Chapter Text
If there was one thing that could bring the Kingdom of Science together, it was a project. Humanity had always been at its best when faced with something impossible—something that demanded ingenuity, cooperation, and an unreasonable amount of stubbornness.
Usually, though, those projects came in the form of progress.
The first steam engine to return civilization to motion. A ship capable of crossing an ocean that had remained untouched. A diamond battery powerful enough to push science—And the Medusas—Furthet than anyone in this world had imagined. Even a rocket, a machine so absurd that most people in the Stone World would have once mistaken it for “Sorcery.”
But apparently, a wedding counted too.
Not just any wedding, either.
Taiju and Yuzuriha's marriage would be the first of the new Stone World.
A celebration marking not only their love, but the fact that humanity had finally reached a point where people could afford to look beyond survival. After everything they had endured—the petrification, the battles, the countless moments where simply making it to tomorrow had been uncertain—this wasn't something anyone intended to treat casually.
Naturally, the Kingdom of Science did what it always did.
It turned it into an operation.
Kaseki had thrown himself into crafting decorations and keepsakes with the enthusiasm of someone preparing treasures for generations yet to come. Ryusui had immediately declared the reception's budget "criminally insufficient" and contributed an outrageous sum before a single invitation had even been finalized. Francois, with their usual terrifying efficiency, had begun designing a menu sophisticated enough to satisfy royalty.
Everyone had found a way to contribute.
Everyone, apparently, except two people named Senku Ishigami and Tsukasa Shishio
"Absolutely not."
Senku's voice cut through the meeting room with the force of a machine shutting down. He planted both hands against the table, causing the blueprints and notes scattered across the surface to shift beneath his palms.
"I'm a scientist, not a wedding planner. You want explosives? Fine. Electricity? Fine. A machine capable of launching something into orbit? Obviously. But flowers and seating arrangements? You're asking the wrong guy."
Across the table, Minami only smiled, entirely unsurprised by his reaction.
"Oh, please. You're acting like anyone asked you to personally arrange every flower on the premises,” She waved her hand dismissively at his outburst.
"They absolutely would," Senku shot back without hesitation.
Tsukasa, who had been quietly observing the exchange, finally spoke, “They're asking you to help plan your best friends' wedding, Senku."
"Which inevitably involves flowers," Senku replied, clicking his tongue. "And decorations. And a dozen other unnecessary variables humans somehow decided were mandatory."
He glanced back at the plans in front of him with visible skepticism, "So, yes. Still a hard pass."
Tsukasa folded his arms, the corner of his mouth twitching with something that was almost relief. For once, someone else had voiced the objection first.
"Well, you’re not the only one—I agree with Senku."
Senku glanced sideways, surprised enough to raise an eyebrow, “You agreeing with me? Must be a solar eclipse happening soon.”
"I said I agreed," Tsukasa replied evenly. "Not that I enjoyed it."
A quiet chuckle escaped Senku as he shook his head.
“Though…” Tsukasa's expression settled once more into thoughtful composure, “My reasoning is different."
His eyes drifted toward the planning board, where Yuzuriha's meticulous handwriting sat beside Taiju's much larger, enthusiastic scrawl. It looked strangely fitting.
"Senku has known them since childhood. If anyone has earned the privilege of helping them begin this chapter of their lives, it's him." He paused. “But me?”
The room seemed to shrink by a fraction.
"I once stood on the opposite side of everything they're celebrating." His voice never wavered, yet there was a weight to it that made the silence afterward feel deliberate rather than empty. "I nearly took Taiju's future from him."
Nobody interrupted.
Tsukasa had never been one to hide behind excuses. He carried the past the same way he carried everything else—with quiet acceptance.
"I know they've forgiven me, and I know we've built something better since then." His gaze lowered briefly, "But forgiveness isn't the same as entitlement. Standing beside Senku, representing the people closest to them..."
A faint smile crossed his face, self-deprecating more than bitter, “…It feels like occupying a place I haven't entirely earned."
The words lingered.
“Tsk.” Senku watched him for a moment before clicking his tongue, “You're such an emotional idiot!”
Several heads turned.
Tsukasa blinked.
"...Am I?"
"Ten billion percent, so.”
Senku leaned back against the table, folding his arms, "If Taiju had a problem with you, he'd have yelled about it before breakfast. Loud enough for the entire continent to hear."
A few people laughed.
"He doesn't exactly bottle things up."
"No," Tsukasa admitted.
"And Yuzuriha's even worse."
"How so?" The brunette tilted his head.
"If she didn't want you involved, she'd smile, apologize, and somehow make you feel like the asshole for merely existing." Senku's expression tightened for a second. "Yuzuriha's dangerous in the most deceptive way possible. She looks like a harmless, gentle human being… But, surprise! Turns out she's got the persuasion skills to dismantle you without raising her voice."
Yuzuriha's frighteningly polite rejection methods were infamous enough that several people nodded in agreement.
"So if neither of them has said anything..." Senku shrugged. "...that's because they don't care."
Tsukasa looked at him, studying his face for a second longer than necessary, "...You make it sound remarkably simple."
"It is simple,” He huffed.
"It isn't."
"It is."
"You oversimplify human emotions."
"You overcomplicate them."
Their eyes met.
For the briefest moment, neither looked away.
Then Senku snorted, “We're both probably wrong."
A tiny laugh escaped Tsukasa before he could stop it, "...Perhaps."
