HAPPY HOLIDAYS/NEW YEARS TO ALL! This new arc is kicking off with the gang arriving in sinnoh and reaching the temple where they will be training, which is located near the peak of Mount Coronet. Once again, I want to apologise for uploading this chapter late as I had to deal with some personal holiday things but we're back with the Oracle Temple arc! Also I just want to say that I have an Instagram account for my animation work and other things related to this story and you can reach me tezuanimations! Once again, thanks for all the support and let's kick this new year off with a new arc!
Retsuko, Kyu, and Via's plane trip to the Sinnoh Region concluded after a flight that Retsuko attempted to sleep entirely through, but found himself getting sick.
"I've never vomited like that in years…" Retsuko said to Kyu and Via, leaning over the airport trashcan after they landed.
When they arrived in Snowpoint via ferry, Retsuko bought tickets to a ride that took them to a place located near Mount Coronet.
The trio walked into the location and found a deserted transportation center.
"You sure Asther said that this is the place?" Kyu questioned.
"Yes. Asther said that the Temple is located in a hidden hotspring on Mount Coronet." Retsuko reassured, checking his phone.
Suddenly the door exploded open and wood was sent flying everywhere.
Kuu jumped up and spread his wings out to protect everyone, blocking the wood and the attack.
A girl and a pokemon jumped through the hole that was created by the attack atop the center, landing in front of the trio.
"What's that Pokemon?" Retsuko wondered, leading Via to pull out her rotom phone.
She opened the pokedex app on his phone and scanned the large pokemon.
The Pokemon was intimidating, bipedal and canine-like, with predominantly blue and black fur. It possessed a short, round spike on the back of each forepaw, in addition to a third on its chest. It had red eyes, a long snout, and ears. It also had two pairs of pointed teeth, one in the upper jaw and one in the lower, and it possessed cream-colored fur on its torso and blue fur on its thighs that resembled shorts. It had a medium-length tail of the same blue color as well. It stood on its toes rather than on its entire foot. And it had four black appendages that hung down from its head.
"Lucario, the Aura Pokémon and the evolved form of Riolu. Lucario reads the thoughts of others and anticipates their movements by sensing their auras. Lucario can concentrate its mental energy into a mysterious wave called aura that can reduce boulders to dust, and a well-trained one can use its aura to identify and take in the feelings of creatures over half a mile away." The device chimed.
"So that must have been an Aura Sphere attack." Via concluded.
"Never seen one in person before…" Retsuko said in awe.
"Are you our escort? Or our enemy?" Kyu questioned, reaching for a Pokeball on his belt with his guard up.
The girl smiled.
She had fair skin, brown hair and black eyes and seemed to be a few years older than Retsuko. Her outfit was what seemed to be a mix of a traditional Korean Dobok, consisting of a jacket, trousers, and a black belt with silver lining around it. All of the clothing had silver lining and patterns on it and her trousers were specialized to look like a sort of dress.
"You must be the newbies that Master sent for." The girl said.
"So you Are our escort?" Retsuko questioned.
The girl sighed.
"Guess so. My name is Samantha Reign. Just call me Sam though." The girl, Sam, introduced herself.
Kyu whistled, checking the girl out.
"Sam…" He repeated.
"I'm taken, thank you." Samantha said, noticing Kyu's intent.
"Right." Retsuko said awkwardly, looking at Kuu who shrugged.
She shook hands with all of them and turned back.
"Y'know, when someone introduces themself, the polite thing to do would be to treat them with the same courtesy." Sam said sarcastically.
"My bad, my name is Ret-" Retsuko began to say, but was interrupted when Samantha's Lucario scooped the three of them up and extreme speeded them up the mountain with its aura power.
She dropped them off halfway up, and the three trainers landed awkwardly.
Kyu jumped up and began to feel around his body, making sure that he was all in one piece.
"I never want to experience that sensation ever again." Via said, shivering.
"This on top of the jetlag is gonna be the death of me!" Retsuko complained.
"Unfortunate." Kyu said, still scarred by the experience.
He walked over to the side of the mountain path and looked down.
Bad idea.
Kyu shrieked and backed up onto the mountain wall, remembering his immense fear of heights.
"SHIT, SHIT, SHIT, SHIT, SHIT, SHIT, SHIT! THIS BRINGS ME BACK TO MOUNT LANAKILA! FUCK, I HATE SINNOH!" Kyu rambled in fear.
Samantha laughed at the group, walking up the path without a care.
