Chapter 265: You Dare Block King Piplup's Path?
"Of course. It won't grow back once it's shed, and keeping it is useless. You can have it."
"Then I'll accept it graciously!"
Will happily stuck the golden crest feather onto his head.
From now on...
He was a Piplup who could unleash Sacred Fire!
If anyone asked...
It was a gift from a friend!
"Be careful not to lose it, or you won't be able to use Sacred Fire anymore," Ho-Oh warned, watching the feather flutter in the wind atop Will's head. "Also, that feather is very conspicuous. Be careful that those who recognize it don't target you."
"Oh~ Don't worry, that won't happen."
Will grinned, unconcerned.
He tapped his head.
The golden feather disappeared.
In his personal status panel, the item [Sacred Ash] (Ho-Oh's Crest Feather) appeared in the "Held Item" slot, and the move [Sacred Fire] appeared in his move list.
"...It seems you have some abilities unique to yourself, just like us."
"Similar abilities, sure. But in other ways, I'm not like you guys."
Will shook his head.
He knew exactly who Ho-Oh meant by "us"—the Legendary and Mythical Pokémon of this world. Even though he had cheats as broken as theirs, Will didn't consider himself one of them.
However...
Being thought of that way by Ho-Oh was a form of recognition.
There were many capable humans and Pokémon in this world, but Will was the first to be truly recognized by a high-tier Legendary as an equal.
Take AZ, for example.
He also had cheats, but no Legendary Pokémon would consider him one of "them."
"You are walking that path. You are the 'Leaf God.' In human societies outside of Kanto and Johto, you are even more famous than Lugia and me."
Ho-Oh shook its head, looking down at Will with shining eyes.
"That day will come. Humans will place you on the same level as us, or perhaps even..."
"Maybe. But that day is still far off."
Will shrugged.
Right now, besides the Tree of Beginning, Mew, Regice, Heatran, Lucario, and Ho-Oh... did anyone else know he was the Leaf God?
Even the Legendary Beasts didn't know. And certainly no humans knew.
So, for Will, the future Ho-Oh spoke of was still very, very far away.
"Regarding what the little girl said at the beginning... about your body's problem. Perhaps Jirachi or Manaphy could solve it, but even I cannot find them."
Ho-Oh thought for a moment, then continued, "If there is anything I can help with in the future, you can come to me. Not as a trade, but as a friend. From now on, we are friends."
"Those two? Yeah, they're not easy to find. It's fine, I don't have a strong desire to evolve. We'll see."
Will nodded and winked at Ho-Oh. "And if you ever need my help, you can contact me through the Tree of Beginning. Don't let my Piplup form fool you; trust me, there will be times when I can help."
From the three Pokémon Ho-Oh mentioned...
Will realized something.
It seemed the abilities of "Mythical Pokémon" were more varied and bizarre than those of "Legendary Pokémon."
Many problems that Legendaries couldn't solve... could be easily solved by Mythicals who weren't necessarily combat-oriented.
"Agreed."
Ho-Oh imitated Will, giving him an awkward wink in return.
After that, Ho-Oh carried Will back to the clearing at the top of Mount Tensei, returned him to Lorelei's arms, and flew off toward the peak.
"Piplup, what did Ho-Oh want with you?" Lorelei looked curiously at the little penguin in her arms.
"Taught me a move."
Will hopped down from Lorelei's arms.
Then, he spread his flippers and slapped them together in front of him.
BOOM!
A massive ball of fire, primarily crimson but laced with rainbow light, was conjured out of thin air by Will.
The fireball was at least a meter in diameter—three times Will's size!
"Nani?!"
"Rargh?!"
Lorelei and Lucario were utterly shocked.
Someone without knowledge might not find it that impressive.
Just like in the Sinnoh League finals, when Will used the Fire-type Weather Ball, many people didn't realize anything was wrong at first. They didn't know that Piplup couldn't learn Fire-type moves, or even Sunny Day.
Only those who knew were shocked.
Later, after hearing explanations, they understood and calmed down.
But this situation was completely different.
Will had directly released a Fire-type move.
He hadn't used an external condition like weather to change a move's type.
This meant...
From now on, this Fire-type move was a permanent part of Will's arsenal. He could use it whenever he wanted, unlike Weather Ball, which required Sunny Day.
"That's amazing, Piplup! No, wait, I should thank Ho-Oh!"
