Chapter 181:Lugia and Silvally

“Rotom, match ends.”

“Gyarados has lost battle capability, so the winner is Victreebel~”

Hearing Rotom's announcement, Kiko jumped up happily.

Her high ponytail swung in the air, radiating youthful energy and vitality.

“Yay, Victreebel~”

Kiko hugged Victreebel and said excitedly, “We won~”

“Victreebel~”

Victreebel swung its leaves proudly.

Natsume walked over to Gyarados, helping it recover.

“Good job, Gyarados.”

“Roar~”

Gyarados looked a bit gloomy after losing the battle.

Kiko approached with Victreebel.

Natsume smiled at Kiko, saying, “You did well.”

Kiko felt a bit shy and replied, “Hehe, it was all Victreebel’s credit.”

“Victreebel~”

Victreebel waved its leaves.

At that moment, Kiko glanced at the disgruntled Gyarados.

She hesitated for a moment but stood in front of Gyarados and said, “Gyarados, um, thank you for battling with me. I just wanted to say—”

“Roar~”

Gyarados let out a roar in response to Kiko.

“Ah.”

Kiko was startled and quickly grabbed Natsume's arm tightly.

Even though they won against Gyarados, looking at its massive mouth was still quite intimidating.

Natsume said to Kiko, “It probably thinks you’re here to brag.”

“That’s not true.”

Kiko waved her hands, “I know Gyarados is really strong.”

“If it had been raining, we would have been in trouble.”

“I actually wanted to say that Gyarados is really amazing, especially when it used Waterfall.”

“So cool.”

Natsume patted Gyarados and said, “You’re being praised, Gyarados.”

Gyarados proudly tilted its head and let out a huff, then took off into the sky.

Gyarados soared through the air, its form becoming more agile.

Kiko watched Gyarados fly away and suddenly laughed, “Well, isn’t that something?”

“This guy is just a big baby.”

“Can't argue with that.”

Onami smiled approvingly at Kiko and said, “That’s how Water type Pokémon are.”

“Even though they look fierce on the outside, they all have a gentle side like flowing water.”

Natsume said, “Let’s head back to the mountain and chat some more.”

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy stood on top of Gyarados’s head.

Manaphy slid down Gyarados’s long body, using it like a slide, and splashed into the water.

Squirtle and Mudkip, soaking in the water, watched Manaphy fall beside them and laughed, then climbed up onto Gyarados together.

“It feels different from what I imagined,” Onami suddenly said, standing by the river.

“I thought the Manaphy from the legends would be a more special Pokémon.”

“But it seems like it’s not that different from an ordinary Water type Pokémon after all.”

Natsume sat at the water's edge, rolling up the hem of his pants.

“Honestly, I think whether it’s an ordinary Pokémon or one from the legends, they’re all the same.”

“They are all part of this world.”

“Manaphy is, and so is Squirtle.”

“As long as they exist in this world, there must be a reason for their existence.”

Milotic leisurely swam over to Natsume and rested its head on his leg.

Natsume gently stroked Milotic's body.

Onami watched the scene.

She thought to herself: Youth and Milotic are both very gentle beings.

Natsume looked up at Onami and asked, “What about Watanabe?”

“Is he not coming?”

“My uncle is preparing for the cruise out to sea.”

No matter where Manaphy hatches, it always needs to return to the sea, back to its temple.

Watanabe knew this, so he was preparing the tools for their upcoming journey.

Kiko came out carrying her suitcase and asked Natsume, “When do you plan to take Manaphy out to sea?”

Natsume looked at Manaphy having fun and playing with Squirtle in the water and said, “That depends on Manaphy.”

“After all, we don’t know exactly where the Temple of the Sea is.”

At that moment, Kiko walked out with her luggage.

“Natsume, I’m heading back.”

Natsume turned to Kiko and asked, “Have you packed everything?”

“Yeah, it was just some clothes, so it didn’t take long.”

Natsume said to Kiko, “Then I’ll have Pidgeot give you a ride home.”

Natsume summoned Pidgeot.

Pidgeot flew down from the sky and landed beside Kiko.

Victreebel followed closely beside Kiko.

“Victreebel, I’ll come to visit you often.”

Kiko hugged Victreebel.

“Kabutops.”

Victreebel looked at Kiko with reluctance.

Natsume smiled slightly at this scene and said, “There’s no need to be so emotional.”

“Go on.”

As he spoke, Natsume tossed the prepared Poké Ball for Victreebel to Kiko.

“Huh?”

Kiko quickly caught it.

“Is this okay?”

“Of course.”

Natsume smiled, “This Victreebel really likes you, so it’s fine.”

