"What? That doesn't sound right." Reiji was baffled. "If the Zapdos traits are faint, why would its body still be unable to handle them?"
"You should be glad they're faint. Otherwise, your Zapdos would already be dead." Blaine sighed and explained, "If you had brought it any later, its genes would have collapsed. Legendary Pokémon power is still legendary Pokémon power. The problem is that the body carrying it belongs mostly to an ordinary Fearow line."
"When an ordinary Pokémon and a Legendary Pokémon produce an egg, there are usually three outcomes. The first is simple: none of the Legendary parent's obvious traits show up, and the chick is just an ordinary Fearow."
"The second outcome is your bird. Its Fearow mother was the dominant side, so most of its visible traits came from her. The only thing Zapdos left behind is the electricity inside its body."
"The third outcome is even simpler: the chick is born as a Zapdos. That happens often enough, and those chicks usually have no obvious body defects. The problem is that their survival rate is terrible. Sometimes they're flying through the sky and get struck dead by lightning, leaving nothing behind. Strange as it sounds, mixed birds like yours often live longer."
"Your bird's condition is not hopeless yet. Right now, you have two choices. Remove its electric organ, and the problem goes away. It becomes an ordinary bird Pokémon. Or you find a way to make its body strong enough to handle the electricity."
"You need to decide soon. The electricity is eating into its body. Once it burns through every cell, there won't be a bird left to save."
"So the more Zapdos uses Electric-type moves, the more damage it does to its own body." Reiji felt a chill run through him. No wonder Zapdos had fallen asleep after training began. He had even been feeding it Electric-type Pokéblocks. If its body could not handle the charge, those were not supplements. They were poison.
Then an idea hit him. There might still be a way to save Zapdos.
"If the problem is that its body can't survive releasing electricity, then what if we teach it to adapt to the current inside it?"
"Repeated discharge, healing, discharge, healing. If every cell and every feather learns to carry and store electricity, then absorbing, holding, and releasing power won't tear its body apart anymore. Would that work?"
Blaine thought for a moment, then used an example Reiji knew well. "What you're describing is basically the final form of a Zapdos. Even an ordinary feather on one carries electricity. The Zapdos on Lightning Island in the Orange Archipelago is like that. It can take lightning from the sky directly and not only survive, but absorb it to replenish itself."
Since the idea was possible, Reiji laid out the rest. "Then the lake with the crystal in Johto might work. It can heal Electric-type Pokémon. If Zapdos soaks there while its body repeatedly charges and discharges, could that build up its resistance until its cells adapt to the current?"
"So that's why you're going to Johto. You're looking for that lake with the crystal." Blaine smiled and handed him a map. "That was my idea too. This should get you there. I know you're not going to give up on Zapdos, so go try it."
Reiji stared at the map in his hand. He had been ready to search for the lake from memory, but Blaine had just handed him the route outright. Was this old man secretly his personal walkthrough guide?
"Oh, right. This one is for Blastoise Island." Blaine handed him a second map, the one Reiji had been asking about for ages. "It's a League protected area, so don't lose it. The back has Cinnabar Gym's seal. Show it to the ranger there, and they'll let you land."
"Blaine…" Reiji was genuinely moved. "You're way too good to me."
They were not family. They had only known each other for about 3 months. But Blaine had found a real answer for Zapdos and even given him the route straight to the lake. That map might save him days of searching—and for Zapdos, those days could matter.
He could only hope Zapdos held on until then.
"Hahaha, don't start with that." Blaine laughed and clapped him on the shoulder.
In Blaine's eyes, Reiji had already done far more. Bringing Amber home was a debt he could never properly repay. Giving him Magby, helping with Zapdos—none of it felt like enough.
As long as Amber was alive and back with them, Blaine would have paid any price. Even his own life would have been a fair trade.
This young man had pulled out the thorn that had been buried in his heart for years. He had given an old man the one thing he wanted most near the end of his life. Compared with that, helping with a few small matters was nowhere near enough.
