Heath jerked his head up and saw a burst of intense flames erupting ahead and to his right, followed by a column of black smoke rising into the sky.
"Oh no! That's the Evergreen Chemical Plant! Everyone, move out immediately!" Maple stood up abruptly, her face serious as she looked at the flames. She quickly called out her Arcanine, mounted it, and sped off.
The other Jennys, who had been laughing, joking, and enjoying their barbecue and beer, immediately put everything down, called out their Growlithes and Arcanines, and quickly followed Maple Jenny. In no time, the barbecue party was deserted, leaving Heath standing alone by the food truck.
"Sigh," Heath sighed, taking off the apron tied around his waist and placing it inside the truck. Then he stepped out with Farfetch'd and Zorua.
"Trainer, what just happened?" Zorua asked curiously, looking at Heath and then at the now-empty field, puzzled.
"There was an explosion somewhere. Maple Jenny and the others went to save people," Heath said, looking at the blazing fire in the distance. It seemed like it would be a sleepless night, and there wasn't much he could do.
Maple had told Heath many times before that everyone has their responsibilities in society. Instead of meddling in areas you know nothing about, it's better to think about how to excel in what you can do.
Heath looked down at his hands. He couldn't rush into the fire to save people, and while Farfetch'd had the Wonder Guard ability, the risks of a fire and collapsing buildings at a chemical plant were too great. He didn't want to put Farfetch'd in danger.
Clenching his fists, Heath thought about what he could do. The chemical plant rescue was being handled by specialists, and he was just an ordinary person, a chef. What could he do?
"I guess I'm still just a chef," Heath chuckled. There were still some ingredients in the food truck, but they wouldn't be enough.
Heath got into the truck, worried about whether he could drive it, but he discovered it had an auto-pilot feature. He could only hope it worked properly.
"Let's hope it doesn't malfunction like some other brands," Heath muttered nervously as he pressed the auto-pilot button. The truck rumbled to life and slowly started moving.
A route map appeared on the screen in the driver's cabin. Heath hesitated, then set the destination to a vegetable shop he remembered staying open until about 11 PM.
The truck quickly headed to the designated destination, while Heath and Farfetch'd began preparing the ingredients. Zorua silently helped by washing the ingredients, eager to contribute.
When the truck stopped, Heath jumped out and saw Uncle Mike standing nearby, worriedly watching the flames.
"Uncle Mike!" Heath shouted. The older man turned to see Heath, surprised.
"Heath, what are you doing here?" Uncle Mike asked, glancing between Heath and the distant fire.
"Uncle, I need to buy some ingredients! Quickly, give me these items," Heath said, handing over a list he had prepared. Uncle Mike took the list and glanced at it.
He furrowed his brow, hesitating as he looked at Heath, trying to understand his intentions.
"What are you planning to do?" Seeing Uncle Mike's hesitation, Heath quickly explained his plan, which earned him a truckload of ingredients.
Uncle Mike, delighted, patted Heath on the shoulder and told him he was too old to cook, entrusting Heath with the task of feeding the rescue workers.
Heath readily agreed, setting the route to the chemical plant. Uncle Mike's fish saved him a lot of work. When Heath arrived near the plant, he was stopped.
"Heath, what are you doing here?" Jana Jenny asked sternly. Her face was blackened, and her clothes were burned in several places.
Heath looked past her at the many Water-type Pokémon fighting the flames. Flying Pokémon darted through the sky, and Jenny, Nurse Joy, and other firefighters from Viridian City were busy working.
"I want to provide the rescue workers with a hot meal," Heath said determinedly.
Jana's expression softened but she still shook her head.
"Team Maple ordered no non-League personnel past this line. Understood?" Jana pointed to the police line that kept many people outside, explaining seriously.
Heath smiled, understanding. As long as he didn't cross the line, he could do whatever he wanted. Smiling, he nodded, and Jana returned to her position inside the line.
Heath parked the food truck just outside the line and started preparing the ingredients. He couldn't do much, but he wanted to contribute by feeding the rescue workers.
After prepping all the ingredients, Heath looked outside the truck. More people were gathering near the police line, mostly from Viridian City: office workers, trainers, and shop clerks, all worriedly watching the still-raging fire.
Some trainers wanted to help, but Jana Jenny refused their entry, allowing only League members.
Trainers who showed their gym trainer credentials were allowed in, mostly with Ground-type Pokémon, contributing to the rescue under Giovanni's leadership.
"Mr. Giovanni is such a good person. I heard he rushed over to help right after the explosion, and even his Nidoking got burned," Heath overheard people saying. He scratched his nose.
Giovanni was truly a strange person.
This is purely fictional and should not be applied to reality.
(End of this chapter)
Heath remembered feeling uneasy when he first realized he was in the Pokémon world. Sometimes, this world could be quite dangerous.
Especially upon discovering he was in Viridian City, where Giovanni was located, Heath's first instinct was to run. But as he got to know Giovanni and interacted with him, Heath understood that Giovanni in this world was even more complex and real.
