https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-458-The-Dragonite-and-the-Dragon-Tree/12537921/
Chapter 457: The Runaway Skitty
Chapter 457: The Runaway Skitty
Naoki wasted no time in putting his plan into action. That very afternoon, he went online and ordered the materials needed to make a mask.
It was three days later when the delivery Pegassa arrived at the ranch, looking a little worse for wear.
The date was May 2, 200 AL.
The Pegassa, having set off from Oldale Town, landed unsteadily in the ranch. Even by regular delivery standards, this was considered slow.
Under normal circumstances, it would take a Pegassa only a day to travel from Oldale Town to Rustborough City.
The delivery Pegassa looked disheveled and dirty all over.
Naoki was surprised. After some inquiry, he learned that the Pegassa had been attacked by wild Pokemon along the way and had a hard time safeguarding the delivery.
The Pegassa looked traumatized and vowed never to take the shortcut again.
Naoki: "..."
He took the package from the Pegassa, then took out some medicine to treat the bird's injuries.
The Pegassa expressed its gratitude profusely before taking off on its return journey.
Naoki then headed to the World Tree with the mask-making materials and sought out Mewtwo.
He handed the package to Mewtwo.
Mewtwo glanced at it.
The next second, its deep voice resonated within Naoki's mind: "What shape do you want it to be?"
What shape...
Naoki immediately thought of Limone's Blaziken mask.
It was a mask designed after the Blaziken, complete with a cloak and a bodysuit.
He decided to go with a Pokemon theme as well.
The question was, which Pokemon should he choose?
Naoki looked at the Gorebyss beside him, which had followed him to the World Tree.
"No, that won't do. Gorebyss is too distinctive," Naoki shook his head instinctively.
There were only two known Gorebyss in the world at present—one in the Zero Zone laboratory and the other with him.
Even the Pokedex lacked information on Gorebyss' ecology.
How about a Sharpedo, then? Sharpedo was a well-known Pokemon in the Paldea region and also served as an important means of transportation for its people.
Since everyone had a Sharpedo, it wouldn't be so obvious if he wore a Sharpedo mask.
With that in mind, Naoki had made up his mind.
"Sharpedo it is!"
Mewtwo was familiar with Sharpedo. Upon hearing this, it calmly nodded and, with a slight mental nudge, the materials for the mask began to float in response to its telekinetic powers.
Then, something incredible happened.
The materials, under Mewtwo's control, began to transform at a visible rate.
They eventually took on the shape of a Sharpedo, forming a mask with black and dark green as the main colors.
"Done," Mewtwo announced.
Naoki examined the mask for a while, feeling quite satisfied, and thanked Mewtwo before leaving with Gorebyss.
With this mask, he wouldn't have to worry about exposing his identity in the future!
From now on, when he wore the mask, he would be Sharpedo Mask, and without it, he would be a regular ranch owner.
Naoki and Gorebyss left the Reverse World.
As soon as they returned to the ranch, Naoki spotted a familiar figure sitting on the grass.
It was the Skitty from a while back!
Naoki popped a few translated sunflower seeds into his mouth from his pocket and walked over. "So, how did it go? Was my method effective?"
Skitty angrily recounted what had happened after it returned home the last time.
"Meowth! It was horrible! My efforts didn't work at all, and my trainer continued to worry about the other Pokemon! Plus, while I was away, they caught a new Pokemon and didn't even miss me!"
Naoki: "..."
If that was the case, then that trainer was being a bit unreasonable.
Frowning, he asked, "So, you've run away from home again?"
Skitty huffed, "Meowth! I'm never going back!"
Wow!
Naoki was taken aback. "You don't mean to abandon your trainer, do you?"
He had seen trainers abandon their Pokemon, but never the other way around!
In this world, it wasn't uncommon for trainers to discard their Pokemon.
Take Shinji from the anime, for example. He only caught Pokemon with high potential and strength, and if a Pokemon failed to meet his expectations, he would release them.
Even Pokemon like Torchic were abandoned.
