"Hey! Those Pinsir were stealing my family's citrus—why did you let them go?!"
Reiji had just watched them disappear into the trees and turned back toward the orchard when a young voice stopped him. He looked over and saw a boy—about ten, give or take.
"Where'd you come from?" Reiji said, already walking. "Go home. This place isn't safe. Don't mess around here."
He couldn't be bothered with someone else's kid. A car sat parked by the roadside; a parent had to be nearby. He wasn't getting involved and definitely wasn't giving anyone a reason to point fingers.
He stepped back into the orchard, but the boy slid into his path.
"What do you mean 'kid'?! I'm not a kid. I'm a beginner trainer—and this orchard is my family's."
"Sure. Your family's," Reiji said, not even slowing. He motioned Poliwhirl and Farfetch'd along and tried to go around him.
"Hey! Are you listening? You're a trainer too, aren't you? I'm challenging you!"
"No," Reiji said, and kept walking. He had no time to play sparring matches with a child.
"You jerk! Squirtle—Water Gun!"
Poliwhirl didn't even move its feet. It lifted one hand and pinched the stream apart before it reached Reiji, then fixed Squirtle with a hard stare.
"Squirtle…!" Squirtle flinched and ducked behind the boy, peeking out like it expected to be hit next.
"Did nobody teach you that Pokémon don't attack people?" Reiji started to say, then noticed someone stepping out of the car. He clicked his tongue and changed course.
"Poliwhirl. Don't waste energy on a kid. Let's go."
He gave Poliwhirl a light pat on the head and walked deeper into the orchard without looking back, casually plucking a citrus and peeling it as he went.
"Ugh! Squirtle, why are you scared?! Hit him! Water Gun!"
Squirtle wanted no part of it. It pressed the button on its Poké Ball with both hands and popped itself inside, muffling a disgruntled cry from within.
"Squirtle? Squirtle?!"
The boy stood there fuming, then cooled a fraction as the thought finally landed. That Poliwhirl really was strong—and Reiji had beaten those Pinsir earlier without breaking a sweat. If he couldn't win, he could always run back and call his sister. He'd tell her there was a fruit thief in the orchard.
With that annoyance behind him, Reiji settled back in. He didn't bother picking anymore; he lay in the shade with his hands behind his head while Poliwhirl and Farfetch'd lounged nearby. White clouds drifted across the sky, and the breeze did the rest.
He dozed off.
"Hey—hey, boss…"
"Hm?" Reiji surfaced and found the orchard manager standing over him.
"What is it?" Reiji yawned into his palm.
"It's like this," the manager said. "Gym Leader Cissy is at the port overseeing the citrus being loaded onto the ship. The Gym doesn't have any trainers right now, so they want to hire you as a temporary acting Gym Leader—just for today. You'd take challengers and run the battles."
Reiji stared at him.
"I'm not a Gym trainer. That's allowed?"
"It's official," the manager said quickly. "The task is registered at the Pokémon Center. The Gym has a rule too—no more than four Badges can be awarded in a day."
"So ten challengers, and only four walk away with a Badge," Reiji said, rubbing his chin. "That's… generous."
The Mikan Gym's challenge was Water Gun target practice, then a surfing match. Win both, and the challenger earned the Coral-Eye Badge.
"Yes," the manager said, watching him carefully. "Will you take it?"
"Why me?" Reiji asked. "The Pokémon Center is full of trainers. You could've hired someone in five minutes."
The manager didn't blink. "I saw what you did earlier. That Poliwhirl handled those Pinsir easily. I needed someone reliable, so I came straight to you."
Reiji held his gaze for a moment, then nodded once.
"Fine. Do we go now?"
"Yes. Right now," the manager said, relief spilling into his voice. "A lot of trainers are already waiting at the Gym. I'll have a car take you over immediately."
"Alright."
Reiji stood, brushed grass from his trousers, and returned Poliwhirl to its Poké Ball. Then he looked to Farfetch'd.
"Farfetch'd, stay here and keep an eye on the orchard workers. Got it?"
"Far!" Farfetch'd nodded with obvious pride.
"When I come back tonight, you ride back with the manager," Reiji said, then glanced at the man. "Take care of my Farfetch'd."
"Don't worry," the manager said, thumping his chest. "I'll feed it well and return it to you safe and sound."
Reiji headed out.
The moment he left, the manager jogged behind a fruit tree, where someone small had been hiding.
"Young master," he said, lowering his voice. "It's done. He accepted, and he's on his way to the Gym."
"Good," the boy said—with the same face Reiji had just seen by the orchard road. "If my sister were here, and if I could handle those challengers myself, I wouldn't have bothered with him."
"If you're done, then please hurry back too," the manager said, wiping sweat off his forehead. "The Gym can't run without you."
The boy snorted. "I'm going. I want to see how he loses. He ignored me—no one ignores me."
He'd stormed back earlier to prove himself, only to hand out three Badges in a row. On the fourth challenge he'd barely managed a draw on the fixed targets, and the moving targets still waited. One more loss meant giving away the last Badge, and he refused to let that happen.
So he went looking for someone to take the fall.
He'd spotted Reiji in the orchard and decided the "thief" had to be an employee. When that turned out wrong, he threw a tantrum until the manager panicked and came up with something—hire Reiji through an official task and stick him in front of the challengers.
It worked.
The manager watched the two cars drive off, front and back, and finally let out a long breath. At least the young master had left the orchard. Cissy could handle him; without her, he turned the place upside down.
As for that trainer… well. Good luck.
…
At the Mikan Gym, a crowd of trainers packed the entrance, arguing and demanding the Gym Leader come out. Some had already started their challenges—then everything stopped halfway through.
"Move! The Gym Leader's here!"
A shout cut through the noise. The crowd parted, and a boy walked toward them from the road.
Reiji saw him and went still.
The same kid from the orchard.
So the "my family's orchard" line hadn't been bluffing at all.
If the orchard belonged to him, and he was part of the Mikan Gym, then he could only be Senta—Cissy's younger brother, the one who loved pranks.
"Why are you standing there?" Senta called, turning his head with a grin. "Get in here."
"???" Reiji echoed.
"That's right. My distant cousin," Senta said, smiling like he'd just won something.
"Oh," Reiji said smoothly. "So you're my little cousin."
He walked up, looped an arm around Senta's neck, and dragged him inside before the boy could react. A driver shut the door behind them, cutting off the furious crowd outside.
Reiji leaned down, voice flat. "What are you playing at? I can walk away from this task any time. Don't try anything."
"Sure," Senta said, not even flinching. "Pay the penalty fee."
Reiji's mouth twitched. "So that's the game."
"Stop talking and start taking challenges," Senta said, eyes bright with mischief. "And one more thing—I already lost three Badges today. If you lose again, you pay. If you fail the job, you pay."
Reiji stared at the door as the noise outside swelled again, then looked down and kicked Senta lightly in the backside.
"How much is the penalty?"
"My pay is 100,000," Senta said cheerfully. "The shift runs until six. Penalty fee is ten times."
Reiji drew a slow breath through his nose.
"One million," he said. "Right."
He'd been played by the manager too—convenient omissions, all of them. No full explanation about the Badges, no mention of the penalty, just a neat little request wrapped in "official task" paper.
He couldn't go back and start kicking the manager now. The man had done it by the book, just with half the story left out.
Reiji rolled his shoulders once.
"Fine," he said. "Bring on the challengers."
[End of chapter]
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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