The fallen Hariyama stared blankly at the ceiling.
Ah… what a nightmare of a battle.
At this mont, the battlefield was in complete disarray.
Its entire body was covered in a mixture of sticky fluids, and the ground beneath it was soaked in an unidentifiable viscous substance.
All courtesy of Munkidori's relentless attacks.
It couldn’t land a hit, nor could it escape.
That was the truest feeling Hariyama had.
If it tried to get close, it would be smacked in the face with a flurry of attacks before being pushed away.
If it tried to back off, that guy would just stalk it from behind like walking a dog, sneaking in ambushes.
Every attempt to power up was interrupted.
Every move it tried to land ended in failure.
Throughout the entire battle, it hadn’t even managed to touch Munkidori once.
Even Kangaskhan had done better—at least it had managed a single hit.
anwhile, Hariyama was just getting tornted for sport.
Silently closing its eyes, Hariyama had never wanted to leave this miserable world more than it did now.
It had once thought that, as its Trainer grew stronger, they Pokémon would follow along and step into a bright new world.
Well, they did step into a “new world.”
A world of getting beaten up.
Who knew how strong these Gym Leader candidates were?
But one thing was certain—they were all ridiculously tough.
Each one had their own unique fighting style.
Whether or not it could win was uncertain, but one thing was for sure: it was never going to be an easy ti.
For these poor Pokémon, getting beaten up had just beco routine.
At this point, it was almost second nature.
"Return, Hariyama."
Hearing its Trainer's voice, Hariyama made a silent resolution.
To make up for this psychological trauma…
When they got back, it was going to eat its heart out.
Eight als a day.
And each al would be big enough for three.
Its Trainer got travel stipends anyway—no need to feel bad for him.
Having made up its mind, Hariyama was already pondering what to eat first.
"Since the examiner's Pokémon have all been defeated, the victory goes to Natsu."
The young girl at the sidelines waved her small flag, officially declaring the battle's end.
anwhile, the Rotom Phone dutifully recorded everything.
It only stopped once the battle concluded.
After saving the footage under the title “Battle Assessnt,” it imdiately began a new recording.
These would all be valuable archives in the future.
"The assessnt is more or less over."
"There are a few things that still need to be explained to Mr. Natsu."
The examiner, stepping off the battlefield, quickly adjusted his mood.
What ca next were so key matters to keep in mind.
For example, Natsu needed to prepare one or two specialized teams specifically for handling challenger battles.
Starting off every match with Pecharunt?
Yeah, that would be a bit much for most Trainers.
They needed to consider balance—movesets, synergy, and overall strength.
As a Gym Leader, Natsu didn’t necessarily have to battle personally, but soone needed to be present to ensure battles proceeded normally.
As long as the Gym functioned properly, even letting Pokémon command Pokémon was technically acceptable.
After all, plenty of Psychic-type Pokémon were more intelligent than humans.
Then there was the matter of badge distribution.
Aside from those who won through sheer strength, Gym Leaders could, in theory, also award badges to Trainers they personally recognized as worthy.
But that was a tricky area.
If two challengers both lost, yet only one of them received a badge…
Why him and not ?
What made him more deserving?
It was the kind of decision that could easily spark public controversy, which was why most Gym Leaders only awarded badges to those who won outright.
The girl responsible for docuntation read aloud the regulations while taking notes.
The examiner occasionally chid in with additional details—mostly unspoken rules or common practices among Gym Leaders.
Compared to the formality at the beginning, the atmosphere had now relaxed significantly.
"Alright, that wraps up the assessnt."
"Natsu, you'll need to set up the necessary facilities and personnel as soon as possible. If you can’t find suitable candidates quickly, you can submit a request for the League to send temporary staff."
"Though accommodations and other arrangents will be up to you, Gym Leader Natsu."
Closing her notebook, the girl took out a handbook from her bag and handed it to Natsu.
At this point, she had stopped calling him “Mr. Natsu” and had switched to “Gym Leader Natsu.”
"This contains important notes for new Gym Leaders. You might find it useful."
"But make sure not to let this leak out."
"I'll be counting on you."
Taking the booklet, Natsu flipped through it briefly.
There was indeed a lot of useful information inside, but he would still need to study it carefully when he got back.