“And I believe you’ll take good care of it.”

Natsume looked at Victreebel and said, “Victreebel, make sure to take care of Kiko.”

“Victreebel~”

Victreebel waved its leaves.

“Come on in, Victreebel, I’ll take you home first.”

Kiko happily returned Victreebel to the Poké Ball in her hand.

Kiko looked at Natsume and then at Onami, her face showing some hesitation.

Natsume sat up and gently hugged Kiko, saying, “If anything comes up, remember to give me a call.”

“Mm.”

Kiko nodded. Looking at Natsume, who was holding her, she suddenly asked, “Do you want to marry four wives too?”

“Huh?”

“Why four?”

Natsume was caught off guard by the sudden question.

Kiko pursed her lips and shook her head slightly, “Hmm~ It’s nothing. I just wanted to ask.”

“Well, I’ll be on my way.”

After saying this, Kiko mounted Pidgeot.

“Pidgeot~”

Pidgeot flapped its wings.

“Pidgeot, fly slowly and be careful on the way.”

“Pidgeot~”

Pidgeot let out a long call as it flew toward Morimachi.

Splash~

A Water Gun splashed onto Natsume.

“Squirtle~”

Squirtle and Mudkip waved at Natsume from the water.

Natsume laughed, “Oh, so this is a sneak attack, huh?”

“Watch this~”

Bam~

Natsume jumped into the water, making a huge splash.

“Here we go.”

Natsume shoved Squirtle's head into its shell and then tossed Squirtle across the river, making it glide over the water's surface.

“Squirtle~”

Squirtle felt a bit dizzy.

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy watched Natsume excitedly.

Manaphy wanted to play too.

“Do you want to join in?”

Manaphy nodded, folding its body up.

Natsume smiled, “Alright.”

“Go, Manaphy~”

Natsume made a bowling gesture and sent Manaphy rolling quickly across the water's surface.

Onami softly observed Natsume playing with the Pokémon in the river and said, “He really has a child-like personality.”

The sunlight, the stream behind the house, the swaying bamboo leaves, and the laughter of people and Pokémon.

This summer flowed gently away with the flowing river water.

Glub, glub~

Deep in the ocean, the currents surged.

A mechanical submarine was diving toward the deep sea.

“This is crazy, I can’t believe I’m actually going to catch Lugia.”

On the submarine, a man exclaimed.

His name was Anton, a member of the Unova League, affiliated with an underground organization called Trident.

While Trident couldn't compare to world-class organizations like Team Lightning or Team Galactic, it still had some reputation internationally.

This was because the leader of their organization had once been an Elite Four-level Trainer in the Unova League.

“To be precise, we’re here to catch Lugia's child.”

Next to Anton, a Black man looked at the sights of the deep sea and said, “Catch Lugia?”

“That’s just asking for death.”

“Seriously, if it were to catch Lugia, I wouldn’t take this mission at all.”

Trevon rambled on, “I should be lying on a beach in Hawaii, with a Black girl on one side and a White girl on the other, watching a Z-Move battle.”

“That’s what I should be doing right now.”

Anton laughed, “If this mission goes smoothly, you won’t just enjoy the black-and-white pairing.”

“I think you’d be able to gather all the beauties from every country in the world.”

The two men laughed together.

“But what do you think Lord Brando wants to capture a young Lugia for?”

Trevon said, “He can't possibly want to capture and cultivate the little Lugia, right?”

“However, that seems impossible.”

“After all, any capture by force will never be acknowledged.”

At that moment, someone beside them said, “Of course, it's for the true Storm God.”

“Lugia is revered as the Storm God; out at sea, it has no weaknesses.”

“But once it has a child, things are different.”

“The little Lugia is its fatal weakness.”

“Lord Brando must be wanting to temporarily borrow Lugia's power.”

Trevon asked in confusion, “Borrow Lugia's power?”

“Don’t you know?”

The man speaking took off his hat and said, “Do you know the Elite Milo from the Unova League?”

Trevon nodded, “Of course I know.”

“I’ve even watched his battles.”

“But seriously, his Pokémon are huge, just like my… size down below.”

The man in the hat rolled his eyes, “Ha, he's dead.”

“Hmm?”

“What did you say?”

Trevon’s eyes widened, “He’s dead?”

“Why?”

“Who could kill an Elite?”

“Not Lugia, right?”

The man shook his head, “Of course not.”

“There are rumors saying it was a Gym Leader named Natsume from the Japan League who did it.”

“This Natsume Gym Leader is now the guardian of Manaphy.”

“And not long ago, Natsume, with just one Serperior, defeated the Elite Tohn from ASEAN.”

