Pokémon: Starting with a Pokémon Ranch.

Chapter 261 Little Huba's Hide-and-Seek

As the secret realm descended, on the other side...

Xin Dong happened to be staying at a secret observation station; he was temporarily staying there. His visit also happened to help Su Yu obtain relevant information.

After making the call to Su Yu, Xin Dong returned to his room. As a champion, he was out almost every day, and staying overnight in temporary accommodations was a common occurrence for him.

"I wonder if any trainers will defeat the Elite Four members and challenge for the championship this year on the Road to the Champion?"

As Xin Dong watched the live stream of the Road to the Championship, this is what he thought.

In previous years, there were very few trainers like this. That's why Xin Dong can now wander around outside with peace of mind.

This reminded Xin Dong of Su Yu, whom he had just finished a phone call with. If it were that young man... with those three little sheep mounts, he should be able to easily obtain the throne of the king, right?

Just as Xin Dong was watching TV, there was a sudden knock on his door.

After he responded, a researcher rushed in and said in a panic:

"Champion Xindong, something terrible has happened! The secret realm you just told me to keep an eye on has suddenly appeared."

"It happened without any warning, it was unprecedented, and it is a phenomenon that we cannot currently understand."

Xin Dong: ?!

"If I'm not mistaken, the location of that secret realm should be in Seagull Town, which I inquired about before, right?"

"Yes!"

The researcher's answer made Xin Dong immediately jump out of bed. No wonder Su Yu had specifically asked earlier; it turned out he had expected it.

"I just don't know if he's safe now..."

Such an unusual secret realm, no one can say for sure what might happen there. After thinking about it, Xin Dong felt he still had to go and check it out.

I need to go out for a bit.

After putting on his cloak, Xin Dong said to the researcher, and then hurriedly headed towards Su Yu Ranch.

……

Meanwhile, on the other side...

After sensing for a long time, the Spirit Horse determined a general direction.

As he walked in that direction, the further he went, the more Pokémon he saw running around, which convinced Su Yu of his guess.

When he finally found the source, Hoopa was manipulating three golden rings beside him, constantly scooping out wild Pokémon from them.

"Hoopa, scoop it up~!"

Little Hoopa grinned mischievously, as if playing pranks was in his nature.

"It really is you! No wonder there are more and more Pokémon the more I suppress them!"

Upon seeing Little Huba, Su Yu also spoke.

However, he would only say this to Hoopa. If it were the unleashed Super Demon Hoopa, he wouldn't even have time to run away.

Hoopa was shocked to find his location had been discovered. He asked in confusion:

"How did you know I was here?! Damn it, I was discovered!"

"Hehehe, but that's okay. If you're so capable, come find me again!"

As he spoke, Hoopa released a halo of light and then disappeared into it.

"Wait a moment!"

Su Yu was about to stop him, but Hu Pa moved quickly, as if afraid that Su Yu would catch him.

"..."

Yes, that fits Hoopa's mischievous nature perfectly. Looks like we'll just have to keep searching.

But this guy can teleport, how are we going to catch him now?

Su Yu thought for a moment, wondering if Gengar's [Black Gaze] could restrain Hoopa.

It might be difficult, but limiting it should be possible. Then, Su Yu can charge in himself; that should be enough.

Thinking of this, Su Yu tapped the shadow behind him. Gengar usually stayed inside sleeping, only coming out at mealtimes.

Sensing Su Yu's call, Gengar woke up from its sleep, and Su Yu explained his plan to it.

Upon hearing this, Gengar patted its chest (stomach) and agreed.

But there's another problem right now, which is... how do we find Hoopa?

After thinking it over, Su Yu went home and activated the Pokémon on the ranch.

Since it's already been confirmed that the Pokémon in the secret realm is Hoopa, there won't be any danger in sending these Pokémon to search for it.

He quickly drew a simple sketch to describe Hoopa's appearance to the Pokémon:

"He usually wears a golden circle on his two horns, and there should also be one on his waist."

"Anyway... just follow the gold circles and you'll be fine."

Upon hearing this, Alcremie nodded excitedly, looking eager to try.

The Styracoid asked in confusion:

"Huh~?" Is this... playing hide-and-seek?

"That's somewhat true." Su Yu nodded.

"However, that hidden Pokémon, like Suicune and Spectral, is a legendary Pokémon. That's why I thought of bringing you all along to find it."

"Otherwise, keeping such a powerful Pokémon on the ranch is like having a bomb that could explode at any time, which is too unsettling."

If you were to summon a Groudon casually, all the crops on the ranch would be doomed.

The Pokémon were unaware of Hoopa's power, but Su Yu knew it very well.

"roar--"

Upon hearing this, the Styracosaurus nodded and led the Snow Children to search for it.

The other Pokémon also set off, while Su Yu, along with Lingyouma and Suicune, went to suppress the Pokémon that were running around everywhere.

Without Hoopa to continue "fishing" for Pokémon in the ranch, Su Yu's work was completed very quickly.

However, it seems that not all of these Pokémon are wild.

"Croak—"

One of the Psyducks cautiously sneaked into the orchard, intending to steal some berries. However, it was chased away by the Oddish, who were armed with pitchforks.

On the Psyduck's hand, Su Yu also saw a bracelet with a nameplate bearing its name and phone number.

It's obvious that it was left behind by Psyduck's trainer. This is a common practice for Pokémon that are a bit slow-witted.

"I'll need to contact Xindong later to find someone to help send these Pokémon back..."

Su Yu thought to himself.

Meanwhile, the Pokémon in the ranch had been searching for a while. Alcremie returned dejectedly; it seemed it hadn't found anything.

The woolly sheep nearby seemed to have found something; they spotted Hoopa. But as soon as they spotted her, Hoopa darted into the golden ring and ran away.

"...Isn't this cheating?" Su Yu said indignantly.

There's no reason to be found and then use your abilities to escape.

As expected... I still have to try using [Black Gaze].

Just then, Yamper's stomach rumbled. The other Pokémon, hearing this, also rubbed their bellies.

We've been searching for quite a while, and everyone's hungry. This is the perfect time to grab a late-night snack.

"Speaking of which, I wonder if Hoopa is hungry too?"

Perhaps, the aroma of food can lure Him out.

With that in mind, Su Yu went to the warehouse and took out various kitchen utensils.

Spicy hot pot, teppanyaki, barbecue, and even making energy cubes on the spot. He brought out everything he could think of.

Su Yu laid out the food on the grass outside and began cooking. As time passed, the aroma gradually wafted through the air.

Suddenly, a ring appeared out of thin air. From within it, a small hand reached out.

(End of this chapter)