Chapter 94: Sleep, Sleep, Sleep—Are You a Pig?

The next morning, the sea fog had not fully cleared, and a salty, damp chill enveloped the island.

Professor Oak and Kikuko stood side by side at the edge of the pier, their eyes on the speedboat slowly pulling away from the island—Huo La stood at the bow, waving goodbye to them, while Bilan and Xiao Gang were nearby.

"Professor Oak, you really know how to keep accounts," Kikuko said first, her tone tinged with teasing but not much genuine anger, "you forcibly 'borrowed' three hundred thousand from my grandson's hands—do you really think this grandma of mine doesn't exist?"

Professor Oak watched the speedboat's silhouette shrink, then lowered his gaze, his tone becoming more solemn: "It wasn't a loan; it was helping him hide his clumsiness. You can see, he now holds nearly a million in cash and has been involved in both Super Ancient Ruins and the Jellyfish Reserve, so his reputation is already quite prominent. With the League's current public sentiment, many are watching him openly or covertly, and being too flamboyant is certainly not a good thing."

"It was your meddling after all," Kikuko's cane paused lightly on the ground, her tone tinged with helplessness, "we had already arranged for Red and Green… but you, of all people, insisted on pulling Huo La into it."

"That can't be put that way," Professor Oak interrupted her, his eyes showing helplessness, "I didn't expect that kid to join the Rocket Team."

"But, to put it back, Red is too straightforward, seeing only battles; Green's pride is excessive, making him inevitably impatient. Huo La, however, is meticulous, strategic, and knows how to use momentum to protect himself, making him more suitable for handling these tangled affairs—look at the jellyfish case: he secured the prize money, protected the Pokemon habitat, and didn't earn any 'ecological destruction' accusations. Isn't that better than a reckless youngster charging in?"

Kikuko fell silent for a moment, ultimately conceding the point.

"As for you, he's heading to Goldenrod City next. You know Natsume's temperament; Psychic‑type Pokemon are very hard to handle, so haven't you considered getting him a Ghost‑type Pokemon for protection?"

Ghost‑type counters Psychic‑type, a fact even rookie Trainers know. With Huo La's current team composition, facing Natsume is indeed tricky.

"No need," Kikuko's tone suddenly hardened, a flash of pride in her eyes, "my grandson must rely on his own abilities to overcome every obstacle. If he depends on Pokemon given by others to stand his ground, he won't ever reach the top of this world."

Professor Oak chuckled at her words and lightly nodded, "Indeed, I was over‑concerned."

He turned to head back to his tent to organize research data, took a step, then suddenly looked back, raising his chin toward Kikuko, "Oh, right, the mess over at Yin Po Po is likely to come knocking, and you'll have to clean it up for her."

"Hmph!" Kikuko snorted coldly, but offered no further rebuttal.

Her cane halted heavily; she turned toward the League's temporary office—if Yin Po Po is sensible, the matter will be settled; if she dares to cling to Huo La, Kikuko has plenty of ways to let that old lady know the League's higher‑ups aren't to be trifled with.

The League's dispatched "speedboat" was called a speedboat, but in reality resembled a small passenger vessel fitted with a speedboat engine.

Its streamlined hull cut through the waves at great speed, yet the cabin was lined with soft seats, and even the sway was smoother than that of ordinary fishing boats, with comfort not diminished at all.

The reason Huo La specifically had his grandma handle the coordination was simply to avoid trouble—Yin Po Po had suffered such a loss that she might block them at the pier for revenge; with a League vessel escorting, they could feel more at ease.

He took a restful nap on the boat, and when he opened his eyes again, the speedboat had already docked at the port town Huo La had specified.

After thanking the League staff who escorted them, Huo La, Xiao Gang, and Bilan rushed straight to the town's Pokemon Center, efficiently opening three rooms—the sole purpose: dividing the loot.

As for Yin Po Po's year‑long hotel voucher, Huo La had already "honored" it to Professor Oak, treating it as a favor to be reimbursed by the League as a "personal favor" for the cat‑related reward.

"Here it is, the one‑million check," he said as he entered Huo La's room, pulling the anonymous Pokemon Bank check from his backpack and placing it on the table.

Sunlight streamed through the window onto the check, the characters "One Million" standing out prominently.

Xiao Gang and Bilan instantly crowded around, their eyes narrowed into stars, even their breathing lightened—a sum of money they had never seen so large on their journey.

"Don't get too excited yet," Huo La tapped the check with his fingertip, sighing, "I made a deal with Professor Oak; 300,000 must be deducted for him first, as a 'connections' fee."

Xiao Gang frowned, seeming to want to ask something.

Bilan had already heard the matter from Huo La, merely curled his lip and said nothing more.

"Of the remaining seven hundred thousand, I'll take three hundred thousand," Huo La said directly, allocating, "The remaining four hundred thousand, you two split evenly—no problem?"

"I actually don't need that much…" Xiao Gang immediately waved his hand; he hadn't really taken part in the negotiations or execution, so receiving any money was already surprising.

But as he was halfway through his sentence, Bilan swiftly covered his mouth and nodded vigorously at Huo La, "No problem! It's settled!"

Huo La glanced at Bilan, his gaze indicating she had done well.

"Alright, if there's no objection, we'll head to the town's Pokemon Bank later to cash it," Huo La yawned, clearly still recovering from a hangover‑like fatigue, "I'll take a quick nap first; I'm exhausted."

Saying that, he pulled five Pokeballs from his pocket and thrust them at Xiao Gang, "Xiao Gang Ge, please look after them and check their status, especially the Nidoqueen, whose previous burn hasn't fully healed yet."

The Pokeball containing the Agate Jellyfish was left by Huo La for Professor Oak, since the Baohu Qu has just begun and requires communication between the Agate Jellyfish and the Poison Sting Jellyfish King.

"Sleep, sleep, sleep—are you a pig? You've been sleeping since we left the boat, and if you keep sleeping you'll turn into a dummy!"

Bilan rolled his eyes, bluntly teasing, yet his hands moved deftly; he quickly pulled out his two Pokeballs and slipped them into Xiao Gang's hand, "Xiao Gang Ge, it seems tomorrow is the town's Summer Festival. I'm going out to explore the town, so could you also look after my Pipi and Kamek?"

Before the words finished, she had already slung her backpack over her shoulder and slipped out the door.

Xiao Gang looked at the mountain of Pokeballs in his hand, then glanced at Huo La, who had collapsed onto the bed and instantly fallen asleep, sighing helplessly.

He shook his head, turned, and walked toward the Pokemon Center's Treatment Area—looks like this afternoon will be busy again.