This was one of those tricky things.
Many so-called manuals or instruction guides could only be understood once you had already grasped the content within.
Otherwise, these so-called manuals—or rather, textbooks—were truly incomprehensible.
This was where the ever-reliable Slowking ca in handy.
Having a smart Pokémon was really great.
It saved him a lot of brainpower.
But with that in mind, there weren’t quite enough hands to go around.
A normal Pokémon farm would usually hire so workers to help out.
But Natsu’s farm was mostly a solo operation.
Many of the tasks were handled directly by the Pokémon on the farm.
For example, Gardevoir and Butterfree helped make Pokéblocks.
The older Indeedee brother managed day-to-day operations.
The younger Indeedee sister and Lopunny took care of various dostic matters.
And Slowking... went wherever he was needed.
The farm had plenty of strong Pokémon.
But when it ca to sharing the workload, there was still a shortage.
If only Slowking knew how to clone himself...
Natsu couldn't help but sigh.
A highly capable employee, who demanded no salary, only food and shelter...
Ah, he had to stop thinking about it.
If he kept going down this road, he was going to end up hanging from a streetlamp.
He was still young—he didn’t want to beco a human ornant just yet.
"Yadon?"
Squatting on a rock, Slowking, who had been deep in thought about how to turn five Pokédollars into a billion, suddenly shivered.
Sothing was off. Why did it feel like soone was scheming against him?
Rubbing his chin, Slowking began to ponder.
Slowking started compiling a suspect list.
Slowking initiated a target search.
Slowking... had no leads.
Slowking abandoned the thought process.
Quietly removing the Shellder from his head, Slowking once again entered idle mode.
Wisdom dribbled from the corner of his mouth.
Slowking stared up at the sky in silence.
Ah, those clouds sure were cloud-like.
With his mind empty, life suddenly seed free of worries.
Staying like this forever... didn’t seem like such a bad idea.
"Take care on the way."
Clutching the autograph she had just gotten from Natsu, the girl boarded the car, turning back longingly every few steps.
Such a sha—I really wanted to chat with that smart-looking Slowking.
I wonder what he's doing right now.
"Alright, get in."
Maybe it was because the assessnt was over and the job was successfully completed, but the once-serious examiner had now relaxed a little.
After all, they were colleagues. There might co a ti when they’d need each other's help.
No one wanted to be pointlessly standoffish and end up making random enemies.
Well, except for the occasional fool lacking in social awareness.
So people existed solely to remind you of the vast diversity of life.
Especially after entering the workforce.
You really would encounter all sorts of inexplicable creatures.
Natsu considered himself lucky.
He had yet to et such people.
Partly because he lived in a semi-reclusive state.
Most of his interactions were with Pokémon.
The other reason? His strength.
When he encountered such people, he had plenty of ways to make them shut up.
Like physics.
Physics.
And more physics.
If a problem couldn’t be solved, then solving the person who raised it was always the quickest thod.
After seeing off the assessnt team, Natsu returned to the now-empty gym.
At the mont, only Natsu, Slowking, and w were allowed inside.
All other Pokémon were currently banned from entering.
Like a certain Corviknight.
There were plenty of reasons—just imagine what would happen if a large, Husky-like bird got loose on a construction site.
Either it would get itself trapped in so bizarre way, or it would turn the place into a disaster zone.
The sheer chaos would be physically and emotionally overwhelming.
“w~”
A small, pink feline suddenly darted out from Natsu’s pocket.
Don’t ask how it managed to fit in there.
So things about Pokémon were best left unexamined.
"w!"
Looking at the now spotlessly clean battle arena, w’s eyes narrowed with delight.
With this, soon enough, I’ll be the Gym Leader!
This was a first for w.
It was kind of exciting.
"Well then, I’ll be counting on you, Gym Leader w."
Seeing w’s excitent, Natsu chuckled and patted its small head.
w’s head was incredibly smooth to the touch.
Smoother than any silk Natsu had ever felt.
w, long accustod to being petted by Natsu, even rubbed against his hand affectionately.
"w!"
Leave it to !
Puffing out its tiny chest, w declared with confidence.
"Then go ahead and pick out the team that will handle challengers at the gym."
"Let know when you’ve made your choice."
