Sento blinked, gulped, and looked left and right with a look of anguish on his face for a few moments before closing his eyes; he took in several deep breaths before opening them again.
He held the last deep breath for a solid five seconds before exhaling. The look on Sento's face changed from a downcast, lost expression to a sheepish smile, then finally to a confident grin.
"What's it going to be? That's obvious."
Sento stood up with so much enthusiasm, you wouldn't think he had just been beaten up by Blood Stalk a minute ago
"I choose Build."
He strolled past the still crouched Ryuga and stared at the Guardian bots rounding up the test subjects.
Ryuga got to his feet, a grin spreading on his face that matched the reinvigorated Sento's. "Hell yea!" He exclaimed while walking to stand beside his friend.
He elbowed Sento's arm lightly and then cracked his knuckles.
Sento turned to look at Ryuga, his smile turned playful and he said, "Try not to get in the way."
Ryuga nodded his head while smirking. He took what Sento said as a challenge, his competitive side from boxing flared up, raising both of their battle spirits.
"Right back at you!"
Sento nodded back and turned his attention forwards again. "Now, let's begin the experiment."
A set of yellow and purple full bottles were already being shaken in both of Sento's hands before he even finished spitting out his catch phrase.
He slotted both bottles with a flourish, a serious look suddenly taking the former smiles' place.
NINJA! COMIC!
BEST MATCH!
Sento turned the handle on his driver, after a few turns, the familiar voice coming from the driver called out the question it always did.
ARE YOU READY!?
It felt like the first time hearing it for Sento, however, like chapter 2 of Kamen Rider Build's story was starting.
The intimidating look on his face was slightly broken by the corners of his lips rising slightly.
"Henshin!"
The purple and yellow halves of his armor had finished materializing and rushed towards Sento while he adopted his Rider stance.
THE STEALTHY ENTERTAINER!
NINNINCOMIC!
The manga and ninja Build form looked sharp underneath the random beams of light and shadow being cast by the broken ceiling and remaining lights in the lab.
YEAH!
Build made a gesture with his right hand, summoning his Four-Panel sword. With a quick twist of the wrist, he flipped the blade into a rear facing grip.
Ryuga stepped forward with his Dragon full bottle and shook it violently, an energy started to engulf him like an aura, with its strongest point being at the fist holding the bottle.
"Let's do it!" Ryuga cried out while dashing forward.
"Right!" Kamen Rider Build was right on his heels, he flashed ahead of Ryuga, looking like a yellow and purple blur of afterimages from his speed.
They clashed with the Guardians, beating down one after another.
Bang!
Ryuga smashed a bot so hard in the head with a cross that it spun half a rotation, landing with its head first on the ground. He reached down to grasp the arm of the scared test subject crouching on the ground in front of him, pulling him up while yelling, "Run!"
The test subject nodded and moved as fast as his still numb feet and ankles would afford in the direction the rest of the rescued subjects headed.
"Are you okay? GO!" Build and several Build ninja clones cut down the last handful of Guardians standing while urging the test subjects to evacuate too.
Chuuush!
Criiiick!
Both Ryuga and all of Build's clones looked up at the sudden noise. The ceiling was starting to collapse even further. There were large cracks spiderwebbing across the entire place, with the hole Blood Stalk had made earlier being at the center of it all.
Build looked around at the remaining men in gowns and pointed to the way out, "The exit's over there! Come on!"
The first group of fleeing test subjects were about to reach the exit of the room but suddenly, a growling figure rolled down a set of stairs on the left of the route they were taking.
It was a Smash!
"Tatsuya..."
Kamen Rider Build had already raced over to confront the new threat blocking their way, and upon seeing that it was the transformed Tatsuya, he hesitated, saddened by the damaged Smash laying on the ground in front of him.
Ryuga got to the scene a few moments later and wrinkled his nose while observing the bolts of electricity dancing on the body of the downed Smash.
"Does he seem weird to you?" Ryuga directed a question at Build.
The Rider made some calculations in his head and nodded knowingly, "He was given more gas than he could take..."
Bright blue bolts of energy increased in intensity and number on the Smash while it shakily got to its feet.
"...If the growth continues, he's going to rupture in a minute!"
Everyone present except the swaying Smash became quiet after hearing what Build had to say.
Bang!
After a tense five seconds like this Build suddenly flashed forward, kicking the Smash out of the way, clearing a path for everyone.
"Get the hostages out, quick!" Build yelled at Ryuga as he pressed his assault against the transformed and suffering Tatsuya.
"Okay!" Ryuga nodded his head in agreement and waved an arm at the test subjects indicating to them to follow him.
"Come on!" He shouted as he started to lead the charge out.
"Hurry! Move it!" Ryuga guided the last man out and turned back to look at Kamen Rider Build, who was currently tangled up with the Smash.
"Tatsuya..." Build muttered with sadness in his voice as he slashed the staggering Smash again and again.
He ducked under an attempt at retaliation, pressing the trigger of his weapon three times. Build lifted his sword straight up in the air while the 3rd section on his weapon's blade started glowing.
