesome!"
You and Senku were beyond exhausted. It took nearly an entire day to answer all of their questions, and they were still asking. Senku was lying flat on the ground while you had yourself propped up to a tree right next to him.
Chrome was invested in asking so many questions, as he was the most interested. "The earth is spinning? That's amazing!"
"Yep... isn't this enough?" The tired scientist drawled out.
Kohaku questioned from above you, "If that's the case, then why aren't I falling off this tree?"
"That's because of something called 'gravity,'" you replied.
"I always thought that it was weird how the stars never moved...." said Chrome, his eyes focusing on the little lights that were hanging above all of you.
"The North star, right? That bright one," Senku stood up and pointed at the biggest star in the sky. It was brighter than any of the ones surrounding it, making it easy to spot. "It's one billion percent likely to be true North, so you better remember it."
"Is that how it is?" The brunette wondered.
Kohaku looked up into the void, gazing upon the North star. "True north seems slightly off if you ask me."
"That's not possible. The true margin of error is..." Senku had suddenly stopped talking, his eyes widening with realization. "Did the earth's axis tilt? Little by little, the planet had shifted entirely... In this year, 5739, the North star has moved!"
"That's probably why your navigation on the sextant was off, Senku," you pointed out. "I guess we shouldn't be calling it the 'North' star anymore then."
He chuckled and replied, "I guess so. This science-er is astonished to hear and to overlook something like this. It's because of my preconceived notions, huh? These two are a hell of a lot more observant than I am. What a useless guy I am..."
You slightly frowned when you heard that. "What the hell are you talking about? I don't see a useless guy. Knowing everything is part of the impossible, and we are just learning with the newfound information we have gotten. Of course, it'll still be hard to understand the grand scale of things, and this is one of them."
Senku smiled softly at you. "I'm trying not to beat myself up over it. After calming down, I can see that it is just the scale of things. 3,700 years... It may be late, but what a time to be in, huh, slowpoke?"
"Yeah, I know..." You returned the gesture. Then, you at Chrome and Kohaku, who was listening to your little exchange with the scientist. You couldn't help but feel that they were having conflicted feelings about the two of you.
"Wait, how did you know that the original North star was shifted?" Senku questioned Chrome.
The boy then had a smug look on his face. "OH?! It seems that our Senku doesn't recognize this stone! I happened to find it across a barren mountain! It's a super amazing one, too!"
He then grabbed a basin of water that he had prepared earlier. It had a little rock in the middle, floating on a leaf that always seemed to point in one direction. "If you suspend it or have it float, it somehow manages to point north every time!"
You and Senku took a look at it. You exclaimed in sync, "It's a magnet!"
Chrome fell back in disbelief. "Damn it! You know what it is already?!"
The green-haired boy took the magnet off the leaf to inspect it. "Kukuku, my, aren't you a busy guy, Chrome? Now I have an idea of how we can acquire our first step. Do you have any more of these back at the warehouse?"
"Yeah! They're bigger, so we can't float them in the water," said Chrome.
"Never mind them floating in the water. It'll be used when we head to the river tomorrow. In the meantime, let's head back and get rest because we need to be up early to find enough of what we need," said Senku.
All four of you headed back to the warehouse. You and Senku camped out with Chrome, and Kohaku left to rest in the village.
"Chrome, you go to sleep. I'm going to use some of these plant roots for a sec," said Senku. He then grabbed one chunk of a root, then a pot and a smaller-looking cup. "(Y/N), you follow me."
"Oh?" You looked back at Chrome, who just shrugged his shoulders and slipped into the blankets he had on the floor.
You left the warehouse and followed Senku, who led you to the nearby shallow river.
"This definitely doesn't remind me of a certain someone's love confession. What did you bring me out here for, all alone with just the two of us, Senku~?" you teased.
"Very funny. Just sit down and relax for now while I get these things ready," he said.
The scientist laid all of the items on the ground and lit a fire. You sat down on a small boulder and let out a sigh, relaxing, as you hadn't rested for nearly an entire day. Actually, you haven't had any time to relax at all. Your eyes wandered, your ears tuned out.
Other than the flames that were burning bright, the stars and the moon were shining a light on all of you. It was the clearest you've ever seen. You haven't taken the time to accept that you could see all the stars so clearly, you could see the different constellations above you. Even spotting planets weren't so tricky through the naked eye. The vast wonders of space had always interested you, and you had loved learning about it. It is the reason why you and Senku became friends in the first place when the two of you were young.
-Flashback-
"My name is (Y/N) (L/N). I am from (Country Name). It is nice to meet you all. I hope we can be friends!"
It was your first day of the first grade in Japan. You were the only transfer student in the classroom and had to introduce yourself in front of other children your age. However, you started late in the year because you were still learning Japanese and it's written language, so naturally, you were a bit behind on making any friends. Your parents had also made the mistake of putting you in a regular Japanese school instead of the international ones that they had.
"Thank you, (Y/N)-san. If you could, please sit in the empty seat in the back, and we can continue your introduction from there."
Little you had lightly bounced over to your seat with a smile on your face. However, the slight feeling of happiness would fade away as you saw the other students staring. They have most likely never met a foreigner before. Yes, you were the center of attention since you were new, but it still made you nervous.
Your sensei continued after you went to your seat. "To move forward, what would you like to do when you grow up?"
"Um...I always like looking at the moon, stars, and constellations, so I would like to be an astronaut and go to space," you sheepishly answered.
"Ah, that is a lovely dream and goal. Thank you, (Y/N)-san. Now, let's begin the lesson."
