Chapter 185 Shura Field 3
“Who’s talking?!”
Everyone looked around in astonishment, but couldn't find the source of the sound. The hospital's broadcast hadn't been on, and there was no one else around them.
"I'm here." - The voice sounded again.
“???”
The source of the sound was surprisingly coming from somewhere even lower down. They all looked down at the same time and discovered that there was indeed a new object nearby, standing out from the crowd. But was it... a ball?!
Everyone's eyes were fixed on the ball that was right in the middle of them, and everyone's expression was one of disbelief.
Yes, it is really a ball in every sense of the word, a ball with a silvery-white metallic texture, shiny and bright.
"Don't look, I'm talking to you." The ball rolled back and forth a bit before continuing, "It's not convenient here. Let's talk somewhere else. Come find me on the hospital rooftop."
As soon as the mechanical voice fell, the silver-white metal ball disappeared with a "whoosh", leaving only an afterimage in the human retina.
“……!!”
"Is there something wrong with my eyes? Or my ears? A ball was talking to me just now!"
"It's not just talking...it also said it knows how to save Sana!"
“…Forget about that for now, let’s go to the rooftop and take a look!!”
…
*
Rooftop of the inpatient department of the Affiliated Hospital of Tokyo University.
A noisy wind blew past, bringing silence to everyone.
A group of unusually tall and muscular teenagers and young men stood in a circle around a metal ball on the ground in the middle and fell into a long silence.
"Ask ahead. I know you have a lot of questions," the metal ball said. "I'll answer them one by one."
“………”
The teenagers twitched their lips.
It's too abstract, and there are so many questions I want to ask that I don't even know where to start.
"Okay, then I'll ask first." Yukimura Seiichi spoke first: "Who are you? What is your relationship with Sana?"
"I am a life form from a planet other than Earth. Everything I do is to help Sana survive and recover her health. In short, the relationship between Sana and me is one of helper and helped."
The metal ball rolled forward, as if thinking, and continued: "As for my name... My planet has an independent language system. I don't know how to convert my name into Japanese for now, but if it were Sana, she would usually call me System."
“……!”
Alien Creatures? ! ! System? ! !
Simple surprise and astonishment are not enough to describe everyone's current expressions. The alien creatures that only appear in science fiction works actually appeared in front of them at this moment, to the extent that it gave people goosebumps.
If it were an ordinary day, they might think it was a prank by an acquaintance. It would not be difficult to make a spherical robot with built-in embedded software that can speak and answer questions in real time.
But combined with the information they just exchanged, and considering that Sana had appeared in a completely different time period and had met and known them, it didn't seem so unbelievable that the sphere that suddenly appeared in front of them claimed to be an alien creature.
Tsukishima Hotaru spoke up, directly asking the same question on everyone's mind: "Second year of junior high school, third year, and third year of high school... Sana appeared at different time periods and met different people. Was this you who did it?"
The metal sphere, no, it should be called a system, moved up and down, as if nodding. "Indeed, the technological civilization of my planet is far superior to Earth's. Time travel is not difficult for me. The theories and vocabulary of time travel technology on my planet are completely different from yours, but I can try to explain it using your Earth terminology."
"By changing the distances between atoms and electron orbitals, altering the interaction between the Higgs field and elementary particles, and utilizing the properties of entanglement at a distance, I can precisely locate your spacetime coordinates and lead Sana to your timeline. As for when Sana appeared before you, she appeared in the form of her second, third, and third year of junior high school, respectively. This is because I used the EPR paradox to cause her body to undergo a controllable age disorder. But no matter what, Sana will eventually return to the point in time where she truly is right now."
"I set up a 'space-time anchor point' at the present time where Sana originally existed, forming a closed loop of the Möbius strip. When Sana traveled to the timeline where you were in the past, met you, got to know you, and the past was changed. After three time travels, that is, today when Sana finally woke up, all timelines finally closed, and the day when you will finally gather here has finally arrived."
The system's mechanical electronic voice spoke a long paragraph at an extremely fast speed. When it finally finished, everyone fell into a deeper silence.
