Memories flickered across his mind, and Joseph suddenly remembered he hadn't answered the family head's question.
"Father, I was caring for my Pokémon this morning and lost track of time."
As for tattling?
Joseph wouldn't stoop to that. He'd simply record everything in his little notebook… and once he had everything he wanted, he would return the favor in full.
"Sixth Brother must be a pretty good Breeder by now, right? After all, you've got so many support-type Pokémon."
That persistent Fourth Brother butted in again, deliberately reminding Mars that Joseph had always called himself a Breeder.
But Joseph and Mars both acted like they were completely focused on the battle, ignoring the fact that Mars's expression was slowly darkening.
"You're here, so get in there and fight a round. You've been back for a while and I haven't seen you train your Pokémon. Don't forget what our Narcissus Family is founded on."
The family head Mars spoke up again. But the moment those slightly scolding words left his mouth, he regretted them.
Joseph had only just returned, he didn't want to scare him off again. Just as Mars was thinking about how to fix it, Joseph replied.
"Yes, Father!"
'…Hm? He actually agreed so obediently? Looks like the time away really helped him grow.'
Mars was inwardly relieved. Watching Joseph walk toward the field, he couldn't help but feel a bit of anticipation.
Then, everyone saw that Joseph sent out a…
Blissey.
"Sixth Brother… did you grab the wrong Poké Ball? Father, should we let him switch to another one?"
Fourth Brother offered a concerned suggestion.
Naturally, that excuse was completely ignored by the family head Mars.
And standing across from Joseph was Second Brother, who had just won his previous match.
Although his Greninja had taken some damage in the last battle, seeing that his new opponent was the seemingly powerless Blissey, he chose to continue fighting.
Joseph glanced at his Second Brother -whom he had only seen once since returning- his expression calm and innocent.
"Battle start!"
"Greninja, use Water Shuriken!"
The moment the command left Second Brother's mouth, Greninja dashed toward Blissey, arms crossed, launching a dozen blue shuriken in a flash!
Faced with such a fierce opening move, Blissey stood there like it was frozen in fear!
Just as the first shuriken was about to hit Blissey, Joseph spoke.
"Use Minimize."
Fwoosh~
Blissey, not exactly a small Pokémon, vanished instantly… no, not quite!
Looking closely, you could still see a palm-sized, mini Blissey standing firmly in place.
A moment later, all the Water Shuriken missed their target!
At the same time, Greninja hadn't stopped its charge. With its sharp dynamic vision, it quickly spotted the shrunken Blissey.
There's no escape!
"Greninja, use Feint Attack!"
Second Brother wasn't an amateur. Faced with a target that had drastically raised its evasion, he unhesitatingly ordered Greninja to use the theoretically guaranteed-hit move, Feint Attack.
Even if the power wasn't impressive.
Still, Blissey stood there dumbfounded, its round little eyes looking innocently at Greninja.
Then Joseph gave another command.
"Thunder Wave."
Blissey was exceptionally fast when it came to using Thunder Wave. After all, it usually employed this move to paralyze Pokémon during… healing procedures!
With a gentle raise of its tiny hand, a faint yellow electric spark spread rapidly outward.
And just like that, Greninja had arrived in front of Blissey. If it wanted to land an attack, it had no choice but to take the paralysis.
At that moment, a Trainer had no time to issue commands, everything came down to the Pokémon's own reactions.
Facing what was merely an Elite Blissey, Greninja didn't hesitate at all. It went for an all-out attack!
In the next second, Thunder Wave surged straight into Greninja's body, while Blissey was struck by Feint Attack.
"Toxic!"
"BLIIISS!"
Blissey let out its first cry of the battle.
It grabbed the attacking arm of Greninja tightly with its left hand, while its right hand suddenly became coated in a thick, dark purple toxic glow.
Toxic…
Landed!
"GRENINJA, NIGHT SLASH!"
Joseph's Second Brother panicked, instantly realizing things had gone wrong, and shouted a follow-up command.
On the other end, Joseph calmly lifted the corner of his mouth and gave a relaxed order. "Evade, then use Soft-Boiled."
"Blis~"
Greninja's hands were now charged with intense Dark-type energy as it launched a fierce assault on Blissey.
However, Thunder Wave had already halved Greninja's speed, and Blissey was still in its Minimized state.
Greninja attacked with ferocity, but when it looked back, it hadn't even touched a hair on Blissey's body.
Yes. Blissey did have soft fur, which slightly enhanced its agility.
And just as Greninja paused from the effects of Toxic, Blissey didn't hesitate, it pulled out its "treasured" item from within its arms and smashed it against itself.
Crack!
The egg broke, but instead of spilling yolk or whites, it transformed into a surge of pure energy that instantly fused into Blissey's body.
Blissey.
Almost fully restored!
"Greninja, keep using Feint Attack!"
Second Brother was starting to panic. Greninja wasn't in peak condition to begin with, and now it was suffering from both Paralysis and Poison; he couldn't even count on a quick win.
…And just as Greninja prepared to attack again, a surge of electricity suddenly coursed through its body.
Paralysis triggered!
Greninja froze mid-step, helplessly watching Blissey pull out yet another egg, like a magic trick.
Crack…
Another egg broken.
Blissey…
Truly, fully restored!
Then, Joseph gave the command that sent his Second Brother into utter despair.
"Blissey, use Substitute."
---
Ten minutes later, Greninja lay stiff on the ground, bruised and battered.
When the referee announced Joseph and Blissey as the winners, Joseph didn't hesitate to order Blissey to use Heal Pulse and Heal Bell, restoring Greninja with ease.
Immediately after, a surge of energy exploded around Blissey… it broke through from Peak Elite to Low Ace.
Clap! Clap!…
First came applause from family head Mars, then from the gratified Dale, and finally from Joseph's siblings and all the servants and maids present.
Every single one of them followed with applaus….
Even though most of them were more shocked than happy, none dared to show it.
"Joseph… you've finally grown up!"
Mars beamed as he personally stepped forward and patted Joseph on the shoulder, wearing the expression of a man who had finally found his successor, and gleefully helping Joseph attract envy and resentment.
"Father, I still have a long way to go," Joseph replied, bowing his head.
Seeing Joseph remain poised in front of the family head, not prideful despite Blissey's breakthrough; everyone watching in the training ground suddenly realized…
The Narcissus Family… was about to change again.