Chapter 284: Year After Year
Chapter 284: Year After Year
Unbelievable! This was truly unbelievable!
A mythical item, on par with the Adamant and Lustrous Orbs of Dialga and Palkia!
Naoki stood there, awe-struck, holding the translucent green leaf in his hand.
What did this mean? It meant that the World Tree was giving back to them!
The three Riding Goats chewed on the leaves, their eyes darting between the snowy landscape and the distinct circular area around the tree.
Within this circle, life flourished. Soft, fresh grass grew, as if spring had suddenly arrived.
The Riding Goats' eyes gleamed, and they laid down around the World Tree.
Naoki's attention was drawn to the goats' actions.
It was clear that these three Riding Goats were the first Pokemon to benefit from the World Tree's reciprocity.
He thought of Regice, Regirock, and Registeel within the World-Initializing Tree.
Would the Riding Goats one day reach that level?
That question remained unanswered for now.
Naoki stood there for a while, gazing at the World Tree before him. Then he turned and walked back to the glass greenhouse, carrying the snacks he had prepared for Serperior and the leaf.
He placed the snacks on the wrought iron tea table and took out the World Tree leaf.
"Serperior, can you tell what's so special about this leaf?" Naoki asked.
Serperior looked down and was immediately surprised: "Such dense natural energy! Where did you get it from?"
Before the words had even left its mouth, Serperior realized: "No, I recognize this energy. It's from the World Tree!"
Naoki nodded: "Yes, as I was walking here, the World Tree dropped this leaf for me, and it's also feeding the Riding Goats with its leaves."
Upon hearing this, two words suddenly came to Serperior's mind: "Reciprocity?"
"Yes!" Naoki nodded, confirming his suspicion.
"No wonder..." Serperior murmured.
Naoki's curiosity was piqued: "Have you noticed something too?"
Serperior slowly nodded and said: "Whenever I use my power to aid its growth, a strand of natural energy enters my body."
"At first, I thought it was my imagination, but after some time, the energy within me grew stronger and stronger. Now I understand the reason behind it!"
Naoki was astonished: "So it wasn't your imagination?"
Serperior nodded: "Of course not."
"So that's how it is..." Naoki muttered.
He thought back to when the Riding Goats had helped nurture the World Tree. Could it be that the World Tree had been reciprocating to the Riding Goats since then?
How terrifying! Who could have imagined that when he first caught the Riding Goats by Great Pot Lake, he only intended for them to be dairy goats? Naoki dared not think about how powerful the Riding Goats would become in the future.
His heart raced as he looked at Serperior before him, and he couldn't help but ask: "What will this World Tree become in the future?"
Serperior, too, yearned to know the answer.
Thus, in front of Naoki, it once again used its future-seeing ability, expending its energy to peer into the distant future.
In an instant, Serperior's gaze traversed through time, witnessing the world hundreds, if not thousands, of years from now.
The World Tree soared into the sky, its roots firmly planted in the ground.
The land was enveloped in greenery, and the fields were brimming with vibrant life.
Its branches bore heavy fruits, and Pokemon roamed freely across the earth.
This land had truly become a place of abundance.
After a moment, Serperior slowly opened its eyes and described to Naoki the future it had seen.
"I saw that the World Tree will become the foundation of this world. Its power will encompass the entire planet. The land will give birth to more Pokemon, and nature will bear more fruit."
Did that mean the World Tree would elevate the level of life in this world?
Naoki pictured the scene in his mind. According to their current progress, the World Tree would reach maturity in four years.
Four years... he was grateful that he would be able to witness it all.
However, as a time traveler, Naoki was aware that there were other worlds beyond this one.
Outside of this world existed other universes and parallel dimensions.
And beyond all of these, Arceus, the creator deity, watched over the development of humans and Pokemon.
A question arose: Would their actions here attract the attention of the true form of Arceus?
Naoki pondered this for a moment and arrived at a conclusion that even he didn't know.
After all, the thoughts of a creator deity were beyond the comprehension of a mere human like him.
Instead of dwelling on such uncertain matters, Naoki's curiosity now turned to the effects of a dish made with this World Tree leaf.
With that in mind, he bade Serperior farewell and hurried back to his kitchen.
"A dish made with the World Tree leaf..."
Tea eggs, scrambled eggs with World Tree leaves similar to eggs with green onion, or perhaps a leaf cake like grass cake?
After a moment's thought, Naoki made his decision.
