Ch.136 Three Out of Nine

There's an old saying in the land of flowers—"Only when you raise a child do you understand the kindness of your parents." If you don't personally raise children, you'll never truly understand how hard parents work.

But the students of Tokyo Jujutsu High are an exception.

They aren't married, nor do they have children, yet they've already gained a similar perspective.

On a typical day, they see Akira with a Pangoro on his left, a Darkrai on his right, a Serperior coiled around his neck, an Altaria perched on his chest, and a Gardevoir at his side, effortlessly cutting down gods and demons alike. It all looks so cool and effortless.

But when they actually start raising Pokémon from scratch, they realize that all that coolness and strength are built on daily effort and dedication.

Now, they can somewhat understand why Gardevoir is so attached to Akira. It's because Akira poured time and emotion into raising her, bit by bit.

Forget about training—just the first step of hatching the egg is a significant challenge.

The Akira family is used to it. They can even place eggs between their thighs and abdomen during meals, fearing even a moment of neglect. But the others have never seen anything like this before.

Especially Maki. If she's not careful, she either nearly drops the egg or applies too much force, almost cracking the shell.

This is the first time she's ever been troubled by her own physical strength.

The others aren't as extreme, but they each face their own difficulties, forcing them to get creative.

Inumaki Toge, being small and physically weak, struggles to hold the egg, so he places it on Panda's belly…

Inspired by this, Fushiguro Megumi summons his two Shikigami dogs, "Gyokuken," and has them curl up to form a nest for the egg.

Yuuta wants to follow suit, but seeing Rika's clumsy attempts, he gives up and decides to do it himself.

Fortunately, he has plenty of cursed energy and can simulate various attributes, making it no problem to create a makeshift cursed energy incubator.

Although the issue of mealtime is resolved, everyone's attention is clearly not on the celebration banquet. The scene is bizarre no matter how you look at it.

Gojo Satoru finds this hilarious and laughs uproariously, his arrogance on full display.

Someone can't help but retort, "What are you laughing at? Don't you have an egg to hatch too?"

"I've already hatched mine."

Gojo snaps his fingers smugly.

The Pokémon egg connected to the power source reacts immediately.

Instead of a normal hatching, the egg crackles with electric sparks, forcibly piercing through the shell to reveal a half-red, half-white sphere inside.

It's exactly as Akira predicted—a Voltorb.

To thank Gojo for hatching it, the Voltorb bounces off the ground and smacks Gojo in the face, crackling with yellow electricity, demonstrating what it means to have a "bad temper."

Even though I've just been born and haven't learned any moves yet, I'm still going to electrocute you.

"As expected of my 'Red Hot Chili Pepper.' So explosive. Come on, let's go Ora Ora Jotaro together."

Gojo isn't bothered at all. On the contrary, he's thrilled.

His "Limitless" technique is always active, so no matter how much you electrocute him, it won't hurt him.

Not only does he let you electrocute him, but he also thoughtfully contains the electricity around him. Once you're done, he'll absorb the energy back so it doesn't go to waste.

This level of energy manipulation is unique to him—no one else can do it.

Akira also begins to understand Gojo's training strategy.

So what if you're explosive? I can handle it. Even if you try to self-destruct, I can control your energy before you do.

This is what it truly means to be skilled and bold.

Even if others envy him, they can't replicate it.

"Wait, how did you know charging it would speed up its growth?" Akira, the blind man, spots the key point.

"I saw it." Gojo's sunglasses are still off. "I can see the energy inside every egg. So, do you understand now? My offer still stands."

"Damn it!" Akira can't help but curse. This guy just won't let it go.

The so-called offer, of course, is to call him "the most handsome, strongest, and cutest Gojo-sensei."

Gojo isn't in a hurry, continuing to tempt them: "With my help, you can suffer less."

It has to be said, this tactic hits the soft spot of every Pokémon trainer. Without the full worldview and system to back them up, Gojo's eyes are like the "Armstrong Cyclone Jet Armstrong Cannon."

But letting this guy get his way so easily is something Akira can't accept, and the other students feel the same.

The one who breaks the stalemate is Hayami. She purses her lips and says, "The most handsome, strongest, and cutest Gojo-sensei."

When it comes to self-cultivation, she is undoubtedly the top at Tokyo Jujutsu High. Given her age, Gojo is just a little brother to her, so she's just humoring him.

"Nice~"

Gojo mimics Akira's tongue click, but the next second, he realizes the atmosphere around him has turned hostile. Everyone is glaring at him with unfriendly eyes.

Hayami doesn't mind, but Akira, as her son, can't let it slide, and the others feel the same.

None of the students in this class come from normal families.

Akira, Maki, and Panda go without saying.

Yuuta's parents are alive, but because of Rika's presence, they don't dare communicate much with him.

The only one who's somewhat better off is Inumaki Toge, who, aside from his speech issues, is doing fine.

These children with childhood traumas have found a gentle, kind, and affectionate maternal figure in Hayami, filling the void of missing familial love to varying degrees.

Without realizing it, Hayami has become the students' Achilles' heel.

Dare to bully her? Even if you're Gojo Satoru, they won't believe you.

Realizing the danger, Gojo makes a wise choice: "Hayami-san's Pokémon needs a cold environment. Ice, a refrigerator, anything like that will do. It's a shame it's summer now. If it were winter, it would hatch faster than my 'Red Hot Chili Pepper.'"

"There's a freezer over there. I'll put it in right away," Hayami says, immediately heading off.

Akira, however, is momentarily stunned.

Ice? Shouldn't Vulpix be a Fire-type?

Oh right, the regional variant introduced in the seventh generation.

It turned what should have been a Fire-type fox into an Ice-type, and its personality changed along with its typing, becoming less vengeful than its Fire-type counterpart.

If it's an Ice-type Vulpix, then there's nothing to worry about.

As expected of Hayami's character—utterly trustworthy. Even a genuine Pokémon trainer like Akira feels a bit envious.

The ace of a Hail team, with such an ethereal appearance.

Although the Ice Stone needed for evolution is still nowhere to be found, Vulpix is more than enough for Hayami's temperament, so this is perfect.

Perhaps knowing that messing with Hayami would be dangerous, Gojo offers advice to the others for free after the Vulpix egg is placed in the freezer.

"Yuuta, bury yours in the soil."

"Toge's is the opposite of Hayami-san's—it needs fire."

"Megumi's situation is a bit strange. Shadows? Gas? Cursed energy should work. Just pour in more cursed energy."

"For Shoko, infuse it with Reverse Cursed Technique."

"Akira and Maki, find a pool to soak yours in."

Shoko declines, and Yaga has specific requirements, so the last Pokémon egg returns to Akira. As for the third one, Akira, who has achieved financial freedom, can afford to raise it.

"Now, I declare, hatching time is over. Next up is the era of Pokémon!!!"

[Trainer Meme detected. Meme collection and conversion in progress. New Trainer Template: Professor Oak added.]

Meow meow meow?