The trio is admittedly a little aimless. Several NPCs stand around with little markers over their heads, greeting Kazuki as he passes by. He doesn’t pay mind to them; most just offer fetch quests and escort missions anyway. He leads them to the market district. With how little he bothers to visit the settlement, he hasn’t actually been able to explore what’s offered.

Sprigatito stares in amazement at the plethora of goods displayed. They’ve entered an antique shop. The shop owner’s smile tightens at the sight of them.

“Sir, you can’t bring the Mudbray in—”

“How much is that?” He points to the display over the owner’s shoulder. The wall is populated with the store's shiniest and most unusual trinkets, many of them huge, expensive, and clearly dangerous. It’s an excellent diversion as he pushes for more info, forcing the owner into sales mode.

<Mudbray, look at that! It's so pretty!> He says, tiny paw reaching forwards.

Mudbray, despite being his platform, does not stop him. <That’s porcelain. It is very expensive.>

CRASH.

<Or rather, it used to be expensive.>

<Ow! Ow! Ow! Stop!> Sprigatito whines as the porcelain shards nick him. His fur glows as he prepares to defend himself.

Mudbray blinks. <I wouldn’t recommend—>

But leaves fly, shining under the antique lamps as they ricochet off wooden carved statuettes, rusty tubas, and an army of garden gnomes that should by all means have shattered on impact.

The current civil discussion—apparently concerning each other’s mothers—is interrupted as one magical leaf nearly grazes the owner’s head. “What in the world?!”

“For fuck's sake—” Kazuki turns around and sees a pokemon battle taking place in what is at most a coat closet’s worth of real estate. He stopped paying attention for little more than two minutes.

The Purrloin lunges, tackling Sprigatito to the floor.

What Mudbray doesn’t expect is for the Purrloin to cling to her leg. She growls at it, attempting to stomp it down, but with how slowly she moves, the cat manages to evade the attack entirely and climb up onto her back.

<Mudbray, hold still!> Sprigatito says, loading up on leaves that float around his head as he takes aim.

<No, no, no!> Mudbray hisses, bucking now as she tries to get the pesky feline off her head and get out of Sprigatito’s crosshairs. She hears a sharp whistle in the air, before her face is pelted with leaves sharpened to a shuriken point.

Sprigatito steps across the ruined battlefield. A broken gnome head smiles at him serenely from the floor, lying among its fallen brethren. It’s a devastating sight. The casualties: innumerable.

Also, they’ve broken the display window.

Mudbray groans, her front half now sticking out to the front of the shop, only vaguely aware of the ear-piercing shriek the owner lets out.

On her back, triumphant, the Purrloin grins smugly down to where Sprigatito stands, the sunlight peeking out from the window bathing the enemy in holy light.

Vengeance takes hold. Sprigatito is injured, tired, and determined.

Kazuki blinks over his shoulder to see both of his pokemon already on the edge of defeat. “… Well, shit.”

The final clash.

<What’s going on over there?> A mudbray chewing on a few scraps of hay asks, wandering over upon hearing a commotion.

<Some disagreements.> Mudbray looks away from the sight of the two cats rolling around on the dirt to stare at her fellow spectator. <… Are you the sheriff’s?>

The mudbray slowly nods, nudging a nose over to the bag slung over its back, where clipped onto it is a very shiny badge.

Nearby, a wooden statuette comes crashing through what’s left of the display window, allowing the screaming match indoors to come pouring out even louder. She thinks she can hear the sound of a crossbow firing.

Mudbray sighs. <Can you point me to the watering hole? I need a drink.>