Miss Sabrina, You're Not Seriously Going to Do It, Are You?

In the hotel room the publisher had arranged in Saffron City, Shiraishi Ritsu sat on the sofa, staring at his communicator's screen, not daring to move for the longest time.

Sabrina's latest message was still on the screen.

[Sabrina: How did you know I would do that?]

"..."

Shiraishi Ritsu fell silent.

All he wanted now was to slap his past self from a few minutes ago.

Why had he just had to open his big mouth and offer that warning?

All Sabrina had told him was that a boy wearing a cap had come to challenge the Gym today.

And what had he done? Blurted out, "Whatever you do, don't turn him into a doll."

How was that any different from volunteering that he knew her secret?

"I'm doomed. So doomed."

Shiraishi Ritsu rubbed his temples.

"My mouth really got ahead of my brain this time."

Beside him, Smeargle was lying on the bed, drawing with a sketchbook in his arms.

Hearing his trainer mutter, he raised his head curiously.

"Smear?"

"Miss Sabrina asked me how I knew she would turn Ash into a doll."

"Smear!"

Smeargle blinked, then looked as though he understood.

He picked up his pencil and quickly drew a picture of Ash.

This time, though, the Ash in the picture was only palm-sized, with a round little body and that familiar red-and-white cap on his head.

Shiraishi Ritsu took one look and nearly laughed aloud.

"You actually drew it?"

Smeargle wagged his tail smugly.

Clearly, he thought this was quite an interesting subject.

"Stop drawing for a second and help me think of an explanation!"

"Smear?"

Smeargle tilted his head in thought for two seconds, then lowered it and went back to drawing.

The corner of Shiraishi Ritsu's mouth twitched.

Fine.

I'd be better off figuring it out myself than counting on this guy for ideas.

He picked up his communicator again and carefully composed his words.

[Masuda Senbei: Haha, Miss Sabrina, you've misunderstood! When I was coming up with manga ideas in the past, I researched quite a few plots involving psychic powers.]

[Masuda Senbei: Things like using Confusion to move objects, changing sizes, or turning people into toys were all ideas I considered before.]

He hit send.

Shiraishi Ritsu let out a long breath.

That explanation should be fine.

I'm a manga artist, after all. It's normal for my imagination to run a little wild, right?

Yet he had barely put his communicator down before another message arrived.

[Sabrina: You've researched turning people into toys, too?]

Shiraishi Ritsu: "..."

Oh no.

Why did every explanation make it sound more like that was actually the case?

He hurriedly kept typing.

[Masuda Senbei: Of course! Psychic powers can manifest in all sorts of ways in manga.

For example, shrinking houses or having characters enter a toy world are both great ways to show the wonders of psychic powers.]

[Sabrina: Then do you know how to undo it?]

Shiraishi Ritsu froze.

Undo it?

Why did that question sound a little off?

He hesitated, then sent a tentative reply.

[Masuda Senbei: Generally speaking, the user just has to willingly undo the psychic power, right?]

[Sabrina: Mm.]

A few seconds later, another message arrived.

[Sabrina: You certainly know a lot.]

Shiraishi Ritsu's heart lurched as he looked at the screen.

Was that praise or suspicion?

"Smeargle."

"Smear?"

"Do you think it's too late for me to pretend I'm asleep?"

Smeargle looked at him and nodded solemnly.

Then he held up his drawing paper and drew a funny illustration of Shiraishi Ritsu lying in bed pretending to sleep, with Sabrina standing beside him, staring.

Shiraishi Ritsu was speechless.

"You little rascal. You're just dying to see me get into trouble, aren't you?"

"Smear!"

Smeargle covered his mouth, laughing so hard his tail flailed.

Just then, the communicator suddenly rang.

Shiraishi Ritsu looked down.

[Saffron Gym-Sabrina is requesting a video call.]

"..."

He stared at the screen, hesitating for a full five seconds.

In the end, he braced himself and answered.

The screen lit up.

Sabrina's familiar face appeared in the center of the screen.

She sat in the Gym's lounge, holding that strange rag doll in her arms, her face as expressionless as ever.

