Waterfall

Click!

Dian held up his camera and snapped several more shots in quick succession before putting it away in satisfaction.

These were treasures worth keeping for a lifetime. He decided he would definitely back them up once he got home.

Of course, this was no tool for blackmailing Officer Jenny, just a keepsake. Yes, really, just a "keepsake."

"What's going on?"

Azisa walked back with Hoppip in her arms and asked curiously, "Dian, what's your Misdreavus doing?"

"Misdreavus?"

Dian froze for a moment, then turned to look.

A Misdreavus was teaming up with Hoppip to frantically scour the green lawn.

They were gathering one pink Berry after another.

While Dian's attention was fixed on Misdreavus and the others, Officer Jenny quietly crept closer.

She swore she had never been this cautious in her life.

"Almost there, almost there."

Officer Jenny held her breath and slowly approached, then her eyes lit up. "Now!"

She shot out her hand, every bit as swift as Quick Attack. "Got it!"

Officer Jenny gazed excitedly at the camera in her hands. No, this was no mere camera—it was practically her "Poké Ball."

But a moment later, her excitement collapsed into dejection, and she gritted her teeth at Dian.

Although the camera was in her hands, its memory card was in the hands of that infuriating man opposite her.

Dian nonchalantly put the memory card away and waved his right hand. Sure enough, Great Detective Officer Jenny immediately demonstrated her refusal to bow to tyranny... by obediently handing the camera back.

Azisa tilted her head, seemingly not quite understanding. The leaves atop the Hoppip in her arms stirred, however, and the little Pokémon hopped down to join Misdreavus's search party.

"Oddish?!"

Oddish, who had thought a moment's rest was finally within reach, blanched in horror. Afraid this pampered little baby would get lost again, Oddish hurried after the group.

In the end, faced with Dian's tyranny, Officer Jenny had no choice but to give him her contact information before driving off with Azisa in a hasty retreat.

Azisa, meanwhile, took the initiative to invite Dian to visit her Weather Bureau whenever he had time, offering to share her experience raising Hoppip.

It seemed Azisa was a kind and understanding person, too.

Only then did Dian realize that this girl was secretly quite the wealthy beauty—she even had her own Weather Bureau. Still, it made sense when he thought about it. How could an ordinary person afford to feed a whole flock of gluttons?

Before leaving, the adorable rookie Officer Jenny gave him a "bashful" look, then ignored him with a completely expressionless face.

"Life is so lovely, yet you're so angry. That won't do, that won't do."

In high spirits, Dian hummed his own rewritten song and continued toward Violet City.

He needed to stop by the Pokémon Center now, too: first to verify his Trainer credentials, and second to have Beedrill examined. If everything was fine, they could begin the next stage of training.

Throughout this time, Dian had been giving Beedrill a liquid containing the essence of white Star Grass, though he was still diluting it.

Judging by Beedrill's recent condition, he could already increase the dosage directly, but Dian still felt uneasy. His current priority was therefore to see Nurse Joy.

He could replenish Misdreavus's food supply while he was at it.

He glanced at Misdreavus, who floated beside him, happily eating pink Berries. The red beads on her chest had already grown somewhat dull, though she herself had yet to notice.

Constantly monitoring changes in one's Pokémon's condition was another essential quality of a Trainer.

Roar!

An immense torrent plunged straight down, crashing violently against the enormous dark rocks.

Misdreavus played freely around the waterfall, occasionally teasing the fish and shrimp swept down by the falling water.

Beedrill, meanwhile, began its daily training at the foot of the waterfall. It did not choose to confront the raging current head-on; that would have been far too reckless.

In front of a somewhat gentler section of the torrent, it thrust precisely at the cliff face behind the waterfall, ensuring every strike had the same steadiness, the same force, and the same accuracy.

It certainly could not have managed this before.

After all, beating its wings constantly to fly in front of a waterfall required more than courage. It also needed a strong body and unwavering resolve.

It needed keen perception as well, because water was not the only thing plunging down the falls. There was other debris, and even Water-type Pokémon leaping down with the current.

Bang!

Beedrill knocked aside another piece of wood falling from above, then swiftly thrust at the hole ahead.

It was not using any moves at this point, because its venom had become astonishingly potent, gradually approaching the level of Toxic.

Along with that came a substantial strengthening of its body as it adapted to the venom, as well as a deeper mastery of its moves.

Now, even an ordinary Fury Attack carried traces of venom, let alone Twineedle, which specifically incorporated poisonous strikes.

Dian had also gradually noticed that Beedrill's Ability, Swarm, seemed to have grown stronger to some degree. As Beedrill's overall condition improved, its capabilities seemed to have increased substantially across the board.

This did not surprise Dian. It was perfectly reasonable, after all.

Wailord and Remoraid could both use Water Gun, but could their attacks really compare? Just look at Wailord's size, and all that food it ate every day certainly wasn't for nothing. Even setting aside Water Gun's power, the sheer volume alone would probably leave Remoraid in the dust.

Or, to put it more vividly, could Magikarp and Wailord possibly be on the same level when they both used Splash?

Suddenly, a thick jet of water shot through the air straight at Misdreavus. Then a Goldeen flicked its tail above the cliff and plunged through the air with the waterfall's fierce current behind it—it was Waterfall!

Misdreavus immediately lashed out with a shadow to intercept the water jet, but its tremendous force still knocked her aside, placing her squarely within range of Goldeen's Waterfall.

Dian did not know whether this was a coincidence or something Goldeen had planned all along. The former was one thing, but if it was the latter, this Goldeen was not to be underestimated. What a schemer—a scheming fish through and through.

Unfortunately for it, Dian was no fool. He simply took out a Poké Ball, recalled Misdreavus, and released her again beside him.

No matter how fierce you are, you scheming fish, what can you do against scheming... no, wise Dian?

"Goldeen?!"

Goldeen watched helplessly as its target turned into a streak of red light and vanished into thin air. Unable to stop its momentum, it plunged headfirst into the pool below, throwing up a great splash.

A cluster of bubbles gradually rose to the surface. Goldeen quickly recovered and cast a proud, contemptuous glance at Dian with its two dead-fish eyes.

Then it turned its back on him and flicked its tail a few times.

Slap, slap...

Clearly, even with a language barrier, this Goldeen had still managed to get its point across.