Grey POV
The birds were chirping outside.
Sunlight streamed into the room through the window.
Then I woke up all of a sudden.
I didn't know what had happened, but the moment I woke up, a machine beside me started going off loudly. Almost immediately, several nurses and Chansey rushed into the room. They checked me over, gave me some medicine, and worked to stabilize me as I seemed to be panicking for some reason.
It took me a while to calm down.
Then I remembered.
The S.S. Anne.
I immediately asked one of the nurses.
"What happened to the S.S. Anne?"
The nurse's expression turned grim.
"My caretaker?" I asked.
She nodded.
"He'll explain everything after we check your vitals one more time."
One Hour Later
Third POV
Bill entered the room and pulled a chair over before sitting down.
"How are you feeling?" he asked.
Then he paused.
"Okay, that came out wrong. What I meant was, are you able to move your body now? Are you mentally stable?"
Grey didn't know how to answer that.
Instead, he asked,
"What happened? Where am I?"
Bill nodded.
"You're in the Vermilion City Pokémon Center."
He paused before continuing.
"You've been here for almost a week."
Grey's eyes widened.
"A week? Crap! I might have delayed my training for that long."
Bill laughed.
"Kid, you're lucky you even woke up."
His expression softened.
"We were all worried. Despite healing the wound on your back, you were in some kind of coma-like state."
He shook his head.
"You can relax on the trainer part for now. Just be glad you're safe."
Grey frowned.
"Who paid the bills for my treatment?"
"I did," Bill answered.
Grey immediately opened his mouth.
"I'll pay you ba—"
Bill raised a hand.
"Don't."
Grey stopped.
"Just focus on recovering. Besides, the government will likely reimburse the people injured during the Anne incident anyway."
Grey reluctantly nodded.
Then his expression became serious.
"What exactly happened?"
"Were the other trainers safe?"
Bill's expression darkened.
"Most of them were."
The emphasis on most immediately caught Grey's attention.
"The Rockets managed to steal a few Pokémon."
Grey clenched his fists.
Bill continued.
"More specifically, we discovered something."
"A Pokémon capable of battling four Champions."
Grey froze.
A Pokémon capable of battling four Champions.
Immediately, memories flashed through his mind.
Ninetales' warning.
Exeggcute's panic.
The feeling of dread.
Only one Pokémon came to mind.
Mewtwo.
Grey looked up.
"What happened?"
"How did it end?"
Bill sighed.
"An official is going to want to speak with you later anyway, so you'll hear the full details."
He leaned back in his chair.
"But from what we know, the battle ended with that Pokémon teleporting away after fighting all four Champions to a standstill."
Grey's eyes widened.
Even knowing what Mewtwo was capable of, hearing it stated so casually was absurd.
Bill continued.
"The Rockets escaped afterward."
"They probably intended to capture more Pokémon and cause more chaos, but the response from our side was fast enough to stop things from getting worse."
The room fell silent for a moment.
Then Bill suddenly stood up.
To Grey's surprise, he bowed.
Grey blinked.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm thanking you."
Grey looked confused.
"For what?"
"For saving my life."
Grey scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"It was nothing."
"No."
Bill immediately cut him off.
"It wasn't."
Grey looked up.
Bill's expression was completely serious.
"Grey, what you did wasn't normal."
"No person risks their life to save a random stranger."
"Most people would've protected themselves first."
"Most people would've hesitated."
"Most people would've let a Pokémon handle it."
Bill stared directly at him.
"You didn't."
"You threw yourself in front of an attack."
"You took the hit yourself."
"And that decision landed you in this hospital bed."
Grey looked away.
Bill continued.
"Any other trainer might not have intervened."
He paused.
"Maybe Red would have."
"But even he likely would've used one of his Pokémon."
"You shielded me with your own body."
The room became quiet again.
Then Bill took a deep breath.
"Because of that, I owe you a life debt."
Grey immediately shook his head.
"You don't owe me anything."
Bill ignored him.
"I've spent the last week thinking about how to repay you."
"And I think I've found a way."
Grey raised an eyebrow.
"What way?"
Bill smiled.
"How would you like me to become your sponsor?"
Grey froze.
"...What?"
Bill nodded.
"I want to sponsor you."
Grey stared at him.
"Why?"
Bill simply shrugged.
"Why not?"
Then his expression became more serious.
"After the Anne incident, I've decided two things."
