"Fuyuki?"
Early the next morning, still half-asleep, Fuyuki thought he heard someone calling his name.
He opened his eyes and found Entei's massive head lowered right in front of him.
"Fuyuki." Entei's voice echoed inside his mind.
Startled, he stared at the legendary beast without blinking.
How did Entei know his name from this life?
"Little One, this will be your name from now on," Entei said. "Raikou, Marshadow, and I chose it together."
Fuyuki opened his mouth slightly. All three Pokemon had chosen his name?
Then he remembered Marshadow's ability to enter human dreams and quickly pieced it together. It must have been Marshadow who told them.
"Fuyuki?" He pretended to be unfamiliar with it, putting on a confused look.
"That's right. You are Fuyuki, my child." Entei gave a soft hum, its voice light and gentle, its heart softer than it had ever been.
In that moment, Entei suddenly realized just how deeply this human infant had taken root in its heart.
"All right, stop standing there," Raikou's voice came from behind them.
Fuyuki turned his head and saw Raikou walking in from outside, a basket of Berry held in its mouth.
It set the basket down in front of him and spoke through telepathy. "Let him eat first."
"How I take care of the little one is none of your business," Entei said warily.
It still remembered what Raikou had said yesterday.
That the little one once told it, [Raikou is the best].
"Hmph."
Raikou snorted. After delivering the Berry, it walked off to the side and lay down like a massive tiger.
Fuyuki: "?"
He looked back and forth between the two Pokemon.
Why did the atmosphere feel so strange all of a sudden?
Still, he didn't think too deeply about it.
There was something he needed to do today.
After finishing the Berry, Fuyuki immediately turned to Raikou, unable to wait any longer. "Raikou, water them!"
"Mmm, leave it to me."
Raikou nodded, stood up, and walked toward the Berry patch near the cave entrance, the one it had personally cleared.
Seeing this, Entei frowned slightly.
It followed after them and watched as Raikou stopped in front of a plot of land and used Rain Dance.
A dark cloud formed overhead, and a gentle drizzle fell, soaking the soil below.
"Entei, these are the Berry Raikou and I planted together!" Fuyuki's eyes were filled with anticipation. "After a while, they'll grow into big trees and produce lots of Berry!"
"You should have waited for me to come back and do this with you," Entei said, clearly disapproving. This was something it should have been there for.
"Huh?" Fuyuki blinked.
Raikou let out another snort. "He's not your child alone."
Fuyuki: "?"
Entei recalled what had happened the night before and fell silent.
It looked at Raikou. "When are you leaving?"
Raikou didn't want to go. It wanted to stay on Mount Tensei longer and spend more time with the human infant.
But there were many things waiting for it out there. Pokemon in danger that needed saving.
And besides… it still needed to visit that place and see if it could bring a Pokemon called Miltank back to Mount Tensei.
That way, the child would never run out of milk.
Those thoughts stayed in its head. On the surface, Raikou didn't want to deal with Entei at all. "That's none of your concern."
Listening to the two big cats talk, Fuyuki felt even more confused.
But it didn't take long for him to catch on.
"Raikou is leaving?" he asked.
Entei looked at him and nodded slightly. "Yes. Like me, Raikou has important things it needs to do. Don't worry. Once it's finished, it will come back."
Raikou looked over as well. In its mind, an image surfaced of the child sitting atop Mount Tensei, gazing into the distance while waiting for Entei to return.
If it left, would Fuyuki miss it the same way?
Fuyuki understood well that each of the Legendary Beasts had its own mission.
Even though they hadn't spent much time together, he liked this big cat quite a bit.
All bark on the outside, soft on the inside.
"Raikou, don't forget about me," Fuyuki said.
Of course not, Raikou thought. A human who could get along with Pokemon and even help injured ones had already earned its approval.
"I'm leaving him to you," Raikou said, turning to Entei.
"Of course," Entei replied seriously.
Raikou glanced back at Fuyuki one last time, then broke into a run, its powerful limbs pounding across the land.
That agile figure quickly vanished from sight.
Only after Raikou left did Fuyuki suddenly remember something.
"Oh no!"
"What's wrong?" Entei asked at once.
"Raikou's gone, so no one can recharge my mushroom lights or help water things anymore!" Fuyuki looked like he was on the verge of tears.
Entei: "..."
It thought for a moment, then spoke to comfort him. "There's no need to worry, Little One. There may be Pokemon in the forest who can do those things. I'll go find them and ask for help."
Fuyuki let out a helpless sigh. "Yeah… I guess that's all we can do."
"You really like Raikou?" Entei asked casually, as if it didn't care. "Raikou told me you once said, 'Raikou is the best.'"
"Huh?"
Fuyuki froze.
He turned his head and saw Entei wearing a serious expression, looking completely indifferent, as if it were just asking in passing.
Fuyuki: "..."
Was this big cat… jealous?
Then again, Entei had taken him in and cared for him so devotedly. Anyone would feel hurt hearing something like that.
Entei must be feeling a little sad.
With that in mind, Fuyuki nodded and explained, "Because Raikou helped me find lots of Berry and kept me warm. It even planted those Berry with its own claws!"
So that's why…
Entei's heart sank.
Its expression didn't change much, but the disappointment in its eyes was impossible to hide.
"But to me, Entei is number one!" Fuyuki added quickly.
Entei's eyes lit up at once, the dullness vanishing in an instant.
"Marshadow is second best, Raikou is third!" Fuyuki hugged the big cat in front of him, trying to cheer it up.
He wasn't ungrateful. Without Entei, he would probably be dead on the roadside by now.
"Little one…" Entei murmured, its eyes glistening faintly.
It lowered its head and gently rested it against Fuyuki's small shoulder.
This child was someone it would protect for its entire life.
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