Transforming took a significant mental toll on Porygon.
Kashiwagi committed this fact to memory. He realized that unless you were like Ditto or Mew—whose very genetic makeup allowed for fluid shapeshifting — any ability that caused a drastic physical change seemed to place a heavy psychological burden on a Pokémon.
Chansey's Minimize worked the same way.
She could shrink from over a meter tall down to the size of a palm, but staying that way for too long led to dizziness and physical exhaustion.
Consequently, unless it was a special circumstance, Kashiwagi generally didn't let her stay small for long; he only used it as a tactical maneuver to dodge attacks with a narrow area of effect.
"...It's that time already. Let's go eat,"
he announced to the two Pokémon, glancing at his watch.
"Lucky!"
Chansey waved her small hands in cheerful agreement.
Noticing Porygon's dazed and confused expression, she tried to explain.
"Lucky~ Lucky!"
Unfortunately, Porygon still didn't get it.
Delicious? What does "delicious" mean?
Its database contained a definition of the word, but Porygon found it difficult to grasp a sensation it had never experienced.
Chansey struggled to find the right words.
Her vocabulary was far too limited to describe the culinary masterpieces Kashiwagi whipped up.
After a moment of frantic gesturing, she grew anxious.
"Lucky! Lucky—"
"Delicious is a sensation that makes a person feel happy and pleasant".
Kashiwagi, unable to watch the struggle any longer, placed a hand on Chansey's head to calm her down.
He turned to Porygon.
"How did you feel when you drank that juice earlier?"
When I drank the juice...
Porygon recalled the moment. It realized that as the liquid flowed into its body, it had naturally generated an extremely complex sensation.
It was unprecedented, but certainly not bad.
Seeing it lost in thought, Kashiwagi added,
"Remember that feeling. Truly delicious food will give you a boost ten or even a hundred times greater than that."
"Pah-ree?"
Porygon was shocked—mostly by the Trainer's description.
Ten or a hundred times?
It couldn't even begin to process what that would feel like.
"Just look forward to it",
Kashiwagi said with a smile.
He was truly grateful that Dr. Akihabara had included a sense of taste and smell alongside the digestive system.
Otherwise, while everyone else was joyfully enjoying a meal, Porygon would be forced to watch its companions while chewing on something as tasteless as wax.
That would have been heartbreaking.
...
...
In theory, Porygon's need for food shouldn't be very strong.
As an artificial virtual Pokémon, its intake system was complex; it could draw energy from electricity or absorb solar power.
In an emergency, it could even enter cyberspace and consume data signals as fuel.
Dr. Akihabara was incredibly proud of Porygon's adaptability.
In his initial vision, Porygon was a Pokémon born for space exploration, so surviving in diverse environments was a must.
Therefore, even with taste and smell, its appreciation for "deliciousness" should have been somewhat muted.
But as Kashiwagi watched Porygon bury its head in its bowl—never coming up for air even once—he began to wonder if the Doctor's manual was actually reliable.
Well.
Since Porygon had become a living, breathing creature, individual differences were to be expected.
Or perhaps... "Glowing Dishes" were just that powerful.
As Kashiwagi ate his lunch, he spotted the wild Aggron finishing its portion and casting sneaky glances at the other Pokémon's bowls.
He knew that guy was up to no good.
"Hey! If you want more, just ask me! Don't steal from the others!"
He tapped the table as a warning. The wild Aggron reflexively pulled its head back.
This particular Aggron was still wild at heart and far too simple-minded.
It was used to bullying other Pokémon to get what it wanted.
If Kashiwagi wasn't watching, it probably would have tried to pick on Deino.
And while Deino looked cute and cuddly in front of him, he was actually quite fierce.
He would definitely get into a fight with that wild Aggron.
Once the moves started flying, nobody would be able to finish their lunch.
On might think, why didn't the Aggron target Galarian Corsola?
Don't be ridiculous.
By the time Aggron took its first bite, Corsola was already finished.
Corsola was more likely to be the one doing the stealing.
Chansey and Mawile were too close to Kashiwagi to be targets.
Porygon was a complete wild card that Aggron couldn't read.
That left Deino as the only viable target Aggron felt it could handle. So, naturally, it chose him.
As for a certain "Great Being" that hadn't even been mentioned... Forget it.
Aggron didn't even dare to have such thoughts; it hadn't even glanced in that direction.
"You've worked hard these past few days. Eat a little more so you don't go hungry later." Kashiwagi refilled Aggron's bowl.
If this were his own Pokémon, he wouldn't overfeed them, but since this one was going to be released back into the wild anyway, it didn't matter.
Beside them, Porygon finally lifted its head.
Its pink-and-blue face was the literal definition of "contentment."
"Pah-ree!"
After this "Glowing Meal," it finally understood what "delicious" and "happy" meant.
"Pah-ree-gon!"
Another bowl!
"Next time. We'll eat again next time."
Kashiwagi looked into those pleading eyes and had to steel his heart. The manual stated that accumulating too much energy wasn't good for Porygon.
While it didn't get indigestion like biological creatures, it was like a Pikachu storing too much electricity—it could lead to some rather unhealthy side effects.
"Pah-reee..."
Porygon lowered its head in disappointment, though it quickly began looking forward to the next meal.
Unfortunately, the next meal wasn't until dinner.
"I'm glad you liked it."
Kashiwagi was quite satisfied with his cooking.
So far, not a single Pokémon had ever said "no" to his food.
In that case, just stir-frying wasn't enough.
He needed to keep improving—maybe research stews and other cooking techniques.
...
...
That afternoon, Kashiwagi returned to the Neo Team Aqua Research Institute.
Dr. Akihabara was back as well, though he was in a foul mood. The Porygon drone test had been a failure, and he was currently sulking alone in his office.
However, upon hearing that Kashiwagi had arrived, he put on a friendly front.
"Did you run into a problem raising Porygon?" the Doctor asked.
Kashiwagi both nodded and shook his head.
"I do have some questions about Porygon, but my main reason for coming today isn't about it."
He glanced at the office door, listening intently.
After confirming no one was eavesdropping, he pulled out the black box.
"This is yours, right?"
Dr. Akihabara stared at the black box, stunned. Then, his face lit up with pure ecstasy.
"The Data Recorder? "
"How did you know I was looking for this?"
"Where did you get it?"
.
"Admin Shelly told me."
Kashiwagi handed over the box. Seeing the Doctor reach for the desk phone to call someone, Kashiwagi immediately pressed down the hook to cut the line.
While the Doctor looked up with a bewildered expression, Kashiwagi asked:
"I'd like to have a talk with you about Neo Team Aqua. Is that alright?"
"..."
Dr. Akihabara frowned slightly and sat back in his chair.
"What do you mean by that?"