"First, I'm going to get involved in the trainer world more seriously, just like many of my fellow researchers."
"Second, I'm going to catch and train Pokémon myself."
Grey looked surprised.
Bill chuckled.
"I don't ever want to feel as helpless as I felt on that ship again."
Then he pointed at Grey.
"And you're connected to the first decision."
Grey blinked.
Bill continued.
"The reason I want to sponsor you is simple."
"You saved my life."
"I've already told you this, but I genuinely don't think most trainers would've done what you did."
He shook his head.
"You took an attack that should've hit me."
"That attack put you here."
Then Bill smiled.
"And that's only the first reason."
Grey frowned.
"There's a second?"
Bill laughed.
"Of course."
He leaned forward.
"You have a ridiculous amount of potential as a trainer."
Grey immediately shook his head.
"I'm not as skilled as you're making me out to b—"
Bill cut him off.
"Let me stop you right there."
Grey sighed.
Bill continued.
"I know you're humble."
"But let's look at some facts."
He raised a finger.
"Out of the 128 participants in the S.S. Anne Tournament, ninety had sponsors."
A second finger.
"Of the Top 8, seven had sponsors."
A third finger.
"Many of those sponsors were professors, gym leaders, wealthy nobles, or influential families."
A fourth finger.
"Of the Top 4, three were sponsored by Professor Oak."
Grey blinked.
Bill wasn't finished.
"Of the Top 4, three also had six or more Pokémon they could rotate throughout the tournament."
Then Bill pointed directly at him.
"And yet there was one outlier."
"The one trainer who reached the finals without a sponsor."
"The one trainer who reached the finals with only four Pokémon."
"You."
Grey stayed silent.
Bill continued.
"Blue, Red, and Ash are incredibly talented. I won't deny that."
"But you're every bit as talented as they are."
His voice became firm.
"You've achieved all of this despite being a trainer for barely three months."
"Three months, Grey."
He shook his head.
"Most trainers spend years trying to reach the level you've already reached."
Bill folded his arms.
"In fact, I genuinely believe that if you had a full team of six Pokémon, there was a real chance you would've won the tournament."
Grey looked away.
Bill continued.
"The only reason I think you lost is because you lacked the support system everyone else had."
"You restricted your catches."
"You limited your team size."
"You had fewer options."
"You had fewer backups."
"And when the tournament became exhausting and attritional, you simply didn't have enough fresh Pokémon to rotate."
Bill leaned back.
"If the tournament schedule had been more spread out, giving your team proper recovery time between matches, I honestly think there's a good chance you might've won the entire thing."
He smiled.
"That's why I want to sponsor you."
"Because I think you're worth investing in."
Grey was stunned.
Someone had just praised him more in the last five minutes than most people had in his entire life.
Bill noticed his expression and chuckled.
"Besides, if I don't take this chance now, then either Silph or Devon might approach you within a month once the aftermath of the S.S. Anne cools down."
Grey opened his mouth, ready to accept immediately.
However, Bill raised a hand.
"At least listen to what I'm offering before accepting, Grey."
Grey nodded.
Bill leaned back in his chair.
"Now, I'm a genius, billionaire, playboy, and researcher, so I have the means to give you a great sponsorship. Probably as good as the ones Devon or Silph might offer in the future."
A grin appeared on his face.
"But unlike them, I can also give you freedom."
That immediately caught Grey's attention.
Bill continued.
"First, your sponsorship would allow you to transport any Pokémon beyond your active team limit to me."
Grey blinked.
"What?"
"If you catch Pokémon beyond the six you can carry, they can be sent to me. More specifically, they'll stay at my mansion."
Bill pointed at himself.
"I plan to build a dedicated training ground there."
"I'll also hire professional caretakers whose only job will be looking after those Pokémon."
He folded his arms.
"So you don't need to worry about storage, food, or care."
Grey's eyes widened.
Bill continued.
"You'll essentially be able to catch Pokémon to your heart's content."
Then he pointed a finger at Grey.
"That said, I'd still advise you not to go overboard."
Grey nodded.
"Why?"
Bill deadpanned.
"Because you're one person."
"You won't have enough time to train fifty Pokémon."
Grey immediately imagined the logistical nightmare and shuddered.
Fair enough.
Then a thought crossed his mind.
"Can I carry more than six Pokémon at once?"
Bill immediately shook his head.
"No."
Grey sighed.
Bill continued.
"Nobody can."
"The League built that rule for a reason."