But for a Pokemon to proactively abandon their trainer was a rare occurrence.
Skitty, still fuming, shouted, "Meowth! Yes, that's right!"
Naoki was about to say something when a boy of about ten years old suddenly appeared at the entrance of the ranch.
"Excuse me, have you seen a Skiddy around here by any chance?"
Naoki: "..."
He looked around, spotting Bahav, Mitohoney, Motostoke, and a few other Pokemon, but Skiddy was nowhere to be seen.
From the boy's demeanor, it seemed he was indeed Skiddy's trainer.
Noticing the worried expression on the boy's face, Naoki contemplated for a moment before responding.
"Skiddy? Yes, I did see one earlier. It was drinking by the river and eating some berries this morning. Are you its trainer?"
Hearing that Skiddy had been spotted nearby, the boy's eyes lit up, and he visibly relaxed.
"Yes, that's my Skiddy! But lately, it's been sneaking off on its own and only returning after several days... "
The boy's face was filled with concern as he spoke.
Naoki thought to himself that this child had quite a bold heart, unaware that his Pokemon was on the verge of abandoning him.
Though, he suspected that Skiddy's words were more out of frustration than genuine intent.
"Don't worry just yet," Naoki reassured the boy. "Skiddy might return to this area since there aren't any other houses around. When it gets hungry, it may come back. Why don't you wait here for a bit?"
"Really? Thank you so much, Mr. Rancher! I'm Xiao Dong, from the town of Xiaochi. I'm currently traveling through the Paldea region with my Pokemon!"
Naoki smiled gently.
He handed the Motostoke mask to Gurdurr, asking it to keep it safe for him, and then invited Xiao Dong into the living room, offering him a glass of water.
Xiao Dong had been following Skiddy's trail, so focused on finding his Pokemon that he had forgotten to hydrate.
He eagerly gulped down the water and expressed his gratitude. "Sorry for the trouble!"
"No trouble at all," Naoki assured him. "If you don't mind, could you tell me more about what's been going on with Skiddy?"
Meanwhile, the Skiddy that had sneaked away earlier tiptoed to the door and hid under the eaves, eavesdropping on the conversation inside the house.
Several of the ranch's Pokemon noticed it and gave confused looks.
"Oh, of course!" Xiao Dong nodded and proceeded to explain the situation with Skiddy in detail.
"This is my first year of traveling. I received Skiddy as my starter Pokemon from the principal of the Paldea Academy. We used to do everything together—attend classes, eat meals, and participate in extracurricular activities. Everything was fine back then."
"But then, about three months ago, something changed. Skiddy started acting moody and would sulk whenever I tried to leave the house. Eventually, it ran away while I wasn't looking. This is the fifth time it's run away from home."
Naoki: "..."
Skiddy certainly lived up to its reputation for having a strong sense of possessiveness over its trainers.
He nodded thoughtfully, then asked, "When did Skiddy first start acting moody?"
Xiao Dong paused for a moment, taken aback by the question, before sinking into his memories.
"It was about three months ago! I had just become a trainer and was eager to venture into the wild to catch my second Pokemon after leaving Paldea Academy."
"Back then, just outside the city of Zoutap, I caught a Sweet Bamboo Pokemon in a Poke Ball."
"Ah, that's right! It was after that incident that Skiddy started acting up!"
Naoki's query was spot-on, and he followed up with, "And then?"
Xiao Dong thought for a moment before continuing, "After that... I caught a Shuttlecock Pokemon, a Skitty, a Baby Bird Pokemon, a Marill, and a Duck Pokemon."
Naoki asked, incredulous, "All in one day?"
Xiao Dong shook his head vigorously. "No, over the course of a week!"
As he spoke, his excitement was evident. "I've been looking forward to this day for a long time—becoming a trainer and setting out to catch all the Pokemon!"
Naoki: "..."
"I think I understand why Skiddy has been running away," he said.
Xiao Dong looked at him, puzzled. "Huh?"
