Chapter Text
Senku opened his eyes just a crack, just enough to let the light hit his retinas the right way, to let even the blurriest image form in an effort to determine the newest situation at hand.
And, oh boy, was he far from disappointment. The blurriest view of towering buildings ahead, and the loud vibrations characteristic of entire automobiles resonated and reverberated deep within his brain. Seeping into his every cell was the familiarity of a technological civilisation, the comfort of constant noise and slight rumblings.
A comfort that shocked him.
Eyes wide, he startled. Senku shot upright, finding himself in a sitting position at a speed that his old gym teacher would marvel at. Frantic observations of his surroundings yielded inconclusive results: he was somewhere, didn’t know where, that was somehow even more advanced technologically than modern-day Japan! What the hell?!
The streets were bustling with people. Hundreds of actual people, no petrification marks in sight, just… walking around with their shopping bags and talking animatedly. Acting as though nothing had happened.
It was almost as if the petrification event didn’t even happen.
He allowed his brain the human mistake of surprise. Though typically hungry for efficiency, Senku figured that one second of surprise was a perfectly reasonable demand. Granted, that one second of surprise did earn him some odd looks, which was far from ideal— the last thing he wanted was to stand out in a completely foreign society he had no way of navigating.
Or— no, maybe he could afford to stand out. Maybe someone would inform him of whatever the hell was going on if he acted like some amnesiac, but it would be a pain to play the part of retrograde amnesiac, and then he’d have to act like a complete novice about the science he would inevitably get himself into, and he really didn’t want to lie about science…
Conclusion: Senku was in some type of foreign world, that seemed to bear no marks of the petrification event, that was far more technologically advanced than modern-day Japan.
Better. Senku now at least had some sort of grasp on whatever the hell situation he’d gotten himself into now. Though, he was still going in this completely blind. Nothing but his wits and millions of scientific advancements stored in his head.
Senku closed his eyes for a second, took a deep breath, and greeted the world yet again. Compartmentalise, analyse, hypothesise. He repeated it like a mantra in his mind, slowly going through the motions of some sad excuse of scientific discovery.
Looking around in his position still seated on the floor yielded some valuable information, at the least. No stone fragments, so no weird petrification or Why-man shenanigans, most likely. Concrete flooring, indicating he was on some sort of pavement. The concrete itself was in good shape, though clearly worn, as indicated by the rubber of shoe soles staining the concrete a light grey, as well as a spill from some sort of drink.
Almost no plant matter or insects, indicative of high levels of cleanliness and a lack of nearby vegetation. Directing his vision upwards confirmed this: he was trapped in a large, elaborate concrete jungle, not a tree in sight. A shame, he lamented. There were already such little carbon sinks to combat the increase in vehicular traffic.
With a sigh, he stood. Valuable information was gained, of course: this society was producing high-level concrete to make sturdy pavements, so they had to be well-off and not struggling like the Kingdom of Science’s early days, though a mere glance around could also back that observation. Based on the evidence of shoe soles, rubber was definitely being cultivated and mass-produced, most likely synthetic rubber, so these people were fairly advanced. The lack of trees meant that they also should have a decent-enough labour force, since this area was massive, and completely barren. Could also hint at designated nature areas, like parks.
Looking around at a more elevated eye level, he took in more information. Whatever higher being— and that was a temporary solution, he would get to the bottom of this soon enough— deigned to drop his lowly self into this foreign world at least had the decency to speed along his observation process. The place appeared a bit similar to modern-day Shinjuku, what with the bright lights and recognisable stores. Recognisable stores! Now that was a data point!
That meant that whatever world he was thrown into was very similar to his memory of modern-day Japan! That also meant no language barrier! Hopefully! Oh, that made things so much easier! The main issue putting a damper on that joy was that, for all the place resembled Shinjuku, it very clearly was different. Senku, while decently proficient in geography, and especially so his own country’s, could not for the life of him recognise the area he’d been thrown in.
