Chapter 348: Distributing the Treasures — S+ Grade Treasure
On the Orange Archipelago—
Watching Latias float down carrying the wooden box,
Hikaru smiled and patted its head.
"Nice job~"
(●'?'●)っ: "Mmm~" (Hehe…)
Latias leaned affectionately against Hikaru's hand,
then gently placed the box down.
"You're amazing, Latias!"
Sakura happily rushed up to rub Latias's face.
Meanwhile, the two senior sisters, Hayashi Mei and Lili,
stared at Latias in utter shock.
Earlier, if they hadn't miscounted,
there had been at least dozens of Pokémon patrolling the surrounding area...
Yet even under such intense scrutiny,
Latias had managed to retrieve the treasure without a scratch.
"So...so powerful..."
Lili, usually outgoing and lively,
couldn't help but part her red lips slightly in awe.
The earlier scene where Latias defeated five Master-level Pokémon had already stunned her.
But now, under the watchful eyes of dozens of Pokémon,
Latias had silently snatched the treasure.
This kind of Pokémon, that could both fight and sneak...
She couldn't help but envy it a little.
Hayashi Mei sighed softly beside her:
"Looks like with this, junior brother Hikaru will definitely achieve a great result in his first Youth League appearance."
With Latias alone, Hikaru could easily take down two of an opponent's Pokémon.
And his remaining Pokémon—
Gardevoir, Greninja, Charizard—
just the ones she knew of were already at Master-level strength!
Such a lineup, even in the main tournament,
could easily break into the Top 16.
And this was his first Youth League!
Hikaru simply smiled,
"I'll borrow senior sister's good luck."
Then quickly changed the subject:
"Let's check out what's inside this box!"
Saying so, Hikaru used a small knife he carried to slice open the twine securing the box.
Layer by layer, he opened it carefully.
Although he could have just scanned it with Aura,
he preferred the excitement of manually unboxing it.
As the box slowly opened,
a wave of moist, aquatic energy spilled out.
Clearly—
a Water-type treasure.
Everyone leaned in.
Inside,
rested a small, flowing crystal,
polished smooth like a piece of ancient coral.
[S+ Grade Treasure — Glazed Coral]
[Washed by ocean currents over hundreds of years, containing rich Water-type energy.
When equipped by Water-type Pokémon, it boosts their energy strength by 15% (Elite Four) — 50% (Gym Leader).
Can be recharged by soaking in seawater.]
An S+ grade Water-type treasure.
In the Orange Archipelago,
where Water Pokémon dominated,
this was an extremely critical find.
"This quality... easily a high-tier S-grade Water treasure!"
Lili exclaimed, gently touching the glazed coral.
For the first Skyfall Treasure of the tournament,
this was a very good prize.
Seeing this, Hikaru suddenly thought of something.
He pulled out the Phoenix Tree Leaf he had obtained earlier—
an A-grade treasure for Fire-types.
A team, if it wanted to stay harmonious,
couldn't allow unfairness to fester.
They had two valuable treasures now.
And moving forward,
he was confident they'd gather even more.
If he didn't address distribution early,
it would definitely cause tension later.
Especially since—
this was being livestreamed to the whole country.
Unbeknownst to Hikaru,
this small decision alone would later spark another wave of heated praise in the livestream:
[Wow… such a good team leader...]
[Selfless! This is how a captain should be!]
[So considerate!]
[Gift him all the rockets!!!]
Wealthy fans had already started massive "rocket wars" in the donation tab.
"...Huh?"
Seeing Hikaru's sincere smile,
Lili hesitated awkwardly.
"This... isn't it a bit too much?"
She was from a fairly well-off family,
otherwise she wouldn't have reached Master rank so young.
But compared to the enormous Hayashi family,
she was still far behind.
A Fire-type A-grade treasure like the Phoenix Tree Leaf,
on the market, would cost millions at least—
and even then, it often couldn't be bought easily!
Yet Hikaru handed it over so casually?
In ordinary circumstances,
Lili would never have dared accept such an expensive gift without strings attached.
But here—
they were teammates.
And strictly speaking,
Hikaru was right:
in this group, she was the only one currently fielding a Fire-type Pokémon.
Seeing her hesitating, Hikaru said lightly:
"There are still six days left.
Who knows?
Maybe your Blaziken, with the Phoenix Leaf, will play a crucial role."
"So just take it."
Hearing this,
Lili finally smiled brightly.
"Alright then!
Since junior brother is so generous,
senior sister won't stand on ceremony!
If you ever need help, just say the word!"
She took the Phoenix Tree Leaf and immediately summoned her Blaziken.
"Cha-mo!"
The alliance had thoughtfully equipped the treasure with a special strap,
making it easy to secure around Blaziken's neck and conceal within its plumage.
As soon as it wore it,
its internal fire energy visibly surged.
"Then... I'll keep the Glazed Coral?"
Hikaru asked while holding up the S+ treasure.
Naturally, neither Hayashi Mei nor Lili objected.
But Sakura did!
She immediately stretched out her hand with a serious face:
"I'll help you keep it safe!"
"..."
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