Time went back one year, to Celadon City in the Kanto region.
Shiraishi Ritsu woke up in an unfamiliar rental room.
He opened his eyes and found himself lying on a single bed, with Pokémon cries drifting in through the window.
A Pidgey perched on the windowsill, tilting its head as it studied him.
In the corner of the room, an old television was playing the news.
"Recently, the Indigo League officially announced this year's schedule for the Indigo Plateau Conference. Trainers from all over have already begun setting out on their journeys..."
Shiraishi Ritsu stared at the television for a full five minutes.
Then a cream-white Pokémon wearing a red beret came up beside the bed and brushed his face with its green-paint-coated tail.
"Smear!"
"Holy shit!"
Shiraishi Ritsu shot upright in bed.
Startled, Smeargle hurriedly backed up two steps and looked at him innocently.
Shiraishi Ritsu paid no attention to that and grabbed its shoulders.
"Smeargle?!"
"Smear?"
"Are you really a Smeargle?"
He reached out to stroke its head, then tugged its oddly shaped tail.
The warm touch, the soft fur, and Smeargle's disgruntled expression at having its tail pulled.
Everything felt impossibly real.
Half an hour later.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, Shiraishi Ritsu finally accepted one fact.
He had transmigrated.
And he had transmigrated into the Pokémon world he knew so well!
For someone who had grown up watching the Pokémon anime, played every generation of games, and could recite even obscure Pokémon's types and Abilities backward, this was a dream come true.
In his previous life, Shiraishi Ritsu had been an ordinary young man whose biggest hobbies outside work were gaming and reading manga.
Pokémon games were naturally his favorites.
From Kanto to Paldea, he had played practically every generation and researched countless battle lineups.
Weather teams, Trick Room teams, setup sweep teams-he had all sorts of strategies at his fingertips.
As for manga, he especially liked Pokémon Adventures.
To him, the thrilling adventures and imaginative Pokémon battles in Pokémon Adventures were utterly irresistible.
Shiraishi Ritsu had even fantasized about drawing a manga like that himself.
Unfortunately, his lofty dreams had run into harsh reality.
His talent for drawing was hard to put into words.
Other people drew round, adorable Pikachu that looked cute from every angle.
The Pikachu he drew had crooked faces and twisted mouths, looking exactly like yellow rodents that had suffered electric shocks.
Even after years of practice, he barely improved.
In the end, Shiraishi Ritsu could only accept that he could not become a manga artist and keep it as a spare-time hobby.
But now...
"Hahaha! Heaven finally opened its eyes!"
Standing in the middle of the rental room, Shiraishi Ritsu could not help laughing out loud.
Now that I'm in the Pokémon world, who cares about drawing manga?
Become a Trainer!
Catch Pokémon!
Challenge Gyms!
Enter League tournaments!
And finally become a world-famous Pokémon Master!
That's the life a Pokémon player should pursue!
At that thought, Shiraishi Ritsu lowered his head, brimming with ambition, and looked at his first partner.
"Smeargle, from now on, we'll work hard together. One day, we'll stand on the podium at the Indigo Plateau Conference!"
"Smear!"
Though Smeargle only half understood him, seeing its owner so happy, it excitedly raised its tail and called out in agreement.
Shiraishi Ritsu nodded in satisfaction.
Then he remembered a very important question.
My Starter Pokémon seems a little unusual.
Smeargle.
Normal type.
Ability currently unknown.
As for its combat capabilities...
Shiraishi Ritsu's smile gradually faded.
As a veteran gamer, he knew Smeargle's base stats all too well.
Aside from barely passable Speed, there was practically nothing worth praising.
Especially its Attack and Special Attack.
They were downright pitiful.
However, Smeargle did have one extremely special feature.
Its signature move-Sketch!
In theory, as long as the appropriate conditions were met, Smeargle could use Sketch to permanently learn moves used by other Pokémon.
What did that mean?
It meant it had a chance to master powerful moves that other Pokémon could never learn!
