Chapter 450:
"Meowscarada?"
Kaede paused. Meowscarada's sudden climb onto him had startled away the Bounsweet resting on him.
Meowscarada, however, simply turned its head away with a huff.
"Hah, I get it now! You're jealous, Meowscarada!" Understanding dawned on Kaede.
Meowscarada was naturally a Pokémon prone to jealousy. Coupled with its current expression, he suddenly remembered seeing similar looks on Serperior's face back home before. He never quite understood why then, but today, in a moment of clarity, he seemed to grasp Meowscarada's train of thought.
"Alright, alright. Let's go find Steenee and Tsareena directly then."
Kaede gently pinched Meowscarada's cheek, prompting it to climb down. He didn't engage further with the wild Bounsweet and headed straight for the large tree where Steenee and Tsareena were.
Returning to the hollow tree that served as Tsareena's den, Kaede saw that the slightly messy, burrow-like entrance from last time was now spotlessly clean. Even the overgrown branches from lack of care had been neatly trimmed away with Razor Leaf.
While they might have thought this hollow tree would be hard to visit again, it was still a place they once called home.
But Kaede said this:
"This is good. Keeping it clean means you can come back to stay here from time to time when winter comes."
"Tsareena?"
"Steenee?"
Mother and daughter looked at Kaede, puzzled.
"Didn't I say? In the future, when winter comes and it gets cold, we can come here for the season. We can come here to play then," Kaede explained, patting Steenee's little head with a smile.
ヽ(✿ﾟ▽ﾟ)ノ: "Steenee~" (*Yay~*)
"Tsareena..."
"So, do you want to stay here tonight? I'll probably be here for two or three more days before heading back," Kaede then asked.
Being out in the world was different from being at home.
During travels, most of a Trainer's Pokémon rest inside their Poké Balls.
But in reality, not all Pokémon enjoy staying in Poké Balls, especially his Pokémon. They were hardly ever in theirs, each having its own little spot at home.
Although he bought Luxury Balls for each of his Pokémon, now that Steenee and Tsareena had a choice, Kaede naturally wanted to know their preference.
Hearing this, Steenee's face immediately showed worry. "Steenee?"
"Steenee...?"
"How could that be? When it's time to go back, I'll definitely come get you. And why would you think that? The Breeding House still needs you two to make juice for everyone," Kaede said fondly, stroking Steenee's head.
The three little ones Gardevoir brought back—Blaziken and Primarina—had been abandoned before. Steenee had been with them through that. So, hearing Kaede's question, it worried he saw they were fine here and might not take them back.
But honestly, Kaede couldn't bear to let Steenee go.
He just thought, since they were out here, it would be good to reconnect with nature a bit more.
"Steenee..." Steenee was momentarily indecisive and looked at its mother. It didn't have strong feelings about this place, but it thought its mother might miss the old home. However, its mother's gaze was fixed on it, clearly leaving the decision in its hands.
Steenee's expression then firmed up. "Steenee!" (Then I don't want to stay here. I want to stay with you.)
"Then let's go."
Kaede took out their Poké Balls and recalled them.
Muttering to himself, he said, "Next up, Ninetales and the Eevees."
---
Arriving at the spot where he parted ways with Alolan Ninetales and the others, Kaede was surprised to find them already waiting, even though he thought he might be late.
However, the Pokémon's fur was somewhat disheveled.
Kaede couldn't help but ask, "What happened? Where did you go?"
"Ninetales! Ninetales!"
At this, Alolan Ninetales immediately seemed eager to talk. "Ninetales..."
"A really big bear? You got into a fight with it?" Kaede was taken aback.
Alolan Ninetales nodded, then began describing the events. "Ninetales..."
So, after parting with Kaede, they initially discussed what to do on their first outing. But looking at each other, they couldn't come up with anything.
Finally, "Idea Master" little nine proposed a plan.
It had heard that other Trainers' Pokémon often challenge wild Pokémon while traveling. Through these challenges, their Pokémon could become stronger!
Because the Pokémon in the Aogiri Forest near the Breeding House seemed too weak; they couldn't really find a challenge there.
Now, in a new place, there might be tougher opponents.
As soon as this idea was proposed, the future "Dragon-Slaying Squad," hearing "become stronger," was immediately interested.
With squad leader Alolan Ninetales giving the go-ahead, they set off to find an opponent.
And surprisingly, they actually found one...
According to Alolan Ninetales, it was a very large, tall bear. It wore something like a black apron, and its expression was strangely vacant. They let Umbreon (little five) go first, only to find that little five couldn't beat it!
Then Leafeon (little three) and Umbreon fought together.
Well, still couldn't win.
Finally, Alolan Ninetales had to step in with its two subordinates to fight the big bear to a standstill.
And that big bear was terrifyingly persistent, not seeming to understand them.
They clearly said it was just a friendly challenge, but the big bear just kept chasing them relentlessly.
Luckily, Alolan Ninetales finally used Ice Beam to freeze it, allowing them to escape.
"So... you lost?" Hearing this description, Kaede grew interested.
After all, Alolan Ninetales was nearly level 70. Although Kaede had instructed it not to use large-scale moves recklessly, its strength was undeniable. It shouldn't be something a regular wild Pokémon could handle, right?
Not to mention it had the Eeveelutions with it, each capable of being a boss in ordinary wild areas.
Based on their description, Kaede had a good guess about which Pokémon it was.
Bewear!
That was probably the one famously called the "Strong Arm Pokémon."
He didn't expect these little guys to run into it on their first outing.
That guy... is indeed incredibly persistent...
"Ninetales.....!" (No way! We didn't lose...)