1. Ash's Story (Part 9: Alola)

Chapter 43: Moon and Forest

Back in Alola, the air felt warmer than it had on the flight home, but my thoughts still carried Kanto's weight. Marshadow's Poké Ball rested quietly at my belt, cool as shade, while Pikachu watched the road ahead from my shoulder. Kagetora's request was not finished yet, and the next name led us somewhere quieter than any battlefield.

Kagetora's earlier words came back as we walked. He had not described Braiden as someone who wanted applause. He had described him as someone who could turn a battlefield into midnight, someone whose Umbreon made opponents feel as though the moon itself had chosen a side.

That was why the cemetery setting did not feel strange. It felt like the only place where someone like Braiden could be found now, speaking with the person he missed before answering the living world again. I slowed my pace, and everyone followed without needing a signal.

Hau'oli Cemetery sat beneath a pale morning sky. The stones were clean, the flowers fresh, and even the wind seemed to move with respect. Lillie walked beside me with Snowy close to her ankles, while Trenor, Selene, Nate, and Rosa stayed a few steps back so our footsteps would not crowd the silence.

Braiden was easy to recognize only because Kagetora had described him carefully. He stood before one grave with an Umbreon at his side, his hand resting on the top of a cane. His shoulders were thin, but Umbreon's red eyes watched the path with calm strength.

"I suppose that is enough for today," Braiden murmured, touching the stone once. "I had better hurry home, or that son of mine will berate me again for wandering off."

I waited until he turned away from the grave before speaking. "Excuse me. Are you Braiden, the Umbreon user? Kagetora asked us to find you and challenge you."

Braiden's eyebrows rose, and for a moment the cemetery felt colder. "That tale is decades old by now. How old are you, boy?"

"Kagetora still remembers it," Lillie said gently. "He wanted us to meet the people who helped shape him."

Braiden stared at us, then let out a dry chuckle. "That little whippersnapper is still sending people after old legends? Well, you are not wrong. I was Braiden the Umbreon user, once. How is that stubborn boy?"

"He is doing well," I said. "He respects you."

"Respect is troublesome when it makes youngsters chase dying men through cemeteries," Braiden replied, though his voice softened. "Still, I do not mind one battle. I am due to check in at the hospital soon, so Umbreon and I may as well remind our bones what night feels like."

Rosa stood behind Nate with Zoroark beside her, and I noticed how carefully Zoroark watched Umbreon. It had evolved only recently, but it already understood something about darkness that was not cruel. Umbreon's shadows felt old, disciplined, and protective, not like a trick meant to hide weakness.

Selene hugged her tablet closer, though Rotom peeked from the screen with unusual silence. Even the school's restless support partner seemed to understand that the cemetery was not a place for noisy observations. For once, Rotom recorded nothing aloud.

Lucario came out at my side before I even asked. He understood the weight in the air, and his aura stayed calm instead of sharp. Braiden's Umbreon stepped forward, rings glowing faintly against its black fur like small moons that had refused to vanish in daylight.

"Lucario, we will answer properly," I said.

Umbreon moved first, not fast in a flashy way, but with patient economy. It slipped around Lucario's opening Force Palm and struck his side with a dark, precise blow. Lucario steadied himself and lowered his stance, aura flickering around his paws as he began reading the rhythm beneath Umbreon's steps.