Chapter 125: Inspiration from Citron

Joy Nette arrived at the open space outside the research building, looking at Zhu Suihan, who was sitting to the side playing with a handgun, with a sense of helplessness.

"I’m telling you, can’t you just attend classes normally? Even if you don’t want to be a doctor at a Pokémon Center in the future, going out on a journey is a perfectly good option."

If he ended up causing some massive incident, that would be a problem for the regional League to handle, not something she, a college dean, needed to worry about.

"I think this is perfectly fine. It’s standard equipment for wilderness activities," Zhu Suihan said. "When you’re out in the wild, you might run into all sorts of strange situations. That’s when the gadgets I make really come in handy."

Let’s look at the main cast of the story far away, folks.

I won't even mention getting blasted by moves or being turned to stone.

One of the most classic tropes in the anime is Ash getting separated from his Pokémon for some reason, only to reunite with them at the very end. And the partners they usually end up with on the other side are Meowth from Team Rocket.

If nothing else, with this gun, even if they were separated by a great distance, he could pull his partner back in time. As for Pikachu not liking to stay in a Poké Ball, it’s not like he’d have to stay in it forever once pulled back; it wouldn't have any impact.

"Explain the effects of this thing."

"Oh, it’s a signal gun. After firing a red signal beam into the sky, a plane will arrive with an air-dropped supply crate to replenish your resources, and inside are some powerful Pokémon."

Joy Nette delivered a sharp chop to the top of Zhu Suihan’s head. "Be serious."

"It is a signal gun, but the full name is 'Recovery Beam Signal Enhancement Pistol.' The standard effective range is fifty meters." Zhu Suihan gestured. "It’s idiot-proof. You just put the Poké Ball directly onto the clip and aim it at the Pokémon."

"There is an intellectual prerequisite, though: the user has to remember which Pokémon corresponds to that specific Poké Ball."

One could only say that while this sounds stupid, it happens easily among villains who treat Pokémon as tools. As for other situations, honestly, it’s not entirely impossible. The recent case with the Shuckle taught him one thing: never use your pathetic imagination to guess what others might do. It’s not just a different channel; their thought processes are in a completely different dimension.

"So it’s that kind of signal gun. It does sound like it could be confusing." Joy Nette handed over her phone. "It’s Officer Jenny’s call. You talk to her yourself. If she mentions any invitations for exchange programs or the like, don't agree yet; I’ll handle her."

So, Dean, you’re planning to face off against her yourself, are you?

"Suihan, you have something to ask me? Could it be that you’ve come to your senses and want to study at our Jenny Academy? I told you, being at the Joy Academy is really burying your talents."

Joy Nette’s face darkened. She thought it was bad enough that her "friend" had suggested an exchange student, but she hadn’t expected her to start poaching right to her face! That was going too far!

After some explanation, Officer Jenny sat in her office and thought for a while before giving her reply.

"Suihan, honestly, the commercial value of this signal gun might not be as great as you imagine."

"Fifty meters—that’s a very ambiguous distance." Officer Jenny said. "You have two choices for this technology: keep it for yourself to play with, or make a couple to give to friends."

"The other option is to trade it to the League for resources. This thing is very convenient for investigators, but it would definitely be classified as a controlled item."

"Investigators would benefit from it, but criminals could use it just as easily, and it would help them hide even deeper." Officer Jenny laughed. "Oh, and about that Viridian Festival? I’ve heard about it. Someone in my family received an invitation as well."

"Given your contribution to the League, there’s certainly no problem. Following the proceedings of that festival, the thing you should actually be worried about is whether the Pokémon that might be revived will choose you."

Zhu Suihan’s tone was firm. "That’s not the issue. I’m thinking about whether the League will have any monitoring measures targeting that Pokémon."

"If it becomes my partner, that kind of thing must be avoided. I don’t want to deny it even that level of freedom."

"If this signal gun doesn't work, then I'll just find another project."

Officer Jenny raised an eyebrow. She could hear the confidence in Zhu Suihan’s tone. And this confidence seemed a bit baseless—how could he be so sure that the revived Pokémon would be willing to choose him? However, this heart for his partners was worth acknowledging.

"Don't be impatient. I'm not saying this signal gun is completely useless; it’s just that it falls short of your goal."

Zhu Suihan thought for a moment. "Then I’ll reconsider the range, but if I do that, it won't be as portable as a handgun."

If he were to focus on range, he would definitely have to consider stability, and the shape of the handgun might lean towards a heavy sniper rifle. Maybe after modifying the parts, he could even whip up an energy weapon. He wondered what kind of weapons were mounted on the fighter planes Lt. Surge used when he was in the war.

"No, no, the range of this signal gun is perfectly usable." Officer Jenny pondered. "If you have research into Poké Balls, I suggest you try to decipher the chip coding of a Dark Ball."

