Chapter 384:
In Altomare, Hayashi Kaede hadn't been waiting long and was just about to go explore Altomare himself when Latias's hurried figure appeared.
It flew straight to him, landed next to him, and carried him towards the place they had come from, its expression clearly still a bit nervous.
"Latias~" (Let's go, let's go~!)
In less than three seconds, they reached the water surface from before. Then, imitating Hayashi Kaede, it tapped the water surface.
Impressively, Giratina, waiting inside, actually opened the passage to the Reverse World, allowing Latias to carry him inside.
It wasn't until they entered the Reverse World that Hayashi Kaede processed what happened.
He spoke, half-convinced and half-doubting, "Um, Latias, did your discussion with your brother just now... not go well?"
Latias turned its head away. "Latias? Latias!" (So what? I still want to go~)
"Uh..." Hayashi Kaede, riding on Latias's back, was somewhat stunned.
To be honest, when Latias went to seek its brother's opinion, he had been a bit worried.
Because in the anime, Latios's behavior was relatively rational.
But aside from being quite lively, not much else about Sister Latias's personality was clearly shown.
He hadn't expected Latias to be somewhat rebellious too?
But thinking about it, this could also be seen from the beginning of the *Pokémon Heroes* movie.
Namely, Latias directly took Ash to the Underground Garden.
Logically speaking, that place shouldn't allow any outsiders, let alone Ash, who wasn't a local of Altomare but just a tourist.
"Yikes..." Thinking of this, Hayashi Kaede sucked in a cold breath.
Then he looked at Latias. "Aren't you afraid your brother will scold you when you go back?"
Latias lifted its head quite proudly. "Latias..." (He wouldn't dare to scold me.)
"Tsk..." Looking at its little expression, Hayashi Kaede could already picture the usual interactions between the brother and sister.
"Latias..." (Besides, it's just worried about me. After a few days, when it sees I'm fine, it won't stop me anymore.)
Hearing this, Hayashi Kaede didn't say more and tentatively said, "Then... let's go?"
o(*￣▽￣*)o: "Latias~" (Let's go!)
ヾ(•ω•`)o: "Latias?" (By the way what kind of work is it?)
"It's fine, I'll have Gardevoir teach you later. It's about learning how to make Energy Cubes and various delicious foods. Once you learn this, you can even make delicious food for yourself back in Altomare."
"Latias?" (Really?)
"Yes, yes..."
...
February 14th.
No ribbon-cutting, no announcement; quietly and uneventfully, the Hayashi Breeding House opened for business!
But in the morning, as soon as it opened, customers who had been waiting daily spotted it, their eyes lighting up.
"See, we predicted it! We knew Little Kaede would open quietly. Come on, come on."
"Guys, let's keep it quiet, no big fanfare!"
The few regular customers who had been keeping watch felt their eyes light up the moment they saw the shop door open.
Chatting amongst themselves, they walked inside.
Once inside, their eyes shone even brighter.
Because unlike last year, where the Energy Cubes were displayed on shelves and once sold out, they were gone, this year's counter had no Energy Cubes on display.
Instead, there were storage capsules.
Next to each storage capsule was a detailed introduction to the type of Energy Cube inside.
In other words, these capsules were all filled with Energy Cubes.
"Whoa, whoa, are they offering unlimited supply this year?"
"How many are in one of these storage capsules?!"
It was the first day, so at the checkout, not only was the big brother Indeedee there, but Hayashi Kaede had also come over.
"Little Kaede, Little Kaede!"
Someone quickly focused their attention on Kaede.
"Why is this type of Energy Cube so cheap?" they asked, pointing at the few storage capsules placed in the most prominent display case.
This was the only display case that actually had Energy Cubes visibly placed outside.
Compared to the other Energy Cubes, these ones seemed to have slight, bubble-like spots on them.
*Ahem.* "Well, because they are stamina-restoring Energy Cubes made from Oran Berries, and the maker is still a beginner, so they are cheaper. But don't worry, it's just that the taste is a bit worse, and the effect is slightly weaker," Hayashi Kaede coughed twice.
These Energy Cubes were, without a doubt, made by Latias.
Its psychic abilities, whether in terms of control or strength, were far inferior to Gardevoir's.
