Pokemon: Spiritual Master

"Ka-kaah?"

Am I brave or what?

At Poni Canyon, Gengar was leading Spectrier around, showing off in front of Pikachu, its chubby butt wiggling uncontrollably.

"Pika..."

With Johan's help, Pikachu had finally recovered and looked at Gengar's smug appearance, really wanting to shock its butt a couple of times.

But its mind couldn't help replaying the scene from earlier.

Johan and Gengar, in the Alola region with the help of the four Island Guardians, had transformed the bond power between Johan and Gengar into an exclusive Z-Crystal just for them.

At that time, Gengar not only had Bond Evolution's enhancement but also Spectrier's assistance, plus the exclusive Z-Move—when everything was activated, the power was...

Pikachu and Red had also used their exclusive Z-Move.

But in the end, darkness still swallowed everything.

Not only couldn't it withstand it, but it was directly one-shotted by Gengar.

Even when facing legendary Pokémon before, Pikachu had never felt Gengar was this powerful.

"Pika?"

Pikachu sat up and tilted its head questioningly.

What was that move of yours called?

What was it called?

"Ka-kah..."

Gengar scratched its butt and struck a thoughtful pose.

Right.

That move was so cool and so strong—what should it be called?

"Ka-kaah!"

Gengar pounded fist into palm, a lightbulb appearing over its head.

Got it!

It'll be called—

Great Dark Sky Gengar Spiral Black Hole!

Pikachu: "..."

Red: "..."

Johan: "..."

Smack—

Johan irritably smacked the back of Gengar's head. "Your naming is even worse than mine!"

Spiral Flash Super Ring Moon Dance?

Gengar's mind flashed to the scene of Johan naming Ninetales' exclusive Z-Move.

On second thought—

That works too.

"Ka-kah~"

Then let's call it Spiral Flash Gengar Great Dark Sky!

Black lines appeared over Johan's head.

Why did he feel nothing when naming moves himself, but hearing Gengar name things made him... want to dig a hole in the ground with his toes?

"Teacher Johan."

Red changed the subject with a smile: "I'm really happy I got to battle you."

Although he lost.

But for Red, winning and losing were common occurrences. Though as his strength improved, he lost less often...

But losing helped him better examine his shortcomings.

"Luck, just luck." Johan said modestly.

Red adjusted his cap and shook his head. "Luck is part of strength too."

With that, he straightened his cap, clenched his fists, and said seriously:

"But regardless, Pikachu, Venusaur, and I will definitely win it back!"

Johan broke out in a cold sweat.

Please don't...

But Red still had to return to his own world, so in the future, he probably wouldn't encounter Johan again.

So Johan immediately nodded with matching determination:

"Good! I'll be waiting!"

Hearing this, Red smiled happily.

This battle had really satisfied him—it had been so long since he'd fought this satisfyingly.

"Teacher Johan is awesome!!" Flint rushed over.

"Did you win?" Cynthia walked to Johan's side.

"Mm." Johan nodded slightly.

Red's overall strength was stronger than his—this was undeniable. However...

His Gengar and Ninetales had higher upper limits than Red's Pokémon.

In the end, Pikachu couldn't Mega Evolve, and Red's Pokémon like Venusaur, Poliwrath, and Aerodactyl were all type-disadvantaged against Ninetales—this was a very important factor.

Moreover—

Mega Gengar paired with Spectrier was pure cheating, strongly defeating Red's Mega Venusaur and Pikachu in succession—this was something Johan hadn't anticipated at the beginning.

Now it seemed—

Wild battle rules were more suitable for him.

"Continue special training with me when we get back?" Cynthia said softly.

"Huh?" Johan was stunned.

His gaze swept over Cynthia, Steven, Lance, and the others, and Johan understood.

After watching his battle with Red, these competitive people must have been deeply affected...

But it didn't matter.

Anyway, after returning this time, he would retire.

In the future—

He'd bid farewell to battles and competitions above "Baby Cup" level.

Johan grasped Cynthia's hand, expressing his intention.

"It's just that this place was damaged quite severely." Red looked around somewhat embarrassedly—it could no longer be described as "in ruins."

It could almost be said that the topography of this area had been changed.

Johan smiled slightly.

"That's simple."

Then he called: "Giratina."

"Bwooo?"

The "Renegade Dragon" Giratina flew over while chewing.

What's up?

"Help me call your two 'brothers' over. Tell them I'm treating them to a meal."

Brothers?

Giratina understood and immediately opened a void connecting to the "Distortion World."

At the same time, the void opened from the other end of the "Distortion World."

"Bwooo!!"

Johan's calling you for dinner!!

Dialga and Palkia, who were roaming through space-time, initially showed wariness when seeing the opened "Distortion World," but upon hearing Giratina's words, they immediately flew into the "Distortion World" without hesitation.

"Roar—"

"Roar?"

Soon, the Dragon of Time Dialga and the Dragon of Space Palkia arrived at Poni Canyon.

"Dialga and Palkia?"

