Chapter 351: Lei Gong as a Companion

"When it rains, it pours…"

Baimu walked into the cave, took off his thoroughly soaked cloak, and was about to chat with Chansey for a bit, only to find a pair of bright eyes after another watching him — clearly the Electric-type Pokémon whose electricity had been drained by the crystal system. "Hm? You're all awake?"

They huddled near Lei Gong, whose eyes were the brightest of all, watching him with a mix of curiosity and fear.

Outside the cave.

The rain poured on without end.

Yet there was neither thunder nor lightning.

When it had first started, he suddenly remembered a bunch of wild Pokémon were still trapped in the net, so he hurriedly rode the robot down to rescue those poor unlucky things.

To keep them from getting sick in the rain.

Luckily his luck wasn't bad — though there were a lot of them, the robot was even more agile than a mountain bike.

"Such a good thing, it's a shame I can't take it with me."

He couldn't help but look back regretfully at the robot slowly walking in behind him — the thing was big, powerful, and full of cutting-edge tech, yet he had no choice but to hand it over to Officer Jenny.

Then he called out to the four people outside getting rained on, "If you can't hold out, let me know, though even if you do I won't let you in."

The four Pokémon hunters cursed up a storm inside, but on the surface didn't dare say a word, only enduring in silence.

Because they were honestly terrified of Baimu to death — even though their bodies were still intact for now, if they upset him, it probably wouldn't end with just getting rained on.

"Tough guys!"

Baimu gave them a thumbs-up.

Suddenly.

"Grrrowl—"

Lei Gong's low growl sounded beside his ear.

Baimu glanced into the cave and saw Chansey prying open Lei Gong's mouth, forcibly stopping it from licking its own wounds — finding the angle hard to get leverage, it even went for Lei Gong's teeth—

Wait.

It already had!

"……"

Holy crap! How can you be this reckless!

He looked at Lei Gong, utterly helpless with dark lines all over its head, silently apologized to it in his heart, and had no intention of interfering with Chansey's approach — the patient itself had tacitly agreed, after all.

But even if he didn't interfere, Lei Gong couldn't help but growl at him.

"Grr!"

This is your Pokémon, right! Can't you control it?!

Baimu obviously couldn't understand Pokémon speech, but that annoyed tone needed no translation. He slowly shuffled over and, as if he hadn't noticed Lei Gong's irritated gaze, reached out and stroked its fur.

The texture was rougher than expected — probably because the coat was coarse and hadn't been groomed much.

The cloud-like purple down on its back, though, was super soft. The fur on its face might be even softer, but he didn't quite dare touch it — he had a feeling Lei Gong would definitely bite him.

Even knowing he meant no harm.

After all, it was still a dignified big cat.

Stroking it as he spoke, he said, "You're a patient now, and Chansey is a professional. Just do what it says and don't worry — you'll definitely get better soon. Rest easy."

Lei Gong glanced at Baimu's hand, which was getting more and more out of line, "Grr…"

Are all trainer-and-Pokémon pairs this shameless?

One yanks on teeth, the other paws at fur?

Trainers really are just like their Pokémon.

Forget it.

A few strokes are just a few strokes.

Lei Gong's emotions were in turmoil, its lightning-like tail swaying idly. Not that it was petty enough to get angry over a couple of strokes — at this point it ought to be used to it.

After all, a fallen tiger is no better than a cat.

Lei Gong closed both eyes and simply dropped its head to sleep — out of sight, out of mind.

But to an outsider, its attitude looked exactly like it had fainted from anger.

Baimu couldn't help but sheepishly pull his hand back, feeling a little embarrassed, sensing his own desire had been exposed too quickly. His gaze shifted to the other Electric-type Pokémon curled up around Lei Gong.

Magneton, Electrode, Electrike, Manectric, Plusle, and Minun — the first few aside, Plusle and Minun were genuinely adorable.

Seeing them clutching their bellies and shivering, looking cold and hungry, he thought for a moment.

"Let's cook something, yeah? We're free anyway."

Baimu said to Chansey, pulling a portable stove out of his backpack.

"Happy~"

Chansey nodded — it had actually wanted to do this long ago, but the trainer hadn't come back and it didn't want to act on its own.

In fact, if Porygon could fully understand and master the crystal system, it might be able to feed the electrical energy stored inside back to Lei Gong to restore its condition.

Unfortunately, the program had no energy-feedback function, so Porygon had no way to return the electricity to Lei Gong.

Lei Gong had tried it itself—

Couldn't draw any out.

It had a psychological shadow over the thing — after two tries it didn't dare try again, and even wanted to smash it with one swipe, but Baimu stopped it, afraid the thing might mutate.

