"Mr. Bard, may I see your breeding journal?" The teacher asked Bard again.
The breeding journal is where the farm records the daily observations of each snake's physical condition.
"No problem." Bard quickly retrieved the breeding journal and handed it to him.
The teacher picked up the journal and carefully flipped through it, "These marked in red are all the missing Arboks and Ekans?"
"That's right." Bard answered.
"Why are all the missing ones male snakes?" The teacher asked with a puzzled expression.
"Huh? Really? Let me see." Bard hadn't noticed this detail, so he quickly leaned in to look.
Sure enough, not only were all the missing Pokémon male Arboks and Ekans, but they were all young and strong specimens too.
"This... this... our breeding farm couldn't have encountered a female spirit, could it?" Bard shuddered as he spoke, genuinely concerned about his own safety.
The teacher couldn't help but smile wryly at his comment, "Mr. Bard, we should believe in science."
Even if there were female spirits, they probably wouldn't be interested in an old timer like you anyway.
At this moment, a student pinched his nose and raised his hand, "Teacher, can I let my Growlithe sniff around to see if there's any scent of an intruder here?"
The teacher thought: If your method worked, Officer Jenny would have solved this problem long ago.
However, she didn't discourage the student's initiative and smiled, "Sure, give it a try."
But as soon as the student released his Growlithe, it was immediately overwhelmed by the strong smell in the breeding room, rolling its eyes in distress. Forget about investigating clues — it could barely even stand.
Sometimes having too sensitive a nose isn't a good thing.
The teacher smiled and said, "It seems your method isn't very effective."
The student could only blush as he recalled his Growlithe back into its Poké Ball.
Just then, Cole raised his hand and said, "Teacher, since Pokémon would struggle to freely enter and exit this breeding room, the problem is likely inside the room itself. We could use a Luxray to examine the place."
Luxray's eyes can see through anything, easily penetrating any concealment. He recalled that one of the summer camp students had one.
The teacher nodded with satisfaction, "Which student has a Luxray?"
"Teacher, I do!" Chiyo raised her hand and called out from the crowd.
"Good, Chiyo, please have your Luxray examine this place." The teacher said.
"Yes!" Chiyo responded, then took out a Poké Ball and released an extremely large, powerful-looking Luxray.
When first released, it was clearly bothered by the breeding room's strong smell, but Chiyo quickly calmed it down.
"Luxray, I'm counting on you!"
Luxray nodded painfully, then its eyes began emitting a golden light — the key to its x-ray vision. It methodically explored the breeding room, its golden gaze examining every part from floor to ceiling and back to the walls, determined not to miss a single corner.
Suddenly, it stopped in front of a machine positioned against the wall and called out to Chiyo.
She pointed at the machine and asked, "Mr. Bard, what is this machine used for?"
Bard explained, "Breeding Ekans and Arbok requires very specific temperature conditions. This machine monitors and adjusts the breeding room temperature. Is something wrong with it?"
Chiyo nodded, "I'm afraid so."
Cole then added, "The Luxray is indicating there's a hole under this machine."
Everyone was surprised upon hearing this and looked at him, who just shrugged without saying anything more.
"Mr. Bard, can we move this machine aside?" The teacher asked for permission.
"Of course, of course, I'll find someone to move it right away." Bard quickly replied.
"No need to find anyone, let me do it!" Junichi called out, raising his hand from the crowd.
He took out two Poké Balls and, with a flash of red light, two Gengar appeared in the air.
"Gengar, help move this machine!"
"Gen~"
"Gen~"
The two Gengar, completely unfazed by the breeding room's smell, cheerfully responded and flew to either side of the machine. Their eyes emitted a blue light, and the machine levitated.
The moment the machine moved, a dark shadow darted out from underneath and quickly climbed up to the ceiling.
The floor beneath the machine had been corroded into a large hole, apparently by poison, and the shadow had just emerged from this hole.
Chiyo's Luxray, with its quick reflexes, immediately pounced, but was a moment too slow and missed the shadow.
