Thinking of this, Dragonite shook its head firmly. It wao stay—live with Naoki! But before that, Dragonite hoped Naoki could apany it tonite Isnd.

  It wao show off the moves it had learned in front of the group oo tell them that it had bee the most powerful Dragonite among them, and to let them envy it!

  Dragonite looked serious and tugged at Naoki's arm with its big, round cws.

  "Awoo!"

  "What's wrong?" Naoki asked, initially not uanding. It took him a moment to realize that Dragonite wao take him somewhere.

  Unfortunately, since Dragonite couldn't speak, they couldn't unicate directly. After trying for a while to get its point across, Dragonite saw that Naoki still didn't uand. It lowered its head with a frustrated and aggrieved expression, looking utterly pitiful.

  Naoki's heart softened, and he reached out to gently pat Dragonite's head. sidering Dragonite's earlier as, he guessed, "Do you wao go somewhere with you?"

  Hearing this, Dragonite's eyes lit up instantly. "Awoo!"

  'The pce where Dragonite wants to take me...' Naoki thought, feeling a surge of curiosity. His intuition told him that it wasn't Lake, nor the cliff where they first met.

  He recalled something he had read in a Pokédex entry about Dragonite's habits—how it would fly from the sea to the ke every evening, stay there ht, and then fly back to the sea in the early m. This meant that the pce Dragonite wao take him was most likely Dragonite Isnd, located out in the o, where many Dragonites lived.

  "Is it far from the ranch?" Naoki asked, aware of the responsibilities he had to take care of at home. 'I 't afford to be gone for too long,' he thought.

  "Awoo!" Dragonite shook its head. With its speed, they'd get there quickly.

  Seeing this, Naoki nodded in agreement. "Okay."

  Dragonite cheered, signaling that they could set ht away.

  Naoki looked up at the sky, estimating the time. 'It's still early,' he thought. 'We should be able to get back before dark.'

  But to avoid any issues, he prepared food in advance for all the Pokémon on the ranch. He told them that he was going out with Dragonite and that if they reture, they should go ahead a without waiting for him.

  All the Pokémon had no objes, except for Koraidon, who wao e along too.

  Naoki had no choice but t it with him.

  After settling everything at the ranaoki climbed onto Koraidon's back. Under Dragonite's lead, they left the rand began their jouronite Isnd.

  The two Pokémon gradually rose into the air, and the ranch below shrank into a small bck dot, eventually blending into the vast wilderness of the Paldea region.

  The wind whipped past his ears, the clear blue sky stretched endlessly above, and in the distahe endless Paldea Sea came into view.

  Both Pokémon moved swiftly, and after about ten mihey left Paldea and reached the o.

  Seeing the familiar surroundings, Dragonite happily called out to Naoki, "Awoo~" It began to danergetically, imitating the powerful and majestients of a mysterious Pokémon.

  Naoki watched, and suddenly a thought struck him. "Is this where you met the bon?"

  Dragonite nodded eagerly. "Awoo!"

  It looked up towards the higher dome of the sky, indig that the Pokémon had flown even higher, disappearing above the clouds.

  "Rayquaza inally lives imosphere," Naoki mused, gazing up at the sky and the mysterious expanse beyond. He spoke toh a touch of awe, "It's very rare for it to desd this low. You were incredibly lucky to have entered it."

  A pang ret hit him as he added, "If only I had e with you back then."

  'After all, that was a Shiny Rayquaza!' Naoki thought, feeling the weight of what he had missed. 'Just seeing it once would have made my jouro this world worthwhile.'

  Most people rarely get the ce to see a legendary Pokémon even on their lifetime.

  Seeing that Naoki was still captivated by the thought of Rayquaza, Dragoilted its head and asked with a curious "Awoo?" suggesting, 'Should we try to find it?'

  Naoki uood what Dragonite was implying and shook his head with a chuckle. "Fet it," he said. 'For Rayquaza, the emosphere of the p is its domain. It was in Paldea before, but now, who knows where it's flown off to? It could be oher side of the p by now.'

  As they tiheir flight, the Paldea region slowly disappeared from view, repced by the vast expanse of the blue o stretg endlessly in all dires. The tranquil sea occasionally gave way to white-capped waves, where groups of dolphins flew gracefully above, diving to catch schools of fish just beh the surface.

  On small, scattered isnds, the white sand gleamed in the sunlight, with ut trees swayily in the breeze. A few Chewtle poked their heads out from the beach, basking in the warm afternoon sun. Occasionally, a pyful Finizen would leap out of the water, spshing back down as it chased its panions.

  From his vantage point in the sky, Naoki marveled at the vibrant, teeming life below. 'These are Pokémon that are hard to find on nd,' he thought, gazing i the natural beauty spread out beh him.