"Your final destination is the Temple of The Oracle. It's in a village straight up this secret path. Just keep walking up and you'll get there eventually!" Sam said, running off.
"Hey, aren't you supposed to be our escort!?" Via pouted loudly.
Sam appeared behind her.
"The temple is about a ten minute walk from here. Make it up alive, and there'll be home cooked meals and beds waiting for you!" She said, disappearing for real right after.
Retsuko, Kyu, and Via looked at each other and then at the path.
"Who's ready for some exercise, cuz I sure didn't bring any flying Pokemon." Kyu said.
Via and Retsuko facepalmed.
2027 - Sinnoh, Oracle Village
After almost an hour of walking, the trio finally found themselves at the entrance of the Oracle village.
"Ten minutes my ass…" Kyu croaked as he plopped onto the snowy ground in exhaustion.
"It's too cold for me to glide on Kuu's back reliably…" Retsuko said, joining Kyu.
Via walked up looking full of energy still.
"You two are seriously out of shape." She said.
"Hey!" A voice called out to them.
The trio looked up to find Samantha sitting atop the gate to the village with her Lucario, eating an Oran berry.
The gates separated the extremely cold Mountainous terrain from the village that looked like a normal environment with an average climate.
Sam jumped down and opened the gate for them.
"You guys coming or what?" She questioned, walking into the Village.
"I'm not attracted to her anymore." Kyu said bitterly.
The Oracle Village was filled with what seemed to be students of varying ages, all wearing uniforms similar to Sam but more generic.
The scenery was beautiful, with small huts and gardens everywhere growing berries, kids playing around, older adults hanging clothes and tending to pokemon.
Retsuko took a deep breath and smiled.
It reminded him of home.
"So what are we getting into here?" Kyu asked.
"The Master wanted to meet with you personally. I was just chosen to be the escort because of my rank." Sam explained.
"I don't get it. What's the difference between you and a typical temple student here?" Via asked.
Sam giggled.
"It's simple, really. I'm one of the temple's 3 Hara. We're the guardians of this Village, along with the master of course."
"Like a Kahuna?" Retsuko questioned with wide bright eyes.
"Yup! Like a Kahuna." Sam replied with a smile.
She continued to lead them into a large temple in the center of the village, with statues of legendary pokemon on each side.
"Palkia and Dialga…" Via noted.
"And Giratina." Kyu added.
The three walked into the temple to find a group formation of students training, switching from different martial art stances.
They all collectively bowed at the sight of Sam and she acknowledged it with a bow of her own.
Samantha lead them into the central part of the temple, where there were two sets of stairs leading to an Altar, with a massive mural of every known Legendary pokemon spread across it.
Retsuko paused, feeling a wave of nostalgia.
"This room… It looks exactly like the ruins from Alola. Where I met Tapu Bulu for the first time." Retsuko said breathlessly.
His eyes were foggy as if he were one step away from tears.
"That's because this shrine is inspired by Alola's totems." A deep voice in front of them said.
Everyone looked down to find a man sitting in front of the shrine kneeled over and praying.
"I brought your guests as you requested, Master." Sam said, kneeling to the man.
"Well alright then." The man said, standing up to face them.
The man revealed his face to the trio. He was a tall Korean man who had a sharp refined jawline with graying cyan hair and a full beard, his hair sweeping down and covering his right eye. He wore a Black Dobok fit for a master but also had hints of a Monk uniform in it. There was gold and purple patterns all over his outfit, and the sleeves were ripped off to expose his muscular and burly arms. Despite the man's age, he was clearly fit and in well shape.
Kyu's eyes widened at the sight of him.
His expression was panicked and he looked as though he was in complete and utter shock.
He moved his hands through the air as if he was grasping onto an answer for his confusion.
He looked like he was about to puke.
"G-Grandpa?" He squeaked.
"So it truly is you... Su-Ri." The man said quietly. His voice had a hint of sadness in it. Regret even.
Kyu felt something awaken within him. A rush of emotions building up. Materializing into energy.
He jumped up, did a 360 degree spin as he ascended, and Kou materialized into a beam of purple and cyan energy, fusing with his body.
Kyu went in for a 540 kick that devastated the entire temple room, causing a shock wave that knocked everyone in the room to their feet.
"YOU OF ALL PEOPLE IN THIS WORLD HAVE NO RIGHT TO ADDRESS ME BY THAT NAME!"
"Son…" The man said.
