"Was that really Tapu Fini's trial?"
Naoki lowered his gaze to the Z-Power Crystals resting in his palm.
One of them was a deep, shimmering blue, with a droplet-shaped symbol at its center—clear and rich as a sapphire.
This was exactly what he'd come for: a Waterium Z. With it, his Water-type Pokémon could unleash a Z-Move like Hydro Vortex or Whirlpool Surge with full force.
Alongside it were two other Z-Crystals.
One gleamed with the warm hue of Eevee's fur, and the other pulsed with the sharp spark of electricity, marked by a jagged lightning bolt.
These were the exclusive Z-Crystals: Eevium Z and Electrium Z.
Together with the Fightinium Z, Grassium Z, and Mewnium Z he had previously received from Tapu Koko, Naoki had now collected all the Z-Crystals he'd hoped to find in Alola.
Tapu Fini had been unbelievably generous.
But then again, how did it know what types of Z-Crystals he needed?
Did it see his intentions through the illusion?
Naoki looked up at Tapu Fini in quiet curiosity. After thinking for a moment, he asked, "Were you the one who created that illusion?"
Tapu Fini, recalling Arceus's instructions, nodded slightly. "Fin-fin!"
'So Tapu Fini's mist really held that kind of power.'
Naoki hadn't expected that. Not to such an extent.
His feelings were complicated now, especially after everything he'd seen in the illusion.
He had originally wanted to spend more time appreciating Tapu Fini as a Pokémon, but after what he'd just gone through, the excitement had faded into something much quieter.
Still, he had accomplished what he came for.
There was no longer any reason to stay in Alola.
He gently reached out and touched the heads of the Pokémon beside him, then recalled them one by one into their Poké Balls. Looking up, he met Tapu Fini's gaze and gave a small, genuine nod.
"I didn't enjoy that kind of trial very much," he said honestly, "but I do want to thank you."
"Fin-fin?" Tapu Fini tilted its head, puzzled.
Naoki smiled softly.
"Thank you for reminding me just how important they are to me."
Tapu Fini's eyes widened slightly, touched.
"Thank you for the Z-Crystals too. I know they'll be useful soon. We're heading home now."
With that, Naoki turned, and alongside Koraidon, began walking away from the Ruins of Hope.
Tapu Fini silently watched them go, its eyes lingering until they disappeared into the distance. Then, with a ripple of light, it too faded away.
—
After leaving Poni Island, Naoki rode Koraidon straight to Akala Island. From there, they used the portal to the Distortion World to return to their ranch in Paldea.
It was still afternoon in Alola, but in Paldea, it was early morning.
Naoki adjusted the time on his Rotom Phone to the local timezone. It read 4:00 AM.
The ranch was quiet.
All the Pokémon were fast asleep, unaware that Naoki had returned.
Instead of heading straight into the house, he stood out on the grass under the stars, breathing in the cool morning air.
Above him stretched a sky so clear it seemed painted in ink, with the full moon casting a silver glow over the land.
The moonlight blanketed the rolling fields in a soft dreamlike shimmer. The air was cool, crisp, and peaceful.
"Ah gah?"
Koraidon, noticing Naoki standing still, tilted its head in confusion.
Naoki smiled and looked around at the place he had called home for so many years. His voice was soft.
"It just feels really good to be home."
Koraidon blinked, then turned its head forward, understanding in its eyes. "Ah gah!"
Naoki took a deep breath, then brought out two more Poké Balls.
With two brief flashes of light, Pawmot and Gogoat materialized in the pasture alongside them.
Naoki opened the front door and stepped into the cozy house.
Cyclizar, sleeping in front of the fireplace stirred at the noise and instantly popped its eyes open.
"Gah?!"
When Cyclizar saw that it was Naoki, it sleepily rubbed its eyes.
"Go back to sleep," Naoki whispered with a gentle smile. He tiptoed into the kitchen and started preparing food for the Pokémon who hadn't had dinner the night before.
Once everyone was fed, Naoki stretched out on his bed for a short nap.
To reset his sleep schedule, he limited himself to just five hours of rest.
When he opened his eyes again, the room was bathed in golden morning light. Sunshine streamed through the windows, and the cheerful chirping of wild bird Pokémon drifted in from outside.
Before Naoki could even sit up, his partner Eevee dashed over, excitement bubbling in its voice as it placed its tiny paws on his chest.
"Bui-bui?"