Lei Gong looked at him for a moment, decided he had a point, and gave up.

It was always the worst at dealing with weird human tech — there was even that one fiasco where it had climbed a high-voltage power tower to draw electricity and ended up being chased down by Officer Jenny on a motorcycle.

After that, it never went near one again.

And as Baimu pulled a large amount of ingredients out of his bag, Chansey's hands turned them into finely prepared materials ready to use at any time.

Not long after.

The aroma of food filled the entire cavern.

A group of Pokémon crowded around the bubbling cauldron, drooling with desire—especially Plusle and Minun, whose eyes sparkled like stars and whose ears trembled nonstop.

"Pura~"

"Mana~"

The two adorable creatures, like little rabbits, clung to either side of All Baimu, grabbing his sleeves and shaking them vigorously.

They were already utterly spellbound by the aroma.

The other Electric-type Pokémon also gathered in a cluster. Electrike and Manectic sat on the ground, their lightning-rod-like tails swaying like mad, drool dripping continuously from the corners of their mouths,

while Voltorb spun back and forth, making gurgling sounds like a marble.

Only Magneton, having no mouth and unable to eat, squinted its eyes and continued pressing against Lei Gong, drawing intermittent static electricity from its body.

However.

Lei Gong, who was pretending to sleep, would occasionally open its eyes to peek, its breathing growing slightly heavy and coarse.

To be honest, if it thundered outside, it would surely rush out to absorb natural lightning; even without thunder, it could charge into the dark clouds to absorb the electricity within.

But it had no strength for that now, and could only silently watch All Baimu ladle out food with a soup spoon.

As expected.

Lei Gong discovered it had also been given a bowl—a large one at that—and the piercing aroma shot up its nostrils like the most potent catnip.

Even though it had originally intended not to eat, at this point it could barely hold back.

Human cooking... was it really this enticing?

"Go ahead and eat. You need to be full to have the strength to heal your wounds, right?" All Baimu's smiling voice reached its ears.

Lei Gong turned its head and immediately saw the other Pokémon had already started eating with great relish; the sounds of chewing and bowls tapping against the ground rang on without end.

The Ho-Oh Guard does not accept food given out of pity—

... Fine.

It couldn't really be called pity-food either.

After much deliberation, Lei Gong decided to toss its brain aside for the moment and silently buried its head in the food. There's no point in making things hard for yourself, right?

Seeing it begin to eat, All Baimu and Chansey both broke into satisfied smiles.

Soon, the large bowl of rice in front of Lei Gong was emptied.

Those large fangs actually didn't hinder its eating at all. Its pink, rough tongue swept across the bowl, scooping up large amounts of food into its mouth, and it chewed with a crunch, eating extremely fast.

"Another bowl? There's plenty more!"

All Baimu didn't wait for Lei Gong to speak, and proactively picked up its bowl. "Want some?"

The latter stared silently at the big pot, saying nothing.

"Want it? Or not?"

"..."

"Then I'll serve it for you!"

Lei Gong shifted its gaze to All Baimu's face, its front claws tensing slightly.

Asking this and that—why don't you just serve it already!

Seeing he'd teased enough—any more would be too much—All Baimu quickly filled Lei Gong's bowl and set it before it with a smile. "Keep eating. I'll definitely make sure you're full."

"Roar..."

Lei Gong growled low and continued eating.

Nearby, Plusle and Minun, who had been sharing a plate, also finished their portion. Their little bellies were round and swollen, and ignoring the mess on the ground, they began rolling back and forth at All Baimu's feet.

"Pura~"

"Mana~"

The well-fed little rabbits—one blue, one red—looked quite happy.

All Baimu picked them up and rubbed them vigorously. As third-generation electric mice, Plusle and Minun really don't get much attention, but when it comes to cuteness, they're absolutely top-tier.

At first glance, they give the impression of being a rehash of Pikachu, but in reality there are quite a few differences.

Especially their strikingly symmetrical coloring—when their hands touch each other, red and blue electric sparks fly out, pretty as fireworks.

But after petting them, All Baimu felt a bit put off again.

Even cute electric mice have a very strong scent, just like the Sentret he'd touched earlier—full of the smell of the wild.

Lei Gong didn't have so many complicated scents.

They all lived in the wild, so do legendary Pokémon have it more complicated in this regard?

He turned to look at Lei Gong's belly, feeling a sudden urge to bury his face in it and take a careful sniff.

"Roar?"

Seemingly sensing his intense, strange gaze, Lei Gong—who had been eating—alertly raised its head, instinctively twisted its body, and tucked its belly somewhere All Baimu couldn't see.

"Hm?"

