Chapter 183:Hide and Seek with Manaphy ~ The Second Challenger of the Gym

Natsume crouched down and gave Kecleon’s head a little flick.

“Little guy, today isn’t your lucky day.”

Kecleon covered its head and trembled.

Onami curiously asked, “How are you going to punish it?”

“Well…”

Natsume thought for a moment and then looked at Manaphy. “Manaphy, what do you think is the right way to handle this little troublemaker?”

“Manaphy.”

Manaphy crossed its arms, looking contemplative.

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy suggested that Kecleon should do some work.

Kecleon quickly nodded.

Doing tasks was definitely better than falling into the hands of Zorua and their friends.

“Kecleon!”

Natsume laughed. “Then let’s take it to Sandslash.”

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy waved its hand, signaling everyone to lead Kecleon down the mountain.

“Bulbasaur~”

Manaphy, along with the little Pokémon from the Farm, began walking towards below the mountain.

“Manaphy~”

As Manaphy was walking, it suddenly noticed a few Ice-type Sandshrew curiously watching them from beneath the shade of a tree.

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy greeted them and invited them to join in the fun.

The Sandshrew exchanged glances with each other and then walked over to Manaphy.

Manaphy looked at the Sandshrew and asked, “Could I ask you to use Powder Snow to freeze the path here?”

The Sandshrew scratched its head and replied, “No problem.”

The Sandshrew all together used Powder Snow on the dirt slope.

On the mountain path, a layer of ice formed instantly.

However, this icy path didn’t fully connect to below the mountain.

“Eevee~”

Then, their Arcevee came over.

It transformed into Glaceon and used Ice Beam!

A direct icy path to below the mountain was created in an instant.

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy excitedly climbed onto the ice.

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy began sliding down towards below the mountain, just like on a slide.

“Squirtle!”

The Squirtles immediately followed one after another.

At this moment, the gym at below the mountain Farm was already bustling with people.

There were tourists coming to visit, Trainers preparing for gym challenges, and several photographers hoping to capture some great shots.

“Manaphy~”

The cheers for Manaphy immediately attracted a lot of attention.

Everyone turned to look at the sudden appearance of the icy slide.

“Is that Manaphy?”

Someone looked in amazement at the Manaphy sliding down quickly.

“Manaphy?”

“Could it be? How could Manaphy possibly be here?”

Zhou Guang was a photography enthusiast.

He instantly aimed his large camera at Manaphy, which looked like a cannon.

In the lens, Manaphy was wearing a joyful smile.

Behind it were Squirtle, Eevee, Zorua, Rockruff, and Bulbasaur.

Click~

The moment was frozen.

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy waved happily at everyone, and after Bulbasaur and the others slid down, they all ran towards Sandslash.

“That can’t be the real Manaphy, right?”

“Is it possible that this Manaphy is just Zorua transformed? It can’t be the real one, can it?”

Since Manaphy is a Pokémon from legends, everyone naturally recognized it.

However, knowing the legends surrounding Manaphy made many people skeptical about whether it was real.

“How could it possibly not be real?”

Someone rebutted, “The Farm even has Meltan, so it’s not impossible for Manaphy to be here, right?”

“Meltan is definitely different from Manaphy. After all, it's typical for Manaphy to appear in the sea, not here at the Farm!”

“Is Manaphy really Manaphy?”

Someone ran toward Manaphy, eager to get a closer look.

“Serperior~”

Lying on the grass, Serperior slowly raised its head and surveyed the scene.

The previously restless crowd immediately quieted down.

Serperior’s pressure was still very strong.

“Ah~”

Someone exclaimed dreamily, “It’s here, I can feel the familiar energy.”

“It’s Serperior’s Glare.”

“I’m completely paralyzed.”

Serperior looked at the crowd with a bit of annoyance.

It had only glanced over briefly.

“Everyone, please calm down, Rotom.”

Rotom flew over and tapped on a nearby sign.

It read: Do not disturb the Pokémon of the Farm. Eat, drink, play, sleep.

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy arrived by Sandslash’s side.

Sandslash looked at them curiously.

“Bulbasaur.”

Bulbasaur pushed Kecleon, who was tied up, forward.

“Manaphy.”

Manaphy explained what had happened to Sandslash.

“Sandslash~”

Sandslash understood.

It patted Kecleon’s shoulder.

“Kecleon.”

Kecleon began to follow Sandslash to clear the fields.

“What should we play next?”

Squirtle looked at Manaphy with anticipation and asked.

Manaphy suggested, “How about a game of hide and seek~?”

“Eevee~”

An Eevee immediately brought over a tree branch.

The tree branch was stood up in the center.

Everyone formed a circle and blew with all their strength.