Sylveon, Glaceon, and Flareon quickly followed, hopping onto the bed and forming a fuzzy circle around him.
Earlier that morning, Pawmot had returned with good news: Naoki had safely returned from Alola, along with the treasure.
Before he left, every Eeveelution on the ranch had known what he was searching for: the exclusive Z-Crystal that would help them reach their true potential.
So the moment Naoki returned, the entire Eevee squad was filled with eager anticipation.
But Indeedee had gently stopped them. Naoki had come home very late and needed rest, she explained. So, like well-behaved children, the Eeveelutions stayed home all morning, skipping even their favorite trip to the World Tree—just to wait for him to wake up.
Still a bit groggy, Naoki blinked at the faces gathered around him. But when he spotted his partner Eevee staring up at him, his mind quickly cleared.
It was ready.
His partner Eevee wanted to try out its exclusive Z-Move: Extreme Evoboost, the nine-fold evolution unleashed in one.
Naoki gently picked up his excited companion and chuckled. "Can I have a glass of water first?"
"Bui!" Eevee nodded quickly.
Hearing this, Sylveon dashed off the bed, her ribbon-like feelers fluttering behind her. A moment later, she returned, carefully balancing a glass of water on a ribbon.
"Eevee~!" Here you go!
Naoki blinked, speechless. "...You're being way too nice. Either you want something, or you're about to pull something sneaky."
Still, he knew how much this meant to them. After finishing the water, Naoki got out of bed and led the group of eager Eeveelutions to the open field on the ranch.
"Ready?" he asked, slotting the Eevium Z into the slot on his Z-Ring.
"Bui!" the Eeveelutions nodded in unison, brimming with energy and anticipation.
"Alright, let's do this!"
Naoki focused his thoughts and reached for the Z-Ring.
In an instant, dazzling prismatic light surged from his body, flowing like a rainbow straight into his partner Eevee.
The little Pokémon's eyes widened as it felt the power welling up inside. Then it threw its head back and let out a radiant cry that echoed across the ranch.
"Buiiiiiiii!"
A ring of invisible ripples spread rapidly outward, centered on partner Eevee.
As the wave of energy touched the other Eeveelutions nearby, they all froze in surprise, the surge of power was coursing through them too!
And then, something extraordinary happened.
A soft green glow enveloped partner Eevee's body. The light brightened until it completely surrounded him, and slowly, he began to rise into the air.
One by one, the other Eeveelutions—Flareon, Glaceon, Sylveon, Umbreon, Vaporeon, Leafeon, Espeon, and Jolteon—were each wrapped in radiant lights matching their own elemental auras.
Brilliant colors shone from each of them, flowing together into a prismatic blaze that poured into partner Eevee at the center. In an instant, he ignited like a flame of pure rainbow energy.
Floating in the middle of the surge, partner Eevee looked down at himself in disbelief.
"Bu... Bu-yee!" (This power... it's incredible!)
It felt as though a powerful fire had been lit inside him, one that filled his entire being with unstoppable energy!
"Bu-yee!"
Partner Eevee turned around to face Naoki, his gaze fierce with determination. He was ready to fight!
Naoki blinked. "Uh… there's no opponent to battle here."
"Bueee…" Eevee let out a frustrated cry, twitching his ears and glancing around anxiously. His tiny paws trembled—not out of fear, but from the overwhelming power with nowhere to go.
Seeing this, Naoki gave it some thought, then turned to Koraidon. "Can you help bring over one of those big rocks from across the river?"
Koraidon grunted in agreement and stomped off. Moments later, he returned carrying a massive boulder, which he dropped down in front of Eevee.
"Alright. Use everything you've got—aim for the rock!" Naoki said with a confident nod.
"Bu-yee!"
With a fierce shout, partner Eevee charged forward, his entire body blazing with rainbow fire. He leapt and slammed into the rock with all his might.
BOOM!
With an earth-shaking crack, the rock shattered into dozens of pieces, scattering dust and pebbles everywhere.
"Bu-yee!" Partner Eevee turned around excitedly, bouncing on his paws as he barked up at Naoki.
"Bu-yee, Bu-yee!"
'See that? I had smashed the whole thing to pieces in one go!'
Naoki stared, momentarily speechless.
While breaking rocks wasn't anything special for high-tier Pokémon like Koraidon or Dragonite, for an Eevee with little formal training, it was incredibly impressive.
Especially this particular Eevee.