Everyone looked up to see a Salazzle hanging upside down in a seductive pose, glaring at them with hateful eyes.
"Look at this!" Junichi exclaimed, pointing at the hole under the machine.
Inside were numerous Ekans and Arbok tangled together, all looking embarrassed.
The snakes appeared weak, as if drained of energy. In an instant, everyone understood what had happened.
Some of the girls, realizing the implication, blushed.
So Bard's missing Arbok and Ekans weren't captured by someone but were "kept hidden away" by the Salazzle?
Everyone stared at the toxic female lizard with amazement in their eyes. What a role model!
"This Salazzle is..." The teacher frowned and looked at Bard.
Salazzle is generally not seen in Kanto.
"So the culprit was this Salazzle!" Bard said with a sigh.
For breeding farms like his that specialize in one type of Pokémon, genetic disorders can easily develop. To prevent this, they periodically allow their Pokémon to breed with those from other farms.
The breeding farm that recently visited to mate with the Ekans and Arbok was from Alola.
When they left, they had complained to Bard about a missing Salazzle. Despite searching the entire breeding farm, they couldn't find it and eventually had to give up.
Who would have thought that it had found itself such a comfortable new home!
After hearing his explanation, everyone looked at the Salazzle with even more admiration.
As expected of you! The ultimate player in the Pokémon world.
"Please help me catch the Salazzle." Bard requested.
"Don't worry, leave it to us!" Junichi eagerly volunteered, "Gengar, catch that Salazzle!"
"Gen~"
"Gen~"
The two Gengar responded in unison, flanking the Salazzle from both sides and simultaneously using Psychic to capture it with their telekinetic powers.
But the Salazzle's reaction speed was unexpectedly fast. Its figure flashed and vanished from its original position. Then it opened its mouth and spewed out a cloud of purple mist that instantly engulfed both Gengar.
The purple mist was the poison-type move Smog.
"Gen~"
"Gen~"
The two Gengar cried out in pain as they fell from the mist to the ground, their bodies bubbling with purple foam, clearly poisoned.
"My Gengar are poisoned!" Junichi exclaimed in shock.
Cole reminded him, "One of Salazzle's abilities is Corrosion."
Pokémon with the Corrosion ability can poison Steel and Poison-type Pokémon that would normally be immune to poisoning. Since Gengar is Ghost/Poison, they too can be poisoned.
"Damn it!" Junichi trembled with anger, "Gengar, keep going, we must catch that thing."
Just then, Bard called out anxiously, "Oh no! The smog is spreading, and many Ekans and Arbok are getting poisoned!"
The Salazzle was clever. It continuously released smog not only to poison the snakes and create chaos, but also to conceal its whereabouts, making escape easier.
Speaking of which, this Salazzle was quite heartless. Many Ekans and Arbok had only recently enjoyed its company, yet now it was mercilessly poisoning them.
"Don't worry, Bard. I'll take care of the poisoned Pokémon." As he spoke, Cole released his Bayleef, "Bayleef, Aromatherapy!"
"Bay~"
Bayleef nodded in response, then gently shook the ring of leaves around its neck. Instantly, a fragrant pink mist erupted, filling the entire breeding room.
Soothed by the aroma, the agitated Arbok and Ekans quickly calmed down. Their poisoning symptoms gradually disappeared, and Junichi's two Gengar were also cured.
"Thank you, Cole!" Junichi glanced at him gratefully, "Gengar, go get it!"
"Gen!"
"Gen!"
The two Gengar immediately shrieked and charged toward the Salazzle.
The pink and purple mists mingled together, with the purple mist beginning to dissolve.
Erika and other trainers with grass-type Pokémon also released their partners, having them use Aromatherapy together, which made the smog dissipate even faster.
Under the coordinated attack of the two Gengar, Salazzle was knocked to the ground. It quickly distanced itself, then opened its mouth and spewed out a black smoke that resembled coal dust.
This black smoke was produced by another poison-inducing move — Poison Gas.
