01x02 - King of the Stone World

[bunniefuu]

Yuzuriha!

Sorry to keep you waiting.

So, what's up, Taiju-kun?

What did you want to tell me?

I was afraid that by
telling her how I feel,

she wouldn't even be
my friend anymore.

Hear me out, Yuzuriha.

But today's the day.

For the past five years, I've...

What's that light?

That day, everyone in the
world turned to stone.

So you're finally
awake, you big oaf.

Today is October 5th, 5738.

It's been a good 3,700 years.

How can you tell
exactly what day it is?

I just counted.

How else would I know?

Humanity spent two
million years getting...

from the stone age
to the modern age.

We're going to sprint all
the way back to the top.

I'm going to take the world back.

And I'll figure out
the science behind...

the petrification
and our revival.

I'm going to save Yuzuriha.

I'm going to b*at
fantasy with science.

This is exhilarating.

So, Senku,
who are we reviving first?

We're going to wake up
everyone eventually.

What does it matter
who we start with?

Although it would suck if we woke
up a m*rder*r right off the bat.

I see.

I don't feel like
choosing who we wake up.

Taiju, it's your choice.

Thanks, Senku.

My answer is obvious.

The time has finally come.

That water's going to undo the...

petrification and revive
her, right?

Yeah, it should.

I tried it on a
piece of a shattered...

statue,
and it turned back into a corpse.

You're so disrespectful!

I did try putting all the
pieces back together first, but...

it looks like you can't save
someone once they're dead.

They made a noble sacrifice.

Send up a prayer or something.

Right!

Rest in peace, rest in peace...
Rest in peace, rest in peace...

Sorry I kept you waiting
for 3,700 years, Yuzuriha.

I'm going to bring
you back to life now.

Wait, Senku! Yuzuriha's naked!

We can't!

We can't revive her like this!

Here we go again with
your illogical nonsense...

We're in a stone world.
It's kind of an emergency.

No one's going to care
if your butt's showing

or if your d*ck's hanging out.

Yuzuriha doesn't have a d*ck!

That's not my point!

We have to take her back to camp
and put clothes on her first.

How heavy is that statue, anyway?

Yuzuriha isn't fat!

That's not my point.

I mean,
wouldn't it be ten billion times...

quicker to wake her
up and have her walk?

How illogical can you-

Wait, big oaf!

Why is there a lion in Japan?!

Why do you think?

It's from a zoo, obviously!

The staff must've
been petrified while...

the door was open or something!

If they get out when
no humans are around,

every herbivore in the
zoo is on the menu.

And if they go out into the
city, it's a pet buffet!

So now they're literally
the king of beasts!

In this stone world,
the humans aren't...

at the top of the
food chain anymore!

Why aren't they attacking
us, though?

They've never seen
bipedals before.

We must look creepy
as hell to them.

We're the only humans in the world.

They're alarmed, too.

But it's only a
matter of time now.

Even if we get super lucky
and make it all the way back...

to camp, the best we can do
is fight them with spears.

This game was practically
over before it even started!

I can't let you die, Senku!

You're humanity's last bastion, the
only one with scientific knowledge.

If it comes down to it,
I'll be your shield!

No!

Think it over logically!

I'm the brains,
and you're the brawn.

We can't lose either one!

If we're going to run,
we need to run together!

All right, got it!

You've never even hit anyone,
ever since you were little.

Your strong suit is
fitness, not fighting.

Senku, if we can't outrun them,
we have one last option...

I found him earlier...

The strongest primate
high-schooler, Shishio Tsukasa.

Sorry, Yuzuriha.

We need someone who
can fight right now.

If we do defeat the
lions, I promise we'll-

Shut up already.
Let's just pour it on him.

No! We're surrounded!

They're coming!

Sorry!

I'm sure you have no
idea what's going on...

after being stuck for
thousands of years...

What's the situation?

Your whole body is
covered in stone.

Lions from your nine
o'clock to two o'clock.

Okay.

You can fill me in on the
details of the situation later.

But I'll promise you one thing: You
two will never be in danger again.

From now on, I'll do the fighting.

This is great, Senku!

Humanity now has brains,
brawn, and brute force!

The Three Musketeers are all here!

I get that, but this Shishio
guy is way too strong.

Is that a bad thing?

Isn't it good to have
someone like him around?

What if he turns out to be an evil
bureaucrat with insatiable greed?

He's overpowered enough to b*at
down a lion with his bare hands.

In a world without g*ns, he's
ten billion percent unstoppable.

Eek!

Come hither, Yuzuriha.

No way!

We can't let that happen!

Sorry, but would you mind lending
me some butchering tools?

A Kn*fe, or even just stone
tools, if that's all we have.

You're gonna eat the lion?

You can eat lion?

It's not poisonous.

Although it is tough
and reeks of ammonia,

not to mention it
tastes horrible.

You've had it before, Senku?!

When I went to Africa
to research Ebola.

What kind of high
schooler are you?!

Though it was in self-defense,
I did k*ll it with my own hands.

Yes...

I want to give
thanks to the circle...

of life by putting
all of it to use.

That's all.

He's great!

Aren't you glad, Senku?

He's no evil bureaucrat!

He's a super good guy!

I hope so.

Well,
I don't have even a millimeter...

of interest in stuff
like gratitude,

but I absolutely agree
with not wasting meat.

The two of you built this?

Yeah.

