Yozora kept his word. He pulled out a large number of Poké Balls and captured them all one by one.
Of course—
Since he already had six Pokémon with him, every single Poké Ball was automatically transmitted to Professor Oak's Laboratory.
Before long, only one remained at the scene: Machop.
"Machop, unlike the others, you're the one I truly wanted to capture. You're not just a Pokémon, but a partner."
"Now, I'm going to send you to a place called Professor Oak's Laboratory. There, you'll find another of our companions—a golden Geodude. When you arrive, I hope you can help me say hello to him."
Yozora gave Machop a few more instructions. Once Machop nodded in understanding, he finally took out a brand-new Poké Ball and captured him.
With this, Yozora now had eight partners. Each one of them, he would never abandon. Each one he would train with care.
After all, to become a truly outstanding Trainer, one had to raise many different kinds of Pokémon.
Only then could he truly understand them, learn both their strengths and weaknesses.
That way, whenever he faced an opponent with the same Pokémon, he would know exactly how to counter them, greatly increasing his chances of victory.
…
In order to reach his goal of becoming the strongest in the world, Yozora would inevitably capture more and stronger Pokémon in the future.
And so, he would rotate his partners whenever possible.
But for now, he didn't want to change his team—not a single one of them.
Beedrill, of course, needed no explanation. It was the team's strongest force, his trump card and bodyguard.
Kangaskhan was currently the second-strongest, just behind Beedrill.
Since Beedrill was his hidden ace and not something he could expose lightly, Kangaskhan was his strongest Pokémon in plain sight, and naturally irreplaceable.
Then there were Charmander, Psyduck, and Pidgeotto…
Yozora felt that these three had all reached a certain bottleneck, that they were on the verge of evolving at any moment.
He didn't want to miss those moments.
So until they evolved, he would never rotate them out.
Lastly, there was Nidoran♂…
Nidoran♂ had incredible potential—on par with pseudo-legendary species—but for now, it was only at the Junior Level.
It was still in a rapid growth phase…
So Yozora couldn't replace him either. Which meant Geodude and Machop would have to wait.
Not that it was truly unfair.
At Professor Oak's Laboratory, they wouldn't have to worry about food or shelter. Life would be quite comfortable.
And since both Machop and Geodude clearly had combative personalities, even if they weren't by Yozora's side, they would continue to train and sharpen themselves.
…
Three days later, Yozora finally arrived in Cerulean City.
The first thing he did was head to the Pokémon Center, handing his team over to Nurse Joy for treatment while also contacting Professor Oak.
The video call connected, and the screen immediately showed Professor Oak eating instant noodles.
"Yozora, I was really shocked three days ago! I didn't expect you to capture so many Pokémon all at once," Professor Oak said with a smile.
"As long as I didn't trouble you too much."
Yozora chuckled, then explained the circumstances of capturing Machop.
"I see. Machop is a loyal one, and you're quite bold yourself. It looks like the two of you are very compatible," Professor Oak said with a grin.
"Professor…"
Yozora hesitated.
But Professor Oak seemed to know what he was thinking and smiled. "You're wondering about the Pokémon you sent over, aren't you? Don't worry, they're doing just fine."
"I also know you only captured them to ease Machop's worries. You don't really have the time or energy to raise them."
"So rest assured. I'll take care of them. I didn't even put them in your designated storage box."
Hearing that, Yozora finally relaxed. With a sheepish smile, he said, "Professor Oak, I've really troubled you too much all this time."
"Haha…"
Professor Oak laughed heartily. "Not at all! In fact, you've done me a great favor. To study Pokémon traits, I need a wide variety of specimens. The ones you send me are a blessing!"
"Even though many of them are repeats, that's still useful. After all, even the same species can have different traits."
"To me, every single one of them has significant research value. So don't ever feel like you're bothering me. If anything, I hope you keep sending me more Pokémon!"
The two chatted a bit longer. Yozora even suggested that Professor Oak hire a housekeeper instead of eating instant noodles every day. Only then did they end the call.
Yozora's parents had passed away early, and he had grown up under Professor Oak's care.
To him, Oak was more than a mentor—he was a true elder, someone he deeply cared about.
"Yozora, your Pokémon are all fully recovered."
Not long after he ended the call, Nurse Joy came over with the report.
"Thank you, Nurse Joy," Yozora said quickly, taking his team back.
Seeing his politeness, Nurse Joy smiled warmly. "You've raised each of them very well, Yozora. You're not just a fine Trainer—you've got real talent as a Breeder, too!"
She wasn't flattering him. She meant it sincerely.
For the Joy family, anyone who cared for Pokémon this well naturally earned their admiration.
"You flatter me, Nurse Joy…"
"You're such a polite young man, Yozora. There aren't many like you nowadays~!"
With her laughter echoing in his ears, Yozora bid her farewell and set off for the Cerulean Gym.
There, he quickly met the famous Cerulean Sisters—Misty's three elder sisters.
They were every bit as stunning as their reputation claimed, each with refined features and graceful figures.
Years of swimming had left their skin pale and healthy, glowing with a soft flush.
No wonder their water ballet shows always drew full houses.
At that moment—
Yozora sat among the spectators, watching their performance.
But unlike the leering men nearby, his appreciation was pure. He admired their dance itself, not their bodies.
He had long since sworn to himself: until he became a world-class Trainer, he would never indulge in romance.
When the show ended and the audience reluctantly dispersed, Yozora finally stood up and requested a Gym battle from the sisters.
"You're Yozora?" the sisters asked after glancing at the Charmander by his side.
"Hm? You know me?" Yozora asked in surprise.
"Our little sister Misty told us about you…" their eldest, Daisy, said with a smile.
…
…
(End of Chapter)