Chapter 939: Mermaid Ash

Alolan Meowth was very restrained.

Compared to its previous visit, when it had been overly eager and attentive, this time it sat on the sofa without daring to move.

Its paws rested neatly on its knees, head bowed, eyes vacant and bewildered.

Happiny, seeing its unease, brought it a cup of calming juice.

"happy~"

"... meow."

Alolan Meowth murmured its thanks, occasionally glancing toward the bathroom.

It wasn't particularly afraid—it mainly worried the other Pokémon would reject it.

After all, it had once behaved so disgracefully.

No matter how proud or self-respecting Alolan Meowth's nature, facing these Pokémon who had seen its lowest point, it couldn't muster any boldness.

If they didn't accept it...

Alolan Meowth feared it would be sent back.

Ah!

What should it do!

"happy?"

Seeing it restless, Happiny's maternal instinct surged; just as it was about to offer comfort, the bathroom door clicked open.

"Meow!"

Alolan Meowth dashed over, looking up beseechingly at All All Baimu as he dried his hair.

All All Baimu frowned: "What's wrong?"

No reply came.

Alolan Meowth simply didn't know how to express its feelings—afraid of being shunned, afraid of being looked down upon.

Fortunately, All All Baimu was an experienced Trainer.

Even if he couldn't read Alolan Meowth's thoughts, he could clearly sense its obvious distress.

He exchanged a glance with Happiny.

Happiny, empathetic as always, quickly shook its head.

No bullying had occurred.

Then what made the outgoing Alolan Meowth so anxious?

All All Baimu looked down at it; it immediately lifted its face, offering a fawning smile.

Similar to before.

Yet utterly different.

"Do you feel uncomfortable here?" he asked bluntly.

Alolan Meowth's smile froze; it quickly shook its head, squeaking, "Meow~!"

Not at all!

"You can't go on like this. If something's wrong, say it. If you don't speak up, how can I help?"

All All Baimu crouched down, gently stroking its head. "You're here to live with me, not to be imprisoned. Tell me, okay?"

Alolan Meowth's smile faded; it lowered its head, scraping its paw across the floor as if the floor were fascinating.

"... meow~"

What did that mean?

All All Baimu didn't understand cat language—he needed a Multilink II translator.

Seeing he still didn't understand, Alolan Meowth gathered courage again.

"Meow~ meow-ow! Meow!"

It gestured wildly with its paws.

Happiny's gaze grew even more tender; it called out to All All Baimu, "happy~ happy!"

Now he understood.

It was strange, really.

The more time he spent with his own Pokémon, the more he grasped the meaning behind their every expression.

A silent understanding, beyond words, blossomed between Trainer and Pokémon.

"I see."

All All Baimu paused, then said: "Shall I take you straight to Platinum Mountain?"

Since Alolan Meowth felt uneasy here, better to go to Platinum Mountain.

There, the land was vast and rich—it could roam freely.

"Meow!"

Alolan Meowth nodded eagerly.

Though Platinum Mountain was unfamiliar to it, if it went there, wouldn't All All Baimu stop trying to send it away?

Seeing it agree,

All All Baimu picked up his phone and contacted Reiguanwang.

Since the King of Abundance had shown some interest in the internet, he'd bought it a phone.

It made communication easier when they were far apart.

After a few minutes,

Hu Pa answered the door, having just finished dinner.

"Xiao Bai~ Your side's still daylight?"

Alola was five hours ahead; it was already dark there.

Meowth stared at the mysterious creature emerging from a light wheel, speaking human language, and hesitated.

"It's fine—Hu Pa is my friend."

All All Baimu reassured it briefly.

Hu Pa blinked. "What's this?"

"A new resident of Platinum Mountain."

He patted Meowth's head, gave it a gentle nudge, and whispered: "Don't overthink it. Just be yourself.

"I brought you back not to turn you into a yes-man. You chose to come with me—that's all. Understood?"

"... meow!"

Meowth nodded, closed its eyes, and took a deep breath.

When it opened them again, it had returned to its old self—sly, relaxed, as if it held all the answers.

Hu Pa found the Pokémon odd, but didn't dwell on it; it opened the door and let Meowth in.

"I'll be back in a few days."

All All Baimu called out to Meowth, who had paused at the threshold and turned back.

Meowth waved with a smile, "Meow!"

Then,

The light wheel shrank and vanished.

Happiny clutched its tiny hands, looking worried, "happy~"

"It's being bullied? Have you forgotten how it tricked Team Rocket into circles?"

All All Baimu chuckled.

Happiny was wonderful in every way—except it was too kind, too sensitive to suffering.

