Chapter 283: Weavile Wants Grilled Meat! Tinkatink's Ball-Tossing Game~

As night fell, the lights came on.

In just a day, the road in front of the farm had transformed into a completely new scene.

Above the road, colorful light strips flickered.

A few Pidgey perched on the light strips, curiously peeking around at the changes below.

Beneath the lights, Pokémon like Tinkatink happily dragged their little hammers through the bustling crowd.

Natsume strolled leisurely with his Pokémon, his ears catching the sizzle of meat on the grill, the bubbling of hot soup, and the rhythmic tapping of knives on cutting boards.

Of course, the most prominent sound was the lively chatter of the crowd.

It was like a symphony playing on this street, each note brimming with the essence of life.

"Sandslash, is there anything you want to eat?"

Natsume asked, glancing at Sandslash, who was walking beside him.

"Sandslash."

Sandslash looked around, the lively environment making it hard to decide.

"No worries, take your time looking."

"After a year of hard work, it's time to relax for a while."

As Natsume spoke, he noticed a barbecue stall up ahead.

"Sneasel."

A group of Weavile had gathered, their eyes fixed on the sizzling meat on the grill.

The stall owner felt a bit nervous facing the four Weavile.

Weavile, being a pack of carnivorous Pokémon, exuded an air of danger.

Especially with their icy eyes and sharp, gleaming claws.

"Um, so..."

The owner asked nervously, "Are you here for the barbecue?"

"Sneasel."

The Weavile leader coldly acknowledged, pointing to the meat on the side.

"Four servings, then?"

The Weavile narrowed its eyes at the owner.

"Make it six."

Natsume stepped forward, smiling at the Weavile leader. "One for each of my Weavile, plus one for me and Sandslash."

The owner visibly relaxed upon seeing Natsume. "No problem~"

"Weavile, take a seat over there. I'll join you in a bit."

The Weavile glanced at the small chairs and tables set up on the empty plot of land.

Many people and Pokémon were sitting there, enjoying food bought from the stalls.

"Weavile."

The Weavile leader nodded slightly, then led its kin to sit among the crowd, still maintaining their aloof demeanor.

Natsume smiled at the scene. "Sandslash, let's check out some other stalls."

"Sandslash."

Up ahead, at a game stall.

"Tinkatuff, you can do it!"

Yuna and Sakura were cheering for Tinkatuff.

A small crowd had gathered around them.

"Tinkatuff."

Tinkatuff took a deep breath, then tossed a Poké Ball-shaped ball into the air. It raised its forged hammer and struck the ball.

Bang~

With a light sound, the ball flew toward a tilted barrel.

Thud~

The ball bounced right back out after hitting the barrel.

"Ah, so close!"

The stall owner chuckled. "Three tries and not a single one made it. No prize this time, I'm afraid."

"No way, let's try again!"

Yuna stared at a large Tinkaton plushie on the shelf. "I'm getting that today!"

"Tinkatuff!"

Tinkatuff waved its hammer determinedly, vowing to succeed this time.

Natsume joined in, smiling. "You can do it, Tinkatuff!"

Sakura turned around, setting down the lemon tea she had just bought. "Gym Leader Natsume, want to give it a try?"

Natsume shook his head. "Just here to watch."

Sakura grinned. "This is the tenth try."

"Also, this place is so lively."

"The food tastes great, and there are so many fun little games."

"I love this event~"

As Natsume and Sakura chatted, Tinkatuff failed yet again.

"This is way too hard."

Yuna sighed, looking at Sakura. "Maybe your Eevee should give it a shot?"

Sakura shrugged helplessly. "My Eevee ran off somewhere."

Yuna then turned to Natsume.

"Gym Leader Natsume, want to try?"

The owner chimed in enthusiastically. "It's simple!"

"Just have your Pokémon use a move to hit this Poké Ball."

"If you can get the ball into the barrel three times in a row without it bouncing out, you can pick any plushie."

Natsume glanced at Sandslash. "Want to give it a shot?"

Sandslash shook its head, showing little interest.

"Tinkatuff~"

Just then, a Tinkatink, drawn by Tinkatuff's efforts, eagerly raised its hand.

"You want to try?"

"Tinkatuff~"

Natsume smiled and waved Tinkatink over. "Sure, come here."

"Let me give you a tip."

Tinkatink curiously approached Natsume.

Natsume crouched down and whispered some pointers on how to hit the ball just right.

"Tinkatuff~"

Tinkatink nodded, indicating it understood.

While the game rules sounded simple, actually succeeding was quite challenging for newcomers.

After all, the ball the owner provided was very bouncy, and even a slight move from the Pokémon could send it flying.

Natsume had learned this the hard way in the past, so he had done some research.

"Tinkatink, you can do it!"

Now, as Tinkatink prepared to play, Sakura and the others cheered it on.

Tinkatink tossed the ball into the air, and as it spun rapidly, it swung its little hammer.

Fairy Wind.

The spinning ball maintained its rotation as it was blown into the barrel.

The ball stayed in.

"Tinkatuff!"

Tinkatuff and Yuna stared in amazement.

"Amazing! One more ball~"

"Tinkatink, show the owner how it's done."

"Tinkatuff~"

Tinkatink kept up the momentum, hitting all three balls perfectly.

Ding ding~

The owner happily rang the bell. "Gym Leader Natsume's Tinkatink has cleared the challenge!"

"Trainers, come and give it a try~"