Touto Institute of Advanced Matter Physics Research Laboratory.
Sento had arrived at the lab for work orientation, just in time too! The bike he rode in on disappeared just as fast as it had appeared in the café earlier.
He pocketed the yellow bottle and went inside the building, heading towards a couple of secretaries; this was the same lobby where the Pandora's Box artifact was kept, the one Sento had just drooled over the other day.
Before Sento could reach them, a slender man with silver framed glasses intercepted him. His hair barely reached his ears and was parted neatly on the side. It was the assistant that reported to Gentoku the previous day, regarding Sento's test scores.
"Hello, Sento Kiryu I presume? My name is Nariaki Utsumi, nice to meet you." Nariaki extended a hand out in greeting.
Sento looked the man up and down quickly, he was wearing the blue button up uniform that the higher up researchers and staff wore here, Sento figured this Nariaki guy must be a fellow scientist.
"Yeah, that's me. Nice to meet you." Sento grasped the offered hand for a quick shake.
"This way please..."
Letting go of Sento's slender hand, Nariaki turned and started walking away briskly, looking back briefly to see if Sento was following him. The latter man jogged for a few steps to catch up to the quickly moving assistant. His demeanor was all business.
"Where are we going?"
"The Director wants to see you."
They passed through several rooms with different tech and research equipment in them. Many scientists and their aids were busy running all manners of tests on many different things, looking at all kinds of instrument panels and manipulating all sorts of devices to help with those tests.
Eventually they ran into the director and brief introductions were made.
The three toured some more of the building while making small talk until they were nearly back at the entrance, where the Pandora's Box enclosure and secretaries were.
There were several other researchers conducting a few tests near the box enclosure now too, they had several portable tables with test equipment on them in the lobby now. Last but not least, the same armed guards from the other day were watching the box like hawks.
Those guards stood up even straighter when they noticed the Director walk into the room.
"So you got every question right? Impressive. But under experience you only wrote, 'Probably a physicist.'...What's that about?" Gentoku Himuro walked in front of Nariaki and Sento, hands held together behind his back.
Nariaki held a clipboard with some documents attached to it. The page on top he was staring at was part of Sento's resume.
Gentoku came to a stop and turned around, looking at Sento and waiting to see what his response would be. Sento just smiled back at him, looking calm as could be while he answered.
"That's because of the amnesia."
"No way!" Gentoku was surprised, he then looked Sento up and down quickly. The young man in front of him didn't seem to be joking.
"I like your outfit, classy trench coat but why the mismatched sneakers?" His eyes locked onto the different colored sneakers Sento was sporting.
"It's just kind of my thing, they're still the same type though. They do match in a way." Sento replied, still wearing the same confident smile on his face.
Gentoku thought about something for a few moments and then patted Sento on the shoulder.
"Good enough for me...Alright...What I want you to do, is analyze this."
He picked up a tablet from a nearby bench, holding it in his hands so that Sento could take a look at what was displayed. It was full of energy readings and thermal images of Pandora's Box.
Sento looked delighted, his hair standing on end suddenly was proof of that!
"The Pandora's Box we discovered on Mars...There's said to be a type of energy source more potent than nuclear inside."
"It's amazing!" Sento was getting worked up. "There must've been a civilization far more advanced than Earth's."
Sento took another close look at Pandora's box through the glass. His eyes sparkled and the thick tuft of his hair that was erect already stood up even straighter than it normally did when he got excited! This kind of stuff really got his blood and his brain juices flowing!
"What about the Sky Wall Tragedy?" Gentoku clasped his hands together, leaned back slightly and tilted his head towards where Sento was standing behind him. Sento ran from near the enclosure to right in front of his new boss, eager to gain some new insight about the tragedy.
"I've read about it."
Sento gave him an answer as soon as he made eye contact with Gentoku.
"The Sky Wall popped up after a flash of light during the Mars mission return ceremony."
"It's not just the wall"...Gentoku started circling Sento as he talked. "...The Box also altered the behavior of everyone present...It was like it tapped into some sort of aggressive impulse."
He smiled and looked back and forth between Sento and Nariaki as if he was telling an exceptionally amusing story and not a tragic, sad history.
"As a result, our country was torn in three over this potential massive energy source, however we...excuse me for one second Sento, I'm getting a call."
Gentoku pulled his phone out of his pocket, and answered it while bringing the phone up to his right ear.
"What is it?...Let me get confirmation." Gentoku turned and started walking over to a nearby staff member's desk to use their computer. Nariaki beat him there, pressing a few keyboard buttons swiftly while turning the monitor around so that his boss could see.
