Chapter 22. Running Into Shoko Again

"We'll drop you off here first, Natsume."

"If you go straight through that cave up ahead, you'll get through Mt. Moon quickly."

The two researchers thought Natsume was just passing by.

They led the group to the largest entrance, waved goodbye, and left.

"Natsume, can we stay here for a few days?"

Ash looked at Natsume with hopeful eyes.

He wanted to stay a while to challenge that Elite Four member.

"Don't worry. I was planning to stay here for a bit anyway."

Natsume waved the credentials in his hand at Ash.

"I'll go find the person in charge here.

It shouldn't be a problem to apply for a few rooms for a temporary stay."

"Um, everyone, it sounds like someone's calling for help in that cave."

Brock seemed to have heard something and pointed at a smaller cave to the side.

"Huh? Sounds like it, yeah."

Misty listened carefully for a moment, then nodded along.

"Let's go take a look."

Curious, Natsume took the lead into the small cave.

Inside, only faint torches hung along both walls, just enough to make out the ground.

"Natsume, why isn't this place powered like the main passage?

With only torches, it's really dark."

Careless as ever, Ash nearly stumbled.

"These side caves aren't like the main passage.

They weren't dug by people.

They're natural caves with lots of Pokémon living inside, and most of them are light-shy."

"I see.

But this path is way too rough."

Ash scratched his head, looking a bit troubled.

"You can hold Misty's hand.

She's more careful."

"Oh."

"What do you think you're doing!"

A large bump promptly swelled up on Ash's head.

Soon, they reached the depths of the cave.

It was pitch black here, so Brock took out a flashlight.

"Help!"

Natsume heard a familiar voice.

"Over there!"

Brock was the first to locate the person calling for help.

When the flashlight shone over, they saw a lab-coat-clad researcher crouched on the ground with hands over his head, papers scattered everywhere.

Hovering above him, a number of Pokémon that looked like bats were attacking.

"[Zubat: Bat Pokémon.

It flies by using supersonic waves it emits, and it usually stays in dark caves without coming out.]"

"This looks dangerous.

Natsume, we should—huh?

Where did Natsume go?"

Ash blinked, realizing Natsume's figure had already vanished.

"He's over there."

Brock pointed to the researcher's side.

Natsume was there, rummaging through a bag with intense focus.

"Natsume, what are you doing?"

Ash leaned in, curious.

"I'm seeing if there are Poké Balls inside holding Charmander, Squirtle, or Bulbasaur."

"Why would there have to be Poké Balls in there with those three Pokémon?"

Misty craned her head over, followed by Brock.

Natsume's secretive look had caught both of their attention.

"Stop chatting and save me first!"

Off to the side, that familiar voice called out again.

At that moment, Natsume also realized why the researcher's voice sounded familiar to him.

He hadn't found any Poké Balls with the three Starter Pokémon.

Instead, he pulled out Shoko's researcher ID.

Sigh.

Why couldn't it have been Professor Birch.

"Go, Pika-god!

Use Thunderbolt!"

"Pika—chu!!"

With a flash of lightning, the Zubat were startled and scattered.

"Ah, thank you so much!

I'm Shoko, the— Natsume, it's you!"

Shoko picked up his fallen glasses.

When he clearly saw their faces, he was overjoyed.

"Natsume, my paper's already been submitted to the League Academy and is in preliminary review!"

"Nicely done."

Natsume wasn't surprised.

Shoko's research direction leaned theoretical to begin with, and all it lacked was validation by a Rotom.

"Right!" Shoko seemed to remember something and added, "I listed you as the second author, Natsume!"

For an instant, Natsume's steps froze.

Ash, for some reason, felt that Natsume's current expression looked a lot like Professor Oak's that night.

The stiffness passed in a flash.

Natsume gave a slight shake of his head.

Shoko's preparations were thorough, and this was his own graduation thesis.

He'd put real effort into it.

It wasn't like the academic junk Natsume had cobbled together that night; at the very least, it wouldn't be embarrassing.

On the contrary, even if second author wasn't as good as first, when other journals published Shoko's article and paid royalties, Natsume would still get a cut.

If it was a top-tier core journal, the royalties would be about 1,000,000–10,000,000 Pokédollars per month.

For second-tier journals, roughly 500,000–2,000,000 Pokédollars per month.

For third-tier journals, roughly 100,000–1,000,000 Pokédollars per month.

