354. Craft ~A World Where (Road) Blocks are a Thing...

She sees that everyone is asleep.

She sees that the world is beautiful, but... Everything is...

"Something's off about this Universe..." said Shizuka, using her telescopic vision. "All of the world's edges and mounds are...Blocks...?"

Shizuka turns to her father. She blushes and realizes that he tucked her in last night because she was cold. "Tch-..."

Jotaro wakes up as well, and so does Irene.

"Oy..." said Irene. "Shizuka... Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah..." said Shizuka. 

Jotaro's eyes slowly open. He turns to the outside. "Interesting. The place is a grassland of some sort."

Irene looks outside. "Something's off."

"Everything here is a block," said Shizuka. She gasps. "Don't tell me!Minecraft!" 

"Huh?" asked Irene.

"This world is based on the"

Yurielle sighs. "Yeah... I've had enough Minecraft sessions with Jack and Jill. Wake me up when it's interesting."

Miguel sighs. "I played that as a kid. I had trauma with it because normies called me a baby for playing it. So, I never played it again... Until 3 years later when I played with actual friends... Who later betrayed me..." he begins to cry. "And they had me taken out... And they went on with their lives... and they-..."

Yurielle sighs and tucks Miguel in. "Sleep, dude... Sleep... Enter the Dream Dimension and think of a beautiful paradise world other than your own."

"Thanks," said Miguel. "And then-... And then-..."

"Just sleep... my... Unstable Uncle..."

"That's what my niece nicknamed me because they said I was too depressed and angry..."

"Then you're my Crazy UnCool... No, wait... I was just trying to make a pun with 'Uncle...' I didn't mean-..."

"I wanna di~i~ie..."

"Gabrielle and Josuke are asleep. We all slept really late last night..." said Yurielle. "Could you check the area around for enemy Stand-Users?"

"Very well," said Jotaro. "JoJo-chan. Shizuka. Let's go."

"Hai!" smiled Irene.

Shizuka sighs. "Hai."

Later... Jotaro, Irene, and Shizuka travel not too far from the van... They walk around the cool grasslands... Jotaro stays further away from the pair, so Irene sparks up a conversation... Meanwhile, they're nearby a cave system...

"Oy..." smiled Irene. "Weren't you called JoJo as well in High School?"

"Uh-huh..." said Shizuka. "Not by Dad, though."

Irene's smile disappears. "Oy..."

"Gome..." said Shizuka. "I'm just a bit-..."

Jotaro sighs. "I could hear you, Shizuka. Or shall I call you, JoJo-chan as well?"

Shizuka's eyes quiver. "Don't bother."

Jotaro's eyes quiver very slightly. His eyebrow twitches. He sighs. "Yare yare daze..." His eyes widen. "Wait...Irene. Shizuka. Get down." 

Irene gets down. Shizuka tries to look left and right.

"Shizuka!" yelled Jotaro.

Shizuka scoffs and gets down as well. "Hai..."

Jotaro observes some sort of plant-like creature with four cubes for legs and a box for its head with a strange face made of cubes. "What the fuck is that?" 

"That looks like a dick!" blushed Irene. 

"Onchinchin!?" yelled Shizuka, blushing.

"I don't know where you two learned that word, but whatever you're watching, it ends now," said Jotaro.

The creeper is about 16 1/2 meters away. Jotaro observes this.

Jotaro turns to Irene and Shizuka. "Let's turn back and warn the others. Something about this creature... is dangerous."

Jotaro takes a stone from some gravel on the ground. It's a cube. He throws a rock in its right direction.

The creeper does not notice this.

Jotaro steps forward, around half a meter.

Suddenly, the Creeper detects Jotaro and walks toward him. Jotaro takes out Star Platinum.

*hiiiiiii~iiiiiiiiiiisss~~~sss!!!!*

The Creeper rushes toward them.

However, Jotaro realizes that Shizuka is closer to the Creeper because Shizuka instinctively took a few steps toward it.

"SHIZUKA!!! BAKA DA!!! (YOU DUMBASS!!!)" yelled Jotaro. "SUTA PURACHINA!!! ZA WARUDO!!!"

