At that moment, Solana realized that the man in front of her was highly capable. He had many hidden talents.
Still, she was not too surprised. Solana did not pay much attention to the outside world. Whether he was a League Champion or not did not matter to her.
She simply felt that this person was a little impressive.
Only Solana and Lunick were there as Rangers. Now that everyone was together, they discussed all the information they had found so far.
They rested there for a while. After hearing their explanation, Natsui rubbed his chin.
"So, ever since last night's incident, you haven't found any sign of Celebi, but you did find a lot of ash in the forest?" Natsui asked.
"Yes," Lunick said. "It's wood ash from trees that burned in a large fire. But that's what confuses us. There hasn't been any fire in this forest lately. I have no idea where this ash came from."
"Celebi has special powers. It sounds like it brought the ash here while traveling through time," Natsui said, giving his professional opinion since he owned a Celebi as well. "That's the only way to explain where this ash came from. So, did you follow the ash trail to look for Celebi?"
Solana and Lunick looked at each other.
Finally, Solana spoke. "The incident happened last night. We came here this morning and found the ash. We searched the area, but there are too many thorns and vines in the forest. They've changed the terrain. Some places are completely covered, so we can't begin a proper search. Also, Celebi is very small. If it wants to hide, it won't be easy to find."
Solana was right. If Celebi hid inside a tree hollow and stayed quiet, it would be very difficult to find. The forest was huge. Trying to find it without scaring it would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.
"Well, there are only two options now..." Natsui looked at the Capture Stylers on their belts and said, "You can work harder and find more wild Pokémon to help you search. Maybe you'll find it after some time. Or..."
Natsui paused. Solana asked, "Or what?"
Natsui looked at her and said calmly, "Or find a way to lure it out."
"Lure it out?"
Solana and Lunick both frowned at the same time, and both of them shook their heads.
"I don't think that will work," Solana sighed. "Celebi loves peace and the forest, but it's very shy. In this situation, even wild Pokémon won't be able to lure it out."
It's not impossible. You just can't do it, Natsui thought to himself.
Actually, the easiest way was to use a Pokémon that Celebi cared about, or one with the same aura. For example, another Celebi could draw it out.
But Solana and Lunick could not do that.
Natsui had a Celebi. He could use Solana's Capture Styler to transfer it over from the Celadon Gym. But he did not need to do that right away.
This was an easy task for him, but he could not reveal his Celebi to people he had just met. It did not matter that they were Pokémon Rangers trying to protect the forest.
This was his secret. He would not show it to strangers unless he had no other choice. He had only shown it to the women at the Celadon Gym who helped care for the plants.
But Natsui was not going to stand by and do nothing.
Celebi's life was in danger. Solana and Lunick had searched the forest and found no other threats, but if Celebi was already on the verge of collapse, then every minute mattered.
He loved Pokémon. He could not just watch it die.
He needed a way to help while keeping his secret.
After a moment, Natsui made his decision. "I can help you. But you have to promise me one thing."
They immediately became curious.
"It would be great if you could help," Lunick said with a laugh. Then he asked, "But what do we have to promise?"
Natsui looked at them, his voice calm and firm. "When I use my method to find Celebi, you must leave the forest. You are not allowed to watch me!"
"What!?"
Solana and Lunick were both shocked.
"Why do we have to do that?" Solana asked with a serious expression. "Do you really have a way to find Celebi?"
She thought he wanted them gone so he could secretly catch Celebi for himself.
"I'm not one hundred percent sure, but there's a very high chance I can find it," Natsui said as he leaned back and let them choose. "You can keep using your method. In that case, I'll continue my trip and stop helping. This matter has nothing to do with me. I only came to take a look because I saw Celebi was in danger."
Natsui's meaning was very clear.
If they wanted his help, they had to follow his conditions. If they did not trust him, then there was nothing more to discuss.
The atmosphere turned heavy. May did not even dare breathe loudly.
Solana thought about it for a moment, then shook her head.
"No. This is our duty as Rangers. Even if you are an International Police officer, you still can't..."
Lunick stopped Solana. He looked at Natsui and nodded.
"I understand," Lunick said. "We're just wasting time here. We've been searching without any real direction. I'll trust you!"
Solana was stunned. She looked at her partner and said, "Lunick, you..."