After all, Naoki's partner wasn't just any ordinary Eevee.
This Eevee drank fresh Life Goat Milk every day, grew up under the nurturing energy of the World Tree, and lived alongside some of the rarest, happiest Pokémon on the ranch. His physical health and latent potential far exceeded most wild or even bred Eevee.
Naoki recalled a video he'd seen online once, showing a trainer using rocks as targets during Eevee training sessions. It had seemed cute at the time.
But unlike Naoki's partner Eevee, the other Eevee didn't manage to break the rock. Instead, it bonked its head with a loud thunk and flopped backward in embarrassment.
The colorful aura surrounding partner Eevee faded away, signaling the end of the Z-Move, Extreme Evoboost.
Still buzzing with energy just moments ago, partner Eevee now felt the wave of fatigue crash over it.
"Bu...yi…" it murmured, blinking down at its tiny paws in confusion.
Naoki walked over with a warm smile. "Don't worry. That's just the side effect of using a Z-Move. Go have some Life Goat Milk and rest. Then you can join everyone else and play."
While the other Eeveelutions had shared in the radiant energy earlier, they didn't feel nearly as drained as partner Eevee. But not everyone was in high spirits.
Some of the Eeveelutions looked… disheartened.
After all, they couldn't use a powerful move like Extreme Evoboost.
Just as Naoki opened his mouth to try and say something, Glaceon stepped forward and spoke up first.
"Buey Buey!" (That move is partner Eevee's reward for not evolving!)
The other Eevee turned toward her curiously.
Glaceon flicked her tail and continued, "Bueeeeee." (Flareon ate one of Naoki's Sacred Buns and gained powerful fire energy. Jolteon had the Thunder Bun and his electricity surged. Leafeon eats the grass under the World Tree every day, so his Grass-type energy is super strong. And don't forget Espeon and Umbreon, who absorb sunlight and moonlight to grow stronger!)
Then she looked at partner Eevee with gentle eyes.
"Buee!" (But partner Eevee never got anything. This Z-Move is just making up for that!)
The others paused to think. When they considered it carefully, they realized she was right.
What started as a brief moment of envy faded away, and soon the other Eevee's smiles returned. Partner Eevee had worked hard and deserved the reward. Now that things had settled, it was time to run off and play under the World Tree!
With cheerful cries, the Eevee bid Naoki goodbye and scampered off into the distance.
Naoki gave Glaceon a proud look.
As expected of the one who had been with him the longest, always level-headed, always reliable.
"Eevee..." Glaceon exhaled softly.
She had watched every single one of those little Eevee hatch from eggs and grow up into their own unique selves. She didn't want to see them quarrel. Not over something like this.
This feeling is probably the same as when parents Dragonite's look at Dratini! Glaceon thought.
Then she remembered the parent Dragonite chucking their egg at Naoki and flying off without a second thought.
Hmm. On second thought, maybe it wasn't quite the same.
As the rest of the Eevee bounded toward the World Tree, they suddenly noticed Glaceon wasn't following. They skidded to a halt, turned back, and called out to her with a chorus of cheerful barks and chirps.
"Bueee!"
Glaceon blinked once, then trotted forward to join them.
Watching the backs of the group of happy Eeveelutions disappearing into the distance, Naoki shook his head with a helpless but fond smile.
He returned to the living room and carefully stored away the Z-Crystals he didn't immediately need—Mewnium Z, Electrium Z, and Fightinium Z. Only two remained in his pocket: Grassium Z for the Calyrex and Waterium Z for Kyogre.
With all preparations complete, the next step was simple—wait patiently on the ranch for Arceus to awaken, and for the next part of the story to unfold.
As he placed the last Z-Crystal into storage, Naoki suddenly noticed something else tucked in the drawer: the Tera Orb.
It had been a gift from Professor Sada when he visited the Zero Lab years ago.
A thought struck Naoki—could a Terastallized Pokémon still use a Z-Move?
Terastallization boosts the power of a Pokémon's moves, and Z-Moves are already extremely powerful on their own.
If used together, it could potentially maximize the destructive strength of Calyrex or Kyogre's Origin Pulse.
Excited by the idea, Naoki quickly sought out Pawmot to run a test using an Electric-type move while Terastallized.
The result?
Yes. It worked.
This would dramatically increase their chances of success in the battles to come.
Everything was ready. All that was left now was to wait for Arceus to awaken.
...
Bonus @2000