Plumeria tilted her head at his reaction. She could tell that Tanyu was no slouch. He was clearly trained well and was able to fend off her attacks. However, she couldn't help but wonder why he wasn't attacking back. Her eyes shifted to her teammate who was picking himself off the ground and backing away from the fight. A smile crossed her face as she saw he was okay. Turning her head, she fixed Tanyu with a critical stare. As she was about to continue, her back pocket vibrated. Cursing under her breath, she answered it.

"What?" She grunted, frowning as she listened to the voice on the other line. "I see...understood. We're heading back now," Plumeria muttered, closing her phone.

"Hey, we're heading back, boss's orders," Plumeria stated, getting a groan from the group of thugs.

"Don't give me that. Let's go," Plumeria snapped, turning to face a bewildered Tanyu. "As for you," she said with narrowed eyes, "we'll finish this later..."

Easing his stance, Tanyu took a deep breath and nodded. "Fine by me pinkie," Tanyu smirked, getting a frown from Plumeria.

"It's Plumeria. Remember that name," Plumeria shot back, turning tail and prompting her crew to follow.

"Don't worry," Tanyu mumbled under his breath as he watched her walk away, paying close attention to her bodily movements while she moved, "I doubt I'll forget," he finished, a smirk flashing across his face as he looked at his right arm, clenching and unclenching his fist as the feeling came back.

Turning towards the ocean, he walked to the water's edge closing his eyes to meditate, finally.

Pokémon

The Moon's Rising

'Umikūmāwalu

It's Plumeria. Remember that name...

Plumeria, Tanyu thought to himself as he sat down in the cafe of the center, a Roserade Tea in hand as he reflected on the previous night's events.

Every movement that Plumeria made ran through his mind. Her swift, precise strikes, her confident demeanor and resolve were all taken into account. She was pretty darn good. Glancing down at his wrist, he remembered the numbing sensation he'd felt from being on the receiving end of her axe-kick twice. A smirk twisted onto his features.

The last time I felt a rush like that was with the Shadow Triad, Tanyu mused, taking a sip of his tea before setting it aside.

Remember that name...

Trust me, I will, Tanyu chuckled to himself, his eyes shifting to his right as the doors to the center opened.

In walked Lillie, a rather exhausted look on her face as she walked towards the cafe. She stopped in her tracks as she saw Tanyu. She began to deliberate on whether or not she ought to venture over to keep him company, seeing as how he was insistent on calling her 'blondie.'

"You just gonna stand there all day, or are you going to join me?" Tanyu stated, taking a sip of his tea while waiting for an answer.

"H-How did you-?" Shaking her head, she withheld her next statement and walked over to the stool beside Tanyu and sat down.

"You look terrible," Tanyu said flatly, causing Lillie to recoil away from Tanyu.

"Wh-what!? Why would you say that!?" Lillie demanded, heat rising in her face as Tanyu gave her a bored look.

"I mean you look tired. Like you've been put through the ringer," Tanyu clarified for her, getting a relieved sigh from Lillie.

"Then why didn't you just say that instead?" Lillie huffed, getting a shrug out of Tanyu. "Well, if you must know, Hau had his trial last night. Ilima mentioned that you'd been there just hours before. Though how we could have missed each other is beyond me," Lillie mumbled.

Tanyu sipped his tea and glanced over at Lillie.

"How'd he do?" Tanyu asked curiously.

"He managed to complete the trial. He even got a Z-Crystal from it, which," she paused, glancing down at Tanyu's wrist to see one shimmering in the socket on his Z-Ring. "I see you have..."

Tanyu set his tea down after taking a sip and nodded.

"Mind if I ask you something?" Lillie inquired.

"Shoot," Tanyu replied, turning to face her as she spoke.

"Well, I couldn't help but notice this...and forgive me if I seem rude but, why did you sit down after you picked Rowlet?" Lillie asked.

"I wanted to appear relaxed. It's easier to get to know someone if you're not tense or nervous, kinda like you are now," Tanyu observed, drumming his fingers on the table.

"Tense? I-I'm not-"

"You're fidgeting with your hands and you won't stop bouncing your knee," Tanyu pointed out. "Just relax blondie, I don't bite for Arceus sake."

"Lillie. And I'm not nervous, I-I just can't sit still for very long," she added quickly.

Tanyu rolled his eyes, not exactly buying what she was selling.

Of course I'm nervous. The way Tanyu acts isn't natural, Lillie thought, remembering the feeling she had when he first appeared on the bridge. That and his stare is intimidating. It's as if he could break me with his eyes...

"Oi, you in there Lillie?" Tanyu said as he waved a hand in front of her face, snapping his fingers to get her attention.

Shaking her head vigorously, Lillie's attention was quickly drawn back to reality.

"Sorry, I was out of it for a moment there wasn't I?" Lillie laughed nervously.

"Pew!" Nebby chirped from inside the bag, getting a sigh out of Lillie.

