"Lapras, my Lapras... Finally, finally I can see you again..."
In the eastern sea of Kitakami-
The Masked Man rode on his Delibird's back. As he saw the land of Kitakami, his trembling voice betrayed uncontrollable excitement.
Although Lott said it was first come, first served, it wasn't that a race wasn't an option, but that fighting was more cost-effective.
After a round of fierce fighting-
In the end, the Masked Man emerged victorious.
He was the first to reach Kitakami.
When he successfully stepped onto the soil of Kitakami, the Masked Man's own stamina was nearing its limit. He staggered and fell to one knee.
He coughed violently, "Cough, cough, cough!"
His Delibird, also badly injured, hurried forward to support its master.
Even a Master-level trainer was still ultimately 'human'.
After battling top trainers like Giovanni and Diancie, even if his Pokémon's stamina wasn't completely depleted-
His own mental state had reached the point of exhaustion.
"I... I'm fine... We... we can finally achieve our wish soon..."
It took a full five minutes before the Masked Man could barely stand up.
Fifty years? Or sixty?
The Masked Man himself couldn't remember.
But that was all unimportant.
Today, he could finally realize his long-cherished wish!
Just as the Masked Man was about to open the Universe Chat Room to ask for Lott's specific location.
The other's voice sounded first from in front of him, "Old man, your mask is broken~"
The Masked Man looked up in surprise at the speaker.
He found Lott, Sinnoh Champion Cynthia, and that blonde girl from Planet Terra already standing before him.
Cynthia, a local, was staring at him with wide, shocked eyes.
The Masked Man, no, Pryce, reached up to touch his face.
He found that the ice-made ogre mask had shattered over a third of its area, revealing the right half of his face.
"Truly... I'm really old, didn't even notice the mask was..."
Seeing Lott already here, the last big stone in Pryce's heart finally settled. He simply leaned against a rock and sat down.
"You... you are... Pryce from the Johto League."
Cynthia never expected this mysterious person, a Master-level trainer, to be a League Gym Leader.
And one of the most inconspicuous ones at that!
'No, wait, if he had such strength, why not show it?'
"Even the combat power of this planet... you are still just human. No matter how strong your Pokémon are, you yourself are still a mortal body. The consumption from this battle was too great for you, it has severely affected your lifespan."
Lott walked over to Pryce and looked down at him:
"I will grant your wish. I can use the Dragon Balls' power to help your body..."
"No, no need."
Before Lott could finish, Pryce interrupted him bluntly.
Although he had guessed the other would give such an answer, Lott couldn't help shaking his head inwardly.
This was probably the bond between Pokémon and trainer.
Pryce tremblingly reached into his chest and took out a Poké Ball, handing it to Lott.
"This... this child... Glacia... send, send it back to the past, back to... its parents' side... th-that is my wish..."
Hearing Pryce's stated wish, not only Cynthia, but even Erina, who didn't know him, was greatly surprised.
They thought his wish would be immortality, or at least world domination.
B-But... after going through so much trouble, it was just for something like this?
"...I understand. You come along too, consider it my gift to you."
Lott agreed.
Pryce, with his ice mask removed, managed a difficult smile. It was strained, but genuinely from the heart.
Suddenly remembering something, Pryce, with his left hand stroking the Swinub in his arms and right hand resting on the Delibird beside him, said breathlessly:
"I... don't have many days left... these children... can't be left without someone to care for them... can I... entrust them to you?"
Lott was taken aback for a moment. Thinking the yard at Totsuki was quite large, he nodded in agreement.
"Then, let's go."
Lott placed a hand on the old man's shoulder and gave Erina a look.
The tsundere girl, seeing this, quickly stepped forward and grabbed the corner of Lott's clothes.
Reshiram and Ogerpon voluntarily entered their Poké Balls.
The pink cat Mew hesitated for a while, felt it had pretty much experienced everything in this world, and thought it might be nice to visit another planet.