---
It was lunchtime, and nobody had come up to talk to you. You already noticed that many kids were leaving the classroom when break had begun, so you were already eating by yourself. It was likely that they wouldn't want to or didn't know how to interact with you because you were a foreigner. You were lucky enough to a get a teacher that treated you normally.
"I guess I'm going to have no friends at all..." you sadly sighed. You took out your Nintendo DS and began to play on it as you ate your food in silence.
You began to think about how you came and moved to Japan as you were by yourself. You didn't like that you moved out of (Country), let alone having to learn a new language quickly instead of spending time with your old friends before leaving. However, your parents were making business, traveling worldwide to gain money and allies, with their main headquarters finally settling in Japan.
Your parents loved you and did their best to explain why it was the best decision for them and you. Unfortunately, they have told you that once you have gotten used to living in the country and spent some time with the people, they would begin to travel once more. Except...they would leave you behind to study, and start practicing dance and "kenjutsu".
"Hey, you got a shiny Slowpoke!"
You heard someone speak, which interrupted your thoughts and your game. You looked up to see a boy with spiky white hair, which faded into dark green, and red eyes. You thought he looked pretty adorable in his collared shirt and bowtie.
You blanked out. "Huh?"
"That Pokémon on your DS. What, you don't know what it is?" He questioned you. You then looked down to see that a shiny Slowpoke had appeared, and you were already battling it. You didn't even realize it because of this boy showing up out of nowhere.
"I do!" You quickly retorted.
The boy snickered, "You haven't even caught him yet. Do you even know what he evolves into?"
"Uh...n-no. I just started playing a week ago..."
"Then, I guess you're a slowpoke. Whatever. You will still be useful for helping me make a rocket to the moon."
Your eyes widened. "You're making a rocket to the moon? And I'm not a slowpoke!"
"Well, after learning some more science, yeah. You said you wanted to be an astronaut to see the stars, right? You have no choice since you're a loner. I need more labor and brains." He gave you a confident grin as he held his hand out for you to take.
You took it and shook his hand in agreement. "So, you like space too...what's your name?"
"Senku. Ishigami Senku."
-End of Flashback-
"You're enjoying the stars, aren't you, slowpoke?"
You looked down to see Senku staring at you with a gentle look in his ruby-colored eyes. He had the cup in his hand with a hot drink. You assumed that he used the root to make it.
"You could never see the stars like this before because of all the light that shone in the cities and neighborhoods," you told him. "Only in places like Musashino Forest Park, Ashibetsu, Achi Village, or the observatories in Kumamoto and Miyazaki. But even if you could see them there through travel, it was never as clear as it is now. To see this every night... it's so unbelievably beautiful."
He replied with a slight chuckle, "Everything we've discovered now has been exhilarating. It's as you said; it's just a part of the grand scale of things."
"Even though I did say that, it's still hard to believe. I haven't even had enough time to stop and process what's been going on, despite how many days it's been since I have woken up. One second, we're in school, watching Taiju's confession to Yuzuriha. Next thing you know, we're all trying to run from lions and a murderer in a world that's been reset. Can you imagine how insane that sounds?" You questioned him as you looked at him with a sorrowful expression on your face. "Now, it's either kill or be killed in a world like this. I hope for the day when it goes back to normal."
"Look, (Y/N). I know that you haven't had the time to process every single thing, especially now. It is not a 'kill or be killed' world since we have a base of operations, support, and science. I've already told you that I have a plan. If it doesn't work, we have options," said Senku.
"What if you do end up having to kill him? I wouldn't want you to be a freakin' murderer."
"I ten billion percent promise that it won't happen. Don't worry. We'll build it all up again so that we can go to the moon."
Senku sat down on another rock next to you, and he handed you the cup. You sniffed the warm liquid and scrunched up your nose. You knew that smell too well.
"It's tea made with ground ginger," he said. "Chug it down if you have to."
You blew on it to cool it down. You gulped as you looked down at it, then used two fingers to plug your nose as you downed the drink. You stuck your tongue out after you swallowed it, as the aftertaste lingered.
"Ugh..." you muttered. You turned to the scientist. "It's more ginger water than ginger tea. It's like liquefied diarrhea."
"What kind of weird-ass comparison is that? As much as I would love to give you something better, you don't have any other choice. You kept putting your hand on your neck today because it felt strained. The antioxidants in the ginger will get rid of the soreness and pain. It'll relieve the stress you have as well."
You slightly widened your eyes. "You noticed that?"
He smirked. "You're not slick, slowpoke."
You groaned and pulled your legs up to your chest to hug. You rested your head on your knees and looked over at him.
"I know I'm not. I feel much better now. Calmer too. I still have fear, but I know that I don't have much to worry about since I have you with me..." You told him and smiled warmly. Then realized that it sounded a bit provocative, so you quickly added, "...especially since you can protect us from Tsukasa with science! Ha...Haha..."
Senku raised an eyebrow but then shrugged it off as if it were nothing. He then stood up and yawned, letting you know that you needed to get back to the warehouse to rest. He waited for you until you finished stretching after standing up.
"You know, I miss the lights that the city provided...it would give me a sense of calm. Complete darkness is seriously freaky," you mentioned as you looked up. "We're lucky that the moon and stars provide some sort of light for us."
"Well, the more we work to get science, I will create light for you. Now, tomorrow is a new day, and it will require a lot of work," said Senku. "This is going to be exhilarating."
"I know it is."
"And you're gonna have to drink more ginger tea if you wanna work hard later on."
"Yeah, yeah, I know that too."
Together, you walked back to prepare for the task at hand the next day.
-To be Continued-