Raikou's Decision!

Raikou did not answer.

It slowly stepped forward, lowering its head to look at the spot where this human cub had just been busy.

Then, it raised its sturdy front paw high.

"Roar!"

With a bellow, a white light burst from Raikou's paw. The moment it touched the ground, a pit opened up below.

This was... a Ground-type move, Dig!

"There."

The light on Raikou's paw vanished, and it turned its gaze back to the human cub beside it.

"Thank you!" Dongshu said sweetly to Raikou.

Then, he picked up a Pomelo Fruit pit, gently placed it into the hole Raikou had dug, and laboriously pushed the surrounding soil back in.

"Raikou, more!" Dongshu indicated that one tree was far from enough.

Raikou silently walked forward a few steps, then used Dig again.

Dongshu trotted along behind it, cheerfully planting the Berry seeds.

But his strength was too small now; after filling just two pits, he was spent.

In the end, even the task of filling the holes was entirely left to Raikou.

Raikou worked without complaint, digging many large pits until the last Berry seed was buried. Only then did it stop and turn back to ask:

"What next, then?"

A sweet smile spread across Dongshu's face: "Water them!"

Raikou: "..."

This gave Raikou a bit of a headache.

If Suicune were here, it could help, but it was Raikou, an Electric-type Pokémon, and it knew no Water-type moves.

No, that wasn't entirely true.

Raikou suddenly recalled a move it had learned long ago.

-- Rain Dance.

The next second, a mysterious power gathered on Raikou's body. Under its control, the power slowly rose into the sky, condensing into a thick layer of dark clouds above this orchard.

Then, a light drizzle fell from the clouds, generously watering the land.

"Wow, amazing!" Dongshu cooperatively clapped his hands with a pat pat pat, praising Raikou.

This Raikou was really impressive—it could even use moves like Dig and Rain Dance!

Raikou felt a surge of pleasure.

Of course it was impressive!

But Raikou didn't show its inner feelings; on the surface, its expression remained aloof and cold.

Dongshu looked at the land before him with eager anticipation.

Perhaps in the near future, these Berry seedlings would break through the soil and grow into a lush Berry orchard.

Then, they would have an endless supply of Berries to eat!

Dongshu looked at Raikou.

The big cat had performed quite well, and the act of planting Berries just now seemed to have surprised Raikou again, so his balance went from 35 to 60.

Reward: one cup of Moomoo Milk!

At noon, Dongshu splurged 15 Shock Value to buy three bottles of Moomoo Milk from the shop.

One for him, one for Raikou, one for Marshadow.

One human and two Pokémon sat cross-legged on the soft carpet, happily enjoying their Moomoo Milk.

Faced with this gift from the human cub, Raikou felt quite pleased.

It tried a lick and immediately felt a familiar sensation.

This taste...

Raikou turned its gaze to Dongshu, asking in a seemingly casual tone:

"You like this stuff?"

"It's good!" Dongshu hummed in agreement, nodding.

Compared to always eating Berries, Moomoo Milk—this sweet milk—suited his baby constitution better, and it tasted great.

Having gotten its answer, Raikou said no more.

Its mind drifted back to an encounter from before.

At that time, as it raced through the towering peaks and dense forests, it happened to rescue a Pokémon in danger.

That Pokémon was named Miltank. After being saved, it wanted to repay Raikou by offering its own milk as a gift.

Though Raikou refused, it remembered that taste.

"If I ever run into that Miltank again, maybe I can bring it to live on Heavenly Green Mountain," Raikou thought.

That way, this human cub could drink that sweet milk every day.

But the moment that thought surfaced, Raikou suddenly jolted—why did it have such an idea?!

Humans were all treacherous and cunning beings. How could it so easily trust this human cub, even thinking about bringing back more milk for him...

Yet, a certain phrase suddenly echoed in Raikou's mind.

[Little One is different!]

At that instant, two winged little Raikous appeared in Raikou's heart.

One Raikou was pure white, with a halo above its head and pristine white wings on its back.

The other Raikou was pitch black, with two red horns on its head and a pair of jet-black wings like a crow's.

The demon Raikou said, "Never trust a human! It healed you, gave you milk—it must have ulterior motives!"

The angel Raikou said, "But Little One is still a cub, knowing nothing. He lives with us Pokémon day in and day out. His heart is so kind, and he gets along with Pokémon so well—all the Pokémon on Heavenly Green Mountain like him!"

The demon Raikou retorted, "Fake! It's all fake! This must be the disguise of an evil human. He pretends to be like this to earn your trust, then hurts you badly!"

The angel Raikou countered, "Is it really all fake? Little One willingly shared his candy with those Pokémon, and used his own power to turn this cave into a home. That shows he already sees Fire Emperor and Marshadow, sees us, as family—and sees himself as a Pokémon!"

The demon Raikou wanted to say more, but Raikou fiercely shook its head, flinging those tangled thoughts out of its mind.

Raikou looked at the human cub before it with a complicated gaze.

Recalling the days they'd spent together, at this moment, Raikou had already made a decision in its heart.

That's right—ever since Fire Emperor brought this human cub back to Heavenly Green Mountain, he had never come into contact with humans again.

In this human cub's understanding, he probably already saw himself, Fire Emperor, and Marshadow as the same kind of being.

In that case, they might as well just raise this human cub as a Pokémon!

That way, he would see himself as a Pokémon and stand on the Pokémon's side.

Little One would no longer be a mere human, but a human raised by Pokémon!

The demon Raikou was thoroughly defeated.

Deep in Raikou's heart, there was something even it refused to admit.

Though it had always distrusted humans, believing them all to be treacherous and deceitful, deep down, it still yearned to build trust with one.

Suddenly, Raikou felt a gaze land on it.

It whipped its head around and saw Marshadow standing on the other side, staring at it with dark, piercing eyes.

Marshadow: stare—

Raikou felt as though all its thoughts and intentions had been seen through by Marshadow, and a wave of embarrassment and irritation washed over it.

This guy—why was it still so fond of lurking in the shadows and spying on others?!