"Bang!"

  Tinkatuff’s small fists, charged with steel energy, hammered away at the iron block. The crisp etal echoed across the meadow as nails and iron filings fused us efforts, f a piece of silver-colored metal. Naoki stood nearby, watg in awe.

  Tinkatuff frow the block, clearly unsatisfied. Without high temperatures or cooling, it was f metal through sheer ford skill. Naoki marveled at how this broke the ws of physics.

  “Maybe it’s the Steel energy?” he guessed, still curious.

  Taking a break, Tinkatuff notiaoki still watg, looking startled. It had assumed Naoki left earlier and was caught off-guard.

  “Have you made a hammer before?” Naoki asked kindly.

  Tinkatuff’s eyes lit up. It nodded, expining through excited chirps how it once crafted a hammer from scrap found in an abandoned . That hammer was its trusted panion, helping it fend off metal-eating Pokémon—until it was tragically lost in a fire.

  Seeing Tinkatuff’s sadness, Naoki smiled. “Don’t worry! If you made one before, you do it again!”

  Renewed with determination, Tinkatuff ched its little fists. “Woo-wah!” it excimed.

  Naoki patted its head fondly. “Keep at it, and I won’t disturb you.”

  As Naoki left, the steady g resumed, carrying through the ranch like a rhythm of purpose. Ba his room, Naoki pulled out a book on Pokémon ecology. Flipping through the pages, he found the se on Tinkatuff:

  "Tinkaton, the Hammer Pokémon"

  Tinkatuff, like Tauros and Miltank, is a single-gender Pokémon species.

  "People think that Pokémon like Tinkaton are solitary, but that’s irely true. They actually live in groups." he mused.

  Naoki tinued, "Tinkaton lives alongside Tinkatuff and Tinkatink. You’ll usually find them in areas filled with scrap metal, like a castles or old rui behind by humans."

  "The ground in these pces is covered with copper bits and iron scraps, but siinkatink is still small and not that strong, it gathers metal shavings and fragments to make its first hammer."

  He smiled, imagining the little Pokémon hard at work. "Ohey evolve into Tinkatuff, they ougher stuff. That’s when they set their sights oal used by Bisharp, hunting them down for sturdier materials."

  Naoki’s grin widened. "And when a Tinkatuff evolves into a full Tinkaton, it doesn’t stop there. It goes after Steel-types like Pawniard."

  He leaned forward, whispering as if revealing a secret. "Ordinary hammers won’t do for Tinkaton—researchers say their hammers weigh more than 100 kilograms. But Tinkaton swings them like they’re made of feathers. Talk about strength!"

  Naoki's eyes lit up with inspiration. "As these little bcksmiths evolve, their taste ial keeps improving—from scrap iron to Bisharp’s armor."

  He gnced over at his Pawmot, imagining the perfect hammer in its hands. "If I get that Tinkatuff to make a hammer for Pawmot, Thor Pawmot will finally be plete! The red cape is already waiting."

  There yful glint in Naoki’s eyes. "Maybe I could help Tinkatuff by colleg some of Pokemon's steel remains in advance. I’ll give her half to practice with, and the other half will go toawmot’s special hammer."

  He cpped his hands together with excitement. "Good thing, Gar is full of Steelix and Corviknight. I’ll gather everything we need on my rip there!"

  In the skies ar, Corviknight reigned supreme. As the go-to flying taxi service, these majestion were seen s gracefully through the clouds, transp passengers across the region.

  Some trainers had even partnered with the Gar Taxi Fleet, w with Corviknight to help travelers get from oown to another. Naoki figured that someone in the fleet might collect shed feathers from the Corviknight, which could be perfect for crafting the hammer he needed.

  ...

  October 9, 198 – Alliance dar

  That m, after finishing his chores on the ranaoki waved goodbye to everyone and climbed onto his trusty Koraidon. His destination? Levincia City, a vibraropolis oher side of the Paldea region.

  With a grin, Naoki patted Koraidon’s side. "Ready, buddy? Let’s take to the skies!"

  Koraidon responded with a pyful “Raao?” and unched into the air.

