A battered ship speeding across the sea.
It's the Magma Team.
Having anticipated the arrival of alliance reinforcements thanks to Old Bill's intel, Flarepine made a decisive choice to abandon some Magma Team members who couldn't return from the Alternate Space in time. He forced a breakthrough before the alliance reinforcements could completely surround them and successfully retreated.
However, no matter how you look at it, the losses for the Magma Team this time were immense, even to the point of being crippling.
They lost one of their top executives; several other executives and elite captains were also lost. Not to mention, the regular members who were sent into the Alternate Space were all those with above-average strength.
In terms of personnel, it can be said that the Magma Team suffered a disastrous blow this time.
But that wasn't the end of it.
The cost of hiring two powerhouses to delay the Elite Four was also significant.
Even with the Magma Team's years of accumulated resources, such a loss is still hard to bear.
Most importantly.
The campfire with the Original Groudon shell fragments failed to bring the items out of the Alternate Space, making the Magma Team's series of actions seem futile.
However.
Standing at the bow of the ship, Flarepine's clothes were a bit disheveled, but behind his glasses, his eyes were exceptionally bright.
In his hands, clasped behind his back, he held a thumb-sized dark red fragment.
An Original Groudon shell fragment!
Everyone else thought he had failed, but in his view, he had succeeded.
His fingertips rubbed the uneven lines on the fragment, and a smile slowly appeared at the corner of his mouth.
"Interesting..."
...
...
Shenhe Town.
"Not staying a couple more days?" Hilona looked at Natsuhiko, who had rested for a night and fully regained his spirit, and hesitantly asked.
Natsuhiko glanced at the sun soon to be directly overhead and said with a smile, "I'm heading to Suiyi Town. It's not far from Shenhe Town. If you need me, you can find me there anytime. I plan to stay there for a while."
Suiyi Town is located at the foot of the east side of the Celestial Crown Mountain, not far from Shenhe Town. With Hilona's Pokémon's flying speed, it would likely take just an hour or two to reach there.
In this light, it's almost like being neighbors.
Indeed.
Natsuhiko's first target is Suiyi Town, a ranching town nestled at the foot of the Celestial Crown Mountain.
Shenhe Town is nice too, but most of the residents there are Hilona's relatives, and there's too few people. The geographical limitations make development too difficult.
And given Shenhe Town's historical standing in the Sinnoh Region, the Sinnoh Alliance would likely not agree to Natsuhiko's request to establish a dojo there.
But Suiyi Town is different.
It's inherently a declining ranching town, yet it retains sufficient infrastructure, like the Poke Center and alliance shop. Although its economy isn't developed, it boasts ample land, providing great potential for growth.
Most importantly, both Shenhe Town and Suiyi Town are close to the Celestial Crown Mountain.
The mountain represents abundant resources, whether they be natural products or Pokémon resources, which can attract many travelers and boost Suiyi Town's economic income, provided some changes are made to bring more appealing elements.
Natsuhiko already has some plans. If executed properly, it could lead to a rapid rise in Suiyi Town's popularity.
Additionally, Suiyi Town has the largest nursery in the Sinnoh Region, which is also a direction worth exploring.
Natsuhiko, who has been to Suiyi Town, has developed a preliminary assessment of the town.
Without exaggeration, there might not be a better place than Suiyi Town in the Sinnoh Region for him to settle down and develop.
Of course, all this hinges on Natsuhiko first gaining recognition from the Sinnoh Alliance and successfully passing the dojo leader's assessment to qualify to establish his own dojo.
The upcoming "Lily Youth Competition" is his pathway to get assessed.
"Suiyi Town, huh?"
Upon hearing Natsuhiko say he would stay in Suiyi Town for a while, Hilona nodded slightly.
It really isn't far from Shenhe Town.
The Suiyi Town nursery is quite famous. Hilona often goes there to purchase Pokémon food or temporarily house Pokémon.
"Yes."
"Then I... I'll come find you after completing the first phase of my training and you can help me see if there's anything that needs improvement with Glaceon and Togepi," Hilona said.
Currently, in the entire Pokémon Realm, no one has more authority on Glaceon than Natsuhiko.
"No problem."
Anyway, Lance said he would come once his matters were settled, so having Hilona join won't be too much.
After speaking, Natsuhiko summoned Yanmega, stepped onto its back, and waved to Hilona.
"Then I'll head out first."
Under Hilona's watchful gaze, Natsuhiko rode on Yanmega, quickly leaving, following the Celestial Crown Mountain Range downwards. After passing through a misty area, he reached outside Shenhe Town again.
Winter had just passed, the snow was melting, vegetation sprouted, and a vibrant agricultural town lay before him.
Compared to his last visit, Suiyi Town now held more vitality.
Natsuhiko did not directly enter Suiyi Town.
Instead, he paused at the junction between the foot of the Celestial Crown Mountain and Suiyi Town.
A place he had pre-assessed.
The dense vegetation, as it is on the eastern side of the Celestial Crown Mountain, enjoys more sunlight than the west. Thus, both the vegetation and Wild Pokémon are more active.
Surrounded on three sides by rugged rock piles, the middle is a small, densely vegetated depression, which is rarely visited by people, so the number of Wild Pokémon is high, but it also makes the land exceptionally fertile.
Suiyi Town is remote and sparsely populated, and this location, even less approached by Suiyi Town's residents, likely sees less than a handful of visitors annually.
Natsuhiko took out a large number of Pokeballs.
The Pokémon he carried were already quite cumbersome, requiring a place to store them; otherwise, managing them daily would consume a lot of time and resources.
Regardless of whether the Sinnoh Alliance approves his application or not, this place is a good temporary storage.
The Froslass family was summoned first.
Previously stored in the forests of Shenhe Town, the Pokémon were retrieved by him one by one.
The Froslass and her three Snorunts' children were placed on the side closest to the Celestial Crown Mountain, along with a piece of "Thousand-Year Ice." After a few days, the area would transform into the ideal living environment for them.
Moreover, with the "Thousand-Year Ice" present, other Ice-type Pokémon like Abomasnow and Vanilluxe could also live in the same area.
Thanks to their brief interaction in the forests of Shenhe Town, Froslass, Abomasnow, and Vanilluxe were well acquainted, so there was no concern over potential conflicts.
With the placement of these Ice-type Pokémon, Natsuhiko, following his plan and different Pokémon's environmental needs, began to organize the rest of the Pokémon he carried.
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Today, ten updates. As usual, I'll release a few chapters in advance. The rest will be posted once written~~ Asking for a guaranteed monthly vote~~ Considering last month's extra 350k words~~