Pokémon: Master of the Rain Team

”Keep it quiet for me.” Reiji raised one finger to his lips and gave Brock a helpless smile.

”I won’t say anything. Don’t worry.” Brock smiled and took a sip of cold beer. He was starting to like Reiji. Even if it might affect his own match, Reiji was still willing to help Ash get Charizard under control.

Thud.

While the two were drinking, Poliwhirl dragged the frozen Charizard over to the fire.

Reiji and Brock turned around and saw Charizard encased in ice. Ash stood beside it, staring at it with worry.

”Poli, poli.” Poliwhirl sat down beside Reiji, breathing hard. Beating down an angry Charizard had not been easy.

”Poliwhirl, eat some Pokéblocks first and recover.” Reiji took out some Pokéblocks and let Poliwhirl rest.

Then he looked at Ash. ”Ash, if the flame on Charizard’s tail goes out, Charizard dies. You know what to do, right?”

”I know.” Ash looked at the tiny flame on Charizard’s tail, pushed it closer to the campfire, and started breaking the ice with a stone.

Charizard’s frostbite was bad. It lay stiff on the ground, unable to move. Black smoke came from its mouth instead of hot fire. It was clearly hurt.

”Charizard, don’t push yourself. Let’s warm you up first.” Ash touched Charizard’s body, and the cold bit into his hand at once. He forced himself to endure it and rubbed Charizard’s body to help it warm up.

”Honestly, I told you not to do this.” Misty brought over grilled meat, food for Charizard, and a blanket, then threw the blanket over Ash’s head.

This stubborn idiot really did worry people, though her mouth was still as sharp as ever. ”Your mom told me to bring these. Eat first, then use the towel to keep Charizard warm.”

”Thanks.” Ash gave an awkward smile. This time, he did not argue. He accepted what Misty brought.

Before leaving, Misty punched Brock on the head.

That was payback for him spraying beer all over her earlier. With a cold snort, she went back to the campsite and continued eating dinner.

”Ow.” Brock sighed, then turned and saw Reiji raising his cup. Suddenly, he did not feel so bad anymore, and happily started drinking with him again.

Back at the campsite, most of the people eating were girls. Gary could not stand all the chatter and eventually moved to the lakeside to eat barbecue with Reiji and the others.

Team Rocket had wanted to steal Ash’s Pikachu, but after helping with dinner, they were too tired to do anything.

Everyone had watched Poliwhirl beat Charizard, though. Now they were all talking about how strong that Poliwhirl was.

”Misty, why don’t you catch a Poliwhirl too?” Daisy asked in a low voice. ”It looks really strong.”

They were a Water-type Gym, so catching a Poliwhirl would make sense.

”I know, I know. But where am I supposed to find one right now?” Misty had watched Poliwhirl’s burst earlier too. It was like the one from the match that afternoon, only much weaker. Even then, Charizard could not take it and had been kicked around like a ball.

In the anime, Misty would catch a Poliwag in the Orange Archipelago, but that was still some time away.

”Hey, that Poliwhirl is really strong. Did you notice anything?” Daisy Oak tugged at the still-angry Inspector Joy, trying to bring her attention back to Reiji.

”Why would I care about that jerk’s Pokémon? He sprayed beer all over me, and I haven’t even settled that yet. I hate people like him.” Joy had no interest in watching Poliwhirl.

A jerk’s Pokémon was probably a jerk too. What was there to see?

Daisy fell silent. Joy was like a stubborn Tauros right now. No matter how hard Daisy pulled, she would not budge, so Daisy gave up on hinting.

She really did not understand what Reiji was thinking. If he had just told the truth, Joy might have liked him. Instead, her impression had gone from stranger to enemy, straight into the negatives. At this point, even if he confessed, there was no going back.

Daisy sighed and looked toward Amber, who sat between Delia and Elisia. Those two mothers really did love children. They kept feeding Amber anything good they found.

She had no idea where Grandpa and the others had gone. They had only asked Delia to bring some food over. How boring. Since there was nothing else to do, Daisy decided to focus on eating.

Team Rocket was eating too, though their eyes kept drifting toward the lake. Ash and Pikachu were over there. Who knew what those three were planning?