Right now, Natsu resembled a certain kind of supervisor—the kind that delegated work to subordinates.
Here’s an important task. You handle it. When it’s done, report back to .
But since w had never experienced the human workplace, it didn’t find anything odd about this arrangent.
Receiving its assignnt, w gave a comically serious salute before darting off to recruit its very own w Guard.
In w’s eyes, as the acting Gym Leader, those challengers were basically invaders.
If they wanted to fight w, then those battling for w were its personal guard.
If other Legendary Pokémon had elite squads, why shouldn’t w?
And they had to be cool!
Brimming with anticipation, w zipped out through the window.
It already had a few candidates in mind.
"Toki?"
Just as w flew out the window, Togepi, who had just entered the gym, tilted its head in confusion.
What was w up to, looking so excited?
Togepi wasn’t happy.
Back in the day, the Mischief Squad ruled the farm.
It, Zorua, and Hisuian Zorua were the undisputed troublemakers.
Even passing Mightyena wouldn’t escape their pranks.
But over ti, everyone got busy with their own things.
The so-called squad naturally fell apart.
Now, Togepi was the only one still committed to mischief.
Maybe this was what growing up ant—people quietly slipping out of your life.
Maybe every farewell was the last ti you’d see soone.
Everyone had their own circles, their own lives. They were doing well, just... no longer eting.
This was normal for adults.
But for the still-young Togepi, it was a little sad and hard to understand.
Watching w disappear without looking back, Togepi pouted, looking dejected.
The usually cheerful little face showed no sign of its usual joy.
"What’s wrong, Togepi?"
Noticing its gloom, Natsu scooped Togepi up from the ground.
Like soothing a child, he gently cradled it in his arms, murmuring softly.
"Toki..."
The Togepi in Natsu’s embrace looked utterly dejected, muttering in a low voice as it complained to him about the mischief of w and the Hisuian Zorua.
To a child, this was nothing short of betrayal.
But at the sa ti, for w and Hisuian Zorua, who still had the temperant of children, they probably didn’t understand why Togepi was upset.
They hadn’t done anything wrong, had they?
Gently rubbing the tiny spike on Togepi’s head, Natsu pondered how to console it.
This, too, was part of a trainer’s responsibility.
For Pokémon, their lives changed completely after being captured by a human trainer.
Their entire existence beca tied to that trainer.
And a trainer’s duty wasn’t just about commanding Pokémon in battle.
Daily interactions, emotional support—these were all things a trainer had to consider.
In so ways, it was a bit like being a parent.
Many children of powerful trainers grew up to be outstanding individuals.
Was it because of genetics?
Maybe. But Natsu believed it was more because they were naturally experienced in "raising kids."
You get better at it with practice.
And if you’ve raised so many Pokémon, well...
"Alright, alright, don’t be sad."
"To w and the others, you’re still their good friend."
"It’s just that lately, everyone has been busy with their own things."
"Hisuian Zorua is working hard to get stronger."
"w has been eagerly anticipating the new Gym."
"Now that the Gym is finally completed, of course, it’s going to be on w’s mind. It wasn’t ignoring you on purpose."
"Toki Toki!"
"Mm... This is actually pretty normal."
"A lot of childhood friends drift apart as they grow up, sotis not seeing each other for a long, long ti. But that doesn’t an their friendship disappears."
"It’s like how a Kangaskhan baby eventually leaves its mother’s pouch."
"It’s sothing unavoidable—separation and reunion are always happening."
Natsu believed that when comforting a child, just offering reassurance wasn’t enough.
Children wouldn’t really listen.
The only way was to throw so grand, profound truth at them—sothing vague and lofty enough to impress them. That way, their attention would shift to sothing else.
"Toki..."
Sure enough, after hearing Natsu’s words, Togepi lowered its head in thought.
Children weren’t stupid. They just didn’t have a deep or comprehensive understanding of the world yet.
After a mont of contemplation, Togepi lifted its head to look at Natsu.
"Toki?"
Will I have to part ways with you too?
Togepi’s big eyes stared up at Natsu.
"Ah, well..."
Caught off guard by the sudden question, Natsu hesitated, unsure of how to respond.
That’s how it was when talking to children.