And to make high-quality Energy Cubes, sufficient energy control is essential.
Kaede had thought that Latias, as a Legendary Pokémon, even if young and not high-leveled, must have impeccable energy control, right?
But the moment Latias took over the kitchen, Hayashi Kaede's face fell.
Its psychic control... that Confusion... blew up the berry blender on the first try.
Luckily, Kaede now had his own psychic abilities and could control the blast's aftermath immediately.
Otherwise, the blast could have taken out the entire kitchen.
No wonder Latias's performance against the phantom thief sisters was so lackluster.
Hayashi Kaede had reason to suspect that since birth, Latias and Latios had never trained their moves.
And they were just up against an Ariados and an Espeon.
There was no other way.
Hayashi Kaede could only first teach Latias the entire process of making Energy Cubes, and then prepare some food that could quickly improve a Pokémon's control over its own energy.
Sigh.
No helping it, he was the one who chose this employee.
No matter what, he had to train it properly.
Back to the present.
The customers who had come in, hearing Hayashi Kaede's explanation, nodded understandingly. "It makes sense for Little Kaede to train a few apprentices. Otherwise, with so many people, how will he keep up with supply later?"
"It's fine if you work harder, but the stuff we want to buy absolutely cannot run out!"
"..."
Hayashi Kaede was rendered speechless by these comments.
"Ha, I remember Little Kaede is this year's Pokémon League Conference champion! That means a Champion is making Energy Cubes for our Pokémon!"
"Kaede is training an apprentice? Whoa, with Little Kaede's training skills, what are the requirements for taking a apprentice? How much does it cost? I'd pay to learn too!"
"Now that you mention it, yeah, take me as your apprentice, bro~ I can serve tea and water...."
...
It took a while for Hayashi Kaede to clearly explain that he wasn't taking apprentice.
Although these customers felt it was a pity, they also knew that for Breeders, unless they were dedicated teachers, it was often difficult to take on apprentice.
Their interest then turned to the Energy Cubes made by the new "apprentice."
It seemed these were made by Little Kaede's newly taken apprentice, so the appearance wasn't great.
But thinking that since Little Kaede put them out, there naturally shouldn't be any major quality issues.
At the very least, they probably wouldn't kill you.
Coupled with the gimmick of free samples, they immediately summoned their Pokémon.
A Butterfree, a Heracross, and a Pidgeotto.
After trying the samples, the three Pokémon's eyes immediately lit up.
It had been so long since they had tasted this flavor.
Heaven knows how conflicted they felt during the New Year without tasting Energy Cubes of this flavor.
Seeing this, Hayashi Kaede also breathed a sigh of relief.
Although the Energy Cubes made by Latias had many issues in his opinion, these problems were mostly superficial. At least the materials—the berries—were mainly produced from his plantation, and the crafting methods were also provided by him.
Even if the appearance was a bit worse, and the texture slightly inferior, the overall flavor wouldn't change drastically.
He didn't stay long at the Breeding House. The reason he didn't advertise on his video channel today was precisely that he was somewhat worried about the poor appearance leading to negative reviews.
For him, the impact might be small.
But for Latias, it would be problematic.
Because these were the first Energy Cubes Latias ever made, and it really wanted to know if everyone would like them.
He left the Breeding House, leaving it in the care of the big brother Indeedee, and still didn't do any promotion.
On one hand, Latias's crafting proficiency hadn't reached a high level yet.
At this moment, at the back door of the Breeding House, a little red-haired head was peeking out sneakily.
"It looks like everyone quite likes the Energy Cubes you made," Hayashi Kaede walked up to it and said softly.
"Umm..." Latias nodded very seriously, but the upturned corners of its mouth couldn't help but tell Hayashi Kaede that it was quite happy right now.
"How about your brother?" Hayashi Kaede couldn't help but ask about Latios.
Seeing that Latias had been here for four days now.
If Brother Latios still didn't agree, it would be a bit troublesome.
"Latias~" (*Hmph~ After eating the food I made, it didn't say anything else. It just told me to be careful.*) Latias pursed its lips, giggling happily.
Brother was a foodie too.
Although Kanon and her grandfather often brought food for them, her Brother clearly preferred the food it made now.
