Pokémon: Starting with a Pokémon Ranch.

Chapter 168 Return to the Ancient Tree

Hearing the familiar voice, the Butterflies looked at each other in surprise. If they remembered correctly... this should be the caterpillar companion that left the colony alone a few months ago, right?

"Eeeee~?" How come you're still in caterpillar form after all these months?

As members of the same batch of caterpillars, they had all long since evolved into Butterfree and taken on the responsibility of protecting their kind. They had assumed that the caterpillar that was superior to them back then should have completed its evolution earlier.

"Hiss..."

The caterpillar, naturally, couldn't explain much about its experiences over the past few months, so it made up a reason to brush it off. Then it asked:

"Hmm?" How has the tribe been doing these past few months? Has the condition of the ancient tree improved?

Upon hearing this, the butterflies all looked dejected, indicating that they had not had a good time these past few months.

"Fu Yi Yi..." Let's go back to the tribe first.

One of the Butterflies suggested.

The other Butterflies looked at Su Yu and his group. After Caterpie's explanation, Su Yu and his group were granted permission to enter the colony.

Along the way, Ke Rui whispered in Su Yu's ear:

"It seems that this ancient tree is not in good condition, and its life is probably coming to an end once again."

"Unless we find the mythical Pokémon that bestowed the blessing back then, I doubt anyone can save it."

But how difficult is it to actually find that mythical Pokémon?

Not to mention, in Su Yu's guess, that mythical Pokémon was probably the legendary forest god who could travel through time—Celebi.

That Pokémon might not even be in this time period. Or perhaps it's sleeping somewhere.

……

I followed several butterfly butterflies inside.

This ancient tree is quite enormous. Moreover, each of its branches and leaves connects to form a flat platform. Each platform is a separate level, forming several floors.

Each floor is inhabited by a large number of green caterpillars and butterflies; an ancient tree is like a city.

Upon seeing humans approaching, many caterpillars along the way cast curious glances. Among them were several Butterflies of the same generation as Su Yu's caterpillar, which flew over to greet him.

There were also some green caterpillars, which were newly hatched babies, much smaller than the other normal green caterpillars. Seeing them, Su Yu took out some energy cubes from his backpack and handed them to them, saying:

"Here, these are some foods for you. They should be to your liking."

These energy cubes were all made by Su Yu himself. He also added some powdered leaves from the Sky Tree to enhance their effects.

I wonder how these little green caterpillars feel, but Su Yu certainly enjoys eating them.

"Hiss..."

Upon hearing this, the baby green caterpillars turned their attention to their Butterfly parents, and only after receiving permission did they accept the food that Su Yu had given them.

Following the giant butterflies deeper into the ancient tree, Su Yu and his group arrived at its core. Here, guarded by a giant butterfly with exceptionally large wings...

It appears that this Butterfree is the leader of the Caterpie group, and is said to be greatly favored by the ancient tree, possessing the Psychic-type move Psychic Beam.

"They look just like the Zarude tribe from the anime..."

Su Yu muttered to himself.

The Zarude in the movie also live on a magical tree and have their own tribal structure.

The difference is that Zarude is a powerful Mythical Pokémon, while Caterpie is just a Bug-type Pokémon that can be found in any forest.

Moreover, the tree inhabited by the caterpillars was only suspected to have received the blessing of the shrine, and it was incomparable to the sacred tree of the Zarude tribe.

Upon seeing Su Yu and his group arrive, the Butterfly Clan Chief flapped his wings and turned around to look at Su Yu.

"Fuyi~" I feel the strong blessing of the forest on you, human.

Forest Blessing? Does it refer to the power of Eternal Rock?

Then, the Butterfly Clan Chief turned his gaze to the Caterpie and said:

"Fu Yi Yi..." It's good that you're back.

I could feel the ancient tree's vitality rapidly fading away, and now that I've returned, I can see it one last time.

After saying this, Chief Ba Dadie turned around and continued to look at the trunk of the ancient tree.

It was only then that Su Yu noticed that the ancient tree's trunk was already covered with cracks.

"It seems we really can't hold on much longer..." Su Yu sighed inwardly.

……

After meeting with Chief Butterfly, Su Yu and the others were led away from the core area. Once outside, Caterpie looked at its companions, seemingly interested.

"What, do you want to go say hello to them?" Su Yu asked.

"Hiss." Upon hearing this, the caterpillar nodded.

"Go ahead then, you'll be back by yourself later. Go have some fun."

Having been away from home for so long, the caterpillar probably missed it. Therefore, Su Yu decided to let it roam freely. Hearing this, the caterpillar jumped off Su Yu's shoulder and went to catch up with its companions.

After walking a little further, Su Yu looked at the two people behind him and said:

"Let's pitch our tent under this tree tonight. We might be staying here for a few days, so let the caterpillar stay a while longer..."

"Are you okay with spending some time here?"

Upon hearing this, Gladio nodded indifferently. Since he couldn't leave the forest alone anyway, he had nowhere to go, so he might as well stick close to Su Yu.

Ke Rui then said:

"I remember there's a lake not far from here with pretty good scenery. Su Yu, would you like to go fishing there with me?"

For Ke Rui, it didn't matter at all. He was a trainer who traveled around, and this time, he was the one who took the initiative to ask Su Yu to come along.

If this trip can also witness the decay of the ancient tree, then it will be a worthwhile journey.

Upon hearing this, Su Yu shook his head and said:

"I think I just saw some strange patterns on the ancient tree that look familiar. I want to go and check them again, so I won't go."

"Let Gladgio go with you."

Ke Rui was a little disappointed. He had thought he could compete with Su Yu to see who had the better fishing skills.

However, with Gladgio by his side, it was barely acceptable, so Ke Rui agreed.

After setting up the tent, Su Yu also headed towards the ancient tree.

If he remembered correctly... the patterns he just saw should be related to the legendary Pokémon Rayquaza.

(End of this chapter)