Trevon, listening to the rumors from the man in the hat, showed a look of shock, “You can’t be telling me that Lord Brando is trying to capture Lugia to combat this Natsume Gym Leader, right?”

“Is he some kind of god?”

Anton interjected, “How could that be?”

“Lord Brando's ultimate goal is, of course, to obtain Manaphy.”

Manaphy is a Pokémon that lives in legends in this era.

How strong it is, they did not know.

They only knew that Manaphy possessed the ability to control the sea.

Deep Sea.

Lugia was dozing on the ocean floor.

A little Lugia was pawing at the sand at the bottom of the sea, trying to catch a small Pokémon hidden within.

Suddenly, a little fish swam by.

It emitted a faint aroma.

“Woo~”

The little Lugia moved closer to the little fish.

It smelled delicious.

Ah woo~

The little Lugia gulped it down in one bite.

“Woo~”

The little Lugia looked surprised.

It was a taste it had never experienced before!

Ahead, another little fish swam by.

The little Lugia excitedly chased after it.

However, for some reason, the little Lugia suddenly realized it was becoming sleepier as it chased.

“Woo~”

The little Lugia yawned.

At that moment, the little fish swam close to the little Lugia’s mouth.

The little Lugia drowsily opened its mouth and swallowed it.

However, the little Lugia didn’t notice that a shadow was slowly appearing ahead of it.

A submarine opened its "mouth" and began to swallow Lugia.

“Success! We did it!”

Inside the submarine, Trevon exclaimed in disbelief, “This is way too easy, right?”

Anton suppressed his excitement, “The mission isn’t over yet.”

“We’re still at sea.”

“If we’re going to celebrate, let’s wait until we safely get out of here.”

The submarine began to rise slowly.

Anton and Trevon excitedly gathered around the little Lugia.

“This is the future Ocean God!”

The little Lugia looked very cute.

It dozed peacefully in the submarine's pool, smacking its little lips as if reminiscing about the delicious taste.

Its blue and white body resembled clouds and the sea.

Anton murmured, “Looking at it this way, it doesn’t seem so terrifying after all.”

“Ha ha, dude, I thought there would be a tough battle.”

Trevon happily hugged Anton, “I can’t believe we completed the mission so smoothly.”

Just as the submarine was about to break the surface of the water, Lugia, sleeping on the seabed, slowly opened its eyes.

It looked around, and a powerful Inner Focus spread out in all directions.

Lugia lifted its head.

Boom~

The seawater violently surged.

The psychic light flickered in Lugia’s eyes as the ascending submarine suddenly froze in place.

The submarine shook violently.

“Hmm?”

“What’s going on?”

The sudden tremor left Anton and his crew bewildered.

“Is there a malfunction?”

While Trevon was still in shock, a white light suddenly flashed.

Psycho Cut!

Water surged in.

Boom~

The submarine split in two beneath the waves!

The rushing water poured in.

The people inside the submarine lost consciousness in an instant, feeling no pain.

They, along with the submarine, were swept away into the deep sea, disappearing without a trace.

Here, peace returned.

It was as if nothing had ever happened.

“Woo~”

The little Lugia was unaffected.

It made a soft call and then swam slowly toward Lugia.

Lugia affectionately nuzzled the little Lugia’s nose.

Golden sunlight filtered through the shimmering surface of the sea, shining down on Lugia.

The little Lugia swam upward.

It chased after the rays of light, swimming through them.

Lugia followed beside the little Lugia.

At that moment, in the sky...

“What an intoxicating power.”

An old man gazed at the mother and child Lugia with fiery eyes.

Brando, the former Elite Four of the Unova League.

He was also a highly educated scientist.

His limbs had all been transformed into a perfectly engineered body.

“Lord Brando, should we take action now?”

A person beside him asked in a low voice.

Brando smiled, “Yes.”

“Let’s see its strength.”

“Our greatest masterpiece!”

The cabin door of the airship opened.

A Pokémon entirely encased in steel slowly walked out, with a distinct black plate on its head.

“Go, Silvally, let me see your strength!”

Silvally leaped toward the sea, a strong wave of Dark type energy radiating outward.

In that moment, it looked like a black sun!

Under the sea.

Lugia suddenly lifted its head.

Boom~~

A black beam instantly enveloped Lugia’s body.

The azure surface of the sea, under the encroachment of the Dark type energy, turned pitch black.

“Pokémon possess great power, so why can humans control this world?”

Brando stated his answer: “Because of wisdom, because of technology!”

“Those of us who possess wisdom and technology are the supreme rulers of this world!”