Chapter 2: Summer Camp
(Second Update! New Book Seeking Collection!!)
Even before arriving in this world, Xiaozhi had always been curious about his father, who was only mentioned at the beginning of the anime.
According to Hanako, he was also a skilled Trainer, but he never appeared in the anime's ten years of serialization, gradually becoming less important.
Actually, it's easy to see in the early games that nearly all the NPCs are either children, women, or elderly people. There are almost no young men.
The reason is that during the time when Pokémon first became popular, Japan was at war. Many men were drafted into the military, leaving only the elderly, children, and women behind. However, this gradually became less important.
In his memory, before coming to this world, Xiaozhi had asked about his father when he was young, but Hanako never responded. Over time, he stopped asking.
"Really! Haven't you been looking forward to this summer camp? You're going to be late if you don't hurry up!"
The table was set with food that you'd only see in anime cooking shows, and Hanako was muttering as she watched over the pot. This touched Xiaozhi, who had been alone in his previous life.
"I know~~" He simply replied and put his backpack aside to eat breakfast.
Hanako turned around, holding the pan, and placed the freshly fried egg on Xiaozhi's plate.
"Dig in!!" Looking at the food on the table, especially the fried egg, Xiaozhi couldn't help but wonder if it was a Pokémon egg. His first thought was Chansey.
Logically, in this world, Pokémon are animals, and there are indeed many foods from Pokémon in the anime.
From the beginning, it was said that Farfetch'd's leek was delicious, then there was Chansey's egg. Later, to avoid giving anime viewers nightmares, they gradually changed it to taking food from Pokémon, such as the milk from a Milktank.
And the anime hardly mentioned meat. In scenes with food, there was rarely any meat to be seen.
"Did you pack everything? Xiaozhi is always so careless. Make sure you check everything and don't give Dr. Oak any trouble!"
"I know, I'll be careful!"
"Hmm?? Do you have a fever??" Hanako heard Xiaozhi's response and couldn't help but put her hand on his forehead, looking very concerned. Xiaozhi felt a little helpless.
"Mom... why are you doing this?" He was still a little uncomfortable with this kind of parent-child atmosphere. Even though they shared the same body, they were completely different people.
And while Hanako, as a mother, was sometimes a bit rigid, she was still concerned about her child. She wondered if she could tell something was different.
"Nothing! I just thought it was strange. Normally, you'd say 'Oh, I know! You're so nagging!'"
After confirming that Xiaozhi didn't have a fever, Hanako let out a sigh of relief. Then, she teased him, mimicking his usual tone.
Xiaozhi was speechless. It was truly his usual way of speaking. As a mother, she was sharp indeed. But he had no choice. His personality was different from the original Xiaozhi.
"I... I'm just really excited about Dr. Oak's summer camp." Worried about being seen through, he came up with a plausible excuse.
"That's right. You've been looking forward to this for a long time. Have fun this time!" Hanako didn't say anything more and responded gently. Xiaozhi felt relieved.
"Okay!"
Worried about giving himself away by talking too much, Xiaozhi didn't say anything more. He quickly finished his breakfast, wiped his mouth clean, and got up to put on his backpack.
"I'm full! Mom! I'll go now. Take care of yourself at home."
Xiaozhi didn't linger. After saying that, he left. He didn't notice that Hanako paused slightly as she cleaned the dishes, two tears falling onto the plate. A loving smile appeared on her gentle face.
"This kid, he seems to have grown up without realizing it. I guess I don't have to worry about him giving Dr. Oak any trouble."
It wasn't that Hanako had noticed anything about Xiaozhi. Even in a world full of Pokémon, it was impossible to imagine his situation.
It's just that before, Xiaozhi was still a child, and he hadn't gone on any trips. He was still a child, and he would go out to play without saying things like "take care of yourself."
Xiaozhi didn't know about Hanako's feelings. He was already out the door. While the summer camp was with a bunch of other kids, he was still looking forward to it. He would be able to get close to Pokémon in the wild.
This was a real Pokémon world. While Pallet Town was just a small town, he could still see Pokémon everywhere.
He had already seen quite a few on the way. There were small Pokémon like Growlithe and Rattata kept by families, and he could also see Flying-types like Pidgey and Butterfree nesting in the trees along the road.
"I'm here, Professor Oak!" He arrived at the lab according to memory.
There were already many kids his age gathered outside the lab. The summer camp was very popular, so many kids came, including those who traveled from other regions.
There were a few lab assistants taking attendance and keeping order. Xiaozhi remembered that the lab was always just Professor Oak, and later, when Xiaozhi's companion, Gary, stayed due to his interest, it became two people.
But thinking about it, it was impossible for one person to handle such a large lab. There were so many Pokémon entrusted to them. Just feeding and caring for them was not something one person could do.
"Oh! Xiaozhi, you're here early. Wait a bit! A few more people haven't arrived yet. We'll leave as soon as everyone is here!"
Just like in his memory, Professor Oak was a kind-looking old man who was very nice to kids.
"Okay!!" The original Xiaozhi would have been eager to meet wild Pokémon, but now, even though he was also looking forward to it, he had an adult mindset.
"Well, well! It's rare to see you on time, Xiaozhi."