Meanwhile, Professor Oak, the person Daisy had just wondered about, had not gone far at all. He was on the balcony of the competitors’ dormitory.

The campsite was right below. Reiji and Brock were drinking by the lake not far away, and the battle between Poliwhirl and Charizard had been easy to see from there.

”I didn’t expect you to come here,” Professor Oak said, looking at the old woman beside him. She was from the same generation as him and Blaine, and he had known her since they were young. She was also a Joy: Inspector Joy’s grandmother.

”I just came from the Indigo Hotel. Agatha and the others are holding a gathering there.” Joy’s grandmother looked down at Inspector Joy. That was her precious granddaughter. How could she not come?

When she heard her granddaughter wanted to watch the Indigo Plateau Conference, she decided to come along. It had been a long time since she had gone out anyway.

”Agatha?” Professor Oak’s mouth twitched. Why did every old friend bring up Agatha the moment they saw him? Was this never going to end?

Blaine almost spat out the water he was drinking. It was too funny.

”That boy down there. He’s the Trainer who saved my granddaughter?” Joy’s grandmother looked toward Reiji. She had just seen him get chased off by Delia for drinking, then spray beer all over Joy.

She snorted and tapped her cane hard against the floor, then gave Professor Oak a cold look. If the Trainer who saved her granddaughter was this kind of person, how was he any different from some street punk?

”Ahem. It should be him, but I’m not completely sure.” Professor Oak coughed. Who could have expected that exact scene to happen right in front of Joy’s grandmother?

”If you’re not sure, call him up and ask. Underage drinking, is it? Wonderful.” Joy’s grandmother sounded openly displeased. If Reiji had not saved her granddaughter, she would not even bother looking at this kind of Trainer, much less talking to him.

”I don’t think that’s necessary.” Professor Oak felt her mood was too sharp. Calling Reiji up now did not feel like giving him a reward. It felt more like putting him on trial. If things turned ugly, that would be troublesome.

”What’s the problem?” Joy’s grandmother was clearly pressing him.

”If you have something to say, say it. Why drag a kid up here?” Blaine cut in when her tone got worse, backing Professor Oak up.

He had only just learned that Reiji had done something that big. He had escaped from Vicious, one of Team Rocket’s top executives, while protecting the Joy family’s rising star. Then he had gone to Professor Oak for help and still ended up being hunted by Team Rocket.

That brat’s guts were as big as ever.

The moment Professor Oak told him about it, Blaine knew it was exactly the kind of thing Reiji would do.

But listening to this old woman, even after Reiji saved her granddaughter, she still had nothing kind to say. Of course Blaine was going to speak for him.

”Oh? The old turtle has ties to him too?” Joy’s grandmother turned toward Blaine. Seeing him calmly sipping tea, she struck the floor with her cane again.

”I wouldn’t call it ties. I just think highly of the kid.” Blaine’s stance was clear. Set aside the rescue for now. If this old woman wanted to push Reiji around, she had to get past him first. The kid had people backing him too.

”Hmph.” Joy’s grandmother stopped pushing the matter. She only gave a cold snort, clearly unhappy that both old men were siding with Reiji.

”If you want to talk business, then talk business properly. The kid doesn’t owe you anything. He saved someone and didn’t even take credit for it. You don’t see many kids that decent anymore,” Blaine said flatly. Did she think this was the League, where she could throw her weight around anywhere she liked?

If the Joy family did not want to owe him a favor, fine. Treat it as a deal. Reiji had saved the Joy family’s rising star and a Latias. That debt should be counted properly.

”You still have to confirm it was him. Are we supposed to hand out rewards to any wild kid who walks up?” The old woman’s face darkened when Blaine called it business. If that got out, the Joy family would lose face. They could not afford to mishandle this.

”That’s easy.” Blaine took out his phone and called Reiji.

Once Reiji picked up, Blaine set the phone on the table. In the quiet night, the three of them could hear him clearly even without speaker mode.

”Brat, did you save that Joy?”

”Huh? You know about that? Who told you?”

”Stop dodging. Was it you?” Blaine did not bother wasting words. He could not explain the whole situation over the phone, so he only hoped Reiji understood the hint.

”Yeah.”

”Good. You did well. Can you prove it?” Blaine praised him first, then asked for proof. They could not believe him just because he said yes.