Sotis, they’d co up with a question that was incredibly difficult to answer.
Seeing Togepi’s curious gaze, Natsu didn’t answer directly.
"Do you want to be separated from ?"
"Toki."
No.
To Togepi, the first thing it saw upon hatching was Natsu.
The Pokémon on the farm were its friends.
And since it had never left the farm, to Togepi, this farm was its entire world.
It believed that everyone would always be here, that they would always play together like this.
But... maybe that wasn’t the case.
A child’s heart is sensitive and perceptive.
They often notice things that adults overlook.
Maybe it’s because adults beco numb to these things, or maybe it’s just that children have an endless curiosity about the world.
"Then we won’t be separated."
Smiling, Natsu gently patted Togepi’s head.
Honestly, the little spikes made it feel a bit ticklish.
Togepi tilted its head, as if contemplating Natsu’s words.
It glanced up at him, then over at the window.
As if suddenly realizing sothing, it threw itself into Natsu’s arms and rubbed against him excitedly.
"Toki Toki!"
Like a cat being affectionate, Togepi burrowed against him.
"That tickles, Togepi."
Natsu pretended to struggle against it.
Kids—sotis you just had to play along.
But just as he spoke, a sudden white light enveloped Togepi.
Within the glow, its small body gradually stretched and grew.
"Wait, is it evolving?"
Holding Togepi in his hands, Natsu was montarily stunned.
That was... a bit sudden.
But on second thought, Togepi didn’t require any special items to evolve.
All it needed was enough friendship and affection.
And from the mont it hatched, it had been with Natsu.
They were always together.
So its friendship level must have been maxed out long ago.
Evolving now wasn’t strange at all.
So Pokémon could evolve but delayed doing so—not because they lacked strength or conditions, but simply because there was sothing in their heart they hadn’t figured out yet.
Togepi had loved its current life—running around with its friends every day, playing without a care.
It had seed like things would always stay the sa.
That nothing would change, and that it didn’t want them to change.
But watching its friends, one by one, find their own paths...
The little mischief squad was down to just one mber.
Togepi realized that life wasn’t static.
Things changed—whether it was friends, or sothing else.
Even Natsu would go out to take care of his own affairs.
"Toki..."
Inside the glow, Togepi could feel its heart pounding wildly.
Its once soft, childlike voice beca clear and lodious.
Like the difference between a child and a young girl.
When the light faded, the one standing there was no longer Togepi.
It was now Togetic.
Gone was the tiny yellow figure wrapped in an eggshell.
Togetic’s body was now white, adorned with red and blue triangular markings.
Its neck and legs were longer, and a pair of small wings had sprouted from its back.
Those wings seed more decorative than functional.
They were just too small—it was hard to imagine them supporting Togetic in flight.
But in reality, Togetic could float effortlessly without even flapping them.
It was said that Togetic brought happiness, traveling the world in search of kindhearted souls to bless.
"Toki!"
Its first call as a Togetic rang out joyfully—
As if announcing its arrival to the world.
And the first thing it did after evolving was throw its tiny arms around Natsu and start rubbing against him again.
Despite evolving, Togetic hadn’t changed all that much.
At least, not in personality.
"Congratulations on evolving, Togetic."
Feeling the affectionate nuzzling, Natsu couldn’t help but smile.
No matter how many tis he saw it, evolution was always exciting.
As if rembering sothing, Togetic stopped rubbing against him and started rummaging through its feathers.
Then, it pulled out a pristine, gleaming white feather and offered it to Natsu.
"This is for ?"
Surprised, Natsu took the feather.
A lot of Pokémon seed to have a habit of giving trainers sothing from their own bodies as a gift.
Like Togetic.
According to what he rembered, Togetic would scatter shimring "Happiness Dust" over those with pure hearts and gentle souls.
Togetic nodded enthusiastically, then promptly dove back into Natsu’s arms, rubbing against him all over again.
"Alright, alright."
Looking at the shimring feather in his hand, Natsu couldn’t help but let out a wry smile.
He’d had this question for a long ti.
For a Pokémon like Togetic, which had a habit of plucking its own feathers, it was fine if it only t one or two kindhearted people.
But if it t too many… wouldn’t it end up bald?
Natsu was genuinely curious about this.
