"I... am an undercover agent?"
Haruki stared blankly at the blacked-out computer screen on the desk, as if his brain had crashed along with it.
'I'm Haruki?'
But it didn't feel like that Haruki?
In his mind, the memories belonging to the original body flashed rapidly. They kept playing until the moment he had just turned off the computer.
Joined Team Rocket...
Shows talent in computers...
Became an intelligence officer...
Deployed to the Sinnoh region...
Received a Cubone?
'Cubone!'
Haruki instinctively reached behind his waist and took hold of a small spherical object the size of a pigeon egg.
Red on top, white on bottom, separated by a black band with a white circular button in the center.
Very light, but very sturdy.
A Poké Ball!
His pupils dilated. His right index finger instinctively pressed down on the white button. In the next second, the Poké Ball expanded with a whoosh- just the right size to fit in one hand!
'Holy crap!'
Haruki tightened his grip on the Poké Ball but didn't dare press the white button again.
According to the "original's" memory, pressing it again would release the Pokémon inside.
And inside this Poké Ball lived the only Pokémon the original Haruki had...
Cubone!
'So I've transmigrated? Possessed a corpse? Or is this a butterfly dream scenario?'
Haruki's expression grew complex. Just now, it seemed he had already become the Haruki of the Pokémon world.
According to memory, holding down the white button on the Poké Ball for three seconds would shrink it back to the size of a pigeon egg, which he then clipped back onto his belt.
For now, Haruki still didn't dare -or didn't know how- to face Cubone.
He rubbed his slightly aching head and began to re-examine the surroundings.
In the small and cluttered storage room, a dim desk lamp shone on an ordinary-looking computer.
But he now knew that, with the correct startup password, this ordinary office computer could access Team Rocket's independent system platform.
Team Rocket...
Haruki smacked his lips. This didn't seem like a great starting point.
Not a direct affiliate of the Pokémon League, and he didn't even have one of the traditional starter Pokémon.
Even joining the infamous Team Rocket, he had only just received a Cubone, practically useless in battle, and was at the bottom rung.
And the Poké Ball hadn't even warmed in his hand before he got assigned to the Sinnoh region, tagging along with Captain Christopher to open a...
Ramen shop?
Haruki 's expression twisted. The original's memory overlapped with reality. He was now in the back storage room of that ramen shop, logging into Team Rocket's independent system to test access for future intelligence transmissions.
Knock knock knock~
A knocking sound came from the door, along with Christopher's voice.
"Is the system ready, Haruki?"
Haruki 's heart tightened, but he was also immensely relieved that he had inherited the original's memories, he knew exactly who was outside.
The door opened, and Haruki showed a respectful expression at just the right time.
"Captain, the system has been tested. It's ready to use at any time."
"Mm, good efficiency. I knew I was right to request you."
The plain-looking Christopher patted Haruki on the shoulder with satisfaction.
Haruki wore a humble expression, but in his mind, the original's memories flashed once again.
The original Haruki had been hiding his capabilities.
Back in the storage room, it had only taken the original five minutes to complete the system test, but he had stalled for another ten minutes anyway.
Then Haruki "appeared," and dragged things out even more.
And even so, in Christopher's eyes, this was considered efficient.
"Let's go, the ramen shop's about to open. I won't have you cooking or making soup, but cleaning and moving supplies are part of the job for now..."
Christopher raised an eyebrow, and Haruki instantly understood what he meant. Otherwise, he'd risk blowing his cover.
"Got it, whatever the boss says," Haruki responded smoothly.
"Hahahahaha, that's right! That's what you should call me from now on!"
Christopher was clearly very pleased with Haruki's shift in tone, silently praising him as a clever subordinate.
With the new shop opening, there was no shortage of odd jobs.
Haruki quietly did his tasks while digesting the memories of the original body. He found a lot of important information, but never came across anything related to the original story.
In other words...
The fool hasn't started their journey yet?
None of the big events have happened yet?
Altaria hasn't become the Dragon-type traitor yet?
Groudon still can't fly?
Of course, it was also possible that the Pokémon world he was in wasn't the one from the original anime. Since transmigration had already happened, the idea of a parallel world wasn't so hard to accept.
---
It wasn't until dinnertime that Haruki finally had a moment to rest.
"You worked hard today. I'll start hiring help tomorrow. Once the place opens, you can focus on your own stuff, for now, let me show you what I've got!"
Captain Christopher finished speaking and confidently walked into the kitchen.
Maybe it was because he was assigned out here and Haruki was the only confidant with him. Or maybe he just wanted to better adapt to the disguise; Christopher didn't act like a "boss" at all.
But when Haruki saw that eager glint in his eyes, he got the feeling that Christopher simply... wanted to be a ramen chef.
Slurp slurp slurp~
Delicious!
Rich, savory tonkotsu broth and springy, smooth noodles; Haruki ate every last drop, and even the fear he'd felt when he first arrived had mostly faded.
"Tastes good, right? Back in the day..."
Christopher grinned as he looked at Haruki, seeming to recall something, but ultimately just shook his head and didn't continue.
"Golbat, Raticate, you two eat up as well."
Hearing Christopher's words, Haruki instinctively looked toward the two Pokémon beside him.
Golbat, with its gaping maw wide enough to swallow his whole head.
Raticate, whose shining fangs looked like they could snap his neck in half.
At the moment, the two Pokémon sat obediently beside Christopher, nibbling on Pokéblock specially prepared for them.
"Aren't they great?" Christopher said proudly.
His ability to become a squad captain and be assigned back to his hometown was in no small part thanks to Golbat and Raticate.
"Yeah, the boss's Pokémon are strong!"
Unlike in the original story, the original body's memory contained fairly clear classifications and standards for Pokémon strength.
Newborns who couldn't battle were considered in the infant stage.
Only after passing through that phase would they enter the ranked level system.
Beginner, Skilled, Veteran, Elite, Gym Leader, Quasi-Elite Four, Elite Four, Champion...
That was the widely accepted ranking system in the Pokémon world.
And Christopher's Golbat and Raticate were both Elite-tier.
Keep in mind, the average strength of the top 16 in the regional Pokémon League -only accessible after collecting eight badges- was also just Elite-tier.
"What about your Cubone? Not going to let it out to eat?"
Haruki paused, but under Christopher's curious gaze, he silently pulled out the Poké Ball.
He could hide for a while, but not forever.
After a whole afternoon to adjust, Haruki had slowly begun accepting reality. He even felt a tiny bit of excitement he hadn't noticed himself.
Two presses… Poké Ball opened.
With a flash of red light, a small Cubone appeared in front of Haruki.
Silent, indifferent, solitary.
Clearly still a child, but Cubone already carried a world-weary air, eyes void of emotion.
Of course, it completely ignored Haruki's curious gaze.
Haruki continued observing Cubone carefully. That sense of unreality in his heart was gradually replaced by something tangible.
No more than 20 centimeters tall, its body was earth-yellow with a cream-colored belly. It wore a large white skull that seemed oversized for its body, creating an odd appearance.
The small bone club in its hand was tiny, but it was Cubone's most effective weapon.
'What can I say... it's actually kind of cute.'