So it randomly selected one of the Poké Balls on Lott's waist, tapped the button with its short finger, and turned into a red light entering it.
"Want to come to my place for a visit?"
Lott invited Cynthia.
Cynthia was startled upon hearing this, thought for a moment, and politely declined:
"Thanks for the invitation, but let me finish handling things here first. The repercussions from this incident are too big. As the Sinnoh Champion, I have a lot to deal with."
"Alright, see you next time. But if you're going to eavesdrop, then eavesdrop. When you're... taking care of yourself, don't be so loud. You were even louder than Erina, stealing her thunder."
Lott shrugged.
Upon hearing this, Erina immediately blushed crimson, tucking her head down as if trying to bury it in her chest.
The slightly older Cynthia wasn't much better off, her face red, wishing she could find a crack to crawl into.
Whoosh-
The next second, Lott and his group had vanished.
Cynthia pursed her lips and muttered to herself, "It... it wasn't that loud, was it?"
…
When Lott returned to Totsuki Academy, his new residence, Genos was already waiting.
Seeing Lott return, he hurried forward and handed a capsule to him.
"Sensei, this is the capsule containing the gravity training room that Miss Bulma made for you."
"Mm, well done. By the way, Genos, I'll leave finding the Dragon Balls to you. After you find them, grant this old man's wish."
Lott took the capsule and pointed to Pryce, who looked relieved.
"Yes, but Sensei, the remaining two wishes... how should we handle them?"
Lott thought for a moment, "This... ask Bulma. If she has a wish, let her make it. After all, she's helped us a lot, so we should give something in return. But it's not necessary to always make three wishes. Making just one is also fine."
Because Namek's year is only 130 days-
If all three wishes are made, it takes a 130-day cooldown period for the Dragon Balls to turn back from stones.
But if only one wish is made, it only takes about 40 days to make another.
Genos nodded. "Yes!"
Arriving at his front door, Lott threw the capsule on the ground.
A massive, spherical spaceship-like training ground appeared out of thin air.
"Alright, vacation's over... let's begin!"
A look of excitement appeared on Lott's face as he strode into the gravity room.
…
Time flew by, and a week passed in the blink of an eye.
Lott entered the gravity training room to begin his training.
The trivial task of finding the Dragon Balls was left to Genos.
And the outside world, whether it was Planet Terra where Lott was, or other planets, was becoming increasingly lively.
First, Genos gained his own follower, Ishigami Yu.
Just yesterday, Ishigami Yu, now a third-year at Shuchi'in Academy, came to Totsuki.
While he is usually completely unnoticed at Shuchi'in, the moment he stepped into Totsuki, he immediately attracted the attention of everyone at Totsuki.
Because at that moment, he was holding a large golden sphere over a meter in diameter.
Under the sunlight, the orange star in the center of the golden sphere sparkled.
Without a doubt, it was a Dragon Ball!
Although Ishigami Yu had little presence at Shuchi'in Academy, when he appeared in public holding such an item-
He was the coolest guy on the street!
Alice, who had now almost completely taken over the authority from Senzaemon, and Erina, who served as Lott's personal chef, among others, also came to see the spectacle.
When they arrived at the scene, they found Genos had already beaten them to it, standing before Ishigami Yu.
"I never expected you to find a Dragon Ball, Ishigami-kun."
Genos rarely used a kindly tone with anyone other than Lott and Dr. Kuseno.
Ishigami Yu was also an acquaintance of Genos.
Every time Genos flattered Lott in the group chat, Ishigami Yu was the first to respond.
Genos thought this subordinate had great potential.
"It wasn't me who found it, Genos-senpai. I just happened to come across it during Shuchi'in's school trip this year."
Ishigami Yu put down the One-Star Ball and bowed.
"I believe this belongs to Lott-san, so I brought it to you."
"Oh~ As expected, I indeed didn't misjudge you."
Genos showed a satisfied smile. "Tell me, what do you want? For your family to join the Association's management? Or more wealth..."
"Power!"