I’m the Owner of the Pokémon Day Care In the World of Pokémon

The Malamar never got the chance to meet Vivillon alone and had to bury its unspeakable thoughts deep in its heart.

Unbeknownst to Yuga, Vivillon was secretly striving to break through its limits. Meanwhile, Anmu and Anlin, the two brothers, stayed at Yoyo Day Care for about a week before bidding farewell to Yuga and continuing their journey.

After the brothers left, the entire Yoyo Day Care seemed to suddenly fall silent. Shoryu wasn't too happy, and even Yuga felt a bit out of sorts.

The day after Anmu and Anlin's departure, representatives from the Distribution Department arrived at Yoyo Day Care, bringing the reward previously promised by the Unova League.

The Unova League was very adept at catering to interests. They had the Distribution Department deliver a box to Yuga. When the box was opened, it revealed thirty Poké Balls neatly arranged inside. Each Poké Ball contained a Pokémon: ten Snivy, ten Tepig, and ten Oshawott, all of them have green potential.

As Yuga expected, the Unova League did not agree to give him the machine he had requested. Their researchers were equally intrigued by it.

Prepared for this outcome, Yuga wasn't particularly disappointed. He accepted the box of Poké Balls and thanked the members of the Distribution Department for their efforts.

That the Unova League was willing to send thirty starter Pokémon at once already surprised Yuga.

After the Distribution Department staff left, Yuga carried the box to the Ecopark.

He immediately placed the ten Snivy in the Flower Sea Sub-Ecopark, where three Serperior—veterans of the Ecopark—resided. They were perfect caretakers for the Snivy.

These ten Snivy were proud and aloof, traits typical of their species, valuing dignity above all else. Yet, in the presence of the mature Serperior, they were all exceptionally well-behaved.

As for the Tepig, they were sent to the Volcano Sub-Ecopark.

The ten Tepig were lively and adorable, with personalities ranging from playful to docile. Unlike the Snivy, they were much easier to manage. Yuga left them under the care of Typhlosion.

The Volcano Sub-Ecopark housed several Typhlosion, most of whom were partnered with Ninetales or Houndoom. One exception was the Typhlosion that had been captured alongside Yuga's Charizard.

This particular Typhlosion had been a subordinate of Charizard's mother. After arriving at the Ecopark, it had continued to help Yuga care for the Cyndaquil. Even as the Cyndaquil matured, found partners, and had offspring, it remained single.

Yuga had tried to find a partner for it, but it turned down every match. Instead, it continued helping the other Typhlosion care for their children, whether they were Cyndaquil, Vulpix, or Houndour. It excelled in this role and seemed happy.

Over time, Yuga stopped trying to pair it up. As long as it was content, that was what mattered.

With Typhlosion's help, the leaders of the Volcano Sub-Ecopark, Ninetales and Houndoom, had much less to worry about. As the number of Pokémon in the Ecopark grew, their responsibilities had also significantly increased.

Typhlosion welcomed the ten Tepig warmly and assured Yuga it would take good care of them.

After settling the Tepig, Yuga brought the ten Oshawott to the Shallow Beach Sub-Ecopark.

He decided to place the Oshawott with the twenty-one Wooper already living there. Since both groups were in their initial stages of development, keeping them together made management easier.

Currently, the twenty-one Wooper were under the care of five Feraligatr, a responsibility assigned to them by Gyarados and Milotic.

These five Feraligatr had only recently evolved and were still young. Not in any hurry to find partners, they had too much energy to burn and tended to cause trouble when idle.

To channel their excessive energy, Gyarados and Milotic, as managers of Island No. 1's Heart Lake, specifically assigned them this role to "temper their disposition."

Although the Feraligatr weren't particularly patient, the Wooper were obedient and docile, always following instructions. This made managing them relatively easy, and so far, the Feraligatr were doing a good job.

Yuga brought the ten Oshawott before the five Feraligatr and said, "These little ones are in your care now. Make sure to take good care of them. If anything happens, you'll be hearing from me!"

The Feraligatr were quite intimidated by Yuga's stern expression. While they often acted tough, they dared not display any attitude toward their "breadwinner."