With Meowth's abilities, even without All All Baimu's help from Reiguanwang, it could easily thrive anywhere.

Yet even a Pokémon like this could feel anxious, insecure, torn between hope and fear.

Because it cared.

So even if it became something unrecognizable, it willingly did so.

—

In the nest of Xiong.

Xiong Ma landed with Team Rocket.

Thud!

A flurry of dry leaves rose from the ground.

"Guma!"

Pupitar happily landed, then suddenly sniffed the air, nostrils flaring, eyes brightening.

Musashi, pinned under its armpit, sighed, "Another month's earnings gone. Sigh."

"Just one step away! Devil Meowth DX was so powerful!" Meowth lamented.

Devil Meowth DX, capable of blocking even falling colossal rocks, had been their strongest robot lately.

Yet every crucial moment, Xiong would interfere.

Shikoro was numb.

Suddenly,

"Guuu?"

Wearing Bear let out a startled cry.

The Team Rocket trio stared blankly ahead, before being thrown to the ground without even seeing it clearly.

"Ow!"

"Meow!"

The trio, dazed and bruised from the fall, struggled to their feet—only to see Wearing Bear's massive form embracing something.

A familiar voice came.

"Hah! You're still full of energy!"

"Goo oo~!"

"Goo ma!"

That voice was—

The trio exchanged glances, half-delighted, half-hesitant, nudging each other and whispering among themselves.

"You go!"

"Meow, no way!"

"All All Baimu loves you the most—it's definitely you who should go!"

After a moment, Meowth, often bullied by All All Baimu, was shoved to the front.

It forced a smile and greeted, "Bai… All All Baimu, you're back, meow~"

The trio had begun to fear again.

Undoubtedly, it had to do with the destroyed Team Rocket cities and headquarters.

Compared to Wearing Bear, who was hard to communicate with but treated them fairly well,

All All Baimu was far more terrifying.

The thought was ungrateful, but still it came.

In their hearts, their fear of Boss Sakaki was less than half their fear of All All Baimu.

Instead, admiration and respect were far stronger.

Seeing no reaction from Wearing Bear, Meowth raised its voice.

Only then did All All Baimu pull his head free from the pink giant bear's embrace, gripping the two tiny legs of the doll bear, and asked:

"Hey, you three are looking just as scruffy as ever—did your Pikachu capture plan fail again?"

"Hehehe…"

Musashi and Kojirou grinned foolishly, inwardly cursing.

But Meowth, like a post-match analyst, suddenly started yelling, "We were this close to success today, meow! If only those first-gen brats hadn't gathered—"

All All Baimu: "First-gen brats?"

"The Gym Leaders named Brock and Misty—they used to travel with Ash."

Kojirou quickly explained.

Misty and Brock came to Alola?

Wow!

Thinking back, they must've arrived after Ultra Necrozma.

All All Baimu felt like paying them a visit.

Not yet!

I remember they stayed in Alola for two full days and nights—I'll see them later.

He playfully wrestled with the clumsy doll bear, their movements resembling a tug-of-war.

The Team Rocket trio stared at him as if he were a monster.

"The doll bear can't even beat him!"

"I'd believe he's a Pokémon if you told me!"

"So scary!"

They were completely unaware that being flung hundreds of meters into the air and crashing down with only minor bruises was far more terrifying than this scene.

As dusk fell.

All All Baimu left with two small bottles of sweet honey from Wearing Bear.

"Goo oo~"

"Goo ma!"

"Don't see me off—I'll be back in a couple days!"

All All Baimu waved to Xiong Ma and Xiong Zai.

After months of absence, the two bears nearly thought something had happened to him—like when the doll bear was injured and taken away.

Thankfully, he'd returned to show his face.

Pokémon minds are mostly simple—if you treat them sincerely, they'll always remember you.

Beachside villa.

Sitting on the steps before the door was a blond boy.

"Huh? Gragio?"

All All Baimu leapt off Dragonite's back, "How did you know I was back?"

He hadn't told anyone his whereabouts.

Gragio stood up, a quiet joy on his face, "Long time no see, All All Baimu! It was Lillie who saw the short video posted by Gulpin!"

Shiny Lillie—ahem, Shiny Cresselia was not beside her.

Compared to its original storyline where Gragio captured it, the one All All Baimu returned to Alola chose to accompany Lillie.

Dubbed the "Sister Duo."

Now it had clearly become a member of the Sun & Moon main cast.

Under the influence of the Ultra Beast's aggressive instincts, Lillie had also begun seriously engaging in Pokémon battles.