"A lot of research has gone into it."
Bill adjusted his glasses.
"Six Pokémon is considered the maximum number most trainers can effectively care for, train, feed, and bond with at one time."
"If the number gets too large, quality drops."
He shrugged.
"Besides, it's law now."
"Even I can't bend that rule."
Grey wasn't too disappointed. He had expected that answer.
Bill smiled mysteriously.
"Though I am working on something."
Grey looked interested.
"What?"
"A device."
Bill's eyes sparkled.
"A device that would allow you to swap Pokémon even when you're nowhere near a Pokémon Center."
Grey's eyes widened.
"What?"
Bill nodded proudly.
"I'm still working on it."
"But within a month or so, it should be functional."
He pointed at Grey.
"Another benefit of having me as a sponsor."
"A lot of the technology I develop, you'll get first access to."
That was honestly insane.
Grey knew how valuable something like that would be.
Bill continued.
"Next."
He held up a second finger.
"You'll receive a monthly allowance of one hundred thousand Pokédollars."
Grey almost choked.
"That's a lot!"
Bill looked genuinely confused.
"Not really."
Grey stared at him.
Bill shrugged.
"For me, it's pocket change."
Then he continued.
"I actually looked at the sponsorship packages being offered online and decided on that number."
"If Silph or Devon approaches you later, they'll likely offer something similar."
Grey was still processing the amount.
One hundred thousand Pokédollars every month.
That was more money than he'd ever had available at one time.
Bill then raised a third finger.
"Lastly."
His grin widened.
"I can provide three TMs every month for free."
Grey froze.
That one genuinely shocked him.
"T-Three TMs?"
Bill nodded.
"I own stock in Silph."
"I'm also on their board."
He casually said something that would probably make most trainers faint.
"I get access to TMs at absurdly discounted prices."
"So giving you three for free every month isn't difficult."
Grey was speechless.
Bill continued.
"There's one condition."
"You need to tell me which TMs you want at the beginning of the month."
"I'll check availability and then arrange delivery wherever you happen to be traveling."
Grey's brain was already calculating possibilities.
Three TMs every month.
That was absurd.
Bill leaned back again.
"I can't give you a Pokédex, though."
Grey nodded.
That made sense.
Bill continued.
"Even though I helped create portions of the technology behind it, the Pokédex itself belongs to Oak."
"So that's outside my authority."
Then he smirked.
"However..."
Grey had a feeling there was another ridiculous benefit coming.
"I can give you a specialized phone."
Grey blinked.
"A phone?"
Bill nodded.
"A prototype."
"It'll contain a bunch of tools useful for trainers."
"Communication systems."
"Storage functions."
"Research databases."
"Mapping software."
"And a lot of other things."
Then Bill tapped the side of his head.
"As for Pokémon data, I have my own methods."
"I don't need a Pokédex to identify moves or gather information."
"So if you need information on a Pokémon, you can simply contact me."
A smile appeared on his face.
"Send me the data."
"And I'll send you back everything I know."
Grey then asked if he had any breeder contracts for Pokémon food, to which Bill nodded and said yes. Hearing that, Grey decided to accept the sponsorship, as it had too many good clauses to pass up. Besides, Bill had already told him that the contract could be changed on the fly if needed, as he was willing to negotiate since this was his first time sponsoring a trainer. Grey nodded at that and then shook hands.
Authors Note: So we begin the new volume , and the main problem for grey is also solved, so lot of the struggle elements financially should be sorted if anything they might be replaced by emotional struggles now , this also solves that more than 6 pokemon problem which I talked in the past as I would be pushing for 8( Reason for this no is what bill himself said he needs to dedicate time to all his pokemon and unlike certain trainers who just let the pokemon be in the lab or pc grey would rotate his team a lot) for his kanto journey at least .
About what happened in SS anne I will write a seperate chapter for that when the officials debrief grey right now he is in the centre , so sit back relax enjoy the story with its new volume, if you guys have any new expectations for this one you can right , for a few chapters like i told I would be moving to slice of life or the trainer aspect in this volume ,as we just had a very battle heavy arc .
PS: Dont give edit suggestions for authors note I am fully informal in this one and dont care about the grammar. Also might release a poll for his 7th pokemon as i have one in mind for 6th that I am adamant about .
PS : Keep giving reviews , Power stones , collections, follows etc as you can see the more interaction I get the more chances of bonus chapters there are timings for this kind of chapters is uneven