Chapter 234:
"Strong? Of course it's strong. It's known as the Deity of the Sky" Hayashi Kaede said, agreeing with Salamence's remark.
Then he continued, "Actually, there are many incredibly powerful Pokémon in this world—some even stronger than it, or at least on the same level."
"Salamence?"
Salamence froze. There are quite a few?
It couldn't comprehend it.
In its old world, ever since it had evolved, it had believed itself to be the strongest.
Even after wandering for more than a decade, that belief had never wavered. The Pokémon and trainers it encountered along the way could rarely stand against it.
That confidence had gradually turned into arrogance. So when it was surrounded and attacked by a group of Pokémon, it hadn't chosen to flee—it had charged straight at them.
The result was its capture, followed by half a year of blood-drawing experiments.
Yet even then, Salamence hadn't thought of itself as weak. It believed its captors had relied on despicable tricks.
But then Mewtwo appeared, and everything changed.
With Mewtwo's overwhelming power, no matter how many Pokémon attacked or what kind of advanced technology was used—was effortlessly crushed by its psychic might.
From the moment Salamence first sensed Mewtwo's aura, it could tell that Mewtwo's power was still climbing. Facing it felt like staring into a bottomless abyss; it couldn't even summon the will to resist.
Yes, Mewtwo was powerful—powerful enough to disregard any human organization.
But Salamence could not.
It had thought beings like Mewtwo were unimaginably rare.
Yet after coming to this plantation, it had met many Pokémon even stronger than itself.
There was Gardevoir—clearly immensely powerful, yet content to cook for everyone each day.
There was Mew, who showed up only at mealtimes, acting like a mischievous baby dragon (salamence is a dragon so he compared Mew playfulness akin to a baby dragon), yet able to transform into any Pokémon.
There was the Moltres that had flown away yesterday.
And there was the Sky High Pokémon, Rayquaza, whose presence still lingered vividly in its mind.
Every one of them was stronger than it.
Some even gave off the same suffocating pressure as Mewtwo. If it faced them, Salamence had no doubt it would be defeated in a single move.
Hayashi Kaede's calm voice interrupted its thoughts.
"Of course. They're called Legendary Pokémon. Your type is Dragon, right? Let's see..."
He placed a hand on Salamence's back and thought for a moment.
"Dragon-type Legendaries... there's Latias and Latios. They're said to be among the fastest flying Pokémon in existence."
"I'd love to befriend one someday, then I could soar anywhere in the world, visit any region I wanted..."
Although Dragonite was already quite fast.
"And then there's Dialga, the Temporal Pokémon from Sinnoh, who can control time itself."
"Palkia, the Spatial Pokémon, also from Sinnoh, who governs space."
"And Giratina, the Renegade Pokémon... Hmm, how should I describe it? Look at your shadow."
Hearing that so many Legendaries rivaled Rayquaza, Salamence's eyes widened. It instinctively followed Hayashi Kaede's gaze down to its own shadow.
It was pitch black—nothing unusual.
Hayashi Kaede explained, "The Distortion World exists within shadows and on water surfaces. It's a reversed version of our world—everything there is inverted. Giratina rules over that realm. Pretty incredible, right?"
Salamence subconsciously nodded, unable to believe that a Pokémon could rule an entire world.
"But actually," Hayashi Kaede continued, "I think Giratina is rather pitiful."
"Salamence?" Salamence tilted its head, puzzled.
"You see, the Distortion World exists, but because it's the reverse of our reality, it's uninhabitable for other Pokémon or humans. Only Giratina can live there. So, it's always alone—one Pokémon, in its own world."
"Jirachi? Really pitiful? No one keeps it company?"
"Whoa—"
The sudden voice startled Hayashi Kaede. He turned and saw that Mew had returned, with Jirachi in tow.
He couldn't help but chuckle.
Yesterday, Mew had taken Jirachi out to play, and only now had they returned.
He had clearly told them to be back for lunch yesterday.
"Hehe~"
Mew giggled beside him, as if hoping to distract him from scolding them.
Jirachi, however, seemed fascinated by the tale of Giratina. It floated closer. "Then what does it do every day?"
"Sleep? I'm not sure either." Though slightly annoyed, Hayashi Kaede couldn't bring himself to reprimand them when faced with Jirachi's innocent curiosity.
He pondered. "Still, every Pokémon has its own thoughts.
As the saying goes, 'You are not a fish—how can you know the joy of a fish?'
We can only guess it's lonely. Maybe it actually enjoys its solitude."
The three Pokémon stared blankly.
"Meeew?"
"Jirachi?"
"Salamence?"
What fish? What joy? Joyful fish?
They didn't understand.
Hayashi Kaede blinked, realizing the confusion.
"Ahem... what I meant was: we're not Giratina, so we can't know what it's thinking. Maybe it likes being alone in its world."
"It's just like little nine, little three, and little five. They're all Eevee, but their personalities are totally different."
"Meeew~" Mew suddenly understood, then thought of the massive dragon in another realm—it really was like that, always asleep in its own world.
Mew had even tried visiting Giratina to play, but it hadn't been interested.
Still, Mew thought Giratina must be terribly bored, bound by duty to guard the cold, inverted Distortion World.
