The storm within the bamboo grove gradually died down. The handful of Pokémon that had been fighting each other had finally run out of strength as well.
Explosive qi techniques, similar to true qi, detonated on the spot, leaving behind several massive craters.
"This is just incredible." Raifort-san looked at Marshadow sitting on the ground with a thud, then at the other Pokémon panting for breath, and then at the bamboo grove that had been battered beyond recognition. She could not help but sigh. "Even the shadow of a god still lost the battle in the end. Well, the enemies you had to deal with were simply too many."
So this was the strength of an Elite Four–level Pokémon?
But the few Elite Four members she knew, like that cross-dressing beauty Rika and Hassel from the Dragon clan, did not seem this strong at all.
And what was with the Trainer personally jumping into the fight?
"Still, that Pokémon called Kubfu has plenty of strength left. Hey, aren't you going to keep fighting?"
Raifort-san looked with interest toward the Kubfu not far away.
Because she had noticed Kubfu was watching her with a serious, appraising gaze, as if it had spotted something hostile.
"The sinister aura on you made Kubfu wary. Don't worry, Kubfu. Even though this Raifort-san has a very strong sinister aura on her, that's just the resentment of the dead. It's something caused by her line of work."
Hikaru used medicine and berries to help his partners recover stamina and injuries. Then, chewing on an Aguav Berry, he walked over.
"Don't be nervous, Kubfu. There aren't any enemies here."
Raifort-san had already raised both hands. "He's right. Don't just attack me whenever you feel like it. I'm only a weak woman with no strength to speak of, you know."
"Ku." Kubfu looked at Hikaru and nodded with reverence.
As expected of a martial arts grandmaster among humans.
Even a human overflowing with sinister aura had been completely subdued, brought to heel so thoroughly.
The wicked thoughts clinging to her were beginning to withdraw as well.
And those strange Pokémon filled with calamity power and sinister aura had also been fully suppressed.
Hikaru said, "So, have you been following us this whole time? Since around the Firescourge Shrine?"
"Ku." Kubfu nodded, its eyes glittering.
Yes. It really had sensed his presence near that shrine steeped in sinister aura.
In the past, many people had come to this bamboo grove to cultivate and train.
Some of them had been quite strong.
But none had shown true qi as powerful as his.
And it was not just that.
"Ku!"
Kubfu's eyes burned with intensity.
As a martial arts master among humans, not only did he possess powerful true qi, he had so many Pokémon following him.
More importantly, he could dispel the sinister aura in the world.
Legend said that only those with no evil in their hearts could thoroughly purge sinister aura and bring the Treasures of Ruin under control.
Those calamity relics that had been subdued had manifested into the shapes of Pokémon.
It was unclear whether they had always looked like this in the past.
After the battle against him ended, the raging sinister aura had been beaten into smoke and nothingness. All that remained was the power of the Treasures of Ruin themselves.
"Ku!"
He was practically like the Urshifu of legend.
That was exactly why Kubfu had followed all the way here, why it had been fortunate enough to witness this battle between the strong, and even join in.
Especially because Hikaru had personally stepped onto the battlefield.
Kubfu had never seen a Trainer this formidable.
It had never studied physics.
But even so, it knew it was looking at a superhuman.
"Uh, you never studied physics, but I did."
Hikaru sounded exasperated as he muttered the complaint. "Don't worry about it. Super Trainers as strong as me, or even stronger than me, are still everywhere in this world."
Kubfu was shaken to the core.
So the world was truly that vast?
Then it looked toward Marshadow in the distance.
The shadow of a god, the martial prowess of a god, made Kubfu's blood surge with excitement.
"Ku!"
Its goal was to purge sinister aura from the world. Day after day, it trained at Fury Falls near this bamboo grove.
Drive all demons and monsters away.
It was said that when it fully comprehended the true meaning of purging sinister aura, it would be able to evolve and become a divine messenger that destroyed evil hearts.
But now, it seemed there was still so much it needed to learn.
It had only thrown a few punches, yet in front of truly powerful Pokémon, its strength was still very limited.
Kubfu spoke with sincere honesty.
Hikaru was the strongest martial artist it had ever seen, and besides, Paldea did not really have any impressive fighting masters to begin with.
But it had also heard Marshadow's story in full.
A human and Pokémon capable of defeating a god's shadow, climbing the peak of martial arts.
Therefore—
Kubfu kept going ku ku ku as it spoke, and then, to Hikaru's surprise, it suddenly clasped its fists and bowed deeply.
Hikaru read Kubfu's request.
"Human master. Only because I recognize my shortcomings can I continue to advance bravely."
"In order to grasp the true power to purge sinister aura, I wish to follow you and train?"
"Ku!" Kubfu's gaze blazed.
Until it mastered true power, it had decided one thing.
It would not evolve.
Hikaru said, "Uh, you're not planning to evolve into Urshifu for now? Also, have you actually seen what Urshifu looks like? You probably haven't, right?"
"Ku." Kubfu shook its head.
It had trained alone here for many years and had never seen Urshifu with its own eyes.
It had only heard the legend of what it became after evolving back in its original homeland, and so it had made that vow.