“……………………”
Wait a moment.
Did some information just flash by?!
Why do I seem to understand each word individually, but when they are put together I don’t understand anything at all? ! !
The system glanced up and saw an unprecedented look of confusion on the faces of the group of athletes before them. They were completely lost, even in thought. Among them, the dark-skinned athlete Aomine Daiki and the English prodigy Kageyama Tobio looked the most bewildered. Koutarou Bokuto, on the other hand, wasn't so much confused as his eyes were dotted with googly eyes.
Gong You's eyes widened at this, then he turned silent and serious, as if trying to understand everyone's rhythm, but the system knew he didn't understand. The same was true for Gong Zhi. Although he looked much more mature and calm than Gong You, the system knew that twins had the same DNA at heart, so neither brother should criticize the other.
But there were a few contestants, such as Tsukishima Hotaru, who was known for his intelligence and sharpness, and Midorima Shintaro, who had excellent academic performance, as well as Atobe Keigo, Fuji Shusuke, Yukimura Seiichi, and Akashi Seijuro. The system knew that they should have really understood, or at least understood a considerable part of it.
"Will time travel put a strain on her body?" Fuji Shusuke frowned and immediately asked, "Also, at the beginning, the 'Sana' I first met was very different from the one I met later. Is this also the reason?"
System: "Oh, that's not Sana, it's me, I'm sorry."
Fuji Shusuke: “………………”
Yukimura Seiichi: "????"
Atobe Keigo twitched his lips: "...What does this mean?!"
System: "In the spacetime anchor point, Sana's real body is deteriorating, and the remaining time is extremely tight. To speed up the process, I have acquired Sana's quantum field information, which is the electromagnetic field plus phonon vibrations, to drive the material to reshape its form. I have transformed into Sana's appearance, hoping to conquer you in her place. Unexpectedly, I have backfired, causing you to dislike her from the very beginning."
“……………………”
Silence, endless silence.
…Is it because of this? !!!
They were almost about to laugh out loud. Such a ridiculous misunderstanding was actually caused by the system's clever imitation of her appearance, and the simultaneous confession of love to them during the Iron Chain Boat operation, which led to their prejudice against Sana from the beginning... If it weren't for the system's confusing operation, they should have had more normal time with Sana without any misunderstandings...!
Moreover, it was clearly the fault of this "system", but all their accusations and negative emotions were borne by Sana... How sad must she have been at that time? ! !
But if you think about it from another angle, if it weren't for this "system" leading Sana through time and space, according to the original timeline, their life trajectories might not have intersected with Sana at all. At least the system still allowed Sana to meet them...
Sensing the intensity of their reaction, their emotions so intense they were practically trembling, the system paused before continuing, "I'm sorry, I did something wrong about this. I've apologized to Sana many times about this."
Yukimura Seiichi's face turned pale. He took a deep breath and continued to ask, "System, you just mentioned 'strategy'. What does 'strategy' mean? Why do we need a strategy?"
"What is your purpose in doing this?"
System: "To make you save her willingly."
“……?!”
"What does this mean?" Gong You's brows knitted together, and he said in a Kansai accent, "How could we not save her?! As long as I can save her, I will do it no matter what!"
"Yeah, me too!"
"Whatever she needs, I will give it to her with both hands."
The determined voices of the young men rose and fell, but the system continued calmly, "What if saving her requires a price?"
“……?”
System: "The so-called 'strategy', as the name suggests, means to make you all fall in love with Sana. Only if you have feelings for her will you be willing to pay a certain price to save her. If you are just a casual passerby in an ordinary day, no one would be willing to go through fire and water for the other person."
"…Why us?"
The system continued, "When I first landed on Earth, it felt like a world of passionate sports comics. Everyone was incredibly passionate about ball games, and the strongest life energy was concentrated in those who played basketball, volleyball, and tennis. This is why I chose you."
"Chosen... us?"
System: "Indeed, what you all have in common is that you are all good at sports, have exceptionally strong physical fitness, and your cells are unusually active. No one is more suitable than you to forge a brand new heart for her."
