Watching the Pokémon head off to play—today's a holiday for them since Krabby evolved—Reiji didn't stop them.
He turned to the pool, scooped up the "doofus" and plopped it in. The only one still nursing an injury was this silly fish—Magikarp.
Wishiwashi hadn't even seen Krabby evolve, so it felt nothing in particular. It only wondered why Magikarp looked so gloomy—out of water, maybe?
"Magikarp, you can't move without water. Hang in the pool. They'll be back soon," Reiji said, compensating the doofus with snacks.
"Karuu, karuu!" With food, Magikarp forgot its woes and happily shared with Wishiwashi.
Out by the gate, Chubbs was "catching Skinny in the act"—Skinny had secretly gotten a new Pokémon behind his back.
"Whoa, Skinny! That Elekid—where'd you get it? You didn't have it yesterday!" Chubbs had assumed it belonged to Reiji and hadn't asked. Realizing it was Skinny's made him feel like he'd swallowed a brick.
"We're entering that tourney, remember? I asked Grandpa last night to buy me an Elekid," Skinny said, basking in Chubbs's squawking. He loved that look of shock.
"So fast—and you didn't wait for me?" Chubbs was crushed. He'd have Dad buy him another Pokémon—he could not fall that far behind. Skinny already had four; he only had two. Pain.
"I didn't think Grandpa would get one that fast," Skinny shrugged.
They headed back into the courtyard and found Reiji jogging laps. The Pokémon might have the day off, but the humans didn't; running continued as usual.
Skinny fell in step with Reiji. "Big bro Reiji, what did you feed Krabby just now when it evolved? Why eat something during evolution?"
"A Water Gem. If you feed one during evolution, it boosts the Water-typing aptitude," Reiji said. He'd sprinted off earlier precisely to grab it. Poliwhirl had leapt in power after eating one; Krabby's raw talent was even better, so the effect would be a tad diluted—but still much better than nothing. Same item, different returns: for gifted Pokémon it's icing on the cake; for average ones, life-saving firewood in the snow.
"Can pokecubes raise typing aptitude too?" Skinny took note. Poliwhirl and Breloom had already evolved—he'd missed that window—but Wingull and Elekid still had their turns coming.
"They can—just feed the matching type. But everyone feeds cubes. If everyone has it, it's not a differentiator, you get me?" Reiji said.
"I get it," Skinny nodded. If he wanted his team to stand out, he needed edges others didn't have—like timed evolution with gems. Why during evolution? Could you do it outside of that? He'd find a moment to ask.
Chubbs, panting behind them, had no room in his lungs for conversation.
Morning training ended; the Pokémon returned with fish, and Reiji and Skinny prepped lunch. Skinny saw Reiji take out a brown gem. "Uh—what's that?"
"A Rock gem for Rhyhorn. Rock-eaters can munch these anytime; those that don't eat stones should only take gems during evolution," Reiji warned. Evolution lets the body burn through the Jewel's energy safely; otherwise digestion's rough—it's, well, a rock. For their stone-chomping lug, no problem.
That reminded Reiji of a certain League Champion with a shiny Metagross that ate rare ores—the guy was a rock nut, and his Metagross's defense was absurd.
"Are these gems expensive?" Skinny asked. If they were cheap, why not feed them daily? Since they weren't, they probably weren't cheap.
"Eh, not too bad. Ask your grandpa—he knows black-market prices better than I do," Reiji said. No sense naming a number when the old fox might have a discount pipeline. If he could source a Quasi–Elite Four-tier Elekid, a few gems wouldn't stump him.
"Go call everyone to eat," Reiji said, setting out bowls.
When he brought the last dishes out, the Pokémon were lined neatly under the eaves. Rhyhorn spotted the Rock gem and, unable to restrain itself, flashed frosty teeth and crunched the gem in one bite, then smacked its lips, wanting more. It had swallowed the peak of a little rock pile and still looked unsated. Every Pokémon stared, speechless. Those who knew Rhyhorn pretended not to; those who didn't, now did.
After gorging, Rhyhorn lumbered to the pool, drank deep, and then rolled in for a nap. Water-lovers soaked; the rest found their favorite spots. The humans also grabbed a siesta.
When everyone woke, Reiji packed up—he was going to see the old man, and, if needed, be ready to bail. Before leaving, he called Kingler inside to measure post-evo stats with a tape and a digital scale. He wanted to see whether its "special individual" build from the big-island days remained, and how much bigger it had gotten.
"Kingler, come with me. Skinny, wait outside with Chubbs," Reiji said. Fewer people needed to know Kingler's numbers.
"Krrah." Kingler scuttled in and stepped onto the scale: about 70 kg (~154 lb).
"The hell—that's not scientific," Reiji muttered. From barely over ten kilos to seventy just by evolving. Then again, Pokémon are magic; evolution rewrites frames and mass.
Height: 1.4 m (4'7"). With that height and weight, "heavy assault trooper" was fair. Averages for Kingler are 1.3 m and ~60 kg; his was above both. By the "tonnage equals power" rule of thumb, this was promising—and the big-island "special individual" trait hadn't vanished; it was stamped into its body now.
He pulled up Kingler's panel:
[Kingler]
Type: Water
Gender: ♂
Potential: 71%
Level: 29.16%
Ability: Hyper Cutter 22.22%
Hidden Ability: Sheer Force 5.53%
Moves: Hammer Arm 6.22%, Leer 3.43%, Water Gun 18.35%, Harden 22.14%, Metal Claw 5.34%, Dig 13.54%, Mud Shot 6.24%, Rain Dance 2.04%, Agility 9.15%, Crabhammer 1.55%
"Potential seventy-one. That's Elite Four–tier locked in." Reiji exhaled. The Water gem worked. Krabby's potential jumped 11 points on evolution—more than Poliwhirl's bump. It was now his highest-potential Pokémon. Of course, Poliwhirl still had a third-stage ahead; Kingler didn't. Future gains would come from molting rather than evolution.
Level went up a tick, to 29. Hyper Cutter rose by about 2%. Sheer Force hadn't.
Moves: small rises overall; Agility jumped the most (+6%). And the cherry on top—Kingler learned a same-type nuke on evolution: Crabhammer (Base Power 100, Water, physical). Nice.
Reiji closed the panel, recalled Kingler and the others, leaving only Poliwhirl at his side. Time to visit the Sailor's Bar and sound out the old man: had he covered Elekid's tracks cleanly? If not, Reiji would cut and run—no debate.
Outside, he locked up. Skinny and Chubbs were waiting with Poliwhirl and Krabby at their heels.
"Taxi," Reiji said. He and Poliwhirl each shouldered a pack; the boys recalled their Pokémon. Daytime traffic was easy, and soon they reached the Sailor's Bar—conveniently close to the Pokémon Center. The old fox did know real estate.
Skinny didn't go in; he and Chubbs were heading to the clubs to register for next week's tournament.
"Big bro Reiji, we'll go sign up and swing back after."
"Got it. I'll find your grandpa." Reiji pulled up hood and mask and stepped inside with Poliwhirl.
A lark-like, clear voice drifted through tasteful décor—nothing like the port dive; no funk, just polish. The old man wasn't behind the counter; only young hostesses. A grizzled codger hawking booze would scare off the aroma, after all.
Reiji went straight to a familiar hostess—the same girl who'd handed him cash at the harbor bar. She didn't recognize him like this.
"What can I pour you, sir?" she asked, playing it cool like the boss had taught.
"I'm looking for the Captain," Reiji said, giving the proprietor's handle.
[End of Chapter]
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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