"In that case, you didn't come here from the Isle of Armor. Then did you come from the Crown Tundra? That doesn't seem right either."
"Mm, you did cross cold snowy plains, but that wasn't your homeland either, was it."
This Kubfu in Paldea, though it appeared as part of the so-called "Mythical bundle," truly did have a strangely mysterious origin.
Hikaru said, "Training yourself to purge the sinister aura of the world and become a messenger of god, huh. That's a pretty ambitious dream."
"Urshifu is called the embodiment of wrath, a divine messenger that uses wrath to drive out the world's sinister aura."
"They say it uses its terrifying appearance and roar to purge sinister aura from the world. The energy released from its fists becomes shockwaves that can blow away even a Dynamaxed Pokémon in a single hit."
"Some people feel as if their hearts have been seen through and waver. Others feel their own sinister aura being purified."
"They say that truly evil people will drop dead just from being glared at by its anger hidden within its eyes."
So that was how it was.
Hikaru recalled the Martial Arts Master profession he had obtained.
One of its special effects was: "Found a School — Powerful Pokémon and Trainers will come to learn by reputation, Fame +50."
Mm-hm. So it really was coming because of his reputation.
But this little one that came was far too extraordinary, wasn't it?
"If you want to learn, I don't have a problem with it, as long as you've thought it through. However, I might take you and leave this region. Uh, that probably doesn't matter to you, right? You came here from somewhere else anyway."
Kubfu was overjoyed. It hurriedly performed a formal bow, practically like paying respects to a master.
From today on, it was a disciple under his door.
Then the little bear looked toward the Riolu not far away.
Their gazes met. True martial artists needed no words.
"Ku!"
Kubfu clasped its fists toward Riolu.
Please take care of me, senpai.
"Rr…"
Riolu scratched the back of its head, looking a little lost. Soon, it became thoughtful.
A new companion who had mastered breathing methods and mental focus?
And what was that "senpai" title supposed to mean? It had no idea.
So then, which was stronger, the power of aura, or Kubfu's breathing techniques?
"[I see. A rival, then?]"
Iron Valiant's mechanical voice carried a hint of understanding. It blinked its pixel-like eyes and recalled that Hikaru seemed to have had a similar experience with that green-haired woman before.
Mm-hm. A relationship called "rivals" could promote growth of both body and spirit. It might even give rise to friendship and bonds.
———
"Chii, chii?"
"Larve, larve!"
After watching Kubfu interact with the others, Hikaru heard Larvesta and Chi-Yu.
These two had not cared about the critical parts of the fight at all. Like they were watching a movie while eating popcorn, they were squeezed together on a big rock, happily sharing scorching hot Charcoal, taking turns with mouthful after mouthful.
At this moment, the slow-moving Chi-Yu blinked its clear, watery eyes at Hikaru.
Then it patted the rock with its tail. Its expression was faintly puzzled, but it quickly grasped the situation.
Mm, so it was already over, Tamer?
"Chii~"
Give me more Charcoal. I want that too.
"Charcoal is an item used to power up Fire-type Pokémon. How did it turn into fish feed?"
"And Larvesta, why are you eating it too?"
Larvesta let out a satisfied burp and puffed a small flame.
"Larve~"
Normal food, bug eats.
Not-normal food, bug heats up and eats.
Bug thinks that's good.
"You're about ready to evolve too, aren't you? Your level should be close. Hey, Paldea has a massive snow mountain. Want to go hunt down a few wild Pokémon inside that mountain?"
Hikaru wondered if he should swing by Glaseado Mountain to grind some levels. But the strongest people on that mountain were the two Gym Leaders.
He did not know whether Grusha, the one called Paldea's strongest Gym Leader, had officially taken the post yet.
Mm. He was indeed the strongest Gym Leader, at least that was what Paldea's officials claimed. As for why it was not Larry, it was probably because Larry held back and had no drive to battle.
Hikaru looked back toward the center of the battlefield.
Several Pokémon surrounded Marshadow, but no one continued to throw hands, because everyone's stamina had been heavily drained.
As for Marshadow, the so-called Shadow of a god, the little shadow gremlin did not look upset about losing at all. Instead… it looked a little excited?
"Marsha?"
Marshadow was asking.
Those two moves just now, the finishing techniques that Hikaru, as a human, had used, and that made the Pokémon learn instantly… what were they?
Had Hikaru temporarily created them by copying Marshadow's martial arts?
"Created? You could say that. But those two moves do exist in this world."
"Mm, I can't really explain it well. In any case, they were indeed fully comprehended thanks to inspiration from your martial arts."
Combat Torque and Magical Torque were, in fact, part of the "Torque series" of moves.
And that series of moves could not be learned through normal means.
They were not TMs, not HMs, not TRs, and not move tutors.
They were a kind of drive move used by Team Star's Starmobiles after modification.
Based on the Starmobile's type, there were five: Dark, Fire, Poison, Fighting, and Fairy. Accordingly, there were naturally five Torque moves.
Their power ranged from 80 to 100, but more importantly, all five Torques had a relatively high chance to inflict an additional effect.