Seeing the appearance of the Temporal and Spatial duo, Red's gaze swept over the group of legendary Pokémon from before...

"Teacher Johan, are there any legendary Pokémon you can't call over?" Red opened his mouth and finally asked.

"There are." Johan waved to the Temporal and Spatial duo while saying: "Like Yveltal—I can't call it over."

"That's it?" Red had been waiting for Johan to continue, but...

Just one Yveltal?

"Emmmm..." Johan pondered slightly.

If he really counted, he couldn't call Eternatus over either.

But as Dialga and Palkia had arrived, he didn't continue explaining, just saying:

"Dialga, Palkia, please restore this place."

The Temporal and Spatial duo were only useful at times like this.

"Roar—"

Special Chapter, Pokémon World

"Phew—"

Walking out of the space-time passage and returning to his original world, Red exhaled deeply.

Looking at Silver Mountain, which hadn't changed much, Red suddenly felt as if he'd had a dream.

But the obviously oversized sunglasses on Pikachu's face undoubtedly proved it wasn't a dream.

"Teacher Johan..." Red murmured softly.

Then his eyes became determined.

Since he could go to another Pokémon world once, there would definitely be a second time!

But before then, he had to work even harder!

Red, who had been somewhat confused before, now found a new goal and direction.

"Red!"

Just then, a familiar voice came.

Looking toward the sound—

It was Green, descending from the sky on Charizard!

"Green!" Red smiled and waved to his best friend and rival.

Green landed with Charizard, somewhat puzzled:

"What were you muttering to yourself about?"

"Nothing." Red smiled: "Nothing at all. Why did you come?"

"Yellow's birthday—you definitely forgot, didn't you?" Green said irritably.

Hearing this, Red was stunned.

It really seemed like...

Green was quite speechless about this.

Who exactly was looking for a girlfriend here?

He was acting like a nanny, having to personally make this trip to remind him?

"Why didn't you call?"

"Couldn't get through." Speaking of this, Green became even more speechless.

If the phone had connected, would he need to come to Silver Mountain?

He was only worried that Red had encountered some danger or mishap in Silver Mountain, so he rushed over anxiously...

Green felt even more like a nanny.

"I see..." Red scratched his head embarrassedly and laughed sheepishly.

But Red quickly collected his thoughts and took out a Poké Ball: "Green, want to have a battle before we leave?"

Hearing this, Green was stunned.

But seeing Red's enthusiastic fighting spirit, he gradually smiled too.

"Sure!"

With that, he immediately threw out a Poké Ball to take the initiative.

"Arcanine!"

Red also immediately opened the Poké Ball in his hand: "Saur!"

Before long, intense collision sounds echoed throughout the vast Silver Mountain, along with Green's shocked voice.

"Who taught you to use Mega Evolution and Z-Moves together?!"

Seven days after the "Pokémon World Master Tournament" ended.

Hoenn region, central island, beside the pond.

"Please just be human..."

Johan, who was brushing Ceruledge's teeth with a shoe brush, looked toward the several people under the big tree nearby with eyes full of "resentment."

Under the lush tree shade, at a neatly arranged picnic table, Elite Four Glacia remained unmoved by Johan's words, just tasting freshly baked cake with Cynthia.

"Mm!" After taking a spoonful, Glacia's eyes immediately brightened as she looked at Cynthia with some surprise.

Seeing this, Cynthia first gave Johan a pitying and teasing glance, then looked at Glacia and smiled:

"I heard it's cream that Alcremie and Mewtwo recently concocted together. It hasn't been released yet—they let us taste-test it first."

"Delicious!" Glacia said without hesitation.

"Yi, yi-mai!"

Hearing this, the Alcremie on the table showed an embarrassed expression.

Cynthia gave it a gentle look, then scooped up some cake. Ninetales lying beside her gently ate it, and Glaceon immediately indicated it wanted some too.

"Okay~"

At the picnic table, Gengar, Tyranitar, Flint, and Elite Four Phoebe—two Pokémon and two trainers—sat on the ground playing an exciting game of Pokémon poker!

Gengar, with four or five white strips on its face, slapped down two Groudon.

A pair of Groudon!

"Ka-kaah?"

Gengar twisted its mouth and raised an eyebrow at Tyranitar, Flint, and Phoebe.

Want them or not?

I'm down to one card!

"Tar..." Tyranitar reached out to push aside the several strips of paper almost covering its entire face, looking at its hand with a "subway grandpa looking at phone" expression.

Two Caterpie, one Weedle, one Oddish, one...

What's the point of playing this?

"Pass." Flint, whose quantity was second only to Tyranitar, glanced at his hand through the gaps between the strips and decisively shook his head.

"Um... can these two work?" Phoebe, whose face was completely clean, asked cautiously, carefully taking out two cards.

A pair of Rayquaza!

"Ka-kaah!"

Gengar was furious.

Pass!

"Can I play these together?"

With that, Phoebe took out several more cards: Eevee, Vaporeon, Flareon, Jolteon...

Straight flush!

Hand cleared.