Star Platinum stops time. Jotaro leaps and levitates toward the Creeper and he punches it over and over again.

"ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA-!!!! ORAAAAAAAA!!!" yelled Star Platinum, in his buttery Daisuke Ono voice.

Time resumed.

The Creeper explodes and Jotaro gets blasted away. Star Platinum protects Shizuka, but because its User is injured, its body cracks as well.

A crater is left from where the creature blew up.

"PAPA!!!" yelled Irene and Shizuka.

Jotaro falls to the ground, still awake but gravely injured. He has a few fractures all over his body.

"P-... Papa..." whispered Shizuka, looking very worried.

Shizuka tries approaching Jotaro.

"GET BACK!!!" yelled Jotaro.

"Listen to Dad!" yelled Irene.

"Ie," said Shizuka. "There aren't any of those plant things around..."

"I SAID GET DOWN!!!" yelled Jotaro. "I COULD HEAR ONE OF THEM NEARBY!!!"

Shizuka stops.

"But... Papa..." said Shizuka, still looking very worried.

Irene's eyes quiver. She closes her eyes and sighs. She fixes herself. "Listen to Papa. I'll take over from here..."

"But...!"

"Don't move, Shizuka! He's right! I could hear the same hissing sound!"

Irene tries to sense the surroundings' electrical signals.

"There's a spark of electricity in that cave... No... sparks of electricity... Living electricity... Their purpose is... to blow up..."

"What!?" asked Shizuka.

"People and objects have different radiation. I can sense radiation that is related to electricity... Their electric charge is similar to that of a bomb. They have lots of nitroglycerine and sodium nitrate in their bodies..."

"They're practically walking-talking dynamite sticks."

"Irene! Shizuka! Suta Purachina had scanned the cave! There are at least 50 of those creatures there!!!"

(theme begins)

Irene sighs. As the creepers charge, Stone Free's strings all web all over the Creepers as she yells and electrocutes all of them.

This only charges them up.

"IRENE!!!" yelled Jotaro.

Irene sighs and charges toward the Creepers.

She looks at Jotaro's worried eyes and smiles softly, feeling reassured.

Irene takes out Stone Free which blasts punches at the Creepers each, killing them with several ORAs. As they are killed, gunpowder is left on their spots.

(theme ends at 1:47)

"Ora..." said Irene, pointing her finger at them.

They all blow up as a large crater appears nearby where the Creepers were.

Irene uses her strings to patch up her father.

Jotaro sighs out of relief. Irene also patches up the holes in his clothes.

Shizuka, meanwhile, grabs her arm and looks away out of shame.

"Shizuka-chan..." said Jotaro.

"Don't infantilize me..." said Shizuka, turning away.

"What almost happened to me... It's not your fault, okay?" asked Jotaro.

Shizuka sighs. "Yare yare dawa... Hai..."

"Shizuka..." Jotaro approaches Shizuka. "It's not your fault."

Shizuka is about to cry. "Hai." She wipes her tears.

Jotaro sighs and pats Shizuka's head. "I'm fine..."

Irene's eyes widen. "Tch-..." she frowns angrily and looks away.

*step... step... step...*

*step... step... step...*

The trio turns to see two people. One man and another a woman. The man has a blue shirt, blue pants, and gray shoes and the woman has red hair, a green shirt, a brown pair of pants, and black boots.

The two are made of cubes.

They try speaking but Jotaro, Irene, and Shizuka don't understand them.

Jotaro speaks. "I don't think these two speak English."

"Hello!" yelled Irene. "We are visitors from another world! We don't mean any harm!"

"Saying that just makes us sus enough that they may think that we do mean harm," said Shizuka, sighing.

Jotaro sighs. He checks Rick's device from his pocket and sees that in this Universe, it's the year 10,001. Also, it seems that these two are the last two known human-like beings in this world. They also have quantum particles from Gabrielle's universe.

"Do you happen to have a book with you?" asked Jotaro.

Steve and Alex nod.

Steve and Alex immediately understood what Jotaro is trying to say.

