Pokémon: Raising Abandoned Pokémon into Legends

Chapter 117: Rio: Talk-no-Jutsu, Activate!

A faint, almost imperceptible smile crossed Rio’s face.

He knew he had struck a chord. After waiting three seconds with no response from Raikou, Rio suddenly raised his voice: "Answer me—do you, or don’t you?!"

Caught off guard by the sudden outburst, Raikou’s pupils contracted, startled. The contempt in its eyes faded, replaced by a hint of bewilderment as it looked at Rio—as if surprised that a human would speak to it like that.

Rio continued: "Hesitating and wavering only makes you seem unworthy of the title of legendary Pokémon that the world worships. Yes means yes, no means no—say it outright. That’s the attitude a legend should have."

His tone and demeanor now carried the weight of someone in authority. Raikou stared at him for two seconds, then a deep, resonant voice echoed in Rio’s mind: "Yes."

"See? That’s more like it." Rio’s face instantly softened into a warm smile, catching Raikou off guard. "If you want something, just say it. It’s not embarrassing. If Entei or Suicune were in your position, do you think they’d want it too?"

"Yes—they would definitely want it." This time, Raikou answered without hesitation.

Rio smiled. He was immensely grateful for his psychology major in college. If he’d studied anything else, he wouldn’t have been able to handle these Pokémon so well.

There’s an old saying: "One judges others by one’s own measure." Though it usually refers to humans projecting their own thoughts onto others, it applies just as well to any intelligent, thinking being—including Pokémon. Raikou’s answer just now—was it because it truly wanted to be the leader of the three beasts, or because it believed Entei and Suicune would want it?

"See? That settles it. If Entei and Suicune want it too, it’s only natural that you want to become their leader and understand why Charizard and the others are so powerful. So why hesitate? Why feel embarrassed?" Rio skillfully dismantled Raikou’s inner reservations.

"Just like me—if someone asked if I wanted to be the world’s strongest trainer, I’d have only one answer: Hell yes!"

A hint of bashfulness crept into Raikou’s expression. This was the first time it had encountered such a silver-tongued human—one who read its thoughts so precisely that it couldn’t even find the words to argue.

"Enough—I want to know. Just answer my questions already," Raikou said, raising a paw and swiping at the air in mild embarrassment.

Even a legend can feel shy, Rio thought with satisfaction. "The answer is simple."

He puffed out his chest and raised three fingers. "Believe in me, support me, follow me. In short: the Three Me Principles."

Raikou stared at him with a peculiar look—as if he were insane. Gengar was giving him the exact same look, as if to say, Did you really just say that?

But Charizard, Primeape, Red Gyarados, and Munchlax—the four beneficiaries—nodded in wholehearted agreement.

"What, you don’t believe me?" Rio raised an eyebrow.

"How can you expect me to believe that?" Raikou’s voice echoed in his mind.

"Then how about a bet?" Rio offered.

"A bet?"

"Yes—I bet I can make a Pokémon strong. For example, this one." With a flash of light, Rio released Froakie and pointed at it. "What do you think of its strength?"

"What are you getting at?" Raikou deflected, not directly answering.

"How long do you think it would take for this Froakie to withstand your full-power attack?" Rio asked.

"Never," Raikou shook its head. Though it often helped weaker Pokémon, it didn’t believe a weak one could ever withstand its full power.

"Then here’s the bet: in six months, if Froakie can withstand your full-power attack, I win. From then on, you’ll unconditionally believe in me, support me, and follow me—wherever I point, you go. If it can’t, I lose, and I’ll set you free. Do you dare?"

Raikou was stunned. Was this human dreaming, or was he deliberately trying to set it free? How could a Froakie—a Water-type, no less—possibly withstand its full power in just six months? And who was it? It was Raikou—one of the legendary Ho-Oh’s guardians, the embodiment of lightning. The thought of a Froakie blocking its full attack after only half a year of training was absurd. If it happened, it would be a joke—Entei and Suicune would laugh it to death.

"Don’t tell me you’re too scared to take that bet?" Rio’s goading broke through Raikou’s thoughts.

"Who says I’m scared?! I accept! In six months, if this Froakie can withstand my full-power attack, I’ll obey your Three Me Principles without question. If it can’t, you have to set me free!" Raikou declared.

"Deal." Rio gave an OK sign.

"And until then?" Raikou pressed. "I want freedom. I don’t want to stay in a Poké Ball."

"Fine." Rio nodded without argument. He understood—everyone loved freedom. "If you’re willing, you don’t have to stay by my side for these six months. But we must meet once a week, and when I need your help, you’ll come to my aid."

"Agreed."

Raikou accepted the terms. A strand of golden, lightning-shaped fur drifted from its body.

"If I’m away and you need me, burn this fur—I’ll come to you immediately."

Rio caught it and grinned. "Done."

Raikou tilted its head. "What does ’done’ mean?"

"It means I understand."

"Can I leave now?"

"Yes—but do you know where we’ll meet next week?"

"No, but as long as you carry that strand of fur, I can sense your location."

"Perfect. Go enjoy your freedom." Rio waved dismissively.

Raikou turned and left without a backward glance, disappearing from sight in a few bounds. Rio watched it go, smiling and shaking his head. Then he turned to his Pokémon.

"Alright, everyone—there’s plenty of Pokémon snacks in this villa. Eat up, and then we’re heading back to Kanto."

"Roaar~"

"Ka~"

"Pu-cha~"

"ROAR!!!"

"Gengar~"

"Froakie~"

The Pokémon all rushed inside. Froakie started to follow, but Rio stopped it.

"Froakie~" It looked at him in confusion.

"Froakie—let’s talk." Rio smiled, then called out to Gengar, who was about to phase through the wall. "Gengar—save some food for Froakie. Use Psychic to hide it, or Munchlax will eat it all."

"Got it." Gengar’s voice echoed in his mind.

Rio sat down and looked at Froakie. "Froakie—are you dissatisfied with how I handled the Pokémon hunters?"

He had noticed earlier, when he released Froakie, that its friendship had dropped from -5 to -10.