04x09 - Light of Science

[bunniefuu]

[g*n clicks]

[XENO]
Hold your fire!

[inhales]

It seems Doctor Taiju
was a mere decoy.

The true leader of our enemy.

The OP scientist himself is...

Senku.

Senku Ishigami.

sn*per spotted!
Everyone, get down!

[LUNA] [shudders]
Have I been caught?

[STANLEY]
Idiot!

Don't look this way.

They'll figure out where I am!

[gasps]

Actually,

keep looking!

Their genius scientist leader.

I already figured out

he's one of those
three targets,

and if he's really as clever
as Xeno makes him out to be,

he'll see you, Luna.

He'll notice
where you're looking

and turn to face me.

[g*n clicks]
Just like that.

♪

[STANLEY]
Well, hello, Senku Ishigami.

Xeno,

I gotta ask.

Last chance.

You want him dead?

For sure?

No takebacks.

Fire.

Finish the job.

[g*nsh*t]

[gasps]

[g*nsh*t]

[thuds]

[groans]

[gasps]

♪

LIGHT OF SCIENCE

[g*nsh*t fires]

-g*nf*re?
-They're sh**ting

with their g*ns again,
we're doomed!

Calm down. b*ll*ts move faster
than the speed of sound!

They're done firing.

One shot.

[Taiju pants]

[Taiju gasps]

[coughs]

[blood squelching]

No.

Senku!

♪

♪

[thuds]

[Max screams]

[shudders]

[STANLEY]
Job's over, boys.

I k*lled him,

the enemy scientist leader
is dead.

You two stay here.

-Watch them.
-[CARLOS] Wait!

[MAX]
Hold up, what about Miss Luna?

[STANLEY]
Leave her, save her,

the choice is yours.

It's none of my concern.

Dammit!

Really?

[CARLOS]
Miss Luna.

[LUNA] No, no, no, no, no,
no, no, no, what do I do now?

[GINRO] [screams]
They got 'im!

I can't believe
they k*lled Senkuuu!

[RYUSUI]
Get a hold of yourself!

They believe that they've
k*lled off our scientist,

putting us
at a bigger disadvantage.

About now they're thinking

they can ratchet up
the pressure,

and wait around for us "kids"
to surrender.

So while our enemy's
feeling overconfident,

it's time to strike back!

Am I wrong?

[all gasp]

Yeah.
Guess that all makes sense.

You're not wrong, but...

It's too soon.

Like, we can't just
spring into action.

The dude's not even cold yet!

Come on, guys!
[sniffles]

Poor Senku at least
deserves a proper burial!

[fingers snaping]
[chuckles]

[RYUSUI]
Don't count him out yet.

[breathes shakily]

"Heh, heh, heh.

I'm not dead yet, dumbass."

[breathes shakily]

He's difficult to understand,
but...

he says the b*llet went
clean through.

[Senku coughs]

[gasps]
Hey!

Don't try and talk, pal,
just let your body rest,

you hear me?

Victory!
He almost...

Silence, Master!

Our enemy could be
listening right now.

Don't let them know!

You managed to
soften the b*llet's impact,

using only a sack of flour
and water?

[Kaseki laughs]

You always dreamed up
the damnedest things, my boy.

[FRANCOIS]
"Yeah.

Though if it had been
a head shot,

I'd be
ten billion percent dead.

But they know it's possible

only I have
the revival-fluid recipe.

Figured they'd give me a chance
to pass on the knowledge

before I kicked the bucket."

"I knew,

they'd aim for my chest,

just to be safe."

That's how he survived.

By design.

If it was a head shot,

he would have died
instantly without fail.

Who knew they spoke deathbed!

Can't you shut up
for one minute?

[LUNA]
That's amazing.

I can't believe
he thought so far ahead.

And in a crisis, too.

[groans]

[gasps]

Out cold.

He's still alive, isn't he?

I am doing
everything that I can.

Although...

I fear that only a doctor
can save him.

[footsteps approaching]

Huh?