"How, though?" thought Irene and Shizuka, baffled.

That afternoon, the group is given some roast beef, roast pork, roast chicken, baked potato, carrots, beets, pumpkin pie, and bowls of mushroom soup for meals. They are also given watermelon, cakes, and cookies for dessert...

"Holy crap! There's everything I've seen in Minecraft, but it actually looks like food!" Shizuka smiles happily. 

"That's because our electrons have started to assimilate to this world's electric charge," said Irene.

"Neat!" smiled Shizuka. "Itadakimasu!!! (Thanks for the food!!!)" She blushes adorably with a cheery smile.

Jotaro sighs. "Do you have chopsticks at least?"

Steve takes out six sticks for the trio.

"I guess these two just eat with their hands..." said Shizuka. "It makes sense since their civilization had probably been taken out. That's according to most Minecraft theories at least! Hyehye!"

Jotaro eats silently and Shizuka is slightly annoyed by his indifference.

"Hmph!" she said softly.

Irene laughs nervously, noticing this. "O-Oy... Papa! Didn't you talk about what you were doing when Shizuka graduated a month ago?"

Shizuka and Jotaro turn to Irene.

Irene begins to feel awkward. "Oh... shit... This feels pressuring..." she speaks. "Haha! Uh... Well...! Sorry for bringing it up -!"

"I'm sorry," said Jotaro.

The room went silent.

"Shizuka-chan... Gomen..." said Jotaro.

"'-Chan...' I never heard you use that term before except with Irene... Why weren't you there?" asked Shizuka.

Jotaro breathes out through his nose. "I was at a meeting with your Uncle Giorno."

"Giorno-Nii-San... Huh?"

"Yes... We were discussing how you were going to enter the Jump Force and fighting Freeza."

"I don't want to be in Jump Force... Chichi..."

"I know... But you're the only one who could lead the Jump Force in my place."

"Chichi... Please!" she pushes her plate away angrily.

"I want you to replace me!"

"Have Josuke-Nii-San do it! I don't want anything to do with being Captain!"

"Why?"

"BECAUSE I HATE YOU!!!"

Jotaro's eyes get darker as the shadow of his cap's bill looms over them.

"Sh-Shizuka-chan didn't mean that!"

Shizuka's angry face softens to a saddened one. "P-... I didn't mean-!"

"Well... You seem like you know what you're doing. I'll just be out of your way." Jotaro bows to Steve and Alex as he stands up and leaves the room.

Irene stares at Shizuka, feeling sad for her.

"Could you show us the book?" asked Irene. "We'll... be on our way."

Steve stares at Irene, confused.

Irene sighs and facepalms. "Too bad you don't understand me...Wait!"

Meanwhile...

There is a string tied to Miguel's toe.

"Miguel!" said a voice.

Miguel wakes up. "C'Thulu? WHERE THE HELL ARE MY SIXTEEN DOLLARS, C'THULU-CHAN!!!? IT'S BEEN FIVE YEARS!!!"

"Calm down, man! It's me!"

"What? Anne!? How are you-!?"

"No. It's your daughter's variant!"

"Oh! Gabrielle!"

"Other one!"

"Shizuka? Because I don't-!"

"Irene!?"

"Wait... You're a variant of my daughter?"

"Just! Translate what these two people are saying!"

"Are those actual Minecraft characters?" he asked, sensing them.

"What are they saying!?" Irene attaches the string into Shizuka's ear.

"I'm going on a limb here and say... He's probably saying this:'I had a father once. He was the King of the Land known as Craft. I grew up under his wing along with my sister. When I grew older, I grew to resent her and my father because my father was much closer to her than I was because she was the heiress of the Kingdom. Meanwhile, I was to become the leading General. I grew to hate them. Angrily, I ended up making the Wither as a machine to help destroy all our enemies... But it only killed my nation... My own ego... my arrogance... destroyed my race... And now, I, along with my partner who helped me create this, Alex, are stuck to be forever immortal, always resurrecting and unable to die for our actions...Sure, Dads could be assholes... but sometimes they're just doing it out of love... even though it's so indirect.'"

