The Renegade Trainer

"I have the right to remain silent."

"Then suit yourself. I'll just take this parcel for myself."

Maguro scratched his head. "Alright fine, I was trying to catch a Shiny Magikarp."

Though she was surprised, Cynthia didn't lose her cool. "You could've used a rod, why do other Pokemon have to be collateral for your desires?"

"What did you have for breakfast today?"

"Buneary stew... Wait that's unrelated to the topic."

"No it's not. Because you could've eaten an Oran berry instead. Just what exactly did that little rabbit deserve to be food on your table?"

Cynthia flinched at his remark. "Its diff--"

"That's because it was too weak to prevent its domestication. Same with these shallow river Pokemon that aren't worth catching." His voice was flat, stern as Maguro locked eyes with the young girl.

'Oh, I've done it now... So much for keeping my distance from her.'

"You're wrong! And I'll prove it by defeating you in a battle!"

"Now that's just illogical. I'll have to pass, thank you." Cynthia was shaking, but was further startled seeing the boy disappear and reappear to her face.

Maguro leaned in and whispered to her ear. "A battle would be meaningless. I'd win every single bout against someone like you after all. So that means you're wrong, little Cynthia." 

"You can't be sure unless you try--"

Before she could do anything, the boy stood before her with the parcel in hand which his Murkrow took as it flew to the distance.

"Say, why don't we talk this over some ice cream?"

"Huh?" The sudden change of tone surprised her.

"I know we have our different belief and all, but I'm not keen on antagonizing others.

"Especially when we're both top scorers. Shouldn't we have rational conversations instead of butting heads like children?"

'And no way am I about to go against that monstrosity of a Gible...' that's right, his earlier statement was a bluff – a blatant lie.

"You're messing with me."

"Oh c'mon, I'm just trying to be a friend here. It isn't easy to get by as a scholar after all."

Cynthia put her hand on her chin, and said with a skeptical look: "You're trying to curry favor with me."

"That is a part of it, but I also want to tell you an interesting story."

"About what?"

"About my past as a resident of Niiji town."

Cynthia froze upon the mention of that certain town. "Y-you mean THAT Niiji town?"

"Yes. The final settlement with Hisuian tradition." Maguro looked up to the sky, breathing in reminisce of his hometown.

'I miss home.'

"You're evil, y'know. You can't just be rude and then pull on my heart strings out of nowhere, Maguro."

"I am evil. But I'll treat you to ice cream for your troubles."

The girl didn't answer, and instead signalled for Maguro to hop on her bike.

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5 years ago...

It was a dark, smoky night as brutal flames engulfed a small province settlement, consuming everything in their path. 

Bright orange was reflected by the young Maguro's teary eyes.

"Masaichi, run away!" 

A man in silk Haori, with long auburn hair, shouted to the 6-year old kid. It was obvious from their looks that this man was Maguro -- Masaichi's father.

"Juugo, the Garchomp is too strong for us to restrain!"

"We have to buy time for our children to escape!" his eyes were filled with authority and resilience. Even in the direst situations, Juugo did not forget his priorities to his ancestors, his blood.

"Masaichi, you must remember your mission! Even these flames consume my flesh, I will be remembered by the actions you take after this."

With a warm smile, Juugo fearlessly charged into town. He died a premature death as a stall for time. But the two minutes was enough for his son's life to be saved.

"This commision sure is something, and a jumbo-sized Garchomp as a bonus." Arriving on a scene was a tall man wearing all black, using a pair of binoculars for a clear view of the rampaging Pokémon.

"We've ourselves a big haul tonight thanks to Juugo!"

"WOAH!!" The entire squad of men in black cheered in unison.

Cutting their celebration short was a man holding up a crying boy his clothes. "What about this little mutt, boss?"

"We'll deal with him later, let's clean up this mess before that."

Masaichi voiced out. "Um, who are you sirs? And why do you know my father-- Juugo's name?"

The man they referred as boss turned to him, "Your Juugo's child huh? You look a lot like your father, but wimpy. As for us, we're just your typical Pokémon hunters doing our job."

Over a dozen Pokéballs opened all of the sudden "It seems like our big dragon noticed us..."

A stream of fire was aimed at the hunter's way, but none of them were fazed as two of their Pokémon reacted almost instantly.

A pink Wobbuffet and a Mr. Mime used [Mirror coat] and [Light screen] respectively, protecting the band of Hunters.

"Anyway kid, just stay put and wait." the boss hunter gave him his black fedora with a red feather before going to claim the big bucks...

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Back to the present day...

"So to sum it up: your town was attacked by a rampaging Garchomp and your father and the rest of the residents sacrificed their lives so you could run away."

"Not just me, but all of our young." Maguro said before licking his choco Ice cream.

'After the incident, I trained as a hunter under boss Thundra. But Cynthia doesn't need to know about them.' 

The two were discussing under the shade of a parasol outside a fine Cafe in Jubilife city. And Maguro spouting his half-truths were enough to garner the future champion's sympathy.

"I'm sorry if this comes out as rude, I'm curious about one thing you see."

Cynthia wore a concerned look on her face, holding her Vanilla ice cream with both her hands.

"No problem, feel free to speak your mind."

"I was wondering about what happened to that wild Garchomp. It must've gone on a rampage for a reason."

"It was the doing of Pokémon poachers. After Murkrow and I did some investigations, we found that some idiots ransacked the Garchomp's nest and kidnapped her children."

"Pokémon hunters, huh? I am not surprised." 

Though her tone was calm, Cynthia's rage caused her ice cream to partially melt.

"Oh-- Maguro your ice cream is melting!" she called, but the boy seemed to be stuck in his reverie.

'Poachers aren't hunters, and they will never be...' He wanted to yell at Cynthia so bad, but that could compromise his identity. Maguro was frustrated, helplessly so.

"Oops... What a shame. Don't worry, Cynthia. I'm alright." Though his luxurious white jacket was stained, Maguro seemed unconcerned. 

"Kurr!"

Just in time, Murkrow arrived and perched on Maguro's shoulder. "Well done, bud. Thanks." 

"What's that, Maguro?" Cynthia was curious seeing the boy take something from its leg.

"A message from my clan. This means goodbye for now, my rival." Maguro lied through his teeth once more with a smile before walking away.

"Eh? You're competing in the Sinnoh league too?"

"That's only natural. So you better not fall behind me." his figure eventually disappeared to the horizon.

Cynthia was watching Maguro's back as was walking away when someone patted her back.

"Here is your bill for 10 Choco deluxe and 16 Vanilla ice creams, ma'am. That'd be a total of 10k Pokédollars."

"Bill?"

"The gentleman mentioned to me that both of you made a bet that whoever ate the most ice cream in one sitting would pay for everything." 

Reading the note on the bill only fueled Cynthia's already burning rage.

Maguro - 1

Shirona - 0 

"THAT SON OF A GRANBULL!"

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[TO BE CONTINUED]