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After receiving the Gym badge, Ash and his two companions were not in a hurry to leave Veilstone City.
Because Ash still had an important matter to attend to—the hatching of a Pokémon Egg.
According to Nurse Joy's examination a few days ago, the Pokémon Egg given by Cynthia was about to hatch.
So, if nothing unexpected happened, they would need to stay in Veilstone City for a while longer.
However, during this period, Ash was not idle; he made a call directly to communicate with Professor Oak.
After a friendly greeting, he prepared to send Scizor and Grotle back and bring over Bayleef, who was known as the 'King of Jealousy'.
And Bulbasaur, also a Grass-type, naturally came along, allowing Grotle to take over for Bulbasaur so that Bulbasaur could rest for a while.
"Perfect, let Bulbasaur enjoy the journey; after all, this guy has helped me a lot!" Professor Oak readily agreed.
Over the years, Bulbasaur had helped him a lot as a manager.
This time, Ash was willing to take Bulbasaur on a journey, which would be a perfect vacation for Bulbasaur.
As for the management of the Pokémon in the backyard, he would just have to put in a little more effort.
"Bayleef, Ash is looking for you! And bring Bulbasaur over too!"
Oak temporarily put the phone aside, went to the entrance of the laboratory, and called out to Bayleef, who was training nearby, always guarding the laboratory.
"Bayleef~"
Upon hearing this, the four-legged Bayleef's face immediately lit up with Nurse Joy, and in its excitement, it ran towards where Bulbasaur was.
In a short while, it found Bulbasaur, and together they were returned to their Poké Balls by Oak, which they hadn't entered for a long time.
Then, returning to the laboratory, he placed the two Poké Balls onto the Pokémon transfer machine one by one, and in the blink of an eye, they were in Ash's hands.
"Professor, I've received them!" Ash picked up the Poké Balls containing Bayleef and Bulbasaur and gestured to Professor Oak.
"Good, I've also got Scizor's and Grotle's Poké Balls here!" Oak nodded with a smile.
After everything was done, the trio continued to chat with Professor Oak for a few more moments before hanging up the phone, with Dawn looking a bit regretful.
"Oh, why didn't Professor Oak compose a haiku to say goodbye?"
As a loyal fan of Professor Oak, Dawn felt it was a pity that Professor Oak didn't end with a haiku.
This made the two people and one Pokémon beside her feel a wave of exasperation.
"Alright, let's go see our new companions; both of them are Pokémon you haven't seen before!" Ash pulled Dawn towards the backyard of the Pokémon Center.
In a rather spacious open area, Ash threw out his Poké Balls, and with a flash of red light, two familiar figures appeared on the grass.
"Bayleef~"
As soon as Bayleef came out, it pounced on Ash, knocking him to the ground, and kept rubbing its large head against Ash's face, looking exceptionally happy.
"Okay, okay, Bayleef, it's really been a long time!" Ash stroked Bayleef's head, clearly feeling Bayleef's enthusiasm.
"Pika~"
Pikachu, who had jumped to the ground, kindly greeted them.
"Is this Bayleef? She really has an unusual fondness for Ash, doesn't she?"
Looking at Ash, who was pinned to the ground by Bayleef, Dawn commented with a mix of amusement and helplessness.
Although the Bayleef in front of her was quite cute, constantly pinning Ash down made her seem a bit too enthusiastic.
"Of course! This guy is the clingiest Pokémon in Ash's team!" Brock gave a very affirmative reply, recalling Bayleef's past behavior.
And looking at Bayleef, she probably wanted to monopolize Ash for a while to catch up.
Most importantly, Bayleef was still ignoring Pikachu as usual.
"Wow, is this Bulbasaur? It looks so cute!"
Dawn's gaze then shifted to Bulbasaur, who was standing beside them, and its cute appearance made Dawn exclaim how adorable it was.
"Bulba~"
Bulbasaur, with the seed on its back, saw Dawn looking at it and, knowing she was Ash's companion, blinked its large, wine-red eyes and responded simply.
"This is really a plant!"
Feeling Bulbasaur's friendliness, Dawn boldly walked up to it, squatted down, and gently stroked the plant on Bulbasaur's back.
"Bulba~"
Feeling Dawn's curiosity, Bulbasaur even kindly turned its body to let her examine it closely, fully satisfying Dawn's curiosity.
Because in the Pokemon World, the plant on Bulbasaur's back has always been a point of contention.
Besides the debate over whether it's a plant or an animal, there's also the question of whether it's a parasitic species similar to the one on Parasect's back.
"Bulbasaur, long time no see~"
Ash, with the happy Bayleef by his side, came to Bulbasaur and gazed at this companion from his earliest group.
Bulbasaur is a quadrupedal Pokémon that resembles a toad, with a mysterious seed on its back that grows with its body.
"Bulba~"
Seeing Ash approach, Bulbasaur leaped into Ash's arms, greeting its Trainer whom it hadn't seen in a long time.
"You two, from now on, you'll be traveling with me, and you'll also be doing various training. Don't complain about being tired when the time comes~"
Ash bent down and placed Bulbasaur on the ground, making a prior declaration to his two returning old comrades.
"Bulba Bulba"
"Bayleef~ Bayleef~"
Bulbasaur and Bayleef exchanged glances and nodded solemnly to Ash.
They had mentally prepared themselves at Professor Oak's, just waiting for this day to arrive, and they weren't worried about it at all.
...
Oak's Retirement Home
In the past, this was a place for Ash's Pokémon to relax and have fun.
Although the Pokémon at Oak's Retirement Home are gradually changing, with training and battles becoming more frequent, the fundamental nature hasn't changed.
After all, no matter how hard Pokémon try, there will always be moments of fatigue.
And on this day, Scizor and Grotle, who had returned, rejoined the big family.
"Scizor~ (Old friend, you're finally back! Want to challenge some strong opponents with us tomorrow morning?)"
Sceptile saw the crimson figure and actively came forward to welcome Scizor.
"..."
The naturally aloof Scizor didn't speak, but its burning gaze clearly conveyed its meaning.
"Char~ (You've gotten much stronger!)"
Seeing Scizor, Charizard nodded in admiration, remembering that he was the former Scyther.
His strength had significantly increased; aside from Fire-type moves, he was a powerful opponent in close combat.
"Scizor~ (Little brother, it's really been a long time! Let big brother see how much you've improved!)"
While Sceptile was entertaining Scizor, he didn't forget to greet the honest and good-natured Grotle.
He pulled Grotle to an open area, and as the older brother, he prepared to personally conduct impact resistance training for his little brother.
"Grotle~"
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