"Wait, maybe Smeargle isn't that bad after all!"
Shiraishi Ritsu's eyes lit up again.
He was already imagining his Smeargle using powerful moves like Dragon Ascent, Precipice Blade, and Origin Pulse to make a stunning debut at the Indigo Plateau Conference.
When people saw him send out Smeargle, they would probably be unable to resist laughing.
Then, the very next second.
Smeargle would unleash a Precipice Blade!
Just imagining the scene was thrilling!
Yet that excitement lasted less than two days.
Shiraishi Ritsu realized he seemed to have oversimplified things.
This was the real Pokémon world.
To learn powerful moves, he first had to find Pokémon that could use them.
Take Dragon Ascent, for example.
He did know that Rayquaza could use it.
The question was, where was Rayquaza?
The Sky Pillar?
Never mind that it was far away in Hoenn-even if he actually found Rayquaza, could he really walk up with a grin and ask it to demonstrate Dragon Ascent?
One Dragon Pulse from Rayquaza would probably send him and Smeargle to meet Arceus together.
As for Precipice Blade and Origin Pulse, those were equally hopeless.
Shiraishi Ritsu even wondered whether he would ever get a chance to see Groudon and Kyogre in person in this lifetime.
"Forget it. Let's not think about legendary Pokémon's moves for now."
In the rental room, Shiraishi Ritsu took pen and paper and earnestly began drafting a training plan.
"Let's start with ordinary moves."
He soon discovered that things still were not so easy.
In the games, a Trainer only needed to press a few buttons to complete a battle.
In reality, he had to consider a Pokémon's stamina, reaction speed, move proficiency, and the coordination between Trainer and Pokémon.
Though Smeargle was very clever and usually obedient, it clearly lacked interest in battling.
During their daily training, whenever Shiraishi Ritsu had it run, it always liked to stop halfway and draw a few strokes on the ground with its tail.
When he had it practice dodging, it always found opportunities to slack off, too.
Once, Shiraishi Ritsu told it to run five consecutive laps around the training field.
But when he turned around, he found Smeargle crouching in the shade of a tree, carefully drawing a self-portrait.
Shiraishi Ritsu was so angry that he nearly tore up the training plan.
"Smeargle! We're training here!"
"Smear?"
Smeargle raised its head, looking utterly innocent.
It thought its drawing was pretty good.
Shiraishi Ritsu really did not know what to do with it.
Fortunately, after a period of hard work, Smeargle finally made a little progress.
One weekend, Shiraishi Ritsu took it to a training field on the outskirts of Celadon City, ready for their first proper Trainer battle.
His opponent was a boy slightly younger than him.
The Pokémon he used was Rattata.
"Rattata, huh?"
Shiraishi Ritsu felt a little relieved.
Finally, an opponent that looks relatively easy to handle.
"Smeargle, are you ready?"
"Smear!"
Smeargle raised its tail, doing its best to look fired up.
Once both sides confirmed they were ready, the match officially began.
"Rattata, use Tackle!"
The boy issued the first command.
Rattata pushed off with all four legs and charged swiftly toward Smeargle.
Shiraishi Ritsu's eyes lit up.
"Good chance! Smeargle, use Sketch!"
He had already practiced the timing for Sketch with Smeargle.
Smeargle raised its tail, focusing its attention firmly on Rattata.
Amid a strange glow, it successfully recorded the Tackle its opponent had just used.
However, before Shiraishi Ritsu could celebrate, Rattata had already slammed into Smeargle.
Thud!
"Smear!"
Smeargle staggered back several steps from the impact, nearly landing on its backside.
Shiraishi Ritsu hurriedly shouted, "Are you okay? Now it's our turn! Smeargle, Tackle!"
Smeargle gritted its teeth and charged forward, copying Rattata's earlier movements.
Unfortunately, neither its speed nor its strength was particularly good.
Rattata merely darted to the side and easily avoided the attack.
Immediately afterward, the boy gave another command.
"Rattata, get behind it!"
"Rat!"