  But the further they flew, the more it became clear—they were far from Paldea now.

  Time seemed to stret, and Naoki couldn't quite tell how long they had been flying. Just as he began to wonder if they were nearing their destination, a small isnd appeared on the horizon.

  The isnd was lush and vibrant, with thick vegetation c most of its surface. From a distahe entire isnd seemed like a green gem set in the blue o, with dense foliage f a ring around the isnd's ter. Uhe bright sunlight, the isnd radiated life and energy.

  Dragonite's eyes lit up at the sight, and it excitedly called out, "Awoo!"

  Naoki raised an eyebrnizing Dragonite's excitement. "Is that where you used to live?"

  "Ouch!" Dragonite nodded, its eyes sparkling with nostalgia.

  Naoki smiled and didn't ask any more questions. As they heir destination, Dragonite and Koraidon began to desd, flying closer to the o's surface before nding on a steep cliff. The waves crashed rhythmically against the rocky outcrop below as Naoki dismounted from Koraidon.

  "Ouch~" Dragonite hummed happily. Being back where it had grown up filled it with joy, and it eagerly took the lead, guiding Naoki and Koraidon through the isnd's dense vegetation.

  Naoki and Koraidon followed, their eyes wide with curiosity as they took in the isnd's unique enviro. The pnts here were incredibly lush, with tall grass and robust trees. Yellow and white wildflowers dotted the forest floor, and the branches of the trees sagged uhe weight of ripe, colorful fruit.

  'Iing,' Naoki thought, paring the se to the Dragon's Den in Bckthorn City, ba the Johtion. 'That pce ecial too, covered in flowers and trees that bloomed year-round. They said it was due to the influence of the dragon-type Pokémon living there.'

  If this was Dragonite's homend, then surely there were other Dragonite here as well. 'Could it be that the Dragonites presence here is what makes the vegetation so abundant?' Naoki wondered, his curiosity piqued.

  He paused beh a rge tree, its brahick with leaves, and reached out to pie of the rge leaves. But before he could, a small figure suddenly darted out from behind the leaf.

  "Ah!" Naoki yelped in surprise, losing his band falling backward onto the soft grass.

  Hearing the otion, Koraidon and Dragonite quickly turned around and spotted a small, snake-like Pokémon covered in light blue scales with a bright white belly. The Pokémon poked its head out from behind the leaves, curiously the unfamiliar human. It had a pair of big blue eyes, a white bump on its forehead that would eventually bee a horn, and white fins oher side of its head. Its rge, round, white nose made it look more endearing than intimidating, despite its serpentine body.

  Koraidon came over and helped Naoki to his feet. Naoki looked at the small Pokémon and couldn't help but feel relieved. "It's a Dratini!" he excimed.

  For a moment, he had feared it might have been a poisonous snake hiding iree.

  Dragonite, reizing the Dratini, ran over a out a couple of reassuring roars. However, the Dratini immediately looked like it was on the verge of tears.

  Naoki raised an eyebrow. "Why are you being so mean to it?"

  Dragonite shook its head, looking i. "Awoo…" it grumbled softly.

  Dragonite wasn't being aggressive—it was simply worried about the little Dratini's safety. Dratini are at their most vulnerable stage, and during this time, they are usually protected by older Dragonite and Dragonair in the group. These older Pokémon watch over them until they evolve.

  On this isnd, all the Dratini typically live in the ke at the ter of the isnd, and they're not supposed to leave without adult supervision.

  Realizing that Dragonite wasn't being mean, Naoki stood back, watg the iioweewo Pokémon. Dragonite seemed to scold Dratily, and the little dragon followed it like a child caught doing something wrong.

  The group tio move forward, with Dragonite leading the way. After passing through the dense circur forest, they arrived at the ter of the isnd.

  Naoki's eyes widened in amazement as a vast ke suddenly came into view.

  The sight left him pletely stunned. "Wow, there are so many Dragonite!"

  The ke was teeming with Dratini and Dragonair, swimming about freely. On the grassy banks of the ke, numerous Dragohered in small groups, some sitting, some standing, and others lying down in the sun, sleeping soundly.

  Some of the Dragonite had stern, almost intimidating expressions—remi of the fierce Dragohat once beloo Cir in the ahers had gentle, serene expressions, watg the Dratini in the ke with warm, protective eyes.

  Naoki's gaze caught on something special in the ke—a Dratini with a pink body, standing out among the others. 'That's a shiny Dratini!' he thought, his heart swelling with excitement. 'It's so pink and cute!'

  At that moment, the group's arrival attracted the attention of the entire Dragonite . They all paused, turning their gaze towards the newers. Naoki watched as his Dragonite fpped its wings and flew over to the group. It seemed to be speaking with them, and then, uhe watchful eyes of the gathered Dragonite, Dratini, and Dragonair they asded into the sky.