They walked and talked, digging deeper into Zapdos's condition. The longer they discussed it, the more Blaine realized Reiji knew a surprising amount about biology. That was supposed to be a researcher's field; most Trainers did not pay attention to this kind of thing.
What Blaine did not know was that Reiji was mostly drawing on middle school biology from his previous life. He had forgotten plenty, but he still remembered the basics. If he combined that knowledge with proper Pokémon research in this world, he might actually get somewhere.
Then again, many famous scientists—Amber's father, Blaine himself back then—had ended up working for Team Rocket. Reiji decided not to go down that road for now. Strength mattered more. Once he was strong enough, even the League would have to work for him.
When they returned to the Cinnabar Gym guesthouse, Blaine changed shoes at the entrance and sighed. "It's a shame you don't want to become a Pokémon researcher. Your knowledge is a mess, and you jump all over the place, but you do have ideas."
"Don't even start. I'm not becoming a researcher." Reiji rolled his eyes. Even the best, most famous researchers still got squeezed by capitalists like Giovanni, and some of them lost their lives in the end. Who knew whether Amber's father was still alive?
"You're back just in time. Dinner is ready, everyone. Eat while it's hot." Elisia had been busy in the kitchen with Itsuki's mother, and together they had prepared a full table of food. More than a dozen dishes filled the table, all of them fragrant and beautifully made.
"You really do know how to make a woman happy, Rai." Elisia's smile turned sweet. Calling her like she was still a young older sister was obvious flattery, but it worked. "I made all this to thank you for taking care of Amber."
"Haha, don't put it that way. You're making me embarrassed. Itsuki and Tania helped too." Reiji laughed it off, but with everyone looking at him, he suddenly felt a little awkward.
"Tania has done a lot for us too. She's been helping me keep an eye on our little troublemaker." Elisia sighed fondly. Amber was still as energetic as ever, and even when Elisia focused all her attention on her, she could not always keep up.
Thankfully, there were plenty of people here to help. Arcanine stayed close to Amber at all times, and Itsuki's mother, who had raised a child herself, often lent a hand too. That made things much easier.
"Amber's been really good, Elisia," Tania said, a little embarrassed by the praise. Looking after Amber was Agatha's assignment, so she was hardly going to call it hard work.
"Enough, all of you. The food's getting cold. Everyone did their part, so let's eat."
Blaine finally ended the polite back-and-forth, and dinner began.
"Mom, I'm not that naughty. Tania said I was good." Amber puffed up when she noticed everyone laughing, clearly unhappy about being treated like the problem child.
"Haha, Amber's been very good. I'll back her up on that." Reiji smiled and added some food to her bowl. "But good girls need to eat properly if they want to grow taller."
She looked adorable when she was sulking. If they were not at the table, he would have pinched her cheeks again.
"See? Rai-nii said I was good too." Amber ate the meat with a huff, instantly proud now that someone had taken her side.
"Yes, yes. Our Amber is the best." Elisia played along right away. Getting Amber to sit still and eat mattered more than winning the argument. A little praise was cheap, and Elisia knew exactly how to use it.
Everyone at the table understood what she was doing and helped keep the act going. Amber, surrounded by praise, happily lost herself in it and kept eating without making trouble.
That was enough. As long as a child ate properly and did not cause chaos at the table, parents in any world probably felt the same way.
Dinner ended in laughter. Reiji, Tania, Itsuki, Itsuki's mother, Amber, Elisia, and Blaine were all there, making the meal far livelier than Reiji had expected.
After dinner, everyone went to soak in the hot springs. The men's and women's baths were separate, but only by a bamboo screen, so soundproofing might as well not exist. From Reiji's side, he could still hear Amber splashing around with Tania.
In the men's bath, Reiji and Itsuki leaned against opposite sides of the pool, with Blaine between them. The old man had sunk deep into the water, leaving only his head and chest above the surface. The three of them, along with the Pokémon that had finished eating, enjoyed a rare stretch of quiet.
