Sweeter than Cola [Dr. Stone]

|Five|

Hanako had just finished sewing Yuzuriha's new outfit onto her. "Okay, Yuzuriha, we'll finally save you!" Taiju beamed. "For real this time!" 

Senku and Hanako shared a glance before she exclaimed. "What the heck!? We don't have enough to revive even a single person!"

"What!? I jumped the gun?" Taiju yelled. "Sorry, I'll run and get some more right now!"

"Tsukasa, Hana and I can wait here and play 20 questions while you dash over there, ya big oaf," the scientist suggested. Taiju was about to run off when Tsukasa stopped him with a good-natured smile.

"I'm the quickest, so I should go," he volunteered. "Why don't you tell me where to find this Miracle Fluid."

The large brunette started off soon after, leaving the three to their own devices. Soon after he left, Senku yawned. "Is Tsukasa gone?"

"Yeah!" Taiju beamed. "What a speedy guy..."

Senku and Hanako immediately started tossing vials at each other, mixing liquids with pinpoint accuracy and synchronization. "We need to whip this up quickly and revive Yuzu-chan," Hanako said, shaking a vial. "before Tsukasa returns."

"What's going on Senku, Hana-chan!?" the brunette exclaimed, watching as his friends worked. "Didn't you say we didn't have enough fluid?"

"Why would Hana put a pot in the cave that's the wrong size?" Senku asked in reply.

"Good point," Taiju thought out loud. "But then why'd you send Tsukasa away?"

"It was double-edged bait," Hanako explained. "He might know the cave's location now, but we needed to get rid of him before we revived Yuzu-chan.

"Get rid of him!?" Taiju was dumbfounded. "Tsukasa is a good guy!!" 

"Because he'd unimaginable," Senku shut him down. "I don't have even one millimetre of interest in a so-called strongest world built in his image."

"A competition to restart civilization?" the emeraldette giggled, "I can't wait!"

"Got it, no explanation needed," Taiju agreed instantly. "Something happened while I was gone, right?"

"Yeah, Shishio Tsukasa," the blonde said, seriously. "is a good guy..."

Hanako finished his sentence. "Who just so happens to be a murderer."

*****

"Woah! Don't just splash it on, Hana-chan!" Taiju exclaimed. "Shouldn't we do it more like... I dunno!!"

The girl blinked at him. "But... Senku said we're in a hurry and have to do things quickly." 

Nothing happened. For a good three minutes nothing happened and Taiju started to panic again, convincing both himself and the stone Yuzuriha that they shouldn't have had to worry. 

"Stop panicking. The reaction takes time," Senku yawned. "It resembles cold sleep. It's like a protective layer made up of trace metals in the body. Some mystery element truggered the phase change preserving the stone state. Just a theory I cooked up based on a year's worth of experiments." He knew the oaf hadn't understood a word he said and glanced at his female friend who rose to the task.

"Basically," she beamed. "when one part of the layer gets broken down by the acid, it ripples across the entire body in a chain reaction. Therefore undoing the pertrification." Just then, there was a crack. And another. And another! Until eventually a fully revived Yuzuriha fell limp into Taiju's arms. 

"Yuzuriha! Do you remember me!?" the brunette yelled, slightly scared but he breathed a sigh of relief when she faintly responded. 

"Tai...ju?"

The two soon-to-be-lovers exchanged their banter while Hanako and Senku watched the scene with heartfelt expressions. The two then proceeded to thank the scientist and his assistant when he cu them off. "Sorry to cut your little reunion short but, we need to make a quick decision before Tsukasa returns."

Hanako held up two fingers as Senku spoke. "We have only two options so choose! Plan A! Taiju and Yuzuriha, you two run away right now. Live out your lives somewhere far away. And of course you're taking the moron with you."

"No they're not. I'm staying with you, Senku," Hanako said, matter of faculty. "I'm not leaving you. Ever."

The blonde ignored her stubbornness and continued. "Plan B! We all fight to put a stop to that murderer, Tsukasa." 

"We fight, with the tools of civilization!" the emeraldette piped. She liked the second plan better. Both because she wouldn't leave her best friend and she wouldn't lose Taiju or Yuzuriha either.

The answer was obvious. "Of course we're staying!" the brute exclaimed. "Don't misjudge me and Yuzuriha like that, Senku, Hana-chan!"

"We didn't make the suggestion out of kindness," Hanako explained. "Running away just may be the most rational choice in this case for you two."

"For you three," Senku corrected her. "Had they chosen to run, Hana, you would have to go with them. No way you could stay and try and resist Tsukasa. You'd be better off with the odd couple."

"And be a third wheel?" the girl giggled. "No thanks. Admit it, you'd be hopeless without me anyway."

He didn't admit it, but it was true. Had the couple ran, the most logical thing to do would be for Hanako to run away with them. But if she had actually gone, the scientist wouldn't know what to do with himself. Resist Tsukasa? Sure. Resist Tsukasa without Hanako's constant support, whining, singing and noise? That would be a different story.

"Admit it, Kuu," she cooed and poked his cheek. "You love me."

He swatted her hand away and continued to talk to the brunette couple. "Good to see you're both fired up and in sync, but you need to listen to me, you odd couple." 

Taiju cut him off. "If Tsukasa is running around, smashing stone people," he yelled. "If he's really killing them like that then... I've got no choice but to..."

"Killing them? Hmm. I guess it's a matter of perspective."

Hanako instinctively shuffled and stood closer to the blonde while both he and Taiju took defensive stances. Tsukasa was back and gave them all a sickening smile upon arrival.

"I'm thinning the herd," he said. "To prepare this new world."

Even in front of  Taiju and Yuzuriha, he's got no intention of hiding his murderous nature. Senku thought, signalling Hanako to silently bring out the... thing. Meaning if anyone gets in his way... As if to prove a silent point, Tsukasa causally dropped the remains of a stone statue he crushed recently. 

That was where Taiju had had it. "Senku, Hana-chan," he called and took a stance in front of the three. "If anything happens to me, take care of Yuzuriha.

I'm gonna stop Tsukasa."

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~✨Blu<3✨