Even when lifted, it doesn't feel heavy. I must say, this space backpack is a remarkable piece of technology.
At this moment, a horn sounded outside the ranch.
Naoki looked up and saw Zack jumping out of the car, carrying a package as he walked over.
"Here you go, put this on! It's already half-past six, we can set off now!"
Naoki reached out to take the package. As he opened it, he found a gray kimono inside.
"I'm not going with you. My wife and kid are still waiting for me at home!" Zack grinned, waved at Naoki, and then turned to leave the ranch.
Naoki: "..."
He returned to the room a bit helplessly and put on the kimono.
Wearing this kind of clothing for the first time, Naoki felt a bit uncomfortable, but after a while, he got used to it.
"Let's go!" He took a deep breath, slung the space backpack over his shoulder, hopped onto Koraidon, feeling both excited and expectant inside.
"Ah, gya-seeh!"
Koraidon responded, starting to run toward Porto Marinada Town.
By the time they reached the beach, quite a few people and Pokemon had already gathered there.
At this point, the sky was completely dark, and people were in groups, sitting or lying down, chatting with their families and Pokemon.
Not far away, a street full of brightly lit stalls appeared, with various items displayed on them.
There were steaming hot takoyaki, wooden carved souvenirs, and masks of various shapes.
Seeing this scene, Naoki raised his eyebrows slightly.
Since there was still some time before the fireworks festival started, he decided to take Koraidon for a walk around the area.
The surrounding crowd surged like waves.
There were young children holding their parents' hands, a youthful boy with Pikachu on his shoulder, an old man with graying hair and a hunched back alongside a Dachsbun, and a bright-eyed girl with her Gengar staring at the takoyaki…
Amidst the lights, Naoki and Koraidon also merged into this lively atmosphere.
Naoki stopped in front of the mask-selling stall.
On the stall, he saw a variety of masks.
There were Pikachu, Eevee, Demon Fox Zorua, and even a Squirtle mask.
Seeing a customer arriving, the stall owner beamed: "These masks suit you very well. Would you like to buy one? They're only 2000 Poké Dollars!"
2000...
The price wasn't too high, so Naoki simply paid, choosing the Zorua mask.
Naoki put the mask on his face, turned around, and asked Koraidon, "How do I look?"
Koraidon squinted with a smile, looking very pleased: "Ah, gya-seeh~"
"It suits you very much!" the owner complimented from the side.
Naoki smiled, and just then a vendor's shout caught his attention from afar.
He led Koraidon through the crowd and came across a middle-aged man with a red cap at a stall.
On his table was a large transparent fish tank, with a group of dazed Magikarp swimming slowly inside.
Noticing someone approaching, the man immediately shouted:
"Hey there, would you like one? My Magikarp are all top-tier Pokemon! You won't regret buying one!"
Naoki felt both familiar and foreign with such situations.
Familiar because he's seen sellers of Magikarp in anime, but foreign because this was his first time seeing one in reality.
It made Naoki quite curious: "What makes your Magikarp special?"
Hearing this, the man beamed and said:
"Of course! These are extremely rare Magikarp! I've carefully selected each one, with very high potential. Once they evolve into Gyarados, they'll help you take down Gym Leaders and kick the Elite Four's butts!"
Naoki twitched his mouth, but before he could speak, a Trainer holding a Pawmi chimed in:
"That's too far-fetched, sounds like a scam. How could such Magikarp exist in the world?"
Being called a scammer didn't fluster the man at all. He simply smiled and said, "If you don't believe me, buy one and try it at home! See if it can evolve into Gyarados!"
"No way!" The boy made a face, turned around, and ran off.
The man fumed silently: "Brat!"
Naoki: "..."
At that moment, the man noticed the backpack on the young man in front of him.
Through the gap in the zipper, he saw several pairs of eyes curiously observing him.
Upon realizing who those eyes belonged to, the man gasped and exclaimed in disbelief: "Dratini!"
Naoki was slightly startled but then realized the Dratini in his backpack had been discovered.
The man's eyes burned with excitement: "So many Dratini! Where did you catch them?"
"I didn't catch them," Naoki shook his head. "They followed me on their own."
"No way?!" The man was dumbfounded: "These are rare Dratini! I'm willing to pay a high price for one, will you sell?"
"I won't sell," Naoki refused without hesitation.
"Then how about a trade?" The man suggested, producing a Poke Ball.
With a flash of white light, a Kingdra appeared in the water tank in front of him.
"I'll trade you my Kingdra for a Dratini, is that okay?"
"Not okay." Naoki flatly refused: "Forget it, I absolutely won't trade."
The man felt crestfallen, watching the other's retreating figure with envy in his eyes.
"I can't believe there are people trading Pokemon here." Naoki couldn't help but comment to Koraidon, "What do you think goes on in their minds?"
Koraidon: "Ah, gya-seeh…"
"Forget it, let's not dwell on them." Naoki turned his backpack around, unzipped it, and let the Dratini and Dragonair inside take a breather.
After strolling for a bit longer, Naoki felt a bit tired. He bought over a dozen servings of takoyaki and took Koraidon to a spacious, less crowded part of the beach.
"Everyone, come on out!"
He took out Poke Balls, and with flashes of white light, Pokemon appeared on the beach.
Pokemon like Alcremie, Butterfree, Glaceon, and Cyclizar had never seen sand before, so soon they started playing wildly on the beach.
Naoki spread out a picnic blanket from his backpack, placing the takoyaki and berries he brought on it. He turned and reminded:
"Don't wander too far, just play around here! Koraidon, Gogoat, please look after them for me."
"Ah, gya-seeh!"
"Meee~"
Meanwhile, other passersby walked by.
A little girl was enthralled by the many Pokemon there.
"Wow! Mom, look over there!"
The woman, who was chatting with her husband, immediately turned around at the sound of her daughter's voice.
Then, they witnessed a jaw-dropping scene.
"So many Pokemon!" the woman exclaimed, half-jokingly thinking this guy must have brought his whole family.
"Big brother, are all these Pokemon yours?" the little girl asked naively.
Naoki smiled and nodded, "Yes, they are!"
"Wow, that's amazing!" The little girl's eyes were full of determination: "When I grow up, I want to be a powerful Trainer and capture lots and lots of Pokemon!"
"Good luck!" Naoki encouraged her.
As they still needed to buy food, the little girl couldn't stay long. She held her mother's hand and waved goodbye to Naoki: "Bye big brother!"
"Goodbye!"
Naoki took off the Zorua mask, turned, and saw that Cyclizar, Glaceon, and Dragonite had already started building sandcastles.
Three Miltank were also nearby, playing in the sand with great excitement.
Combee and Butterfree weren't very interested in the sand, so after playing for a while, they returned to Naoki, landing on the picnic blanket.
Naoki asked Koraidon: "Don't you want to go play with them?"
"Ah, gya-seeh," Koraidon replied dismissively. It's not a kid anymore.
Naoki picked up on Koraidon's meaning, recalling its usual demeanor and couldn't help but laugh.
Koraidon: "..."
Naoki: "Only kids sleep with adults."
Koraidon realized the teasing tone in Naoki's voice, feeling both embarrassed and infuriated, it protested: "Ah, gya-seeh!"
"Isn't it true?"
Of course not!
Koraidon's head drooped pitifully, its crest wilting as well.
It simply... just wanted to be with Naoki all the time.