The exact royalties given to authors depended on the article's placement in the journal layout—less if it was in the corners, and more if it was in prime, eye-catching spots.

Natsume's annual royalties could come close to a hundred million.

But it was useless.

Day-to-day prices in Kanto meant that amount didn't stretch far.

And as for his future "god-making"–level laboratory, those expensive facilities had a minimum starting price in the tens of millions.

Some machines even had costly components that were single-use—one use down the drain was tens of thousands gone, and that was the cheaper kind.

With his current income, he'd barely be able to cover the lab's basic yearly maintenance.

Now, Shoko had given him another spark of inspiration.

Mm.

Second author.

"You're pretty good, kid.

Interested in working with me from now on?"

Natsume patted Shoko on the shoulder, finding him more and more pleasing to the eye.

Second authors were also paid royalties by journals, usually only a tenth of the first author's.

But that was fine—Natsume could win by volume!

He had far too many ideas in his head.

But limited personal strength made them hard to carry out.

"Of course!

It would be my honor to work on projects with you, Natsume!"

Shoko looked genuinely excited.

"Good.

In a couple of years, I'll try to set up a research institute.

When the time comes, you must come."

At that, Shoko's expression froze.

He had thought Professor Oak might have given Natsume some project and that Natsume was short-handed.

Still, getting into a future Professor's institute was a huge opportunity.

"Let's head out first.

It's gloomy in here and kind of scary."

Off to the side, Misty timidly raised her hand to suggest.

"Ah, right.

I'll take you to the summit.

We're already setting up a temporary rest area there."

Shoko snapped back to the moment, took the flashlight Brock handed over, and led the group forward.

The caves of Mt. Moon crisscrossed and all connected with each other.

With a few lefts and rights, Shoko soon brought them to the summit.

"Wow!

The summit's so big—like a lunar crater!"

Coming out of the cave, Misty gasped in wonder.

"There's even a big boulder right in the center!"

Ash's focus was clearly different from Misty's.

"That rock appears to be an enormous Moon Stone.

I've been here a few times."

Brock explained from the side.

"Over there is our temporary rest site.

I've already notified the person in charge."

Shoko pointed to a not-too-distant cluster of container-like buildings.

Everyone nodded and headed that way, but Natsume stood still.

"Natsume, any instructions?"

Shoko looked at Natsume.

"Do you have a temporary lab?

I want to borrow it."

Natsume toyed with the Poké Ball in his hand and spoke without turning his head.

"Yes, please follow me."

Shoko led Natsume to another area bustling with researchers going to and fro.

"Alright, I'm borrowing it for one night.

I'll leave those folks to you."

With that, Natsume closed the temporary lab's door.

At the temporary rest site, Shoko found Ash and the others.

They'd already put their things down and were getting ready for the night.

"Click—"

Suddenly, there was a faint sound, and the surroundings visibly dimmed.

"What's going on?"

They turned around to find the lights below had all gone out.

Even the machines that had been running a moment ago had stopped.

"This happens because there's a precious colony of Clefairy living on Mt. Moon, and nighttime is when they're active."

Shoko smiled as he explained to the group.

"But don't worry—the power supply here won't be cut off entirely.

It won't affect much."

"Look over there."

He pointed toward a cave.

"Tonight's the full moon.

The Clefairy will come out from that cave and hold a mysterious ceremony!"

Sure enough, as soon as Shoko finished, countless cute, pink Pokémon with a pair of small, chibi-style wings on their backs came out of that cave.

"[Clefairy, the Fairy Pokémon.

Their numbers are scarce and they are hard to find.]"

"They're rare Pokémon—so cute!"

Misty put away the Pokédex, eyes sparkling.

She had zero resistance to Pokémon this adorable.

"It looks like they're gathering around that huge Moon Stone."

Watching the Clefairy's route, Brock said, as if recalling something, "There's a legend in Pewter City that these Clefairy came in a spaceship, and that enormous Moon Stone is a part of the ship."

Ash's mind, however, wasn't on that.

He looked at Shoko and couldn't help but ask, "Mr. Shoko, which Elite Four member came to Mt. Moon?"

"That Elite Four member is—boom!"

Shoko's words were drowned out by a huge explosion.

They turned toward the dust and smoke.

On the enormous Moon Stone, a giant cat-faced hot air balloon had somehow appeared, floating overhead.

