Pokémon: Who let him leave Pallet Town?

Chapter 129 The Strange Little Groundhog

"Oh dear, I'm still so scared."

In the wilderness area, Xiaoxia touched her arm, feeling completely unsafe.

"Yes, what if we are attacked and killed?"

Xiao Gang also felt a chill run down his spine.

"Speaking of which, Mr. Natsume, because of the League's rules, we can't bring Pokémon into the Wild Area and if they get hurt, will the League be held responsible?"

Jiaozi suddenly asked.

In an instant, several pairs of eyes turned to Natsume.

They had just entered the Wild Area, where many trainers were still staying, including Caesar, who had come to see them off.

"Don't worry, the Alliance will dress you up as poachers if you die."

Natsume spread out his telekinetic powers, searching for the little ground squirrel, and answered casually.

"Huh?" Everyone was surprised.

"Grandpa Caesar, I regret it, I want to go back!" Some trainers started to back out.

Caesar's face was extremely dark:

"Don't listen to his nonsense. The alliance has bases here, so your safety is generally guaranteed."

After saying that, he rolled his eyes:
"Your greatest danger is definitely not wild Pokémon, but poachers who infiltrate the wild."

As he spoke, Caesar's expression became extremely serious:

"These poachers who sneak in may be carrying lethal weapons."

"It's extremely dangerous. If you spot it, report it to the nearest outpost immediately. Don't try to be a hero, understand?"

Caesar's voice was loud, and the trainers present were all taken aback.

"Got it!" Ash responded loudly.

Some trainers nearby became even more frightened upon hearing this and quickly canceled their registration and left.

But such people are ultimately a minority.

Those who manage to come to the wilderness area know something about it, so they've naturally prepared themselves mentally beforehand.

Natsume searched for the little ground squirrel's tracks, with the others following behind him.

As they continued to delve deeper, fewer and fewer trainers appeared around them.

Jiaozi followed closely behind Natsume, carrying the detection equipment on his back, never leaving his side.

"Why are you all following me?" Natsume turned around and looked at the crowd with a puzzled expression.

"A sense of security," Xiaoxia and Xiaogang said, peeking out from behind Xiaozhi.

Since they can't bring Pokémon along, Ash is probably the best fighter, and Natsume is probably the best runner.

"In this case."

Natsume clapped his hands.

"Come out."

"Beep beep beep-"

A cacophony of sounds erupted from all around as thousands of ground squirrels eagerly poked their heads out.

"Wow, so the groundhogs were following us all along!" Xiaoxia exclaimed in surprise.

Natsume crouched down and discussed the matter with the leader of the three-legged grubs.

After a while, Natsume stood up.

"I talked to the gophers, and they will leave some to protect you, so there's no need to worry."

Upon hearing this, Xiaoxia and Xiaogang's eyes lit up.

"Great! I'm going to the other side of the river!" Xiaoxia's eyes lit up, and she and several pairs of ground squirrels disappeared in a flash.

"In that case, I'm going to the rocky area over there." Xiao Gang breathed a sigh of relief and led several pairs of ground squirrels in another direction.

"Alright, Pikachu Diglett, let's go catch Tauros!"

As Ash spoke, he ran towards the herd of Tauros galloping in the distance.

"Ahem. Mr. Natsume, it seems like it's just the two of us now."

Jiaozi's face turned bright red.

"No, there are still thousands of ground squirrels underground," Natsume replied without turning his head.

Jiaozi was taken aback, but immediately became serious and began to probe obediently.

This little ground squirrel is very active.

Natsume found traces left by the other party in many places.

Even the other person's tastes are strange.

There are all kinds of tree fruits.

Natsume collected information about the tree fruits abandoned by the ground squirrels along the way. There were more than forty of them, large and small, which could be roughly divided into sour, sweet, and spicy flavors.

Although there are different types of tree fruits, they can all be divided into these three flavors.

What Natsume found most strange was that the little ground squirrel would take a bite out of each fruit and then discard it.

Is this such a waste? It's completely out of character for the gophers, who are known for their simple and honest nature.

Despite his curiosity, Natsume still recorded everything in detail.

Following the tracks left by the little groundhog, Natsume and Shoko wandered around for a long time.

It wasn't until the afternoon that the two finally stopped in front of a lake.

"Mr. Natsume, what a huge lake! And this area doesn't seem to be shown on the map of the wilderness area?"

A surprised voice came from Jiaozi.

Natsume tilted his head and looked at an area in the center of the lake that resembled a small island.

That place looks exactly like the spot where Caesar and the Mini Dragon took a photo together.

The island in the middle of the lake is only half the size of a Pokémon Center.

Natsume used his telekinesis to bring the girl to the island.

The lake was very deep, and the gophers looked at each other on the shore.

“Mr. Natsume, look here.”

Jiaozi pointed to a large rock.

Natsume looked up and saw that the bottom of the rock had been hollowed out, creating a hole the size of a rabbit hole.

"Beep—"

The chirping of a small ground squirrel could be heard from inside the cave.

"Found it, Mr. Natsume!" Jiaozi exclaimed with delight.

"Eek—" Another mole's sound came out.

Natsume was stunned.

"Beep—"

Another mole's sound came out.

Immediately afterwards, the rocks began to shake, followed by a series of crashing sounds, as if a fight was taking place inside.

“Mr. Natsume.” Jiaozi hesitated and looked at Natsume.

"Did the little ground squirrels fight with the native ground squirrels here?" Jiaozi wondered.

"I remember there were no records of ground squid in the wilderness area."

Natsume is also strange.

A ghostly blue light flashed in his eyes, and the rock was moved away by telekinesis.

"Bee-goo?"

Sunlight shone on the ground beneath the rocks, and a little ground squirrel closed its eyes drowsily.

Behind the little groundhog was a pile of tree fruits.

Natsume glanced at them and found that they were similar to the tree fruits he had seen along the way.

"Beep!" The little groundhog seemed very happy to see Natsume and Jiaozi.

It carried two sweet tree fruits on its head and came to Natsume and Takako.

"Beep—" Eat this, it's delicious.

Natsume was taken aback when the telepathic connection was established.

The little groundhog was inviting them to eat tree fruit, which was completely contrary to what the groundhog colony had said about its bad reputation and unruly nature.

"Thank you." Natsume accepted the tree fruit.

The next second, the little groundhog snatched the sweet berry from his hand.

"Beep—" The little groundhog took two bites, then dug a hole with a look of disgust and buried the sweet berry.

"?"

Natsume and Takako exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with confusion.

"Beep—" That doesn't taste good, eat this instead!
The little groundhog turned around, placed two green berries on its head, and presented them to Natsume again.

Natsume could tell at a glance that these two fruits were sour.

After taking the sour tree fruit, the little groundhog suddenly let out a roar.

"Eek!!!" Robbers, why are you stealing my tree fruit!
"Ok?"

Natsume was stunned for a moment, only to see the little ground squirrel charging menacingly towards the two of them.

The little ground squirrel leaped into the air, and at the same time, a claw flashing with white light appeared and attacked Natsume.

(End of this chapter)