Pokémon: Farm Story

Chapter 21: Chapter 21: A Passing Trainer?



Morning sunlight filtered through the glass, casting a warm glow in the room as tiny particles danced in the air currents. From the window, a heartwarming scene unfolded.

A handsome boy lay fast asleep on his bed, cradling a shiny pink Furret in his arms. At the foot of the bed, a Persian slept soundly, shielding its head with its paws from the piercing sunlight. On a lazy recliner, a petite Minccino stretched languidly, loosening its tiny limbs.

After rubbing the sleep from its eyes, Minccino glanced out the window at the scenery before hopping lightly onto the pillow to nudge Natsume awake.

"Minccino," it squeaked softly.

"Morning, Minccino," Natsume mumbled as he groggily opened his eyes. Smiling at the adorable Pokémon so close, he reached out and gently ruffled its head, eliciting a blissful expression from the tiny creature.

A few minutes later, Natsume stood in the bathroom, hair a chaotic mess, brushing his teeth while scrolling through his phone. Beside him, Minccino diligently brushed its teeth with its miniature toothbrush, mirroring its trainer's routine.

It had been about a week since the mischievous Ogerpon had "visited" Natsume's farm. That night, Natsume hadn't captured Ogerpon, choosing instead to establish a bond of friendship. Before leaving, Natsume had told the Pokémon it was welcome to visit the farm anytime.

Although it had agreed, Ogerpon had only shown up three times during the week. Each time, it would sneak in under the cover of darkness, empty its little pouch of energy cubes, and quietly refill it before skulking away. Its "stealth" efforts were far from flawless, though. Every time it climbed the fence, the Mightyena family would quietly observe from a distance, occasionally whispering comments:

"Its moves are getting smoother."

"But seriously, look at those stubby legs—it's not even trying to jump properly."

Pure slander, of course.

Natsume pushed open the window, and the farm's lively scene stretched out before him. Compared to its neglected state when he first arrived, the farm was now brimming with life.

Near the fields, Sandshrew in its straw hat strolled leisurely with a small watering can, greeting a line of passing Cottonee. In addition to the Pokémon Natsume had officially captured, the farm was also home to some "wild residents." Natsume didn't plan on catching all of them—so long as they didn't cause trouble, they were free to stay.

The fields, divided into neat quadrants, were lush and green. The crops—ordinary grains and the specialty Gracidea grains Natsume had brought—were growing well. Interestingly, while two fields were just sprouting, the other two were nearly ready for harvest.

This discrepancy was due to Natsume's "experiment." Two plots were planted with regular grains, and two with Gracidea grains. For one plot of each type, Natsume had infused it with his "knockoff Viridian Force," nurturing them daily. The results were impressive: the infused crops grew significantly faster and even seemed to have mutated—thankfully in a beneficial way.

Natsume planned to sell the regular crops while keeping the infused ones for personal use on the farm. He also intended to experiment with using his power to speed up the growth of berries and see if they could enhance his energy cubes.

"Sandshrew~"

The diligent Pokémon pulled out a large sack and used its tiny paws as makeshift scoops to sprinkle powdered remnants onto the soil. These leftovers, byproducts from Pokéblock production, served as excellent fertilizer. Natsume had also saved berry seeds, experimenting with sprouting them thanks to tips he'd found online.

"Good morning, Furret. Morning, Butterfree. Morning, Buneary. And you, Corvisquire—did you stay up late again?" Natsume teased as he greeted his Pokémon one by one. "You know, staying up too late can cause serious feather loss for bird Pokémon."

As for Persian? It had only come back to the room at dawn after patrolling the grounds overnight, seemingly treating the property as its personal territory. Thanks to Persian's efforts, Natsume always slept peacefully, knowing any trouble would be swiftly detected.

Just as Natsume was about to head out for his usual farm inspection, a commotion erupted in the distance. Listening closely, he realized it came from the Mightyena family—and this time, their barks carried a sense of urgency.

"What's going on?" Natsume muttered, puzzled, as he hurried toward the noise, accompanied by Butterfree and his shiny Furret. Persian, reluctantly waking from its nap, stretched and followed lazily, looking visibly grumpy from its disrupted sleep.

At the farm's edge, the Mightyena family had formed a semi-circle around a young boy, who stood flustered and defensive. Two Pokémon accompanied him, one on either side.

"Wait, wait, I mean no harm!" the boy stammered, clearly overwhelmed as the Mightyena continued to growl and block his path.

The Mightyena father, ever vigilant, had instantly deemed the boy suspicious after catching him loitering near the farm's borders early in the morning.

"What's going on here?" Natsume called out, arriving on the scene.

"I'm the owner of this farm, Natsume. And you are?" he asked, directing a firm gaze at the intruder.

"Woof, woof!" barked Mightyena senior, launching into a spirited report: This guy's been skulking around since early morning. Definitely up to no good!

Natsume turned back to the boy, waiting for his explanation.

"My name is Fu Gu," the boy stammered. "I'm a traveling Trainer. I stumbled across this place during my journey and got curious, so I stopped to take a closer look."

Fu Gu's nervous demeanor didn't inspire much confidence. While his intentions might have been innocent, his excessive curiosity had clearly crossed a line. Most people find overly curious individuals more irritating than endearing—something Fu Gu had yet to grasp.

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