February 24th, Tuesday.
The early spring sun carried a warm, comforting glow.
"Sylveon~"
Sylveon squinted, basking in the sunlight that fell on its cheeks, its long pink ears twitching slightly.
The light cast a faint golden sheen over its snowy fur.
Natsume smiled and stood beside it by the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing out at the yard.
"Arcanine~"
Arcanine wore a wise expression as it stood before a timid Chimchar, seemingly teaching it a move.
"Gengar~ ヽ(￣▽￣)ノ"
Gengar pushed a lawnmower Rotom across the overgrown grass.
Ever since Rotom joined the household, Gengar had taken up gardening as a new hobby—on top of its usual chores!
"Perfect weather."
Natsume stretched, deciding to go for a morning jog.
But as he stepped inside, he froze.
"Pikachu…"
Ash, who had stayed the night, was sprawled on the couch, a thin blanket barely covering him, drool trickling from his mouth as he mumbled in his sleep:
"Use… Thunderbolt…"
"Pikachu…"
Pikachu, half-asleep, clambered onto Ash's head, its cheeks crackling with electricity.
ZAP!
A blinding bolt erupted in the living room, engulfing Ash in a surge of lightning.
Natsume-sensei broke out in a cold sweat.
D-Does this guy have a death wish?!
"Ah, morning already?"
Ash blinked, completely unharmed—as if he could take another Thunderbolt to wake himself up properly.
Natsume gulped.
Thank Arceus my Gengar greets people with Lick instead of Shadow Ball. Otherwise, I'd be toast.
He picked up a fallen enamel mug, poured himself some tea, and blew on the steam.
Superhuman. Using lightning as a morning wake-up call… Terrifying.
Suddenly, Ash scrambled to put on his cap.
"Crap, I'm gonna be late!"
"What's up?"
"I promised Leader Roark a gym battle this morning… Gotta run all the way to Oreburgh City!"
With Pikachu on his shoulder, Ash dashed into the yard, scooped up a bewildered Chimchar, and waved at Natsume on the second-floor balcony.
"Natsume-sensei, thanks for having me! See ya next time!"
Natsume leaned on the railing, stunned by Ash's sheer momentum, and coughed.
"Tailwind on your journey."
At the same time.
A flash of white darted after Ash, vanishing into the dense woods.
"Sylveon~"
Hearing the word "gym," a faint smile crossed Sylveon's face.
Perfect. I was getting bored with no wild Pokémon around to spar with…
It's not too far. I'll just sweep the gym and be back in time for dinner!
"Sylveon! (≧▽≦)?"
With no ill intentions, Sylveon used Quick Attack to keep up with Ash's sprint, heading straight for Oreburgh Gym…
...
Living Room.
"Togepi doo-ee~"
Togepi focused intently, uncapping a marker and drawing dark circles under Rotom Pokédex's screen.
"Beep… System Overload, Rotom! (⊙x⊙;)"
"Doo-ee~!" Togepi giggled, toppling over onto the carpet, kicking its tiny feet.
Natsume picked it up, amused.
"Rotom's on babysitting duty today?"
"Gengar~" Gengar nodded, grinning before flicking its tongue at Natsume.
Paralysis triggered!
Natsume wiped his face, chewing a Cheri Berry calmly.
"Mm… I talked to Professor Rowan. You guys can train in his backyard if you want."
Leaving the little ones to train at home was… risky.
Rowan's research institute had proper training grounds. Fewer explosions. Probably.
Gengar froze, tears welling up.
"Gengar! (｀Д｀)"
So becoming a tournament champion wasn't the end goal…
I'll train even harder to make Trainer's dreams come true!
"Gengar!" It hopped excitedly, making a peace sign by its eye.
Leave the training to me, Gengar!
Natsume's expression turned odd.
Is this… Magical Girl Gengar?
But then again, he'd already convinced Boss Giovanni to become a content creator.
Natsume-sensei's mental resilience was beyond ordinary.
"By the way, anyone seen Sylveon?"
The little ones shook their heads.
"Eh, no big deal."
Natsume rubbed his chin.
At Sylveon's level, this region was basically a cakewalk.