“…?!!!”
Forge her... a brand new heart? ! !
Everyone's expressions were first shocked and incredulous, as they were overwhelmed by the system's overwhelming message.
But soon, their expressions changed from shock to unprecedented determination. The young people's eyes were like flickering torches, burning with hard-earned hope and shining with unparalleled determination.
"What should we do specifically?!"
"No matter what the price is, I can accept it!"
"Yeah, me too!"
"Tell me quickly, what's the price? I'll take it no matter what it is!"
Hearing their expected response, the system continued, "As I said before, the technological civilization of my planet is far more advanced than Earth's. As you can see, although the life forms on our planet are very different from humans in structure, since my arrival on Earth, I have begun to absorb a large amount of knowledge from this planet, including a large amount of data on physics, linguistics, and medicine. After research and calculations, I have found a way to save Sana."
"I need all of you to provide some blood and stem cells. Through reprogramming technology, using induced pluripotent stem cell technology, I can transform the white blood cells in your blood, especially the lymphocytes, into stem cells with differentiation potential. In the bioreactor, through precise control of growth factors, I can guide the stem cells to differentiate into cardiomyocytes, vascular endothelial cells, and connective tissue cells, ultimately assembling a complete, functional heart."
"In this way, Sana can finally have a healthy heart that beats normally and allows her to breathe without pain. The terminal illness that has plagued her since she was a child has finally been cured, and she can finally leave the hospital room and live like a normal person."
When he said this, the mechanical electronic sound of the system, which had never fluctuated, could actually be heard to carry a hint of tenderness and an indescribable heartache.
The emotions seemed to be contagious, and everyone couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache. Just imagining it made their hearts ache.
In front of them, Sana was always lively and cheerful, with a sweet and bright smile on her face, and she never spread any negative emotions towards them... so much so that they never knew that in her own timeline, from her childhood to adulthood, Sana had always been accompanied by a broken and painful heart, and had never had a healthy body.
"I do."
——Everyone answered in unison.
There was almost no hesitation, and they answered in unison.
"But I don't understand... it's just a donation of blood and stem cells, why go to such great lengths?" Kise Ryota asked, somewhat puzzled. "For this purpose, they specifically asked Sana to 'travel' through different timelines to meet us..."
"Yes, I can guarantee that even if I just met the senior for the first time, I would provide her with these without hesitation." Kageyama Tobio said.
"Is it because they're afraid we'll feel pain? And worried we won't agree?" Shiraishi Kuranosuke touched the back of his head in confusion and tried to analyze: "If they're providing stem cells, they'll have to extract them through condylar puncture and aspiration, right? That's what's commonly known as bone marrow extraction..."
"That's right. To extract the bone marrow, a special needle is used to pierce the pelvic condyle. It should be quite painful," said Tsukishima Hotaru. "But it doesn't matter to me. Even if you ask me to do it without anesthesia, I will agree without hesitation."
"……Me too!"
"Yes, I will do the same."
System: "What if this might affect part of your lifespan?"
Hearing this, the young men were all slightly stunned.
System: "Perhaps you don't fully understand the structure of stem cells. Stem cells are called 'seeds of life' and can differentiate into various tissues and repair cells. The donor's young, highly active stem cells can be used as life carriers. By transplanting or extracting the mitochondria and exosomes within them, the regenerative capacity of the recipient cells can be enhanced, extending their biological age. Existing experiments have confirmed that transplanting the hyaluronan synthase gene from naked mole rats has successfully extended the lifespan of experimental mice by 12%."
"When a donor provides stem cells, some of their epigenetic information is extracted along with the stem cells. This carries a small but not insignificant risk of shortening their lifespan, which is why many people in the real world are reluctant to donate bone marrow. People are selfish, and no one would be willing to risk shortening their own lifespan to help a stranger."
"As we all know, even if a heart patient waits for a suitable heart, their life expectancy after transplant surgery is much shorter than that of an average person. Therefore, even if you provide some blood and create a brand new heart, Sana's life expectancy may still be short. But if we add the stem cells you provide, the situation will be different."
