Swords Dance +6.
Nasty Plot +6.
Agility +6.
Bulk Up +6.
That should be enough.
Fully buffed, Riolu gathered all its Aura energy and shot forward in a burst!
Crack!
The eggshell shattered completely—Riolu successfully hatched.
"Beep~ Riolu, Fighting-type, Aura Pokémon
Ability: Prankster
Moves: Quick Attack, Feint, Endure, Metal Claw, Counter, Work Up, Rock Smash, Vacuum Wave, Screech, Quick Guard, Force Palm, Swords Dance, Helping Hand, Copycat, Aerial Ace, Agility, Brick Break, Bulk Up, Close Combat, Coaching, Nasty Plot...
Egg Moves: Bite, High Jump Kick, Detect, Cross Chop, Howl, Bullet Punch, Circle Throw
Description: Capable of sensing the feelings of people and Pokémon through Aura. Will not approach dangerous opponents."
Caleb scanned it with the Pokédex, stunned speechless by the sea of moves it displayed.
Was this really a newborn Pokémon?
"Orai!"
As if responding to Caleb, Riolu barked at him.
Then it charged straight toward the Gyarados in front of it.
Gyarados, seeing the tiny thing that just hatched, looked utterly unimpressed. Just a baby—how could it possibly compare to a fully Mega Evolved me?
I am now a perfect dragon!
Wait... why is it so fast!?
Wait... where did it go!?
From Gyarados's perspective, it had only just finished mocking Riolu in its mind when the little guy suddenly disappeared completely from view.
"No! Gyarados, dodge!" Rainman's face dropped—but it was too late...
"Orai!"
Over here!
Riolu leapt up to Gyarados's eye level, fist drawn and crackling with power.
"Ora ora ora ora ora ora!!"
Close Combat.
Point-blank Close Combat.
Every punch landed squarely on Gyarados's face. The spectators could practically feel the pain themselves, their teeth aching just watching.
"ROOOAARR!!"
Gyarados let out a pained, anguished howl!
It still had some fight left in it, eyes glaring at Riolu—just a baby, how dare—
Wait... where's the dog?
Riolu vanished again from Gyarados's vision.
"Orai!"
Over here!
Gyarados instinctively turned its head—only to see Riolu charging at it like a meteor.
Flying Knee! (High Jump Kick)
Gyarados stared blankly at Riolu's incoming knee, as if reliving its childhood.
Back then, it was just a carefree little Magikarp—nowhere near as violent. The whole family—twenty-some Magikarp—lived together in a small pond. Life was simple, but it was happy.
Dad, Mom, big sis, little bro, and that ugly Feebas next door...
The memories flashed through its mind like a slideshow.
Midair, Gyarados's Mega Evolution faded away. A single tear of "emotion" fell from its eye.
"G-Gyarados is unable to battle." The judge, after checking carefully, announced the result.
Rainman's face darkened as he slowly raised the Poké Ball and recalled Gyarados.
But even after such a crushing defeat, he showed no sign of giving up.
"I still have two Pokémon left. I haven't lost yet—not yet," he muttered, clutching the remaining two Poké Balls tightly.
Suddenly, he looked up, heavy raindrops slamming into his face—so much so that one couldn't tell whether the liquid streaming down was rain or tears.
He took a deep breath, then shouted hoarsely, "Go! Crawdaunt! Tear it apart!"
He hurled the Poké Ball—white light burst forth.
A red crawfish Pokémon with a star on its head and a blue marking on its chest entered the field.
The moment Crawdaunt opened its eyes, it was met with Riolu's fists raining down like a storm.
Crawdaunt: Bro, I just got here—give me a break!
Riolu: Ora ora ora ora ora ora!
Another point-blank Close Combat.
A critical hit.
Crawdaunt was launched clean off the field.
"You're up! Seismitoad!" Rainman roared as he recalled Crawdaunt.
Stealth Rock triggered on entry.
Add to that the toxic damage...
Seismitoad stumbled the moment it appeared—couldn't even stand, dropped to its knees. "Orai!"
Kneeling? Pointless!
Third Close Combat...
"Seismitoad is unable to battle. Since Rainman's three Pokémon are all unable to battle, the winner is Caleb!"
The judge couldn't believe what he was saying.
This was a newborn Pokémon? Dude, I'm just a judge—don't try to gaslight me!
All three of Rainman's Pokémon were wiped out.
The rain suddenly stopped, and the clouds began to part.
The sun came out.
But Rainman's face twisted into an expression of total anguish—somewhere between a smile and a cry, somewhere between pain and madness.
Heartbreak, frustration, disgust, rage... every emotion mashed into one face.
"AAAAHHHHHH!!!"
He collapsed to his knees, pounding the ground in despair.
"Why why why why WHY!!"
Flint, watching the broken Rainman on the ground, let out a sigh. "Sigh... another poor soul driven insane by Caleb."
Wait, why'd I say another?
...
After the match, Caleb and the others exited the park.
Chansey held the newborn Riolu in its arms, eyes filled with love—it was utterly smitten.
Riolu, on the other hand, stayed completely silent—not because it was asleep, but because every time it tried to wriggle free, Chansey's cute little arms would unconsciously tighten around it even more.
Despite all its efforts, Riolu was shocked to find that it simply couldn't break free with its current strength!
After a few failed attempts, it gave up on struggling.
At least its Aura told it that Chansey meant no harm. Plus, now that it had hatched, it probably wouldn't be tossed back into that "toxic barrel" again.
But...
That cat over there? Major grudge.
Cats and dogs have never gotten along—apparently that holds true even in the Pokémon world.
Torracat stared at the Riolu in Chansey's arms with bitter jealousy and deep resentment.
Why does it get to be held by Chansey!? I was here first—first!!
And what's with that look!? You think you're better than me!? Wanna throw down!?
Bring it on! I'll tear you apart, furball!
In short, Torracat found everything about Riolu annoying.
Naturally, all of that emotion was conveyed to Riolu via Aura.
Riolu was currently debating whether or not to eliminate Torracat.
But after a moment, it vetoed the idea.
After all, it now had a Trainer.
It recalled the wise words of the elderly caretaker back at the breeding center:
"A good Trainer resolves conflicts between their Pokémon."
Surely Caleb would handle this minor issue properly.
Just as Riolu was thinking this, a shadow darted out from beneath Caleb's feet.
"Guaah~!"
Surprise!
Haunter popped up making a spooky face—its way of greeting the new member.
But judging by Riolu's expression, it didn't seem fazed at all.
Oh well.
Haunter patted Riolu on the shoulder and chuckled.
Kid, I knew you were something special even when you were still in the egg. Seeing you now, yep—definitely not ordinary.
I don't have as many hoarded goodies as Pachirisu, but I do have one unopened bar of chocolate. Take it as my welcome gift.
With that, Haunter reached into its mouth, rummaged around, and pulled out a brand-new, sealed chocolate bar.
Accepting the gesture, Riolu took the chocolate. Just to be safe, it scanned it first.
No poison.
It unwrapped the foil and took a gentle bite.
"Orai!"
Delicious!
A rosy blush spread across Riolu's cheeks.
It had never eaten anything before—and this was the best thing it'd ever tasted.
Caleb, who was chatting with Flint, glanced back at Riolu—
And saw it eating chocolate.
Dog eating chocolate!?
His face changed instantly. Anyone who's ever owned a dog knows this—canines can't digest caffeine or theobromine. Eating chocolate is practically poison for them.
Especially dark chocolate.
It's like humans eating arsenic. Dead-on-the-spot level danger.