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Chapter 325: Yearning
Chapter 325: Yearning
The story ended, and an eerie silence filled the air. No one spoke for a moment.
Naoki recalled the scene he had witnessed in the Cave of Fear—the smooth stone bed, table, and stools in that confined space.
He could almost imagine the scene that had unfolded.
The outsider had found the cave with Gengar and planned to settle there. Together, they had found uneven stones on the mountain and brought them back to the cave, polishing them with care and anticipation for a new life.
The bed for sleeping, the table for meals, and the stools for resting…
Until the arrival of the three greedy Pokemon shattered their peaceful existence.
The man had lost his life in the incident, leaving Gengar alone and lonely in the cave filled with memories.
At this moment, Naoki finally understood why Gengar had looked so sad when he asked if it had always lived there alone.
"Ah…"
The old man beside him sighed, his voice heavy with the weight of the past. "The true history is completely contrary to the tale known by the villagers. I shudder to think what would happen if they found out that the Pokemon they reverently buried were the bad ones."
There was no guarantee they wouldn't be branded as heretics and persecuted once more.
Naoki nodded in understanding. "I get it."
As the old man's gaze shifted to the Pokemon by Naoki's side, he was about to say something when the door suddenly swung open.
"Bang!"
A boy and girl, around four or five years old and a bit older respectively, barged into the room.
Their faces flushed with anger, they exclaimed, "It's too much! The way the villagers treat Gengar is terrible!"
The old man and Yukiko were shocked to see the children and quickly pulled them inside, checking to ensure their earlier conversation hadn't been overheard. Relieved, the old man closed the door again.
Yukiko covered the girl's mouth, admonishing her. "Keep your voice down! You must never tell anyone about this!"
The girl struggled to speak, her eyes flashing with indignation. "But… but…"
The boy, Uuri, remained silent, but his expression mirrored his sister's anger.
The old man sighed in resignation. "Eavesdropping on adults isn't something good kids do."
The siblings hung their heads, chastened.
"I had planned to wait until you were older to tell you, but since you've already heard it, keep this truth buried deep in your hearts. Never speak of it to anyone outside this room," the old man instructed.
Yukiko turned to Naoki, introducing the children. "I apologize for their intrusion. These are my grandchildren, Danyu and Uuri."
Naoki nodded in greeting to the unfamiliar children, acknowledging their presence.
Once the children's emotions had been soothed, the old man turned back to Naoki. "From your appearance, I'd say you're quite a skilled trainer. Since that's the case, why don't you try to capture Gengar's heart and take it away from this place?"
Hearing this, Naoki thought that it would be one thing if Gengar were a wild Pokemon, but it was clear that it wasn't.
He was willing to take Gengar away and start a new life together, but whether Gengar would want to leave this place filled with memories was another matter.
"I'll give it my best shot," Naoki replied.
"Then I'm counting on you," the old man said, nodding. "If there's anything you need help with, don't hesitate to ask. It's the least we can do to make up for the villagers' mistreatment of Gengar."
Naoki nodded and bid the old man farewell. He turned to leave, intending to check on Gengar again.
But before he could even reach the door, the two children, Danyu and Uuri, rushed out after him.
"Uncle!" Danyu called out.
Naoki's face darkened. Was he really that old?! Danyu turned to her younger brother, her expression conveying her frustration with his hesitance. She let out a loud roar at him: "Uuri, you coward! Spit it out already!"
Uuri hesitated for a moment before stepping forward. Mustering his courage, he asked, "Um, are you a trainer?"
Naoki looked at him and nodded. "Something like that."
Ranch owner as the main job, trainer as a side gig—nothing wrong with that.
Uuri breathed a sigh of relief and continued in a soft voice, "I've always liked Gengar. After hearing Grandpa just now, I want it to have a better life. So, if Gengar is willing to leave, please take care of it, okay?"
Naoki was slightly taken aback but smiled and nodded in assurance. "I will."
Bidding the siblings farewell, Naoki mounted his Gouleston and headed for Ghost Mountain once more, seeking out the cave.
However, to his surprise, Gengar wasn't there.
