"Little girl, where did you get that bracelet?" Shep couldn't help but ask when he saw the bead on May's wrist.
The bead May was wearing was the very one Yuga had given her as a symbol of the People of th Water. She had strung it on a chain and worn it on her wrist because it looked quite beautiful.
"This? Someone gave it to me!" May shook the bead on her wrist casually. "Is there something wrong with it?"
At that moment, Shep's son, Kyle, spoke up, "May, do you know what that bead represents?"
Represents?
"Big Sis!" Max tugged on her sleeve, "Don't you remember?"
Max whispered a few words into May's ear, and she suddenly recalled Yuga telling her about the People of the Water and her mother mentioning the legend that their ancestors had the People of the Water bloodline.
Could it be...?
Seeing that May seemed to remember something, Shep's family each took out their own beads.
"They're exactly like Big Sis's!" Max couldn't help but shout.
"These beads symbolize the identity of the People of the Water," said a young man in a clown outfit. "And Mr. Shep's family are the last descendants of the People of the Water."
The young man was Jack, the ranger who had been watching over Shep's family and the Manaphy egg.
Jack then gave them an explanation of the People of the Water and the mythical Pokémon Manaphy.
"So this little guy is the mythical Pokémon, Manaphy!" Max's eyes were filled with awe as he looked at the tiny creature soundly sleeping in his sister's arms.
"Miss May," Jack said seriously, "Manaphy has a very important responsibility. We've been waiting for it to hatch so we can send it to the Temple of the Sea. In the future, it will patrol the world's oceans and regulate the marine environment."
"This little guy's so impressive!" May gently patted Manaphy's head. "I can't hold it up, then."
As she spoke, May moved to hand Manaphy back to Shep's family. Jack, seeing how understanding she was, nodded in approval.
However, the moment May touched Manaphy, who had been peacefully asleep, its eyes flew open, and it started crying loudly. It clung tightly to May's neck, refusing to let go. Startled, May quickly pulled her hands back.
"Oh no, don't cry, don't cry." May hurriedly soothed Manaphy, who immediately quieted down, snuggled back into her arms, and fell asleep again—showing everyone just how quickly its mood could change.
"It's like you're comforting a baby, Big Sis! Manaphy must think you're its mom!" Max excitedly leaned in to look at the sleeping Manaphy. "You'll definitely be a great mom one day, Sis!"
"Max, that last part wasn't necessary!" May pulled one hand free to give Max a light smack.
Rubbing his head, Max grumbled, "What did I say wrong?"
Meanwhile, Jack and Shep's family were at a loss.
"What should we do?" Shep said with a troubled expression.
"How about this?" Jack suggested. "Would you be willing to accompany us as we escort Manaphy back to the Temple of the Sea?"
They had already realized that May was a descendant of the People of the Water herself, and the bead on her wrist was proof.
"Well..." May hesitated upon hearing the request.
"Big Sis, please say yes! Manaphy is so adorable, and you don't want to make it sad, right? Besides, the Temple of the Sea sounds amazing! Can we go check it out?" Max tugged on the hand his sister had just smacked him with, pleading.
"Well… alright. We don't have anything else to do right now anyway."
Looking at Manaphy's peaceful sleeping face, May couldn't help but feel a surge of tenderness, and she agreed.
Hearing this, Meredith pulled on her husband's arm, concerned. "This isn't right, she is just a little girl. What if something dangerous happens?"
Kyle sighed helplessly, "There's nothing we can do. Manaphy has grown so attached to May."
"But... the longer they stay together, the harder it will be for them to part later. Wouldn't it be better if they separated now?" Meredith wasn't fully on board with everyone's decision.
"Well…" Kylr couldn't find any words to refute her.
And so, May and Max temporarily joined the group escorting Manaphy back to the Temple of the Sea.
Meanwhile, somewhere else, Gon and Hill had been tracking Primordial Suicune's movements and found a hidden underwater facility near Lilycove City.
As the two were wondering what this place could be, the entire base suddenly began shaking, followed by explosions.
Seeing this, Hill and Gon quickly hid. Moments later, Suicune shot out of the exploding building, pursued by a group of people dressed in strange outfits.
