Petrified | Dr. Stone

17.

"Inoko..."

Inoko found herself standing on a flower field. Her white dress flutters along the wind as she held her hat down to keep it from flying away.

The flowers kept on dancing with the wind, swaying left and right. The butterflies which are hovering on top of each flower did not go unnoticed by her and she can also hear the distant tweets of the birds.

Inoko is certainly feeling the summer vibe.

Someone covered her eyes, blocking her view from the flower field. She oddly did not resist as she was slowly led by the person behind her. Their hands are gentle on her face, and she grasped them, not bothering to remove it.

Slowly, the hands trailed down from her face until they rested on her waist, hugging her from behind. Inoko leaned back, resting her head to the shoulders of the mystery person.

A simple, but lovely picnic was laid out in front of her.

This person- this man actually put an effort into arranging a picnic for them in the shade of a tree.

She smiled, greatly touched by the sight.

"Inoko..." he whispered in her ear. She turned around, hugging the person back and burying her face onto their chest.

"Ukyo-san..."

Then everything went black.

"Eh?" Was the very first word that escaped her mouth as soon as she woke up. She blinked, mind still half asleep. "Eh?"

Frowning, she sat up, unhappy that her sleep was cut off. The hammock she's on swayed a little due to her sudden movement. She yawned, staring at nothing. After a while of silence, she spoke. "So it's just a dream, eh?"

Ukyo held her hand as they walked together.

In an instant, her face went crimson red. "Wha- wha- wha- what!? Eehh!?"

That certainly did woke her up.

_____

Yuzuriha and Taiju are still busy doing their assigned chores, leaving Inoko with nothing else to do. She knew that Nikki is still busy training Gen to perfect his Lillian Weinberg voice imitation and she can't just barge in and disturb them.

She walked around the base, trying to find something that she can work on. As she observed the people she passed by, she noticed certain differences. The people are all busy yet they showed no sign of tiredness. It was so different from what she was used to back in the modern times.

Back then, people are busy, tired and stressed and just wanted to rest but can't since they have priorities. Is it a good thing or a bad thing? Inoko is not sure.

Whatever the answer is, people sure are happier this way. No pressure, no stress, no expectations. There is nothing else that will hold people down.

Inoko really do think that Tsukasa's ideals are not in the wrong, but no matter how much it lessen the people's suffering, it is not in the right either.

"... hey have you heard?"

Her footsteps halted after hearing it before walking again, albeit slower this time. She tried to match the pace of the person who said it while being not suspicious.

"... yes. The caveman escaped..."

Inoko was surprised at this, yet at the same time not. She wondered how, but it probably has something to do with the thing that Ukyo returned that night. "It is a battery." She reminded herself. "How did he escaped though? What can he do with just a single battery on his sleeve?" Intrigued, she took a deep breath and strained her ears more.