Tyranitar and Flint, the two with the most remaining cards, got another white strip added to their faces.

"Tar..."

You could only hear Tyranitar's voice now, not see its face.

Flint took a deep breath and looked at Phoebe seriously: "Phoebe, is this really your first time playing?"

"Yes." Phoebe blinked her pure eyes.

Flint: "..."

Really, whether it's cards or mahjong, never play with beginners...

This "beginner's protection period" is too damn terrifying.

Whoever plays knows—one play and you're speechless.

Elite Four Sidney, lying on the grass in the shade, heard their commotion, sat up halfway, yawned, and looked at Flint with considerable pity:

"Now you know why I stopped playing? Sleeping is more comfortable..."

With that, he put his hands behind his head and lay back down.

"Hahahaha—"

From the other side of the pond came Drake's hearty laughter: "Got a bite, got a bite! This is a big one! This is a big one! This time it's definitely big!"

While speaking, he pulled his rod up forcefully.

A Magikarp drew a beautiful arc through the air, landing in front of Drake, then...

The Magikarp's tail "slap-slap-slapped" across the old man's cheek, then with another Splash, jumped back into the pond, even turning back to look at the dumbfounded Drake provokingly and blowing two bubbles.

Drake: "..."

Seeing this, Dragonite nearby, with slightly swollen cheeks, laughed and slapped its belly.

So funny!

A water spout shot from the pond toward Dragonite, spraying it in the face, and Dragonite's laughter stopped abruptly.

"Hahahaha—" Drake laughed, pointing at Dragonite—a classic case of the pot calling the kettle black.

Johan took in all these scenes.

He took a deep breath: "Fine, I can understand them acting like this, but why are you joining in the fun too?"

Nearby—

Steven was crouching next to Calyrex with a small brush and trowel, carefully cleaning the dust from Calyrex's body as if studying ruins and fossils.

Hearing Johan's words, Steven looked somewhat embarrassed.

"Well... teacher..."

After pausing, he seemed to remember why he'd come here, and said quietly: "Teacher, we need to stick together—didn't you say that yourself..."

Johan looked up.

These guys had gathered on his island looking like they were on vacation purely because he had resigned as Champion but didn't want to take the Hoenn League President position.

Just think about it—Hoenn region's Elite Four: Drake, Glacia, Sidney, Phoebe, and Steven were all here, which meant the Hoenn League headquarters was essentially completely without leadership and about to descend into chaos.

So—

Rotom Dex's incoming calls had hardly stopped—all from the League.

He "threw down the gauntlet," so they all "threw down the gauntlet," seeing who would give in first.

The result was obvious.

In just half a day, Johan couldn't take it anymore.

No choice—

Someone like Elite Four Glacia only got a few days off per year? Finally having a "legitimate" reason to slack off, wouldn't she want to rest properly?

"Alright, alright."

Johan chose to "surrender": "I'll take over, okay?"

"Really?" Steven's face lit up with joy.

Johan, rubbing his temples, glared irritably at his student: "It's all because you guys 'forced' me."

At the same time, he thought to himself: Then don't blame me... I didn't want to give myself such extensive 'reimbursement' authority—you all 'forced' me into this...

"Is it over?" Sidney sat up.

"Congratulations, Teacher Johan!" Phoebe smiled cheerfully.

"That's it?" Drake rubbed his slightly red and swollen face: "I only fished for half a day."

Johan: "..."

"These, these, and these—please pack them all up for me, thanks."

Glacia stood up, pointing at the various cakes.

"Ai~" The female Indeedee immediately began packing.

"I'm leaving!" Glacia waved her hand, returning to her previous stern demeanor.

And she really left?

When several people were actually preparing to leave, Johan felt speechless.

Was this really necessary...

"Latest news, Roto!"

Rotom Dex immediately flew over, displaying the still-hot number one trending topic: "Teacher Johan Resigns as Hoenn League Champion, Takes Over as Hoenn League President!"

Just agreed with the front foot, and it was trending on the back foot...

Elite Four Glacia's preparation was really thorough.

After Drake, Glacia, Phoebe, and Sidney left one by one, Johan looked at Flint: "Why aren't you leaving?"

"Leave? Where to?"

Flint pushed aside the paper strips on his face and asked blankly.

Johan: "..."

You're a Sinnoh region Elite Four member hanging around here every day—isn't that a bit inappropriate?

Most importantly—

Don't you realize you're being a particularly bright "third wheel" right now?

"Sni~~"

Just then—

Serperior, sitting under the "Miracle Berry Tree," suddenly opened its eyes.

Rustle, rustle—

All the leaves on the island began shaking in unison.

The vine patterns on Serperior's body became vivid, and wisps of light green energy gathered from all directions toward Serperior, gradually merging with the vines on its body.

Rustle, rustle—

The Miracle Berry Tree in front of Serperior suddenly began growing rapidly again at a visible speed.

Originally only as tall as a person, in the span of a few blinks, it had already exceeded three meters in height.

And Serperior's aura was also gradually rising...