"YOUR PRECIOUS LITTLE SU-RI DIED WHEN YOU ABANDONED US!" Kyu shouted again, pressing down harder to increase the force of the impact.
The dust cleared, and revealed that the man was left completely unscathed, and had blocked kyu's immensely powerful kick with a single finger.
A toxicroak appeared behind him, emitting an immensely powerful aura.
"So you kept up our taekwondo practice. I'm proud. And your Gijinka abilities seem to have just manifested..." The man said, showing no concern or reaction to Kyu's anger.
He lifted the hair covering his eye with his free arm and his pupil spiraled into what seemed to be a sort of glowing purple star.
"Succumb." He whispered coldly.
Immediately kyu fell to his knees, like a sort of godly pressure was holding him down and forcing him to kneel in their presence.
Retsuko and Via were also taken down, barely able to look up at the force in front of them.
All Retsuko could make out was the silhouette of the aura of a legendary pokemon.
Everyone else in the room immediately fell unconscious due to the shock from the pressure.
"Not again…" Samantha said with a groan as her nose started to bleed and she fell unconscious.
"Grandpa?! Kyu what the hell is going on?!" Retsuko questioned, barely able to move.
The man sighed, walking over to them and kneeling down.
"My name is Daffodil Yeonghon. Father of Elga Yeonghon. Grandfather of Su-ri Yeonghon. But you will address me as Master Daffodil." The man commanded.
"Su-ri?" Via questioned.
"THAT'S NOT MY NAME." Kyu yelled, gritting his teeth.
Daffodil snapped and his eye returned to normal, releasing the pressure on the trio and returning to his spot on the shrine.
"Allow me to give you your first lesson." Daffodil said, resting his head in his palm.
Retsuko, Kyu, and Via remained silent, still in shock about what had just happened.
"The Gijinka phenomenon is a reaction to an extremely strong emotion, only brought out in certain individuals who descend from the 8 Original Gijinka. But what you weren't told is that anyone with the gene can awaken the power." Daffodil explained.
"What?" Retsuko questioned.
"When the human body is subjected to a large amount of stress, it turns to a certain emotion to regulate that stress. Coping. For each person, that emotion is different. For Gijinka, that emotion evolves to become their element."
"Coping…" Via mumbled in bewilderment.
The man cracked what seemed to be almost a smile, adjusting his sitting position so that one leg rested on top of the other.
He then shot his hand out, holding up 4 fingers.
"Four months. It'll take me four months to turn the three of you into the most badass Gijinka warriors the world has ever seen. That is, if you're still willing to work under me. The choice is yours." The man deduced.
Retsuko stood up slowly, not knowing what to say in response, and Kyu and Via followed.
"For now, get settled into your living quarters. We'll start with an introductory test tomorrow." Master Daffodil said, standing up and walking down the steps of the altar.
"I'll leave the rest to Young Samantha over there. Discuss your decision amongst yourselves, I don't give a shit either way." He said, walking off.
As soon as he left, everyone in the room started to regain consciousness and went back to what they were doing as if it was a normal occurrence.
Samantha groaned as she struggled back to her feet.
"I keep telling him to stop using his Sutai dominance without warning…" She said, rubbing her head.
"Su-tai Dominance?" Via questions.
Samantha jumped up, waving her hand in discussion of Via's comment.
"You'll learn about all that later. For now, I should give you all a proper tour of this place." She said.
Retsuko, Kyu, and Via hesitantly followed the girl around the Village, pointing in different directions to present several locations.
"This part of mount Coronet is covered in hot springs, so much so that the terrain is much different then the otherwise insanely cold temps. The climate itself changed. So there's the bathhouse that makes use of these springs." She explained, pointing to a building with steam from water pools emanating from it.
They walked past a large building that was longer than it was wide.
"Grand hall."
The village was organized in a grid where homes and other settlements were established, resembling an older style of architecture.
"That's where we get all of our fresh water." Sam said, pointing to a waterfall over a stone that diverted into a large freshwater pond.
Retsuko paused at it, sensing familiarity with the location.
Had he been here before?
"This Oracle village takes inspiration from many different cultures, and it's rooted in the historical version of Sinnoh called Hisui." Sam continued to explain.
The group made their way to a set of two cabins at the edge of the grid-like village, where people of the village entered and exited.
"This will be your living quarters. All of the students stay here during their time at the temple and you all are no exception. Your rooms are prepared and waiting for you. If you ever need anything from me, I'm in the girls cabin." Sam said.
