It could only be fate. Satoshi bought Marshadow's Z-Crystal from the shopkeeper with absurd ease.
"This Z-Crystal… looks unusable. It seems like it's for a specific Pokémon, but it's probably fake… Do you still want it?"
The shopkeeper explained the situation clearly.
After all, Z-Crystals were easy to counterfeit visually. Ordinary people couldn't tell unless they tried using one, so scams were common. This was a Mythical Pokémon's Z-Crystal—no ordinary person could possibly recognize it.
[Satocchi, to prevent anyone with bad intentions from noticing, I suggest you hide it. Don't let anyone see what you're using that Z-Crystal for.]
Do we really need to be that cautious? Besides, with Marshadow's Z-Crystal, there's probably no one left who'd even know.
From what Satoshi understood, almost nobody even knew Marshadow existed—let alone its Z-Crystal.
There definitely isn't!
[Please trust me, okay? Just say, "It's a gift for my girlfriend," please~ I'll do anything~!]
Furiko's pleading echoed in Satoshi's head.
Fine. So annoying. I'll indulge you this once.
Women are such a hassle… fine! No next time!
Satoshi casually picked up the Marshadium Z and paid.
"It's fine. It looks nice. I'm buying it as a gift for my girlfriend."
He said it without a trace of embarrassment. He could explain to Tomori later.
Completely uninterested in romance, he'd fallen straight into Furiko's trap.
"Uh… girlfriend?" A faint blush rose on Tomori's cheeks, her tone turning awkward.
"Oh~ A girlfriend, huh? Youth really is something." The auntie grinned. "I'm rooting for you two~"
Maybe middle-aged women just came preloaded with gossip instincts—she was clearly teasing Tomori on purpose.
Tomori, already introverted, looked ready to crawl into a hole and hide for an hour—entering full shutdown mode.
I'm Little Shut-In Tomori~~
But being called "girlfriend" also made her secretly, intensely happy.
It felt like she'd won—big!
"Mm… I-I'll do my best!" Tomori's face burned red, her thighs trembling slightly as she had no idea what else to say.
It was like she'd been hit by Attract—dazed by Satoshi until she couldn't speak.
Attract: ♂ charms ♀ or ♀ charms ♂, infatuating the target. The target will have trouble using moves.
[Ehehe~ SatoTomori my SatoTomori~ Even if I'm the cuck here, this is still really fun~]
Soul-Stealing 7-Star Strike has a base power of 195—ridiculously high—even higher than the strongest Ghost-type Z-Move made from Shadow Sneak (190).
Satoshi's attention was entirely on the Marshadium Z.
He couldn't wait to battle Marshadow using its Z-Move.
Unfortunately, at their current level, it was still too early. At minimum, it'd require competing in the High School Pokémon League—at least—
Raising a Pokémon to the level of an Elite Four!
But Satoshi had his own plan. He wasn't rushing.
Daily summoning rituals for Mega Evolution: Kalos, wait for me!
"Tomori, take this. It's my gift to you." Satoshi placed the Z-Crystal he'd just bought into Tomori's palm.
So intense!
Tomori instantly went shy all over, as if he'd brushed a sensitive nerve. Her entire body went soft and she nearly collapsed—only for Satoshi to catch her before she fell.
"Are you okay?"
His gaze was blazing—impossible to resist.
And why was it blazing? Because battling a full-power Marshadow with a Z-Move—how could that not set Satoshi on fire?!
Beating Marshadow senseless, kneading that shadowy body—sounds like a blast!
That's what the winner does.
"Mm… thanks?~" Tomori was completely dazed now, her lashes trembling, eyes shimmering with infatuation.
And a thought surfaced in her heart.
Oh no… am I going to end up fighting Anon and Soyo over one boy…?
But… that might actually be nice…
With that thought, Tomori melted into Satoshi's arms.
She wanted to join the shuraba.
...
The next day, Satoshi and Uika arrived on Poni Island. Since they'd discussed it yesterday, they came early in the morning.
Satoshi did want to visit Melemele Island and see Professor Kukui and the others, but today's goal was Poni's trial.
Poni Island was summed up in two words:
Quick and decisive.
There was a special trial here with no Trial Captain. Defeat the Totem Kommo-o, and you could claim the Dragonium Z from deep inside the cave.
Originally, Alola's trials had only one location—Poni Canyon. Only later did they evolve into today's Island Challenge.
With Dragonium Z in hand, you could then battle the island kahuna.
Because of the school trip, the Island Challenge had fewer steps.
Why fewer? First, they couldn't handle the workload. Second, Rainbow Wing Academy paid way too much.
Still, the difficulty of facing the island kahuna hadn't dropped at all.
If they arrived too late, someone else would get there first—so Satoshi and Uika got up early, basically at four in the morning.
All for one word…
Involution!
When Satoshi got up, Soyo and Anon were still asleep. He quietly packed his things and slipped out of the hotel—but before leaving, he heard Soyo mumbling in her sleep.
"Satoshi… I'll do anything… please do it with me…"
Uh… what did that sleep-talk even mean?
Do… do what?
Satoshi tilted his head, confused.
...
"This is Poni Island… it feels so remote." Uika's gaze swept over Seafolk Village. Unlike the other islands, this one barely had people.
"Probably because it's strong—and important."
Satoshi and Uika passed through Seafolk Village and reached Poni Canyon.
This place was completely unlike anywhere else—the most dangerous, most powerful trial. Most people came in teams. Satoshi and Uika were a temporary team, but two people were enough.
As they neared the entrance, Uika's lips curved into a smile.
"Satoshi, should we walk holding hands? Otherwise, I might almost trip again like yesterday."
Uika's stamina couldn't match Satoshi's at all—and this was the perfect way to limit his pace.
Otherwise…
Wasn't Satoshi's stamina kind of freaky yesterday?!
He'd used a Z-Move, which burned massive stamina, yet he'd acted like nothing happened.
Uika couldn't help marveling at his endurance.
"Sure." Satoshi took her hand without hesitation.
Their warmth mingled.
Still warm… just like before.
Uika's cheeks reddened as she squeezed tighter on instinct.
"Perfect. Let's take out our Poké Balls, too—Poni Island is dangerous."
With his left hand holding Uika's, Satoshi reached into his pocket for his Poké Balls.
"Satoshi… be quiet for a second."
"Uika?"
But as he took them out, Uika suddenly embraced him, pressing herself against him as if hiding something—pulling him into the shadows.
They were right at the entrance, so they'd inevitably run into other Trainers challenging Poni.
And Uika had forgotten one thing:
Her childhood friend Sakiko—who was also Satoshi's childhood friend—would come too.
"Uika—did looking for Tapu Koko make you come out this early?"
Sakiko's puzzled voice drifted from nearby, and Uika instantly tensed.
Oh no… I'm totally the kind of bad girl who steals someone else's boyfriend…
Nervousness churned in her chest—yet, unexpectedly, a strange thrill rose with it.
Why does this feel kind of exciting… kind of fun?
---
T/N: oh lord all the girls are trying to NTR eachother