Rattata nimbly circled around Smeargle and slammed hard into its back.
This time, Smeargle could no longer keep its footing and fell flat on the ground.
Shiraishi Ritsu hurriedly called for a stop.
"Okay, okay, we surrender!"
He quickly ran over and helped Smeargle up.
"How are you? Are you hurt?"
Smeargle shook its head, but it was clearly a little dejected.
Shiraishi Ritsu examined it and only breathed a sigh of relief after confirming it had no serious injuries.
The boy across from him ran over, too.
"Your Smeargle is amazing! It actually learned Rattata's move!"
Hearing that, Shiraishi Ritsu could only smile wryly.
So what if it learned the move?
The Tackle Smeargle used was not even as powerful as the opposing Rattata's.
This battle had also made Shiraishi Ritsu fully face reality.
His extensive gaming knowledge could indeed help him devise strategies, but in the end, Pokémon had to carry out Trainer battles themselves.
Smeargle's innate limitations were what they were.
To raise a Smeargle that could sweep through a League tournament, the knowledge in his head alone clearly fell far short.
More importantly, he could not even afford the most basic training resources right now.
That evening.
Shiraishi Ritsu sat at the table in his rented room, calculator in hand, carefully counting his savings.
After transmigrating, he had found some money in a drawer, along with documents relating to the rented room.
Those savings could originally have supported him for a while.
But with the mounting costs of Pokémon food, training supplies, and daily expenses, most of the money was already gone.
That was without even considering new Poké Balls, Technical Machines, or the cost of traveling to other cities.
"This burns through money way too fast..."
Shiraishi Ritsu looked at his account book and could not help sighing.
Back when he played the games in his previous life, he had always thought being a Trainer was an incredibly free profession.
Fight a few battles on the road, and winning meant prize money.
If he came across a Pokémon he liked, throwing a Poké Ball gave him a chance to catch it.
But only after actually arriving in this world did he understand how much effort and money raising Pokémon required.
Besides, ordinary Trainers did not get the same treatment as a game protagonist.
There was no professor handing out rare starter Pokémon for free, nor precious items lying around for the taking.
Shiraishi Ritsu lowered his head and glanced at Smeargle, who was lying beside him.
"Sigh. Partner, looks like we need to find a way to earn money first."
"Smear..."
Smeargle seemed to understand his Trainer's worries too, and his tail drooped listlessly.
Shiraishi Ritsu stroked his head.
"Don't get discouraged. You did really well today."
"We can keep training bit by bit when we get the chance."
In truth, he had not actually given up on being a Trainer.
It was just that making a living was clearly the most important thing right now.
He could hardly challenge the Indigo League with both himself and Smeargle going hungry, could he?
Over the next few days, Shiraishi Ritsu began looking for work in Celadon City.
Unfortunately, he had neither formal Trainer qualifications and experience nor any marketable professional skills.
After searching all over, most of the suitable jobs he found were low-paying temporary positions.
That left him frustrated for quite a while.
One evening.
After an entire day of running around, Shiraishi Ritsu dragged his exhausted body back to his rented room.
Smeargle had already prepared some water and had even thoughtfully cleared the clutter off his table.
"Thanks, partner."
Shiraishi Ritsu sat down at the table and opened a drawer, looking for paper to write down the shops he needed to contact the next day.
As he rummaged around, he suddenly spotted a pencil.
The moment he picked it up, he inexplicably thought of his previous life.
Computers, games, manga...
And those few manga drafts of his that had ended up gathering dust in a drawer because his drawing skills were so poor.
"Come to think of it, I haven't read manga in ages."
Shiraishi Ritsu muttered to himself.
Naturally, this world had manga magazines too, but most of their series did not interest him.
In particular, his favorite, Pokémon Adventures, was nowhere to be found in this world.
After all, this was the real Pokémon world.
At that thought, Shiraishi Ritsu suddenly began to miss those familiar manga characters from his previous life.
He picked up the pencil and casually began drawing on a blank sheet of paper.
A head.
Two eyes.