Giovanni wasn't just some big villain hiding in a base every day, plotting various conspiracies to conquer the world. He was a flesh-and-blood person who attended charity events and warmly instructed trainers who came to his gym to learn.
Through the car window, Heath watched Mr. Giovanni still diligently rescuing people. He couldn't help but scratch his head. Despite knowing Giovanni was the boss of Team Rocket, at this moment, Giovanni truly seemed like a good person.
"My mom once told me that you humans are despicable and shameless, willing to trample on others for survival and then escape by yourselves." Zorua perched on Heath's shoulder, her eyes reflecting the firelight, looking very beautiful.
"And then?" Heath shrugged. Such things did happen; he'd seen it in movies in his previous life that tested human nature.
"Hmph, you humans are really complicated, so complicated and contradictory," Zorua huffed, then turned her head away from Heath.
Heath chuckled softly. Watching Giovanni, he couldn't deny what Zorua said. Humans were indeed such complex beings—not perfect, but there were no perfect people in this world.
If someone were truly perfect, they wouldn't be human but a god.
With the efforts of Pokémon and humans alike, the fire gradually came under control. However, even so, the blaze burned until 2 AM, lasting a full seven hours, and many onlookers dispersed.
"Jana, these are the boxed meals I made." Heath placed the boxed meals he had prepared long ago into a large basket and carried it out.
"You little scamp. Thank you. Everyone is very hungry, and I'll distribute these to them." Maple smiled, ruffling Heath's hair. Heath instinctively recoiled, embarrassed despite not minding it much, but being ruffled in front of so many people was still a bit awkward.
"Oh, young Heath, are you here to provide us with a consolation dinner?" Mr. Giovanni laughed heartily. At this moment, he looked nothing like his usual self and instead resembled a tribal chief from Africa.
Heath couldn't help but think of the phrase "Today's rate of explosion is high," and rubbed his face. Fortunately, he didn't say it.
"Mr. Giovanni, you've worked hard." Heath thanked sincerely. Without Giovanni and their help, extinguishing the fire might have taken much longer.
After checking for any hidden dangers, everyone relaxed. Heath warmly welcomed every firefighter, and his boxed meals received unanimous praise. The happy smiles and satisfied expressions made Heath feel fulfilled.
"Hey, not bad. There's such a big piece of meat." Jana grinned mischievously, wrapping her arms around Heath's neck and playfully teasing him, making Heath blush bright red.
"Jena, leave Heath alone." Maple approached with her own boxed meal, smiling warmly. She had already eaten half of her meal, and the exhaustion from fighting the fire made her quite hungry.
Upon hearing Maple's words, Jana stuck out her tongue and let go of Heath, causing Heath to breathe a sigh of relief.
"Good job. You're truly a child of our Viridian City." Maple smiled, pinching Heath's cheek. Heath's face instantly turned black.
"Of course, you should see who my brother is." Heath proudly puffed out his chest. Although he hadn't participated in firefighting, he had made his own contribution in other ways.
Amidst laughter and joy, the night passed like this, and the next day, although Heath was very tired, he still woke up early.
"Yawn. I really want to sleep a bit more today." Heath looked at Zorua sleeping beside him, yawned deeply, and then got up from bed, grabbing Zorua by the neck.
The fire from yesterday had been extinguished, and there were no further hazards. Several Water-type Pokémon had teamed up to prevent the fire from reigniting, using a fine rain. Although the light rain couldn't extinguish the flames, it was effective in preventing reignition.
"You're annoying. I haven't slept enough." Zorua looked at Heath with resentment on her face. Heath curiously looked at Zorua but noticed she didn't have dark circles under her eyes.
But then again, Pokémon probably didn't have dark circles, right?
But thinking of Pikachu from "A Certain Director", Heath thought it was better not to draw that conclusion too early.
The biggest gain from yesterday was that Heath acquired a large pile of candy—candies that could enhance effort values. However, Heath also realized there were limits to using these candies: the more used, the more needed.
"Zorua, would you like to learn Dark Pulse?" Heath asked as he brushed his teeth, looking at Zorua.
The TM he received from entertaining Zorua before was still with Heath, and only Zorua could use it.
"Huh? Dark Pulse? I remember that's a move that if I evolve into a Zoroark." Zorua stood on the bathroom sink, brushing her teeth vigorously, while Farfetch'd stood solemnly to Heath's left.
"Well, you can learn it first." Heath nodded; Dark Pulse's power was still good.
"Hmph, human, don't think that just because you taught me Dark Pulse, I will be endlessly grateful to you. That's impossible!" Zorua turned her head away, but the joy on her face couldn't be hidden no matter how hard she tried.
Heath chuckled helplessly and tapped her head, then used the TM. The next moment, Zorua, who was about to get angry, suddenly froze.
She felt dazed as something new popped into her mind—she had actually mastered Dark Pulse.
Curiously, Zorua turned her head to look at her trainer. She suddenly felt that her trainer was quite mysterious. Could it be that this trainer was like a powerful mythical creature, just like in that novel?
Would he eventually come and spar with her? No, wait, she was female, and this trainer was male.
Zorua shook her head abruptly, feeling a bit embarrassed.
(End of this chapter)
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