  As they flew, Naoki marveled at the ndscape below. "The real Paldea feels so much bigger than it does in the game."

  He studied the map, notig towns and vilges not shown in the game: Sunflora Town, Jellyfish Vilge, and Tauros City.

  "I should visit these pces someday," he mused.

  Sunflora Town was surrounded by fields of sunflowers, where Sunflora Pokémon roamed freely. Jellyfish Vilge was known for the wild Jellit floating in nearby waters. And Tauros City was famous for its thrilling bullfights, where trainers peted with their Tauros in fierce but friendly battles.

  After several hours of flying, Naoki and Koraidon reached the eastern side of Paldea. Below them, fields gave way to modern towns and cities, their sleek buildings shining in the sunlight.

  Naoki smiled. "The east side of Paldea feels so muodern than the west."

  As they approached Levincia City, the vibrant lights and t skyscrapers came into view.

  Skyscrapers stood tall, side by side, their windows glowing brightly. The city was alive with traffid although it was only early evening, the shops lining the streets had already turned on their lights. Neon signs flickered and glimmered, casting colorful hues across the streets, making Levincia City feel like a dreamnd.

  For a moment, Naoki was awestruck.

  "It’s like I’ve stepped into another world," he thought. pared to this bustliropolis, his hometown ba Paldea felt like a sleepy little vilge.

  “This is incredible!” Naoki gasped, dazzled by the vibrant lights.

  He marveled at the beams of neon stretg skyward, gently weaving through the night air. They illumihe city like a dazzling tapestry of aking the whole pce feel like a living dream. Then it hit him—he kly what this was.

  "This must be the Million Volt Night View!" Naoki realized.

  It was one of the ten most beautiful sights in Paldea. He couldn’t help but smile. "I gotta admit, it’s just as breathtaking as people say."

  Koraido out a curious hum, its voice soft in the night.

  "Raao?"

  Naoki gave Koraidon an affeate pat, grinning at his parthey stood there in quiet admiration, taking in the sea of lights below. The thousands of glowing windows sparkled like stars scattered across the ground, creating a mesmerizing view.

  Before long, araveler arrived, riding on the back of a Corviknight. The traveler and his panion, cameras in hand, gasped iement.

  "This really is one of Paldea’s top sights! It’s geous!" the man excimed.

  "Quick, take some photos! We o capture this," his friend urged.

  The sight snapped Naoki back to reality. "Right! We’ve got busio take care of!"

  He tapped Koraidoly. "Alright, let’s nd!"

  "Raaooo!" Koraidon responded cheerfully and began desding toward Levincia City.

  As soon as they nded, Naoki noticed something odd. The moment they touched down on the busy streets, a sense of awkwardness crept over him.

  The passers-by, dressed sharply in suits and fashionable clothes, cast curious gnces his way. Naoki looked down at his own travel-worn outfit and gulped nervously.

  "Uh oh…" he thought. "Do I look like a try bumpkin?"

  He remembered how Ash Ketchum had once been teased for being a small-town kid in a big city. Naoki braced himself, expeg simir treatment.

  But to his surprise, no one ughed or mocked him. They simply stared for a moment, intrigued by his sudden arrival on the back of Koraidon, befoing about their business.

  "Well… that’s a relief," Naoki muttered, exhaling deeply.

  Reassured, he turned his attention back to his goal. "Alright, time to head to the port and grab our tickets to Gar!"

  They crossed the busy streets, following the city signs toward the port.

  Naoki mentally mapped out the dires: “Gh the tral square in the heart of the city, then cross the sea bridge to reach the Levincia Lighthouse. The boat b point is right o the lighthouse.”

  With a nod of determination, Naoki nudged Koraidon. "Let’s head to the square first!"

  However, as they reached the tral square, they found themselves caught in a whirlwind of excitement.

  Trainers and Pokémon were rushing in from every dire, chattiedly as they hurried toward the same destination.

  "The battle at the Gym is about to start!" one shouted.

  "Hey, outta my way!" arainer yelled.

  "Ahhh, stop pushing me!" someone cried as the crowd surged forward.

  Before Naoki could react, he and Koraidon were swept up by the wave of eager trainers, pulled toward the heart of the square.

