B&W008: Listening to Pokémon

Listening to Pokémon (VSオタマロ) is the 4th chapter of Pokémon Adventures: Volume 44.

Synopsis
The mysterious teenager continues to battle Black while talking about PokéDexes and PokéBalls. Can Black prove that he and his Pokémon have a bond with eachother without the ability to hear their voices?

Chapter Plot
During the confrontation with Black and the teenager, the teenager has a flashback. Ghetsis commencing the ceremony for the king of Team Plasma. Each Seven Sage finishes eachothers comments that this is the start of their mission and that it’s time to welcome him to the throne. The teenager walking down turns out to be the teenager battling Black, who has two women beside him side. Ghetsis crowns him, revealing his name being N, and tells everyone their mission to liberate Pokémon shall be fulfilled.

Back in the present, Black pulls his arm away from N. He questions who he is and thinks the PokéDex and PokéBalls hurt Pokémon. He answers that he does, also telling if a trainer only collects Pokémon for the PokéDex, they are imprisoning Pokémon in PokéBalls for nothing and that he should admit Black is also doing the same. Black throws a huff. At the edge of a building wall, White finds out the name of the device. N explains to Black that he’s a trainer too but wonders if Pokémon are happy being inside PokéBalls. He questions how Black could hear his Pokémon’s voices they are in their PokéBalls. He introduces himself to Black. He tells Black to let him hear his Pokémon’s voices before they go back into their PokéBalls. Purrloin attacks and badly damages Musha.

Black thinks what N is saying are other words for a battle and tells him he should’ve just said it in the first place. He tells N that he’s always up for a battle to train for the Pokémon League and that he’s tired of listening to N about the PokéDex and PokéBalls. Black tells Musha to use Psychic on Purrloin, sending it flying. He tells him to use it again but Purrloin dodges it and leaps onto a wall. Purrloin heads straight towards Musha and attacks it, making Musha faint. Black tells White if the worst comes, she’ll have to battle, shocking White. She tells him she can’t. Black goes frantic, telling her that if he has no Pokémon and he keeps attacking, she should prepare to defend herself. She tries to tell him but out of nowhere, Purrloin suddenly strikes Gigi, to the horror of White.

White shouts at Purrloin on how it could do such a thing with it being a star. Black shouts at her, telling her to use attacks at it with Gigi. She shouts back that she’s never battle before, shocking Black. He comments about Sandile, Lillipup and Woobat. She argues back that they are all actors and they are represented by the agency. Like them, Gigi isn’t her Pokémon too. She also shouts that just wants to raise a Pokémon to be a star and has never considered herself a trainer. From behind Black, N commands Tympole to use Echoed Voice on Tep. Black looks up what attack it was. N comments that he’s using it again and he’s dependent on it too. He also tells that he doesn’t need it, all he needs to do is listen to his Pokémon’s voices. He voices that he’s listening to Tympole and Black’s Pokémon, so he knows when and what moves to use. Instead of looking up in a PokéDex and by listening to his Pokémon, he tells Black that he’ll never defeat him.

He points out that Black’s Pokémon are suffering because their voices aren’t reaching their trainer. To add to it, he says that Black doesn’t want listen since he wants to use them for his own selfish needs. He shouts while crying that Pokémon will never be happy with humans. Black tells him to shut up. He tells N that he really thinks he’s going to believe what he’s telling, to which he says that that isn’t going to happen. He tells that they are all working towards their goal and have a connection with eachother through their feelings. As he calls for them to agree, he sees that Galvantula also agrees. He asks Galvantula if he wants to be on his team, to which it agrees. Black holds Galvantula leg and tells N how he could miss this. He also tells that N can see with his own eyes that these Pokémon want to be with their trainer. He explains that the use of the PokéDex is to learn more about Pokémon because trainers like them so much. He goes on to say that it was invented to learn more about Pokémon, a professor entrusted him with it and he is proud of it. He tells that he is right that he can’t hear the voices of Pokémon but that is the reason why trainers have PokéBalls and PokéDex to understand them.

Black orders Tep to show what they have got and prove that they can communicate without words. Tympole uses Water Gun. Tep manages to withstand the attack and attacks Tympole, sending Tympole towards N but making Tep fall from exhaustion from the attack. N slumps towards a wall. As Black calls Tep, N tells Black that he was able to hear Tep’s voice and has never imagined a Pokémon feeling that way. He tells his Pokémon it’s time to leave. Black calls for him but N talks to himself that he has come across another puzzle he cannot solve. Black notices that even though N’s Pokémon have fainted, he won’t use a PokéBall.

Black notices his Pokémon are in a bad shape so he gives them Oran berries, potions and puts them back in their PokéBalls. White questions if Black noticed what N was saying were awfully similar to Team Plasma. She suggests that maybe he is a part of Team Plasma but Black casts doubt on it saying he doesn’t know. White talks how horrible they are, making stupid speeches and attacking innocent people. Black tells her that he’s sure that N isn’t all bad, to the shock of White. He explains that when Tep was knocked out, he fell near Musha who ate some of N’s dream. He expelled the dream out of its nose in a mist. It showed a small N with his Pokémon in a peaceful dream in simpler time and place. He firmly says that even though N sees things differently, he’s still a good guy.

Characters

 * Anthea and Concordia