Sure, some of the stores were familiar, a brand name here and there, but the vast majority of these names were new. From a bakery to a clothing store, he hadn’t heard of these names in his entire life! So, some convergence was present, noted.
Before he could even begin analysing the complexity of the phone and electricity lines, a bright light startled him from the corner of his eye. He hastily shimmied away in his flimsy leather tunic, well-aware of the keratinous safety hazard adorning his head, before opening his mouth, instinctively about to shout a warning to the dozens of civilians populating his personal space.
He paused, mouth still open, as his eyes finally identified the threat: a guy on fire.
Well, not just any guy, if the entirely cool disposition was anything to go off of. Given that the guy’s literal head was on fire, and the fact that said flames were definitely visible to him, if the healthy distance he kept from any normal, flammable people was any reliable indicator, Senku decided to hold his tongue for now.
The least rational thing he could do right now was lose himself to panic and out himself as an odd individual— he’d much rather that on his own terms, thank you.
Well, didn’t this open up some avenues of thought? No one seemed panicked at the guy’s presence, save for a few concerned mothers restraining their two year-olds from grabbing the flames comprising this guy’s cranium, so this had to have been a normal occurrence. Which means Senku should also treat this as a normal occurrence.
Well, small mercy:his hair and eyes wouldn’t stick out at all!
In disbelief, Senku looked around. Some guy with wings resembling a cormorant, a lady with the most vibrant, neon yellow hair ever seen on the earth, a… creature, composed entirely of vines and flowers…
Either Senku had lost it, or something was very wrong here.
He could do nothing but stare. Couldn’t even begin to calculate at what point everything went wrong, at what point the world as he knew it decided to deviate from a normal, believable routine to… whatever this is. Maybe that retrograde-amnesia-by-falling-debris excuse wasn’t so far off; everything he’d observed in the past ten minutes or so would indicate some serious delusions and hallucinations as a result of some insane head trauma.
Though, he couldn’t rely on this all being the result of a theoretical head wound he couldn’t remember sustaining; to assume the easy way out was correct and neglect every other possibility that was equally as likely was ten billion percent against any scientific way of thinking.
And if there’s one thing that Senku learned over the past bunch of years, it’s that nothing is impossible, at this point. Science will inevitably do some incredible things, the earth will always adapt, and life will move on as he knows it. So, it’s now up to him to adapt and move on as well, as is mandatory of any creature that dares to fight the fight of living.
Compartmentalise, analyse, hypothesise. Senku was in some type of foreign world, that seemed to bear no marks of the petrification event, that was far more technologically advanced than modern-day Japan. This foreign world is populated by what appears to be a population of remarkable humans, or a human-adjacent species. that has the ability to sprout specialised limbs or control the elements or become the elements themselves.
The diversity in abilities is incredible.
From since he was young, Senku found it hard to remain afraid of the unknown. As he was very intimate with, the fact was that a human impulse lasts no longer than 20 seconds. The fear or hesitance felt by the unknown as a little child, those impulses sparked by millions upon millions of years of evolution to keep his vulnerable body alive, could only last for that long before they gave way to a power that’s fuelled humans over the course of centuries: curiosity.
How does this thing work? Why does this thing work? All questions that everyone has wondered at least once, that some primate with a rock in hand and a determined frown has always challenged, has always attempted to answer through one way, or another. Those means of answering, those insane, almost foolish experiments in hindsight, that is what science is, down to the very core of it.
Chrome was living proof of it. It was what had entranced Senku when he first met him— how utterly human the boy was, in instincts, determination, curiosity, sheer willpower. And, looking at this big mystery, this enticing puzzle waiting to be solved, Senku concluded that maybe he wasn’t so different after all.
Looking at this world felt the exact same way as the first time he truly looked up at the moon.
Why does the moon follow me wherever I go?
How does this world exist? How are these improbable concepts a reality?
This time, he didn’t have Byakuya to hold his hand, or a science book to read up on, or Taiju or Yuzuriha to help him experiment.
He was all alone, yes, but he was alone with a mission.