Pokémon: Trainers Start as Bounty Hunters.

Page 67

"Pidgeot, is this the strange thing you were talking about?"

"Beep!" Yes, that's it. It's greenish-blue, like a little Rattata, but I've never seen anything like it before.

It's normal if you haven't seen it before, because this is a shiny, exotic Rattata.

Pidgeot tilted its head, which meant it was still a Rattata, and immediately lost interest.

With a snap of his fingers, Blaziken cleverly knocked out Rattata, and Tetsuya threw a Poké Ball, capturing the shiny Rattata.

Shiny Pokémon are those with special colors due to individual differences and environmental influences, much like the White Tiger in the previous life.

This unusual color doesn't necessarily indicate outstanding individual potential. For example, the little Rattata he just captured was only found to have average potential according to Zero's analysis.

Of course, there are also those with unusual colors and exceptional aptitude, but he has never seen them; he'll just dream about it.

Because of their different colors, they are often driven out of the group to live alone, and their strength is naturally tested and they become stronger.

However, this Rattata's variant color is turquoise or green, unlike the typical Rattata's purple. This is quite helpful for concealing its presence, therefore its strength is relatively average.

Anyway, they are all pitifully weak compared to Pidgeot, so you can't really tell anything from them.

According to statistics, the probability of a shiny Pokémon appearing is about one in 100,000, which is extremely rare, so its value is quite high.

However, Tetsuya hesitated for a moment.

If it were any other Pokémon, it might be sold and that would be the end of it, but Rattata is different.

I sighed and decided to let it go.

"Luckily you met me. I'll find you a job where you can eat and drink for free."

He muttered to himself as he looked at the shiny Rattata's Poké Ball.

He then quickly sent a message through his wristwatch.

Chapter 117 The Secret Cave

"Okay, thank you for your help, Dr. Yamanashi."

Tetsuya spoke politely into the phone.

"It's alright, it's perfect timing. I have a research team working on a new project recently."

They plan to study the probability of hatching shiny Pokémon from different parentages.

However, shiny Pokémon are so rare and precious that there are simply not enough samples, let alone the variety.

They really need to thank you for the little Radamanthys you provided.

Dr. Yamanashi chuckled on the other end of the phone.

The doctor was having lunch at the time, so he contacted Tetsuya quickly after seeing his message.

"Okay, that's settled then. Just teleport Little Rattata over when the time comes, and we'll take good care of it here."

After a brief and hurried conversation, Dr. Yamanashi hung up the phone.

Anyway, he's becoming more and more optimistic about this little guy. He has a good personality, great talent, and a good temperament.

"Let's find some time to ask those guys for him."

With that thought in mind, Dr. Yamanashi turned around and threw himself into his busy research work.

Professor Oak has been giving science lectures again recently, and he has to do a lot of the work himself, so he can't relax.

"It's done."

In the forest, Tetsuya breathed a sigh of relief after hanging up the phone.

A uniquely colored elf is a sure symbol of your wealth and ability, and many rich people are eager to have one.

Rattatas are also quite easy to keep. They're quite cute with an Everstone, but if you replace them with a shiny Muk, it's not necessarily the same.

However, some dark organizations believe that Elf possesses power different from that of ordinary Elf and use them for inhumane experiments, which is not a pleasant prospect.

Therefore, to avoid this situation from being sold on the black market, he still needs to find a better place for this little Rattata. According to Dr. Yamanashi, its life should be quite good afterward.

"Alright everyone, relax for a bit, let's start lunch."

Tetsuya clapped his hands unconsciously, calling to the three Pokémon.

"Brush brush"

The blazing chicken, which had been waiting nearby, quickly grabbed the plate, sat down on the ground, and immediately began to eat.

At the same time, they didn't forget to place the plates in front of the mantle rocks and the pebbles.

Tetsuya patted its head helplessly. Goodness, you're quite the dutiful chicken.

Then he leisurely made himself lunch.

Our next destination is Rainbow City, which is one of the top two cities in the Kanto region. It is most famous for its Rainbow Game City and Rainbow Department Store.

He had been wanting to spend some time there for a long time.

However, he needed to go to Ziyuan Town first.

Tetsuya pondered his next steps.

Saffron City is located between Lavender Town and Celadon City, so it would have been more convenient to go there first. However, considering the order and difficulty of his gym challenges, he postponed going to Saffron City.

Although he was thinking about something, his hands didn't slow down at all, and he quickly finished making and eating lunch.

After washing the dishes as usual, Tetsuya had Blaziken disinfect and dry them, then packed everything up and prepared to continue his journey.

