Spearow, classified as the Tiny Bird Pokémon, had a black back, beige chest and belly marked with fine lines, and a messy brown crest on its head. Its beak was short and hooked, and its pale pink feet had three toes each.
Its wings were pink, trimmed with lighter tones, and it had three brown tail feathers.
According to the official data, Spearow weighed only two kilograms—around four jin. Not exactly a filling meal.
Between one human and two Pokémon, there wasn't going to be much meat left once the feathers were plucked. Looks like he'd need to catch another one.
"Caterpie, it's okay now."Reiji reined in the barely visible smirk tugging at the corners of his mouth as he stowed Spearow's Poké Ball and looked down at the Caterpie clinging to his calf. He reached down and gently comforted the bug's terrified little heart.
"Hmph." Caterpie, seeing the danger had passed, let out a subtle sigh of relief—then promptly gave him attitude again.
Talk about a quick turnaround. Like a girlfriend who switches moods as fast as deciding what to eat.
Reiji didn't mind. After all, manipulation wasn't a one-time thing. As long as Caterpie could handle it, he could keep this game going.
"Poliwag, nice job. That's enough running for now. Go rest for a bit. We'll head out to find lunch soon." He praised Poliwag, who happily hopped off to soak in the water bucket.
Then, he took out Caterpie's Poké Ball and offered, "Caterpie, wanna come in?"
"Hmph-hmph-hmph." Caterpie glanced at the Poké Ball, its disgust plain as day. But considering the ever-present threat of predators, sticking with this human didn't seem like the worst idea.
"Ahhh, Little Green, you've fallen… You're actually starting to agree with this awful human? Are you really going to surrender to his tyranny? Little Green…"
Click!
Caterpie gently bumped its forehead against the button on the Poké Ball. A red light blinked out and drew it inside.
Seeing that Caterpie had willingly entered the ball, Reiji was grinning from ear to ear. Guess manipulation really worked.
He hadn't even seen Caterpie's usual expressive face this time—just a vacant stare at the Poké Ball, a few moments of hesitation, and then the bug had bonked the button with its head.
Reiji had no idea how much mental drama Caterpie had been playing out internally—it was practically split into multiple personalities at this point.
Stashing the Poké Ball, he didn't head out to hunt immediately. Instead, he grabbed a big plastic bottle he'd salvaged and got to work turning it into a makeshift shower.
After thirteen days of island survival, he felt like he was marinating in his own sweat. Thirty-degree heat, nearly half a month without a proper bath—he was on the verge of a breakdown.
He'd wanted to clean himself right after finishing the treehouse, but there'd been no time. The day it was done, he caught the Psychic Caterpie and had spent all his energy on that. Exhausted, he collapsed straight into bed.
Yesterday had been all about gathering firewood. No time to wash then either.
But today—no excuses. He was washing everything: himself, his clothes, the works.
His T-shirt and shorts were practically laminated with grime, and he reeked. Sleeping outdoors hadn't made it obvious, but ever since moving into the enclosed treehouse, his own stench was about to knock him out cold.
He punched a bunch of holes into the bottom of the bottle to use it like a showerhead, then grabbed a piece of ragged cloth and, using his folding knife, cut out a pair of shorts.
Making pants was surprisingly simple—he already had his own as a reference. Even if the finished product was rough, it was still better than streaking around.
Once the shorts were ready for swapping later, he called over Poliwag from the bucket to go find lunch.
"Poliwag, time to catch lunch. That bird's not enough for all of us…"
"Yoh-yoh!" Poliwag flipped its pale belly lazily in the water, shooting playful jets from its mouth. But the moment Reiji called out, it popped out of the bucket and fell into step beside him.
Within minutes, they found another Caterpie.
"Go, Poliwag!"
"Yoh-yoh!" Poliwag delivered a Water Gun and Double Slap combo that quickly knocked it out.
Reiji stepped forward and picked up the limp Caterpie. As usual, fainted Caterpie released a foul stench. Even after all this time, he hadn't gotten used to the smell.
Back at camp, he released the injured Spearow.
"Poliwag, Double Slap."
"Yoh-yoh!" With no hesitation, Poliwag raised its tail and smacked the wet-feathered Spearow unconscious.
Only then did Reiji start preparing the bird.
Processing it was simple—like plucking and cleaning a chicken back home. The steps were basically the same.
Once cleaned, there was only about a jin (half a kilo) of meat. Roughly the weight of a meaty pigeon. Then again, Spearow was a bird.
He split the meat—half for roasting, half for soup. He wanted something nutritious.
In his past life, this would've been illegal. Most large wild animals, including wild boars, were protected species. Eating one would land you in jail.
But in this world, well, he was eating good.
While the meat was roasting and stewing over a low flame, he took the free Poké Ball and captured the Caterpie he'd just knocked out to check its stats.
A quick glance at its proficiency panel told him it was average—19% potential, same two basic moves.
So… into the soup it would go.
While the Caterpie meat stewed, he used a plastic bottle to craft a crude bowl. It wasn't pretty, but it worked.
To avoid traumatizing his new partner, he tossed the severed Caterpie head into the ocean to feed the fish.
Out of sight, out of mind. Humans were excellent at self-delusion that way.
Same thing with horror movies—don't watch, don't get scared.
Then, he released his own Caterpie and invited it to join lunch. It was time to build rapport.
"Caterpie, time to eat. This is the Spearow that attacked you. I made soup to help you recover."
Consider it payback. Caterpie was so petty, it would definitely be thrilled.
"Wuuh?" Caterpie stared at the bowl of bird meat, gulping nervously. Those sharp talons and hooked beak… it remembered them vividly.
If it had been caught, one peck, one scratch—and it would've been dead.
Thinking about it made it swallow hard—a reflex to try and ease its nerves.
"Wuuh-wuuh…" Caterpie looked again at the bird soup. That dumb predator who had tried to eat it… was now floating in a bowl.
Caterpie blinked up at Reiji, wide-eyed and completely baffled.
[End of Chapter]
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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