”She had Latias, Venusaur, and Chansey with her. When I found her, Latias had a broken wing. She told me her name was Yukari.”

”A broken wing? Yukari?” Blaine looked up at Professor Oak and Joy’s grandmother. Those two would know whether that was true.

Professor Oak nodded. Joy’s grandmother said nothing, but her face looked terrible. Her silence was enough.

”Good. What pseudo-legendary do you want?”

The question stunned Reiji so badly that he had to leave the lake and find somewhere quiet to think.

Then came a long silence. About half a minute passed before his voice returned through the phone.

”You’re not joking?”

”Please. I’m this old. Who has time to play games with you?”

”Dratini.”

The moment the three of them heard that name, Blaine ended the call.

Down by the lake, Reiji’s mind was anything but calm.

He had no idea what had happened. The call had come out of nowhere. But when Blaine asked which pseudo-legendary he wanted, Reiji understood what the favor was worth. Saving Joy was worth at least one Dragon-type pseudo-legendary.

A Bagon Egg could sell for eight hundred million. Dratini’s value went without saying.

He did not actually want a pseudo-legendary. What he wanted more was resources, since he still had a ten-billion funding gap. But with Blaine asking like that, what else could he do? He named the pseudo-legendary he wanted most.

Why Dratini, when other pseudo-legendaries could Mega Evolve?

Simple. He liked Dragonite.

He was not short on power. He already had Legendary Pokémon. Two of them. If he was choosing a pseudo-legendary, he might as well choose one he actually liked. Dragonite, Salamence, and Garchomp were all Dragon-types with a x4 weakness to Ice anyway.

And he liked Dragonite more. Ever since Lance brought out Dratini, Reiji had wanted one.

As for Tyranitar, it could not fly, so no.

There was a wild shiny Metagross in Sinnoh. He could see whether he could catch it when the time came.

Hydreigon was ugly, so no.

As for Goodra and the later pseudo-legendaries, forget it. They were too far away. He was in Kanto now, so choosing a nearby pseudo-legendary made more sense.

He had nearly died saving Joy. Trading that for a future Dragonite was not bad.

From now on, they could just be strangers.

He returned to the fire and glanced at Inspector Joy’s back, then quietly murmured, ”This is better for everyone.”

”What do you think?” Blaine asked Joy’s grandmother, wanting to know if she was satisfied with the result.

Choosing a pseudo-legendary had been deliberate. For a Trainer, Pokémon mattered most. Items came after.

Blaine had considered asking for a Mega Stone, but those were too valuable and had huge research value. They were worth more than a pseudo-legendary. At least pseudo-legendaries could be bred and their population increased. Mega Stones had to be dug out of ancient ruins.

That comparison made the difference clear. For now, Mega Stones were worth more.

It was not that they could not ask for one. A pseudo-legendary was simply a better choice for Reiji right now.

”Hmph.” Joy’s grandmother rose with her cane and took a few steps before speaking.

”Tomorrow… you’ll receive Dratini.”

Her footsteps faded away. Blaine and Professor Oak looked down and saw Joy’s grandmother waving to Inspector Joy.

”Yukari, it’s late. Help Grandma back to rest.”

”Coming, Grandma.” Joy said goodbye to Daisy, then quickly came over to support her grandmother and leave the competitors’ village.

The same grandmother who had been so forceful a moment ago was now kind and gentle in front of Joy, an old woman who needed her granddaughter’s help to walk.

Blaine and Professor Oak watched the two leave, then exchanged a look. Both of them sighed, stood up, and went down from the balcony to the campsite.

Professor Oak called Daisy aside and gave her a serious warning.

”From now on, don’t mention Rai in front of Joy again. Remember that.”

”Grandpa, what happened?” Daisy saw how serious he looked and quickly asked.

”This ends here.” Professor Oak did not explain. He only sighed and left the competitors’ village.

Since Joy’s family did not want the two of them to stay connected, he would not be the one to expose the truth.

Besides Daisy, everyone who knew the truth that night would have to keep quiet. Luckily, most of them had not interacted with Joy much. In a few days, he could remind them not to say anything.

A shame for that boy, really.

Call it fate playing a joke on him.

Kid, once you take it seriously, you lose.

[End of chapter]

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