Huff puff~

Pop~

The branch fell toward Manaphy.

Manaphy picked up the tree branch.

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy closed its eyes.

Squirtle and the others immediately scattered in all directions.

“Kecleon.”

Kecleon watched Manaphy with envy.

Kecleon wanted to join in too.

“Sandslash~”

Sandslash looked at Kecleon and said, “If you work hard now, you can play with everyone tomorrow.”

“Kecleon.”

Kecleon looked at Sandslash.

“Can I eat with everyone too?”

Sandslash nodded.

The Farm had plenty of food.

For the Pokémon at the Farm, the entire area was their playground.

“Zorua~”

Zorua dashed into the crowd, swayed, and transformed into a girl wearing a dress.

“Zorua, are you playing hide and seek?”

Someone curiously asked Zorua.

“Zorua~”

Zorua made a gesture for silence.

“Bulbasaur~”

Bulbasaur ran to a tree.

It used Vine Whip to grab a tree branch and pulled itself up to hide in the tree.

“Larvitar!”

Larvitar looked around.

It noticed some logs piled up at the side of the road, waiting to be moved.

Larvitar immediately burrowed in, hiding amongst the wood.

“Squirtle.”

Squirtle ran over to Chansey and looked at the pouch on her belly.

“Chansey.”

Chansey looked a bit troubled as she stared at Squirtle.

“Squirtle~”

Squirtle used Withdraw.

Its little eyes peeked out from the shell, looking hopefully at Chansey.

Chansey tried to fit Squirtle into her pouch.

Though Squirtle had withdrawn, it clearly wouldn’t fit.

“Chansey.”

After thinking, Chansey opened her medical kit and placed Squirtle inside.

Rockruff searched for an empty plot of land and used Rock Tomb on top of itself.

Bam~

“Rockruff…”

Rockruff got a little hurt from the impact.

It whimpered a couple of times, quickly covering its mouth.

The Eevees ran toward the cabin on the mountain.

“Eevee~”

Onami looked at the hurried Eevees and asked in confusion, “What’s going on?”

Natsume looked at the Eevees crawling under the bed and sofa. “They’re playing hide and seek.”

As Natsume spoke, he noticed one Eevee that seemed unsure of where to hide.

“Eevee.”

Natsume raised his hand, making a metal bucket float up.

The Eevee instantly understood.

It curled up its body and allowed Natsume to cover it with the metal bucket.

“Hide and seek, huh?”

Onami reminisced, “When I was little, I often played this game with my Pokémon at home.”

“I miss those times.”

Natsume smiled at Onami and said, “Do you want to play too?”

“Eh?”

Onami waved her hand with a smile, “If I have to hide now, I’d probably just hide under the blankets.”

Natsume replied, “What I meant was, you could try to join me in seeing where everyone is hiding.”

“Sure~”

Natsume headed towards below the mountain. “Let’s go check it out.”

Onami followed closely beside Natsume.

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy opened its eyes and looked around.

It quickly noticed the nervous Chansey.

Chansey glanced at Manaphy with a guilty expression.

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy ran over to Chansey.

Chansey hurriedly hid the medical kit behind her back.

“There’s nothing here! No Pokémon hiding inside!”

Manaphy reached out to peek.

“Manaphy~”

It found Squirtle.

“Squirtle.”

Squirtle jumped out of the box, looking disgruntled.

“How many Pokémon have you found, Manaphy?”

Natsume walked over to Manaphy.

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy pointed at Squirtle.

“Squirtle.”

Squirtle raised its hand, only I was found.

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy looked toward the crowd.

A person with a tail sticking out from behind stood out in the crowd.

Natsume followed Manaphy’s gaze.

“Is that Zorua?”

Onami asked curiously.

Natsume smiled and said, “Yes.”

“It seems like his illusions aren't quite mastered yet.”

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy dashed past and tugged at Zorua’s tail.

Zorua instantly transformed back to its normal form.

“Zoroark.”

Zorua turned to glance at its tail.

“Zorua, we were just about to say your tail hasn’t changed properly yet.”

Tourists nearby laughed at Zorua.

“Zoroark.”

Zorua looked frustrated.

“Natsume, the gym leader~”

In the crowd, a Trainer with a Cinderace rushed toward Natsume.

“Natsume, the gym leader! It’s been a while!”

“It’s you.”

Natsume looked at the newcomer and his Pokémon. “Your Raboot evolved!”

Natsume remembered him.

Ashin, a Trainer who was traveling.

When Arcevee joined the Farm, the first opponent was him and his Pokémon.

“I'll go find the other Pokémon with Manaphy,” Onami said, glancing at Natsume.

“Okay.”