"If the Joy Academy doesn't have any, I can have a few transferred to you from our academy."

Zhu Suihan didn't understand. "Can't the League and those big conglomerates decipher them? That’s impossible."

"It’s not that they can’t; it’s that the division of labor is different. Dark Balls are already considered illegal items and are no longer under Silph Co.’s management." Officer Jenny explained. "The League is dedicated to cracking down on Team Dark’s operations across various regions, and the effects caused by Dark Balls can be treated and eliminated afterward."

So, are Dark Balls somewhat of a dead-end technology?

"The technology behind Dark Balls is important, but not important enough for the League to prioritize it, because that kind of forced capture and control isn't permanent."

"Of course, I can't rule out the possibility that Team Dark is researching in that direction. If you can decipher the chip content of a Dark Ball, that achievement would definitely be enough." Officer Jenny’s tone was relaxed. "That’s the gist of it. It just depends on whether you have the ability."

Ability, huh? I might be short on money, but I definitely don't lack ability. If all else fails, I'll just boost my stats!

Zhu Suihan went to pick up Lapras and Alcremie, returning the phone to the Dean, where the two long-time friends resumed their standard routine of bickering. As for Dark Balls, the Joy Academy certainly had them; there was no need to have them sent over from the Jenny Academy.

"In short, we have work to do, and I can finish my design along the way."

"I was going to wait to consider this, but since there’s an intersection in our research directions, I might as well get it done."

Zhu Suihan brought the two little ones to the laboratory, attached some testing sensors to them, and used a remote connection to link them with the machines.

"Wooo?"

Are you going to use us for experiments?

"How could I? I'm just setting up a whitelist for us, so I need specific data."

Zhu Suihan attached the same instrument components to himself and opened the data recorder.

"Do you remember how it felt when I showed you those illusions?"

He sat with Alcremie on his head, wrapping his arms around Lapras’s neck and pressing his forehead against hers.

"Recall that feeling. Remember the feeling of our hearts being connected."

The family of three closed their eyes. The three chaotic, irregular wave lines on the data monitor began to sync up, finally merging slowly until only one wave line remained on the screen.

"Alright, I’m taking the sensors off you now." Zhu Suihan patted Lapras’s head. "Success on the first try. We really are a family that shares one heart."

"Milcery."

That sounds so cheesy.

Zhu Suihan reached out and poked Alcremie’s cheek. "I’m only responsible for saying it. If you think it’s cheesy, you might have to go find the person who came up with the line."

What does a cheesy song have to do with me? I only know a few words!

"Wooo."

So, what is this actually for?

"A psychic-type electromagnetic EMP bomb. You can think of it as a variant of a mind-control device."

"It’s a tool for disrupting bond energy fluctuations. Or, to put it another way, it’s highly effective against anyone who possesses extraordinary powers that interact with and strengthen Pokémon."

A grand concert might require everyone's collective effort, but ruining the musical atmosphere they create is very simple, as there are many types of noise. Sometimes, just hiccuping because you drank water too quickly is enough to ruin the environment for others enjoying the music.

When you're playing a game and intently listening for footsteps, a random, inexplicable sound suddenly grabbing your attention will definitely disrupt your focus. Then, your enemy will pop out as if they had surveillance cameras in your house and take you out with two shots to the head.

"It disrupts synchronous fluctuations. The data simulation on the computer can randomly generate various fluctuations as a 'noise library,' so the enemy won't be able to catch the pattern."

"And our data fluctuations have been recorded in the whitelist database. That way, even if I trigger this electromagnetic sound bomb, it won't have any effect on us."

"Well, maybe it’ll just be a bit noisy."

Zhu Suihan imported the recorded data into the energy detector and began to modify the one Sabrina had sent over. The inspiration for this came from Clemont, the Gym Leader who traveled with Ash. Note the emphasis: he had a younger sister, and his initial traveling partner might just be the guardian of Kalos.

Back at the Ninja Village in Kalos, Ash and Greninja first displayed the initial mode of Bond Phenomenon. Later, addressing the legends of the Ninja Village and the phenomenon occurring with Ash, Clemont used similar tools to detect the fluctuations between Ash and Greninja. The data monitor showed that, at least after Ash and Greninja were fully synchronized, the wave lines were completely merged.

Well, then the Champion of Kalos, the "Best Actress" Diantha, ended up in trouble—her Mega Gardevoir was beaten to a pulp by the frenzied Ash and Greninja. This battle seems to have become "evidence" for everyone to complain that the Kalos Champion’s combat power wasn't all that great. Aside from the legend of Blue being the fastest Champion of the Indigo League, Diantha has also become a target for everyone to repeatedly bash.