"Look I know this sounds crazy but I think there's an entire civilization living underground!" Running out of the forest, Yushiro was explaining to Chachamaru about his weird encounter. The teen was hesitant at first but he couldn't keep it to himself any longer.
"What are you talking about? You mean there are tiny people from ancient times living a life below us?" Chachamaru asked. "That sounds like something you'd hear in a movie."
"I'm serious I knocked over a statue-" There he said it, whether he got into trouble or not, someone had to know what was going on around this place.
The giant feline raised a brow. "Don't be ridiculous? What kind of statue could that possibly be?"
Scratching his chin, Yushiro looked up with a clueless look on his face, it could deceive anyone into thinking he was completely innocent. "I don't know, some weird-looking statue I guess. There was another one too."
"If it's an exhibition of some sort, you're in deep trouble young man."
"Which is why we're getting out of here," Yushiro sped up when he heard the chanting of the crowd from earlier. "Don't even remind me about it."
"Then we're gonna need a disguise for you." Chachamaru said with a smirk.
"Ugh that's the worst but I don't have any other choice do I?"
"Nope."
Yushiro froze when he noticed a blue and purple building a few blocks away. He gleamed after reading the name of the ride.
"Yo Chachamaru check out that ride over there. I think it just opened recently."
The feline gazed at the building his ears perked up when he saw its details.
"You know what I'm thinking?"
"It's time for a Spaceventure hahaha!"
That was the name of the ride and it seemed to have a whole crowd of people walking into the building. Yushiro and Chachamaru sprinted down the side path leading to the ride's grounds.
Back at the ongoing circus show, Shinobu noticed the silhouette of Douma approaching her but due to the loud noise and laughter she didn't quite pay attention to that and continued watching the show.
Douma was a little worried when he saw that Shinobu was standing among the crowd without Yushiro and Chachamaru. Which meant once again, they had ran off somewhere, but why wasn't Shinobu with them?
"Hey Shinobu have you seen Yushiro and Chachamaru? I thought they were with you."
The violette stared at him wide eyed with a hint of guilt. "Oh yeah about that- they uh-"
So they wandered off again. Even though the bandits haven't caused any trouble if they were really around, this was still dangerous, especially for Yushiro if he gets stranded somewhere. Douma wasn't sure if he should tell Shinobu and Yushiro since that would make them paranoid, Mr Oshiro only wanted Chachamaru to be informed about this. For their safety, it's best if Douma doesn't tell them anything yet until further notice.
"Those two were chasing that toy plane Yushiro bought. I'm not sure where they went." Shinobu continued on.
"We have to find them." Douma added. It seems the two of them ran off into the forest which is concerning.
Right before Shinobu was about to suggest a few places to start looking for the oblivious duo, the familiar figures of Yushiro and Chachamaru dashed towards them with the silliest expressions that made Douma and Shinobu quite infuriated.
"Hey guys what's up?" Yushiro waved at them with a toothy grin.
"How many times do we have to tell you two? Don't disappear like that!" Shinobu said firmly.
Crossing his arms, Yushiro pouted. "Jeez at least tell us nicely. What kind of greeting is that?"
Chachamaru stretched and yawned, his bushy tail flicking around like a typical cat. "That ride was a relaxing rollercoaster of surprises, I really felt I was in space. Good choice Yushiro."
The green-haired boy put up a smug smile.
"What? And you guys left us behind?" Shinobu couldn't believe they just left her and Douma clueless about this ride.
"Chachamaru I need to inform you about something." Douma told Chachamaru quietly while Shinobu and Yushiro were going on and on about the ride and miscommunication.
"Lemme guess, Mr Oshiro called you? Did something happen?" The feline asked, following Douma who was walking away from the crowd.
"There's an ongoing investigation at Dice and Roll Valley and now that we're here, Atlas might as well continue with it. Remember the Bird Migration show that Yushiro was talking about?"
Thinking about it for a while, Chachamaru recalled the conversations they had about the Bird Migration show and the advertisement they saw on the brochure. "Oh yeah it's on an island isn't it?"
"Yep that's correct. That island is where Dice and Roll Valley hosts events. There's another one further down which is isolated. A meteor landed there decades ago."
Chachamaru gaped after hearing the last sentence. "Really? That's crazy!"
"Atlas and several other organizations believe that the meteor contains valuable minerals that are not from Earth. There's evidence to suggest the meteor is still there however it may not be in the same form. The case is still open which expands Atlas' current works and research to this location." Douma explained to the feline.
Scratching his head, Chachamaru found this information fascinating. "Who would've thought a meteor would land here of all places?"
"That's not all."
Douma's now serious gaze met Chachamaru's petrified ones. "There are bandits around here carrying out dangerous operations. A few people have been killed over the years on that island and there's no saying when they'll show up."
"Bandits? Here right now?" The giant cat stammered.
"However since there was a lottery that rewarded Yushiro with the tickets to this place, we have to stay alert, that's how they rob their victims every few years. We can't let Shinobu and Yushiro go to the island where the Bird Migration show is happening, it's too dangerous these bandits could be anywhere." Douma went on.
"The Bird Migration show is starting in two hours. Yushiro has made up his mind about it, what are we going to do?"
Douma thought about what Chachamaru said. He took a deep breath and spoke. "Atlas has sent a team here, since our mission is to retrieve the meteorite, we'll be traveling to the island with the group assigned to our team."
Chachamaru nodded, wondering about Shinobu and Yushiro's time at Dice and Roll Valley while they're gone.
"The bandits lurk around the shore waiting for the time to strike so beware of the boats. Shinobu and Yushiro will find out by then, don't tell them about this now it'll only frighten them. The plan was to enjoy our time here, panicking them is only going to diminish that."
"Wow Douma you're normally calm and recollected but this time you're really serious. I guess that says a lot about this case." Chachamaru commented.
"Those bandits are here for the meteorite, I'm sure of that." Douma said, thinking about his friends' wellbeing.
"Which explains why they're carrying out their operations here, but robbing people and dumping them on an island is too much." The feline added.
Both Shinobu and Yushiro were still talking about the Spaceventures ride. Their conversation was subtle now, with Yushiro talking about the rocket he and Chachamaru were sitting on.
"Let's go, whatever you do, don't tell them about this." Douma reminded Chachamaru who nodded.
Yushiro glanced at Douma and Chachamaru who were approaching them. "We don't have much time left. The Bird Migration show starts in two hours!"
Hearing Yushiro's concern, Douma and Chachamaru exchanged glances with each other. Just play along. The blonde kept on eye on Chachamaru who understood the message.
"Look man, relax the boat's not too far away." Chachamaru said patting Yushiro's head.
"I know I just don't wanna miss it. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, I'm sure Shinobu's gonna enjoy it too." Yushiro responded, turning to Shinobu who gave him a look of approval to what he just told Chachamaru.
Douma wished things turned out differently but this was too dangerous. Unfortunately there will be no Bird Migration show for Shinobu and Yushiro, maybe another time once this problem is settled which is going to take a while due to the circumstances.
"Alright then so where are we headed?" Chachamaru waited for everyone's response.
"There's a mini carnival beside the Blooming Garden." Shinobu suggested, everybody else took note of that, it seemed like the best option they had.
"Yeah since we're still early let's go there." As much as possible, Yushiro wanted he and his friends to utilize their tickets to the fullest.
"Sounds good." Chachamaru began walking towards the direction of the Blooming Garden with the other three following him.
Might as well enjoy this moment while we still can. If only they didn't have to be separated, Douma was determined to put an end to the dangers lurking at Dice and Roll Valley so nobody would ever have to go through something disheartening like this.