"Caterpie! Tackle!"

"Dodge it Weedle! Then Poison Sting!"

Most of the time, when a small town has a gym that specializes in a certain type, it wouldn't be strange to see the kids living in them to base their team off of that typing.

The same went for Azalea Town, and everywhere Virah looked, she saw youngsters carrying Bug Types, even when they're not bug catchers. For all it's worth, they were doing the trainers going here a favor, especially since Bug Types are easy to beat.

It made Azalea Town very newbie friendly, and it was one of the main reasons why a lot of trainers from Goldenrod go here first during the start of their journey.

Because of this, Azalea Town also had a lot of tourist friendly buildings, and most of the shops here catered to trainers and Pokemon, mainly however, they wanted to attract young children, who are pretty lavish spenders.

It was a very profitable system for both the visiting trainers as well as the locals.

Besides that, there are herbal shops which sell healing items, libraries that contain quite a lot of trainer related books, and places that sell minor Pokemon items such as Black Sludge, Machop Braces, and the like.

Out of all of them however, the one that Virah considered to be the most important was the shop on the outskirts of the town, near Ilex Forest.

She had only given the building a passing glance when they passed it by yesterday, which she knew was a mistake because the blacksmith she has been searching for, Kurt, actually lives here.

Virah entered the humble looking shop, her eyes scanned the shelves and saw nothing but different kinds of Pokeballs, which she didn't really plan on buying, she was here for a different thing after all.

Looking around some more, Virah eventually found herself standing face to face with the man she has been looking for.

Kurt was in his 60s or so, with an aging face and wrinkled hands that, despite the clear signs of them being past their prime, still worked with dexterity and efficiency to make Pokeballs.

Virah silently stood by the counter while watching Kurt hammer away at the molten apricots, she tilted her head when she saw that despite being organic in origin, the apricot looked quite metallic after it had been submerged in cold water.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

It was Type Energy at play, Virah wouldn't mistake it for anything else.

Still, her curiosity on the inner workings of the making of Pokeballs was put on hold because the first thing she asked the old man when he noticed her was if he could make her a sword.

Understandably, Kurt only sighed, "what do you mean I can make you a sword?"

"I'm talking about a katana," Virah answered, hoping it'll make Kurt understand better.

"Yes, I get that- I'm asking if you know how you look right now," he said, "aren't you a little to young to be asking me to make you a sword? What will you even use it for?"

Virah frowned, does she tell him the truth?

'Bit by bit,' she told herself, 'I'll give him pieces of the truth and gauge out his reactions,'

With that in mind, she took out a kunai from beneath her jacket and presented it to the smith, "you made one of these correct?"

Kurt's eyebrows shot up and he reached a hand out, Virah placed the weapon in his palm and the smith raised it to his eye level to inspect it, after a moment, he breathed.

"Where did you even get this?" He looked at Virah strangely.

"A man in Cianwood," Virah shrugged, "can I have it back?"

"No, kids your age-" Kurt stopped talking when Virah suddenly leaped from her place, aura flaring, and reached out for the kunai.

Kurt's own aura flared and his grip tightened on the hilt of the blade.

Virah frowned, "wha-" before she could stumble like an idiot, she caught her footing and stood straight, "- you're a Steel Type specialist?"

"No," Kurt shook his head, "I'm a generalist," the smith answered, "why, no, how do you even know about Aura in the first place?"

"Can you keep a secret?" Virah asked.

Kurt slowly nodded, "by Ho oh's name I promise not to tell anyone about what you're going to say,"

That wasn't a reassurance but Virah nodded nevertheless, she felt regret at not wearing a mask to meet the smith as she gave out an explanation, "I'm a ninja,"

Kurt closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, "they seriously lowered the indoctrination age huh?.."

Virah blinked, he believed her? "You don't think I'm lying?"

"No, that much mastery in aura can only mean you're an actual ninja," the smith shook his head, "and by the looks of it, you're pretty powerful too,"

Virah lowered her aura in shame, "sorry, I didn't mean to let it waft off like that,"

"It's fine, it's fine," Kurt waved her off, "so you want a Katana?"

Virah nodded, "yes,"

"Well, getting one ain't easy girl," Kurt said, "there's going to be a set of trials you need to finish if you want me to make you a sword,"

"Starting with?.." Virah was eager, she didn't care how hard it would be, she's willing to work for a sword, she didn't want to get caught flat footed if she faces against another Pokemon in the future.

"Starting with gathering the materials, wait here," Kurt turned his back to her.

Virah waited for him as he entered the door that led deeper into the shop, when he came back, he had a note pinched between his middle and index fingers, he held it out to Virah.

She grabbed it and after reading the contents, nodded at the smith, and with her last words of goodbye, she walked out of the shop and made her way into Ilex Forest.

Once she was hidden underneath the shade of the canopy, she changed into her ninja outfit and leaped from trunk to trunk until her foot touched the base of a branch.

Virah traversed the forest with the list continuously being repeated in her thoughts, 'Scyther blades, Ursaring claws, Sudowoodo arms, Flaaffy fur, and Black Apricots,'

The list was strange, Virah recognized that much, but at the same time, it made some sense, but that wasn't all, as apparently, she had to leave the every Pokemon alive and harvest their parts while they were being pinned down by her team.

A strange request, but one that she considered was doable.

She first started with the apricots, and after harvesting several, she continued on her way towards the riverbank where they first met Hulp, Whitney's Teddiursa.

And once there, she asked the Ursaring there if she could have its claws and as luck would have it, the mother bear willingly gave her all ten.

Virah could only watch in fascination as the claws quickly grew back on the Pokemon's fingers the moment she fell asleep.

'Now for the hard part,' she said to herself as she set off to find a Scyther.