She left the three to themselves in front of the cabin with a wave.
Immediately Kyu lashed out, slamming his fist against the wooden hut.
"I have so many questions, starting with you being this guy's grandson?!" Retsuko wondered.
Kyu exhaled.
"You guys know about my dad, Elga, who was a pretty big rival to Nagato Kourada, Retsuko's dad. World champion and all that. I didn't have much of a relationship with him because he was out all the time and traveled a bunch. Honestly, I barely remember the guy. I lived with mom and big bro for most of my life, even when I became a model and then a famous actor. But what you guys didn't know is that before that, my grandpa lived with us. He helped take care of me and Tachi. I thought he loved us. But out of nowhere, he just left us. No reasoning, no warning, no nothing. Mom was broken. I haven't seen that damn face of his since I was a little kid. This all happened way before I chose to move to Alola and transferred to the Pokemon school and met you guys, though." Kyu explained.
"That name he called you-"
"I don't go by that anymore." Kyu said firmly.
"Right." Retsuko said understandingly.
"That guy.. He barely gave us an explanation about anything! Just a small speech and he left. What was that all about?!" Via questioned.
"Don't do it. We'll just head back to Unova and figure it out ourselves. Besides, the orakuru could attack again." Kyu rationalized.
"Kyu, you can't just disregard the idea of becoming his students. He's your grandpa, you can't stay ma-"
"Why wouldn't I be!?" Kyu snapped.
"Kyu, I understand how you feel. Nobody expected him of all people to end up being your grandpa, but-" Via started to say.
"But?! But?! Don't tell me you're actually contemplating this?!" Kyu continued, getting more angry.
"I'm doing it." Retsuko said.
"What?!" Via shrieked.
"I don't have a choice. It's the fate of Unova in my hands. If I can't get strong enough to defeat this Orakuru threat then I can't call myself champion." Retsuko continued.
"How can you trust that man, Retsuko?!" Kyu shouted.
His face was strained again.
"Retsuko I was just consideringing it, don't rush into a decision! What if it's dangerous!? Huh!? Then what? Cuz I am damn sure not scraping my best friend's body off the ground!" Via yelled.
She reconsidered.
"-Again. I'm not scraping your body off the ground again."
Via backed up, turning to the side and holding her shoulder.
"Back after the plaza incident, I visited you while you were recovering. You were in a coma, Retsuko. They wouldn't even tell me what happened. I was scared that you would never wake up. Me and Kyu both were. We can't lose you, Retsuko. I can't lose you."
Retsuko took a deep breath and walked over to Via, grabbing her hands.
Via frowned.
"Look Retsuko I-"
Retsuko looked up at Via, struggling to make eye contact. Kyu remained silent, unable to find a good way to react to the exchange.
Retsuko looked at their hands. Then back to Via.
His choice was solidified in his mind, but upon seeing her worried gaze, his eyes widened and his face grew red.
Via sighed at Retsuko and they both pulled their hands away.
"I'm doing this, guys. With or without you." Retsuko said, balling his fist.
Via took a deep breath, dropping her arms to her sides.
"Fine then. I'll go with you." She said, putting her hands on her hips adamantly.
"What?!" Kyu shouted again.
"Retsuko's right. The Orakuru are a threat and they need to be stopped. Besides, I want answers." Via added.
"Via, the Orakuru isn't your fight-"
"Yes, it is. We're in this together. They could be a threat to the whole world if we don't put a stop to them while they're still in one region." She explained.
Retsuko sunk down in acceptance.
The two turned to Kyu who looked completely betrayed.
"So this is how it's gonna be. You're picking him over me?" Kyu questioned.
"Kyu, that's not what we meant-" Retsuko said.
"Y'know what. Y'all got it. I need to go think." Kyu said.
Before Via could try to say anything, Kou created a smokescreen of water and he disappeared with Kyu.
"Kyu!" Retsuko called out, but Via put her hand in front of him to stop him.
"Let's give him space." She warned.
Retsuko nodded uneasily and retreated to the entrance of his hut.
"I'm gonna head to sleep early. We've got a big day ahead of us." He said.
Via nodded.
"Guess I'll do the same. Sweet dreams, Retsuko." She replied.
Via went back to her own cabin, and they both unpacked their things and climbed into bed.
Via struggled to get comfortable, and Vye noticed, climbing into bed with her.
Via smiled, caressing the Braixen's fur.
"Can't get comfy either, can you?" She questioned, receiving a nod from the pokemon.