All Baimu was momentarily stunned and tilted his head to the left.

Lei Gong quietly adjusted its lying posture, turning its belly toward a spot he couldn't see, giving him only its purple, swirling-cloud back.

He tilted his head to the right, and the big cat adjusted again.

All Baimu: "..."

Lei Gong: "..."

Man and Pokémon stared at each other, actually communicating with their eyes.

'I haven't even touched it yet!'

"By the time you get used to it, it'll be too late!"

In the air, faint lightning seemed to flicker.

"Heh! I just don't believe it—" All Baimu rolled up his sleeves, about to step toward Lei Gong, when suddenly the rumbling rotor of a helicopter came from outside the cave.

He paused mid-motion and quickly ran outside.

He saw the police helicopter's lights flashing beneath dark, rainy clouds, and countless police cars racing in from every direction at the mountain's base, swiftly surrounding the towering Shanfeng.

After nearly an hour and a half of waiting.

Officer Jenny and the rest of the police finally arrived on the scene, making quite a show of force.

All Baimu lit a flare to guide the helicopter in.

A long rope descended.

Numerous fully armed officers rode a lift down onto Shanfeng.

Their first sight was the robot cradling the crystal system in its mechanical tentacles. They had just raised their guard when, in the next instant, they spotted the harmless-looking All Baimu—and four Pokémon hunters, pale-faced and shivering from the rain.

"R-Resolved?"

The officers lowered their weapons one after another, staring dumbfounded at the Pokémon hunters.

"You finally made it."

All Baimu jogged forward, then immediately spotted the conspicuous Officer Jenny, and said: "I've been waiting for you forever! The people and the stuff are all here, and Lei Gong is inside that cave."

He pointed at the distant cave.

Lei Gong stood plainly at the cave's entrance, watching this side with a calm gaze.

Officer Jenny pulled her gaze away from Lei Gong, looked at the Pokémon hunters and the robot with some surprise, and said: "You and Lei Gong took them down together?"

"…To be precise, it was me and my Pokémon."

All Baimu briefly explained what had happened.

The abridged version, of course.

There were definitely parts he couldn't tell Officer Jenny—telling her would only invite interrogation and a scolding, which would be asking for trouble.

As for whether these Pokémon hunters would spill the beans when they confessed…

That was none of his business. Just deny it, and that was that.

Officer Jenny listened, surprised and a little embarrassed. "Sorry we're late."

They really were late.

A full hour-plus late—Lei Gong had nearly finished his meal.

"No worries, thanks for making the trip."

All Baimu's smile didn't fade; he didn't really mind.

You can spend a thousand days as a thief, but no one can guard against thieves every single day—especially in deep, untrodden mountains like these. A slow response was understandable.

Besides, they'd even sent a helicopter; the level of seriousness was plain to see.

So.

After a quick handover.

All Baimu watched, reluctantly, as the dirt bike and the robot were taken away from him.

Before leaving, Officer Jenny asked if he wanted a ride. He refused outright—he hadn't even had enough time with Lei Gong yet, so how could he just leave?

And as the police helicopter departed from Shanfeng, the gloomy rain clouds gradually parted, and bright sunlight poured down.

"The rain's passed and the sky cleared…"

All Baimu shielded his eyes from the somewhat dazzling light, watched the rainbow arc across the sky, then turned and headed back to the cave.

The wild Electric-type Pokémon that had been sheltering from the rain came running out one after another, circled him once, then dashed off into the forest, as if expressing their thanks.

Plusle and Minun were more direct—they hopped onto his shoulders and nuzzled him a couple of times. Sparks leaked from their red-and-blue pouches marked with plus and minus signs, making All Baimu's hair stand straight up.

"Hiss! That is one heck of a jolt!"

All Baimu's body trembled, then he said goodbye to the two cute Pokémon and watched them go.

Bandage-wrapped Lei Gong walked at the rear. "Roar…"

"You're leaving too?"

"Rooar~"

"Your wounds haven't even healed yet. Why not stay with me for a while?"

He called out to the big cat heading toward the cliff's peak: "I'm heading to Lavaridge Town next. The hot springs there can heal injuries—yours should be no problem. And in your current state, once Team Rocket learns these guys failed, they definitely won't give up trying to capture you."

Lei Gong didn't answer. He simply leapt to the very top of Shanfeng, threw back his head, and roared at the sky.

"ROAR——!

"

His thunderous bellow shook the heavens; the tangible sound wave spread far into the distance, startling a large flock of innocent Taillow in the distant forest.

Then.

He leapt down from the rocky outcrop, slowly closed his eyes and lowered his head toward All Baimu and Chansey. "Roar…"

Lei Gong agreed.