Then a straw hat.
Before long, a crooked figure appeared on the paper.
Shiraishi Ritsu stared at his work for quite some time.
"Tsk. Still looks awful, just as I thought."
The boy wearing a straw hat on the paper had one eye bigger than the other, and his mouth was so crooked it nearly reached his ear.
Anyone who did not know better might have thought it was some newly discovered Ghost-type Pokémon.
Even Shiraishi Ritsu could not help laughing.
Just then, Smeargle, who had been resting beside him, suddenly came over.
"Smear?"
He stared at the drawing paper on the table, his eyes full of confusion.
Shiraishi Ritsu felt a little embarrassed.
"What are you looking at? Never seen manga before?"
Smeargle blinked.
Then he looked at the figure on the paper again.
Next, he reached out a paw and gently tugged Shiraishi Ritsu's sleeve.
"What is it?"
"Smear!"
Smeargle pointed at the drawing paper, then raised his tail.
Shiraishi Ritsu froze for a moment.
"You want to draw?"
Smeargle nodded vigorously.
Shiraishi Ritsu chuckled and pushed the paper in front of him.
"All right, give it a try."
Smeargle took the paper and first tilted his head, studying it for quite a while.
Then he picked up the pencil beside him, lightly dabbed the paint on his tail onto the paper, and began drawing in earnest.
At first, Shiraishi Ritsu did not pay much attention.
After all, Smeargle were Pokémon that liked to paint.
Doodling with their tails was perfectly normal for them.
Yet as the seconds and minutes passed, the expression on Shiraishi Ritsu's face gradually changed.
On the paper.
Smeargle was correcting the originally crooked outline of the figure bit by bit.
Smooth lines traced the boy's face.
The straw hat was reshaped.
The eyes, nose, and mouth were all given just the right proportions.
Most surprising of all was the character's expression.
Smeargle seemed to have grasped the feeling Shiraishi Ritsu wanted to convey all at once.
The boy wearing the straw hat was laughing with his mouth wide open, his face lit by a bright, carefree smile.
That familiar straw hat.
That familiar smile.
Even the little scar beside his cheek had been drawn accurately by Smeargle.
Shiraishi Ritsu watched, dumbfounded.
This...
Wasn't this fucking Luffy?!
His drawing had been so abstract, yet Smeargle had actually managed to reconstruct him?
And these drawing skills...
Shiraishi Ritsu suddenly leaned closer to the paper and examined it carefully.
The lines, proportions, and expression were all flawless.
Even beside the work of professional manga artists from his previous life, this character illustration probably would not have paled in comparison.
Most absurd of all, Smeargle still seemed dissatisfied with something.
After a brief moment of thought, he added a few more pencil strokes.
And with that, a vivid, lifelike boy in a straw hat leaped off the page.
"Smear!"
Smeargle put down his drawing tool and proudly handed his work to Shiraishi Ritsu.
He seemed to be asking his Trainer how he had done.
Shiraishi Ritsu did not answer.
He simply stared fixedly at the drawing paper in his hands.
Only after a long while did he finally raise his head.
"Smeargle..."
"Smear?"
"Why... didn't you ever tell me you were this good at drawing?!"
Smeargle looked utterly bewildered.
But Shiraishi Ritsu had already jumped out of his chair in excitement.
An extremely bold idea had suddenly popped into his head.
What had he loved most in his previous life?
Manga!
What had been his greatest regret?
Not being able to draw a manga that truly belonged to him!
But now?
He had memories of countless manga from another world.
And his partner actually possessed such an astonishing talent for drawing!
The more Shiraishi Ritsu thought about it, the more excited he became, even temporarily pushing his worries about finding work out of his mind.
He suddenly grabbed Smeargle's shoulders, his eyes shining.
"Smeargle!"
"S-Smear?"
Smeargle was startled by his Trainer's sudden actions.
But Shiraishi Ritsu could no longer hold back his grin.
"Let me ask you something!"
"Smeargle, do you want to become the world's number one manga master?"