The Rainbow Wing!

5 bonus chapter's coming out at 11 AM EST. So I ask that you withhold you're powerstones until then.

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Ho-Oh!

Johan hadn't expected Ho-Oh to appear before him, even though he knew Ash hadn't started his journey yet and Ho-Oh might have some spare time on its talons.

Undeniably, this was an acknowledgment of his worth as a trainer.

As Johan marveled at the sight, Tinkatuff, standing beside him, had already found a stone on the ground.

"Chu!"

A big bird!

With a flick of its wrist, Tinkatuff tossed the stone into the air, gripping its hammer tightly and taking a deep breath—

"Tinkatuff!" Johan shouted in alarm, trying to stop it.

"Chu?"

Tinkatuff looked at him, confused.

But it's a shiny Fearow! A shiny one!

Ding!

Despite Johan's interruption, the stone was still flung into the sky, missing Ho-Oh entirely.

Johan wiped the sweat from his forehead.

This little troublemaker's courage was truly something else.

Did it think Ho-Oh was just a glorified cameraman? If angered, Ho-Oh could be terrifying.

Even its subordinate, Marshadow, could reduce them all to ash.

Suddenly, Johan felt a piercing gaze from above, causing his body to tense.

When he looked up, he found himself locking eyes with Ho-Oh, which glanced downward at him.

Johan, holding Tinkatuff tightly, forced a "friendly" smile.

"As a virtuous and upright trainer, everything that just happened was a misunderstanding."

Caw—!!

Ho-Oh let out a resounding cry, the sky turning golden as its magnificent wings cast a shimmering glow.

It glanced at Johan once more before turning away and speeding off, vanishing into the horizon.

Johan: "..."

"Chu!!"

Before Ho-Oh disappeared completely, a fiery object began to spiral down from the sky, catching Tinkatuff's immediate attention.

A trophy!

"Huh?"

Johan snapped out of his thoughts and ran toward where the flaming object landed.

As they approached, the fire had dissipated, leaving a resplendent, rainbow-colored feather gently descending from above.

The Rainbow Wing!

"Chu!"

Tinkatuff's eyes sparkled with excitement.

Even though I didn't hit the bird, it still dropped loot!

In its mind, knocking feathers off birds seemed perfectly natural.

But Johan's expression grew complicated.

Something didn't feel right.

Could it be that Ho-Oh thought it was beneath itself to act directly and left the Rainbow Wing as a marker for Marshadow to handle things?

What if I pick up this Rainbow Wing and a Marshadow suddenly leaps out of the shadows to challenge me? What then?

Even Ash, the so-called "Super Rookie," had been turned to ash by Marshadow's power. Declaring his name hadn't helped him either.

It was only through Ho-Oh's intervention that Ash was resurrected.

Wait a second—

It's widely known that Ho-Oh revived three Pokémon from the Burned Tower, creating the Legendary Beasts Raikou, Entei, and Suicune.

If Ash was also resurrected by Ho-Oh...

Could that mean Ash is equivalent to the Legendary Beasts?!

Case solved. No wonder Ash possesses such remarkable strength. He's on par with the Legendary Beasts.

Johan's thoughts began to spiral until he snapped himself back to reality.

The Rainbow Wing had already been grabbed by Gengar.

Its radiant glow was beginning to dim, turning noticeably duller.

"Ka-kaah?"

Gengar tilted its head, confused.

This feather can lose its shine?

Johan's expression shifted.

Gengar... do you have any self-awareness?

If this continued, the Rainbow Wing might completely lose its luster.

"It's said that the Rainbow Wing only glows in the presence of a trainer with a pure heart," Johan muttered.

Gengar scratched its head and then lit up with realization.

"Ka-kaah~~"

Oh, it's because I'm not a trainer.

Johan gave it a sidelong glance.

Let's not crush its spirit.

"Ka-kaah~~"

Gengar handed the Rainbow Wing to Johan.

Taking a deep breath, Johan accepted it.

The moment the Rainbow Wing touched his hand, he felt a faint warmth.

Then...

The feather dimmed rapidly, losing all its color.

Johan: "???"

Wait a minute! It only dulled slightly in Gengar's hand, but in mine, it turned completely black?! Are you mocking me?

As his Pokémon gave him strange looks, Johan broke out in a cold sweat.

He took another deep breath.

Shine for me!

With that, a faint blue glow emanated from his palm.

Aura, guide me!