After visiting Aster Town, it's a bit rushed to go to Rainbow City; an afternoon is barely enough time.

Not far from where they had walked, the mantle rock nudged Tetsuya's body and called out.

"Dangoro!"

"Hmm? Did you find anything?"

Tetsuya asked the mantle rock.

The mantle rock swayed slightly, using its gravity ability to move a large rock in front of it, revealing a huge cave in front of Tetsuya.

It must have been dug up by a Pokémon like Diglett or Dugtrio, Tetsuya quickly concluded.

These two types of elves are the most common burrowing experts. You can see them and the caves they leave behind in every corner of the forest.

However, this one is indeed a bit too well hidden.

Only a creature like the mantle rock, with its extremely sensitive perception of the ground, could detect it.

"Dangoro!"

"Hmm, is there anything down there? Let's go in and take a look."

Tetsuya hesitated for a moment, but quickly made a decision.

He believed in his own abilities and judgment as an elf.

Moreover, isn't the purpose of trainers exploring the wild precisely to continuously explore these unknown places?

If I came across a place like this and didn't go in, wouldn't that be a waste of my time? My adventurous spirit was stirring.

Of course, there are ways to go down; you can't just go straight down like that.

Tetsuya returned Pidgeot to its Poké Ball, as the underground was definitely not a suitable place for it to perform.

"Blazing Chicken, it's your turn. Mantle Rock, you control the sand and gravel from behind."

The two elves nodded slightly.

It's rather strange, really. Mantle Rock Pokémon live underground, and as a Rock-type Pokémon, it's quite normal for it to learn the Ground-type Dig skill by analogy.

Unfortunately, according to research, mantle rocks, these creatures, do not dig burrows.

Their way of living and moving forward underground is simply to slowly carve out a path by relying on their ability to master rocks and sand.

On the contrary, Blaziken can learn the Dig skill.

However, when the two are combined, the efficiency is exceptionally fast.

The Blaziken frantically dug downwards with its claws, while the mantle rock filled in the excess sand and gravel around the perimeter, making the slope of the cave less extreme.

If we don't do that, Zhe will probably just slide down like a slide.

Putting aside the question of whether there are any dangers below, according to the mantle rock, the bottom is still quite a distance from the ground. Even someone as physically strong as Cheol-ye would suffer a serious fall if he slid down like that.

Tetsuya put on the visor of his adventure suit and began to carefully follow the two spirits down the path.

The rocks above were unknowingly moved back to their original positions by the mantle rocks, obscuring the cave entrance.

There's no need to worry about underground oxygen levels. These caves are interconnected, and thanks to the elves' efforts, the underground area has become a relatively small but complete ecosystem.

Upon reaching the bottom of the cave, Tetsuya and Blaziken, who had previously been able to walk with their backs bent, straightened up.

"What a huge underground cave!" Tetsuya exclaimed.

Wearing night vision goggles, we could see that the cave was at least three or four meters high and wide enough for three or four people to pass through.

The ecosystem of the Pokémon is truly wonderful; this place is probably the work of Onix.

"Dangoro!"

The muffled sound of the mantle rock echoed underground.

Blaziken came to Tetsuya's side and carefully protected him.

Led by the mantle rock, after many twists and turns, he arrived at a passage.

Tetsuya pointed to the rock wall at the end of the cave ahead and asked Mantle Rock, "You mean there's something behind here?"

"Dangoro!"

Mantle rocks agree.

Tetsuya was also very curious. If the mantle rock could sense things, then other Pokémon should be able to as well. So why was this place still a rock wall?

"You mean you can't control the rocks here?"

After hearing the mantle rock's description, Tetsuya's interest grew even stronger.

Chapter 118 Mural

"dong dong"

Tetsuya tapped on the rock wall.

The sound he heard confirmed that the space behind him was hollow.

So, should we just let Blaziken violently break it open?

Tetsuya hesitated for a moment.

No, firstly, there's a huge risk involved in blasting operations in underground caves like this. If a collapse or something happens, he won't even have time to run away.

He doesn't understand this kind of professional knowledge.

Moreover, making too much noise will attract other Pokémon.

No matter how you look at it, there's no way a place like this could be opened with just a punch.

Thinking this, he subconsciously punched the center of the rock wall lightly.

"crash"

As he moved, suddenly, the ground beneath his feet collapsed, creating a large hole.

"Holy crap!"

Before Tetsuya could react, he fell down.

"Blazing Chicken!"

At Tetsuya's call, the fiery red Blaziken leaped rapidly down the cave walls.

"Down!"

Blaziken grabbed Tetsuya, scooped him up with its claws, and held him in its arms like a princess carry.