"That's why there are so many of you here. If only one or two people donated stem cells, it would cause considerable harm to him. But if there were a lot of people, an exaggerated number, the situation would be different."
The system continued, "I've calculated the current number of people, including those who didn't make it here today, such as Hinata Shoyo-kun in Brazil, Oikawa Toru-kun in Argentina, Tezuka Kunimitsu in Germany, Echizen Ryoma-kun in the United States... and many more, so I won't list them all. If everyone agrees, we can successfully help Sana while minimizing the side effects of shortening everyone's lifespan."
“……!!!”
"...Can I understand this as another form of strength in numbers?" Fuji Shusuke opened his eyes, trying to understand. "As long as everyone is willing to provide her with a little life energy, a little bit will add up to a lot. If everyone uses a little basic attack, Sana will be able to have the same life span as a normal person."
System: "That's right."
The explanation for the AA system has been revealed. As expected of the tennis genius Fuji Shusuke, he is also so talented in comprehension.
"I understand." Atobe Keigo's expression also became extremely serious, and he even temporarily dropped the "master" he usually referred to himself. "I will be responsible for contacting Tezuka and Echizen. I will also ask Oshitari and the others to see if they are willing."
Kageyama Tobio also curled his lips. "As for that Boke from Hinata and Oikawa-senpai, I'll contact them. Also, Ushijima-senpai and Otokoma's Lone Claw-senpai... I can imagine their responses. They'll probably be shocked at the existence of alien life forms, and then agree to help Kurikawa-senpai without hesitation."
Miyaji and Miyayou exchanged a glance and said in unison, "We will also contact Kita-senpai and Kakuname. We are also sure that their answers will be the same as ours."
Upon hearing this, the system was inevitably touched.
In fact, before he could finish the most important point, the group of teenagers had already agreed without hesitation.
The most important point is that, in fact, this so-called "shortened lifespan" can be avoided 100% - because their number is too large.
They can create miracles, just like completing a game without any damage, and help Sana without hurting their own bodies.
"Thank you very much for your cooperation," the system continued. "Actually, since you are all athletic prodigies with exceptionally strong physiques, and there are so many of you, specifically, after donating a small number of stem cells, only a very small number of days will be lost. To be precise, it's about five to seven days. From a scientific perspective, as long as you maintain a good work and rest routine, increase exercise, and eat a lot of nutritious food, you can achieve the effect of prolonging your life and even make up for these five to seven days."
“……!!!”
"So, are you willing?" the system asked again.
Are you willing to sacrifice so much for her?
What answered the system were the young people's still extremely firm voices.
"I do."
System: "Thank you."
The system actually never worried that any of them would refuse.
Through Sana's experience of getting along with them, the system can see more clearly than anyone else that these children are essentially extremely enthusiastic and kind-hearted sports teenagers, so how can it refuse them?
Even if it hurts, even if it means paying the price, they still move forward.
Before leading Sana to open these three ball-like "worlds", which are actually just journeys to conquer the same world in three different time periods, the system actually thought about how many people to choose.
The fewer the number of "captured" people chosen, the shorter the time required, and the sooner Sana's real body will be able to recover at the time anchor point. However, this also means that the lifespan of those one or two people will be lost. It will never be like now, where the number of days that may be reduced is controlled to a very small single digit due to the astonishing number of people, and this digit can be recovered through their self-discipline and nutritional supplements. It is simply the most perfect solution.
The system has no doubt that with Sana's charm, there is definitely a person who can make someone fall in love with her willingly, to the point of being willing to give up his or her entire life in exchange for her survival. She can definitely do it.
But Sana would never agree to do this. Even if it really happened, she would definitely be depressed because of guilt after learning the truth, and the final outcome would definitely be that she would have to exchange her life for the other party.
So after careful consideration, the system decided to "trade quantity for volume".
As long as there are enough people who provide her with life, it can offset the death of a single individual, and she who is helped will not find it unacceptable.
Now is the best ending.
"Thank you."
The system spoke again.
"Thank you very much, very much."
Thank you for saving Sana.
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