บท 1267: Goodbye, Glenn.
When Ninetales found Yuga, Aegislash and Dusknoir were in the heat of their battle. Ninetales wore a puzzled expression: where did this powerful Pokémon come from?
Ninetales had arrived at YoYo Day Care after Aegislash had gone into its slumber and hadn't heard anyone—human or Pokémon—mention it, so it naturally didn't recognize Aegislash.
Not long after, Aegislash and Dusknoir stopped their fight. There was no need to guess who won; of course, it was Aegislash. While master-level Pokémon like Dusknoir are formidable, they're still no match for a level-100 Pokémon.
Yuga noticed Ninetales standing beside him, surprised it had arrived without him realizing. He then smiled and asked, "Ninetales, when did you get back?"
Ninetales raised its head and gave Yuga a cool glance. "Just now," it replied, but something about Yuga's demeanor didn't sit right with it.
Yuga, still smiling, said, "I haven't introduced you yet. That's Aegislash; it came to the Day Care before you. Would you like to spar with it? It's really strong."
But Ninetales didn't take the bait. "What does its strength have to do with me?"
"Uh…" Yuga was momentarily at a loss for words.
At that moment, Aegislash and Dusknoir flew over, one after the other. Dusknoir looked cheerful—it was thrilled to finally have someone as powerful as Aegislash to spar with.
Meanwhile, Aegislash formally expressed its gratitude to Yuga. Without the Shadow Space and Ghost Sea's support, it might never have regained its full strength.
In high spirits, Yuga praised Aegislash and promised that when the Disto Mirror opened next time, he'd make sure it could visit its former master's resting place in the Distortion World.
Aegislash's former master had been laid to rest in the Distortion World thanks to Yuga, with Dusknoir and Mismagius handling the arrangements. Yuga had even secured Giratina's permission for this.
Yuga wasn't one to hold grudges or suppress the past. While Aegislash now pledged its loyalty to him, he understood it had spent much more time with its former master, forming a deeper bond. Yuga had no intention of forcing Aegislash to forget its old allegiance.
The same was true for Ninetales.
Aegislash greeted Ninetales warmly and extended its goodwill, but it couldn't shake the feeling that Ninetales was giving it a strange look.
Indeed, Ninetales was unsettled. While its outward demeanor remained calm and indifferent, inwardly, it felt its standing with Yuga might be threatened. Until now, it had assumed it was the only level-100 Pokémon at YoYo Day Care, but this revelation proved otherwise.
In truth, the strongest Pokémon under Yuga's care—Nana, Dragonite Mother, Dusknoir, and Ninetales—didn't have particularly close relationships with each other. Each moved within their own social circles and interacted sparingly.
Nana, for instance, served as a teacher for most of the Psychic-type Pokémon in the main Ecopark. Its interactions were limited to this group and rarely extended beyond, unless necessary. Visiting the other Sub-Ecopark or socializing with other Pokémon wasn't something it typically did.
Dragonite Mother was even more detached. Aside from mentoring a few juniors, it spent most of its time dozing in a cave atop a cliff in the Dragon Den Sub-Ecopark. This behavior was very much in line with the solitary tendencies of Dragon-type Pokémon. It had lived this way in Petalburg Forest and continued the same lifestyle at Yuga's Day Care.
Dusknoir, on the other hand, was more willing to engage with other Pokémon. However, its typing didn't mesh well with Ninetales or Nana, and its relationship with Dragonite Mother was limited to the occasional sparring session. As a result, it was the happiest about Aegislash's awakening.
Ghost-type Pokémon are best suited to making friends with their own kind. To most Pokémon, Ghost-type Pokémon still seem somewhat eccentric.
Ninetales didn't like staying in the Ecopark. Apart from returning to the Volcano Sub-Ecopark to sleep at night, it spent most of its days outside, and now that it was busy filming movies, it had even less interaction with other Pokémon.
Still, it got along quite well with the Fire-type Pokémon in the Volcano Sub-Ecopark. It had some close companions, such as the Ninetales leader and the Houndoom leader family, and the Arcanine family.
As such, the relationships between these high-ranking Pokémon could only be described as acquaintanceship, perhaps familiarity at best, but not true friendship, let alone closeness.
Yuga's Ecopark housed a great many Pokémon. He never forced them to get along and always respected their social habits. This was no different for master-level and level-100 Pokémon. Even if he knew they weren't particularly close, he never compelled them to form bonds.
Aegislash didn't mind Ninetales' scrutinizing gaze and continued to converse with Yuga amicably.
