Chapter 249: Heading to Winter Towada Lake

"Teddiursa, want to go to Towada Lake?"

Natsume planned to visit Towada Lake to see the snowy scenery there.

As for who to bring, Natsume wanted to prioritize the Pokémon he had originally brought from Towada Lake.

"Teddiursa."

Teddiursa, licking its paws, shook its head.

Compared to Towada Lake, Teddiursa preferred life on the farm.

After Teddiursa declined, it stretched out its paw toward Natsume.

Want some?

Golden honey dripped from Teddiursa's paw.

"Uh, thanks, but no."

Natsume waved his hand in refusal. "You go ahead and play. I’ll go ask Mamoswine."

"Teddiursa~"

After speaking with Teddiursa, Natsume leisurely walked toward the farm's perimeter.

Mamoswine, since it was young, had always loved searching for food, so it often wandered outside the farm.

"Natsume, are we going to see the snow?"

Diancie followed excitedly beside Natsume, chatting and strolling.

"Yeah, have you ever seen snow before, Diancie?"

Diancie shook its head, a little excited. "Not yet."

"But I’ve heard from the Minister that when it snows, the whole world turns white. It’s supposed to be beautiful."

Natsume smiled at Diancie. "It really is beautiful."

"This time, we can stay for a couple of days."

Diancie happily replied, "Yes, Natsume!"

"Mamoswine~"

Under a tree, the massive Mamoswine was digging through the dirt, foraging for wild mushrooms to eat.

On a branch above, a curious Skwovet watched Mamoswine from the tree.

This wild Skwovet, upon seeing Natsume, simply climbed a bit higher and stayed still.

Wild Pokémon around the farm were becoming more and more common.

"Mamoswine, want to go back to Towada Lake?"

Mamoswine lifted its head, shaking the dirt off its snout.

Towada Lake, huh?

Mamoswine looked thoughtful.

It really had been a long time since it had been back.

It must be snowing there now, right?

Thinking this, Mamoswine's eyes lit up with anticipation.

"Mamoswine!"

"Alright, let’s get you inside first."

Natsume took out a Poké Ball and recalled Mamoswine.

After recalling Mamoswine, Natsume headed to the farm’s battle arena.

At that moment, a gym battle was taking place on the arena.

Blaziken was in the middle of a battle.

Greninja stood on the sidelines, watching.

"Swellow, fly up!"

The challenger’s Pokémon was a Swellow.

Swellow, hearing its Trainer’s command, immediately flew into the sky, trying to create distance from Blaziken.

"Blaziken."

Blaziken looked up at Swellow in the sky, bent its legs slightly, then leaped with incredible force.

"Blaziken!"

In an instant, Blaziken shot into the air, reaching a height directly above Swellow with astonishing speed.

Flying-type Move: Bounce!

"Wow~ that jump is insane!"

"Blaziken really lives up to its reputation for leg strength!"

As Blaziken soared high into the air, the crowd erupted in gasps of amazement.

Natsume, watching Blaziken in the sky, smiled. "Not bad."

"Blaziken!"

At that moment, Blaziken, still in the air, stomped down on Swellow.

Bam!

Swellow was slammed into the ground, unable to continue.

"Match over."

Rotom announced the result: "Swellow is unable to battle. Blaziken wins."

Natsume began to clap.

The crowd followed with applause.

As the applause died down, Natsume waved over Blaziken and Greninja.

Blaziken and Greninja immediately paused their training and came to Natsume’s side.

Natsume asked them, "Want to go to Towada Lake?"

This time, Natsume planned to bring them along.

Since Natsume had Blaziken’s Mega Stone and Greninja had the special ability for Bond Evolution, Natsume wanted to cultivate their synergy by traveling and battling together.

"Blaziken!"

"Greninja."

Blaziken and Greninja were naturally thrilled to hear that Natsume wanted to take them on a trip.

For this trip, Natsume only brought Gardevoir, Diancie, Mamoswine, Blaziken, and Greninja.

Natsume had originally considered bringing Dragonite, but Dragonite had been spending a lot of time on Dragon Island recently, and most Dragon-type Pokémon didn’t like snowy weather.

So Natsume decided against it.

Once the team was decided, Natsume led everyone to the teleportation portal behind the farmhouse.

"Indeedee, Zacian, I’m counting on you to take care of the farm."

"Indeedee~"

Indeedee bowed gracefully to Natsume.

Indeedee always managed everything at home perfectly.

Zacian silently watched Natsume.

Is he really treating me like a guard Pokémon now?

Towada Lake, Winter.

Whoosh~

Snowflakes drifted leisurely from the gray sky.

The mountains and forests were blanketed in snow, turning Towada Lake into a vast, white world.

A cold wind howled, and a group of Cryogonal could be seen dancing in the air alongside the snow.

On snow-covered branches, a few Delibird flew off in an unknown direction.

"It’s so cold."

Yuki rubbed her hands together as she sat atop Sawsbuck.

Since it was winter, the flower-like leaves on Sawsbuck’s antler-like branches had all fallen off.

The fur around its neck had also turned snow-white, matching its antlers.

While some southern regions were still warm in October, Towada Lake in the north was already deep in winter.

Sawsbuck looked around, then gestured for Yuki to look ahead.

On the snow-covered ground, there were small footprints.

Yuki jumped off Sawsbuck and inspected the footprints closely. "These are from a Weavile pack."

"Looks like they were just here."

As Yuki spoke, she suddenly looked up toward the trees.

Whoosh~

In the clump of trees, several figures darted past.

"Probably migrated from somewhere else."

"Come to think of it, more and more Pokémon from other regions have been showing up lately."

Yuki muttered to herself.

Whoosh~

The snow fell heavier now.

The footprints on the ground were quickly covered.

Yuki brushed the snow off her clothes and climbed back onto Sawsbuck.

"Let’s go, Sawsbuck."

Yuki patted Sawsbuck’s neck and smiled. "Let’s head to Oranguru’s cabin for a drink~"

"Sawsbuck~"

Sawsbuck trotted through the snow, carrying Yuki toward Oranguru’s cabin.