Ashin felt a bit embarrassed as he watched Onami leave. “Am I interrupting you?”

“No, not at all.”

Natsume looked at Ashin and asked, “Are you here for another gym challenge?”

Ashin immediately replied, “Yes, gym leader!”

“Since losing to you last time, my Raboot and Cacturne have undergone some intense special training.”

“During the training, Raboot completed its evolution and became a Cinderace.”

“So, I hope to battle you again, Natsume, gym leader.”

Natsume nodded. “Got it.”

“Follow me.”

Natsume led him toward a battle arena nearby.

“Yay!”

Ashin excitedly said to his Cinderace, “This time, we’ll definitely unleash all our strength.”

“Cinderace!”

Ashin was the first Trainer to attempt a second challenge.

Natsume certainly didn’t mind battling him.

“Rotom, I’m counting on you to act as our referee.”

Natsume waved to Rotom.

“Leave it to me, Rotom~”

Rotom flew to the center of the venue.

“Hakamo-o.”

Natsume called out to Hakamo-o, who was watching a battle on the sidelines.

“Hakamo-o.”

Hakamo-o looked at the challenger and his Cinderace, then quickly ran over.

“It’s the gym battle with Natsume, the gym leader! With Hakamo-o in the lineup, we can expect an exciting match!”

“Hurry over! Natsume, the gym leader’s challenge is about to begin!”

Someone shouted, and the surrounding tourists immediately gathered around.

Rotom spoke, “The rules of the match are 2v2. The match ends when all of one side’s Pokémon lose their ability to battle.”

“Additionally, only the challenger can switch Pokémon.”

“Please send out both sides’ Pokémon.”

As soon as Rotom finished speaking, Hakamo-o stepped forward and reached out to Cinderace.

“Cinderace!”

Cinderace looked at its Trainer.

Ashin scratched his head. “Are you going to battle now?”

“Cinderace!”

“Okay, I’m counting on you, Cinderace!”

Cinderace jumped onto the battle arena, staring at the Hakamo-o.

After both Pokémon had entered the field, Rotom announced, “The challenger will attack first.”

“Match, start!”

Ashin immediately called out, “Cinderace, use Pyro Ball!”

“Cinderace!”

Cinderace kicked up a small rock at its feet, sending it into the air.

The rock soared skyward, engulfed in flames, transforming into a fireball the size of a soccer ball.

Cinderace aimed at Hakamo-o and kicked toward the fireball.

Bam~

The Pyro Ball shot through the air, crashing toward Hakamo-o.

Natsume watched the fireball fly across the battle arena and remarked, “The speed and power are impressive.”

“Hakamo-o, use Protect!”

Bam~

The Pyro Ball struck Hakamo-o’s barrier with a loud crash.

Flames splattered in all directions.

“Cinderace!”

Cinderace was fast.

After kicking out the Pyro Ball, it charged straight at Hakamo-o.

Flame Charge!

Dragon Claw!

Hakamo-o swung its massive claw forward with great force.

Cinderace quickly jumped back, stopping its attack and dodging Hakamo-o’s Dragon Claw.

“Manaphy~”

Still searching for Larvitar, Manaphy was drawn in by the battle between Hakamo-o and Cinderace.

Manaphy ran toward the battle arena with Squirtle and Zorua.

“Not searching anymore?”

Onami asked curiously.

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy pointed to the battle arena.

It intended to watch Natsume’s battle.

“Manaphy.”

However, the area around the battle arena was packed with spectators.

“Serperior~”

Serperior swam over.

A vine began to sprout from the ground, growing up over the battle arena.

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy happily thanked Serperior and climbed up with Zorua and the others.

“Manaphy~”

Manaphy sat on top of the vine, waving its little hands at Natsume.

Natsume glanced at Manaphy sitting on the vine and smiled, waving back. Then, he turned to Hakamo-o beside him. “Hakamo-o, it’s your turn.”

Noble Roar!

Bam~

Hakamo-o thumped its scales, producing a few deep sounds.

Then, Hakamo-o let out a loud roar toward Cinderace.

“Cinderace, don’t be scared! Use Agility to rush in and hit it with Fire Punch!”

“Cinderace!”

Cinderace dashed toward Hakamo-o, its fist burning with flames, striking at Hakamo-o.

Counter!

Hakamo-o couldn’t match Cinderace’s speed, making it difficult to evade the oncoming attack.

Bam~

The punch shook Hakamo-o so hard that its scales flew off.

“Hakamo-o!”

Hakamo-o grabbed Cinderace’s arm and aimed its head toward Cinderace’s face.

Bam~

Counter was successfully executed.

Dragon Breath.

Hakamo-o tightened its grip on Cinderace’s arm and attacked up close.