This beach was close to the main road and Petalburg City. It was also extremely wide, a natural field for Pokémon.
Because of this, many new Trainers were on the sand, flipping over rocks and digging in the gravel, trying to find Pokémon hidden deep inside.
These people weren't asking for much. Whether it was a Kingler, Tentacool, Shellder, or some other Pokémon, any of them would make them happy for a while.
Some were even battling nearby, honing their skills.
This was a hunting ground for beginners. Besides forests and grasslands, it was the easiest place for them to get wild Pokémon.
Of course, Trainers weren't the only ones here. You could also see the occasional family or young couple strolling and playing.
Natsui and Erika's arrival was just like any normal couple. They didn't attract any attention. People's gazes just passed over them, noting they were a good-looking pair, before moving on.
After enjoying the sea breeze and wading in the water, they watched Torchic pacing nearby, dodging the waves. It seemed terrified of getting its feathers wet, which made them both laugh.
They stood quietly for a moment, then Erika looked back at him. "We're already here. Aren't you going to check the rocks like those other people? You might find a surprise!"
"How could there be any rare Pokémon in a place like this?"
Natsui shook his head. He wasn't convinced, but since he had nothing better to do, he left the sandy beach and walked over to the reef area.
To avoid being disturbed, the two had moved far away from the crowd to a secluded spot. No one else was around. The tide was out, exposing large sections of the reef that were usually underwater.
Natsui stepped across the rocks, looking down.
Because some areas were indented, they remained full of water after the tide receded, forming small pools. Pokémon that hadn't retreated in time were trapped in these puddles.
Just by glancing around, he saw many Pokémon.
A wild Horsea was hiding between two rocks. As Natsui jumped over it, it suddenly shot a cloud of ink at him.
Natsui barely dodged, frowned, and jumped down. He returned the favor with a kick that sent it flying into the ocean.
The Horsea spun a dozen times in the air before plopping into the water.
Hmph. It looks rough, but I'm saving its life!
He hadn't gone a few more steps when two tentacles suddenly lashed out at him. Natsui grabbed them and looked closely. It was a Tentacool!
Natsui's brow furrowed again. He pulled its two tentacles, wrapped them around a small rock, and tied them in a knot.
That'll teach you to attack. Let's see what you do without your tentacles! Just wait for someone else to catch you!
After these two encounters, Natsui lost interest in searching. He saw he had wandered a bit far from Erika, so he found a relatively flat spot and started walking back.
He had only taken a few steps when he heard a soft "slap, slap" sound nearby.
Something was stranded in the shallow water, trying to save itself.
He couldn't just ignore something like this. He changed direction, rounded a huge boulder, and came to the other side.
He looked, and sure enough, in a very shallow puddle, a fish Pokémon was mostly exposed. It was flapping its tail, trying to get back to the sea.
It was stranded.
But it was still some distance from the ocean, with a large stretch of reef in the way. It couldn't move now, and even if it could, it would dry out on the way.
He looked at the Pokémon. It looked like a normal fish, but much uglier. Its body was a dull brown and covered in spots. Its eyes had a dazed expression, and it had thick lips. Even its fins looked tattered.
Just then, Erika also came around the boulder.
She had seen Natsui start to return, only to be drawn away by something, so she curiously came over to see what was happening.
When she looked, she saw this Pokémon that was seriously not to her taste.
"What Pokémon is that? Its appearance is a little... strange?"
It was a good thing this was Erika. Her good manners made her express her surprise politely. Anyone else probably would have just called it ugly.
Natsui smiled. "I don't know if you've heard, but there's a magical fish. Before it evolves, it's incredibly ugly. But when it evolves, it becomes a beautiful Pokémon with colorful scales that shine in the sun!"
"Eh? A Pokémon like that exists?" Erika was surprised. She looked down at the fish in the puddle. "Are you talking about this one?"
As a Trainer, Erika knew a lot about Pokémon, but that was mostly limited to Grass-types from Kanto and Johto. This was the first time she had ever seen a Pokémon like this.
Natsui nodded. "Its name is Feebas. They can survive even in the dirtiest ditches. They look dazed and are easy to catch, but because they're so ugly and tattered, most Trainers ignore them. Very few people know how beautiful its evolution is."
As he spoke, Natsui took out his Pokédex and aimed it at Feebas.
"Beep. Feebas, the Fish Pokémon. A Water-type. Feebas has a wide habitat and gathers in large numbers in rivers or seabeds with lots of weeds. Although numerous, they prefer to live in groups. It has surprising vitality and decent swimming speed. It eats anything and is a strong Pokémon that doesn't mind dirty water, which is why many scholars study it."
Natsui pulled up an image of Milotic and handed the Pokédex to Erika.
"Look, this is what it looks like after it evolves. Isn't it beautiful?"
Erika took it and looked. The Pokémon in the picture was indeed gorgeous. Then she looked back down at the Feebas. She found it impossible to connect it to the image of Milotic.
"It's incredible..." she said. "I can't believe the difference between its pre-evolution and evolution is so huge. You can't even see a trace of its original form!"