He looked around but found no trace of Gengar, indicating that it had ventured out.
With no other choice, Naoki returned to Celadon Town.
Late at night, on Ghost Mountain…
Gengar sat on the stone stool as usual, hugging the mask close. But unlike other days, there was now a pile of berries on the stone table.
So, it hid and quietly observed the human's actions. But the human was sharp and quickly noticed it, following it back to its home.
Initially, Gengar was filled with panic and fear. It assumed that the human would drive it away or attack it.
However, instead of doing so, the human approached it in a friendly manner, greeting it and offering it some Berries.
Gengar was taken aback by this gesture, but its fear got the better of it, and since it had never experienced something like this before, it fled from the cave.
When it returned, it found the pile of Berries on the stone table.
Gengar thought that the human would not return, but the next day, he came back and spoke to it kindly before leaving again, this time with more food.
But there were so many Berries, more than it could ever eat!
Would he come again tomorrow? A glimmer of anticipation shone in Gengar's eyes.
As Gengar gazed at the table full of Berries, its thoughts drifted to something that had happened a long time ago.
When it was still a young Haunter, a tall human had adopted it.
The man had brought it to this mountain and cared for it like a father would care for a child.
He would bring Berries from outside and leave them on the table for it to eat.
In Gengar's heart, that man was like a father to it.
Yet... the man had left.
On that fateful day, filled with anger, it had gone down to Celadon Town and taken revenge on the four greedy Pokemon, but the man who had adopted it never returned.
"Pata!"
A tear fell on the damaged Green Mask, and then another.
Unnoticed, Gengar buried its face in the mask, its silent sobs mingling with the sound of the sudden downpour outside.
The next morning, a heavy rain enveloped Celadon Town.
The agricultural exchange had to be postponed, leaving Naoki with no choice but to stay at the civic center and listen to the rain.
A few Pokemon lazed around the room, their spirits dampened by the weather.
After a while, Naoki stood up, recalled the Pokemon into their Poke Balls, put on a raincoat, and mounted his Gouleston, heading once more for Ghost Mountain.
Only when he saw Gengar's figure in the Ghost Cave did he finally breathe a sigh of relief.
He guided his Gouleston into the cave.
Now that he knew Gengar's story, Naoki couldn't help but feel that something was off about the Pokemon.
It was just too pitiful.
Shunned by the people of Celadon Town, it spent its days alone in this cave, filled with memories of the past.
Naoki's heart overflowed with sympathy, and he entered the cave with a backpack full of food.
Unsure of how to comfort Gengar, he emptied the contents of his bag onto the stone table, adding to the pile of Berries from the day before, which Gengar had not yet finished.
Gengar watched, dumbfounded, as the human bustled about.
It had assumed he wouldn't return that day...
"Here!" Naoki smiled and handed over a bottle of warm goat's milk, which he had heated at the civic center. To keep it from getting cold, he had wrapped it in a pocket cloth. "It's chilly on rainy days, so warm yourself up."
He placed the milk in Gengar's hands and turned to wipe the rain off his Gouleston with a towel, careful not to let it catch a cold.
Noticing Gengar's gaze, Naoki reassured it, "Don't be afraid of him. His name is Gouleston, and although he looks fierce, he's actually very gentle."
"Agas!" Gouleston shook its body vigorously, spraying Naoki with the rainwater.
After drying off Gouleston, Naoki opened his backpack and took out a blanket given to him by the Aubergine siblings, spreading it on the stone bed.
Then, he released a Magcargo from its Poke Ball.
With the help of the warm Magcargo, the cold cave soon became cozy and inviting.
Outside, the rain poured, but inside, a heartwarming scene unfolded.
Even the dull gray walls were transformed by the orange glow of Magcargo's flame, bathing the cave in a warm light.
In just a few minutes, the cave underwent a remarkable transformation.
Gengar was so overwhelmed that it didn't know how to react.
"Poni..."
Naoki took a frying pan from his backpack and placed it on Magcargo's body, starting to cook breakfast for Gengar.
"Sorry for the trouble, Magcargo," he said, feeding it two Berries. As Magcargo devoured the Berries, its body temperature rose, heating the pan above it.
