Pokémon: Starting with a Pokémon Ranch.

Chapter 287 The Squirtle Fire Brigade Dismissed, Blastoise: I'm Back

"Su Yu is back?"

"Yes, Sister Anna."

Su Yu delivered local specialties to acquaintances in the pastoral area, greeting them along the way.

Alcremie delivered its special gift to its mother itself. Little Matcha was very happy to receive the gift and even invited Alcremie to have a meal at their ranch.

Blastoise went to town early in the morning to find its firefighter buddies.

When Su Yu returned to the ranch, the green caterpillar was transmitting energy toward the Sky Tree.

After several upgrades, Caterpie now has the ability to feed back to the Sky Tree. Previously, the Sky Tree was the one driving Caterpie's growth, but this time, the roles are finally reversed.

With the transmission of the green caterpillar, the Sky Tree no longer just grows upwards, but begins to grow laterally.

The area covered by the branches and leaves continues to expand, and the height of the tree is also gradually increasing.

Fortunately, Su Yu chose a spot far enough away from the house when he planted the trees. Otherwise, the trees would have already covered the house by now.

"Hiss?" Caterpillar turned around upon sensing Su Yu's return.

Su Yu then said:

"If we do this a few more times, this tree might be able to house a lot of Pokémon. Then you can have your people move up to the tree."

"Living here will be more convenient than living in the orchard."

Upon hearing this, the caterpillar nodded.

At the Sky Restaurant, having heard that Su Yu Ranch had returned, many Pokémon from the ranch area came here. They gathered again, each ordering a glass or two of pineapple juice and dessert.

This was a long-awaited reunion. When they first heard that the ranch was leaving, they were worried for quite a while, afraid that they would never be able to drink such delicious pineapple juice again.

After Blastoise carried a bag of local specialties to town, it hurriedly ran back.

"What's wrong?"

Seeing Blastoise so flustered, Su Yu asked in confusion. To be honest, this was the first time he had ever seen Blastoise so panicked.

Blastoise replied:

"K- ...

"what?"

Why was I suddenly fired?

Su Yu thought back carefully and realized that it had indeed been a long time since he last saw the fire brigade.

"Don't worry, I'll ask around and see if anyone knows where they are."

As he spoke, Su Yu also took out his phone.

However, after asking many people, they all said they had never seen those Squirtle turtles.

"Did they say what the reason was for being fired?" Su Yu asked Blastoise.

Blastoise nodded in agreement. Apparently, the town's fire department was being reorganized and needed to hire professional trainers. As a result, they dismissed the wild Squirtle members who had been working there.

Blastoise seemed quite worried. After all, when it left, it promised to protect them when it returned. But when it finally came back, it received the news that its underlings had been fired.

"I see... Don't worry, I'll get the Pokémon in the ranch to go look for it."

"Those Squirtle turtles were good at taking care of themselves. Even if they were fired, they're probably doing just fine now. They're just living somewhere we don't know about."

As he spoke, Su Yu went to the ranch and called over some Pokémon.

Upon hearing that they needed to go to town to find someone, Speeddog immediately volunteered. Its sense of smell was a perfect fit for finding people.

The Alcremie and the others also signed up.

Su Yu grouped them one by one: Alcremie, Caterpie, and himself were in one group; Blastoise and Arcanine were in another group; and the three riding sheep were in their own group...

They took them to town, and the Pokémon dispersed into groups.

"Bringing your Pokémon to town for a stroll, Su Yu? Want a few freshly fried dough sticks?"

As we passed a shop, an elderly woman inside asked me kindly.

"Want some?" Su Yu looked at the Alcremie and Caterpie on his shoulder.

After Alcremie nodded, he said:

"Then I'll have one, and I want the sweet one."

After paying, Su Yu asked the old lady about the fire department, but again got nothing.

After that, he went to check on the fire station. Blastoise had been quite flustered earlier and didn't seem to have asked any questions at the fire station.

Just as Su Yu was about to go inside, the town mayor placed his hand on his back:

"Hey, Su Yu? What are you doing here?"

"Oh, what a coincidence. There's been a bumper harvest of watermelons in town these past few days, and I'm planning a watermelon festival. I was just thinking of inviting you."

A watermelon convention? That sounds interesting.

Su Yu nodded and said:

"Okay, I'll definitely go then."

"By the way, Mayor, do you know where all those Squirtles that used to be in the fire station went?"

Su Yu thought that if it were the town mayor, he should know the fire department's arrangements.

As expected, the town mayor nodded and said:

"Yes, I know. They're currently staying in my yard."

Su Yu: ?

"Weren't they... fired?" Su Yu asked, puzzled.

The town mayor guessed Su Yu's thoughts and smiled:

"Our town isn't some cold-blooded place, so naturally we wouldn't treat the firefighters who put out the fire in the way you think."

"Are you familiar with them? Shall I take you to see them?"

……

When Blastoise and the others received the message and were called back by Caterpie,

The mayor looked at Blastoise and couldn't help but sigh:

"Wow, as expected of Blastoise you raised. I watched the Rainbow Contest too, and Blastoise's performance was fantastic!"

As he spoke, the mayor reached out and patted the Blastoise's shell, making a "clanging" sound.

Once all of Su Yu's Pokémon had arrived, the mayor took Su Yu to his courtyard.

Along the way, some children recognized them.

"Look, it's that big brother from the Rainbow Race, and his Blastoise!"

"Blastoise looks so strong!"

One of the children was quite bold and went up to Blastoise to ask if he could borrow his sunglasses.

"Kame~(_)"

Blastoise nodded in agreement. It took off its sunglasses and gave them to the child, then took out a new pair from its bag.

—I have many more of these sunglasses; they were all bought for me by Su Yu as spares!

After crossing the street, we finally arrived at the mayor's yard.

Besides Squirtle, there are many other Pokémon in the yard, quite a few of them.

It seems that the town mayor and Su Yu are kindred spirits, both enjoying taking in wild Pokémon.

The Squirtles seemed a little surprised to see their leader. They tried calling out to him, and Blastoise responded.

"Kame~(_)"

—Yes, children, I'm back.

From now on, you're all under my protection! Come with me to Su Yu's ranch.

After confirming that this was their leader, the Squirtles cheered and rushed forward. They surrounded Blastoise, curiously observing its evolved form.

Seeing this, the town mayor nodded:

"It seems they're better off staying with you."

"In that case, you may take them with you."

(End of this chapter)