"Good evening, Masuda Senbei."

"G-good evening, Miss Sabrina!"

Shiraishi Ritsu quickly sat up straight.

Sabrina glanced at him.

"Are you nervous?"

"Not at all!"

"Then why are you sitting so straight?"

"Force of habit!"

Shiraishi Ritsu answered without hesitation.

"Manga artists have to look alert and presentable during interviews!"

Sabrina said nothing, merely watching him quietly.

Her gaze made Shiraishi Ritsu feel a little unnerved.

Fortunately, the rag doll soon poked its head out beside her.

"Heehee!"

"Mr. Manga Artist!"

Hearing that familiar voice, Shiraishi Ritsu hurriedly smiled.

"Hello!"

"Did you see that boy in the cap today?"

"I did."

"Wasn't he full of energy?"

"He certainly was."

Remembering how Ash had excitedly bounced around the exhibition hall that afternoon, Shiraishi Ritsu couldn't help laughing.

"His name is Ash. He's from Pallet Town, and he has a Pikachu with him. He really likes my manga, too."

"Really?"

The rag doll immediately perked up.

"Then he must be lots of fun!"

"Uh..."

Shiraishi Ritsu's smile stiffened slightly.

The rag doll continued excitedly, "When he came to the Gym today, he kept saying he was going to become a Pokémon Master!"

"Heehee! I think he'd be perfect to play with me!"

Shiraishi Ritsu's scalp prickled as he listened.

"Um... Miss Sabrina."

He hurriedly picked up the conversation.

"Actually, Ash may be a little reckless sometimes, but he's a very hardworking Trainer."

Sabrina gave a noncommittal reply.

"Mm."

"He's already earned three Gym Badges, and he's reasonably strong."

"So?"

"So..."

Shiraishi Ritsu considered his wording.

"I think that since he came all this way to challenge the Saffron Gym, you should still follow Pokémon League rules and have a proper Pokémon battle."

The rag doll was immediately unhappy.

"But I want to play with him!"

Shiraishi Ritsu hurriedly explained.

"Playing is fine, of course, but you still have to see whether the other person wants to."

"If you turn a Trainer into a doll, how is he supposed to continue his journey?"

The rag doll tilted its head and thought for a moment.

"But he can still play after he becomes a doll!"

"..."

Shiraishi Ritsu fell silent again.

He suddenly felt that there was simply no reasoning with this rag doll.

Worse still, Sabrina hadn't stopped it at all.

"Miss Sabrina."

Shiraishi Ritsu could only pin his hopes on the actual Gym Leader.

"You wouldn't want the Pokémon League receiving a complaint saying that the Saffron Gym had made a challenging Trainer disappear, would you?"

Sabrina raised her eyes slightly.

"Are you teaching me how to run my Gym?"

"Of course not!"

Shiraishi Ritsu hurriedly waved his hands.

"I'm just offering a reminder. You're the Gym Leader, after all.

You're so strong that you can easily make challengers recognize their shortcomings through a normal match."

"And..."

He paused, then added with a smile, "Ash is also a potential reader of Pokémon Adventures. I'm counting on selling him manga in the future!"

This time, Sabrina's expression finally changed a little.

"Selling manga?"

"That's right!"

At the mention of his career, Shiraishi Ritsu immediately perked up.

"That kid spent ages reading in the exhibition hall today, and he said he'd definitely buy a copy someday."

"If he suddenly disappeared, wouldn't I lose a reader?"

Sabrina: "..."

Rag doll: "..."

After a while, the rag doll suddenly began to giggle.

"Sabrina! This manga artist is so funny!"

Shiraishi Ritsu rubbed his nose.

Did that mean I'd managed to bluff my way through?

He was just about to breathe a sigh of relief when a loud cry suddenly came from beside him.

"Smear!"

Smeargle held up the drawing it had just finished, excitedly showing it to Shiraishi Ritsu.

Shiraishi Ritsu instinctively turned his head.

"What is it?"

One look nearly made his eyes pop out.

Well, damn!

Smeargle had actually finished an entire four-panel comic.