A single leaf was too little to make tea eggs or scrambled eggs.
Using a blender, he pureed the World Tree leaf, then added eggs, milk, and other ingredients before pouring the mixture into a mold to set and finally baking it in the oven.
Once it was almost done, he took the cake out of the oven, spread cream over it, and cut it into small pieces.
And just like that, a leaf cake was made.
Naoki eagerly looked down to check the information on this leaf cake.
[Leaf Cake (Incomplete Version)
(S-)
: A cake made by mixing World Tree leaves with eggs, MooMoo Fresh Milk, and other ingredients. If you listen carefully, you can feel the breath of nature.
Dish Effect: Breath of Nature.
1. Permanently increases the power of Grass-type moves by 20%. Effect only applies to Grass-type Pokemon and cannot be stacked.
2. After eating, Grass-type Pokemon can respond to the rhythm of nature, slightly reducing the growth time of crops when using Green Energy to cultivate them. Only effective for Grass-type Pokemon and the effect cannot be stacked.
Additional Effect: Lord of the World Tree, you have gained the recognition of the World Tree. As the one who nurtured the World Tree with your Riding Goats, you can now access all areas inside the World Tree. This effect only applies to Naoki.
Evaluation: Listen to the breath of nature! Perhaps when the World Tree matures, dishes made with its leaves will have even better effects.]
Naoki was stunned.
Wait a minute! What does this additional effect mean? Does it only apply to me?
Naoki analyzed the situation calmly and thought it over.
He had originally bought those three miracle seeds from town, intending to give them to the Riding Goats as held items. But he never expected that they would plant them in the soil and nurture them with Green Energy.
And then, those three miracle seeds took root and sprouted in the soil...
At this thought, Naoki suddenly realized something.
All this time, he had thought that the Riding Goats were just Pokemon that had nurtured the World Tree, but he had overlooked the precondition.
Considering the effect of this leaf cake, was it possible that the World Tree saw the Riding Goats as their mother?
And wasn't the act of the Riding Goats nurturing the World Tree with their Green Energy like breastfeeding a child?!
"So, has the World Tree been influenced by the Riding Goats and started to see me as its owner, or even its grandfather?"
The more Naoki thought about it, the more absurd it seemed.
If that were the case, then he and the Riding Goats were like young people relying on their children for support—it was too absurd...
Naoki quickly shook his head to dismiss the bizarre speculation.
After all, the World Tree represented the will of nature, and it surely wouldn't be that outrageous.
Of course, all of this was just Naoki's speculation, and the true intentions of the World Tree remained unknown.
Ignoring the additional effect, Naoki began to carefully examine the two specific effects listed.
The first one was an increase in the power of Grass-type Pokemon moves.
"A 20% boost... that's similar to the increase from Pokemon held items," Naoki mused to himself.
And this was just the effect of an unripe World Tree leaf; the boost in move power would likely be even greater once the World Tree fully matured.
The second effect, reducing crop growth time, was also much-needed for the current ranch.
Whether it was the vegetables and fruits they grew daily, the radishes eaten by the Basculeigh and Blizzards, or the World Tree itself, this ability would be beneficial for their Pokemon.
In Naoki's opinion, the second effect was even more important than the first.
The ranch couldn't always rely on Reuniclus's power; with the ability to shorten crop growth time, the Grass-type Pokemon like the Riding Goats and Eldegoss could manage it themselves.
It was similar to the ability of the Florges to make flowers bloom.
And after eating the leaf cake, Reuniclus's own growth period would likely be shortened even further.
"Once the World Tree matures, this ability to reduce crop growth time will probably increase from a small amount to a significant degree," Naoki thought.
Overall, the effects of this leaf cake far exceeded his expectations!
Naoki ate one piece himself, then placed the remaining five pieces on a plate and brought them out to the ranch, feeding one piece to each of the three Riding Goats, Eldegoss, and Reuniclus.
The Pokemon didn't show any dramatic reactions after eating the cakes; there were no flashy light effects, and they continued about their day as usual, playing or sleeping.
Only Reuniclus seemed to sense something amiss.
After consuming the leaf cake, it immediately felt a change within its body.
"Is this also one of your miraculous dishes?" Reuniclus asked curiously.
Naoki grinned. "Yes, it's a leaf cake. It boosts the power of Grass-type Pokemon moves and reduces the growth time of crops they cultivate."
