Within the Purple Forest,
Subtle rustling sounds could be heard—the result of the team deliberately lightening their footsteps.
Not only did they tread carefully, but everyone also instinctively avoided getting too close to the trees.
After witnessing Muheer's experience, they all knew that insects could be lurking within the trees.
While Akira, Ging, and others in the group weren't afraid, this threat posed a significant danger to most of the team.
Especially since the insects were incredibly fast, and many lacked the confidence to react as swiftly as the battle-hardened Muheer'.
Thus, this cautious approach became the norm.
For the past two days, they had been actively avoiding the trees.
Even when they had to approach one, they remained hyper-vigilant and chose smaller trees.
Based on their observations, larger trees had a higher likelihood of harboring insects.
In the deathly silent Purple Forest, they moved like transient visitors, utterly out of place.
The world before their eyes was bathed entirely in purple. If not for the nightly respite in cyberspace, their vision would likely have suffered.
"Hmm?"
Akira, at the front, suddenly halted, his gaze fixed deep into the forest.
The moment he stopped, the rest of the team followed suit, raising their guard to the highest level.
Over these two days, their leader had only paused during the insect incident and when returning to cyberspace at night.
This meant danger was likely imminent!
"There are quite a few of them."
"Everyone, prepare yourselves—we can't avoid this!" Akira said calmly.
The purple glow within the forest interfered with perception, severely diminishing even the effectiveness of En.
As a result, Miro's Nen ability was temporarily useless, leaving the entire team to rely solely on him.
Though there were other team members with detection-based Nen abilities, none were suited for this forest.
A few moments after Akira spoke, a series of unsettling noises echoed from the depths of the forest.
In the distance, grotesque figures abruptly emerged from the grass.
As the team got a clear look, their initial wariness slowly turned to horror.
The figures' bodies were in varying states of decay, with barely any intact flesh visible.
They weren't a single species but a chaotic mix of creatures—some resembling lizards, others giant insects, and even massive serpents.
Though their original forms might have been vastly different, they now shared one common trait: their bodies had been ravaged by some unknown force, leaving them rotting and putrid.
As they moved, chunks of flesh occasionally dropped onto the grass, oozing foul-smelling fluids.
Their presence introduced colors other than purple to the forest, but the team would have preferred not to see them at all.
They were revolting.
Their massive heads bore dull, lifeless eyes, clouded and murky.
Their enormous bodies were covered in blackened, festering wounds, with hints of purple decay beneath.
Thankfully, they were wearing Safety Suits and maintaining some distance—otherwise, the stench would have been unbearable.
No one doubted that the rotting flesh on their bodies would continue to fall off until nothing remained.
Because among these walking corpses, there were several pale, skeletal figures.
Their flesh had completely rotted away, leaving only thick, pristine white bones—monstrous skeletons.
They looked like museum skeletal specimens, except now they were moving.
Both the rotting corpses and these skeletal monsters were incredibly bizarre; theoretically, they shouldn't be able to move at all.
But these weren't questions to ponder right now, because they were closing in!
"Hoh, are those skeletons?" Ging narrowed his eyes, a flicker of excitement flashing across his face.
Encountering these strange, unknown phenomena was the true purpose of his journey.
Walking skeletons?
On the Six Continents, such a thing would be pure fantasy—yet here they were, right before his eyes.
Ging, bold by nature and confident in his abilities, felt no fear.
Instead, his excitement only grew.
The others, however, weren't as enthusiastic as Ging.
Those accustomed to weapons drew theirs—like Muheer'.
Those who relied on their fists clenched them tight—like Beyond.
Thankfully, the Safety Suits provided protection.
Otherwise, close-combat fighters like Beyond wouldn't dare touch that rotting flesh.
Who knew what would happen if bare skin came into contact with it?
They might end up just like those ghastly corpses.
But none of this was the most striking part.
The real change was in their aura.
Each of them unleashed their aura, their aura flaring like Super Saiyans.
Waves of energy pulsed and surged around them.
The dead leaves and rotten branches beneath their feet were instantly crushed into dust by the overwhelming pressure, then scattered by the fierce wind.
A great battle was about to erupt!
Just as everyone prepared to fight, rustling sounds came from the canopy above.
Then, one after another, rotting corpses began dropping like dumplings into boiling water.
At the same time, a foul-smelling rain of putrid liquid fell, turning the forest—once eerily beautiful—into a disgusting mess.
Akira glanced at the falling corpses, his expression unreadable, as if he had expected this.
The moment the fetid liquid hit the ground, it sizzled, sending up wisps of white smoke.
Clearly, this liquid was highly corrosive—capable of dissolving even stone with ease.
The falling corpses were the remains of birds, some so badly decayed they were unrecognizable.
A few identifiable ones included owls and enormous sparrows...
So that's how it is!
The moment he saw the bird corpses, understanding flashed in Ging's eyes.
He had suspected this ever since the walking corpses appeared.
If there were rotting corpses crawling on the ground, could there also be rotting corpses flying in the sky?
After all, the rotting flesh didn't seem to hinder their movement.
The evidence proved Ging's guess correct.
After a brief moment of shock, everyone looked up—only to see a shadow lurking in the canopy.
Under the violet light, they could make out the shadow standing motionless on a branch, seemingly doing nothing.
Yet in the next instant, five pitch-black aura arrows shot forth at blinding speed.
Apart from Ging, Beyond, and Akira, no one could even see the moment the arrows were fired!
This was Akira's first Pokemon born in this forest!
A Grass and Ghost-type, Decidueye—one of the Alola region's Starter alongside Primarina!
