Chapter 79: Stockholm Syndrome? (No Female Lead, Don’t Get the Wrong Idea. 5)

This is just too outrageous.

Ishishi felt a surge of disbelief. Just moments ago, he had been worried that Jojo might run out of energy, but before long, Jojo was already back to normal.

‘Could he really fight for an entire day?’ The thought crossed his mind, but Ishishi felt it was unlikely.

At this moment, Atsuko reported in, “Commander, the shadows of those gigantic creatures in Tokyo Bay have all disappeared.”

“Alright, I understand.” Ishishi snapped out of his reverie and looked at Jojo on the main screen’s broadcast. “Was it just a temporary depletion that caused him to run out of energy?”

Meanwhile, on the battlefield, Jojo had finished off all the enemies and soared high into the sky, vanishing from sight.

With his Ripple energy’s self-restoration, even if all his reserves were drained, even if he was extinguished, as long as he hadn’t undone his transformation, Jojo could recover swiftly—his regenerative ability was nothing short of astonishing.

Unless someone managed to crush him in a single blow and utterly obliterate his Ultra body, he would always rise to fight again.

A beam of light landed somewhere in the forest, and Jojo reverted to human form.

His communicator beeped on his wrist. Flipping it open, he saw Sada’s face on the small screen. “How’s the situation on your end?”

“No problem,” Jojo replied, glancing up at the Lightning and Cool Dragon teams’ aircraft. “You guys should head back first. I’ll come pick up Meng in a bit.”

“Got it.” Sada hung up and then issued orders on the squad channel.

“Lightning Team, Cool Dragon Team, return to the air base.”

The Peace made its way back toward the airborne base.

Having received their orders, both teams followed suit.

This time the Cool Dragon Team had done reasonably well; although they hadn’t managed to hurt the monster, that was due to the aircraft’s laser beams lacking the power to penetrate the enemy’s defenses—anyone would have fared the same.

Sada felt reassured about the Cool Dragon Team and decided to include them in future deployments.

On the ground, Jojo used his perception to locate Asano Mirai and walked toward her.

By a stony bank beside a small river, Asano Mirai stared absentmindedly at the flowing water. The setting sun’s afterglow bathed her dress, lending the scene a touch of melancholy and ethereal beauty.

Hearing footsteps, she looked up to see Jojo approaching. Gazing at the clear river, she began to speak of her past.

“My parents were also paleontologists. When I was very young, they abandoned me because of their research.”

Her eyes dropped as she spoke, the sorrow of old memories written across her face.

“That may not be the whole story,” Jojo replied, meeting her gaze. “Have you ever thought that maybe your parents were just like you?”

“They might have witnessed the revival of ancient creatures at that time and perished because of their research.”

At this, Asano Mirai fell silent.

In truth, she had occasionally considered this possibility, but there had never been any clues.

“If you say so, then let’s leave it at that.” Asano Mirai didn’t argue, but shifted the topic. “Creatures like Anemos and the others, these ancient beings, were eliminated by the Earth—dinosaurs too.”

“Survival of the fittest. If one day humanity is also abandoned by the Earth, what then?”

She fixed Jojo with a direct look, watching his reaction.

But Jojo’s expression remained unchanged; his voice was steady. “What you fear will not happen.”

“How can you be so sure?” Asano Mirai’s gaze remained intense.

“You do ask a lot of questions,” Jojo remarked, glancing at her before explaining, “Because humanity can change.”

“There may be a few rotten apples, but most people can be changed. The brilliance of human nature will always exist.”

Asano Mirai gave a small smile at that.

“You’re a strange person.”

“Sometimes you seem stern, sometimes gentle, sometimes deliberately provocative—altogether unfathomable.”

“Very mysterious, just like Ultraman.”

Jojo glanced at her in surprise, suspicion flickering in his mind.

Coupling this with her earlier words, he remained outwardly calm, but inwardly he was on alert.

‘Is this woman testing me?’

As he pondered, Asano Mirai, now slightly abashed, lowered her head.

“Um, I still don’t know your name.”

She didn’t dare look up, her toes tracing small circles on the ground.

“Jojo,” he answered simply, feeling increasingly wary. “If there’s nothing else, you should head back. Don’t get so caught up in strange thoughts in the future.”

“I understand.” Asano Mirai now appeared gentle and docile, nothing like the headstrong girl he’d first met. “Jojo, you seem very knowledgeable about ancient life.”

“Would you like to visit my lab? There are many specimens of prehistoric creatures there. We could have a detailed discussion together.”

Jojo: “?”

No, something is definitely off here!

Bad, she’s coming for me!

Jojo had encountered situations like this many times back in the Nexus world.

In middle school, a young female teacher had insisted he go to her house for personal tutoring, claiming there were issues with his grades.

In high school, female classmates often invited him over, saying their cat could do backflips.

By college, the seniors were even more direct—and as for what happened later in society, that was better left unsaid.

With his tall, handsome looks, it was hard for anyone without such features to imagine just how forward women could be.

“Jojo?” Asano Mirai prompted after a long silence.

Jojo looked at her, recalling that Meng and Fujimiya were probably still busy talking with Renlong. He declined her gently, “I still have something to discuss with Meng today, maybe another time.”

“So you know Meng too?” Asano Mirai’s eyes lit up.

Though her invitation had failed this time, there would be other chances—and with Meng’s help, she was sure he wouldn’t refuse.

She clasped her hands behind her back. “In that case, I won’t keep you. See you next time.”

A thought already forming in her mind, Asano Mirai didn’t ask for his contact information, simply waved and turned to leave, her steps light.

Jojo watched her go. The fact that she hadn’t asked for his number left him uncertain of her intentions.

Her figure, silhouetted against the sunset, was graceful and slender, the ribbon at her waist accentuating her lithe form.

Suddenly, a crucial question struck Jojo.

His current body could transform into light—did that mean he was still capable of such thoughts?

And with his superhuman resilience in human form, would he even feel anything anymore?

Alarmed by the idea, Jojo looked after Asano Mirai. As a top biologist, she should know—he had to ask!

“Wait!”

Asano Mirai turned back, confusion on her face, as Jojo strode over in a few quick steps.

“There’s something—I have a friend…”

As for Meng and Fujimiya, those two could handle their conversation with Renlong; they didn’t need his help.

ps: Brothers, don’t jump to wild conclusions; nothing untoward is happening here.

(End of chapter)