In the first panel, Ash stood outside Saffron Gym, holding Pikachu and boldly declaring that he wanted to challenge Sabrina.

In the second panel, Sabrina gently raised her hand, and a flash of psychic light swept past.

In the third panel, Ash and Pikachu had both turned into palm-sized dolls and been placed on a huge toy table.

In the fourth panel, doll Ash still had his fist raised, holding a miniature Pikachu in his arms as he shouted:

[I'm going to become a Pokémon Master!]

Beside him, the miniature Pikachu raised its two little paws and chimed in:

[Pika pika!]

After reading it, Shiraishi Ritsu finally burst out laughing.

"Hahaha! You little rascal!"

Even if Ash turned into a doll, he probably still wouldn't forget his dream, would he?

But before he could finish laughing, the rag doll's excited voice came through the communicator.

"Wow! What's Smeargle drawing?"

The smile on Shiraishi Ritsu's face instantly froze.

Oh no! The video's still on!

"Nothing! Just some doodles!"

He hurriedly reached out to cover the drawing.

But Smeargle had already excitedly turned it toward the communicator.

"Smear!"

It clearly wanted to show Sabrina its latest work.

"Hey!"

Shiraishi Ritsu reached out to grab it, but he was still a step too late.

On the other side of the screen, the rag doll had already seen what was in the drawing.

After a brief silence...

"Hahahaha!"

The rag doll suddenly burst into laughter.

"Sabrina! Look!"

"That boy really turned into a doll!"

It rocked back and forth with laughter, its whole body starting to sway.

"And Pikachu! It's so tiny!"

Sabrina also lowered her gaze to the screen.

In the drawing, the boy in the red-and-white cap still looked full of fighting spirit, even after becoming a rag doll.

Sabrina stared at the drawing for a while.

The corners of her mouth seemed to move slightly.

Shiraishi Ritsu, however, couldn't laugh at all.

All he wanted was to pick Smeargle up and ask it properly whose side it was on.

"Smeargle."

"Smear?"

"Can't you draw something normal?"

Smeargle tilted its head.

It thought this drawing was perfectly normal.

Besides, Sabrina and the rag doll both seemed to like it!

"Masuda Senbei."

Sabrina suddenly spoke.

Shiraishi Ritsu quickly turned back.

"Yes!"

"You seem to know that trainer named Ash very well."

"Huh?"

"You know his personality, and you know what he would say."

Sabrina glanced at doll Ash in the drawing.

"You even guessed how he would react after something like this happened to him."

The corner of Shiraishi Ritsu's mouth twitched.

Oh no. How did the conversation circle back to this again?

He hurriedly explained, "Miss Sabrina, you're overthinking it! I talked to Ash for quite a while today, so I know he's a very enthusiastic kid."

"Besides, I'm a manga artist. I'm used to observing people and coming up with stories based on their personalities."

At that, he hastily added, "This is all just my imagination. There's nothing special about it!"

Sabrina didn't answer immediately.

She stared at Shiraishi Ritsu for a few seconds before finally nodding lightly.

"I see."

Shiraishi Ritsu finally breathed a sigh of relief.

However, Sabrina's next words made him tense up again.

"Your imagination certainly is rich."

"Haha, you're too kind."

"However..."

Sabrina's tone was calm.

"You seem very interested in my psychic powers, too."

"..."

Shiraishi Ritsu suddenly felt that today's video call was even more exhausting than taking on a Gym Challenge.

He even began to miss the days when he had discussed Raichu tactics with Lt. Surge.

At least that Gym Leader had only complained that he wasn't handsome enough in the manga.

Sabrina, on the other hand...

If they kept talking, he feared she would even question him into revealing that he was a transmigrator.

Fortunately, Sabrina didn't press him any further.

She looked down at the rag doll in her arms, then turned back to Shiraishi Ritsu.

"That child should be coming to issue a formal challenge tomorrow."

"Really?"

Shiraishi Ritsu asked cautiously, "Then what are you planning to do?"

"Accept the challenge."

Sabrina answered quite naturally.

"He's a trainer, and I'm a Gym Leader. Since he's issuing a Gym Challenge, we'll battle according to the rules."