"I know." Natsui put the Pokédex away. "That's why most people don't know Milotic evolves from Feebas. They think it's an extremely rare Pokémon."
Erika looked around and saw only this one Feebas. She nodded in understanding.
"The Pokédex says they live in groups. Since there's only one here, it must have been left behind when the tide went out."
"That's probably it." Natsui pointed around. "Look, these rocks aren't high, but they form a wall. When the tide went out, the water flowed slowly, but it still trapped it here until the water was gone, exposing it."
After all that, Erika was surprised to see Natsui take out a Poké Ball. "What, you want to catch it?"
Natsui nodded. "I'm short on Water-types, so I need to add one. Feebas is weak and its appearance puts most Trainers off. But with enough care, the evolved Milotic is not only stunning, but also quite strong."
He threw the Poké Ball at Feebas. Natsui had assumed, seeing its state, that it was weak and had no energy to resist. But as the red light pulled Feebas in, the ball had barely shaken once when Feebas broke out!
Refusing to believe it, he picked up the ball and threw it again. Just like before, it was caught, and two seconds later, it broke out again.
What stubborn vitality...
Natsui finally understood why they were being investigated. Even in this situation, she still had the strength to fight.
This was truly a Pokémon that could live in ditches and polluted water.
He waved Torchic over. "It's your turn. Knock it out!"
Torchic tilted its head, opened its mouth, and used Ember on Feebas. The flames hit, but they didn't do much damage and were quickly put out by the water.
Natsui sighed. "Don't use Ember. Get closer and just use Scratch."
Hearing this, Torchic moved in, lifted a claw, and scratched the Feebas. It took two good scratches to finally knock it out.
Seeing the Feebas was motionless, Natsui threw the Poké Ball again. This time, the capture was successful.
Great, 20th Pokémon capture successful!
Satisfied with this harvest, Natsui didn't linger. He and Erika left the beach.
He hadn't expected to catch a Pokémon when he went to the beach. He also hadn't expected to catch two Pokémon in just two days after arriving in Hoenn.
It seemed Hoenn really was a treasure trove. The number of wild Pokémon was high. No wonder the average skill of the Gym Leaders and Trainers here was a bit higher than in Johto and Kanto.
They returned to the main road, headed north, and soon arrived at the entrance to Petalburg Woods.
By now, the sky was darkening again. They were far from the city, and there were no houses around. It looked like they would be camping in the wild tonight.
Since that was the case, Natsui and Erika didn't stop. They plunged into Petalburg Woods while it was still light.
If they had to camp outside, what was the difference between a field and a forest?
Just like Viridian Forest in Kanto, Petalburg Woods was dense with trees that blocked the light. The interior of the forest was dim and easy to get lost in.
Both forests had large numbers of Bug-type Pokémon. But Petalburg Woods also had other types living in it, making its biodiversity a bit richer.
Of course, both forests had just as many Trainers trying to catch Pokémon.
They walked through the forest for a while. As the sun set, the whole forest grew dark.
They found a flat spot near a water source, and Natsui and Erika stopped, deciding to spend the night there.
But just as they finished setting up the tent, they saw a giant Zigzagoon approaching their camp, moving in a 'Z' pattern.
As a small Pokémon, a normal Zigzagoon was less than 50 centimeters tall and weighed about 15 kilograms. But this Zigzagoon was nearly 1.8 meters tall, almost the size of a human!
Natsui thought they had run into some kind of Totem Pokémon or wandered into its territory. He was about to put his Pokémon on alert when the Zigzagoon suddenly stood up on its hind legs, like a person.
Before Natsui could react, the Zigzagoon reached up with two "hands" and... took its own head off.
Because it was already dark, the sight made Natsui's jaw drop. But as the "Zigzagoon" walked a few steps closer, Natsui could see clearly. This wasn't a Zigzagoon at all. It was a tall boy wearing a Zigzagoon costume!
What he had taken off wasn't a head, just the hood of his costume.
"Hey, you two!" the boy yelled. "You can't set up camp here! You'll ruin my plan!!"
Perhaps because he was angry, the boy's tone was very rude, which immediately made Natsui's eyes narrow.
"What? Do you own this forest?" Natsui said coldly. "We'll camp where we want. You can't tell us what to do."
The boy ran closer and yelled at Natsui, "Do you know I've been hiding here for half the day trying to get close to the Zigzagoon? You two show up, and they all get scared away!"
Thinking back, Natsui did remember seeing a few Zigzagoon in this clearing before they set up camp. He hadn't thought anything of it at the time and just had Torchic run forward. The Zigzagoon had fled into the woods. This must have been their habitat.
Who would have thought some "weirdo" was hiding nearby?
As the boy got closer, Natsui realized he looked a lot like Ash. Aside from a slightly different hairstyle, he looked like a taller, older version of Ash. And he seemed just as impulsive!
If Natsui didn't know Delia only had one son, he would have sworn this was Ash's long-lost brother.
"So what?" Natsui glanced at the boy. If the guy had spoken politely, Natsui would have been friendly. But with that tone, he wasn't going to be nice. "If they ran off, just go chase them. Or can you only catch them by dressing up and sneaking, because you lack the skill to battle them?"
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