"I see."

All All Baimu glanced at Gulpin, who had poked its head out from the cabin upon hearing the noise.

This thing was a deep fan of Pokémon Sound—whenever it had a chance, it filmed everything from where to go to what to eat at night and uploaded it online.

It had successfully added thousands of new users to the app.

The fan effect was terrifying.

Gragio had come here not only to meet All All Baimu, but also to battle.

"I've trained hard these past few months—I hope you'll test my progress!"

His battle spirit was undeniable.

His earlier claim about entering the Orre Conference was serious.

But he hadn't planned to miss the Malie Conference either—after all, no one said one person couldn't enter two tournaments at once.

A battle was unavoidable.

Before All All Baimu could answer, a crowd of bustling figures suddenly appeared in the distance.

It was Ash and the others!

Brock and Misty stood among them, along with Miss Liza, the Island Queen of Akala Island.

"All All Baimu! Gragio!"

Ash and Pikachu ran over excitedly.

All All Baimu immediately opened his arms—and the yellow rodent happily jumped into them.

"Pika~!"

"You've gotten even cuter, Pikachu!"

He smiled, stroking Pikachu's ears and cheeks, then looked at the beaming Ash, "Ash, it's been over half a year—why haven't you grown an inch?"

"Huh?"

Ash blinked, raising his hand to his head, "Really?"

Of course!

The ten-year-old boy who'd been traveling for twenty years—Ash from Pallet Town!

All All Baimu mentally grumbled, then greeted the others.

Lillie was very active in private messages, often sending several messages at once.

But in person, she was somewhat shy, too timid to speak much in public—she only responded quietly from within the crowd.

"All All Baimu, it's been so long!"

Brock stepped forward and patted his back familiarly.

Their friendship went back much further—in the early days at the Vermilion City Pokémon Center, Brock had taught him many techniques for raising Steelix.

All All Baimu was deeply grateful for this mentor, and smiled, "Are you a certified doctor now?"

"Of course!"

Brock proudly pulled out his medical license.

Misty stood behind, watching curiously as her two companions interacted with this seemingly intimidating young man.

She was about to introduce herself when he spoke first.

"You must be Misty, the mermaid Gym Leader from Cerulean City's four sisters—I'm All All Baimu, I've heard so much about you!"

"Oh, nowhere near! You're too kind!"

Ash hadn't expected such courtesy, let alone praise from him, and blushed as she covered her mouth: "Just call me Ash."

Pikachu said: "Yeah, yeah, that 'Mermaid Gym Leader' title? She just made it up herself."

"You—shut up!"

Smack!

Ash punched Pikachu in anger.

A familiar scene.

All All Baimu watched the three of them gathered together and felt his childhood was complete.

The two sides exchanged more pleasantries.

He learned they had just returned from Akala Island and were preparing to watch the rare fireworks show on Melemele Island.

Professor Kukui invited him to join them.

All All Baimu, unable to refuse the warm invitation, slipped into the Sun & Moon team with Gragio, eager for a battle.

Stars sparkled.

Brilliant fireworks bloomed across the night sky.

The original trio declared their dreams to each other, stacking their hands together and cheering wildly.

The beautiful moment moved All All Baimu deeply.

Unfortunately, Brock and Lysandre had just begun to cultivate an incredibly sweet romantic atmosphere.

But nothing followed.

The Pokémon anime's screenwriters really are part-time poets.

After the fireworks show.

The Sun & Moon group disbanded on the spot, each heading home for dinner.

Brock tried inviting All All Baimu to dinner, but after some discussion, they ended up at a seaside villa for a barbecue party.

Professor Kukui didn't join.

With Pikachu away for once, he wanted a quiet evening alone with Professor Burnet.

Gragio and Lillie didn't leave.

The former was determined to battle today; the latter, seeing her brother had gone with All All Baimu, naturally wouldn't go home alone.

Then, mid-barbecue.

Ash, hearing of All All Baimu's exceptional strength, suddenly felt like challenging him to a battle.

"Let the Gym Leader of Cerulean City test your skills~! If I win, I'll give you a badge!"

After just a few hours together,

Ash spoke to All All Baimu with complete familiarity, no more formalities.

Gragio, mid-Vampiric Bite into a roasted ear of corn, snapped his head up, pupils wide with shock.

I got here first!

You!

"Cough! All All Baimu, I—" He choked on a corn kernel, raising a hand to stop this shameless battle for conquest.

Lillie hurriedly handed him water.

All All Baimu glanced at him helplessly and said: "Don't worry, none of you are getting away. It won't take me much time."