It was a little after four in the afternoon when they reached Pummelo Island.
The moment the five of them stepped off the boat, the whole port was already in full tournament mode. Banners hung over the walkways. Vendors shouted from their stalls. Performance groups, tour groups, Trainers, and spectators poured in from every direction, all here for the Orange Archipelago's annual tournament.
Reporters had set up around the port too, grabbing random Trainers as they came off the ships. Since Reiji's group had come with the Mikan Gym, a few sharp-eyed reporters spotted them immediately and swarmed over before they could even leave the dock.
"Gym Leader of the Mikan Gym, are you personally leading the team this time? Could you tell us who will be competing?"
The microphones were already in Cissy's father's face. Not one or two of them, either—four or five, plus several cameras pointed right at the group. Senta went stiff on the spot. He had never had that many people staring at him before.
"Ahem." Cissy's father cleared his throat. With the microphones already shoved in front of him, refusing would look bad. He was the head of an official League Gym and a public figure. Appearances mattered.
Besides, if he slipped up in front of reporters, who knew what kind of nonsense they would print tomorrow.
After clearing his throat twice, he gathered his thoughts and said, "The Mikan Gym will be sending three competitors this time. First is my eldest daughter, Cissy, who previously served as the Mikan Gym's acting Gym Leader."
"My youngest son, Senta, will also be competing. And the third is our Gym apprentice, Reiji."
"Reiji?" One reporter had clearly noticed him already. The moment Cissy's father said his name, she rushed straight over and stuck her microphone in front of him. Improvise first, think later. "Reiji, are you confident you can win the tournament?"
"Yes." Reiji looked straight at the reporter and answered without hesitation.
That was what he had come here for. Whether he could actually win was another matter, but he was not about to lose on attitude before the tournament even started.
"So Reiji is aiming for a second straight championship! We've heard that Drake, the Orange League's Head Leader, will also be entering. He's considered the strongest opponent for any Trainer here and has never lost at Pummelo Stadium."
"Reiji, you're no longer the dark horse from the Indigo Plateau Conference. You're coming into this tournament as a proven winner. Do you think you can defeat Drake?"
"Eh? Reiji? Reiji!"
After the reporter's dramatic little speech, she turned back for another question, only to find that Reiji was already waving her off and walking away. She hurried after him. "Reiji, it's not easy getting an interview with you! You hid so well during the Indigo Plateau Conference. We had such a hard time finding you. Now that you're about to face the undefeated Drake, may I ask—"
"I'm tired from the boat. Maybe another day." Reiji cut her off with a wave and kept walking.
He had no interest in being interviewed. Anyone who had lived through his previous world knew better than to get too close to this crowd. He had no love for journalists.
"Reiji! Reiji!"
By then, the reporters chasing after him had given Cissy's family a chance to slip away into Pummelo City. Reiji got into a taxi as well and told the driver to head for the competitor's village.
Before long, everyone regrouped there. They settled into their rooms, put their things away, and got ready to go out for dinner. Cissy's father planned to take the family to a proper restaurant.
They had only just left the village when they ran into several old acquaintances. Old acquaintances of Cissy's father, that was.
"Luana?"
"You… When did you get back?" Luana froze when she saw Cissy's father.
Back then, he had left in such a hurry that she had never gotten to say everything she wanted to say. But too many years had passed since then. Those feelings had faded on their own, and she had long since married and had a child.
"Only recently." Meeting Luana made Cissy's father show a rare, bashful smile that any older man would understand.
His wife saw it too.
The pinch she gave him in the lower back nearly made him jump. "Ow, ow—easy!"
Only then did Luana notice the red-haired woman beside him. Cissy had clearly inherited her mother's hair color, while Senta had inherited his father's black hair.
"And this is?" Luana had already guessed, but she still asked.
"I'm his wife." Cissy's mother stepped forward and shook Luana's hand, giving no ground at all.
She had heard about this "one who got away" before. Now she had finally met her. Married already, not even in better shape than her—though the woman had taken good care of her face.
Reiji, Cissy, and the younger crowd felt the temperature drop around the adults and quietly backed away from the danger zone.
Unfortunately, not everyone had that survival instinct.
A middle-aged man walked up with a cheerful laugh and greeted Cissy's father. "Hahaha, you maniac. Didn't expect you to show up too!"