Jirachi, meanwhile, muttered the phrase to itself, "If you're not a fish, you don't know the happiness of a fish being eaten... Why would being eaten make a fish happy?"
"So strange..."
Hayashi Kaede: "..."
He sighed. "It's not about fish, Jirachi. It's just an example. It means you can't assume what someone else feels or thinks."
Thankfully, Jirachi didn't ask further and stayed beside him, curious to hear more about the Legendary Pokémon.
Earlier, Mew had taken Jirachi to the ocean, where they'd met a giant bird Pokémon. Mew had created a bubble so they could ride on its back and explore the seafloor.
They'd seen countless Pokémon and breathtaking scenery beneath the waves.
Gathering his thoughts, Hayashi Kaede went on.
"Then there's Kyurem, and its counterparts, Reshiram and Zekrom. They represent truth and ideals. Legend says that if someone embodies both beliefs, they can gain their recognition and fight alongside them."
There were so many Legendary Pokémon.
Even covering just the Dragon-type ones took him a while.
As he talked, more listeners gathered—Alolan Vulpix and the Eevees came over, followed by Dragonite.
What had begun as a simple explanation for Salamence had turned into a full-on storytelling session.
Seeing the growing spark of interest in Salamence's eyes, Hayashi Kaede felt that this lesson had meaning.
After all, Salamence's purpose for living had once seemed to be only revenge.
But after revenge—then what?
Life needed something beyond just strength or vengeance.
Just like Alolan Vulpix, whose bold dream was "to lead the squad to challenge Rayquaza."
"Vulpix~" (Are there any Legendary Pokémon that are Ice and Fairy type?)
After finishing the Dragon-type stories, Alolan Vulpix eagerly raised a paw.
Hayashi Kaede smiled. "Ice and Fairy type? Of course there are."
It wasn't time to cook yet, so he was happy to keep sharing.
"Ice-type Legendaries... let's see. You've seen the Champion's Moltres, right? There's also Articuno, and another called Zapdos."
"Legend says these three Legendary birds maintain the balance of ocean currents. If their harmony is disrupted, the entire world's climate could fall into chaos."
"Vulpix!" (That sounds so powerful!)
Alolan Vulpix's eyes sparkled.
Jirachi, hovering above, froze for a second.
Because yesterday and today, by the seaside, it had seen those very three Legendary birds.
There had been a massive storm—apparently because a villain had stolen something precious from them.
The birds had gone berserk, one after another, until a large bird Pokémon and a few humans intervened. Mew had helped too.
They returned the treasure, the skies cleared, and afterward, Mew took Jirachi and the largest bird to explore the ocean.
"Jirachi?"
That story happened so far away... does Big Brother Kaede know about it too?
As expected of him, he really knew everything!
Jirachi gazed at Hayashi Kaede with even greater admiration.
Hayashi Kaede himself wondered how far along Ash's journey was now and whether he'd already encountered Lugia's "explosion" incident.
"Vulpix~" (What about Fairy types? What Legendary Pokémon are Fairy type?)
Alolan Vulpix's curiosity wasn't fading anytime soon.
"Fairy type, huh..."
The corners of Hayashi Kaede's mouth curved upward.
Because in his mind, Fairy-type Legendaries were almost always tied to nature and harmony.
"The Guardians of Alola: Tapu Koko, Tapu Lele, Tapu Bulu, and Tapu Fini."
"Tapu Koko can summon storm clouds—basically like Rain Dance. Tapu Lele draws energy from floral scents, and flowers bloom wherever it goes. Tapu Bulu is a Grass-type Legendary. And Tapu Fini, who commands water, can purify any unclean source—just like Suicune."
"But compared to them, there's one more I really want to mention—the Life Pokémon, Xerneas."
Everyone perked up.
"It's called Xerneas, the Life Pokémon. It holds dominion over the power of life itself."
"You know the forest behind the plantation? If one day, a wildfire burned it all to ashes—every tree, every Pokémon losing its home—Xerneas's life energy could instantly restore it, bringing the entire forest back to life."
"Vulpix!" (Wow!)
"Eevee!" (So powerful!)
"Salamence!"
The Pokémon all widened their eyes, unable to imagine such a power.
Even Blaziken, who had quietly joined the group, muttered, "Blaziken?" (Then if all the berries were eaten, could it make more appear right away?)
Hayashi Kaede: "???"
You're really always thinking about food, huh...
But technically, yes—it probably could.
Alolan Vulpix's eyes shone. It turned to the Eevees. "Vulpix?" (Yeah! Then couldn't it help Hayashi Kaede with farming?)
"Eevee! Eevee!" (It definitely could!)
Little Nine was the first to raise its paw in agreement.
The other two Eevees exchanged glances, then nodded reluctantly.
"Vulpix~" (Then if we invite it to join us, it could help the new plantation grow tons and tons of fruit trees!)
"Eevee, Eevee..."
Little Nine nodded eagerly.
Before Hayashi Kaede could even react, the three Pokémon grabbed Little Five and Little Three and dashed out of the plantation—gone before he could stop them.
He stared blankly after them.
He hadn't even had the chance to ask if they knew where the Life Pokémon was.