Chapter 319: Arrival in Hisui

Chapter 319: Arrival in Hisui

"Flaaffy, use Thunderbolt!"

At Asahi's command, Flaaffy crackled with electricity, its fluffy neck fur swelling before releasing a powerful Thunderbolt at the opposing Kadabra.

Kadabra winced in pain but gritted its teeth, raising its spoon to retaliate with a decisive counterattack.

However…

"Volt Switch!"

Flaaffy transformed into a surge of electricity, striking Kadabra before vanishing in a flash of light, returning to its Poké Ball.

In its place, Slowbro emerged onto the field.

Kadabra's attack, meant for Flaaffy, instead landed squarely on Slowbro.

Yet, Slowbro merely scratched its head—completely unfazed.

Kadabra, seeing its attack achieve nothing, began questioning its entire existence.

Seizing the opening, Slowbro's eyes flashed with determination as it struck the already-weakened Kadabra with a decisive blow—

Zen Headbutt!

Despite its usual sluggishness, Slowbro suddenly moved with surprising agility, leaping forward and smashing its head into Kadabra's abdomen.

Caught off guard, Kadabra was sent flying and collapsed, completely knocked out.

Slowbro stood triumphantly—only to suddenly clutch its head in pain, tears welling up in its eyes.

"..."

Asahi sighed. Seriously? You just now felt that?

---

After the intense battle…

"Asahi, it's rare to see you working this hard," Sabrina remarked.

Something about the way she said it didn't sit right with Asahi. "What do you mean by 'rare to see me working hard'? Are you saying I don't usually put in effort?"

Sabrina remained silent.

Do you really not realize?

When he wasn't out on missions, Asahi was either lounging on the couch watching livestreams while petting Eevee or goofing around with Mew and Gardevoir. The only time he seriously trained was when he was coaching Gary.

Asahi seemed to recall his own habits…

Okay, maybe he had been a little lax.

But then he immediately shook his head.

No, no—he wasn't going to let Sabrina gaslight him. He had taken down so many evil organizations; was it so wrong for him to enjoy some leisure time?

Of course, preparing for the World Championships was a different matter entirely.

After a training session with Sabrina, Asahi felt like the intensity wasn't quite enough. If he was aiming for the championship title, he needed stronger opponents.

Sitting in the living room, he pondered for a moment before pulling out his phone.

A golden icon on the screen caught his eye.

He hesitated.

"…Should I try it?"

"Asahi, try what?"

Zinnia suddenly appeared behind him, clapping a hand on his shoulder.

Startled by her unexpected approach, Asahi's finger reflexively pressed down on the icon.

[Oh no…]

A golden rift opened beneath his feet, instantly swallowing both him and Zinnia.

From across the room, Yellow—who had just entered carrying a bag of berries—watched the entire scene unfold. The berries slipped from her hands, scattering across the floor.

It took her a moment to process what she had just witnessed before she panicked and ran to find help.

"Something's wrong! Asahi and Zinnia just disappeared!"

...

Engulfed by the golden rift, Asahi felt like he had been tossed into a giant washing machine.

In his daze, he caught a glimpse of a golden figure watching him.

He had a strange feeling—was it just his imagination, or was that figure enjoying the show?

Before he could focus, he felt something latch onto him.

Like an octopus, Zinnia clung to him tightly, screaming like a distressed Diglett.

"Will you shut up and let go?! I'm suffocating here!"

As the chaotic descent continued, the surroundings abruptly changed.

THUD!

Asahi landed on soft grass, only for Zinnia—who had already blacked out—to crash directly on top of him.

Two consecutive blows.

"…!"

Asahi could only be grateful that he was the one she landed on—anyone else might have been half-dead by now.

His Mewtwo cells activated, allowing him to lift Zinnia off him telekinetically. Finally free, he took a moment to survey his surroundings.

A beach on one side, grasslands on the other, and in the distance… a small village of wooden houses.

Had he really arrived in Hisui?

Although he had intended to come here, he hadn't expected it to happen like this.

Checking his phone, he saw that the golden icon had turned gray. A progress bar beneath it suggested that he would need to wait before using the travel function again.

Examining his Pokémon lineup…

No Mew. No Eevee—probably still partying back home.

His team consisted of Gardevoir, his item-storing Gengar, Salamence from his morning training, Slowbro, Flaaffy, and… his recently captured Psyduck.

Seeing this roster, Asahi relaxed.

No matter what happened, as long as Gardevoir was by his side, there was nothing to fear.

Just then, a desperate voice rang out nearby.

"Stop running!"

Looking up, Asahi spotted a man—wearing a purple beanie, looking more like a miner than a Pokémon Professor—standing in a field, completely flustered.

Not far from him, Oshawott, Cyndaquil, and Rowlet were happily playing, ignoring his frantic calls.

The sight gave Asahi a strange sense of déjà vu.

This really is the beginning of a new journey, huh?

...

Kanto Branch

At Yellow's panicked shout, Green and Sabrina rushed to the scene.

"You're saying Asahi just disappeared all of a sudden?" Sabrina asked.

Yellow nodded frantically.

Then, Yellow recounted everything that had happened here to Asahi.

After listening to the recap, Green turned to her and asked, "Sabrina, do you have any leads?"

Sabrina looked equally puzzled.

The training grounds showed no signs of a battle. Who could've quietly taken Asahi and Zinnia away without alarming Dialga or Palkia?

Even Giovanni probably couldn't pull that off…

After thinking for a long time, the only conclusion Sabrina could reach was that this might have been something Asahi orchestrated himself.