When Yuga failed to "provoke" Ninetales into challenging Aegislash, he gave up. He was merely trying to curb Ninetales' arrogance, not genuinely punish it, so the success of his efforts wasn't particularly important.
After chatting with a few Pokémon, Yuga led Ninetales out of the Haunted House Sub-Ecopark. Along the way, Ninetales appeared preoccupied. Although Yuga didn't succeed in stirring Ninetales to act, Aegislash's mere presence had already unsettled it.
Yuga himself was unaware of this.
From their earlier conversation, Ninetales had learned about Aegislash's origins and realized it really couldn't compare. It couldn't match Aegislash's seniority, nor its experience and wisdom.
For the first time, the ever-proud Ninetales was left agitated because of another Pokémon.
"Well, I'd better stick to my strategy of making money!" Ninetales thought to itself. It couldn't surpass Aegislash in other areas, but it was determined to excel at earning money, proving itself to be a self-sufficient Pokémon and making Yuga see it in a new light.
Once outside the Ecopark, Ninetales proudly handed over the remaining payment from its latest movie. Yuga took a glance—it was more than last time, but still not much by his standards. He sighed and said earnestly, "Ninetales, you've got to keep at it! I'm counting on you to support this household!"
Ninetales, failing to pick up on Yuga's underlying tone, believed it had earned his approval. Tossing its head, it declared, "Hmph, just you wait." With that, it swished its tails proudly and strutted away.
Supporting the household? Piece of cake!
Having finally returned, Ninetales made it a priority to visit the beauty salon in the afternoon. After working so hard filming for days, it needed to pamper itself; otherwise, its beauty might suffer.
Yuga figured, since it was Ninetales' own money, why not? It was a chance for him to relax as well. The private Pokémon club in Verdanturf Town didn't cater exclusively to Pokémon, after all.
That afternoon, when Yuga and Ninetales returned from the private club, they saw the Linoone and Mightyena couple patrolling with a small Poochyena in tow. This Poochyena was their newborn pup from just a few days ago.
The little Poochyena had been lively from birth, and its potential also good. The Linoone and Mightyena couple adored it and had stayed with it in the Ecopark for several days. Today was its first time joining them on patrol.
Everything outside fascinated the little Poochyena on its first outing. While its parents patrolled, it explored, looking left and right, occasionally pestering passersby. Sometimes it tapped someone playfully; other times, it suddenly startled them—it was a classic mischievous child.
The passersby, knowing the Poochyena belonged to YoYo Day Care, didn't mind its antics and even found them amusing. Though the Poochyena was mischievous, its parents kept a close eye on it, ensuring it didn't cross any boundaries. The harmless pranks were all taken in good humor.
The little Poochyena was quite cunning and didn't respond to the passersby's teasing. Even when they offered it food, it wasn't tempted. With all the delicious treats available in the Ecopark, it had no interest in the snacks outside.
Today, Mienfoo also came out. It was accompanied by Squirtle and Froakie. The three of them became acquainted thanks to Yuga's introduction.
Yuga thought Mienfoo was too diligent and inflexible in character, so he introduced Froakie and Squirtle as companions for it.
Clefairy and Mime Jr. didn't want to play with the overly serious Mienfoo, but Froakie and Squirtle were willing. Probably because the two of them had been frail since they were young, they understood the feeling of loneliness. As a result, they were very kind-hearted and treated the similarly lonely Mienfoo with great warmth.
With Froakie and Squirtle as its companions, the perpetually stern face of Mienfoo finally began to show occasional smiles, much to Yuga's relief.
After meeting Froakie and Squirtle, Mienfoo also came to know their father, Greninja. Mienfoo greatly admired the powerful Greninja.
It's no wonder Yuga often remarked how Mienfoo and Greninja were alike in certain ways. Greninja, too, appreciated Mienfoo. If not for their incompatible egg groups, Yuga suspected Greninja might have taken Mienfoo in as a son-in-law.
The young Poochyena, seeing Clefairy, Mime Jr., Spoink, Mienfoo, Froakie, Squirtle, and the others playing in groups, was very envious and wished to join them.
But it was too mischievous. The Linoone and Mightyena couple wouldn't let it out of their sight, afraid it might get lost with one careless moment.
Since the Grass-Type Pokémon Duel Tournament was held, more and more people had been coming to Verdanturf Town. Every day, the area around YoYo Day Care was bustling with people, and the patrolling Pokémon had an increasing workload. Losing a Pokémon or two wouldn't even be surprising in such circumstances.
