On the surface it might not seem obvious, but in truth, Red was someone with an overwhelming desire to battle.
He endlessly trained his Pokémon, challenged stronger and stronger Trainers, and defeated them, over and over, until he could finally stand as the strongest Trainer in the world.
His life, therefore, was less that of a "former Champion" and more akin to that of an ascetic monk.
After all, most Champions from other regions had their own "side jobs."
Some served as "walking billboards," some were students, others managed to juggle celebrity status with running a fighting dojo—their lives were a showcase of "each immortal crossing the sea, each showing their own powers."
In other words, for them, Pokémon battles weren't their entire life.
Battling was merely the most important part of their lives; the rest of their time still needed to be "filled" with other things.
Red, however, was different. For him, it was battle and nothing but battle, day after day, always on the road to the next fight.
To ordinary people, that might sound unbearably monotonous, but to Red, it was the most exciting thing in the world.
That said, as Champion, Red found himself uninterested in most Trainers of Kanto.
They posed no threat to him anymore—not even Blue, who had once been close to surpassing him, but who now lay firmly trampled underfoot.
Of course, Blue still enjoyed challenging Red from time to time, hoping to reclaim some dignity after years of brutal humiliation.
But to Red, his rival—who had been beaten, crushed, and utterly dismantled countless times—had already lost all appeal.
He was like a cream puff that had been stuffed full too many times—Red simply couldn't get it up for him anymore.
What Red craved was a true opponent, someone who could ignite his passion as a Trainer again.
Champions and Elite Four from other regions—that was where Red's interest lay.
And at the very top of his list stood Leon, the "Unbeatable Champion" of distant Galar.
Leon carried the title of "undefeated in a hundred battles." His strength was said to be on a whole different tier from the rest of Galar's Trainers.
And Galar itself was a fiercely competitive region where Trainers were rarely weak. To maintain a flawless record in such an environment? That was no small feat.
It was also said that Leon had once been a disciple of Mustard, the former Galar Champion and master of two Urshifu of different styles.
Red had long coveted the chance to take on this "Unbeatable Champion," but the opportunity had yet to arise.
Aside from Leon, Red was also eager to battle Cynthia, Alder, and the other great Champions. A clash with them would surely be rewarding.
By coincidence, many of them seemed to be planning to attend the match between Blue and Haru.
Each had their own reasons for coming, but odds were they would all gather at that battlefield.
Which meant—for Red—a perfect chance to fight.
Barring any surprises, he intended to use that occasion to have a real showdown with Leon, Cynthia, and the rest.
As for Haru himself, Red wasn't particularly concerned.
Yes, few Trainers in this world possessed Legendary Pokémon, and Haru's Ogerpon had certainly proven formidable.
But having a Legendary didn't automatically qualify someone as Red's opponent.
It was just a sub-Legendary, after all—hardly worth getting worked up over.
In Red's view, a casual strike would be enough to suppress it.
It wasn't as though Haru could suddenly pull out six sub-Legendaries.
If he did, perhaps then Red might raise an eyebrow.
But Legendaries weren't cabbages growing in bulk at a market, and true first-tier Legendaries were even rarer.
One sub-Legendary was already impressive enough. Red himself didn't have a single Legendary at his side.
In short, Haru wasn't worth any serious attention.
And Blue, of course, had long since seen through Red's thoughts. With a smile, he asked:
"So what if you lose to one of those other Champions?"
"Wouldn't that be my shame too?"
"Besides, they might not even accept your challenge. If you lose, wouldn't that be embarrassing?"
"I heard Leon's only here in Kanto to expand business, and Cynthia seems more interested in studying Haru's sub-Legendary and the ancient myths behind it. They're not even here to battle you."
Though he spoke that way, Blue himself didn't actually believe Red would lose.
After being crushed by Red countless times, Blue had developed a deep, unshakable faith in him.
Red could not—and would not—lose to anyone else.