The dust on the floor started swirling and accelerated to hurricane levels of speed as Build's power activated and wind was generated.
TORNADO SLASH!
Shing! Shing! Shing! Shing! Shing!
Build reached out and slashed horizontally towards the Smash with his wind-imbued blade back and forth five times, causing sparks and smoke to fly everywhere.
Build was about to pull out an empty bottle to capture the Smash essence from the downed monster, gaining a new power and saving his friend at the same time.
Before he could click the bottle open, the ceiling finally gave way, causing the entire building to collapse inwards.
"Oh crap!"
Build threw himself on top of the Smash as tons of debris crashed down on them.
The collapse of the building caused a chain effect, explosions rang out one after the other.
Ryuga, his new dragon device and the test subjects had just made it to the outside when the ground rumbled, they turned around just in time to see fire roar out of the building they just exited moments earlier.
Ryuga shielded his face in shock while everyone else fled.
"Did he not make it...?" Ryuga asked himself out loud.
A piece of building rubble moved, then was kicked violently away by a blue sneaker. Two figures staggered out from underneath. It was Sento, supporting an untransformed Tatsuya!
Sento had managed to absorb the essence while covering up the Smash, tanking the rubble falling onto them as Tatsuya returned to normal. As Build, he had used his last bit of energy to dig them out and had returned to his normal form.
They were all grinning, albeit weakly after the ordeal they had just been through, especially Tatsuya.
Just as Ryuga was about to say something, the ground shook again and there was one more explosion, causing all three sets of eyes to go wide in shock as Tatsuya and Sento were hurled forwards ten feet through the air from the blast.
Ryuga had managed to stay on his feet, the other two rolled to a stop a mere seven feet away from where Ryuga stood. "Hey Sento!" Ryuga screamed as he rushed to check Sento. Ryuga dropped to one knee and shook his friend. "You okay!? Sento!"
Sento coughed and smiled up at the man looking down at him. "What? Are we friends now?"
Ryuga plopped down on the grass beside Sento and clapped his hand a few times on Sento's shoulder.
Tatsuya lay spread eagle on the grass a few meters away, groaning but mostly intact.
"Bro... it hurts!"
Sento and Ryuga looked in Tatsuya's direction and both started chuckling softly.
After their laughter subsided, Sento turned towards Ryuga and said, "Well, now we've done it..."
...
Gentoku sat in his office, watching video surveillance of the test subjects escaping before the buildings collapsed and exploded at the foot of the Sky Wall.
He shook his head and returned to the call he had been on while still staring at the laptop in front of him with a look of distaste on his face.
"That was rather loud."
On the other end of the call, the ever sinister Blood Stalk sat in the shadowy rafters of some other industrial building and responded, "There's an important point behind having Build learn of his origins in that lab... Let me thank you on their behalf..."
Gentoku rolled his eyes and questioned Blood Stalk, "How long are you going to let them run free?"
Blood Stalk shook his shoulders to answer, as if Gentoku could see him somehow. "No need to rush... The fun has only just begun..."
He leaned over a railing and looked down at the brand new glass cube full of green tinged liquid and shiny new test equipment surround it in the spacious room.
Blood Stalk tossed the device he was talking on after hanging up without another word, causing Gentoku to frown and paw at his goatee on the other end.
Four men dressed in clean, white hazmat suits bowed before the passing Blood Stalk as he walked past them and the new Nebula Gas infusion tank.
...
Sento and co walked down the side of the highway, exhausted.
Ryuga sighed and turned to glance at the other two while saying, "I guess we're back to square one... Am I ever gonna clear my name?"
All three paused after some more walking to rest. They stopped on a wide bridge with a designated spot to sit and rest for pedestrians, and after a few moments, Tatsuya piped up. "Um... there's something I didn't mention, Bro."
Sento and Ryuga both cocked their heads in his direction.
"The thing is, well... When you went to your job with the new drug, on September 9th, I was the one who drove you there..." Tatsuya broke away from Sento's support to go and lean against the railing of the roadway they were on, it happened to overlook a large body of water directly underneath.
"And... Well... It was Takumi Katsuragi's place!" Tatsuya said the last part while tears started to fill his eyes.
"See, the thing is... I thought Katsuragi dying had nothing to do with you."
Tatsuya slumped to the ground with his back leaning against the railing. "But if Banjo didn't kill him... That means..."
Ryuga's eyes flashed and he grabbed the blubbering Tatsuya by the collar.
"When did this happen?! What time was it!?"
"Eeek!" Tatsuya shrieked a little bit while Ryuga shook him. "Um... I think... it was 9 in the morning."
Ryuga let his grip go a little. "That was an hour before I showed up there..."
All three sat there, looking back and forth at each other with confusion written on their faces.
Tatsuya looked up at Sento with scared and questioning eyes. "Bro... ?"
Sento blinked with confusion and squinted while trying to tap into his memories, "Did I kill Takumi Katsuragi...?"