In the days that followed, Yuga's life settled into a steady rhythm. Every day began with a visit to the Pokémon Ecopark without fail. He would inspect the training of his main Pokémon, assist the Blissey and Miltank, and play a tune on the Moon Flute for Cosmoem. Afterward, he'd go to the new shop to practice crafting Pokéblocks, then return to the old shop to help out. If there were challengers at the gym, he'd head there instead.
Time passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, it was already the year's end. This year, Luna made it clear that she wouldn't be coming back. She had assignments with her team and was incredibly busy.
Luna had been performing excellently on her team, always taking the lead in everything. The incident involving her friend Suika had deeply affected her, pushing her to grow significantly.
Her superiors thought highly of her, and coupled with her connection to Yuga, her future looked very bright.
Since Luna wasn't coming back, her aunt and uncle found little reason to stay home for the new year. Yuga invited them to his house instead, where there was a big, lively group of people.
In the past few days, Anlin, Anmu, Ayashi, Sena Arata, and Ryo returned one after another. Meanwhile, Suzune went back to Mauville City to accompany Ryuichi, and Misaki returned to Lavaridge Town.
Yuga hadn't seen Anlin and Anmu in a long time. The brothers had not only grown taller but also tanner and stronger. Their skills had significantly improved and were now comparable to Ryo's.
Anya felt a deep sense of comfort seeing her two younger brothers grow so much.
All the kids quickly got to know the new addition to the family, Shoryu, the youngest of them all, and took good care of him.
For Shoryu, it was his first time spending New Year's with such a large group, and he felt both excited and nervous.
This year, Verdanturf Town's New Year celebrations didn't differ much from past years. The usual rituals and festivities were held in turn, but the atmosphere was livelier than ever. More people participated, including many outsiders who chose to spend the New Year in Verdanturf Town.
As the Gym Leader of Verdanturf Town, Yuga had been busy with Mayor Ishida for quite some time because of the New Year celebrations. While others slowed down and took a break during the holiday, Yuga was busier than usual.
On the second day of the New Year, Yuga took a trip to Mauville City and stayed with his master for almost a week before returning. Lain came back with him during this time.
Mr. Koni'o was still as vigorous as ever. When Yuga arrived, he scolded him for not staying home properly during the New Year and running over to visit him. But when Yuga actually stayed with him, he was happier than anyone else.
Yuga had suggested that his master come back to Verdanturf Town with him, but his master was unwilling. The shrine where their lineage worshiped Celebi and their ancestors was very close to Mauville City, and he wanted to stay there. Yuga had no choice but to respect his wishes.
It wasn't until the New Year celebrations were over that Yuga truly had time to relax.
After the New Year holiday, YoYo Day Care reopened. As soon as it did, Yuga listed two new species of Pokémon for sale: the rare Psychic-type Pokémon Lunatone and Solrock. These two species had now reproduced enough to barely reach the numbers required for sale.
However, the two Pokémon were sold alternately each month. If Lunatone was sold in one month, Solrock would be sold the next month. Both would never appear simultaneously on YoYo Day Care's website.
The fans of YoYo Day Care were, of course, ecstatic about the new Pokémon listings. This meant they had a better chance of securing a spot to purchase one, and this time it was two Psychic-type Pokémon up for grabs.
For the first month, YoYo Day Care posted a picture of Lunatone on its website. As soon as the purchase slots opened, they were immediately snapped up.
Not only were the slots for Lunatone gone, but all the other Pokémon purchase slots were also completely booked within a minute of opening.
It had become a monthly tradition for YoYo Day Care's fans to sit in front of their computers at the beginning of each month to try and secure a purchase slot.
What Yuga didn't expect was that the person who secured the slot for Lunatone was none other than his little fanboy, Glenn.
Yuga hadn't seen Glenn in a long time. Every time he went to Mauville City, he would visit Glenn's home. During his New Year trip to visit his master, he also stopped by, but Glenn was never home. If not for his parents being there, Yuga might have suspected that the kid had disappeared.
The booking process for YoYo Day Care's Pokémon purchase slots was always handled by Windy, and this time was no exception. Therefore, Yuga didn't know beforehand that Glenn was the one who secured the Lunatone purchase slot.
So when Glenn appeared at YoYo Day Care, Yuga was utterly surprised.
Glenn's personality was as lively as ever, but there was now a faint trace of maturity that wasn't there before. He had also grown taller, only half a head shorter than Yuga, who stood over 1.8 meters. It looked like Glenn was nearly 1.8 meters tall already.
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