After settling on a plan in the forest treehouse, Gary headed out with his charming grandfather.
"Celebi, sorry for the trouble. Could you find that little dummy?" Young Master Mao stroked the pink Celebi's head and spoke gently.
"Chirp~" Celebi nodded adorably, pink light flickering at the tips of the two little antennae on its forehead.
Ripples of Aura radiated silently outward.
Soon, the little one's eyes lit up, and it gave a cheerful cry. "Chirp~" (Found it!)
"Let's go take a look at that adorably stupid Celebi." Gary spread his hands and led Yukinari deeper into the forest.
"Gary, are you really my... you know? You seem so methodical about everything. Everything you do makes sense, and you look so cool doing it!" Yukinari marveled as they walked.
Gary nodded solemnly. "That's because my grandpa taught me well. Uh... I don't mean you... er... well, you wouldn't be wrong either. I mean the future you, not the current you."
The young Professor Oak listened in a daze. "Anyway, what you're saying is that I'll be pretty reliable someday?"
Gary smiled. "Have some confidence. In the future, you won't just be reliable. You'll be great."
"Great and all that... that's kind of embarrassing." Yukinari scratched his head, showing a rare hint of bashfulness.
Following a short distance behind them, Lorelei murmured in wonder, "Getting to see a young Professor Oak working alongside Gary really is an amazing experience."
"I feel like Professor Oak was much better behaved than Young Master Mao when he was young." Bruno rubbed his chin. "So even a towering pillar of the Pokémon League was a cute little boy once~"
"Try being a cute little boy yourself, if you're so capable~" Lorelei curled her lip.
"Lorelei, I really have to hand it to you. How can