But if Asahi did this himself…

Why was he completely unreachable?

After another failed call, which still played the "out of service area" message, Green took Mew and went to find Dialga and Palkia, who were sunbathing on the lawn of the estate, to ask if they knew where Asahi had gone.

Dialga and Palkia exchanged glances.

[Dialga]: Don't worry, Asahi isn't in danger. If nothing goes wrong, he should be back soon.

[Palkia]: That's right!

Seeing these two act all mysterious and cryptic, as if they knew but didn't want to say, Green felt a little more at ease.

At least Asahi was safe.

Once the anxiety faded, it was replaced by confusion.

"Just where did Asahi go?"

...

Where was Asahi?

Asahi was currently in Jubilife Village.

With Professor Laventon vouching for him, Asahi and Zinnia were granted entry into the village.

Walking through Jubilife Village, Asahi curiously observed the buildings and local customs, occasionally pulling out his phone to snap a few photos.

Asahi believed that once he returned, all this information would become key academic material for Pokémon historians studying ancient Sinnoh!

In front of him, Professor Laventon, wearing a purple knit cap that made him look nothing like a Pokémon Professor, was enthusiastically introducing Asahi to the village.

"This is Jubilife Village, a settlement formed by migrants from various regions…"

"That's the pasture, where Pokémon are kept… This is the farm, where we grow food to sustain the village."

"That's the barbershop…"

"…the photography studio…"

"And again, thank you so much! If it weren't for you, those three little ones would've probably run off!" Professor Laventon said gratefully.

Asahi just smiled. "It was nothing."

"Hahaha, you're such a nice guy…"

Professor Laventon scratched his head sheepishly.

Meanwhile, Zinnia was completely stunned by her surroundings.

Ancient architecture, people wearing traditional clothes, and such a primitive lifestyle…

It was exactly like the ancient people described in the records of the Draconids.

"Are we on a movie set or something? Asahi, where did you find such a professional film crew?"

"Movie set? Film crew?" Professor Laventon looked confused.

Asahi quickly covered Zinnia's mouth. "Don't mind her, she has a condition called Delusional Syndrome. Says strange things all the time."

"Just ignore her."

"Delusional Syndrome? That's a real illness?" Professor Laventon looked at Zinnia with pity. "Poor girl, so young and already suffering like this…"

"I—" Zinnia wanted to argue.

But seeing Asahi's look, she swallowed her words.

Fine, I won't say anything! No need to glare like that!

But seriously… what the heck is this place?

After carefully observing the surroundings, Zinnia came to a shocking realization—

This didn't look like a movie set. It looked… real.

Just then, Professor Laventon stopped walking.

"We're here. This is the headquarters of Team Galactic, the organization that manages Jubilife Village! If you're planning to stay here long-term, you'll need the approval of their current leader—Commander Cyllene."

Team Galactic headquarters? Didn't Asahi defeat Team Galactic?

Wait—did they get revived?

Zinnia instinctively wanted to speak up, but remembering Asahi's warning and the strange circumstances, she decided to hold it in and ask him later in private.

Asahi was a little surprised she didn't blurt anything out. He hadn't expected her to actually stay quiet.

Well, that saved him the trouble of smoothing things over.

Led by Professor Laventon, the two entered the headquarters of Team Galactic, where they met their target—Commander Cyllene.

After thousands of years, standing face-to-face with another Team Galactic leader again gave Asahi a strange feeling.

Honestly, he had the urge to throw this commander into jail too—let her keep Cyrus company.

But of course, Asahi knew that this Commander Cyllene was actually a good person, so he suppressed the thought.

"Nice to meet you, Commander Cyllene. I'm Asahi, just a traveler… and this is my companion, Zinnia." Asahi smiled.

Zinnia, who had fully expected Asahi to arrest the Team Galactic commander on the spot, was dumbfounded.

Wait… what? This is Asahi, right?

Maybe he's pretending to be friendly to trap them all in one go?

Yeah, that must be it!

Asahi had no idea about the nonsense going on in Zinnia's head.

After Asahi showed goodwill, Cyllene gave him a scrutinizing look.

Her gaze paused for a few seconds on the strange clothes both Asahi and Zinnia wore.

Eventually, she didn't sense any ill intent from Asahi and retracted her probing look.

"Jubilife Village is built by immigrants from all over. Since you helped Professor Laventon, as long as you follow the village's rules, you're welcome to stay."

"Thank you for your trust, Commander Cyllene." Asahi replied with a smile.

Cyllene nodded, then her tone shifted. "Well then, young man full of energy—how about a spar?"

…

After leaving Team Galactic Headquarters

Professor Laventon still looked stunned.

"I've never seen anyone beat Commander Cyllene in sumo before…"

He glanced at Asahi's relatively slim figure. If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he would never believe this lean young man could win against Commander Cyllene in sumo.

"I was just born strong, I guess…" Asahi said modestly.

Professor Laventon looked envious.

But soon his focus shifted.

"You probably haven't found a place to stay yet, right? There are still a few vacant houses in the village. I can help you rent one for now."

Asahi thought for a moment, then raised a hand.

To Professor Laventon's surprise, a Gengar popped out of Asahi's shadow, gave him a cheeky face, and hovered in the air.

Asahi reached into Gengar's belly, rummaged around a bit, and pulled out two Evolution Stones.

"I don't have any money on me at the moment, so I'll use these to cover rent for now…"

"Evolution Stones?! These are way too valuable…"

Professor Laventon was taken aback. In a dangerous region like Jubilife Village, anything that could enhance strength—like Evolution Stones—was incredibly precious.