Across the table, Minami watched the exchange with the barely concealed delight of someone stumbling across tomorrow's front-page headline.
There it is.
Neither of them even notices they always end up meeting in the middle.
She rested her chin against her palm, "Finished?"
Tsukasa cleared his throat, "...Yes."
"Good." She leaned forward, every inch the seasoned journalist preparing to dismantle two exceptionally stubborn interviewees, “Because Senku’s right, in that you're both wrong—You two are making this far more complicated than it has any right to be."
She pointed at Senku, “You're Taiju's oldest friend."
Then, without missing a beat, shifted toward Tsukasa, “You're one of the people he trusts most."
"I think someone else would object to that ranking." He muttered.
"It wasn't a ranking,” Minami glared.
"It sounded suspiciously like one."
"It wasn't,” Senku huffed, "Quit arguing semantics and let her finish."
Minami smiled victoriously, “The Stone Wars ended years ago. The only people still dragging those ghosts into every conversation are the two standing in front of me."
Neither of them answered.
"If Taiju or Yuzuriha wanted someone else planning their wedding, they'd ask someone else.” She spread her hands. “They asked you."
"Why?" Senku challenged.
"Because you're important to them."
"No."
"Yes."
"We're convenient."
"You are many things," Minami replied sweetly. "Convenient isn't one of them."
Gen failed to suppress a laugh.
"They're sentimental," Minami continued. "This isn't about logistics. Francois can organize a flawless banquet. Ryusui can finance an entire kingdom's worth of decorations. Kaseki can build anything."
Her smile softened.
"But none of them walked beside Taiju and Yuzuriha from the beginning." Her eyes flicked between them. "You two did."
Silence settled again, this time it was heavier. Not uncomfortable, just impossible to joke away.
Senku exhaled through his nose, "...You're weaponizing my relationship with them.”
"I'm weaponizing the truth."
"That's totally emotional blackmail,” He grimaced.
"It absolutely is!” Minami chirped.
"And you're saying that proudly?!”
"With my whole heart.” She smiled.
Senku pinched the bridge of his nose. "...You're ten billion percent annoying."
Minami shook her head, "I've made a career out of it."
Before either of them could think up another excuse, the doors burst open hard enough to rattle the hinges.
"SENKUUUU!"
Taiju's voice boomed through headquarters, “There you are!"
He barreled inside, Yuzuriha following with an apologetic smile that suggested she'd tried—and failed—to stop him.
"What's with the meeting?" Taiju asked.
Minami answered before anyone else could.
"I was just convincing these two to run your wedding."
Taiju's expression brightened almost immediately, his entire face lighting up with the kind of unrestrained enthusiasm that only he seemed capable of displaying.
"Oh! Great!"
The answer was so immediate that both Senku and Tsukasa were left staring at him for a moment, seemingly unsure whether they had heard him correctly.
Senku's eyebrows rose, "You're actually happy about that?"
Taiju tilted his head, confused by the question. "Of course I am! Who else would we trust?"
The simplicity of the response caught Senku off guard. There was no hesitation, no second-guessing, no lingering doubt about whether Tsukasa belonged there or whether Senku would actually be willing to take on the responsibility. To Taiju, the answer had been obvious from the beginning.
Yuzuriha smiled softly beside him, nodding in agreement.
"It wouldn't feel right if it were anyone else," she said. Her gaze moved between them, carrying the same certainty as Taiju's. "You've both been with us through everything. Before the Kingdom of Science became what it is now, before we had any of this, you were two of the people who helped us get here."
Tsukasa looked away slightly, as if he had no immediate response to that. Senku, meanwhile, remained quiet for a moment longer than usual.
Neither of them noticed the brief glance exchanged between Taiju and Yuzuriha, nor the small, satisfied nod that passed between them. It was a conversation they had clearly been having long before this one.
Minami, however, noticed immediately.
She hid her amusement behind a small cough, though the knowing smile on her face betrayed her.
Senku eventually let out a long sigh, the sound of someone accepting defeat rather than changing his mind.
"Fine…”
Tsukasa glanced toward him, mildly surprised by how quickly he had conceded.
"As long as you're aware that if I'm involved, we're doing this efficiently," Senku continued. "I'm not spending weeks obsessing over pointless traditions just because humans decided a wedding needs unnecessary complications."
Taiju laughed, "I have no idea what that means, but I'm excited!"
“Tch,” Senku stared at him for a moment, “Yep. That's about the response I expected."
The corner of Tsukasa's mouth lifted slightly before he turned back toward the planning board. After a moment of consideration, he gave a quiet sigh of his own.
"If Senku is willing to take responsibility for this, then I suppose I can do the same,” He muttered.
Senku looked over, raising an eyebrow, "Oh?"
"Don't make it sound like you won some kind of argument."
"I didn't say anything."
"You didn't have to."
A faint amusement passed between them, subtle enough that most people in the room would have missed it.
Their history was complicated, built from conflict as much as cooperation, but somewhere along the way, the rivalry had shifted into something far less hostile. They understood each other's reasoning, challenged each other's flaws, and—more often than either of them would admit—trusted each other's judgment.
Minami watched the exchange with quiet satisfaction before clasping her hands together.
"Wonderful. Then it's settled."
Her smile was innocent enough to fool most people.
Most.
Yuzuriha caught her eye, and the two exchanged a brief glance.
No words were needed.
Their plan had officially begun.