Pokémon: Who let him leave Pallet Town?

Chapter 362 Kaji City

Every day thereafter, the commemorative amber from the first place all fell into Natsume's hands.

Unfortunately, apart from the piece of amber from the first day, most of the other pieces of amber contained common small fragments or the hair of other Pokémon.

His actions also caught the attention of other participants in the fishing competition.

Fortunately, on the last day, Natsume distributed the commemorative amber he had to those who wanted it.

"Okay, thank you."

An uncle wearing a Magikarp hat happily took the amber souvenir from Natsume's hand.

"Why are these people so interested in a piece of amber?"

Xiao Zhi walked over with a fishing rod.

In the past few days, he noticed that there were a lot of people participating in the fishing competition, and most of them were there for the amber souvenirs.

"do not know."

Natsume held the amber souvenir from the first day in his hand, the tiny hairs inside shimmering brightly.

Almost all the amber souvenirs on the ship passed through Natsume's hands.

He discovered that no one was interested in what was sealed inside.

It seems like they simply wanted this souvenir.

"Nothing special about it."

Xiaoxia curiously examined the amber in Natsume's hand.

Natsume's part is quite nice, with a shimmering strand of hair in the middle.

Other amber souvenirs are simply a very plain miniature map of the Whirlpool Islands with the word "Peace" on the back.

"We're almost at the dock, let's go."

Natsume carefully put away the amber, then yawned and stepped off the ship.

After resting at the Pokémon Center, the group headed straight for the nearby Kaji City.

Kaji City, a roadside in the suburbs.

"Go, little elephant, use roll!"

Ash, with his newly caught Elephant, is battling a passing trainer.

"Wait a minute! It's dangerous here, be careful!"

Before Xiaoxia could finish speaking, the little elephant knocked away the opponent's Pokémon and rolled towards a cliff at full speed.

Fortunately, a golden psychic force stopped the other person's figure and pulled them back.

"Thank you, Natsume-nii."

Ash recalled his little elephant, a hint of lingering fear on his face.

"Seriously, how come there are so many cliffs here?"

Everyone looked toward the cliff where the little elephant had fallen. Below was a bottomless ravine, and a small stream could be vaguely seen flowing slowly at the bottom of the valley.

"Don't challenge anyone to battles, it's too dangerous!" Misty grabbed Ash's ear.

Near Kaji City, the group had already spotted no fewer than three cliffs.

“These cliffs should have been formed around the same time as the snow-capped mountains over there,” Natsume suddenly said.

He noticed that there were still chunks of ice and snow that had not completely melted on the stream at the bottom of the valley.

"Why not fill in these gaps and draw water directly from the snowmelt source? Wouldn't that be safer and more convenient?"

Jiaozi glanced at it and asked curiously.

"It can't be filled. There are many underground ice caves in the snow-capped mountains over there. Every summer, the snowmelt increases dramatically, and they will be washed away."

Natsume casually pointed to the Great Snow Mountain to the east of Kaji City.

"Hey young man, you seem to know a lot!"

Behind the group, an old woman carrying a vegetable basket walked over.

As the other person approached, a strange, refreshing fragrance, accompanied by a cool, frosty breeze, wafted towards us.

"Pikachu."

The man with the middle-parted hair stood on tiptoe, staring intently at the old woman's vegetable basket covered with a black gauze. "Grandma, are you a resident of Kaji City?" Ash asked curiously.

"Are you going to the Kaji Gym?" the old woman asked in return.

“Yes.” Natsume nodded.

“That’s perfect. My name is Sima, and my house is right next to the Kaji Gym. I can take you there.” The old woman smiled, then suddenly felt her hand sink.

Looking down, I saw a Pikachu hugging its shopping basket, its head sticking inside.

"Hey, hey, hey, middle-parted hair, don't eat other people's food!"

Xiao Zhi stepped forward, grabbed the back leg of the person with the middle parting, and dragged them out.

"Pickup!"

The corners of the man's mouth, parted in the middle, still held icy blue liquid. He cupped his face, chewing intently, and with each movement of his mouth, a large amount of white mist billowed from his nose.

The black gauze was pulled out and fluttered into Natsume's hands. The contents of the basket were exposed to the sunlight, and a large plume of icy mist immediately drifted out.

"Wow, it feels so refreshing! What is this?" Xiaoxia curiously leaned closer and smelled the moisture in the air.

"It looks like mushrooms?" Xiao Gang stroked his chin; he had never seen such an ingredient before.

"This is called the Lost Mushroom, a specialty of the Great Snow Mountain in Kaji City."

Grandma Sima smiled and handed each person a small mushroom.

Holding the icy blue mushroom in my hand, it felt warm to the touch, cool but not icy—it was truly magical.

"These mushrooms can only be picked when the weather gets warmer and the snow on the mountains gradually melts."

"It's not just outsiders who rarely see them; even locals rarely get to see them."

Grandma Xima led the way, smiling as she said:
"These Lost Mushrooms can not only be used to cook amazing dishes, but also fed to Pokémon. Long-term consumption can increase the power of Ice-type moves."

"So magical?"

Ash stared in amazement at the Lost Mushroom in his hand.

But then he realized he didn't have any Ice-type Pokémon.

"If the snowfall simply makes harvesting easier, there must be many ways to increase production, such as using machinery."

Jiaozi looked at the little mushroom in his hand with great anticipation, muttering to himself.

“That won’t do,” Grandma Sima shook her head.

"Why not?" everyone asked curiously.

Sima took out a lost mushroom, held it up, and its cap gradually overlapped with the distant snow-capped mountains.

"On that snowy mountain, there lives an arthropod."

"Legend has it that these mushrooms were planted by the other party."

Grandma Sima said earnestly.

"Why would Articuno grow mushrooms?" Natsume asked curiously.

"This?" Sima suddenly became mysterious.
"Because articulated birds guide lost travelers who wander into the snowy mountains, and these mushrooms are the indicator plants they plant."

“Every summer, when there are no blizzards and the snow layer is thin, the mushrooms are no longer useful, and that’s when we can pick them.”

Sima nodded to herself as she spoke.

“I see.” Natsume didn’t ask any more questions.

During his years as a Pokémon researcher, Natsume discovered some interesting phenomena.

For example, many of the normal behaviors of Pokémon are over-interpreted by local residents, eventually turning into all sorts of strange and interesting stories.

It is highly likely that these mushrooms were planted by this frozen bird for food.

Articuno generally prefers snow-capped mountains in winter.

Summer allows humans to harvest, not because it has no use for them, and certainly not because it doesn't need to guide them.

Instead, they moved to the snow-capped mountains further north.

Natsume looked at Granny Shima silently.

If it hasn't left, you'll be in trouble if it keeps nagging you.

(End of this chapter)