Decidueye appeared as if draped in a large cloak, though in reality, its body was entirely covered in feathers.
Its feathers were green, while its body had a white hue.
Decidueye's face featured dark eyelids and a beak, with a ribbon-like band across its chest.
The feathers atop its head were a deeper shade, resembling a hood.
Overall, it looked like an archer of the forest!
As for why it was an archer, that was tied to its abilities.
Decidueye could fire feather arrows hidden within its wings like a bow, which was the origin of its name.
When absolutely determined not to miss, it would tighten the vines on its head to focus.
Its precision was such that it could pierce even a small stone 100 meters away.
It could accurately hit targets even from a kilometer away.
The time from drawing an arrow to firing was only about 0.1 seconds.
It could strike vital points before the enemy noticed, ending battles in an instant.
This was also why, aside from a select few, most couldn't clearly see Decidueye's movements earlier.
Decidueye's attack speed was incredibly fast!
It could completely erase its presence, attacking when opponents couldn't see it.
It would soar high into the sky, descend in a rapid spin, and pierce multiple targets in succession.
Name: Decidueye
Ability: Long Reach
Type: Grass, Ghost
Strength: A
Moves: Spirit Shackle, Phantom Force, Swords Dance, Frenzy Plant, Grass Pledge…
As a starter pokemon, Decidueye could naturally use Grass Pledge, fitting its type.
This also meant Decidueye could coordinate with Primarina, combining Grass Pledge and Water Pledge to turn the battlefield into a marsh, reducing the opponent's speed by 75%.
Beyond its innate abilities, Akira's Decidueye also possessed a hidden ability.
Long Reach: Allows the use of all moves without making physical contact.
In games, this ability prevented Decidueye from suffering recoil or similar effects when using close-range attacks.
But in reality, especially after mastering aura.
Decidueye could attack enemies from a distance while remaining hidden in darkness.
This referred to melee attacks—ranged attacks could reach even farther.
For example, Brave Bird was a move where a Pokemon charged directly at the enemy, colliding with its entire body.
But Decidueye didn't need to do that.
It could simply perform the move from anywhere, striking the enemy from a distance.
Of course, this distance had limits, but as its strength grew, the range would expand.
If its power reached profound levels, Decidueye might even be able to slay enemies from a thousand miles away.
Achieving an effect akin to divine judgment.
Coupled with its identity as a Ghost-type pokemon, Decidueye could appear and vanish within any shadow.
Truly, it was the ultimate assassin!
The only shortcoming was its lethality—A-rank strength was still slightly lacking.
However, it could compensate for this weakness with its Swords Dance, all while steadily gaining experience from hunting the undead.
The arrows should have sliced through the air with a sharp whistle.
Yet they cut silently, tracing eerie curves mid-flight.
Decidueye was adept at such acrobatic archery, allowing it to strike targets with impossible trajectories.
The five leading zombies were pierced in rapid succession—but the impact points were unusual.
Not the customary headshots, but precise strikes through their chests where hearts once beat.
Normally, destroying the brain was the rule when dealing with zombies.
But after battling avian undead, Decidueye had learned.
Attacking the head left them mobile—proof their bodies weren't brain-controlled.
Through experimentation, Decidueye discovered their weak point lay in the torso, the biological core.
Empowered by Swords Dance, its arrows punched clean through the zombies.
Gaping holes appeared in their bodies before they crumpled, finally becoming true corpses.
As the five fell, more mindless zombies trampled over them in their relentless charge.
"Is that your Nen beast too?!"
Muheer gripped his newly materialized bow, disbelief coloring his voice.
Akira nodded, his focus locked on several skeletal anomalies within the horde.
Something felt off about those.
The sequence had unfolded too quickly—only now did the group realize this mysterious archer was Akira's Nen beast.
"Your Nen beast... is truly strong!"
Muheer''s fingers tightened around his faintly glowing bow, a pang of inadequacy gripping him.
Besides Ging and Beyond, none appreciated Decidueye's skill like Muheer' did.
As an archer himself, he recognized the mastery in those impossible shots.
He'd trained in many martial arts.
The saying "jack of all trades, master of none" came to mind.
Without his Nen ability, he knew he couldn't have mastered so many disciplines.
Among them, archery ranked near the top.
Yet his proudest skill paled before this Nen beast's prowess—utterly outclassed.
He couldn't even follow Decidueye's draw sequence, let alone match it.
Then there was its terrifying accuracy.
Every shot found its mark!
Five arrows, each piercing a zombie's core with surgical precision.
Muheer' didn't yet realize those placements were deliberate.
He attributed Decidueye's skill not to Nen, but pure technique.
The reason was simple.
He too could fire curved shots—proof this was archery, not some ability.
Just not at Decidueye's level.
He had to admit—this Nen beast's archery surpassed his own.
Noticing Muheer''s dejection, Akira remarked offhandedly, "It only specializes in archery."
The words struck like enlightenment, reinvigorating the crestfallen archer.
That's right, his martial arts training wasn't limited to just this—especially with a focus on close combat techniques.
And that Nen beast was only proficient in archery.
All things considered, he wasn't at much of a disadvantage against it.
Thinking this, Muheer' not only regained his spirits and confidence but also felt even more invigorated.
"But even using its weaker close combat skills, it wouldn't have any trouble defeating you."
Akira suddenly added another remark.
Causing the smile that had just appeared on Muheer''s face to freeze in place.
As the two conversed, the horde of rotting corpses was steadily advancing!
What awaited them was Decidueye, whose arrows never missed their mark, and the rest of the group, ready to spring into action!
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