Only Blue had the right to be Red's true rival!
That belief had never left him.
"…"
Red said nothing. He simply glanced at Blue, pulled a Poké Ball from his belt—the meaning clear.
Ten minutes later, Red walked away, his record with Blue having gone from 1918–0 to 1919–0.
Blue, meanwhile, lay collapsed on the ground, drained and motionless, as if a succubus had wrung him dry.
Hah. Ten-minute Champion dares to question me? Looks like someone's begging for love.
Casually tossing his Poké Ball up and down, Red returned to Mt. Silver.
Along the way, he let out his Pikachu and Pidgeot for a bit of training.
Naturally, the last one left sprawled on the ground with dizzy eyes was Pidgeot.
---
The perspective then shifted back to Kitakami.
After Haru had fired off several Aqua Jets at the giant vision of Carmine, the "mist" around him began to change.
The oversized Carmine vanished completely—replaced by the long-missing Liko.
Something had clearly happened to her; her mood was visibly off. She didn't even notice how quickly Haru holstered his "bird gun."
His motion had been so swift that the Aqua Jet never actually launched, leaving behind no "evidence."
Before Haru could even ask Liko what was wrong, the surrounding mist rapidly dispersed, revealing Lillie and the others waiting by the lake.
At last, after a brief "spiriting away," the group was reunited.
After some discussion, they left the eerie Crystal Pool.
But from that point on, Briar and Carmine began acting strangely.
The two seemed secretive, as if plotting something together.
Meanwhile, Carmine had practically glued herself to Haru's side, claiming she wanted to "learn the latest battling techniques" from him.
Neither Briar nor Lillie believed that excuse for a second.
Carmine wasn't the type to be bold, nor was she like Liko—constantly at risk of attack from villainous teams. So why would she suddenly beg Haru for training?
No, it was clearly something else. Her clinginess, her "lapdog tendencies," her obsession… and with her plans to capture his desired Pokémon in shambles, someone finally snapped.
That someone was Carmine's younger brother, Kieran.
Originally, Kieran's plan had been simple: bide his time, gain Ogerpon's power, and then challenge Haru—the "hated rival"—to a decisive battle.
Even if Haru was the "protagonist" surrounded by allies, Kieran had absolute confidence in "ghost."
It wasn't like he was picking a fight with Lillie, a girl backed by a first-tier Legendary. Without Ogerpon's help, Haru should be an easy target.
But reality was cruel.
No matter how desperately Kieran tried to court Ogerpon—no matter how much he pursued it, even to the point of kneeling before the abyss of its lair and begging—it never once acknowledged him.
Capture? That was simply impossible.
And though Haru was aware of this situation, he never once told Ogerpon to "stay away from Kieran."
Every choice was Ogerpon's alone.
In truth, Ogerpon had never felt any fondness for Kitakami's people to begin with, and Kieran was no exception.
After Haru's arrival and the string of incidents that followed, Ogerpon only wanted even less to do with the locals.
Time and again, things that had nothing to do with it were twisted until blame fell squarely on its shoulders. How could it not grow resentful?
Kitakami might as well have staged a play called "Every Bad Thing Ogerpon Has Ever Done."
And what was it supposed to say? Stay here and keep taking the blame?
But Haru was different. He never once called it "the ghost," and he was genuinely reliable…
The more Ogerpon interacted with him, the more it felt Haru understood it.
When needed, he'd even pull out a thorned club to spar with it, offering advice on techniques like "the four applications of the Wooden Horn."
Ogerpon gained a great deal from this. Haru even once said he'd help clear its name completely.
Given all that, why would it ever agree to see Kieran? When Haru left Kitakami, it was likely to follow him.
And so, when Kieran finally realized he had no chance, his mentality collapsed.
Once again, he raged at the injustice of the "protagonist's aura."
He had worked so hard, shown such sincerity, and still Ogerpon rejected him.
Then came the final blow.