"Uncle," the boy behind him tried to warn him.
Too late. The man had gotten too excited after seeing an old friend and had not heard a word.
Even the boy could tell the entrance to the village had turned into a minefield. How did his older, supposedly more experienced uncle not notice?
He could only pull his little sister over to Reiji's group and introduce himself there instead.
By then, Travis and Gulzar had recognized Reiji too and hurried over to greet him.
"Rai-nii, you're here too!" Travis called out first.
They had both taken part in the Indigo Plateau Conference, so it was normal for them to know each other. The bodyguards behind Travis did not react.
"You two came too?" Reiji smiled back, but he did not say much. Especially not to Gulzar.
Whatever secrets they had between them, both of them knew exactly what they were. Even Travis had been kept in the dark.
If Travis's family had guessed that Reiji was the one who saved Travis and Gulzar back then, so be it. Reiji was not the same person he had been. He was no longer afraid of being questioned.
As long as he did not say it himself, they had no reason to bring it up either. Saying it out loud would only create a debt for no reason. Better for everyone to pretend nothing had ever happened.
Rudy came over with his younger sister and introduced himself to the group. "Hi, everyone. I'm Rudy from the Trovita Gym, and this is my sister, Mahri."
"We're from the Mikan Gym," Cissy said. "I'm Cissy. This is my little brother, Senta, and this is Rai."
"Nice to meet you." Rudy waited until Cissy finished, then aimed straight at Reiji. "I remember you. You were strong at the Indigo Plateau Conference. You'll make a good opponent."
There was enough challenge in his tone for everyone to hear. He had clearly already marked Reiji as a serious rival.
"Hey, don't act like we're invisible!" Travis shouted. Rudy had completely ignored him, and Travis was not having it. "We're from the Kumquat Gym!"
Gulzar grabbed him before he could get louder.
"You? Travis, right?" Rudy glanced at him. "I've heard of you. You awakened psychic powers, didn't you? But I don't think you even made the Top 16."
With that, Rudy turned back to Reiji.
A newly awakened Psychic was not much to brag about. At that level, he was not even as useful as a proper Psychic-type Pokémon. Rudy did not care for Travis's noisy attitude either, so he had no intention of being polite.
"It's hard to say," Reiji said. "Everyone here looks pretty strong to me."
He could not tell whether Rudy was naturally arrogant or just looked down on Travis, but ignoring someone that openly was still rude.
Then again, Rudy had been like that in the anime too. A gentleman, yes—but mostly toward girls. Boys he had no interest in tended to get ignored unless they were strong enough to catch his attention. Reiji happened to be one of the few who did.
As for why Rudy was not fawning over Cissy the way he had over Misty in the anime, Reiji had a guess.
Cissy was also a Gym heir. The adults at home had probably warned him not to cause trouble. Older people always had their own calculations.
"Travis, let it go," Gulzar kept saying, trying to calm him down.
Gulzar did not mind being ignored. He was used to it. Ordinary Trainers had to get used to cold shoulders sooner or later.
"No way I'm letting it go," Travis snapped, watching Rudy chat with Reiji like they were already friends. "I'm knocking that guy out of the tournament. I swear I'm knocking him out."
Even Reiji had never ignored him like that.
"Hey, so this is where everyone is."
A red-haired young man noticed the group and walked over. The elder who had brought him had already joined the adult conversation, so he came to talk to the younger crowd instead.
To a man in his twenties, this whole group—fifteen or sixteen at the oldest, eleven or twelve at the youngest—really did look like a bunch of younger brothers and sisters.
"Danny?" Rudy turned and saw the handsome red-haired young man. Another familiar face. That finally pulled him away from Reiji.
"Rudy? You're here too?" Danny smiled as everyone looked over, then introduced himself. "Hi, everyone. I'm Danny, from the Navel Gym."
"Come on, Danny, don't be modest," Rudy said. "I heard you already took over as Gym Leader. Unlike someone here, who hasn't even been acting Gym Leader once."
He glanced at Travis as he said it. The jab could not have been more obvious.
Travis exploded like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. He looked ready to breathe fire. Gulzar nearly failed to hold him back, and in the end, two bodyguards had to help keep him from charging Rudy.
