The sun was bright and beautiful.
The beach had been baked into a golden yellow, with heat rising up.
In the vast blue sea, many people and Pokémon were stamping on spindle-shaped surfboards, rolling amidst the waves, trying to conquer the forces of nature.
This is Martial Arts Beach.
It's one of Fujishu's favorite places to come; nicknamed [Fighting Wave], he often practices here with his Pokémon.
And on a scorching summer afternoon, Martial Arts Beach is also a favorite spot for many young men and women.
Baimu is young too, so he brought his Pokémon along.
"Aren't you going to try?"
Under the parasol, he turned his head to ask Aggron, "Hey buddy, you're a Pokémon that can surf! Go show them what professionalism is all about!"
"Roar~"
Aggron lazily wagged its tail, looking unmotivated.
In such good weather, it might be better to take a nap instead of moving around.
Is fighting with the waves really that fun?
"Chodo~"
Wearing sunglasses, Mawile lay back on a beach chair in agreement, since back in Pyrite Town, it already liked to hide in shady spots to rest.
Not far away.
Chansey was playing and frolicking with Deino.
Of course, to be precise, it was the latter playing all by itself, while the former took care of it like a nanny to prevent it from accidentally ruining others' precious sandcastles.
"Moano~ Moano~"
Deino kept calling out, trying to attract Trainers to play with it.
However, Baimu didn't feel like moving either.
He felt that he had been infected with the lazy spirit of Galarian Corsola, increasingly enjoying finding a place to sit around, doing nothing or just scrolling on his phone...
This wouldn't do.
It's not retirement time yet.
He propped up his body, touched his neck, and moved toward Deino, just about to greet the little guy when three excited kids cheerfully blocked his way.
"It's really a Deino!"
"And a rare Chansey! Great, I want to catch them!"
"Idiot, they must have a Trainer! Don't do something stupid!"
"Just joking..."
The three kids were noisily arguing, which annoyed Deino, who could smell a Trainer, and it angrily bumped the kid who said he wanted to catch it, diving to Baimu's feet.
"Moano~"
"Ouch!"
The bumped kid lost his balance and fell on his butt, just about to say something when he saw his two companions trembling as they looked behind him.
He instinctively looked up, seeing a tall, sturdy figure casting a large shadow with an expressionless face, which was rather intimidating at first glance.
"Uh..." The kid's body stiffened.
"Hahaha."
Baimu couldn't hold back a smile; occasionally teasing little brats could be good for health, so he squatted down and petted the ever-calling Deino, "Alright, alright, stop calling. Apologize to them."
"Moano?"
Deino didn't quite understand what apologizing meant but obediently called out to the fallen kid, "Moano!"
Chansey used Spiritual Power to help the kid up, quickly checking all over his body. Finding no harm, it sighed in relief, "Lucky~"
Realizing Baimu wasn't really angry, or that fierce, the three little kids exchanged glances, gradually relaxing.
"Big brother, are all these your Pokémon? Even that Aggron and Mawile over there?"
"Of course."
"Big brother, where did you catch these Pokémon?"
"You'll meet them as long as you have fate, no need to rely on catching them."
"I want a Deino too..."
"Then head off, go travel to the Unova Region, you're ten already, right?"
Baimu chatted with them idly, his thoughts unconsciously returning to Cyan Iridium Street in Pyrite Town, remembering how the little kids in the neighborhood used to be like these three, always asking him all kinds of Pokémon questions.
With eyes full of yearning.
Somehow nostalgic.
If he'd escaped without doing anything back then, perhaps he would have been oblivious to all the subsequent events that happened in Pyrite Town and Ore, and would have felt senselessly sad about the different destinies between people.
But thankfully, he personally witnessed the changes in Pyrite Town, therefore he could firmly believe that the destinies of those kids had changed.
The Pokémon he yearned for in his youth were no longer dreams.
But reality.
After chatting for a while.
The three little kids seemingly had other things to do, reluctantly gazing at Deino, ultimately only interacting with Chansey, while Deino did not play with them at all.
"Goodbye, big brother!"
"Goodbye~"
"By the way, this is for you!" One kid handed him a flyer, "You must come! It's lively!"
It contained information about a beach bonfire party, promising drinks, barbecue buffets, and many entertainment competitions, looking quite interesting.
But what truly attracted Baimu was the mention of a Pokémon Exchange Event.
"Are you guys working part-time handing out flyers?"
He noticed all three were clutching piles of papers, initially mistaking them for test papers or notebooks, yet they turned out to be flyers.
"Yes!"
The person proudly placed hands on hips, quickly adding, "There will be lots of people participating, I'm not lying to you."
"He's telling the truth!"
"There'll be people from all over! It'll surely be worth it!"
The three kids ran off suddenly.
Baimu took another look at the flyer and noticed the event was scheduled for tomorrow night. It didn't matter, as he wasn't in a hurry to leave after finishing with Martial Arts Gym because he still wanted to find Guang Hai near the abandoned ship and ask him to help guide him to Lugia's whereabouts.
He had already messaged him after guessing his identity, but perhaps due to the storm of public opinion, he directly deleted his blog to clear things up.
So far, he hadn't received any response from Guang Hai.
Without Guang Hai's reply, Baimu had to figure it out himself.
For this, he must solve the transportation issue, as there were no ferries from Martial Arts Town to the abandoned ship.
"Pokémon Exchange Event, huh... Too bad I don't have any Pokémon to trade."
Baimu sighed. He was interested in the exchange event, but had deep bonds with every member of his team, making it impossible to trade them with other Trainers.
The Gyarados that Xiaosheng didn't want and sent to Pyrite Town for reform got affection from Ayana and he entrusted it to her to train.
He supposed he could only enjoy the spectacle.
Baimu felt a bit regretful, giving a gentle nudge to Aggron's body, "Come on! Let's surf!"
"Roar~"
"Let's go surf! Don't be lazy like a Spoink, okay?"
"Roar?"
"What's a Spoink... That's why you need to read more like Mawile to learn characters, this is a Pokémon," Baimu said, a bit exasperated.
Mawile lowered its sunglasses: "?"
What does this have to do with me? Why does it concern you? Are you crazy?
In the end.
With Baimu's urging, Aggron stood up and slowly moved towards the seaside, its shiny, massive body drawing curious looks from many people.