After about half an hour, Blaine got out and sat on the edge to dry himself. That was enough for him. At his age, he could not soak as long as the younger ones.
Seeing him about to leave, Reiji brought up the question he had been holding onto. "Blaine, how does a Pokémon break into Elite Four tier?"
Itsuki did not move, but he was definitely listening. Advice like this was something most Trainers could spend years chasing and still never get. Even his father was not an Elite Four-tier Trainer, so there was no way Itsuki would let this pass him by.
"Elite Four tier?" Blaine did not look back. He paused for only a moment before continuing to dry himself. "You're already thinking that far ahead?"
"Almost. A few of my faster growers should reach that point in another half year or so. I heard that threshold traps a lot of Trainers for life."
"Some Pokémon just don't have the talent for it. Hard work alone won't change that." Blaine had wanted to examine Reiji's Pokémon before, but the boy was too cautious. So far, he had only checked the flawed Zapdos, not the rest of the team. Without data, he was not going to make promises. "You don't need to worry about Magmar. When the time comes, it'll reach Elite Four tier on its own. As for the others, I can't say."
With that, Blaine left the men's bath. Unless he could properly examine the rest of Reiji's Pokémon, he would not talk as if he knew their limits.
"Tch. Old people always love giving half an answer." Reiji said that, but he understood what Blaine meant. If a Pokémon had the talent for Elite Four tier, steady growth would eventually carry it there. If it did not, no amount of grinding would force the door open.
And since Blaine had singled out Magmar, that probably meant Magmar really was the child of that Elite Four-tier Magmar. It did not need a shortcut. Getting there was only a matter of time.
So the answer was still accumulation. Unless he found some rare resource that perfectly matched a Pokémon's type, there was no easy way through that threshold.
Thankfully, he had the proficiency panel. His Pokémon all had solid foundations, so Elite Four tier should not be impossible for them. It would just take time.
Ash still had the Orange League, the Johto League, and the Hoenn League ahead of him before the Sinnoh League. Reiji had enough time to let his Pokémon grow. There was no need to rush.
After Blaine left, the women's bath quieted down too. Reiji heard Amber and Elisia leave while laughing, followed by Itsuki's mother. Only Tania remained on the other side.
Another half hour passed. Then came the sound of dripping water, footsteps, and a closing door. The women's side went quiet as well.
Only Reiji, Itsuki, and their Pokémon remained in the hot spring.
Itsuki finally spoke.
"That Lucario… it was his Riolu, wasn't it?"
He went straight for the old case of his missing childhood friend.
"You noticed?" Reiji stayed calm and did not deny it. Blaine had already handled the aftermath, which meant the matter was over. If Itsuki wanted to dig his own grave over it, Reiji did not mind helping.
"Gallade told me." Itsuki sighed. There was no anger in his voice, no outrage, and no sign that he wanted revenge. "I warned him a long time ago. He wouldn't listen. If he died because of that, that's on him."
"You're not going to avenge your friend?" Reiji was genuinely curious. The person who had killed Kou was sitting right in front of him.
"Why would I?" Itsuki said flatly. "He went too far with everything. I stopped wanting anything to do with him years ago. If my dad hadn't kept pushing me to stay close to him, I would've cut him off completely."
Itsuki and that kid had always treated Pokémon in completely different ways. Two people that far apart were never going to be real friends, no matter how hard their families tried to force it. That was the truth Itsuki had kept buried for years.
"I see." Reiji did not know whether Itsuki meant it or was trying to lower his guard, but Gengar was there either way.
Since the topic was dangerous, Reiji had Gengar check the area. Once it confirmed that no people or Pokémon were listening in, he relaxed a little.
"If I hadn't seen Lucario, I probably would've forgotten about him." Itsuki gave a faint smile. He really did not seem to care. Whatever Reiji thought of that was his business. Then Itsuki asked, "You were the one in the black market too, weren't you?"
"Which one?" Reiji could admit the earlier matter, but there was no way he would admit this. As far as he was concerned, it had nothing to do with him.
[End of chapter]
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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