[Taiju exhales sharply]

♪

[LUNA]
Let's see.

I mean, my memory sucks,
but I think.

If you squeeze the upper arm,
like this.

The pulse
at the wrist vanishes.

If a light press does it,
the blood pressure's low.

If it takes a super firm press,
then it's high.

Pretty sure you can
get a reading like that.

His blood pressure's dropping.

Luna.

Are you a doctor?

[LUNA] Uh!
No, of course not!

I mean, I'm obviously
way too young!

Uh.

I was, kind of,

a med student.

♪

[LUNA] I'm gonna become
a capable woman,

and score myself
a smart hunk of man!

Thing is, I was only accepted

because my dad
pulled some strings.

I tried my best,

I studied hard
so no one could say anything,

but I was way out of my league.

In the end, I was the only one
who flunked out.

[gasps]

[TAIJU]
Luna!

I'm begging you.

You're our...

only hope.

[sniffles]

Help us.

♪

Senku.

He's our friend.

Please,

save him.

[exhales]

Huh.

♪

[birds chirping]

[CHROME]
Damn this stupid place.

Where do we even attack from?

They'll definitely
see us coming,

no matter what we do!

We'll be living target practice
for their bows and arrows.

True.

But it's not arrows
I'm worried about.

[HYOGA]
Yes, we're far more likely

to be taken out
by their machine-g*n fire.

That's bad.

Kinda forgot
we're going up against

another Kingdom of Science.

[clothes rustle]

[birds chirping]

[whimpering]

-[gasps]
-Uh?

[both shuddering]

[scoffs]
I wasn't expecting

such mighty reinforcements
to show up!

Nice! But how did you
even track us down?

Look! Gen left us
a trail of flower petals!

They led right to you!

♪

So, that's the enemy's
headquarters.

I might suggest sneaking

through the cornfields
after dark.

Huh.

No, it's too exposed.

The water would get us closer,
but there's too little cover.

[HYOGA] Once we manage
to infiltrate their fortress,

I should be utterly unmatched
in close-quarters combat.

But we don't just
need to beat them,

we also have
to capture Doctor Xeno

and make our escape.

[TSUKASA]
Then, we'll dig our way in.

[HYOGA]
I concur.

Say what now?

Seriously?

Yes.

A reverse Great Escape.

We'll dig ourselves
a subterranean tunnel,

right to the enemy base.

sh*t.
That's bad!

Um, are you sure?

That sounds like
a whole lotta work!

[HYOGA] Naturally,
we'll have to ask Senku

to help us create
the necessary digging equipment

that this mission requires.

Right, of course!

[phone rings]

Speak of the devil.

A call from the Perseus.

[RYUSUI]
Four-three.

Three-two.

Three-three.

Huh?

Why's Ryusui chanting
random numbers?

Is this some sort of joke
or what?

The Uesugi cipher.

It was created
by Uesugi Kenshin.

A warlord from
the Warring States era.

It's deceptively simple.

Messages are conveyed
by numbers

corresponding
to the kana chart.

[HYOGA] Doctor Xeno
may be a proper foe,

but those outside Japan

aren't taught
the Iroha syllabary poem.

[Ukyo chuckles]

It's a low-tech encryption
compared to theirs,

but effective
despite its simplicity.

Although, if we send
long messages,

they'll eventually crack it.

So then,
what's he trying to tell us

with this weird "cipher" thing?

[RYUSUI]
Six-three.

-Five-seven.
-[gasps]

Two-four.

It's about Senku.

He's been shot.

[all gasp]

[both gasp]

For now,

he's still alive.

[sighs]

[HYOGA]
How fortunate.

Though I suspect
he's in no state

to craft those
digging tools for us.

We'll just have
to dig regardless.

With science, or without.

[shudders]

We also got
a message from Senku.

Only three characters.

Four, seven.

One, two.

Four, two.

[SENKU]
Chrome.

[gasps]

♪

♪

♪

[grimacing]

Don't try to fight it.

You know what to do.