"Gengar, don't overdo it with training."
Natsume patted its head. "I'm taking Togepi. See you tonight after fixing the bike!"
"Gengar! (￣▽￣)／"
"Sirfetch'd! "
Hearing this, Sirfetch'd shed bitter tears.
I thought moving meant no more gym training…
But nope! Back to the grind already…
Life's so hard, quack!
...
Afternoon.
Natsume casually infused Rainbow Wing with Aura.
With it around, the air indoors felt fresher…
Natsume: "Got it! This thing's just a fancy air purifier!"
Rainbow Wing dimmed slightly, as if offended.
But as soothing Aura enveloped it again, it fluttered contentedly.
Fine… Feels good anyway~
Before heading out, Natsume contacted Team Rocket's trio.
Pushing the charred bike, he met them near Twinleaf Town—at another of James' villas.
(Natsume: How many of these does this guy own?!)
"Leave it to us!"
Jessie and James puffed their chests proudly.
"We'll fix it even if we have to melt Meowth's coins for parts!"
"Ya really gonna do me like dat, meow?!" Meowth trembled.
"Less talk, more work!"
The Rotom Bike's intricate mechanisms had the trio sweating as they hammered away.
"Togepi doo-ee~! ヽ(￣▽￣)ノ"
Togepi waddled over, pulling sodas and chips from Natsume's bag, handing them out.
The trio froze, noses bleeding, eyes burning with determination.
"WE. WILL. FIX. THIS!"
What should've been a simple repair turned into a full-blown construction site, sparks flying as power tools roared.
Natsume wiped his brow.
99% success rate, but I'm still sweating bullets…
Thankfully, with Togepi's morale boost…
[Rotom Bike] successfully repaired—performance even upgraded!
"Exhausted!" The trio collapsed—despite being experts at everything except catching Pikachu.
"Togepi doo-ee~ ヾ(●´∀｀●)"
Togepi wobbled over, wiping their sweat with a tiny towel, beaming.
"SO CUTE!!"
Their shrieks echoed through the woods.
"Thanks for the help."
Natsume mounted the bike, placing Togepi in the basket. "Wanna come over for dinner?"
The trio exchanged glances, then shook their heads.
Catching Pikachu was priority #1—nothing else would impress the boss!
"See ya next time!" They waved. "Need anything fixed, just call!"
"Sō desu ne!"
Natsume didn't press.
By his estimates, Sylveon should be back by dinner.
Then, a warm-up battle with Cynthia…
And it's livestream grinding time!
As dusk painted the distant mountains, smoke curled from chimneys in the sleepy town.
Natsume swung by Professor Rowan's lab to pick up the little ones.
A group of veteran rangers watched the departing Pokémon, looking utterly defeated.
"What're you thinking?" one asked.
"The meaning of training," another muttered solemnly.
Decades of experience… outclassed by a Gengar and a Rotom.
Where's the justice?!
"Wait… Wasn't that Natsume-sensei's team?"
"Natsume-sensei?! Oh, never mind then!" Their despair vanished instantly.
"Losing to a champion's Pokémon? Heck yeah—time to brag about it!"
...
Oreburgh City, Oreburgh Gym
Built atop rich mineral veins, Oreburgh City boasted abundant coal resources and had yielded numerous precious ores.
Gym Leader Roark specialized in Rock and Fossil Pokémon—a domain that, from both the city's structure and the Leader's expertise, bore striking resemblance to Pewter City in Kanto.
Currently, inside Oreburgh Gym's battlefield...
"Pikachu, Volt Tackle!"
Faced with Pikachu charging forward, crackling with electricity...
Roark, clad in mining gear and a hard hat, calmly commanded, "Rampardos, Headbutt!"
The spiked, thick-skulled Rampardos roared, colliding head-on with Pikachu.
After a brief struggle, Pikachu was sent flying, tumbling to the ground. "Pikachu..."
"Seems you're not quite ready yet."
Roark adjusted his glasses, curious. "Mr. Steven mentioned you've traveled through several regions. Why not use your older Pokémon?"
Ash lifted Pikachu, determined. "Because I met someone."