Dark caused sleep, Fire caused burn, Poison caused toxic poison, Fighting caused paralysis, and Fairy caused confusion.
"Originally, I was planning to use technology to load the five Torques anyway. If Team Star's little campus gang can mod a move like that, then for me, with future tech, doing the same would be simple."
"But now that I learned the Torque moves in a more 'proper' way, through battle… isn't this ending even better?"
Hikaru thought this to himself, then said to Marshadow, "There are still three Torque moves left. We'll slowly comprehend them too."
"Marsha?!"
Marshadow was startled.
There were still three more similar moves?
Just by watching its martial arts, Hikaru had already derived a new style from it? Martial artist, you…!
But that was exactly what made this interesting.
New martial arts, it had seen them. So sooner or later, it would imitate them too.
Today's gains were already enough.
Hikaru said, "We also gained a lot. Thank you for sparring with us. You helped us comprehend brand-new moves."
"As for new martial arts, you don't need to secretly imitate them from the shadows."
"I'll make you a scroll. Don't you also want to learn the Piercing Scroll?"
Marshadow froze for a moment, then scratched its head.
He was just going to give it a scroll for free?
Martial artists usually did not teach their moves easily. Those were their secret arts. Yet Hikaru was going to hand it over directly?
Huh. It had never encountered something like this before.
Hikaru said, "Some martial artists are easy to talk to. My Swirling Scroll was a free gift I got from a martial arts master. As for the Piercing Scroll, for now, you can treat it as my exclusive secret art, but you can study it however you like."
"At my side, learning martial arts becomes very fast."
That was the effect of Martial Arts Master: raising martial skill level, comprehending new secret arts, and integrating what one learned more quickly.
"Marsha!"
Marshadow crossed its arms, as if thinking seriously. After a short while, it suddenly clenched a fist.
If it just took Hikaru's martial arts for free, it would feel bad.
Though it had never exchanged martial arts with a human before, this time, it felt it could do it.
So it would teach Hikaru's Pokémon some special fighting moves.
Some of those moves were difficult even for Marshadow to learn. It could only imitate the shape, not truly master them. But perhaps Hikaru's Pokémon could comprehend them?
"A move tutor, huh?" Hikaru nodded. "Even if you can't use certain moves yourself, you can still pass them on through shadow imitation. That makes sense. You have that Copycat ability, and you've definitely seen far more martial moves than we have."
Marshadow acted immediately.
It hopped straight into the middle of the Pokémon and began instructing them with meticulous seriousness.
Now was not the time to rest.
While the body was still warm, strike while the iron was hot. Train.
Hey, ha. One, two, one.
Marshadow led Riolu and Kubfu through drills. Charcadet stood there dumbly for a while, unsure whether this battle counted as its contribution, but it was quickly dragged over by Marshadow.
Don't daydream. You're training too.
That giant sword and that plant lady, you two come over as well.
Of course, Iron Valiant did not participate in this training.
"[Training is meaningless to me. I am a machine. As long as I have sufficient energy, I can display tremendous power.]"
Iron Valiant shook its head, and Hikaru suddenly considered something.
"I've got an idea. We might be able to strengthen your power even further."
"You remember Iron Leaves and Iron Crown, right?"
"They should have special devices on their bodies. That's what lets them release the unique moves Psyblade and Tachyon Cutter."
"In other words, if we can analyze their devices, we can let you learn the same skills. Mm… and the even more important Mighty Cleave!"
"And if we can find a special Pokémon called Miraidon…"
"Mm, how about installing a small Hadron Engine on you?"
Hikaru muttered as he imagined it. Meanwhile, Raifort-san, who had nothing to do but observe the other Treasures of Ruin, suddenly had her stomach growl.
"Ah, I'm a bit hungry." Raifort-san loosened her shoulders, preparing to take out some compressed rations from her pouch, while saying to Hikaru, "You just joined an intense battle, but you don't look hungry at all."
"Are you really human?"
But Hikaru looked at the vast stretches of bamboo around them and had an idea.
"Don't eat compressed biscuits yet, Raifort-san. Today, you're in for a treat."
"It's almost evening anyway. Let me make some bamboo rice for everyone. Mm, and stir-fried bamboo shoots too."
These huge bamboo stalks… mm, the soil here was rich in nutrients.
Should he let Lady Kaguya come out and absorb a bit of nutrition? It would count as an extra meal for her too. But he had to be careful, he could not drain all the nutrients from the bamboo grove's soil. That would be harming the environment.
"Kaguya-san, want to come out? There's a lot of bamboo here. The soil should be to your liking."
"Also, you should come out too, shouldn't you?"
Hikaru took a Strange Ball off his backpack and spoke to it, like he was plucking fruit off a tree.
Raifort-san pushed her glasses up and saw the writing on the Strange Ball.
"Fully Ripe… Mango?"
"What is that Poké Ball? What's inside it?"
"This?" Hikaru smiled. "It's a super huge bamboo."
From inside the ball came Kaguya's voice.
"Ah… um, um…"
"I'm terribly sorry."
"It's been too long since I spoke. I can't get my voice out."
(End of Chapter)
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