"Skiddy is a Pokemon with a very strong sense of possessiveness towards its trainer. They don't like sharing their trainer with other Pokemon."
Naoki turned to the boy and continued, "If I'm not mistaken, after catching those Pokemon, you made sandwiches for them, petted them, and gave them attention, right?"
"Yes, that's right..."
"Pokemon, just like us humans, possess a wide range of emotions. They feel happy when praised by their trainers and sad when they feel neglected," he explained.
Hearing this, Xiao Dong's expression turned pensive.
"Sometimes, trainers need to exercise self-control. There's only one trainer, and capturing too many Pokemon can make it challenging to care for them all adequately," Naoki continued.
"In such cases, some Pokemon will inevitably be neglected, just like Leafio."
"So, you're saying Leafio chose to run away from home because it felt neglected..." Xiao Dong murmured.
Leafio had run away from home five times now, and each time it stayed away longer.
Xiao Dong couldn't help but wonder: If he continued like this, constantly capturing new Pokemon, would Leafio one day give up on him and never return?
The thought filled him with fear.
His mind drifted to the memories he shared with Leafio.
He remembered their first encounter, how he had chosen the adorable Leafio among the Croagunk and Sobble.
They had attended classes together at the Paldea Academy, ran together on the training field until they were exhausted, shared meals in the cafeteria, and slept side by side in the dormitory at night.
Naoki, aware of the Pokemon loitering outside, knew that Leafio was eavesdropping at the door.
He exchanged a glance with Gorebyss outside before turning back to the dejected boy and asking, "Is that Leafio important to you?"
"Of course!" Xiao Dong replied without hesitation.
Outside, Leafio's heart fluttered at hearing this.
"Meowth..."
"If you see Leafio again, what would you like to say to it?" Naoki inquired, guiding the conversation.
Following Naoki's lead, Xiao Dong continued, "I would apologize and tell it that I've neglected it lately. From now on, I'll pay more attention to Leafio's feelings and make sure it never feels sad again!"
Naoki smiled and nodded, then turned towards the door and said, "Did you hear that, Leafio?"
"Huh?! " Xiao Dong was taken aback, glancing at Naoki before turning to look towards the door as well.
Just then, he saw Leafio, looking a little awkward, walking inside.
"Leafio!" Xiao Dong exclaimed, rushing towards the Pokemon and hugging it tightly. "I'm sorry for neglecting you lately! I promise I won't do that again!"
Leafio, touched by its trainer's apology, looked at him intently and responded, "Meowth!"
"Anyway, that's what happened," Naoki said, summarizing the events that had transpired since Leafio arrived at the ranch.
"I see..." Xiao Dong murmured, then sincerely expressed his gratitude to Naoki. "Thank you so much for taking care of Leafio, Mr. Naoki!"
"Don't mention it," Naoki waved dismissively, glancing at Leafio before turning back to Xiao Dong. "Leafio has something it wants to say to you. Do you need me to translate?"
"Huh?"
Naoki smiled and said, "It says it loves you very much and wants to be with you always."
Xiao Dong was stunned by these words.
"So, make sure you never neglect Leafio again," Naoki added.
Turning away, Naoki waved goodbye. "Farewell, and I wish you a pleasant journey!"
On the country road outside the ranch, Xiao Dong and Leafio stood, staring at the retreating figure until it was out of sight.
It was a long while before they looked away.
"Leafio, let's continue our journey, too!" Xiao Dong said.
Leafio happily nodded, "Meowth!"
The figures of the boy and his Pokemon gradually disappeared at the end of the road.
Meanwhile, Naoki looked at the round object that Gorebyss was holding out to him, slightly taken aback.
"What's this?"
"Agassa." (It's from Leafio.)
Gorebyss replied.
Hearing this, Naoki immediately recalled Leafio's mention of a treasure.
He focused his gaze on the round object, and its detailed information appeared in his mind.
[Thank You Seed: A mysterious seed given by Leafio, filled with its gratitude. If planted, it will surely grow into a special crop.]
(End of Chapter)
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