"This is…?"
Vivi suddenly clutched her temple as a flood of information surged into her mind.
In the next instant, as her consciousness stirred, a mysterious energy burst forth from her body.
Her figure vanished abruptly from Red's sight, reappearing on a patch of grass not far away.
It was unmistakably a Psychic-type move—Teleport!
As the mysterious light shimmered once more, Vivi appeared again in front of Red, letting out a surprised gasp.
"So amazing!"
"So this is the power of Pokémon that Nami and the others were talking about?!"
Her eyes sparkled as she looked up—only to see Red pull out a strange bicycle-like device from who knew where.
Red smiled slightly, clearly unsurprised by her reaction.
"Let's go. Testing skills and all that can wait until we're back on the Going Merry."
"I'll take you to fill in the last move first."
Colorful balloons slowly floated into the air, carrying Red and the excited Vivi as they headed toward the Pokémon Center in Celadon City.
…
…
Since it was only noon and time was limited, Red didn't linger long in the Pokémon world after loading Vivi with Glitzy Glow.
As white light bloomed before their eyes once more, they returned to Red's private cabin aboard the Going Merry.
"Mr. Red!"
Overcome with excitement, Vivi instinctively used formal speech again as she watched Red sit up from the bed.
In response, Red gave her a teasing smile.
He brought his fingers together and lightly pointed toward the door before walking straight out.
"Come on. Let's find someone outside to test your new moves!"
"Yes~!" Vivi replied cheerfully, hurrying to follow him.
The two stepped onto the deck of the Going Merry.
At that moment, the Straw Hat crew were in the midst of intense training.
Zoro, now able to proficiently use Armament Haki, stood with his back to Nami, constantly dodging her lightning orbs.
Although his success rate was abysmally low—he was struck several times by lightning almost every minute—
Thanks to the special effects of Grassy Terrain and his own formidable physique, he could still endure it.
Elsewhere, Smoker had somehow started sparring with Luffy, using the power of his Logia Devil Fruit to continuously exchange blows.
Even though he would be knocked to the ground by Luffy's Armament Haki-coated fists after only a few exchanges…
Driven on by Zoro, the absolute training fanatic, he was quickly back on his feet again.
Normally, he teamed up with Sanji to fight Luffy, hoping that repeated exposure to Armament Haki strikes would help him grasp its usage.
However, after several days, Sanji's body had already begun releasing faint traces of Haki, while Smoker still hadn't figured out the basics.
It frustrated him endlessly.
Though mastering Armament Haki in just a few days was already unimaginable…
With so many prodigies before him, he refused to accept that his talent was inferior to a bunch of pirates!
Seeing Red arrive with Vivi, everyone showed a hint of curiosity, but none of them stopped their training.
After scanning the deck, Red's gaze finally settled on the only non-crew member present.
"Colonel Smoker, could you come over here for a moment?"
"Hm?!"
Smoker froze slightly, and Luffy stopped mid-punch as well.
Red gave Vivi a look, and once Smoker approached, he immediately said with a smile:
"Colonel Smoker, Vivi's recently learned a new move and wants your help testing it."
"A new move?"
A flash of surprise crossed Smoker's eyes.
He quickly realized that Vivi must have accepted Red's earlier proposal and entered that strange world—just like the Straw Hats had.
He didn't know much about the Pokémon world, having only heard bits and pieces from their conversations.
But he did know one thing…
It seemed to be one of Red's abilities—an ability that could make others stronger!
"Damned pirates, using me as a sparring partner! Absolutely unforgivable!"
Smoker frowned deeply, an inexplicable sense of jealousy rising within him.
I was clearly the one who came first…
But when you're under someone else's roof, you have no choice but to lower your head.
In the end, the Straw Hats stopped their training, clearing a space for Smoker and Vivi.
Red turned to Vivi and said,
"Vivi, use Glitzy Glow."
"Yes~!"
Having just learned a whole set of incredible moves, Vivi was now utterly obedient to Red.
Without the slightest hesitation.
Her eyes gleamed with a purplish-pink light as a mysterious energy wave erupted from her body, sweeping across the entire deck like a storm!
In an instant, Smoker's expression changed dramatically.
To him, a terrifying presence surged straight into his mind—though it lasted only a moment, it made him stagger with a dull thud.
"Impossible! That just now was…"
The next second, he snapped his head up, staring at Vivi with eyes full of shock.
Although the impact hadn't caused him much harm, the power Vivi displayed matched something he had once read about with eerie precision.
That power was—
The legendary force said to appear only once among millions—
Conqueror's Haki!!!
"Conqueror's Haki?!"
Smoker's face filled with disbelief.
Meanwhile, the Straw Hats, also affected by Vivi's Glitzy Glow, all looked at her with curiosity.
Of course, they knew very well that it wasn't Conqueror's Haki.
It was simply a new Pokémon move Red had loaded onto Vivi!
The most direct proof was that after releasing that mental wave, a strange transparent light wall instantly appeared in front of Vivi.
The light wall was enormous, nearly spanning the entire deck of the Going Merry.
Its height completely obscured Vivi's body.
It was far larger than the effect of Reflect when Luffy used it!
At that moment, Red's voice sounded from behind Vivi:
"Colonel Smoker, please use your Devil Fruit ability. In elemental form, attack the light wall in front of Vivi."
"Elemental form?!"
Smoker's eyes narrowed, still shaken, but he followed Red's instructions.
His arm slowly transformed into white smoke before charging forward violently.
A lifelike white giant serpent formed from smoke surged toward the light wall—and then abruptly halted!
In the next instant, the smoke-formed serpent shattered as if it had hit a natural nemesis.
It dispersed into thin white mist, stretching past the wall but completely stripped of its momentum.
Vivi sidestepped easily, avoiding it.
"How… how is that possible?!"
Smoker froze, his shock deepening.
But Red wasn't satisfied with just that.
His voice came again:
"Continue. Don't stop, Colonel Smoker!"
"This time, use your normal attack!"
"Damn it!" Feeling inexplicably humiliated, Smoker cursed inwardly.
The next moment, his expression turned serious.
His fist once again turned into dense smoke as he launched forward with full force.
"White Blow!"
Learning from his earlier failure, he held nothing back this time, using his standard attack.
In an instant!
A fist surged forward atop a torrent of white waves, charging straight at Vivi!
This time, Smoker's non-elemental fist passed through the light wall without obstruction—
But immediately afterward, the white smoke that provided its propulsion was once again blocked upon touching the wall, dispersing rapidly.
Though the fist's inertia remained, without the smoke's thrust, its speed and power dropped sharply.
A strange pink light flickered through Vivi's eyes.
Her figure blurred—then vanished instantly.
The White Blow continued forward without a target, finally landing in Red's outstretched palm.
At the same time, after using Teleport once, Vivi no longer had enough Psychic energy to sustain the light wall.
In the blink of an eye, calm returned to the Going Merry.
Red stepped forward, holding Smoker's hand, then released it back to him.
"The test is over."
"Thank you for your hard work, Colonel Smoker."
(End of Chapter)