"There is such a dish in this world..." Reuniclus murmured in awe, then smiled. "Thanks to you, my power has grown even stronger."
When it had left the Galar region, it had done so with the intention of experiencing a different life and a change of scenery, as well as to see if its little follower needed any help. It would do its best to assist him.
But Naoki shook his head and smiled, "No, you have done a lot for me."
He shared with Her about the Riding Goats, helping him nurture the World Tree, and exploring the inverse world of Giratina together...
Yet Regigigas felt that these were insignificant matters.
Seeing this, Naoki comforted Her, "Well, there's no need to dwell on these things now. Moreover, you've helped me a lot, and friends help each other without keeping score."
Regigigas paused, then a relieved smile appeared on Her face:
"Yes, I am your friend! I understand now, Naoki. I will no longer feel lost!"
Seeing this, Naoki smiled gently, Regigigas was truly wonderful!
A gentle smile also appeared on Regigigas' face as She thought, 'My little believer is truly wonderful!'
At that moment, Regigigas' favorability towards Naoki skyrocketed, reaching its maximum level.
Time flew by, and soon it was the last day of the year.
In the evening, Naoki started preparing the New Year's Eve dinner in the kitchen with his sister, Aiganshi.
There were grass dumplings and grass cakes, the Riding Goats' favorites.
There were grilled meat patties for Garchomp and Motostoke.
For Salamence, there were Poke Puffs and sandwiches.
Ice Eevee got cream ice slush.
For Teddiursa, there was honey pudding and honey lemonade.
Buneary enjoyed a plate of rice.
Saltrocks had their favorite salted and dried fish and stir-fried soil.
...
Naoki prepared a variety of dishes and didn't finish until after dark.
The Pokemon Tavern was closed for the day, and Naoki, along with Garchomp, pushed a food cart to share the delicious food with the Pokemon on the ranch.
"Happy New Year!" he said to the Pokemon.
Although the Riding Goats didn't understand the significance of the day, they were infected by the cheerful atmosphere and the abundance of delicious food. They happily crowded around the trough, enjoying the feast.
The Miltanks knew it was a special occasion, and their faces lit up with joy.
One of the Miltanks mooed at Naoki.
Naoki was surprised and ate a piece of translated melon seed candy.
Then he heard the Miltanks expressing their happiness and gratitude.
They said they loved living here and were delighted to have met Naoki, who took such good care of them. They wanted to stay with him on the ranch forever.
Hearing these words, Naoki was deeply touched.
He took a deep breath and patted the Miltanks in front of him, saying, "Please continue to take care of me in the coming year!"
"Moo~"
In the underground cave, Naoki piled up dried salted fish on the ground. These were made by curing the fish in salt, and they were the Saltrocks' favorite food.
The Saltrocks were overjoyed to see the mountain of salted fish and meat, and they rushed forward, butting Naoki with their heads and lifting him onto their bodies.
"Rui~"
"Slow down!" Naoki laughed as he sat on the Saltrock, petting their heads one by one.
The Electabuzz who lived there looked on enviously.
Hearing the commotion, Diglett was also drawn to the scene.
Naoki stepped out from the crowd of Saltrocks and took out the food he had prepared for them from the small cart Garchomp was pushing.
"Diglett, Electabuzz, this is for you! Happy New Year to you both!"
Electabuzz and Diglett were delighted to receive their own treats, and their tiny eyes sparkled with joy.
"Enjoy!"
Naoki smiled and said to the Pokemon, "I still have to deliver food to the others, so I'll see you later!"
After leaving the underground cave, Naoki made his way to the tree orchard.
The Klefki and the Stufful, who had been living there, were delighted to see Naoki and Garchomp. They scurried out of their nests to greet them.
Garchomp used his large claws to hand over the food, while Naoki patted Stufful's fluffy tail and said, "Winter is almost over, and soon I'll be able to help you rebuild your homes. Rest assured, the mountain will be restored to its former state!"
Hearing this, the Pokemon widened their eyes in anticipation.
Naoki smiled gently and then left the tree orchard, heading towards the area where the Ducklet lived.
He shared the tree fruit with the silly Ducklet and then turned to go home with Garchomp.
The snowy night was serene, and the ranch was enveloped in a warm and cozy atmosphere.
Looking at the lit house at the end of the snowy path, Naoki felt a sense of peace and harmony like never before.
He knew that inside, a group of lovely Pokemon awaited their return to enjoy the New Year's Eve dinner together.
(End of Chapter)
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