[Chrome gasps]

♪

[BYAKUYA]
Humanity will always have

one trick up its sleeve,
and that's curiosity.

I'm ten billion percent sure,

a greedy b*stard
who literally wants to know

everything about everything
would show up.

[exhales]

As of now,
you're the scientist.

Doctor Chrome.

♪

♪

[CHROME] Our mission
is to dig a secret tunnel.

All the way to
Doctor Xeno's main base.

We'll need
the power of science.

But Senku's recovering
from his b*llet wound.

He's bedridden.

Can I do this?

Me?

The guy who bragged about
changing the color of fire,

th-the "sorcerer?"

No.

None of that matters,

and there isn't anyone else!

I'm Chrome, the science user!

I've got this.

Let's go!

I'm gonna make us a road map
and everything!

[chuckles]

Hmph.

It won't be quick work.

No,

we'll need two weeks, minimum.

♪

Doctor Xeno thinks
he's k*lled Senku,

and the threat of our science
along with him.

We all know what that means,

they'll demand
our surrender soon.

Surrender?
There's no way!

Those idiots think
we're scared?

Yeah,
but what if they're really,

really insistent
and scary and violent?

Hyoga told us
exactly what would happen.

They're gonna come at us
hard and fast

with a high-speed pirate ship.

Will it happen tomorrow?

Or a month from now?

We can't know!

Unless, we make them cautious,

and get 'em thinking
it's safer to wait.

So we'll have to do our part

to steer them
in that direction.

Am I wrong?

[breathes shakily]

[all gasp]

[FRANCOIS]
"Nailed it.

We're gonna buy
a sh*t-ton of time."

"Right now, Ukyo's carrying
the real Medusa."

"Doctor Xeno's about to
get a very special delivery."

[TAIJU]
Wait, what?

[arrow twangs]

-[thuds]
-Huh?

What's that?

No. Are you all
outta your freakin' minds?

Why would we just hand it over
to the bad guys?

You know it's out of battery.

Even still!

[snaps fingers]
[Ryusui laughs]

It's ingenious!

A scientist
of Doctor Xeno's caliber

will understand
the moment he sees it.

He'll know it's a product
of highly advanced science

beyond anything
from the 21st century!

Will that be enough
to intimidate him?

[Ryusui chuckles]

[RYUSUI]
As though we'd take a chance!

It'll come with a free side
of phony exposition.

-From who?
-Hmm.

So, uh...
You're saying

someone needs to guess our plan

and lie accordingly,
something like,

"Whoa! It's a...

petrification weapon!

One of many!"

And we have
someone with the enemy

who can pull it off?

[screams]

Is that what I think it is?

A petrification weapon?

[XENO]
Mister Gen.

You're familiar with it?

[GEN] And that's the whole,
strange story!

There on the southern island,

we snagged a whole bunch
of those awful things!

They're super ancient artifacts
from who-knows-where!

And I could not be
more relieved

that the one they shot at us
appears to be a dud,

because otherwise
we'd all be living statues

right about now
and I truly can't even begin

to handle the thought
of something

so brutishly errible-tay!

[GEN] I presume that's about
what you had in mind, Senku?

I know full well
how you operate,

and you'd only ever hand over

the real deal
as a necessary bluff.

[Brody laughs]

That was total bullshit,
you rat b*stard!

We already know you lied to us
about your leader.

"Doctor Taiju," my a*s.

-It was really Doctor Senku!
-What?

I had no idea!

Though, come to think of it,

I suppose those two were
inseparable, but still...

You're saying
Senku was actually

the genius scientist all along?

I see,
despite this man's credibility.

It's indisputable that
this rather elegant machine

far surpasses the technology
of the old world.

[matchstick lights]
Where's the trigger?

How long's it active?

And what range does it have?

-[gasps]
-Hey there, Stanley,

welcome back!

[inhales]

I'm so sorry to disappoint you,
Stanley,

but only the battle team
was allowed

to learn all those
messy little details.

Although, I do know one thing.