Shizuka smiles and nods. 

Steve and Alex nod as well.

"Thank you for telling me," said Shizuka.

"'I actually told you 10 minutes ago, but you couldn't understand me,'" replied Steve through Miguel.

"How can he tell what Papa was saying but not know what we were saying!?" asked Irene.

"You two are far more composed than Jotaro is. Jotaro is much more expressive and the pair must be able to understand Jotaro via his body language. Like a wild dog."

"'A wild dog?'" thought the two sisters.

"Why the hell are you imagining him bald!?" asked Miguel.

"Whoa! Steve! You could read minds, too!?" smiled Shizuka.

"No... That was me," said Miguel.

Steve: "?"

Alex: "???"

"'Anyway... Don't let your anger be roadblocks that stray you toward a path of bonding.' That's what he said this time," said Miguel.

"I see..." said Shizuka. "Like... there are some dubs out there that are actually pretty damned good and that my arrogance is a hindrance to that!"

"I don't know what the fuck you're talking about, Shizuka-chan," said Irene. "But... I guess that's what he's saying."

"Steve says, 'How does that apply to what I said?'" said Miguel.

"Everything... Yare yare... I guess I gotta talk to him, then... Excuse me... And Arigatou..." Shizuka stands up and bows, leaving the table.

"This food's pretty fuggin' pog," smiled Irene. "Dude! Could I use that pickaxe?"

Meanwhile...

Shizuka sees Jotaro sniffing a cigarette.

"I thought you quit smoking," said Shizuka.

"I like the smell..." said Jotaro.

"Papa..." said Shizuka.

Jotaro's fingers twitch.

"I'm sorry for what I said... I didn't mean it..."

Jotaro stays quiet.

"You're always like that, huh? Always indifferent... Always never showing affection... Not even to Nee-san... Nee-san told me that you've never once hugged her..."

Jotaro stayed quiet.

"You're cold... rational... indifferent... at worst, you're estranged... Why... Why...!?" she sobbed.

"Daisuki da yo... (I really love you...)" said Jotaro. Jotaro is revealed to be slightly red.

Shizuka turned very red.

Oh... I see what you're writing about... It's about facing uncomfortable emotions between family members... particularly children's paternal relationships.

Dads are pretty scary... because you want to make them proud...

I get it... Proceed...

"Papa-chan... I-I mean... Chichi! I-I-I mean Otousan! Otouchan! I mean-! Papa-chan! Aaaaahhh....!" She feels dizzy and Jotaro sighs and hugs her. 

She blushes and shivers.

The sun looks like it's setting.

"W-We should check up on the others... The monsters act up at night...!" yelled Shizuka. "We could probably kill them with our Hamon... because solar energy can kill them...!"

"Hai..." said Jotaro.

Jotaro stops time.

Time resumes.

Jotaro is no longer hugging Shizuka.

"I feel warmer..." thought Shizuka.

Irene sees this from downstairs and sighs, having mixed feelings about this. "Huh... weird... It feels like I've been hugged, too..." Irene realizes something. "Oh... he stopped time to hug both of us... Christ, Papa... Can you honestly be any more cringe...?" Irene turns red and grabs her cheeks.

This episode is a bit cringe.

It's called masculine emotions, man. Just open up... Just... open up... *sniff... sniff...*

"Feels like you have pent-up anger, there, Author..." said Miguel. "Miguel sees a zombie outside, and it looks like an actual zombie with rotten flesh and body parts."

"HOLY FUCK!!! HELP!!!" yelled Miguel. "HELP!!! OH... I LEFT MY LEG OUT THE WINDOW!!! IT'S BITING ME...!!! IT'S BITING-!!!"

"Should we do something about that?" asked Jotaro.

"Duh..." said Shizuka and Irene.

Meanwhile...

*FLASH!!!*

A heavily armored titanic god, around 8 feet tall, stood on a hill and heard the screaming.

"Miguel..." he whispered.

It's... Savitar... Again...

Note: He appeared as a minor antagonist in JBA: The Gospel Truth.And yes...He's what happened to Barry Allen...