Seeing how obedient the Feraligatr were, Yuga nodded in satisfaction. Then, he turned to the neatly lined-up Oshawott standing at his feet and said, "You all need to behave too. No causing trouble, understood?"

"Oshawott~ Oshawott~"

The ten Oshawott patted the shells on their bellies with a loud thump-thump, promising Yuga that they would be on their best behavior. Their shells echoed noisily as if they were trying extra hard to prove their sincerity.

The Feraligatr, looking at the Oshawott with their big, watery eyes, nodded approvingly. They thought to themselves, "These new little siblings seem well-mannered—good, good!"

Yuga was equally satisfied with the Oshawott's response. He nodded and said, "Excellent. Now take some time to get familiar with the place. I'll leave you to it."

With that, Yuga left the Shallow Beach Sub-Ecopark.

"Oshawott~"

As soon as Yuga departed, the Oshawott exchanged glances, and then suddenly burst into cheers. They scattered in all directions, like unleashed, overly excited Huskies.

The five Feraligatr were utterly stunned by the sudden commotion.

"What...what is this?"

Thump thump.

One Oshawott ran up to a Wooper, knocked on its round head with its tiny fist, and darted away before the slow-reacting Wooper could even turn to look.

Another Oshawott spotted a Slowpoke spacing out by the shore. It waved a paw in front of the Slowpoke's face, and when it got no reaction, it poked the Slowpoke's nose.

The Slowpoke, late to process the sensation, sneezed in response, sending the Oshawott into fits of laughter. Amused, the Oshawott even plucked a piece of waterweed from the shore to tickle the Slowpoke's nose, causing the poor Slowpoke to sneeze continuously.

Yet another Oshawott dove into the water and stumbled upon a Feebas drifting aimlessly. Finding it amusing, the Oshawott grabbed the Feebas and dragged it onto the shore.

...

And so, all ten Oshawott displayed their mischievousness in their own unique ways. Not a single one of them behaved themselves.

The Feraligatr were left dumbfounded as they watched the Oshawott wreak havoc everywhere.

Meanwhile, down at the lakebed, Milotic and Gyarados, who were taking a nap, opened their eyes briefly upon hearing the commotion above. They exchanged a glance, then simply closed their eyes and went back to sleep.

Finally snapping out of their daze, the Feraligatr began chasing after the Oshawott in anger, intent on catching them and giving them a stern lesson.

However, the Oshawott were small and agile, leaping around with great ease. The Feraligatr couldn't keep up and only made the chaos at the Lake Heart Island even worse.

That same day, Azumarill and Granbull had arranged to meet in the woods of Heart Lake Island. Ever since their first meeting, the two of them had gradually grown closer.

Azumarill had developed quite a fondness for Granbull and was considering confessing its feelings during this meeting. If all went well, it thought, it might finally have a partner.

Granbull arrived as promised, bringing with it a freshly harvested Nimora Chesto Fruit it had been allocated not long ago.

The Nimora Chesto trees had been brought back by Yuga from Fortree City. Since these trees were notoriously difficult to cultivate, Yuga had planted them more as an experiment than with high hopes. Unexpectedly, they had thrived.

However, the trees were still relatively small, and their yield of Nimora Chesto Fruit was limited. Given how delicious the fruit were, every Pokémon in the Ecopark could only be allocated a small share.

Azumarill had devoured its portion as soon as it was distributed. It hadn't expected Granbull to save its share and bring it as a gift, which filled Azumarill with delight.

In truth, Granbull harbored feelings for Azumarill as well. When it first came to the Ecopark, it didn't know many Pokémon. Its intimidating appearance meant few others were willing to interact with it. It was Azumarill who had helped it integrate into life here.

Accepting the Nimora Chesto Fruit that Granbull handed over, Azumarill felt a sweet warmth in its heart. It thought, If I confess now, I'll surely succeed, right?

Azumarill glanced at Granbull and found it looking at it too. The usually brash and bold "chuunibyou" girl felt herself becoming shy for once.

A subtle, amorous atmosphere blossomed between them.

Just as Azumarill was about to say something, a shell unexpectedly came flying out of nowhere, cutting the Nimora Chesto Fruit in its hands cleanly in half.

The romantic mood instantly evaporated.

Who did that?!