When Cole saw flames flickering in its mouth, his expression changed, and he quickly warned, "Watch out! Salazzle is going to ignite the Poison Gas!"
But his warning came too late. With a deafening boom, the Poison Gas surrounding the two Gengar exploded violently, blasting them across the room.
The blast not only injured the Gengar but also shattered several nearby glass enclosures. The Ekans and Arbok let out painful hisses as they were caught in the explosion.
Salazzle kept spewing Poison Gas, apparently trying to blow up the entire breeding room. The Aromatherapy couldn't neutralize the poison fast enough.
"Bayleef, Grassy Terrain!"
"Bay~"
Bayleef stopped using Aromatherapy, leaving the other grass-type Pokémon to dissolve the toxic gases while it spread Grassy Terrain.
Thanks to Grassy Terrain's healing effect, the injured Arbok and Ekans finally found relief from their pain.
After a quick moment of consideration, Cole released his Brionne from another Poké Ball.
"Brionne, Disarming Voice."
"Brion~"
Brionne understood immediately. Gentle, harmonious sounds flowed from its throat, and soon water droplets formed in the air, attracting and absorbing all the Poison Gas.
"Sal~"
Salazzle hissed loudly and spat out a burst of sparks, but when its flames touched the Poison Gas, the gas didn't explode. Instead, only the water droplets containing the gas evaporated from the heat, creating a cloud of water vapor.
With Brionne neutralizing the threat, the two Gengar finally seized their opportunity, simultaneously hitting Salazzle with Psychic and rendering it unable to battle.
Seeing Salazzle fall, both the students and Bard breathed sighs of relief.
"Hmph! If I wasn't worried about damaging the breeding room facilities and hurting the Ekans and Arbok, I would have taught that Salazzle a proper lesson." Junichi said resentfully.
Hearing this, Erika gave him a slap on the shoulder, "Stop boasting! If it weren't for Cole's help just now, you would have been in big trouble. You should work harder in the future!"
"You...!"
Junichi was left speechless by her remark, while Daisy covered her mouth and giggled.
But what he said was also true. Chiyo's Luxray possessed much greater destructive power — and it hadn't even attacked. If it had, this breeding room would probably have been destroyed by a single electric discharge.
"Well done, everyone, especially Cole, Chiyo, and Junichi. Our mission today is successfully completed!" The teacher announced.
Bard approached Cole and the others, "Thank you all for your help today. Why don't you stay for dinner? Let me show my appreciation as your host."
The teacher politely declined, knowing that with so many students, it would be too costly for Bard to feed them all.
As the saying goes, "Growing boys can eat their parents out of house and home", and this group of youngsters certainly had healthy appetites.
Seeing the teacher's firm stance, Bard didn't insist further.
"What do you plan to do with this Salazzle, Bard?" The teacher asked.
"I'll send it back to its original breeding farm." Bard replied, "I need to claim compensation from them. If not for their negligence, I wouldn't have suffered such losses."
Looking at the weakened Ekans and Arbok that had been exploited by the Salazzle, he was distressed. It would take a long time to nurse them back to health — they had all been strong, healthy specimens before.
Didn't they understand sustainable development? Why exhaust all resources at once?
{Translation: Why come everything at once if you can do a little each day? Another translation: Why paint the whole room white in one hour if you can paint one wall per day? Another for the fun: Why choke the entire chicken coop if you can choke one chicken per day?}
Having resolved Bard's problem, Cole and the others took a car back to Pallet.
Although they didn't stay for dinner, each of them received a parting gift: a shed Ekans skin.
✲✲✲
T/N: Hey! Liked what you read? Support your friendly neighborhood translator on Patreon! Think of it as buying me a coffee... or ten!
For just $1.50 (that's less than your daily meme budget), get extra chapters! Want more? $2 gets you bonus content, $5 unlocks premium stories, and $10 makes you my hero (and gets you everything I have, including earlier acess to new books)! You can have access to almost 15 books!
That's it and happy reading! (-‿◦)
https://www.patreon.com/collection/1305384