"Haha, come on, no need for that. Let's all get along." Danny stepped in with an easy smile and smoothed things over, even saying a few kind words to Travis.
Then he turned to Reiji.
Among everyone here, the only opponent Danny truly needed to take seriously was the boy who had risen out of nowhere at the Indigo Plateau Conference—the one his family elders had specifically warned him about.
"I'll call you Rai too, if that's all right. Your matches at the Indigo Plateau Conference were impressive. I hope we get to face each other in the tournament."
"Gym Leader Danny, nice to meet you. Same here." Reiji took the hand Danny offered without hesitation.
This was a chance to build connections. The people from all four Orange League Gyms were here. It would be a waste not to at least become familiar with them.
"Hey, everyone's here."
At that voice, everyone turned.
A young man in a red jacket with short black hair was walking over. He called to Danny, "Danny, you're joining the fun too?"
"Haha, Drake, don't tease me. I heard you were entering, so I wanted to see how far I still am from you." Danny was not nearly as relaxed with Drake as he had been with the younger kids. He even looked a little shy.
"Heh, you've still got a long way to go." Drake grinned. "I'm going to say hi to the old maniac. You all keep talking. We'll put together a dinner later."
"Wait—" Danny started to warn him.
Do not go over there. Can't you see how awkward it is?
But Drake was too excited after spotting Cissy's father. He walked off too fast for Danny to stop him, completely unaware of the disaster zone he was strolling into.
"Finally made it!" Ash saw the crowd gathered outside the village. Most of them were Gym Leaders he had met before, plus a few people he knew personally. He ran over at once. "Everyone's here?"
"Ash?" Reiji looked past him and saw the extra people. "And Brock, Professor Oak, Ash's mom, Gary…"
He had not expected all of them to come. Gary especially. Reiji remembered Gary not entering the Orange League tournament in the anime, yet here he was.
And then there was Brock.
Lokoko's precious descendant of her old master was here too. Reiji could only hope she kept herself under control. This was absolutely not the time to give anything away.
"You're all here!" Ash looked around at the crowd.
These were Gym Leaders he had battled before, and now they would all be opponents in the tournament. He was already getting excited.
Before Ash could say anything else, another car stopped outside the village.
The moment the person inside stepped out and saw Professor Oak, he laughed. "Well, well. Look who it is, you old fool."
"Haha, old turtle, you got here early." Professor Oak laughed when he saw the old man in the red shirt, brown fake mustache, and short brown wig.
The little girl holding the old man's hand could not wait anymore. She slipped free and ran straight toward Reiji, calling as she went, "Rai-nii! Rai-nii!"
"Amber, you came too. Are you entering this time?" Reiji turned at the sound of her voice, and the little girl threw herself into his arms. He picked her up naturally.
With Amber in his arms, Reiji looked toward Blaine and Amber's mother. Both of them nodded to him, and he smiled back in greeting.
"Rai-nii, I missed you so much." Amber buried her face against his chest. It had been so long since she had seen him, and now he was finally here again.
The four who had just arrived were Blaine, Amber, Amber's mother, and Tania.
"You came too." Reiji held Amber while greeting Tania. He had not expected Tania to enter the Orange League tournament.
Itsuki was probably stuck guarding the place again. Reiji wondered how that guy was doing—and whether Team Rocket had managed to trick him yet.
"Amber wanted to compete, so we came to have some fun too," Tania said.
The moment she started talking to Reiji, Cissy looked over.
Amber?
Amber was just a child, so Cissy did not care.
But this girl?
Cissy gave Reiji a quiet look. Who was this one?
First Saya, now another girl. This man's romantic trouble really did come in layers.
"I'm Tania," Tania said before Reiji could answer. "You're Cissy, right?"
She had done her homework before coming. There was no way she would fail to recognize Cissy.
"Just call me Cissy." Cissy had almost introduced herself as Reiji's girlfriend, just to make things clear early, but there were too many people around. She did not dare say it outright, so she stopped there.
Reiji, eager to spare his own ears later, added Tania's background for her. "Tania is Champion Agatha's granddaughter."
"You?" Cissy's eyes widened at once.
Cissy's eyes sharpened. Champion Agatha's granddaughter was a different matter entirely.
[End of chapter]
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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