It's utterly inescapable,

exactly like the one
from way back in the day,

and if we rush
to overtake their ship,

there will be nothing
to stop them

from petrifying
every last one of us.

[exhales]

[XENO]
Well, then,

as we are in the realm
of unexplained science,

we have no way to confirm
the veracity of your claims.

Not that it matters.

Ah!

[groans]

[MAYA [SONG]]
♪ I was the kind of girl ♪

♪ Used to play
by the dumpster! ♪

[GEN]
Or trying to?

[MAYA [SONG]]
♪ I didn't care what they say ♪

♪ 'Cause I found my treasure! ♪

Is it ready?

The you-know-what?

Because once it is.

They won't have time to throw

one of their
petrification weapons.

They'll be
completely defenseless.

Allowing me
to overtake their ship

before they know what hit 'em.

Doctor Brody.

You do realize

we're counting on your
genius-level mechanical skills.

When will it be ready for us?

One month?

Six months?

[thuds]

[laughs]

You haven't forgotten

who you're talking to
have you, boy?

Gimme two more weeks.

I'll have it all ready
and waiting for ya.

Extraordinary.

That's a sufficiently
elegant answer.

[MAYA [SONG]]
♪ Na na na na na na na na na! ♪

[GEN]
They're keeping it from me,

but I feel it in my bones.

[GEN]
They're crafting!

[GEN]
But what?

Some science doohickey?

Something they think
Senku won't think of,

and that
he'll never see coming!

If nothing else,

at least I managed
to buy us some time.

[whirring]

Of course,
there's a major downside.

The enemy's science
will progress as well.

The race is on,

and the clock is ticking.

♪

It's our science
against theirs.

A true crafting w*r!

[grunts]

There's no way
I can pull this off all alone.

Help me.
I'm counting on you!

I'm gonna be useful!

[chuckles]

So does staring
at the enemy base

give us
some kind of measurement

or something like that?

It's called
trigonometrical surveying.

We start with the length
of one side and then,

calculate this angle.

Then we know how far to dig.

Then we just
add these numbers and multiply,

no, wait, first we multiply,
and then, um...

Woo-hoo!

Arithmetic, huh?
Uh-oh.

I remember Senku destroying you
in that battle of numbers

you foolishly
challenged him to.

[CHROME] I only knew
the multiplication table

up to nine back then.

Though, I've still got
a really long way to go.

[all gasp]

[SUIKA]
That's amazing!

That some serious math, Chrome!

This is just square one.

There's a lot left to do.

♪

[scribbling]

♪

POWER

[CHROME]
I'm actually doing it!

I'm Chrome,
a real science user!

There!
It's now complete!

Doctor Chrome's first ever...

original scientific road map!

KASEKI'S SKILLS DIRT-RIPPING
LOOP-KNIFE / BLOWER

MACHINE AIR CLEANING MACHINE
TREE POSTS GOAL: TUNNEL

[all gasp]

Check it, this is
the baddest idea I've ever had.

Watch and learn!

DIRT-RIPPING LOOP-KNIFE

Spin the crap out of it

and it'll dig a tunnel
on its own.

Betcha they didn't have
anything like this

in the 21st century!

[BOTH] And you're saying that
this invention of yours

is some kind of powerful
dirt-ripping loop-knife?

That's right!
I call it.

[D] DIRT / [RI]
RIPPING / [L] LOOP-KNIFE

-[TSUKASA] So it's a drill.
-[UKYO] So it's a drill.

[screams]

Really, though?

[both sigh]

[scoffs]
If we use Chrome's drill.

Yeah.

We can tunnel
quickly through the dirt.

Heck, yeah!

We're just gonna
bust our way through,

straight to the enemy base.

By using
my own brand of science!

♪

NEXT EPISODE
DIRTY ROADS

THIS IS A WORK OF FICTION.
THE PLANTS, ANIMALS, AND

PRODUCTION METHODS DESCRIBED
ARE REALITY BASED.

PLEASE DO NOT IMITATE
WITHOUT EXPERTISE.