Soon, the oil in the pan was sizzling.
Naoki quickly cracked an egg into the pan, added some sliced mini-tomatoes, and, once that was done, used Magcargo to toast two slices of bread until they were golden brown.
Gengar looked completely taken aback.
Only then did Naoki realize that his actions might have seemed abrupt to Gengar.
So, he paused for a moment and explained, "Don't worry, Gengar."
Hearing the human in front of it address it by name, Gengar's face clearly showed its surprise.
"Po-ni...?"
"A villager from the foot of the mountain told me all about you."
"Po-ni..."
"He's a descendant of the craftsman who made your mask, and he feels terrible about everything you've been through."
"Po-ni..."
"I'm very sad too, but from the moment I first laid eyes on you, I knew you weren't the cruel ghost from those rumors."
Hearing this, Gengar looked up at him, its eyes shining like bright stars.
Naoki grinned. "So, trust me. We mean you no harm, nor will we hurt or dislike you, because you've never done anything wrong."
Gengar froze, staring at the human in front of it, before a happy expression appeared on its face.
"Po-ni po-ni~"
"Eat up!"
Finally, Gengar began to eat the sandwich, but as it ate, large tears suddenly fell from its eyes.
The years of loneliness, the ostracism, the injustice of having its mask taken away, the pain of its father being hurt by those ruffians...
All these emotions intertwined, causing Gengar to break down in uncontrollable sobs.
Naoki was taken aback. Why was it crying all of a sudden? He didn't know what to do, and as he fumbled about, a few Poke Balls accidentally fell out of his pocket.
The Poke Balls that had dropped to the ground automatically opened, and two Pokemon appeared from the white light.
One was a Swanna, and the other was a Throh.
Throh saw how sad the Pokemon was and was utterly bewildered.
Meanwhile, Swanna's gaze turned to the Pokemon's side.
As a Ghost-type Pokemon, it could sense a strong presence there.
There stood a tall and majestic figure beside Gengar, gazing at it.
Seeming to realize it had been spotted, the ghost turned its head to look at Swanna.
It was only after Gengar stopped crying that Naoki wiped its tears away and asked, "Do you want to leave this place with us?"
Gengar hesitated.
Naoki spoke honestly. "I'm a trainer from another region, and in a few days, I'll be leaving this place."
"So, I want to take you with me to my hometown, where no one will be afraid of you or ostracize you. Everyone there loves Pokemon."
"There are lots of Pokemon living together in my home, and you can make lots of new friends there too. Do you want to come with us?"
As he spoke, Naoki held out his hand to Gengar.
Gengar listened to these words, looking uncertain.
It lowered its head to look at the mask in its hand and then at the human in front of it. It thought that once he left, they would never see each other again...
With that thought, Gengar felt very sad.
But...
Looking at the outstretched hand in front of it, Gengar also looked around at the warm cave.
It suddenly felt afraid. It didn't want to return to that cold and lonely atmosphere.
So, Gengar plucked up its courage and cautiously reached out its hand, placing it in the human's outstretched hand.
Naoki breathed a sigh of relief and gently held Gengar's slightly chilly hand.
"Then let's go home!" Naoki said softly.
"Po-ni!"
The rain outside had stopped at some point, and Naoki led the Pokemon out of the Ghost Cave.
After the rain, the sky was clear, a vast blue expanse stretching overhead.
Just looking up at the sky lifted one's spirits.
Naoki didn't leave immediately. He turned back to look at the cave where Gengar had once lived and silently vowed:
"Rest assured, I'll take good care of Gengar and make sure it never returns to the situation it was in before!"
At the same time, Swanna turned to look back at the cave entrance.
It saw the ghost standing there, waving goodbye to them.
Swanna sensed that strong presence beginning to dissipate, and eventually, the ghost disappeared from that place.
"Swanna?"
At that moment, Naoki's voice came from behind.
Swanna turned around.
Naoki held out a Poke Ball and said, "Let's go home!"
"Swanna."
Swanna responded and returned to its Poke Ball.
(End of Chapter)
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