"Ralts!" A friend-shaped creature from an egg hatched to life, crying at Sakura who was its mother or whatever.
[Congratulations. Ralts has hatched from the egg]
Ralts - Female,
Height: 41cm - Weight: 5.8kg
A Feeling Pokemon.
It is highly attuned to the emotions of people and Pokémon. It hides if it senses hostility.
Ability: Trace - Ability becomes the same as the target it chooses.
The system even generously listed the Pokedex entries of Ralts.
"Ralts!" The green-headed creature cried and rubbed its head against Sakura's leg after embracing it.
'N-…now what should I do with it…' Sakura never took care of a pet before and he hadn't the intention of doing so.
But since Ralts came to life and it assumably cannot take care of itself for now, Sakura had to do something about it.
For now, he carried Ralts up and rubbed its cheek delicately. 'So-, softer than he looks.
"Ralts!" Ralts cried, unbothered by Sakura's touch, and opened its mouth wide as if to tell something.
"Are you hungry? What does Pokemon eat anyway? I don't have dog food nearby," Sakura said troubled.
Sensing its parent(?)'s trouble, Ralts pointed her hand toward meat on stick laid down just next to Sakura's computer.
"Can pokemon eats human's food?" Sakura questioned but since the Ralts chose the food itself, Sakura decided to bring up the stick to Ralts' level.
The meat on a stick then, pulled by a mysterious force floated into Ralts' mouth.
"O, ohh…" Sakura clapped his hand, already feeling proud at Ralts' use of telekinetics.
"Ralts!" Ralts cried proudly, her arms on her wrist.
Sakura felt like watching the second coming of Kirby.
As the two leisurely deepened their bonds, the air suddenly thickened—a pressure like the bottom of the ocean lurched beneath them.
Then, without warning crimson-black lightning crackled, exuded out from Roja's body, snapping out the aged floorboards like twigs.
Ralts gasped at the shockwave created by Roja's sheer will.
Hurriedly Sakura shoved her behind him before the wave of dominance hit attempting to erase his consciousness.
Fortunately, the wave of dominance soon dissipated before Sakura fell unconscious due to its user.
'What the hell, since when did a soccer game give Conqueror's Haki?' Sakura rushed to Roja's side confused.
Beyond the screen, Sakura saw Roja standing on the ground motionless and surprised, the teammate behind him celebrating while 13 people launched to air comically like in the original Super Smash Bros.
"That's great. I can advertise my store capable of training Conqueror's Haki," Sakura didn't think much and cheered.
'…I need to have this repaired…, no let's have it renewed instead. Plus, I have to find a way to block a wave of Haki. Who knows, Shanks may knock everyone unconscious if he gets angry while playing," Sakura noted to himself.
"ralts…," Ralts hid behind his leg. She tightly clutched her hands to Sakura and cried weakly.
"It's okay," Sakura kneeled and patted her head.
Then, he talked to Roja in the screen. "Hey, two hours is up. Get out of my store, also don't forget to pay for the damage you caused."
"Ah, yes, boss," said Roja as his conscious was ejected out to the real world.
"Boss, that… was what that? I, when I wanted to score a goal, a sense of exhilaration just overcame me and when I noticed it… my body just moved by itself, and everything stopped…" Roja was confused.
"Congratulations. You've awakened to Conqueror's Haki," Sakura yawned lazily as he answered Roja.
"Conqueror's Haki…?" Sakura's answer though only increased his question.
"In this world, mainly at New World, the second half of Grand Line, there exists a power called Haki."
"Armament Haki allows you to hit a person with logia devil fruit..."
Sakura explained all three types of haki usage to Roja.
"The notable users of Conqueror's Haki are; Gold Roger, Whitebeard, Shanks, and so on. And you just awakened to it. You should be more amazed, you know?" Sakura advised.
"Ye-yes… then, Boss, do you have a Conqueror's Haki?" Roja innocently asked like a country bumpkin who first arrived in the city.
