Pokémon: The Cheating Life

Chapter 37: Martial Arts Training & Egg Hatching

"Greninja, Dark Pulse!"

Ron clenched his fists as his Bond-Form Greninja gathered a sphere of dark energy in its hands and fired it toward Mewtwo.

Mewtwo didn't flinch. It merely raised its hand, forming an Aura Sphere that shattered the Dark Pulse and sent Greninja flying, knocking it out instantly.

"The battle is over. Mewtwo wins," Lillie announced from the sidelines.

Ron collapsed onto the ground, gasping for breath. Using Greninja's Bond Phenomenon took an enormous toll on his stamina.

At his current fitness level, Bond Evolution was more of a burden than a trump card.

"System, is there any quick way to increase my stamina and strength?" Ron groaned.

"And don't tell me to use attribute points—I'm saving my diamonds to upgrade my Pokémon's potential."

"Ding! The shop has been updated. You can now purchase items with popularity points."

Ron opened the shop and discovered a new section called the Popularity Points Store.

Skimming through the items, he found a bunch of mystical techniques from different anime:

Eight Gates (Naruto): Enhances physical capabilities and temporarily boosts all attributes. Cost: 1,000,000 popularity points.

Assassination Techniques (Hunter x Hunter): Special techniques to increase agility, stealth, and striking power. Cost: 100,000 popularity points.

Rokushiki (Six Powers) (One Piece): Martial arts techniques designed to push the human body to its peak. Cost: 50,000 popularity points.

Ron's eyebrows twitched.

"System, how the hell do you have abilities from other anime?"

"Ding! These are physical training techniques derived from your memories, but they are not the original versions—only modified versions suitable for real-world training."

Ron's veins bulged in frustration.

"Then why the hell did you name them after the originals? You could've just called them basic training techniques!"

"Ding! The names sound cooler."

Ron facepalmed.

He didn't have the energy to argue, so he simply bought Rokushiki for 50,000 popularity points—a painfully expensive purchase.

Originally, he had planned to unlock the "Max Speed EV" cheat, but thanks to this scam, his plans were delayed.

At least his training techniques now included some quick stamina recovery tricks, giving him more time to build endurance.

Trying to calm himself, Ron started jogging along the beach.

His Pokémon, mistaking this for extra training, eagerly joined in.

Lillie, watching this, shook her head, not sure what had gotten into him. Instead, she took over his fishing spot and began casting her Super Rod into the sea.

---

Midday Training & A Surprise Hatch

Ron continued his physical training, but another thought crossed his mind.

He still had a Z-Ring in his inventory.

Z-Moves required not only precise coordination with the Pokémon but also a large amount of stamina from the trainer.

However, without Z-Crystals, the Z-Ring was just a fancy accessory.

One day, he planned to travel to Alola to challenge the Totem Pokémon and collect Z-Crystals, but with the Pokémon League tournament approaching, there was no time.

Instead, he decided to go after the Z-Crystals after the League, since Lillie also planned to return to Alola.

For now, training was the priority.

---

At lunchtime, the group returned to the villa, preparing to eat—

Until Chansey came running frantically, carrying a Pokémon Egg that was glowing white.

"The egg is hatching!"

Ron quickly took the egg, his heart pounding.

This wasn't just any egg—it was the perfect IV pseudo-legendary egg he had received as a mission reward from the system.

He had been carrying this mystery egg for a long time, waiting for it to hatch.

And now, just before the League, it was finally happening.

Lillie curiously leaned in, eager to see what Pokémon would hatch.

As the white glow intensified, a small green Pokémon emerged from the light.

Ron stared at it in shock.

"A Larvitar…?!"

The little Larvitar looked up at him, blinking its red eyes before giving a happy cry.

Ron lifted the heavy Pokémon into his arms, quickly realizing the problem.

"Damn… this thing is heavy."

He suddenly remembered how easily Ash lifted his Larvitar in the anime.

"How the hell did Ash carry this thing so easily?!"

---

Pokédex Entry

Pokémon: Larvitar

Level: 1

Gender: Male

Height: 60 cm

Weight: 72 kg

Ability: Guts

---

A healthy Larvitar, and with proper training, it would eventually become a Tyranitar—King of Sandstorms.

Ron smiled and rubbed Larvitar's head, feeling its tough little spikes.

He already had a Tyranitarite, meaning Larvitar could eventually Mega Evolve.

Perhaps it could debut at the Silver Conference after the Indigo League!

Excited, Larvitar jumped out of Ron's arms and rolled around in the sand, instinctively stirring up a sandstorm.

However—

Mewtwo effortlessly suppressed the storm with its Psychic powers.

Ron's eyebrows twitched.

Even as a baby, Larvitar had already learned Sandstorm?!

As expected of a system-rewarded Pokémon—this little guy was ridiculously gifted.

---

A Big Appetite & A Bigger Problem

Ron carried Larvitar back inside, realizing he needed to prepare food for the little one.

Unlike other Pokémon, Larvitar didn't eat berries or standard Pokémon food—

It ate soil.

And not just any soil—it had to eat an entire mountain's worth of dirt to evolve into Pupitar.

As Ron pondered this massive dietary requirement, the system suddenly chimed in.

"Ding! Nutritious, energy-rich soil is now available in the shop for just 100 gold per pound!"

Ron's face darkened.

"…Wait. You're telling me I have to buy dirt now?!"

Sure enough, in the shop, there was a special type of soil that claimed to accelerate plant growth and aid the development of Pokémon that consume earth-based minerals.

Ron sighed.

Forget eating dirt—this stuff was expensive!

Still, Larvitar needed it.

Grumbling, Ron spent 10,000 gold to purchase 100 pounds of soil and had the system place it on the villa's second-floor terrace.

From now on, Larvitar could eat whenever it wanted.

At the same time, Ron also had the system enrich the garden with some of the soil, hoping to help plant life grow faster.

Ron leaned back, sighing.

Life was good—but damn, raising a Larvitar was going to be expensive.