"That's good, that's good." Hayashi Kaede nodded in relief.
After all, for Latias, Latios was its elder.
If it insisted that Latias shouldn't come here, even if Latias was willing, it would be very difficult for him.
Hayashi Kaede didn't say much more.
He waved his hand. "Then focus on learning from Gardevoir. Strive to improve your energy control as soon as possible."
"Latias..." (Mm-hmm~) Latias responded, then skipped away happily.
Speaking of which, it thought working here was pretty good.
Apart from having no worries about food and drink and being able to go home every day, Hayashi Kaede also taught it many things.
For example, its control over Confusion was much more proficient than before.
That wasn't the key point. The key was, although the things it made were sold, what they ate was all made by Hayashi Kaede himself, and the variety was rich and diverse. Many were delicacies it had never seen on that little cat!
Moreover, it could learn how to make these delicious foods itself!
Thinking this, Latias felt full of energy.
Study hard, work hard...
Meanwhile, Hayashi Kaede was checking Latias's status panel.
[Pokémon: Latias]
[Gender: Female]
[Ability: Levitate]
[Type: Dragon, Psychic]
[Aptitude: Gold]
[IVs: HP (25) Attack (25) Sp. Atk (30) Defense (31) Sp. Def (31) Speed (31)]
[Level: 44-47]
[Moves: Charm, Psycho Shift, Helping Hand, Recover, Confusion, Tailwind, Dragon Breath, Dragon Pulse, Dream Eater, Dragon Dance.]
[Happiness: 70]
[Friendship: 70 (The human who makes delicious food)]
He hadn't noticed before; it was already level 44-47, which would make it a alpha-level Pokémon in a typical wilderness area.
But looking at Latias, it only knew a mere ten moves.
It didn't even know Psybeam...
Probably most of the moves were ones it knew from birth.
It was evident how much training it had done since being born.
Shaking his head, Hayashi Kaede didn't disturb Gardevoir teaching Latias.
Instead, he turned and went back to his room.
He had been thinking about something else these past few days.
Namely, Mew.
According to Latias's description, Mew left suddenly.
It was as if it had received some kind of call.
Although, plot-wise, the Tree of Beginning shouldn't be having problems right now, the fact that neither Mew nor Jirachi had contacted him these past few days inevitably made him a little worried.
...
Meanwhile, in the Kanto region.
Indigo Plateau.
The sacred flame burned high, a fire unique to Moltres.
The annual Indigo League Conference for the Kanto region was currently underway.
The tournament had reached the round of 16 advancing to the top 8.
It seemed the match had reached its most intense point.
Below, Ash's shouts of "Get up!" failed to rouse his Pikachu. Left with no choice, he could only look at his other Poké Balls.
After hesitating for a long time, he finally sent out Charizard.
"Charizard, I'm counting on you."
Charizard lazily emerged from its Poké Ball. When it saw that its opponent, Ritchie's Pokémon, was a Charmander, the fighting spirit in its eyes immediately diminished significantly, replaced instead by helplessness.
The opposing Charmander, upon seeing Charizard, shrank back.
The battle began quickly.
In a few moves and swipes, even though the opposing Charmander eventually evolved into Charmeleon, it still lost to the fully evolved Charizard.
Just as Ash thought victory was certain, after Ritchie sent out his own Pikachu, Charizard lay down on the ground and closed its eyes.
Ignoring Ash's shouts, it prepared to sleep.
But at that moment, a pink, humanoid figure abruptly appeared within its line of sight.
With just one glance, Charizard shuddered all over and quickly stood up.
Then, spreading its wings, it prepared to fly up.
But this pink figure landed behind the Pikachu on the field and then slowly merged with it.
Charizard was momentarily confused, but instinctively, it immediately showed extreme wariness towards this Pikachu.
The strength of that pink Pokémon from before was something it remembered deeply!
"Sparky, use Quick Attack!"
Sure enough, after Ritchie gave the command, the Pikachu's speed was almost two or three times faster than it had shown in previous matches, stunning everyone present.
"Groar!"
Charizard instantly erupted with intense fighting spirit and charged forward as well....
...
Meanwhile, high in the sky.
A floating pink kitten, along with a Victini that had appeared at some point, were watching the scene below, sneaking laughs.