"Me? No way. I don't deserve that kind of power. I'm just a lazy reader," Sakura denied him.
"Oh…" Roja responded weakly.
After a little bit of conversation, the two bid farewell, and no new customer arrived for the rest of the day. That is to be expected as Sakura's internet shop was located in a less popular place.
Sakura didn't return to Super Smash Bros world after Roja left. Instead, he reviewed what happened to Roja that awakened his Conqueror's Haki, within the two hours of playtime that is.
"Ralts!" Upon seeing Sakura sitting down on his gaming chair, Ralts cried extending her arms toward him asking to be picked.
With Ralts sitting on his thighs, the two watched Roja's recording.
…
The first-half of Roja's gameplay consisted of introduction to the game and their objective.
Due to the assistance of the game, no one questioned Roja's sudden appearance as if he always lived in that world.
Inside the building Roja stood, ace strikers gathered across Japan stood shoulder-to-shoulder.
At the podium, a man appeared looking at the aces like a hungry zombie.
The man, Ego Jinpachi opened his mouth, not to make a lukewarm speech, but to declare wars.
It didn't matter to Roja though, as he didn't even know what Soccer was.
No matter how much Ego Jinpachi ignited the strikers with words, it couldn't resonate with him who had never touched a single ball in his life.
But that all changed as certain words exited Ego Jinpachi's mouth. "Let me ask you. Just what is Soccer?"
"A sport in which eleven people combine their power? Treasuring our bond? For my friends? Wrong…"
"I'll tell you. Soccer is a sport in which you score more points than your opponents. Whoever scores the most points is the best. If you want to play at 'getting along,' then piss off," Ego Jinpachi's words surprised Roja and unknowingly drew him in.
"Imagine." Ego's finger tapped his temple. "You're at the last match of the World Cup. The score is 0-0, the game has gone overtime…"
"You've broken through and received a pass from your teammate. It's a one-on-one showdown with the goalkeeper. There's a teammate six meters on your right. If you pass, you can almost certainly get a point…" Ego Jinpachi continued the simulation.
A memory flashed: His mother's hands warm with shared meals. "Obviously, you'll pass. People live to coexist. That's how the world works after al—
"But you shoot. You gamble your nation's hope on your own skill and the assurance of victory to shoot without hesitation! Only those sorts of crazy egoists may proceed ahead…"
The gate behind Ego Jinpachi slammed open.
With a single phrase, Ego Jinpachi had overturned Roja's world.
Flame.
His father's selflessness (weakness) had burned their home.
His mother's weakness (selflessness) had suffocated them in ash.
Coexistence? Don't joke with me. Where did that lukewarm sensation end up? Ashes. A selfish individual burnt them up for powers!
The flame had already burnt up Roja's everything, his inside were ashes.
And now, Ego Jinpachi's words carved through him like a knife.
'I-, no... 'I' want to become stronger. Stronger than anyone to do whatever I want with this world…' For the first time, Roja felt like he truly understood himself.
"Soccer is a sport that exists for you, strikers. Think of everyone besides yourself on the field as supporting actors. On the field, you're the leading actor," Ego Jinpachi smiled maniacally.
'I will become a striker…!'
The ashes inside him ignited.
…
*ring* *ring*
"ZzzZZZz, huh?" Sakura opened his eyes hurriedly as he heard the ringing of a bell that indicated someone had entered the internet cafe.
A small girl had entered.
Last night, Sakura had unknowingly fallen asleep while watching the recording.
Wiping the saliva off his mouth, he said. "Welcome, to Startend Internet Cafe"
"Hey mister, where did you get that adorable creature? How much are you selling it for?" A blonde-haired little girl pointed her finger to Ralts woke up at the same time as Sakura.
'Huh? Are you looking for a fight you little brat?'
For some reason, Sakura's mood went sour.