His gaze shifted to the Togetic in his arms, whose expression was teetering on the edge of losing control—almost like a cat high on catnip.
Natsu silently reached under its arms, lifted it up, and set it down on the ground.
“Toki?”
Togetic tilted its head in confusion.
Why wasn’t Natsu cuddling with it?
Did the feather only buy it a limited amount of cuddle ti?
Feeling like it had figured things out, Togetic turned its head and was about to pluck a few more feathers from itself.
It couldn’t be helped—Natsu was just too comfortable.
Before evolving, it never really noticed, but ever since evolving, being near Natsu felt as soothing as soaking in a hot spring.
Maybe it was because evolution had enhanced its ability to perceive things it couldn’t sense before.
Either way, Togetic had beco extrely clingy toward Natsu.
“Hey, no, no, no—stop that, Togetic.”
“You already gave one.”
Natsu hurriedly stopped Togetic, who was in the middle of selecting a suitable feather.
This kid’s thought process was… a little strange, wasn’t it?
Why was it acting just like i?
“Toki?”
Stopped mid-action, Togetic obediently froze, staring at Natsu with pure, expectant eyes.
It looked like it was waiting for sothing.
Under Togetic’s hopeful gaze, Natsu finally gave in with a sigh.
“Alright, fine.”
Spreading his arms open, he signaled, Go ahead.
Togetic’s eyes lit up instantly, and without hesitation, it dove headfirst into Natsu’s arms, initiating its grand "Absorb-Natsu" operation.
If things got any more intense, this scene might not even be suitable for broadcast.
After so tussling, Togetic finally cald down.
It now floated quietly beside Natsu.
At tis like this, it still looked adorable.
Probably.
Natsu suddenly recalled that just a few minutes ago, he had been thinking—
Even though Togetic had evolved, its personality hadn’t changed much.
Now, looking at it… he might’ve been wrong.
“Alright, let’s head ho first.”
“Then later, we’ll prepare dinner.”
“Toki.”
“You want to help too? Sure, but don’t cause trouble, okay?”
“Toki Toki!!”
“Yes, yes, our Togetic is a big kid now, it won’t make a ss.”
“Toki~”
Floating beside Natsu, Togetic lifted its head proudly.
It looked absolutely delighted.
Seeing Togetic’s adorable expression, Natsu couldn’t resist reaching out and ruffling its head.
You were the one clinging to earlier, now it’s my turn!
With playful banter, the trainer and Pokémon made their way ho.
—
Elsewhere, Slowking, who had been spacing out, slowly turned its gaze toward the small booklet nestled in the dip of its “crown.”
A minute ago, w had zipped through the air at high speed, dropping a booklet into Slowking’s “bowl” before disappearing without a trace.
It had only left behind one ssage—Natsu said to have you look this over.
Slowking, deeply unsettled, took a full minute to process the situation before reacting.
Silently, it picked up the booklet and placed its crown back onto its head.
Feeling its intelligence return to normal levels, Slowking took a deep breath and opened the booklet.
After flipping through a few pages, it snapped the so-called Beginner Gym Leader Guidelines shut with a loud smack.
Its face was filled with pain.
I seriously can’t handle this kind of stuff.
I’m just an ordinary Pokémon. This is way too cruel for .
I need to report this—this is Pokémon abuse!!
Holding its face in its hands, Slowking was seriously contemplating what it would need to prepare if it decided to run away.
If worst ca to worst, maybe it should just go back to being a wild Pokémon.
At least then, it wouldn’t have to deal with all these human-written manuals.
There was once a ti when Slowking had been suprely confident in its intelligence—maybe not the world’s smartest, but certainly not too far off.
But ever since Natsu started throwing stacks of docunts and booklets at it, Slowking had begun to question whether it was actually an idiot.
It was painful.
It was pure suffering.
With a long sigh, Slowking flipped open the booklet and began reading it properly.
As it did, it reached into Shellder and pulled out a pencil, preparing to take notes.
anwhile, w had already started assembling its w Guard Squad.
Without much hesitation, it turned to its little buddy—Hisuian Zorua.
“Suo?”
Hisuian Zorua, who had been in the middle of training, looked utterly confused.
Huh?
Go guard the gym?
?
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