Kalos Region, Lumiose City.
This was the most prosperous city in Kalos, and its technology is at the forefront of the League's development.
Not long ago, a city renovation proposal was passed: Lumiose City would establish an exclusive living area for wild Pokémon.
Inside a skyscraper near the city center, a girl in a white dress opened a letter. The content was simple, yet it brought a genuine smile to her face.
"Gardevoir, Natsuki invited us to visit his ranch. Do you want to go?"
Not far from the girl, an elegant Gardevoir responded softly.
The human and Pokémon smiled at each other, understanding each other's thoughts.
"Don't worry, I've already thought it through," the girl said with a mischievous smile. "Shalour City invited us to the Sandgem Festival. It's perfectly normal for me to stay a few extra days, right?"
"Garde~"
"I know, I'll handle the work here in advance." The girl carefully tucked away the invitation, her gaze becoming determined. "That is the first movie where we play the lead roles. I will take it seriously."
Meanwhile, back at the ranch.
"Good morning, Chatot."
Yawning with squinted eyes, Natsuki opened the window.
A cool morning breeze blew into the room, making Natsuki shiver and instantly waking him up.
"Cha-tot~"
Chatot pecked at his arm with his beak, urging him to set out quickly. If they went late, the mushrooms growing in the forest would be picked clean by other Pokémon.
"Right away, right away!" Natsuki patted his head to soothe him, since they had agreed on this yesterday.
On the eve of the Sandgem Festival, mushroom prices were at their yearly peak. He had to earn what he could while he could.
Once the weather turned hot, the mushrooms would stop growing. Then, he wouldn't be able to make this money even if he wanted to.
Chatot led him through the back mountains. Every so often, they would encounter groups of wild Pokémon.
From a distance, they would greet Chatot, and some bird Pokémon would even bring food they had worked hard to find and present it to him.
Even more extreme were some female birds, who refused to leave Chatot's side.
Natsuki even witnessed this scene: Chatot landed on a branch to rest, and before he had even steadied himself, several Fletchling approached, using their beaks to groom Chatot's feathers and nuzzling against him.
And Chatot?
He looked annoyed and cold, letting out loud cries to drive the Fletchling away.
Instead of working, the Fletchling just looked at him with little stars in their eyes.
"When did Chatot become so popular? He's turned into a total chick magnet. He's like the Casanova of the bird world."
Natsuki quickly guessed the reason. The change that occurred overnight could only be the effect of the [Century Soup - Savory.]
The final part of the description stated clearly: Unique exclusive enhancements based on the Pokémon itself. Looking at it now, the enhancement Chatot received was likely in the "Charisma" department.
Well... it fits Chatot's showy personality perfectly.
'So, what kind of enhancements did the other Pokémon get?'
With the help of a flock of bird Pokémon, the basket was filled in just ten minutes, and they had to return. Natsuki took Chatot straight to Route 12.
Galio was fast, and the Shipping Bin was already built. The front of the bin was printed with a ranch icon, his name, and his contact info.
He greeted the Ding Zhi couple over the fence, who were busy shearing their Skiddo. After the winter, the Skiddo's fur was long and thick, and it was time for a trim.
After placing the goods in the Shipping Bin, Natsuki returned to the ranch. The flock of bird Pokémon that had followed him the whole way stopped at the gate, afraid to approach.
Kangaskhan stared them down with a dangerous glint in her eyes, making them remember the fear of being dominated by a giant monster.
They helplessly scattered.
"You're quite popular, Chatot! See anyone you like?" Natsuki teased, watching the flock of birds leave reluctantly, looking back with every step.
"Gah~"
Chatot tilted his head back and let out a cry before flapping his wings and flying into the Berry field.
The early bird gets the fattest worms, as they say.
On his way, he didn't forget to chirp a greeting to the Mudbray at work.
"Boss, did you get taller?"
"Kangas!"
Kangaskhan looked down at herself.
'It seems so! Natsuki, you've become tiny.'
Natsuki stood at 182cm, which used to put his head level with Kangaskhan's chest. Now, standing together, Natsuki only reached slightly above her thigh.
Kangaskhan hadn't just grown a little, it was a massive growth spurt. Unsurprisingly, this was also the effect of the [Century Soup - Savory.]
More than that, however, Natsuki was concerned about her health.
"Do you feel any discomfort, Boss?"
Kangaskhan shook her head, then nodded. She walked over to a massive boulder and threw a plain, ordinary punch at it.
BOOM!
The entire boulder shattered into pieces, rubble flying everywhere and scattering across the ground.
"Mega Punch? No, wait..."
From the look of it, Kangaskhan hadn't used much strength at all, she had merely swung her fist.
Yet the resulting power was no less than that of a Mega Punch.
"Kangas-lon~"
Kangaskhan returned to Natsuki's side looking quite dejected, indicating that her strength had suddenly become so great that she couldn't control it.
When she got out of bed this morning, the bed collapsed.
"Uh..." A series of black lines appeared on Natsuki's forehead.
He had wondered why Kangaskhan hadn't rushed over to hug him as usual, it turned out she was afraid of hurting him.
'And what do you mean the bed collapsed AGAIN?! Why did you say "again"?'
At this point, Natsuki comforted Kangaskhan. If the bed was broken, so be it— one could still sleep on it.
The important thing now was for Kangaskhan to learn to control her surging power. After thinking for a moment, Natsuki led her to the lakeside.
He told her to punch toward the water, using the resulting splashes to water the plants. Success would be defined as when she could retract and release her power at will.
With Kangaskhan's case as a precedent, Natsuki couldn't help but worry about the changes in the Mudbray and Minccino.
Minccino's physical changes were neither big nor small, she now emitted different scents based on her emotional state.
It was one thing for her body to be soft and fragrant, but now she had the scent of cream. Who could resist that?
Natsuki certainly couldn't, he picked her up and took several deep whiffs. A little "cake" like her was born to be adored by her Trainer.
As for the Mudbray, they seemed to have reached a state of "three-becomes-one."
Can you imagine the sight of three Mudbray using High Horsepower to charge toward you? It was like three heavy-duty trucks driving side-by-side, the mere sight of it was terrifying.
Furthermore, there was a triple probability of a one-shot Fissure, and a triple-range Sandstorm coverage.
Most importantly, the triple-stacked effect of the Rototiller move accelerated crop growth even further.
Aside from Kangaskhan, everyone's new abilities were free of side effects. Poor Kangaskhan— in order to be able to hug Natsuki again, she squatted lonely by the lake, punching the water with a never-ending "bang-bang" sound.
Fortunately, aside from a few Magikarp that can be found anywhere, there were no other Pokémon in the lake. Those Magikarp were having a rough time.
Just as Kangaskhan had thrown an unknown number of punches and the Magikarp were dizzy from the shockwaves, one Magikarp had an awakening.
An evolutionary light glowed on its body.
SLAP!
A loud slapping sound echoed across the ranch.
The newly evolved Gyarados, clutching a massive lump on its head with its tail, fled in a panic, disappearing into the sea in a flash.
'Scary, scary! An angry mother monster is terrifying!'