A massive net shot out from the balloon, scooping up the Moon Stone and the Clefairy all at once.

"Oh no, it's Team Rocket!"

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Chapter 23. New Form: Poké Ball Rotom

"We have to stop them!"

Ash and the others were anxious and were just about to throw their Poké Balls when Shoko, behind them, stopped them.

"Wait a second, everyone!"

Shoko called out to them and pointed above the Meowth-head balloon.

Directly overhead, a massive silhouette floated in midair, half its body hidden in shadow.

Inside the Meowth-head balloon, the trio were busy fantasizing about the future.

"This time we picked when that elusive researcher isn't around, so we're sure to succeed, meow!"

"Yes, and for some reason their power just happens to be out. We were going to sabotage the circuit anyway."

"Hahaha, my promotion and fortune are right in front of me!"

Suddenly, Meowth bristled as if he'd sensed something.

"Meowth, what's wrong with you?"

Jessie and James looked at Meowth in confusion as he trembled like a leaf.

"I-I don't know, I'm suddenly really scared, meow.

It's like there's a terrifying Pokémon right over my head, meow!"

Over our heads…

Before the two could react, a low-frequency tremor cut through the roar of the burner, and the hairs at the backs of Jessie and James's necks stood on end.

The mountain-like silhouette suddenly dropped from above the balloon, shrouded in the night so its features couldn't be seen.

They could only make out that it was a Pokémon, and that a human stood on its back.

With each beat of its wings, the balloon began to wobble, and the slowly burning flame grew unstable, as if it might go out at any moment.

James, shaking, operated the searchlight on the gondola, and when the beam swept past, those upturned scarlet eyes narrowed, a cold light flowing in the irises.

"This is—!"

Seeing it clearly, James's eyes widened.

"Dragonite, use Hyper Beam!"

From Dragonite's back, a red-haired figure shouted.

"Boom!"

With a thunderous roar, the hot-air balloon exploded, and three figures shot into the sky, flying who knows where.

"[Dragonite, the Dragon Pokémon.

The evolved form of Dragonair.

It is said that it can circle the globe in just 16 hours.]"

Hearing the Pokédex's voice, Ash grew visibly excited.

"So that's an Elite Four Trainer's Pokémon?

It looks incredibly strong!"

"Yes.

That's Mr. Lance from the League's Dragon-type Elite Four, sent to assist us."

Watching the receding figure of the human and Dragonite, a hint of longing flickered in Shoko's eyes.

Once upon a time, he, too, had wanted to become a powerful Pokémon Trainer.

But now… sigh.

Best not to dwell on things you have no talent for.

"Mr. Shoko, I want to challenge Mr. Lance!"

Ash turned back to Shoko all of a sudden, eyes blazing with fighting spirit.

"Uh…?" Shoko blinked, but didn't reject Ash.

"How about this: tomorrow I'll mention it to Mr. Lance.

Whether he agrees will be up to him."

"Okay.

Thank you, Mr. Shoko."

After thanking him, Ash looked at the two Pikachu beside him, fired up.

"Pika-god, center-parted, let's do some special training tonight!"

"Pika!"

"Pika-pi!?"

The next day, inside the lab.

"Good, just like that—try to merge into it."

Under Natsume's tense gaze, Rotom slipped out of the Rotom Phone and entered the Poké Ball on the test bench.

Blue circuit lines covered this Poké Ball's surface—wiring Natsume had embedded in advance—and as Rotom flowed in, those blue lines charged up and gradually turned into dazzling gold.

Soon, on the Poké Ball veined with golden lines, a pair of inverted-triangle eyes appeared, and a set of lightning-shaped little wings sprouted from its back.

"Roto!"

With Rotom's shout, the Poké Ball suddenly shattered.

"Failure!" Natsume flinched, but he quickly steadied himself.

Although the Poké Ball had broken, its fragments had split precisely along the golden lines.

Sure enough, as the ball shattered, the chip Natsume had implanted inside was revealed.

Rotom anchored itself to the chip, and countless blue arcs of electricity snapped out, drawing the broken pieces back together.

"Zing!"

After a flash, a Poké Ball Rotom more than ten times larger than before appeared in front of Natsume.

"Rotom, how do you feel?

If anything's uncomfortable, say so."

Natsume beamed at the massively transformed Poké Ball before him.

Rotom now resided in the central chip, golden arcs linking the red-and-white fragments in sequence to form a gigantic "Poké Ball."