However, these people were no match for the primordial Suicune, who swiftly took them all down.
It was the first time Gon and Hill had witnessed Suicune killing people, and it showed no mercy. Before long, the seawater was stained red with blood.
At that moment, a middle-aged man in a white lab coat emerged from the building. He wore glasses and appeared scholarly, but the greed in his eyes as he looked at the primordial Suicune was unmistakable.
This man exuded an air of dominance and power—it was clear he was in charge here.
"I wonder who's stronger, my Suicune or yours?"
As he spoke, the middle-aged man pulled out a black Poké Ball, and another Suicune leapt out.
Seeing this new Suicune, the primordial Suicune's eyes blazed with fury, and it immediately launched an attack.
"What's going on here?" Watching from their hiding spot, Hill couldn't stay still any longer. He rose in anger, wanting to see what was going on with this new Suicune.
"Suicune is Ho-oh's emissary! How could someone unknown possibly capture it?"
"Uncle Hill, don't be rash, stay calm!" Gon quickly grabbed Hill to stop him from rushing out.
The battle between the primordial Suicune and the new Suicune was intense. Hydro Pump, Blizzard, Psychic, Aurora Beam—one move after another flashed across the ocean surface, stirring up towering waves!
It was impossible to tell how much time had passed, but sweat began to appear on the middle-aged man's face. He muttered to himself in disbelief, "Impossible! Impossible!! My Suicune is already perfect! How could it lose?"
Just as the man finished speaking, the aura surrounding the new Suicune fighting the primordial Suicune rapidly weakened. In the blink of an eye, it turned into a shriveled corpse.
"This… this…" Hill and Gon were both horrified by the scene before them.
The Suicune gazed at the corpse with pity in its eyes before raising its head and firing an Aurora Beam that pierced through the chest of the man in the white lab coat.
After taking care of everyone in the underwater base, the Suicune destroyed the entire facility, clearly disgusted by the evil that had taken place there.
Once everything was dealt with, the primordial Suicune looked in the direction of Lilycove City before leaping away, disappearing in an instant.
After it left, Hill and Gon emerged from their hiding place. They stared at the ruins before them, momentarily at a loss for words.
"That Suicune wasn't the real Suicune! The primordial Suicune must have come to Hoenn sensing the presence of this fake Suicune!" Gon speculated after some thought.
The situation reminded him of himself—after all, he was also a clone created by Team Rocket.
"What's really going on here?" Hill asked, still confused.
However, Gon didn't answer. The fact that he was a clone was only known to Yuga and the current head of Bell Tower, Abbot Joe.
"Uncle Hill, we should hurry and catch up with the primordial Suicune before we lose it!" Gon said, changing the subject.
Hill didn't ask further, nodding in agreement, and the two of them chased after the primordial Suicune.
What none of them realized, however, was that after they left, the remains of the underwater base, battered by the waves, suddenly collapsed with a loud crash. A nutrient pod was dislodged and floated to the surface of the ocean.
Inside the pod lay a peaceful-looking boy. The waves carried the pod away, drifting endlessly toward an unknown destination.
Suddenly, the boy's body began to convulse violently, his expression twisting in pain as strange memories flashed through his mind.
In one moment, a young boy was seen beating another child, kicking and punching. In the next, the beaten child was shown cowering, submissive… until the scene froze on the image of the boy lying in a pool of blood, while the once-beaten child stood over him with a knife, grinning wildly.
The boy in the memories looked exactly like the one in the nutrient pod.
After what seemed like an eternity, the boy finally calmed down, his face returning to its peaceful state, as if the pain he had just experienced had never happened.
The waves continued to lap at the nutrient pod, carrying it further and further away…
Meanwhile, on an uncharted island, a man wearing a white mask received a phone call.
"White Leader, the second experimental base has been destroyed," the voice on the other end reported.
"What about the experimental data?" White Leader asked casually.
"All of it was destroyed, nothing remains!" the subordinate replied gravely.
"Oh…" White Leader paused for a moment before continuing in his usual nonchalant tone. "Do we know who did it?"
"No idea!" the subordinate answered nervously.
"Then find out!"
"And… there's another thing. Professor Yamashita was sent by the Kanto division specifically, and now he's dead. Won't this be difficult to explain to them?"