On the screen, a tv program was playing. There was a serious looking anchor delivering some shocking news! The headline was also quite eye catching, it read 'Former Martial Artist Escapes Prison' in bold red letters!
The news anchor looked slightly riled up as he explained. "An inmate from Touto Central Prison in area C4 has escaped!"
A mug shot replaced the red text on the screen, pushing the letters up into the left corner, just beyond the mugshot.
It was the man that had been running in the sewers earlier!
"The suspect's name is Ryuga Banjo, 23 years old...He is presumed to have assassinated Mr. Takumi Katsuragi, and went on to kill all of his research assistants as well."
Gentoku's eyes narrowed. "This is that guy that killed some of our researchers!" He made a fist, looking pissed off!
"So he's escaped..."
The tv started playing footage captured by the body cams of Ryuga's pursuers.
It was Ryuga, battling with the armored troops from earlier! He easily disarmed them, blocking any incoming strikes without much effort while dishing out his own counter attacks! Jabs and crosses flew out from Ryuga like water, crashing down on the hapless robots.
"A group of guardians was able to locate him during their search this morning..." The news anchor kept going on about the situation, talking overtop of the epic fight scene.
A nearby researcher who was also watching the screen widened his eyes at the carnage and said his piece. "That's incredible...Hard to believe a human was responsible!"
Sento looked over at the researcher thoughtfully, after hearing what he had to say. His thoughts aligned with the researcher's comment completely.
The aftermath of the battle was now shown on the screen. The guardians were not just beaten down, they were absolutely shredded! All three were torn limb from limb, only a couple extremities were left hanging by frayed electrical cables and twisted hydraulic parts! Some of their remains were still on fire or smoking too, their destruction had been explosive!
"He's destroyed the assets that were sent to retrieve him, and is on the run again! He has also taken one of the guardian's motorcycles as well!"
The news anchor had started explaining the story again as soon as the screen panned back to him from the smoldering pile of wrecked guardians.
"YOU'VE GOT MAIL"
Sento's device called out and he excused himself, going off to the side to read his message.
'Did you see the news about the escape? Ryuga Banjo is giving off Smash readings'. - Isurugi
'I'll call you in a minute' - Kiryu
He didn't even need to sneak away, Gentoku had already headed off with Nariaki, both of them talking quickly into their phones as they went.
Exactly one minute later, Sento was standing outside of the building, dialing Soichi.
Across town, back at the café.
Ring, ring, ring...
"...Hello? Ah Sento!"
Soichi picked up the phone while he and Misora, whose face was still covered in inky formulas courtesy of Sento, stared at a computer screen down in the lab.
Soichi placed the call on hands free speaker while setting the cell phone down beside the computer.
"Banjo, Ryuga. A former pro fighter...He got banned for life, for fixing the fights..."
Soichi scrolled down the screen he was looking at and continued on. "He then got a 10-year sentence for murdering a scientist, one year ago."
Misora looked closer at a one of the windows opened up on the bottom of the screen they were viewing and pointed at it. Soichi noticed the new energy reading being displayed.
"The sensors are reacting, but there's no reports of a monster...Maybe he just hasn't turned into a Smash yet?"
Soichi had calibrating the settings of the sensors and had been monitoring the police lines ever since the shocking news report. No civilians had called in a single thing about a Smash being sighted.
"There's another way to find him. I've hacked the GPS data for the motorcycle that Banjo stole from the guardian team that he destroyed. I'll send it over now.
Sento's eyes lit up when he heard this. He held his phone away from his face so that he could look at the incoming data. "Got it...thanks a bunch for the assist Soichi! Oh, and tell Misora she looks pretty for me today..."
"HEY! Just you wait!" Misora heard Sento's taunt on speaker and raged.
"Hahaha, Sento out." Sento smiled and ended the call. He activated the bike and roared off, following the GPS signal he had been given.
Ryuga was actually only around 6 minutes away from him, if he plotted an intercept course, which he did!
5 minutes and 45 seconds later...
Sento looked at his position in relation to Ryuga, He was less than a block away!
Graaugh...Graughhhhh...
Screeeeech!
GRRAAAUUGHHH!
5 seconds after, Sento could hear another bike over his own...5 more seconds until it came sliding around the corner! The tires screeched across the road as it cornered hard! Engine screaming!
After coming around the corner, Ryuga glanced behind and noticed a strange looking bike and rider bearing down on him! He tucked down on his stolen machine and went even faster!