Kieran received a phone call from his sister, Carmine.
On the other end, Carmine urged him to stop.
"Kieran, just drop it. The place is crawling with Officer Jennys."
"Haru isn't a bad guy. Just apologize—he won't make things hard for you."
For once, she even showed real concern, hoping to pull her brother back before he lost himself completely.
And Kieran could hear it—her sincerity.
But he also heard something else.
A man's voice. Faint, breathing heavily.
And to his horror, Kieran recognized it instantly.
Haru's voice.
Not only that—it carried a distinctly suggestive tone. Whatever they were doing, it was not innocent.
Kieran went red-hot with fury on the spot.
What the hell was this? Talking to him on the phone… while fooling around with Haru in the background?
He instantly thought back to Lillie, to Liko, even to Briar—all of them showing that "special" attitude toward Haru.
Jealousy, bitterness, rage—all boiled over at once.
Damn it! Does Haru have some kind of cheat code? Why does everyone flock to him?!
Am I really that worthless compared to him?
Seething, Kieran sought Haru out—just as Haru was in the middle of dealing with Team Rocket.
The previous night, Haru had rotated between Lusamine (succubus queen mode), Lillie (angelic mode), Sabrina (miko mode), and Iono (shark mode)—a marathon of time management and "containment work."
And with more "assignments" piling up, the requirements growing harsher, even Haru was beginning to wonder if he ought to dial back the intensity.
Still, his "sacrifices" weren't meaningless.
At least Iono and Sabrina were acting more normal now—if more clingy—but their darker impulses, greed, and vengeance had all diminished.
For a moment, Haru even entertained the fantasy that his "special ammo" might purge the influence of Ogerpon's manipulator, Pecharunt.
Of course, that was just an unconscious delusion.
After waking up in his room that morning, Haru had intended to sweep up the local Rockets and maybe catch Giovanni's secretary, Matori.
But just after handing the captured grunts and the "main trio" over to Officer Jenny, he was cornered—by Kieran, who now looked completely consumed by madness.
"Battle me!" Kieran shouted, his purple hair tied up like a garlic bulb. His eyes blazed as he glared at Haru, surrounded by several girls.
"Ogerpon belongs only to the strong! Only the final victor has the right to command it!"
With that, he yanked out a Poké Ball, his expression fierce and resolute.
Haru just looked at him blankly.
He remembered this farce from the Indigo Disk story: Kieran demanding to decide Ogerpon's ownership through battle, as though it were some object without will of its own.
Back then, Haru had thought, Surely I don't know him well enough for this nonsense to happen.
Yet here it was.
"You're Carmine's brother, aren't you? Why should I accept your challenge?" Haru asked calmly.
"Besides—doesn't a Pokémon's choice matter? Since when were they tools whose ownership could be traded by force?"
He then glanced at the little head peeking from behind him.
"Ogerpon, do you want to go with him?"
Ogerpon immediately shook its head and ducked back into hiding.
Of course it knew who Kieran was. To it, he was nothing more than a deranged stalker.
No way. Not happening.
Kieran, however, grew only angrier.
To him, there was no problem with himself—Haru must have been poisoning Ogerpon's mind, turning it against him.
He had to prove the truth.
"Go! Dragonite!" Kieran roared, hurling his Poké Ball. The bulky pseudo-legendary materialized with a roar.
Haru sighed.
"So you still insist on fighting? You really don't know your limits. Fine—though even if I lose, that still doesn't mean Ogerpon belongs to you. Pokémon have the right to choose."
"Alright then… Mew, showtime."
He tossed his own Poké Ball.
A quick glance at Iono's livestream camera reminded him: this was the perfect chance to let dear Blue catch a glimpse of his "true" strength.
Meanwhile, far away in Kanto, Blue had just regained consciousness. Watching Iono's stream, he froze in silence.
"…"
Over the next ten minutes, his phone exploded with messages—flooding in from every app, from every person.
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