"Explain?" White Leader's voice suddenly sharpened. "Who do I need to explain anything to, other than the boss?"
"Y-yes, sir…" The subordinate quickly hung up the phone.
"The second experimental base had a special clone of my brother, didn't it?" White Leader murmured to himself after the call ended. "Ah well, if it's destroyed, so be it. As long as the chip wasn't lost, my brother will always live on!"
At the same time, in Lilycove City, the Marina Group that May had just joined was being targeted.
In a private room of an underground bar, a man wearing a black mask was listening to his subordinate's report.
"Is it confirmed? Manaphy is really with the Marina Group?" the man in the black mask asked his subordinate.
"According to the spy we planted in the Marina Group, he indeed saw what appears to be Manaphy's Pokémon Egg there," the spy respectfully replied.
"Good. Tell the spy to keep an eye on them and report their movements at all times," the man in the black mask said with satisfaction.
"Then… Black Leader, when are we going to take action? White Leader has been urging us constantly," the subordinate couldn't help but remind him.
Hearing this, the Black Leader was furious and kicked his subordinate to the ground.
"You think you can tell me how to do my job? Am I the boss of this organization or is White Leader the boss? Does he think he can order me around?"
The subordinate quickly crawled back up, kneeling on the ground, kowtowing and pleading, "I wouldn't dare! I wouldn't dare! It's all up to you! You're the boss!"
"Get out!" Black Leader kicked him again.
"Yes, yes, yes!" The subordinate scrambled out of the room.
After his outburst, Black Leader suddenly felt a wave of dizziness. He rubbed his temples, feeling something was off, and then rubbed the back of his head as well.
Lately, he had been feeling strange. His memories were becoming more and more blurred, almost as if they weren't his own. Every time he recalled the past, it was as though he was looking at things from the perspective of an outsider.
"Heh…"
Black Leader let out a dry laugh, feeling ridiculous. If those memories weren't his, whose could they be?
With Manaphy now hatched, the Marina Group, after performing in Lilycove City for several days, decided to set sail to escort Manaphy to the Temple of the Sea.
Manaphy was extremely attached to May, the first person it saw upon hatching, and clung to her constantly, refusing to leave her side for even a moment. Anyone who dared try to separate them would instantly make Manaphy cry.
Leaving the caravan and the tour arrangements to the rest of the troupe, Shep and his family set out quietly, borrowing a submarine from the Ranger Union. They took May, Max, and Manaphy aboard and discreetly headed out to sea.
However, what they didn't know was that their movements were being monitored by the troupe's spy. As soon as their submarine set off, another submarine silently trailed them from a distance, following them into the open ocean.
Meanwhile, in Verdanturf Town.
Yuga, who had been troubled for days about Cheren's internship, finally came up with a good solution. He decided to recommend Cheren to the Forest Home Orphanage to teach the children who aspired to become Pokémon Trainers for a while.
According to the requirements from the Unova League, Cheren's internship period was supposed to last for six months, so there was still plenty of time. By the end of this year, there would definitely be more challengers coming to the gym, and the current predicament would be resolved.
But until then, Yuga couldn't sit idle.
He had already learned that, along with being appointed as the Aspertia Gym Leader, Cheren had also been hired as a teacher at the Aspertia Gym Trainer School.
Being a Gym Leader and a teacher had a lot in common, so by teaching at the orphanage for a while, Cheren's gym internship and teaching internship would both be taken care of.
Originally, Yuga had considered recommending him to the Verdanturf Town Trainer School, but the school was currently on break.
When Cheren received the notice from Yuga, he felt a little unsure of himself.
"Teaching the kids at the orphanage? What if I'm not good at it?" Cheren asked hesitantly.
"Don't worry. Just teach them what you want to pass on, don't be too rigid about it. When you become an official Gym Leader in the future, offering advice to challengers won't be much different from teaching students.
Also, the orphanage kids will be using temporary Pokémon, and I'll arrange for the stray Pokémon we've taken in at our Pokémon Paradise to be used for that. You just focus on being a good teacher, and leave the rest to me!" Yuga encouraged him.
With Yuga's support, Cheren mustered the courage to take on the task Yuga had assigned him.