After a long study, Natsume closed the system panel.
"Practical knowledge leads to true understanding. I'll just have to test it with someone one day," he thought.
In any case, the celestial cloth was getting impatient.
Natsume rubbed his hands together and reclined on the bed. His Rotom phone instantly teleported him back to his original hospital bed.
At this moment, the most urgent task was to finish the Pikachu God topic.
Natsume lay in bed, staring absent-mindedly at the ceiling.
When it came to Ash's Pikachu, he had some suspicions.
Though this was the real world and different from the anime, Natsume thought the plot points he remembered from his previous life could still be useful as a reference.
Ash's Pikachu used moves that had power beyond its level.
This was the very reason why Team Rocket believed it was a special Pikachu, and that's why they targeted Ash.
The moves Pikachu used were much stronger than they should have been for its level.
A specific item flashed in Natsume's mind — an item that only Pikachu could carry: the Thunder Stone.
This item, found in the Pokémon games, was exclusive to Pikachu. When held, it doubled Pikachu's offensive stats.
If this were to be visualized in the real world, the resulting effect would be that the moves Pikachu used had power beyond its level.
With his thoughts now clear, Natsume pulled out his notebook and began jotting down his hypothesis.
Hypothesis 1: Ash's Pikachu swallowed a Thunder Stone.
Hypothesis 2: Ash's Pikachu either has something like the Thunder Stone or underwent some event that caused it to undergo an unknown change, granting it a buff that doubled its offensive stats.
Of the two hypotheses, Natsume was more inclined toward the second one.
If he remembered correctly, Ash's Pikachu had no power to fight against Brock at the Pewter City Gym.
However, after some special training at the power plant, its Electric-type power grew substantially.
Could it be that after each major recharge, Pikachu received a permanent buff to its offensive stats?
This thought suddenly struck Natsume.
He wondered if this was something only Pikachu could do or if all Pikachu could receive such buffs.
If it was the latter, Natsume was sure his research paper on Pokémon would be a major hit.
Clang!
At this moment, the door opened.
It was Ash, looking somewhat dejected as he entered, with Misty following behind.
He hadn't found Natsume.
"Pikachu—Pika!"
Pikachu stood on Ash's shoulder, tapping Ash's forehead as if to comfort him.
"Natsume, where did you go?" Ash asked.
"I don't know, but I think I'll head back to my original room," Natsume replied.
"Ah, I see! Maybe you'll go back to your original room," Ash said as he turned to look for Natsume.
"Idiot, he's right here in front of you!" Misty said, unable to watch the exchange any longer, pulling Ash back.
"Ah? Natsume, why are you here?" Ash asked, surprised to see Natsume lying in the bed.
He had already passed by the room several times and didn't see anyone inside.
"I borrowed your Pikachu for a bit," Natsume explained.
Just as Ash was puzzled, Natsume stood up and grabbed the back of Pikachu's neck.
"Pika?" Pikachu blinked, confused about what Natsume was going to do.
"Ash, Pikachu and I have become quite close. I'm not used to him not standing on my shoulder. Hmm?"
Before Ash could respond, a red glow emerged from Natsume's Poké Ball, and Pikachu materialized on Ash's shoulder.
"See? Now you're used to it."
Natsume walked out of the room and met Nurse Joy.
After showing his Pokémon researcher credentials, Nurse Joy agreed to let him use the medical facilities.
Soon, under Nurse Joy's guidance, Natsume entered a room equipped with various medical facilities.
"Pika-Pika-Pika-Pika!"
As soon as he stepped inside, Natsume was met with the sound of many Pikachu in the room.
The familiar panting sounds of Pikachu almost made Natsume feel like he was back at Professor Oak's breeding room.
Turning, Natsume saw that in a corner, there was a hamster-wheel-like machine, and dozens of Pikachu were running in circles.
Seeing Natsume, Nurse Joy smiled and explained:
"These Pikachu provide electricity for the Pokémon Center. Not only that, but thanks to them, Pikachu was able to recover its strength yesterday and chase off those bad guys."
Nurse Joy smiled fondly, admiring the two young trainers.
"Two kids, calm and collected in the face of an evil organization — it's truly rare," she commented.
Hearing this, Natsume scratched his head, then wrote something down in his notebook. After tearing it out, he handed it to Nurse Joy, saying seriously:
"Here's Ash's home address. You can send him a thank-you card."
Nurse Joy nodded silently and left.
The room grew quiet again, only the constant "Pika-Pika-Pika" noise filling the air.
Natsume glanced at the busy Pikachu.
According to Nurse Joy, Pikachu had indeed charged up last night, and it was the combined output of dozens of Pikachu.
Thinking deeply, Natsume took out his Rotom phone and opened the ability detector.
Before long, six numbers appeared on the screen.
Among them, Special Attack and Attack had slightly increased compared to previous days.
"Eh?"
Natsume suddenly realized that his second hypothesis was becoming more likely.
But even so, the first hypothesis needed to be tested as well.
Since they were at the Pokémon Center, Natsume could easily conduct an abdominal CT scan on Pikachu.
"Pika?"
Pikachu looked curiously at Natsume as he worked on the machines around him.
"Mm, its fur looks good. Its cheek pouches are full of energy, probably from yesterday's recharge?"
"And the waste at the steel door is quite... ah!"
Natsume was suddenly kicked aside by Pikachu.
"You're perfectly healthy."
After recording Pikachu's physical traits, Natsume activated a nearby machine.
Soon, the X-ray image of Pikachu's abdomen appeared on the screen.
"No, there's nothing here. No signs of a Thunder Stone."
Natsume scratched his chin and examined the image carefully.
"There are two small lumps, though."
"Pika—Ka?!"
Pikachu leaped back in shock, glancing at the screen. But just as Natsume understood, he announced, "Oh, those seem to be your eggs."
"Pika..."