Via pulled Vye into a hug, and the two cuddled until they both fell asleep.
In Retsuko's cabin, he found peace in Kuu's warmth after snuggling in his wings.
Amongst the sounds of his cabinmates, Retsuko sensed that something was off to him.
After some more tossing and turning, Retsuko came to a revelation.
"I can't sleep."
2027 - Sinnoh, Oracle Village Outskirts
Kyu had found a vacant cliff area still in the strange warmth of the Oracle Village on the otherwise freezing Mount Coronet.
He had been crying, wishing for something to help the entire situation make sense to him.
Kou sat across from him and gave him a look as he folded his arms causing Kyu to roll his eyes.
"What, you think I should talk to him?" He said sarcastically.
He sniffled.
"Gren." Kou replied.
Kyu sighed.
"The part of me that still loves him is a part that I know isn't good for me. I can't let that out. I could release Moé." Kyu rationalized.
"Greninja ninja Gren." Kou rebutted with a grunt.
Kyu sighed.
Before he could say anything else, Kyu heard a tree branch snap as the footsteps of someone walking up the trail to the top of the cliff.
Kyu hid behind a rock so as to not be seen.
Once he knew that the person had walked past, he peeked behind the rock and saw Master Daffodil himself standing above the cliff.
"Well speak of the Giritina." He said grimly.
He looked closer.
"Wait, is that old fart gonna jump?!" Kyu questioned.
Kyu moved closer and saw Daffodil standing above the cliff looking down at the vast sea below.
He sighed and walked up behind him, stopping when Daffodil and Kyu stood side by side.
Daffodil huffed on a cigarette, blowing the air out through his teeth to create a sort of ring shape.
"Do you smoke?" He asked Kyu calmly, noticing him approaching from behind.
"Occasionally." Kyu responded shallowly.
He walked up to the edge of the cliff next to his grandfather, taking the blunt from his cartridge and lighting it with his own Charizard lighter that he had retrieved from his pocket.
He took a long huff, before blowing out the smoke, coughing a bit.
Daffodil chuckled at this as he exhaled deeply, smoothly expelling a good amount of smoke from his mouth.
"You're a double grandpa now. Tachi got hitched and had himself a kid." Kyu said.
His voice was strained again because of the crying.
Daffodil smiled in response to the news.
"That boy always made me so proud…" He said in satisfaction.
Kyu finished his smoke and dropped it on the ground next to him, smothering it with his foot.
"Why did you leave us? Just tell me the truth." Kyu asked.
There was sorrow and desperation in his voice now, like depending on Daffodil's answer all could be forgiven. The hope that they could restart together.
As a family.
But Daffodil Yeonghon remained silent.
2027 - Sinnoh, Oracle Village Retsuko's Cabin
Back in Retsuko's cabin, everything had settled down and all the boys had fallen asleep.
Kaz yet again slept peacefully on the other end of Retsuko's bed.
Ace burst out of his pokeball again, jumping off of the small nightstand next to Retsuko's dormbed and landing on the floor.
He scurried over to Kaz, poking her with his paw.
"Kaz. Kaz, wake up!" He called out to her.
Kaz slowly opened her eyes, jumping to her feet at the sight of Ace.
"You scared me…" She said defensively.
Ace scratched the back of his head with his paw and smiled awkwardly.
"My bad…" He apologized.
"What is it?" Kaz questioned, getting on all fours and following Ace, who led her out of the cabin.
"I have something to show you!" He exclaimed as he started to dash.
Kaz struggled to keep up due to her drowsiness but Ace eventually led them to a beach near the cliffs, filled with black sand.
"It's cold!" Ace noted loudly as he shivered.
Kaz walked up slowly in awe.
She dragged her paws across the sand, mesmerized by the sensation of the gritty material.
She looked up and found herself staring at the very ocean that she'd hoped to see.
Beautiful clear blue water that reflected the moon of Sinnoh.
Waves moving up and down onto the sand, rocks reflecting the light, and the slight salty scent.
"I promised I would show you the sea. There's nothing like it, am I right?" Ace asked with a smile.
Kaz watched the waves with wide, happy eyes.
"It really is beautiful." She gasped.
The gang has been introduced to the Temple Master Daffodil, who turned out to be Daffodil Yeonghon, the grandfather of Kyu! Daffodil seems to have a mysterious history relating to this gijinka phenomenon and a special connection with Madame Asther? The next chapter will be mainly focused back in Unova with Kion and Saabrina so see you guys then!