Lorelei looked at the fireball Will had created, ran over, picked him up, and spun him around. Then she shouted toward the peak of Mount Tensei, "Ho-Oh~ From now on, in my heart, you're even cooler than the Leaf God~"
Will glanced up at her, then looked away.
At the peak, Ho-Oh poked its head out, smiled at Will, and ducked back down.
"Hahaha."
Lucario laughed out loud.
"Lucario, what are you laughing at? Piplup learned a Fire-type move! Isn't that awesome? Now fighting Bug, Steel, and Ice types will be easy~"
Lorelei looked at the dog, confused.
Fire is super effective against four types: Grass, Bug, Steel, Ice.
Lorelei didn't mention Grass because Ice and Flying moves (which Will already knew) were super effective against Grass.
In her view, Will gaining a Fire move didn't change much against Grass types.
"Nothing." Lucario shook his head.
If Will didn't say it himself, Lucario couldn't tell Lorelei the truth about the "Leaf God."
"Alright, let's go. Ho-Oh's light show was bright enough to be seen for miles. There's a Pokémon Center in the forest below Mount Tensei; people might already be heading this way."
Will patted Lorelei, urging her to move.
"Oh! Right! Let's go quickly, we can't be discovered! Piplup, we'll use that move at the next tournament and shock the world!"
Lorelei grinned, imagining the future.
Right now, she and Will were already somewhat famous. Especially in the Sevii Islands. As the genius girl who came out of that small place, Lorelei was an idol to countless children.
In the future, when Will unleashed Sacred Fire at a tournament...
It would instantly shock every Pokémon Professor and Water-type trainer in the world.
Once they stepped forward to explain how this defied all known theory, Will and Lorelei would become famous all over again.
And this time, it wouldn't just be in the Sevii Islands.
Suddenly...
A small shadow blocked their path.
"Mar~"
Marshadow spread its arms, blocking Lorelei's way.
"Oh?"
Before Lorelei could speak, Will raised an eyebrow.
He hopped down from Lorelei's arms and walked up to the little guy with a swagger.
Joke's on you. I'm practically brothers with Ho-Oh now!
You, Ho-Oh's little lackey, dare to block King Piplup's path?
Then...
Will realized that Marshadow, while looking small, was actually twice his height!
"Mar?"
Marshadow tilted its head, looking confusedly at the Will standing in front of it.
"Why are you blocking the road, little bro?"
Will stood on his tiptoes and poked Marshadow's forehead.
"Mar..."
Marshadow scratched its head, then pulled a gray egg out of its shadow and handed it to Will.
"?"
Will stared at the egg suddenly shoved into his arms, a question mark popping up over his head.
"Marsha."
"You're giving this to me?"
Will raised an eyebrow.
He roughly understood what was happening.
Marshadow had been watching the whole time. Seeing that Will could use Sacred Fire after coming down from the peak, it understood that he and Ho-Oh were now close.
So Marshadow decided to give Will a gift.
"What is this?"
Forgive Will's clumsy eyes, but he really couldn't tell what this was. There were no signs of life inside, so it obviously wasn't a Pokémon egg.
"Mar."
Marshadow shook its head.
It didn't know what it was either. It had just reached into its shadow and grabbed whatever came to hand.
In the eyes of these Legendary Pokémon, very few material things in this world deserved the word "precious." Gift-giving was about the sentiment.
To Marshadow, completing the act of giving a gift conveyed the sentiment. That was enough.
As for what was given? Whatever. Who cares?
"Alright, thank you."
Will nodded, put the egg away, and checked his panel.
[Lucky Egg].
Oh! It's this! Good stuff!
Will's eyes lit up.
In the games, the Lucky Egg slightly increases the experience points a Pokémon gains from battle (50% boost).
In reality, the effect definitely wouldn't compare to Celebi's "hack" in his last life, or Iris's Dragon Force boost.
But it was something. Better than nothing. Especially for Will, whose EXP gain in this life was naturally slow.
"My name is Will. Remember it. We're good friends from now on. If anything good happens, call me." Will whispered in Marshadow's ear.
"Mar."
Marshadow nodded obediently.
"Okay! We're off. See you next time."
Will looked at Marshadow appreciatively and waved.
Although this little guy was a bit neurotic in the movie, its nature was simple.
Like right now... Will found it much more pleasing to the eye.
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