Kabukicho Belonged to Pokémon

"Th-this... I got transported again?"

Xingye gripped the balcony railing and looked down. The street that had been empty that afternoon was now blazing with neon lights and unbelievably lively!

People came and went... no, Pokémon came and went. The entire street was full of Pokémon walking around or standing outside storefronts to greet customers!

There were Gumshoos that seemed to have just finished a day of patrols, walking down the street with several Yungoos that looked like new recruits. They chatted as they walked, introducing the surroundings and bringing the seniors and juniors closer together.

There was also an Incineroar that seemed to have just finished a ring match, slinging an arm around its good brother Rillaboom. Both looked drunk as they swaggered down the middle of the street, constantly letting out strange laughs and forcing nearby Pokémon to steer around them.

Then there were Lilligant and Gothitelle, like close sisters. Dressed like humans, they held hands, carried bags, and happily shopped together...

And that was far from all. If they had been humans, the scene would have been perfectly normal, like strolling through some bustling Night City. But with every single one of them being Pokémon, it was incredibly strange!

Xingye's hand on the railing trembled slightly. His body instinctively retreated several steps, returning indoors. He had no idea what expression to make; everything he had just seen was completely beyond comprehension.

"I must have opened the door wrong..."

Thinking this, he shut the door again, ignoring the noisy sounds outside. After waiting a few seconds, he pulled it open once more and looked down...

"Nothing changed at all!"

"I only... slept for six hours. How does the whole world seem to have changed?"

Xingye checked the time on his phone, utterly unable to understand it. It had only been a few hours... Could some hidden dungeon have been activated?

He could not figure it out. It felt as though he were now the only human left in the entire world, and he could not understand a word the Pokémon were saying.

But then he looked toward the first floor below and noticed what seemed to be a mobile sign fitted with LED lights, flashing constantly.

He could not make out what it said from this angle, but he guessed it probably read "Slowking Izakaya." The Slowking downstairs had opened for business!

To figure out what exactly was going on with this street, he immediately ran downstairs toward the shop.

"If it's open for business, I can just ask the owner. Slowking is only a Pokémon, so the real izakaya owner must be its Trainer. Besides, I'm the neighbor upstairs!"

The moment he ran down the stairs, some of the Pokémon on the street immediately noticed him.

But Xingye did not realize it. He also failed to notice that some of those Pokémon were staring at him with hostile eyes, and simply continued running into the open izakaya...

The izakaya's interior had a retro style, with imitation wood flooring and walls.

On the left, quite a few wooden long tables and benches were neatly arranged. Machoke and Gurdurr, who looked like they had just returned from a construction site after finishing concrete work, were happily drinking, behaving exactly like humans.

On the right was a long bar counter. A Slowpoke lay atop it like a mascot, repeatedly looking toward the ceiling and letting out "Slow~" noises.

A row of tall stools stood below, but there were no customers sitting on them. There were no other humans here either—only a Slowking behind the bar, reading a newspaper...

"???"

"Wait... could it be..."

In an instant, Xingye seemed to realize something. At the same time, Slowking swept its gaze toward him, still wearing that wise expression.

"Slow?"

"Uh..."

Xingye had absolutely no idea what he was supposed to do next. He could only walk over, sit in front of the bar, and nervously prepare to ask about a few things.

"Slow chicken?"

"Um..."

He placed both hands on the bar and looked at the wise-looking Slowking before him. After hesitating and stammering for a moment, he asked, "So... why are there Pokémon everywhere here? And why are they all like humans, casually shopping, eating, drinking, and chatting? Also, why are you really Boss Slowking?"

Xingye asked every question in his head all at once. As for whether the other party would answer, that did not matter. He just wanted someone to whom he could tell everything he had seen and heard in less than ten minutes.

But to his utter surprise, Slowking suddenly turned its head aside. With practiced movements, it pulled out a lollipop, unwrapped it, and held it in its mouth like a cigarette, chewing it with immense enjoyment.

After replenishing its sugar, it turned back, narrowed its eyes, and its expression abruptly became contemptuous. Tapping the bar lightly with rhythmic fingers, it slowly said, "What do you take this place for? This is Alola Kabukicho... Kabukicho, you know!"

"Kabukicho? What's Kabukicho? Is that something that should exist in the Pokémon worl—huh?"

Xingye had been loudly complaining about the name when he suddenly realized something even more outrageous. His expression instantly froze.

"Slowking... talked!"

"It's Telepathy. What are you making such a fuss about?"

"Uh... oh, but this afternoon..."

"I only use Telepathy when communicating with you humans. You idiots can't understand us talking at all, after all. It's such a hassle."

"Sorry for being so dumb..."

After apologizing reflexively, Xingye paused, only then remembering that this was not what he should be talking about. He immediately shouted, "No, that's not right! What I want to ask is, what exactly is Kabukicho?"

He felt like he was about to become the host of One Hundred Thousand Whys. As a self-proclaimed Pokémon scholar, the knowledge stored in his brain turned out to be completely useless here.

Fortunately, after watching him for a while, Slowking answered his question.

"Kabukicho is a sleepless city for Pokémon leisure and entertainment. Did you think us Pokémon were pets that only knew how to battle and act cute every day? How naive!"

"Uh..."

Xingye had never thought that way. To him, Pokémon were living creatures like humans, with feelings and lives in this world.

Slowking continued, "Pokémon, whether they live in the wild, wander through cities, or have already been caught by human Trainers... all experience stress."

"They may feel dissatisfied or resentful over things in a Trainer's daily life. For example, not being sent out during battles, seeing their Trainer favor newly caught Pokémon more, being cast aside when the Trainer gets tired of the old and loves the new, or gradually falling behind the team in strength and getting left in the backyard, perhaps not seeing their Trainer for months or even years... and so on."

"Who can guarantee that every Trainer cares for every one of their Pokémon? I've seen humans who can't even remember how many Pokémon they've caught. When Pokémon develop these emotions and mindsets, what happens if they can't release that pent-up frustration?"

Hearing this, Xingye seemed to suddenly understand. Narrowing his eyes, he slowly said, "Could it be..."

"That's right!"

Slowking nodded and continued, "That's why Alola Kabukicho exists. Here, smart Pokémon can open shops and do business, while other Pokémon can spend money or trade things of equal value to enjoy themselves. This is Paradise for Pokémon, a Night City for Pokémon!"

"Gasp—"

Xingye drew in a sharp breath. His Pokémon knowledge had increased. Back when it was only a game, he could understand things only through settings and background lore.

But he had never expected Pokémon truly living in this world to have such a side to them. Still, there seemed to be some other issues here.

"Hold on! With a Kabukicho this huge, no other humans know about it? Or have no Pokémon told their Trainers?"

Xingye found it very strange. Even if it disguised itself as the Drifter District during the day, what about at night? With all these lights blazing, had no one noticed?

At that, Slowking suddenly gave a disdainful laugh, as though it had long known Xingye would ask this.

"Because this is the territory of the Kabukicho Elite Four. They have the final say in all explanations. If there's anything you can't explain, go ask them!"

"???"