Shiraishi Ritsu's eyes immediately lit up at that.

"Exactly! That's the best way!"

Sabrina glanced at him.

"But after the battle ends..."

"Ahem!"

Shiraishi Ritsu hurriedly coughed twice.

"Miss Sabrina, it's getting late! You have a challenger to face tomorrow, so you should get some rest early tonight!"

On the other end of the communicator, the rag doll started laughing again.

"Heehee! Mr. Manga Artist seems really scared of us!"

"Of course not!"

Shiraishi Ritsu immediately denied it.

"I'm just concerned about a Gym Leader's health!"

Sabrina quietly watched him for a moment.

In the end, she didn't expose his flimsy excuse.

"Understood."

"Then let's talk again tomorrow!"

Shiraishi Ritsu said hurriedly.

"Good night, Miss Sabrina!"

After ending the call, he flopped onto the sofa.

"Whew..."

It's finally over!

Beside him, Smeargle was still admiring its four-panel comic, letting out a few happy cries now and then.

Looking at it, Shiraishi Ritsu couldn't help reaching out to rub its head.

"Partner, you nearly got me killed today!"

"Smear?"

Smeargle looked utterly innocent.

Before long, however, Shiraishi Ritsu couldn't help laughing again.

He had to admit that this comic about Ash turning into a doll really was pretty funny.

"Oh well. Let's put it away for now."

He took the drawing from Smeargle and looked it over carefully.

"Maybe we can put it in some comedy bonus section someday."

"Smear!"

Smeargle immediately perked up.

Then it picked up its brush again, ready to draw a second strip.

Shiraishi Ritsu quickly stopped it.

"That's enough! We're done for today!"

"We still have a promotional event tomorrow!"

Only then did Smeargle reluctantly put its brush away.

However, when Shiraishi Ritsu went to wash up, it secretly opened its sketchbook again.

This time, it planned to draw an even more interesting story.

It had already thought of the title.

[Super Pallet Town Boy vs. the Psychic Toy House!]

Meanwhile, at Saffron Gym.

Sabrina sat in the lounge, the communicator already back on the table.

The rag doll, however, was still absorbed in that four-panel comic, laughing from time to time.

"Sabrina, that manga artist is so much fun!"

"Mm."

"And his Smeargle! I love that Ash doll it drew!"

Sabrina lifted her teacup and took a small sip.

The rag doll suddenly leaned closer.

"Oh, right, Sabrina."

"What is it?"

"Why does that manga artist know what we want to play?"

Sabrina didn't answer immediately.

She was considering the same question.

When she first came into contact with Masuda Senbei, she had thought he was merely a young man who liked making up arbitrary manga plots.

Later, she discovered that his understanding of Pokémon was quite profound, especially when it came to tactics for Psychic-type Pokémon.

And now, he could even anticipate some of the things she had once done.

Sabrina looked at the copy of Pokémon Adventures on the table.

"Masuda Senbei..."

She softly repeated the name.

This manga artist seemed even more interesting than she had originally imagined.

However, she had no intention of pursuing the matter further for now.

Rather than that question, there was something else she needed to deal with at the moment.

The next morning.

Preparations were complete at the Saffron Gym's training grounds, and the staff were inspecting the battle facilities.

Sabrina sat in her seat, still holding the rag doll in her arms.

Kadabra stood quietly on one side of the field, the spoon in his hand swaying slightly.

Just then, a staff member hurried over.

"Gym Leader."

Sabrina looked up.

"What is it?"

"The young Trainer who came yesterday is here again today."

The staff member opened the registration book.

"Ash from Pallet Town has formally submitted an application for a Gym Challenge."

Sabrina's gaze shifted slightly.

Pallet Town.

Wearing a cap.

With a Pikachu by his side.

She suddenly recalled that amusing four-panel comic from last night.

And how nervous Masuda Senbei had looked on the communicator.

The rag doll also raised its head excitedly.

"Sabrina! It's that energetic boy!"

"Can we start playing now?"

Sabrina gently stroked the rag doll's head.

Then she looked at the staff member standing before her, her tone as calm as ever.

"Let him in."