Azumarill turned angrily to look and saw the spinning shell land in the hands of an Oshawott. Behind the Oshawott was an irate Feraligatr in hot pursuit.

"Oshawott~ Oshawott~"

The Oshawott stuck its tongue out at Feraligatr before slapping the shell onto its belly and running off.

Azumarill felt like she was about to explode.

"Wait here for a bit. I'll be right back," Azumarill said to Granbull with a sudden smile.

"Uh… okay…" For some reason, Granbull felt an icy chill run down its spine.

After speaking, Azumarill disappeared into the forest. She passed through the trees and arrived at the lakeside, which was in utter chaos.

The ten Oshawott were leaping around wildly. Azumarill couldn't even tell which one had split her Nimora Chesto Fruit.

But that no longer mattered. She found all ten Oshawott infuriating.

These must be the 'problem children' Yuga once mentioned, she thought.

And problem children, of course, needed "discipline."

Just then, one of the Oshawott being chased by a Feraligatr dashed past her. Azumarill's sharp eyes and quick reflexes allowed her to grab the Oshawott by the scruff of its neck.

"Oshawott?" The Oshawott froze for a moment, then started struggling violently when it realized it had been caught. "Oshawott! Oshawott!"

But Azumarill was in no mood to let it go. Not only did she not release it, she tightened her grip around the Oshawott's neck.

The Oshawott's cries abruptly ceased.

The Feraligatr chasing it instinctively stopped in its tracks, an overwhelming sense of foreboding telling it not to get any closer.

The captured Oshawott's friends stopped their antics when they saw their comrade had been caught.

"Azumarill~!"

All of you, come here now!

Azumarill's voice was chilling.

Hearing her tone, the nine other Oshawott shivered uncontrollably, especially the one who had sliced her Nimora Chesto Fruit—it was trembling the most.

But as they processed the situation, the Oshawott thought, Wait, why am I afraid?

Realizing this, they each brandished their Razor Shells and charged at Azumarill, determined to rescue their friend.

Ah, the fearlessness of youth!

Smack!

The first Oshawott to attack was slapped unconscious by Azumarill in one hit.

The gap in strength between Azumarill and these young Oshawott was significant. On top of that, Azumarill had the Huge Power ability, and her anger caused her to use full force. There was no way the Oshawott could withstand her strikes.

Smack!

Another slap, and the second Oshawott was down.

Smack!

The third Oshawott followed.

After three were knocked out in quick succession, the remaining ones finally became scared. They halted, retreating quietly, hoping to escape Azumarill's wrath.

But would Azumarill allow that?

The Oshawott soon realized their feet were bound by Water Whips, all of which were controlled by Azumarill using her Water Sport skill.

Having spent so much time at YoYo Day Care, Azumarill, a Pokémon with a blue potential, had naturally improved her skills. Manipulating water energy with Water Sport was something she had learned here.

"Oshawott!"

"Oshawott!"

One after another, the Oshawott cried out in pain as Azumarill knocked them unconscious.

Still unsatisfied, Azumarill found a vine somewhere and tied up all ten Oshawott. Then, dragging them along, she marched back into the woods.

Back at the meeting spot, Granbull, waiting patiently, saw Azumarill return with a string of unconscious Oshawott in tow.

Before he could say a word, Azumarill gave the vine a flick, tossing the Oshawott into a tree and hanging them upside down like skewered candied fruit.

After securing the other end of the vine to the tree trunk, Azumarill smiled and sat down beside Granbull. "Just had to handle something. Thanks for waiting."

Granbull glanced at the dangling, unconscious Oshawott and wisely chose not to ask questions.

While Azumarill and Granbull chatted, the Oshawott gradually regained consciousness. However, any time they showed the slightest intention of escaping, Azumarill's Water Whip would "discipline" them severely.

Yuga soon learned about the Oshawott's disruption at the island's central lake.

He hadn't expected them to disobey him so openly. However, upon hearing that they'd fallen into Azumarill's hands, instead of being angry, he suggested that Azumarill take over their "education" from now on.

Normally, Azumarill wouldn't have accepted such a task, but today, the Oshawott had ruined her big moment. She wasn't about to forget it, so she agreed to Yuga's suggestion.

From that day forward, the Oshawott entered a life of strict discipline and endless training under Azumarill's watchful eye.