Another half month passed.
Although winter still hadn't ended, and no heavy snow had fallen from the sky, life in Fruitvale Village seemed to have returned to normal.
The berries in the orchards had ripened again, and some villagers had already started preparing for the fourth harvest of the season — meaning they would soon have another big income boost.
Around the village, young people dressed like hunters, holding farming tools and patrolling like soldiers, could be seen from time to time.
Each of these young people had a Oddish following them as their patrol partner.
During this period, the villagers had come to view the Oddish with fresh eyes.
No one would have thought that these Pokémon — which they had once disliked — would one day turn around and successfully protect the village.
The strength they had shown was astonishing.
When Aven heard that the villagers wanted to help protect the village, he thought of his First-Generation Trainer Plan.
He had the young people each choose a Oddish as a partner to patrol with, aiming to help them bond throughout the winter.
If, by spring, their relationships were strong enough, Aven planned to officially hand over the Oddish to them for training.
Later, he would teach them basic methods of nurturing Pokémon, and with that, his First-Generation Trainer Plan would already be halfway complete.
Afterward, if he could successfully recreate Poké Balls, the modern version of Pokémon Trainers would officially be born!
Thinking about it made Aven feel incredibly excited.
There was nothing more thrilling than personally training a batch of Trainers in this ancient world.
…
"Big Brother Aven, I want to have my own Oddish too!"
Little Andy was ecstatic when he heard he could choose a Oddish from the squad to partner with.
Of course, Aven supported him and allowed Andy to pick his own Oddish.
Seeing Andy happily hugging his new partner, planning to bond well with it, Aven smiled warmly.
Looking up at the sky, Aven's mind flashed back to memories of his previous life.
He truly hoped that a world where Pokémon and humans lived in harmony would arrive soon.
…
Peter had been feeling very conflicted these past few days.
His dream had always been to tame a powerful magical beast — something like a Luxray or a Rhyhorn.
He would never have imagined that his first Pokémon would end up being a Oddish.
It reminded him of the time back at the farm, when Aven had once invited him to raise a Oddish —
and he had refused without hesitation, something that now made his face flush with shame.
When it came time to pick a Oddish, Peter had been the most eager one of them all.
After witnessing firsthand the strength Oddish could show, he had no choice but to admit that he had been prejudiced before.
Maybe I should try raising it first... Peter told himself, recalling the methods Aven had taught him about nurturing Oddish.
…
Whoosh!
Just as Peter was lost in thought, he felt something flash past him.
He turned his head quickly — it was a Rattata!
The little Pokémon darted into a nearby orchard.
A Rattata! Peter's heart jolted.
After a brief moment of hesitation, he gritted his teeth and rushed into the orchard as well.
Because they still feared magical beasts and didn't want to cause trouble for the village, most villagers still rested in the underground shelters, leaving the orchards largely unattended.
The Rattata quickly spotted an Oran Berry hanging on a tree and leapt up to snatch it.
Just as it was gnawing on the berry, Peter arrived, gripping a shovel and taking a battle stance.
Although Rattata were Pokémon, their physical strength wasn't much higher than that of a normal adult human.
As long as a Rattata hadn't mastered any mysterious Pokémon powers, a human wielding a weapon could still stand a chance.
The Rattata noticed Peter too.
It quickly finished the berry, then jumped down from the tree, also adopting a fighting posture.
Peter gripped his shovel tighter.
Whoosh!
The next second, the Rattata dashed toward him, leaving a trail of white light in its wake!
So fast...
Peter barely had time to react before the Rattata was almost upon him.
Fear surged through him — he thought he was done for — when suddenly a figure burst from the side and rammed into the Rattata.
With a loud thud, the Rattata was sent tumbling several meters away, while a Oddish fell from the air, landing in front of Peter.
O-Oddish...
Peter stared blankly at the Pokémon that had just saved his life, his heart pounding wildly.
If the Oddish hadn't intervened, he might have had his throat bitten and lost his life.
Right! The Rattata!
Snapping out of it, Peter looked toward where the Rattata had been knocked away.
The Rattata was already back on its feet, baring its teeth and glaring at Oddish.
This Rattata is way too fast!
Peter's heart tightened.
Just as he was panicking about what to do, Oddish moved to shield him.
Whoosh!
The Rattata charged again.
Oddish immediately released a cloud of pale blue Sleep Powder to counterattack.
However, the Rattata, knowing how dangerous the powder was, abruptly stopped and waited for the powder to settle.
Once the coast was clear, it dashed forward again.
This time, Oddish couldn't dodge in time and was heavily slammed aside!
No good... if we rely only on Oddish, we won't beat this Rattata.
Peter forced himself to stay calm, recalling Aven's instructions.
Oddish currently knew two moves: Sleep Powder and Absorb.
The Rattata, having scored a hit, charged in again at incredible speed.
"Oddish, use Absorb when it gets close!"
Peter shouted.
Oddish hesitated for a moment but then fired a beam of green light straight at the charging Rattata.
Hit by the green glow, the Rattata was forced to halt its attack as its energy was drained.
It struggled violently, trying to break free.
"Now! Use Sleep Powder!"
Peter ordered again.
Immediately, Oddish released a cloud of pale blue powder over the weakened Rattata.
Enveloped by the powder, the Rattata staggered, ran a few more steps — and then collapsed heavily onto the ground!
(End of Chapter)
(TN1: I created an auxiliary chapter about the Pokémon Levels in this story, check it if guys are interested but its not final ok, the mtl change its translations sometimes or the author adds another level so it gets pretty confusing to me.
(TN2: Also, I think this story is in the Sinnoh timeline already since that's what the author calls the continent in the 100ths chapter and I was thinking of changing the names of the Cities to their anime/game names but I cant think which is which. I hope you guys leave a comment on what you think the names are. So far there are only three cities mentioned. )
Aspiration City (raw name Lizhicheng) - mentioned to be near Lake Valor but also near Mt. Coronet to be attacked by the beast tide from It, so I'm confused between Veilstone City, Pastoria City, and Hearthome City. It might also be because only one city exists and the other 2 are yet to be created.
Meteor or Meteorite City - this I forget which chapter this was mentioned so I had no notes. Please leave the chapter if you guys remember.
Marina City (Raw Name Seaside City) - Pretty sure this is Sunnyshore City. Mentioned to be on southeastern side of the continent also mentioned to be on the Southeastern side of Aspiration City.
Also If you prefer the names the remain the same thats also ok for me.