  Dragoook a deep breath, trating hard. Dark clouds began to gather in the once-clear sky, and soon, it started to rain. As the wind picked up, the rain intensified, f a fierce storm that swept across the isnd. Dragonite flew in circles withiorm, electricity crag around its body. With a loud rumble, a massive bolt of lightning struck down from the clouds, hitting the ground with immense power.

  The wild Dragonite by the ke stared in amazement. Some of them wideheir eyes, their faces dispying a very human-like shock.

  As the rain eased and the clouds cleared, revealing the bright sky once again, Dragonite nded proudly on the ground.

  At that moment, Naoki finally uood the purpose onite's return. 'It wao show off the moves it learned!' he realized.

  After Dragonite's impressive dispy, the young Dratini in the ke looked on with wide-eyed admiration. They had never seen such a powerful Dragonite before, and their awe was evident.

  At this moment, one of the wild Dragonite, clearly impressed yet defiant, stepped forward and challenged Naoki's Dragoo a battle.

  Dragonite blinked and then grinned, accepting the challenge eagerly.

  Both Dragoook to the skies, cirg each other uhe watchful eyes of the other Dragohe tension in the air alpable.

  The wild Dragonite made the first move. It opes mouth wide, and a swirl of purple energy began to gather, f a potent 'Drage' attack.

  Naoki immediately reized the move. 'So, how will my Dragonite respond?' he wondered, his gaze fixed on his Pokémon.

  But his Dragonite didn't panistead, it fpped its wings forcefully, accelerating with blinding speed to unch a preemptive strike. In a fsh, it closed the gap and smmed into the wild Dragonite before it could unleash its 'Drage'.

  The impact was so swift that the wild Dragonite lost its bance, and the purple shockwave it had been gathering dispersed harmlessly into the sky.

  'Not bad, and you know how to use your super speed to unch a preemptive attack,' Naoki thought, feeling proud.

  But the battle wasn't over yet.

  The wild Dragonite, momentarily stunned by the speed of its oppo, quickly regrouped and unched a tack. It fpped its wings, summoning a powerful storm that whipped up the surrounding area.

  However, this move had little effe Naoki's Dragonite. After all, it had faced far worse storms before—storms strong enough to test the mightiest of Pokémon. Dragoood firm, unfazed by the winds, and even began to dance amidst the storm, recalling the majestic figure of Rayquaza that it had once seen.

  Then, with a burst of energy, Dragonite charged fainst the wind. A yer of electricity crackled around its fist as it prepared to strike with 'Thunder Punch'.

  The wild Dragoried to ter, spreading its wings wide. A white glow enveloped them as it prepared to strike back with a 'Wing Attack'.

  But Dragonite wasn't deterred. It met the attack head-on, its tail glowing with draiergy as it swung a powerful 'Dragon Tail' at its oppo.

  The two Pokémon collided mid-air, and for a moment, it seemed they were evenly matched. But then, with a final surge of power, Naoki's Dragonite sent the wild Dragonite crashing to the ground, nding with a thud on the grass below.

  The battle was over.

  As Naoki's Dragonite hovered in the air, victorious, the entire audience onite, Dratini, and Dragonair watched in stunned silehey couldn't believe their eyes.

  'The st time they saw him, he was just a clumsy Dragonite who couldn't learn any moves,' they thought. 'How did he bee so powerful?'

  Uhe astonished gaze of the other Dragonite, Naoki's Dragonite desded to the ground and approached the defeated Drago looked at its felloh , not wanting to cause any sting harm.

  Naoki quickly ran over with Koraidon at his side. He pulled out a bottle of Milk, which had the ability to restore a Pokémon's strength, a to the injured Dragonite.

  Within moments, the visible scars on the wild Dragonite's body began to heal, its strength returning.

  The wild Dragonite looked up, asto the human who had healed it. It wasn't angry—after all, battles like this were ong Dragonite. But it was curious. It turo its now-stronger panion and asked, "Awoo?" (How did you bee so powerful?)

  Naoki's Dragonite beamed with pride and replied, "Awoo!" (That's because I found my trainer!)

  The wild Dragonite looked puzzled. "Awoo?" (Trainer?)

  Dragonite, recalling how Koraidon had described what a trainer was, expined, "Awooo!" (It means a human who help Pokémon bee stronger and learn new moves!)

  As soon as they heard this, all the other Dragonite who had been watg the battle, eager to grow strohemselves, turheir gaze to the only huma.

  Naoki suddenly felt a wave of nervousness, sensing all those eyes on him. It was as if he had just bee the ter of attention in a very big way.

  But before any of the wild Dragonite could approaaoki's Dragoepped forrotectively, spreading its wings wide and growling, "Awooo!" (This is my trainer!)