Dr. Stone: Science Future Part 3 Episode 2: Fire

Taiju bursts onto the bridge, his urgency palpable as he announces a direct broadcast from Why-man. The crew gathers around the receiver, a stark tension filling the air as a menacing Morse code signal emanates from the moon itself. Gen and Senku translate the message: 'DO YOU WANNA DIE,' a question chillingly repeated, leaving everyone frozen in fear. Yet, Ryusui laughs, seeing not a threat but an opportunity, and Gen shrewdly deduces that Why-man's arrogance grants them a crucial reprieve. Senku, ever the pragmatist, declares their only course is to build a rocket and confront their unseen enemy face-to-face on the moon.

Senku lays out the formidable challenge: a rocket engine, a spaceship, and pressurized spacesuits are the essentials for a lunar voyage. Their first stop, he announces, will be Barcelona, Spain, a place rich in fluorite, a mineral vital for advanced optics. Francois reveals her own 'greedy' desire for fine Spanish olive oil, a personal ambition that Ryusui enthusiastically endorses. The globe becomes their canvas, charting a worldwide journey to gather every necessary component, their determination palpable despite the monumental task ahead.

The New Perseus, a marvel of ingenuity, swiftly carries the crew to the Spanish coast in mere days. Lush, green hills greet them, a verdant landscape reclaimed by nature over millennia. Chelsea begins preparations to map this new territory, while Taiju and others ready for landing, mindful of securing basic supplies. In the distance, the skeletal, vine-covered Sagrada Familia stands as a silent testament to time's passage, a poignant reminder of what was lost, even as they forge ahead.

The explorers quickly discover a vast, untouched olive grove, its branches heavy with ripe fruit, sparking immediate joy, especially in Kaseki. Ryusui, ever the businessman, sees immense value in the abundant harvest. Kaseki, with his characteristic zeal, wastes no time in constructing a stone and metal centrifuge, a machine designed to extract pure oil using centrifugal force. Francois stands ready, a stone vessel prepared to collect the first precious drops of golden liquid, bringing the immediate comforts of sophisticated cuisine back to their world.

Francois showcases her culinary prowess, preparing traditional Garlic Shrimp with the freshly pressed olive oil, its aroma filling the air and delighting the crew. Their meal is abruptly interrupted by the discovery of petrified locals hidden in the bushes. Senku swiftly revives them, and Francois, with her linguistic fluency, steps forward to reassure the bewildered Spaniards, explaining the daunting new reality in their native tongue. She then orchestrates a grand banquet, fostering trust and community over shared food, securing crucial local allies for their arduous journey.

That night, Kohaku and Taiju embark on a hunt for wild cattle, aiming to domesticate them for milk and meat. Taiju is skillfully deployed as bait, his legendary endurance put to the test as charging bulls pursue him through the grove. Suddenly, Ryusui intervenes, a red cape in hand, performing traditional matador flourishes that deftly guide the beasts away. The Spanish locals watch, cheering for this unexpected display of ancient heritage. Soon, several cows are captured, and Suika takes gentle charge, teaching everyone the simple, heartwarming act of milking.

Francois delights everyone by combining the fresh milk and olive oil to create churros, a sweet treat that boosts morale. In a more significant move, Ryusui introduces a new global currency, paying the local cooks with valuable 'Dragon' coins. He declares that genuine work deserves compensation, expanding his 'Ryusui Conglomerate' across the Mediterranean. The Spanish Elder expresses deep respect for Senku's group, noting their use of power for rebuilding, not conquest. Yet, Ryusui clarifies his motivation isn't pure kindness; it's a driving 'greed' for humanity's full potential, a pragmatic engine for progress that even Kohaku admits gets results.

Senku and the newly allied locals meticulously mine a substantial deposit of fluorite crystals, a mineral Senku demonstrates glows brightly under heat. He explains these 'firefly stones' are critical for high-precision optics and rocket components. Kaseki, with his master craftsmanship, polishes a fluorite crystal into a lens of unprecedented quality. This new lens allows them to construct a powerful ship-mounted telescope, through which Kohaku is stunned to see the moon's craters in vivid, breathtaking detail, bringing their ultimate destination impossibly close.

Senku presents a small model rocket, a prototype for their future space vessel, which Kaseki proudly crafted. Its purpose, Senku explains, is to test trajectory and flight stability for the full-scale moon rocket. Ryusui then directs their attention to the globe, pointing to India, which he dubs the 'City of Math.' He insists that world-class mathematical expertise is essential to calculate the precise trajectory for a moon landing, a plan Senku readily endorses. Their next major destination is set, involving a long voyage around Africa to reach the Indian subcontinent.

Ryusui reveals a critical problem: the New Perseus is consuming organic fuel at an alarming rate, rendering the long voyage around Africa impossible. A months-long delay to produce more fuel is unacceptable. Amidst the mounting tension, Taiju notices a thin strip of land on the globe where the seas almost meet. Francois identifies it as the Suez Canal, a man-made shortcut that could save them 11,000 kilometers. Hope flickers, quickly tempered by the realization that millennia of neglect likely means the canal is impassable.

To assess the canal's condition, Chelsea, Senku, and Ryusui ascend in the hot air balloon, Chelsea eagerly sketching a detailed sea chart from their aerial vantage point. Their hopes are dashed when Chelsea spots a 'hardcore blockage' through the telescope: a massive dam of debris and ancient dead trees completely sealing the waterway. Gen is devastated, crying that their shortcut is ruined, a year-long delay now imminent. Kohaku impulsively suggests chopping it, but Ryusui quickly dismisses the idea, highlighting the sheer scale of the obstruction.

With no other choice, Senku declares they must blow up the dam, announcing his intention to modify their prototype test rocket into a delivery system for explosives. He coolly explains that a rocket and a ballistic missile are fundamentally the same technology. He details the addition of dynamite, Xeno's jet engine, and remote-controlled fins, transforming the 'Senku 3' into a formidable guided missile. Francois and Chelsea are visibly shocked by this abrupt shift from scientific tool to destructive weapon. Senku concludes with a chillingly pragmatic statement: 'Science is power,' ready to blast their way to the future.

Senku calls for ignition, and with a thunderous roar, the missile blasts off from the ship's deck, streaking across the sky. Ryusui takes precise control, guiding the projectile with expert remote steering as it heads for the distant dam. The crew watches, breath held, as their entire lunar mission hinges on this one, audacious strike. The missile finds its mark, detonating in a colossal explosion that obliterates the blockage, allowing the New Perseus to sail triumphantly through the now-clear Suez Canal. As they pass, Ryusui reveals their true goal in India: to find humanity's 'almighty mathematician,' a mysterious silhouette surrounded by swirling equations, the final puzzle piece for their journey to the moon.