"I will win using only the Pokémon I catch here in Sinnoh!"
"That's a fine conviction."
Roark smiled and nodded. "Then I look forward to our next battle."
"Sylveon~"
Suddenly, a graceful, snow-white figure stepped through the gym's entrance.
Sylveon walked elegantly against the backlight, ribbons swaying, its gaze imperious.
Roark blinked. "A new challenger?"
Ash gasped. "That's Natsume-sensei's Sylveon!"
"Natsume-sensei?"
Roark looked up, recalling Gold Miners, the game Natsume had developed.
Ever since its multiplayer update, Steven had been dragging him into mining sessions nonstop...
In reality, Roark and Steven were close friends—and business partners.
(Steven bought rare ores from him. The pay was too good to refuse.)
Though Roark was a fossil enthusiast himself...
Well. Mr. Steven's offers were very persuasive.
"Sylveon! (`皿´)"
Sylveon stepped onto the battlefield, pointing a ribbon at the previously unstoppable Rampardos.
"Rampardos?!" Rampardos stiffened under Sylveon's Baby-Doll Eyes, inexplicably terrified.
"So it's..."
Roark turned to Ash, voice dry. "Challenging me?"
Ash hesitated, then nodded.
"I heard Natsume-sensei likes letting his Pokémon challenge gyms alone—kinda like how Master Blue lets his Pokémon run Viridian Gym."
Roark froze.
He had heard about Viridian's... unconventional approach.
(Blue was so strong that no one could win unless he deliberately threw matches.)
But sending a Pokémon to fight solo?
Is this what people mean by 'Natsume-sensei doesn't act human'?
Refusing would make him look like a coward...
I might not be as strong as Dad, but I won't back down!
"Very well." Roark nodded firmly. "Ash, you'll referee."
"A one-on-one. Acceptable?"
"Sylveon! (▼皿▼#)"
Sylveon lifted its head haughtily, poking Roark's belt of Poké Balls.
One-on-one?
Try me against your whole team!
Roark swallowed hard.
Since when are Natsume-sensei's Pokémon this cocky?!
And why is it so cute that I can't even get mad?!
"Rampardos," he said firmly. "Headbutt!"
"Rampardos!"
Rampardos charged—only to freeze mid-step, eyes widening in horror.
"Sylveon! (#｀皿´)"
Sylveon leaped like a comet, a streak of white light crashing recklessly into Rampardos!
BOOM!
Rampardos cratered the floor, knocked out cold.
Roark and Ash stood slack-jawed, utterly speechless.
...
[Ding! Gym Challenge complete!]
[Badge not counted toward quest progress. Please read task instructions carefully!]
Natsume-sensei, humming while preparing spicy rice cake hotpot, suddenly paused.
That notification felt... off.
Natsume: "What instructions?"
The system re-displayed the research task.
Natsume's eyes lit up.
So if I don't complete this, no new (backstabbing) tasks will spawn?
Did the system just... become considerate?!
Chuckling, he carried the pot to the living room.
"Sylveon~"
Sylveon squeezed back inside through the cat flap.
With a fierce grin, it dropped a metallic object onto the table.
Clink!
Natsume's hands trembled as he picked up the gleaming badge.
[Coal Badge: Oreburgh Gym's badge, polished from rare minerals, shimmering like ancient fossils. (Rock enthusiasts would pay a fortune for this.)]
Natsume inhaled sharply.
The familiar feeling of impending doom washed over him.
I moved to the middle of nowhere to avoid gyms...
And I STILL got a new badge?!
Does this mean—
Oh, it doesn't count toward the quest? Never mind then!
He leaned down, pressing his forehead to Sylveon's.
"Good job. Let's eat."
"Sylveon~ "
Sylveon's ribbon curled around his wrist before it turned away, pretending to pout.
"Sylveon! o(´^｀)o"
Tiring...
But worth it for him!
Meanwhile.
Ash staggered out of Oreburgh Gym, staring at the sky.
How is Natsume-sensei's Sylveon strong enough to solo a gym?!
And it SWEPT Roark's whole team!
Pikachu, when will you ever catch up?!
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