Extra 12: I choose you! (21)

The battle ended as everyone would have thought, Kurama won, although, to their surprise, the battle was quite close.

Kirlia wasn't Kurama's strongest Pokémon, but that didn't mean it wasn't well-trained.

Bulbasaur was a fairly strong Pokémon for only a primary stage, and its potential was excellent, to the point that Kurama was surprised at his son's luck in finding a Pokémon as good as the little toad.

The duo quickly returned home for dinner with the rest of Ash's family and friends, wrapping up another day, and bringing the start of the Pokémon League ever closer.

* * * * *

5 days had passed for the Ketchum family, and by now they were walking to the V.I.P. seats in the stadium.

Today was the day when the actual Pokémon League battles would begin after two days of preliminaries.

Ash and Gary had made it through to the main event without much trouble, which pleased Oak and the Ketchum family.

"It's good to see that you managed to make it in time this time" - said Kurama as he looked at the old Pokémon professor from Kanto.

"My work is getting more and more time-consuming, and I'm not as young as I used to be" - Oak replied as he sighed regretfully.

"I'll be honest with you, Oak" - said Kurama as he shook his head - "Gary needs a family, one that will be with him in these difficult times."

Young Gary had lived too long alone with his older sister being away from home because of her studies, and his grandfather being in his lab all the time.

"I know, I've even been thinking about retiring, but every time I go to do it, my body stops on its own" - Oak replied as he sighed again - "I have my work embedded in my old bones. Kurama, I can only do so much."

"You can make Gary your successor" - replied Kurama as he frowned - "The kid is smart, and he admires you as much or more than he admires me, so try to have a conversation with him."

". . ." - Oak was silent for a few seconds before nodding - "Thanks for your help, and thanks for standing beside Gary when he was a kid."

"Don't mention it, he's part of the family" - Kurama replied with a smile as Oak nodded happily.

"Gary must be a lucky boy to have a father figure like you" - said Oak, only to sigh with regret at the memory of his deceased son - ". . ."

Kurama didn't answer him, he just waited for Oak to regain his composure before focusing his gaze on the battlefield, though he quickly lost interest.

The kids who made it to the Pokémon League were talented, but still immature, some even seemed to have made it only by luck because they only had one strong, well-trained Pokémon on their teams.

"I see you lost interest" - Scott said as he appeared in the room where Oak and the Ketchum family were.

"You should think things out better before entering the private room, Scott, we could be doing something private" - Kurama said as he gave a blank look to the young owner of the [Battle Frontier].

Delia blushed when she heard this while Ivy was licking her lips at the thought that it wouldn't be a bad idea.

Kurama found it amusing to see the very different expressions of his two girls, though he quickly focused his attention on Scott - "Anyway, what did you come for?"

"I just came to tell you that I found some interesting information that I'm sure you wouldn't know why your attention is only on your son and his friend" - Scott said as a huge smile appeared on his face - "There is a young promise coming from Alola."

Scott's words, quickly caught Kurama's attention, after all, Alola was an important region for him - "Really?"

"I gain nothing by lying to you" - Scott replied as he folded his arms - "From what I heard, he managed to complete all the Region's Gyms in a matter of weeks, being the young man who has completed the collection of Medals the fastest"

"I guess the League won't be as boring as I thought" - Kurama replied while nodding - "What's the boy's name?"

"His name is Gladio Uzumaki" - Scott replied as he started to think - "Outside the name I don't have much information"

"!" - Kurama jumped up when he heard the boy's name, surprising everyone present, well, everyone but Oak, who knew what meaning that name had.

"Are you okay?" - Scott asked in surprise.

"Where is he?" - Kurama asked as he started shaking, only to feel a sharp headache - "Where?!"

"I-If I remember correctly, my informant told me he was in room 8 assigned to the participants" - answered Scott as he unconsciously answered.

Kurama quickly apologized to those present and left the room without a second thought, leaving Ivy, Delia, and Scott extremely confused.

"Do you know anything, Professor?" - Scott asked as he noticed how Oak's expression had only changed a little.

"The Uzumaki surname, it's not as common as you think, in fact, there is only one family that possesses it" - Oak replied as he started to think - "And they are quite famous, especially in Alola."

"?" - Scott tried to remember, but he still didn't understand what the professor was trying to say.

"The Uzumaki family owns the [Aether Corporation]" - Oak said, surprising Delia and Ivy because now they understood the reason for their husband/lover's reaction.

"Now that you say it, it's true" - Scott muttered while frowning - "I had forgotten because normally Lusamine-san doesn't use her last name because it reminds her of her missing husband."

* * * * *

Gladio sat silently as he waited to be called for his fight.

He had come to Kanto after he had heard that his father was in this place, and the only clue he currently had, was that he would be participating in Pokémon League.

Gladio had come without telling his mother anything, in fact, he knew that his father was in this place because he had heard one of the conversations between his father and mother, although he felt that there was something strange about all this because he was sure that his father would have returned home years ago if everything was all right.

The boy was about to get up from his chair when he heard a knock at the door - "Who is it?"

"It's me" - replied a voice he recognized immediately.

Without a second thought, Gladio ran to the door and opened it with all his might, only to see a face he hadn't seen in years.

Tears quickly began to stream down his cheeks as he felt his body tremble at the sight of the man he had so long wished to see - "Father"

"Son" - Kurama replied as he bit his lip at the sight of the boy.

He still couldn't remember him, but just seeing his face made his heart stop for a few seconds.

"Why, why didn't you come home?" - Gladio asked as he looked at his father and clenched his fist.

"Son, let's talk because this is going to be a bit long," Kurama replied as he entered his son's room and closed the door.

Gladio nodded weakly as he followed his father.

* * *

After 15 minutes, Gladio finally understood the situation and how tragic it was.

Kurama had lost his memories of his family in Alola, that was why he couldn't go back, after all, he didn't know there was a place to go back to.

Gladio was silent as he sighed, but his expression quickly changed when he heard how he now had two more siblings.

He was upset at first, but quickly calmed down because he understood that there was nothing he could do about it, so he quickly began to inquire about his new siblings.

Great was his surprise when he heard that one of them was not his biological son, although knowing his father, this was not a hindrance for him to treat him as such.

"He is participating in the League?" - Gladio asked curiously.

"That's right" - nodded Kurama calmly.

"I guess I'm going to check how good he is" - replied Gladio while squinting his eyes with a slightly competitive spirit - "Let's see if he did learn from you, father."

"I hope it's a good battle, Gladio" - Kurama replied as he stroked his son's head, only to stop and open his eyes in surprise because this was something he did unconsciously.

Gladio froze for a few seconds before he felt his cheeks start to feel wet - ". . ."

"I" - Kurama murmured, only to feel his son's emotions start to get out of control, so he hugged him.

Gladio again began to cry as he felt all the emotions he had kept inside all these years, being released all at once.