Back home.
With the roadblocks now cleared, and thanks to Yamamino's arrangements, Takeshi had successfully boarded the transport to Gateon Port. Once he stepped onto the ferry, he'd be well on his way back to Unova.
The departure of its companion, predictably, made Deino quite anxious. Since birth, it had always been with its kin; even after being snatched away, they hadn't been separated. Now, suddenly finding itself "the lone wolf," its emotions were understandably volatile.
Surprisingly, however, it didn't cause any destruction around the house. Instead, it became even more clingy toward Kashiwagi's embrace and hands. As long as he was home, no matter how far away or what he was doing, it would find him just to rub or "chomp" his hand.
On the occasions when Kashiwagi left without it, it would simply curl up obediently in a corner of the living room.
This lonely sight quickly softened the hearts of Aggron and Mawile.
Initially, they didn't harbor much malice toward Deino, they were mostly just disgruntled by the damage the little rascals had caused earlier. It was like a relative's kid tearing up your sofa—even if the parents paid for it, it was hard to stay friendly.
But now that the "relative's kid" had suddenly become a permanent member of the household, seeing it sitting quietly in a corner without a word made it impossible to ignore.
Of course, Aggron and the others felt something more complex - they saw glimpses of their former selves in Deino.
And so, as a gesture of friendship to their new teammate, they chose to... provoke it.
Inciting someone to anger is undeniably a fast way to speed up communication - provided you don't cross the line.(You know like brother and sister :p)
It must be said that Aggron and the gang were quite skilled at this, keeping their teasing perfectly balanced. And while Deino frequently fell for Aggron's provocations, it actually harbored a deep sense of admiration for the "giant monster."
The weak yearning for the strong—it was the natural order of things.
Thus, through a series of rough-and-tumble scuffles, their bond warmed up rapidly.
Kashiwagi was glad to see this. Playful bickering between teammates was perfectly normal, it maintained a healthy sense of competition and pushed both sides to grow.
He believed it wouldn't be long before this little dragon with the white highlight on hair would fully integrate into their big family.
----
The day before the operation.
Kashiwagi welcomed a new round of Simulator cooldown.
This was largely thanks to Aggron's tireless sparring with Haxorus and the internal battles between Mawile and the others.
He believed a simulation at such a critical moment would bring favorable changes for tomorrow's mission.
On the sofa, Deino was mouthing his hand, its chin resting on his knee, drifting off into a very peaceful sleep.
Kashiwagi quietly opened the Simulator, took a deep breath, and began the first run.
As he had predicted, the third simulation only provided common talents, and the plot didn't offer much variation.
The subject of the simulation was a trainer wearing a baseball cap and a red jacket. At first glance, he looked like Red, the original protagonist of the games, but in reality, he was a Fisherman who used a Magikarp as his starter.
To be fair, the start was incredibly difficult.
Forget Gym Challenges; even winning a normal battle was nearly impossible.
Consequently, the Fisherman quickly began catching other Water-types like Poliwag, Goldeen, Tentacool, Shellder, and Staryu.
Of course, he didn't give up on training his Magikarp—the legend of the "Carp leaping over the Dragon Gate" was something every trainer craved.
Through his hard work, Magikarp didn't disappoint; it successfully evolved into Gyarados, making Gym Challenges significantly smoother.
Unfortunately, as a specialist in Water-types, his talent for breeding and training fell far short of his peers. He ultimately collapsed in the Top 64, leaving Kashiwagi with the rewards: [Increase 2 Levels for those under Lv. 50] and the move [Surf].
While the ranking wasn't ideal, Surf was a pleasant surprise. Kashiwagi had long wanted Aggron to learn this Water-type move. If they ever fell into the water, the big guy could actually save him.
He also wondered if learning the move would grant a tiny bit of resistance to Water-type attacks.
Kashiwagi promptly called over Chansey and Aggron, distributed the new rewards, and sent them to the backyard to feel their new strength.
The two were already accustomed to this and trotted off happily.
"Mawile?"
"Er... nothing for you this time. Don't worry, if there's something for you next time, I'll definitely give it to you." Kashiwagi looked at Mawile's "where's mine?" face and laughed helplessly.
Mawile puffed out its cheeks in annoyance and decided to go pummel Aggron to cheer itself up—the big guy was a tank anyway.
Beside him, Deino tilted its head curiously. "Deino~"
"None of your business. Just keep chewing."
Kashiwagi stuffed his hand back into its mouth and, with a bit of trepidation, started the fourth round of simulation.
His guess was about to be confirmed.
[Select your region of birth ▽]
He considered it for a moment and chose Sinnoh.
He opened the Gender tab.
He decisively chose Female. He hadn't followed the usual rotation in the previous round specifically so he could try a female character this time.
Maybe he'd simulate someone like Cynthia?
While it seemed a bit far-fetched, a man had to dream.
And so...
Kashiwagi carefully opened the Pokémon tab—
Smeargle!?
His heart skipped a beat when he saw the icon. He immediately felt like this run was doomed. Of all the famous trainers he knew in Sinnoh, which one used a Smeargle?
Furthermore, if the results were poor and he got Smeargle's Sketch, who was he supposed to teach it to?
What a headache.
But the die was cast. He could only hope this trainer would be like the Chef—relying on Smeargle to achieve success—and possess a decent set of talents.
[Please draw your Talents]
He pressed the button.
Fixed Talent:
- ☆ Kindred Spirits (Extremely deep bond with Pokémon)
Selectable Talents:
- Never Give Up (Will not abandon Pokémon)
- ☆ Wealthy Family (No worries about the cost of raising Pokémon)
- Heart of Stone (Mind will not be easily shaken)
- One-Man Army (Will catch many Pokémon)
Two... two Blue Talents!
Kashiwagi rubbed his eyes with his free hand, staring at the lines of text in sheer astonishment.
In all honesty, he never expected to pull two Blue Talents at once!
Did this mean this simulation was a step closer to a League Championship? Maybe he could actually win one this time?
He grew excited and reached for his phone, wanting to look up past winner lists for the Lily of the Valley Conference to jump straight to the results.
But then he reconsidered.
Spoiling the ending would ruin the story. Generally speaking, simulations with Blue Talents were far more interesting than common ones.
Whatever would be, would be. There was no need to rush.
Kashiwagi selected the first two talents. One-Man Army would surely be powerful with the support of Wealthy Family and Kindred Spirits, but Never Give Up resonated with him more personally.