The Poké Ball Rotom nodded to Natsume to indicate it was fine.

Seeing this, Natsume finally relaxed completely, then carefully examined Poké Ball Rotom's outward appearance.

"Hmm… about the size and state of a Gastly?"

After a long look, Natsume opened his system interface in his mind.

Only the system could precisely read this unknown form.

"[Rotom (Poké Ball Form), Lv. 50]"

"[Type: Electric/Psychic.]"

"[Base stat total: 520 (HP: 160 / Attack: 20 / Sp. Atk: 40 / Defense: 140 / Sp. Def: 140 / Speed: 20)]"

"[Moves: ??? / ??? / ??? / Protect]"

"[Ability: Poké Ball (exerts a strong suppressive effect on Pokémon).]"

"So it's a super tank?"

Electric/Psychic gives it four weaknesses: Ground, Ghost, Bug, and Dark.

But judging from Poké Ball Rotom's stat distribution, it seemed to be a defensive wall.

"If an ordinary Poké Ball already reaches the 520 base-stat benchmark of those other fusion forms, then switching to a Great Ball, Ultra Ball, or Master Ball would further raise the base stats."

But hitting what the system called "breaking the world's limit" seemed unlikely.

After all, in the movies, Eternatus in its Eternamax state reaches a base stat total of 1125—the highest ever depicted in the Pokémon world.

To break the world's limit, you'd at least have to surpass that.

Natsume could only set his sights on the mecha Rotom he intended to develop in the future.

Of course, today's research was paving the way for that.

Thinking this, Natsume tapped open the three question-marked moves on Poké Ball Rotom:

"[???]: Absorb and seal one opposing Pokémon, then spit it out after three turns.

Rotom may act during this time.

While sealed, the target loses 20% of its max HP each turn, and upon ejection will receive a random status condition.

PP: 2."

"[???]: Absorb one allied Pokémon and spit it out after one turn.

Rotom may act during this time.

The released ally will be cleansed of all negative effects, recover 50% of max HP, and gain a random buff.

PP: 5."

"[???]: Absorb and seal one opposing Pokémon until the battle ends.

Rotom cannot act during this time.

The sealed Pokémon cannot be withdrawn, and any damage Rotom takes is redirected to the sealed target.

PP: 1."

"[Protect]: Completely blocks the opponent's attacks for one turn; consecutive uses will fail."

"[The above effects come from Game Rule Field simulation tests; real-world application is for reference only.]"

"???"

After reading, Natsume's head was filled with question marks.

"???—tomorrow's rising star of stall teams!"

Just seeing the three move descriptions, Natsume automatically thought of those infamous figures from his past life's competitive battles.

He read the hundreds of words of move text over and over, and from between the lines he could see just two words: "Disgusting."

He could guarantee that if Poké Ball Rotom existed in his past life's games, it would top the "most hated to face" charts.

But if it was his Pokémon, then it wasn't infamous—it was "the most reliable back."

"System, how does it compare to a godly Pokémon with a divine role?" Natsume was getting a little full of himself.

"[Out of its depth.]"

Natsume froze.

Long ago, in the course of his research, he'd discovered that many legendary Pokémon in the real world held corresponding divine roles.

Usually the strongest individual of a given species possessed such a role.

In the games and anime of his previous life, such "divine roles" were downplayed or barely present.

But after crossing over, in many papers he'd read, Natsume had found plenty of clues.

An individual with a divine role was on a completely different level from others of its kind—almost a different lifeform.

It's just that relevant studies were scarce, and Natsume had yet to encounter a divine-role legendary in person, so the specifics were unclear.

"Return, Poké Ball Rotom." Natsume decided he still had work to do.

He held out a Poké Ball, but Rotom didn't go inside.

Instead, it gradually shrank and slowly turned into a red-and-white ball with golden triangular eyes and tiny lightning wings.

The little golden ball formed by Rotom fell back into Natsume's hand.

"Whoosh!"

A golden current leapt out of the special Poké Ball and shot back into Natsume's Rotom Phone.

Seeing this, Natsume patted the Rotom Phone and smiled.

"Perfect.

In battle, you enter this special Poké Ball; out of battle, you can stay in the phone."

Saying this, he rubbed his hands together and opened the door.

Natsume wasn't a battle maniac.

But right now, he couldn't wait to see Poké Ball Rotom's reliable back in a real battle.