The three of them resolved their unnecessary misunderstandings.
Kashiwagi had essentially been forced to adopt a long-lost ancestor.
Everyone was happy.
Takeshi even declared that once this was over, he was willing to take Kashiwagi back to the village to "reconnect with his roots" and figure out exactly which lineage he belonged to.
Just hearing it made Kashiwagi's head ache.
"I'll drop you back first, then return here to carry out the plan," Yamamino said, inserting the car key.
"Wait."
Kashiwagi grabbed his wrist and called out to Takeshi, who was about to step out of the car. "Are you two doing this alone?"
"For now, yes. The situation in Pyrite Town is complex; the more people who know, the more dangerous it becomes for us." Yamamino seemed to catch his drift. "Do you want to help?"
"Yeah."
Kashiwagi nodded. "I'm not sure how you're planning to handle the alibi, but there are only two of you. It's risky and inconvenient in almost every way."
"That's true..."
Yamamino made no attempt to hide the reality of the situation.
Takeshi's expression shifted. "You shouldn't get involved. You're still young; this is far too dangerous."
"And let me just go home and wait for news? You keep saying I won't be dragged into this, but what if the mission fails? There are only two of you, and I don't know how much backup you actually have. Simply put, I'm not interested in 'waiting for death'."
Kashiwagi provided a perfectly logical justification.
"Besides, I owe you one, Yamamino. And seeing poachers selling other people's Pokémon pisses me off. I have no reason to stand by—my strength might not match yours, but I assume your plan involves more than just brawling?"
"Precisely."
Yamamino's smile grew even brighter.
However...
While Kashiwagi truly loathed poachers and genuinely wanted to repay Yamamino, his biggest motivation for joining this dangerous scheme was the clue.
He understood that in any endeavor, one must take the initiative. It was just like when he "persuaded" Aron to join him; if he hadn't returned to that underground pit that day, he never would have ended up with his current powerhouse.
The opportunity was right in front of him. If he chose to shrink back out of cowardice, his reward for being the runner-up—the lead on an excellent Dragon-type Pokémon—would vanish into the wind.
Kashiwagi had never lacked a spirit of adventure. This was the same man who, based only on the word of a female driver named Tyra, had dared to charge into the command post to find Ayana.
A future is something you fight for!
Takeshi looked conflicted. Asking Yamamino to help had been a last resort; what kind of person would he be if he dragged a lost scion of the Dragon Clan into this?
Yet, he felt the young man's reasoning was sound.
"Alright, he's seen more dangerous situations than you have, Takeshi. He knows how to keep himself safe—stop overthinking it." Yamamino stepped in to mediate, then looked at Kashiwagi. "We really are short-handed. Are you truly willing to help?"
"Of course!"
"Then I couldn't be happier. In that case, let me briefly outline our plan."
He concisely walked through the mission flow.
When it came to what Kashiwagi could contribute—there was a lot.
Setting aside the operation itself, once the plan succeeded, the auction house's powerful backers would undoubtedly lock down all of Pyrite Town. Not even a fly would be able to escape.
Takeshi and the rescued Deino would need a safe place to hide.
Such a place was hard to find, but if Kashiwagi was willing to help, they could be stashed at his residence.
Once the auction house's shadow masters realized they couldn't find the culprit, they'd eventually buckle under the pressure after a few days and lower the alert level. When the dust settled, Takeshi would have his chance to leave.
And without a doubt, there was only one power capable of locking down the entirety of Pyrite Town—
The Mayor.
The Mayor was the mastermind behind this auction house. Touching the auction was equivalent to touching his lifeblood; it was only natural he would go berserk.
But as they talked, Kashiwagi's expression turned odd.
"We're only going after the Deino?"
"For now, yes."
"Then why not just buy them? Buying them is much safer. If it's a money issue, I can help—"
"No," Yamamino shook his head. Beside him, Takeshi's eyes burned with a certain resolve. Yamamino continued, "There are some principles you simply cannot compromise on. Someone steals or robs a Pokémon, and we just pay to buy them back so everyone stays happy? The world doesn't work that way."
"Exactly. I know we could buy them back, but why should we?" Takeshi said righteously. "They won't get a single cent from us. In fact, we're going to wreck that shop! We'll take everything—"
Yamamino cut him off. "We can't take everything. Now you're just exaggerating."
"Er, hahaha. True." Takeshi rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.
Hearing this, Kashiwagi wanted to argue. He wanted to tell them that without power, compromise is a necessity. If they had the strength to crush the entire Underdome, they wouldn't need to manufacture an alibi.
But as the words reached his throat, he froze.
What am I doing? Am I really trying to convince Yamamino and the others to abandon their principles? To tell them to just 'endure it for peace'?
As if.
There is no such thing as "peace" through endurance. If you endure, the more you think about it, the angrier you get. If you take a step back, the more you think about it, the more you feel like you've lost. For people who hold onto their principles, losing them means losing their conviction.
Why did Kashiwagi pour his own money back into his neighborhood? It was to uphold his own principles. If he were willing to compromise, his personal wealth could easily be several times higher.
That was close.
Kashiwagi took a deep breath, feeling like he had almost taken a step toward becoming a bottomless scumbag. "I misspoke. Please, tell me what I need to do next."
Yamamino and Takeshi looked at each other and smiled.
----
A short while later.
Kashiwagi returned to the venue, accompanied by "Yamamino" and Alakazam.
"Are Ditto so common these days that you see them everywhere?" Kashiwagi whispered, looking at the "Yamamino" sitting next to him—the one wearing sunglasses to hide its tiny, beady eyes.
"Not exactly. This one is borrowed. While it has some flaws when transforming into humans, as long as it wears sunglasses, it's fine."
Yamamino's voice came through a tiny earpiece.
In the original plan, "Yamamino" was supposed to be a mascot-like presence, sitting there from start to finish. Now, with Kashiwagi's assistance, they could be more proactive and high-profile to boost their presence.
In other words: they were going to participate in the bidding.
Kashiwagi had suggested competing for the Deino, but Yamamino rejected the idea, setting their sights on a different Psychic-type Pokémon instead.
Of course, they wouldn't actually finalize the purchase. Even if they won, they wouldn't pay; they'd rather pay the contract penalty and let the item go unsold.
"The auction people have looked into my preferences. Bidding on a Deino would only cause unnecessary suspicion," Yamamino explained.
Seeing how meticulously the other man had planned, Kashiwagi had nothing more to say.