Pokemon Yarroh

Chapter 16: To Be A Region Guardian!

"This is the headquarters?" Yancy asked, looking amazed. "Oh, wow..."

"Wonderful, isn't it?" JJ asked, looking amused. "Yeah, I thought the same too when I first popped up here."

"It is quite the sight, even saying from someone who built the place," Cleothorn agreed with a nod as the girl began to approach, adjusting the scarf around her neck as she did so. "Ah, right..."

As the girl approached, the details of her face sprang out at Augustus. The girl was square-jawed and rough, lips curled into a thin, pursed line. A scar carved its way down her lip, slicing through the skin, and Augustus wondered how she got it. Other scars stood out on the skin he could see, marking her as someone he didn't want to mess with. Her eyes surveyed the three of them, and Augustus shivered slightly under her gaze.

"You three, this is our main researcher," Cleothorn said, gesturing to the girl and nodding to her. "Himeguma Ishii."

"Just Ishii is fine, please," Ishii said. Her voice was slightly rough, like she'd eaten a handful of gravel. "Don't address me by my full name."

Ishii's eyes scanned over the three again. "So, you three are the new kids in town? Good. We needed more hands-"

"Hey, Teddy!"

The elevator behind the three of them had opened again, and Kayden Amalthea rushed out, fully dressed, thankfully. He was panting as he stopped, almost knocking over JJ as he hunched over.

"Mm...sorry, Kukui...you didn't tell me...you were back...from patrol last night..." he panted up at Ishii. The girl began to approach him, raising her arm, and Augustus stepped back, worried she was about to slap him, but he brought out his hand to collide with hers, following it with a fist bump. Ishii's expression melted into a more amused look as she patted him on the shoulder. "Catch your breath, Slim Jim."

Kayden, in the midst of his recovery, stood up fully with an exaggerated gasp. His gold eyes focused on Ishii, who met his stare without an ounce of fear. If anything, it looked like she relished it as he spoke. "Oh, you wanna go? Is that how it is?"

"Are they going to battle? Right here?" Yancy whispered worriedly to Cleothorn, but she shook her head, smiling slightly. "That's not how these two solve their fights."

"I won last time. Put your face in the dirt," Ishii said with a devilish grin. "Literally, in case you forgot."

Kayden's face turned a blotchy, brutish, bright red, and he huffed. "I slipped up. A fluke."

He moved forward past Ishii to shake the three's hands again as Ishii muttered something in another language, and his head snapped back towards her like a Rowlet's. "Your ass-it was a fluke, you Time-Jumping-" He responded in what Augustus assumed was the same language, however, it was clear he had said something quite rude at her as he returned to the common language. "The ground was muddy!"

"Oh, boo-hoo, can't keep up with a girl," Ishii taunted him, still wearing her smirk. "You left yourself wide open the entire time, Corpse-Boy. I just went for you when you slipped."

"What exactly is this about?" Yancy asked, but before he got his answer, Cleothorn looked over at the other boy, who was slowly stalking over. "Mister Kurosaka! Did we not come to an understanding that you would not smoke in here?"

The white-haired boy groaned, putting out his cigarette and tossing it into a nearby trash can. "Yeah, yeah, sorry, Cleo. Just had stuff on my mind."

His blue eyes roved over the three of them, a languid grin settling on his face as he extended a hand. "Tadashi Kurosaka. Pleased to meet you."