Buzz—

The Rainbow Wing regained its brilliant, rainbow-colored glow.

"See? It's glowing now," Johan said, panting.

"Ka-kaah~~"

Gengar gave him a thumbs up.

The other Pokémon looked at Johan with admiration.

Wiping his forehead discreetly, Johan thought, Aura powers are so useful.

He also realized something else:

The Rainbow Wing might be useful for training Aura.

That was a promising discovery.

The only issue was figuring out who should use it.

Gengar? Definitely not.

Vulpix? Its typing wasn't compatible.

Tinkatuff? It might hammer the feather into its weapon.

Dragonair? Probably not a good match either.

"Forget it. I'll hold onto it for now."

In critical situations, the Rainbow Wing could save lives.

"Johan!!"

A voice called out from the distance.

Turning toward the source, Johan saw a Dragonite speeding toward him with Professor Oak on its back, wearing his signature white lab coat.

Huh?

Johan blinked.

If he didn't know better, he might have mistaken the professor for Lance.

"Woo~~"

Dragonite chirped cheerfully as it landed, and Professor Oak hopped off, his expression excited.

"Is that Ho-Oh's Rainbow Wing?" Oak asked.

"No," Johan said, blatantly lying.

But Oak wasn't listening. Stroking his chin, he closely examined the feather.

"As I thought, this is Ho-Oh's Rainbow Wing. That special magnetic field we detected earlier must have been Ho-Oh."

"Legend has it that Ho-Oh only leaves its feather to chosen trainers, and only those with pure hearts can make the Rainbow Wing shine..."

Professor Oak muttered to himself like a man possessed.

When he finished, he clapped Johan on the shoulder and declared:

"As expected of the 'Aura Master'! Even Ho-Oh holds you in high regard!"

Oak was aware of Johan's online reputation for helping trainers and Pokémon in need without expecting anything in return.

Johan, however, wanted to say: You take it instead!

"By the way," Oak said, snapping out of his awe for Ho-Oh and its feather, "why didn't you stop by Pallet Town?"

"Uh... I got lost."

Oak nodded sympathetically.

"That makes sense. I get lost all the time, too."

After a pause, he added, "Come on, I'll show you the way."

"Ka-kaah..."

At some point, Gengar had hidden behind Johan.

"It's Gengar!"

Noticing the Pokémon, Oak's gaze softened as he smiled warmly.

"Come on, back to the lab. I'll treat you all to a feast!"

Pallet Town—Professor Oak's Laboratory.

Gengar stared blankly at the cup noodles boiling over a burner.

Scratching its head, it looked at Johan.

A feast?

Johan gave it a reassuring look.

Cup noodles are Professor Oak's highest culinary achievement. If he cooked anything else, I wouldn't dare eat it.

"Hahaha! It's ready!"

Oak happily handed out portions of noodles.

"When it comes to cooking cup noodles, I have no equal," he said confidently.

Johan believed him.

Slurp!

Gengar took a bite and its eyes lit up.

The taste wasn't bad at all!

While it didn't match Johan's cooking, it was easily the second-best noodles it had ever eaten.

Soon, the lab was filled with the sound of enthusiastic slurping.

"By the way, where's Green?" Johan asked, noticing the absence of the professor's grandson.

Oak chuckled.

"Green's over at Hanako's house."

"Hanako?"

"A family in town. They adore Green and often invite him over for meals."

"Does Hanako have a kid?" Johan asked tentatively.

"You know Ash?" Oak looked surprised.

"Uh, no." Johan quickly shook his head.

So Ash exists too, huh?

Ash and Green?

What about Red?

Johan was still trying to piece together the logic of this Pokémon world.

"I do know about Red," Johan said after a pause.

"Hahaha, so you've heard of him too. He's an exceptional kid," Oak replied with a smile.

"Red and Green should both start their journeys next year," Oak added.

Johan nodded, processing the information.

"And what about Ash?"

"Ash still has a couple more years," Oak said between bites of noodles.

So Red and Ash are just kids...

"Oh, I heard you're planning to enter the Indigo League," Oak suddenly said.

"Huh? Who told you that?"

"Erika," Oak replied. "After her exchange visit to your academy, she's been singing your praises and recommending you for a teaching position at Celadon University."

Johan: "..."

Celadon University truly seemed to be a hub for talent.

"One more thing," Oak said, his tone turning serious.

After rummaging through some drawers, he produced a brand-new Pokédex.

Johan sighed deeply.

So I couldn't dodge this after all...

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