  Naoki: "..."

  When the crowd finally stopped, Naoki found himself standing at the edge of a massive, circur battle arena. Pokémon and humans alike gathered arouedly watg the se unfold. Bright, colorful neon lights illumihe square, casting pyful patterns across the stadium.

  At the ter of the venue, a traiood fidently, drawing everyone’s attention.

  Naoki blinked, surprised by the trainer’s striking appearahe person had long blue and pink hair, with little Mage hair clips sparkling in the neon light.

  But before he could dwell on it, the trainer’s eic voice rang out across the square.

  "It’s time for the Iono Show! Are you all ready?!"

  The crowd erupted into cheers, familiar with the eic Gym Leader’s antics.

  "Iono!" they shouted in unisoedly boung along with her lively energy.

  With a mischievous grin, Iono fshed her signature sharp-toothed smile, raising her hands to hype up the crowd even more.

  "Good m! Good afternoon! Good evening! And ciao, everyone!" she excimed, wavihusiastically.

  Her oppo, standing on the opposite side of the field, seemed both starstrud nervous.

  Naoki watched in awe as Iono spun around dramatically, striking a pyful pose. "Are you ready~?" she sang, her voice pyful and eic. "It’s time to dazzle your eyes with a show you’ll never fet!"

  “Today’s challenger is Trainer Komatsu, who’s strong enough to take doperajah mid-flight!”

  The announcer’s voice echoed through the square.

  Naoki blinked in fusion. “...Wait, what?”

  His eyes nded on the eic trainer in the arena—blue and pink hair, with little Mage hair clips glittering in the neon light.

  “It’s weird,” Naoki thought, scratg his head.

  He stared at the lively trairying to make sense of things. Iono—he was sure that was her name—was supposed to be a streamer. “Did she already bee a Gym Leader?”

  “If I remember right, she usually runs livestreams,” Naoki mused, rubbing his thoughtfully. “Maybe streaming hasn’t caught o?”

  The battle before them seemed more like an exhibition match than an official Gym challenge, adding to Naoki’s fusion.

  Just then, Koraidon—standing by his side—perked up, its eyes lighting up with excitement.

  "Raao?" Koraidon chirped, its tail swishing happily.

  “Huh?” Naoki gnced down at his Pokémon, puzzled. “Wait… do you like Iono?”

  Koraidon responded with ahusiastic cry, hopping in pce. "Raao! Raao!"

  Naoki tilted his head, still bewildered. “Koraidon, you’ve never eve her… Isn't this the first time you’ve seen her?”

  He thought back to the rumors: Iono wasn’t all that famous outside the big cities yet, so it made sense she hadn’t made a spsh in the quieter parts of Paldea where Naoki was. Still, the question him—what exactly had caught Koraidon’s attention?

  A fleeting thought crossed Naoki’s mind, making him chuckle to himself. “ Pokémon… fall in love with people?”

  He looked at Koraidon, still boung with excitement, and shook his head in disbelief.

  “Nah, that ’t be it…”

  “Raao!”

  Naoki smiled warmly. “You really like her, huh?”

  However, Koraidon did not think too much about it. He was just simply happy to see Iono.

  Long before it evolved into Koraidon, Cyclizar lived on Naoki's ranch where Iono often visited. She treated everyone kindly, bringing joy to both people and Pokémon alike. She helped care for Cyclizar, f a deep bond with the Pokémon.

  Most importantly, Iono and Naoki had a child together—a little ohey lovingly niamed “Leaf.”

  When Naoki and Iono niamed their child they also rehe ranch as “Treehouse,” and everyone lived happily there together.

  Suddenly, Koraidon’s usual cheerfulness faded, and its gaze dropped.

  "Raao…" it murmured softly, sadness flickering in its eyes.

  Koraidon’s mind drifted to the memory of Little Leaf’s sad fa the day it left the ranch. It could still feel the tiny hands clutg its tail ahe soft voice asking, "When will you e back?"

  But it hadn’t been able to return.

  The memory tugged at Koraidon’s heart, and it couldn't help but bee depressed.

  "Raao…"