Hang on for a little
longer, Yuzuriha.

We'll save you as soon
as we have enough of...

that miracle water the
something-or-other acid.

Laboratory

Laboratory?

I'm Shishio Tsukasa.

You can call me Tsukasa.

Last names don't really mean
much in this world, do they?

I'm Senku, the sane one
who's in charge of science.

That's Taiju, the simple one
who's in charge of heavy lifting.

I'm Taiju, the simple one.

Nice to meet you.

If you need any thinking
done, ask Senku.

What do you usually have to eat?

Mainly wild greens and mushrooms,

and the occasional rabbit for meat,
when we can catch one.

All I ever dream
about lately is eating...

meat until my belly's
about to explode!

Well, you won't be
living like that...

any longer.

I'll be in charge of
fighting and hunting.

This is awesome!

Now that I'm on your
side, you'll never...

have any shortage of prey again.

I see.

So if you cook it
immediately, you don't...

need a fridge to
keep it from going bad.

I'm not cooking it.

I'm using the aldehydes in the
smoke to k*ll the microbes.

To put it simply enough for you
to understand, I'm smoking it.

If Senku and I work together, we'll
have plenty of preserved food.

Now we can finally take the
first step toward civilization.

We were still at step zero?!

Hey, Tsukasa, what's wrong?

Sorry for startling you.

This person was
buried under the rock.

He really is a good guy!

He's a superhero at this
point, huh?

Man, I'm full.

Time for a fun quiz.

What's the most
important thing we...

need for a technological
civilization?

Ten billion points for
the correct answer.

Technological civilization?

The most important thing we need?

Smartphones!

Sure, smartphones!

Smartphones would be nice to
have, huh?

How many tens of billions
of years ahead are you?!

Steel?

Steel, too, but that's later.

There's something more useful.

Calcium carbonate.

Of course!

As always, I'm totally clueless!

Ah, you mean lime.

Yeah.

That's putting it in terms that
a simple mind can understand.

The stuff they use to
chalk athletic fields.

So we're going to be looking
for a gym storage room

to get something-or-other
carbonate?!

Yeah, that's it.
A gym storage room.

If only there were any still
around 3,700 years later!

You know the shells
that have been so...

useful for trimming your
beard, big oaf?

Pulverize them into
powder, and you have...

that something-or-other
carbonate stuff.

All right!

Brawn duty, here I come!

Nothing's as exhilarating
as calcium carbonate.

There are four insanely
useful ways to use it.

First, agriculture.

We use it to blow away
all the hydrogen ions.

In other words,
it upgrades the soil.

Second, construction.

Cook it together with sand,
and you have mortar.

Mortar is basic cement.

We can build huge
furnaces and houses.

Third, soap.

Gather sodium
carbonate from seaweed,

mix it with oil,
and the reaction creates soap.

Getting sick means game
over in this world.

This little chunk that
keeps germs off of us

is our stone of life in
a world with no doctors.

It's our doctor stone.

Senku, you're an amazing man.

In the moment after I revived, too,

you communicated the situation
quickly and calmly.

I've never seen anyone
as clever as you.

I admire you, truly.

A man who praises a man to his
face is full of ulterior motives.

It's been that way
for ten billion years.

What's your point?

Oh, dear.

I really didn't
mean anything by it.

I have a feeling
you might be able to...

build modern civilization
from scratch.

Yes.

That's all I wanted to say.

Whew!

So this is how you
build civilization, huh?

Yeah, one step at a time.

We're slowly but surely
approaching modern civilization.

So, what's the fourth thing?

You said there were four
handy uses for seashells.

No, three.

Didn't I say three?

Huh? Did you?

Man, even my memory is screwy!

Shells! Shells! Shells!
Shells! Shells!

Shells! Shells! Shells!
Shells! Shells!

We're free in this stone world.

Shells never belonged to anyone.

The same goes for the
sea, and the land.

There was once a poor
boy who tried to make

a necklace out of
seashells for his younger...

sister,
who was undergoing surgery.

His sister loved
The Little Mermaid.

But then,
a middle-aged man who owned the...

fishing rights to
that spot arrived...

and with him, the stench of liquor.

The boy who was collecting
shells... or rather,

according to the man,
the boy who was stealing shells,

was beaten so badly that
his face was unrecognizable.

He was never able to help his
sister be like the Little Mermaid.

You do know what you're doing,
don't you, Tsukasa?

You just k*lled a man.

I know that, of course.

Senku, do you intend to bring back
everyone, including the grown-ups

whose hearts are tainted?

Sure, they'll be
grateful to you at first.

But as soon as
civilization returns, the...

rich and powerful
seniors will say,

"That used to be my land."
"Pay your rent." "Pay your taxes."

They'll rob the poor
youth of our future again.

We must not bring that world back.

This is a stone world.

An untainted paradise.

We'll revive only the
pure-hearted youth

and live in a natural
world owned by no one.

It's a chance to purify humanity.

Don't you agree, Senku?

Not at all.

Not even a millimeter.

I'm a technology-loving
boy who gets excited over

mechs and space and
Doraemon and stuff like that.

I'm going to use
the power of science...

to rescue every single person.

This is a work of fiction, but the
plants, animals, and production...

methods described are based
on reality. Foraging and...

Next Episode

Weapons of Science

making things on your own accord
is extremely dangerous and, in...

some cases, illegal. Please do
not imitate without expertise.