Ariel shook his head; it was unlikely.
After all, they hadn't been here long, so they shouldn't have caused such a big scene.
But Ariel was still a bit uneasy, so he called Malamar over to get a detailed account of what had happened.
Greninja meant that the three Pokémon had "pooled their wisdom" to find the city.
He needed to know exactly what kind of "pooled wisdom" it was.
Malamar's deep eyes accurately caught the doubt in Ariel's gaze.
It stopped what it was doing, its tentacles swaying gently. Then, with a surge of Spiritual Energy and gestures, it began to present the omitted scenes to Ariel bit by bit.
It was a vast, unbroken Primeval Forest with towering trees and tangled vines, where sunlight was filtered through the dense canopy into dappled spots of light.
Greninja settled him behind a rock sheltered from the wind and then looked around.
It knew it had to find a human town as soon as possible so that Ariel could receive treatment.
But at that moment, it was hard to tell the direction.
Krookodile and Malamar were released from their Poké Balls.
Ariel was unconscious, carried on Krookodile's broad shoulders, his body jolting up and down with Krookodile's heavy steps.
Greninja alertly led the way, scanning the surroundings to ensure there were no potential threats.
Malamar floated beside Ariel, using Confusion to steady his body and lessen the impact of the jolting.
Initially, they tried to identify the direction, but deep in the forest, the scenery was all the same, making it impossible to distinguish.
Malamar was the first to act.
It looked around and pointed a tentacle at an ancient giant tree that would take at least three people to encircle.
An invisible force suddenly erupted from its body.
"Crack!"
A deafening crash tore through the silence of the forest.
Under the influence of Malamar's Confusion, the trunk of that towering tree let out a bone-chilling creak before being snapped clean in half from the middle! The massive canopy crashed down, hitting the ground and kicking up a cloud of dust as countless panicked birds took flight.
The broken stump pointed straight in one direction, like a clear indicator.
Using this as a starting point, Malamar repeated this operation at regular intervals.
One ancient tree after another was snapped in half, their remains forming a shocking straight line on the ground, like some primitive and violent signpost pointing into the distance.
Along that "signpost," the forest's ecology was being crudely altered, and the originally harmonious vegetation structure was completely destroyed.
Such a commotion naturally attracted the attention of wild Pokémon.
They were curious, alert, and somewhat angry.
And Krookodile was currently in need of a guide.
It set Ariel down and its gaze swept over a group of Zangoose startled by the loud noise.
These wild Pokémon instinctively took up defensive stances, their sharp claws gleaming with a cold light.
Krookodile didn't waste any words; it knew time was of the essence.
A low growl vibrated through the woods.
Then, it suddenly charged at one of the Zangoose with incredible speed.
That Zangoose didn't even have time to react before being pinned to the ground by Krookodile's massive body.
Krookodile didn't strike hard, but its crimson eyes and the faint flicker of fire around its mouth were enough to terrify any wild Pokémon.
"Roar!"
Krookodile pinned the Zangoose to the ground, letting out a threatening low growl while pointing a claw in one direction and then at Ariel. The meaning was clear:
Where is the nearest Human Settlement?
The Zangoose trembled all over; it had never seen such a tyrannical Pokémon.
Under Krookodile's near-violent "interrogation," it struggled and pointed its front claw in the same direction Malamar had indicated.
Once Krookodile confirmed this, it let go, and the Zangoose scrambled away, not daring to stay for a single moment.
However, Krookodile's "interrogation" method didn't stop there.
To confirm the direction, it repeated similar operations all along the way.
Each time was accompanied by the terrified screams of wild Pokémon, the swaying of trees, and heavy tremors from the ground.
The entire forest seemed to tremble under its pressure.
Those "interrogated" wild Pokémon would harbor an inexplicable fear of that direction for a long time, even actively avoiding it.
This undoubtedly caused a significant impact on the local ecological balance.
As time passed, the energy consumption also became immense.
Especially for Krookodile; carrying Ariel while "clearing the path" and "interrogating" all the way had caused its physical strength to drop significantly.
Greninja saw this and knew they had to replenish their energy.
It used Lock-On to fix its gaze on the sky above the forest.
Flocks of Pidgey were circling the treetops, letting out crisp chirps.
Greninja's figure vanished instantly, weaving through the canopy like a ghost.
Its movements were precise and swift; with every Splash, a Pidgey was cleanly captured.
There were no wasted movements, no screams, only a slight fluttering sound, and then everything returned to silence.
Within just a few minutes, Greninja brought back over a dozen Pidgey, stacking them neatly to the side.
Seeing this, Krookodile grinned, revealing its sharp teeth.
It opened its large mouth, flames rising within.
Those Pidgey were quickly roasted by its Fire Fang, and soon, a charred aroma filled the air. This was the most primitive way of cooking, but it was extremely efficient.
Through Malamar's "description," Ariel could almost smell the aroma of the roasted meat.
However, before the aroma could linger for long, most of the roasted Pidgey quickly disappeared into Krookodile's stomach.
Krookodile's appetite far exceeded the other two Pokémon's imaginations.
It practically wolfed them down, swallowing most of the roasted Pidgey before letting out a satisfied burp.
Greninja and Malamar only received a pitiful few.
Looking at Krookodile's unsatisfied expression, they could only shake their heads helplessly.
The corners of Ariel's mouth twitched slightly.
In the images conveyed by Malamar, the way Krookodile hogged the food was exactly the same as the pride it was showing now.
And if the number of predated Pidgey was large enough to draw the attention of local residents, then Greninja's hunting efficiency must have been extraordinary.
Malamar's "narration" came to an end here.
Its tentacle rested gently on Ariel's shoulder, as if asking if he understood.
Ariel fell silent.
He finally understood which three Pokémon Steven had called "extremely vicious."
Weren't they these three right in front of him?
To navigate, Malamar violently snapped ancient trees and destroyed vegetation.
To ask for directions, Krookodile intimidated wild Pokémon all the way, creating panic.
To replenish strength, Greninja hunted Pidgey in large numbers, leading to a local ecological imbalance.
From a human perspective, these actions were indeed "extremely vicious" and lawless.
But from the Pokémon's perspective, they were just doing their best to rescue their Trainer, using the most direct and effective methods to achieve their goal.
They had no malice; they simply lacked awareness of human social rules and ecological protection.
Ariel looked at the three "culprits" before him: one puffing out its chest with pride, one quietly honing its skills, and one innocently swaying its tentacles.
He felt stuck between laughter and tears.
These guys had really caused him a lot of trouble.
The residents of Mossdeep City probably hated them to the bone, didn't they?
At this thought, a wave of complex emotions welled up in Ariel's heart.
Fortunately, according to Steven's description, it seemed the residents of Mossdeep City didn't yet know it was the three of them.
Ariel couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
That was good; after all, Mossdeep City was famous for its slogans promoting the protection of Pokémon. If they were actually caught by the citizens, it would be a real headache.
"It looks like we need to lay low for a while and stay out of the spotlight."
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