"I already told you no. Now deal with it," Lillie said sharply.

"What's the big deal about it being out anyway? Seems like it doesn't like the bag," Tanyu observed.

Lillie's let out a deep sigh. She had her reasons as to why Nebby couldn't be seen. She just wasn't exactly able to disclose them, especially to someone she felt threatened by. Tanyu seemed harmless, but there was something about those eyes of his that sent a chill down her spine. I was as if he could see into the very depths of her soul. It was Espurr level creepy. Shaking the thought out of her mind, she crossed her arms and fixed Tanyu with a stare.

"I just don't want Nebby to get hurt again. After what happened on the bridge I-" she paused, taking a deep breath. "I just don't think it's safe, th-that's all..."

Tanyu looked at Lillie for a moment. Her actions seemed genuine, considering she was petrified during their first meeting on the bridge and couldn't take a step forward without the fear of falling over. There was concern in her tone that matched her statements, and it all lined up with the fact that she was telling the truth to an extent. But Tanyu couldn't shake the feeling that she was leaving something out. Tanyu had never seen a creature like Nebby before. He also wondered if that was indeed what it was called. Then agan, it could have been short for Nebulous or something of the sort, dealing with the cosmos.

Dismissing the thought, he shrugged.

"Fair enough. Now, you mentioned Hau earlier. Where-"

"Aloooola!" Hau exclaimed as he entered the center.

"Is he?" Tanyu mumbled to himself, turning his head to see the overly excited trainer.

"Howzit!" Hau greeted as he sat down next to Lillie, letting out a contented sigh.

"Hey Hau," Lillie replied with a smile. "How are you?"

"I'm good! It's kau kau time, I'm starving," Hau laughed. "Yo Tanyu, I heard you finished your trial. Shaka!" Hau exclaimed, holding out his fist.

Tanyu considered the gesture for a moment before bumping his fist with Hau's who ended the exchange with a shaka. He blinked as Tanyu didn't replicate the action.

"No cuz, ya gotta finish it with a shaka. It's how a shaka boom works," Hau explained, getting a raised brow from Tanyu.

"Shaka...boom?" Tanyu questioned, causing Hau to palm his face.

"Yeah! It's when you're happy about something, or you wanna say congrats in a big way," Hau grinned.

Tanyu nodded, showing he understood what Hau was explaining to him. Sort of. There were so many customs and things about the island he didn't know. He would eventually need to learn them if he was going to be living in Alola.

"I'll keep that in mind," Tanyu responded, taking a sip of his tea and setting it down.

Ten minutes passed as the three talked amongst each other. During that time, Hau had decided to grab something to eat. They discussed how their trial went and what their plans were for battling the Kahuna were. Tanyu, evidently, wasn't sure what strategy he had in place, simply because he did not know his opponent. He had no clue what Hala would use. All he did know, was that the Kahuna was the big fish, and he needed to be ready.

"Well, if you two will excuse me," Tanyu stated, standing up and leaving a tip on the table for the barista behind the counter, "I'm going to head out and prepare for Hala."

"Hey, just a heads up cuz, gramps uses Fighting-types," Hau informed him.

Tanyu stopped in his tracks.

Fighting-types huh? New problem, but at least I know what I'm up against now. Meowth isn't exactly cut out for that and Rowlet only carries one flying move. And if Hala is as strong as he's made out to be, there's a good chance he'll have some evolved teammates. I need to work on Rowlet, Tanyu thought, turning to Hau with a nod.

"Thanks for the tip. See you guys later," Tanyu said as he departed with a wave.

Plumeria sat in the living room of Team Skull's hideout, her feet propped up on the table as she leaned back, her eyes looking up at the ceiling.

That guy...

She shifted in her seat, her mind running through each scenario that had played out on the beach. He puzzled her to a surprising extent.

He's no run-of-the-mill trainer, she thought, remembering his quick reflexes during each strike she'd made. He was able to get around my attacks and even cushion my kicks. Whoever trained him was very thorough...

He was right about one thing. I did take something similar to kick boxing. However, it's not the same thing. But he'll soon find out just how deadly lua is...

And so ends another chapter. The aftermath of the fight and a small conversation with Hau revealed that Tanyu would be going up against Fighting-types! Gasp! Not that we don't already know that, but still. Now, some of you are probably wondering about what Plumeria mentioned at the end. What is Lua?

Lua is actually short for Kapu Ku'ialua which is an ancient Hawaiian martial art, or in this case Alolan. It's primarily based on bone breaking, joint locks, throws, pressure point manipulation, strikes, and usage of various weapons. There's more to it, but I think you get the point. Anyway, Lua was disapproved of in the 1840's and therefore banned until 1991 when it was recognized as a lost tradition and is now able to be taught again.

In summation, there are going to be more things going on here than just the usual battles between trainers. Fists will clash! Anyway, that's all for now. Stay tuned for more!