Kanto, Mount Tensei.
Because Fuyuki wanted to stop and watch the wild Pokemon along the roadside, the journey turned into a slow, wandering affair. They walked a bit, paused a bit, and lost a surprising amount of time just traveling.
By the time Fuyuki and Raikou finally returned to Mount Tensei, nearly half a month had passed.
They had only climbed halfway up the mountain when they spotted Entei standing there, brow tightly furrowed, its expression stern and imposing as it looked down at them from above.
Under that gaze, both Fuyuki and Raikou felt a flash of guilt.
Raikou did feel a little guilty at first, but then it thought about it again. Why should it feel bad?
Fuyuki was its child. As a parent, what was wrong with taking its kid out to play?
With that thought, Raikou straightened up, suddenly full of righteous confidence.
"Father!" Fuyuki slid down from Raikou's sleek fur and trotted over, hugging Entei's leg and acting cute. "When did you get back?"
If I hadn't come back, who knows where you and Raikou would've run off to, Entei thought.
"Not long ago."
It carefully examined Fuyuki from head to toe. Only after confirming that he wasn't injured or sick did it finally relax.
Then it lifted its head to look at Raikou, frowning. "Raikou, you shouldn't have taken Fuyuki out."
"I'll do whatever I want. It's none of your business!" Raikou glared back and snorted. "Besides, I was protecting Fuyuki. No one could hurt him!"
The atmosphere between the two Legendary Pokemon grew tense, on the verge of erupting into an argument. Seeing this, Fuyuki quickly climbed up onto Entei's body.
"I'm the one who asked Second Father to take me to the human world to play!"
"You went to the human world?" Entei's frown deepened even further.
"Hmph." Raikou snorted again. "We'll go wherever we want."
Entei didn't respond. Worry churned in its heart.
After all, Fuyuki wasn't a Pokemon. He was human.
What Entei feared was that after coming into contact with humans, the child might choose to return to their world, to stay among them and leave the mountain behind.
Sensing things going downhill fast, Fuyuki hurriedly spoke up. "Father, I'm hungry. I'm really tired too. I want to sleep!"
Only then did Entei snap back to itself. Without a word, it carried Fuyuki home, fetched a basket of Berries, and set it in front of him.
After eating just enough to fill his stomach, the father and child headed upstairs. Entei lay down on the carpet as usual, offering itself as a fluffy pillow.
Raikou followed them up as well.
Curled against Entei's chest, Fuyuki blinked at it, subtly signaling that there was no need to worry.
The small exchange between him and Raikou didn't escape Entei's notice, but it chose not to intervene. Instead, it turned its gaze to Raikou and spoke through telepathy, careful to keep Fuyuki out of the conversation.
"Something strange has been happening across this land."
"Pokemon have been disappearing in large numbers. Not long ago, I followed a group of suspicious humans to a mysterious underground base."
"There, I discovered that they were conducting some kind of evil experiment on Pokemon."
Raikou's expression turned serious at once.
"Who's responsible?"
"They call themselves Team Rocket," Entei replied. "According to the Pokemon I rescued, those humans are carrying out a wicked experiment known as [cloning]."
"Mm…" Raikou's brow tightened. It understood exactly what Entei meant.
Normally, human affairs had nothing to do with them.
But this involved countless Pokemon. They couldn't ignore it.
"I understand," Raikou said heavily. "This time, when I leave, I'll protect those Pokemon."
"Good. I'll leave it to you." Entei nodded.
The two fell silent. Entei lowered its head and looked at Fuyuki in its arms. He was already fast asleep.
After a long while, Entei spoke again. "You shouldn't have taken Fuyuki to the human world."
Raikou was about to retort that it wasn't Entei's concern, but it quickly sensed the worry and unease beneath those words.
"What are you afraid of?" it asked.
"Fuyuki is human, in the end," Entei said quietly. "If, after meeting humans, he chooses to stay in their world…"
Raikou fell silent.
Its thoughts drifted back to the research institute, to the human called Professor Oak. It remembered the way Fuyuki had looked, reluctant and torn, when Professor Oak had tried to persuade him to stay.
"No matter what, I won't leave Fuyuki," Raikou said coldly. "Even if he chooses to remain in the human world, I'll stay by his side and protect him."
Entei didn't reply. It knew it would make the same choice.
After all these years together, neither of them could bear to let this child go.
He was their first child, and he would also be their only one.
"Protect Fuyuki. I'm leaving."
Raikou stood up and spoke to Entei in a flat voice.
From here on, Entei would guard their home, while it went to fulfill its own mission, to protect those vulnerable Pokemon out in the world.
Meanwhile, Viridian City, Viridian Gym.
Inside a room decorated with restrained luxury, a middle-aged man with a close-cropped haircut sat calmly on a leather sofa, one large hand gently stroking the smooth fur of a Persian.
"Matori, what happened?" His voice was calm, yet carried unquestionable authority.
"Boss… Alpha Base was attacked by an unknown intruder. Everything inside was destroyed. The Kanto League has already rushed to the scene."
"However, please rest assured, Boss. Dr. Fuji evacuated safely with all the research data," Matori reported.
Giovanni frowned. "Was it Lance?"
That newly appointed League investigator had been interfering with Team Rocket's operations in more places than he cared to count.
"No. We don't know," Matori replied gravely, shaking her head. "The central computer connected to the surveillance system was destroyed immediately."
"I see." Giovanni closed his eyes, as if deep in thought. After a long pause, he spoke again.
"The New Island laboratory should be close to completion. Have Dr. Fuji take the data there next."
A faint smile curved his lips. "Once the [Mewtwo Project] is complete, no one will be able to stop me from ruling this world."
"Then I'll congratulate you in advance, Boss," Matori said.
As Giovanni's closest aide, she knew exactly what the [Mewtwo Project] entailed.
By combining human DNA with genetic material extracted from Mew's eyelash fossil, they would create the strongest Pokemon in the world. Mewtwo.
"Still… Boss, what about Alpha Base?" Matori asked.
"Since Dr. Fuji escaped safely with the data, let the investigators waste their time with whatever's left," Giovanni replied.
A confident smile spread across his face.
Who would ever imagine that the head of Team Rocket was openly sitting here in Viridian Gym, working for the Kanto League itself?
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=
You can read up to chapter 101 on patreon.com/NiaXD.