"It's fine. Trust me," Lunick said, signaling for Solana to stay calm. Then he looked at Natsui and smiled. "This man has won three Regional Leagues. He's also an International Police officer. Of course he has his own special methods!"
Solana hesitated again. Since she trusted Lunick, she stayed silent and let him decide.
Lunick looked at Natsui again.
"Alright, Natsui. We'll leave this to you. We'll follow your instructions and wait at the edge of the forest!"
Natsui's expression did not change, but he suddenly remembered something and added, "Oh, and you also need to leave one Capture Styler here."
That sounded like a bit too much.
Lunick was startled at first, but then he understood and nodded.
"I understand. I'll leave my Capture Styler with you!"
Lunick seemed to realize something, and the respect in his voice toward Natsui grew even stronger.
Natsui liked this man. Lunick was younger than him.
Natsui had not known Lunick for long, but he seemed friendly and easygoing. He was also good at making decisions.
Lunick had guessed that Natsui intended to use the Capture Styler to transfer a Pokémon over. Seeing how serious Natsui was, he naturally showed him even more respect.
As expected, Pokémon Rangers were both strong and smart.
"Don't worry," Natsui said quietly. "If everything goes smoothly, this matter will be resolved soon. I'll return the Capture Styler to you in perfect condition."
Lunick handed the Capture Styler to Natsui. After exchanging contact information, he and Solana headed toward the edge of the forest.
They walked more than a hundred meters away. By then, they could neither see nor hear Natsui and May anymore. Solana looked at Lunick.
"Is it really okay for us to let him do this? We handed over an important tool like the Capture Styler, and we even have to follow his orders and stay away without watching. He's very mysterious. I feel like we shouldn't have agreed so easily."
"Do we have any other choice?" Lunick asked as he kept walking. "Today, we used Flying-type Pokémon to search from the sky. We used Diglett to search underground. We tried over and over, but failed every time. We can't just keep searching like this forever. It's better to trust this man. He's won three Regional Leagues. He's not an ordinary person. Maybe he really can surprise us."
After they left, Natsui looked over the Capture Styler and quickly learned how to use it.
He told May to keep watch around the area. He did not want the Rangers suddenly coming back. Then Natsui took out his phone and called Erika.
He had decided to bring over his own Celebi to help.
In a movie, many Celebi from different points in time had worked together to revive a dead Celebi. Natsui believed that his Celebi could help this one as well.
That was why he was so confident he could save it.
Erika answered the call very quickly. After hearing Natsui's plan, she immediately went to the garden to find Celebi.
Once everything was ready, and after making sure Solana and Lunick were far enough away, Natsui activated the transfer function on the Capture Styler and pressed the button.
Suddenly, a GS Ball appeared in front of Natsui.
It was very strange. In the past, the GS Ball could not be transmitted through machines. Kurt and several professors had all confirmed that. But after Natsui caught Celebi, the ball had seemingly become normal. Now it could be transferred without any problem.
Natsui did not understand why, but he never told the professors. He kept it as a secret.
May was watching from a distance and noticed the unusual Poké Ball.
"That's Celebi's Poké Ball. It really looks different," May thought.
Natsui picked up the GS Ball and pressed the button. A blue light flashed, and Celebi appeared.
Celebi felt the fresh air, so different from the garden, and flew around happily.
Natsui called Celebi over and explained the situation to it.
Celebi could understand people very well. After hearing the story and realizing how serious the situation was, it let out a soft cry and flew high into the sky.
Celebi understood what it needed to do. Hovering above the forest, its body released a green light. The light quickly expanded until it covered the entire forest, causing the vines and thorns to fade away.
That green light was also a way for Celebi to communicate with other Celebi.
Soon, after about half a minute, another Celebi flew out from deep within the forest. It looked very weak as it flew toward Natsui's Celebi.
Celebi were extremely sensitive to the presence of another Celebi. Even while injured, it still came out to meet one of its own kind.
The injured Celebi followed Natsui's Celebi and landed in front of Natsui.
Natsui quickly examined it. It had many small cuts and bruises, but it was not dying. It had simply exhausted all its strength. What it needed now was food, water, and rest.
"May!" Natsui called out.
May quickly ran over with the first-aid kit.
The wild Celebi was a little frightened, but after speaking with Natsui's Celebi, it allowed them to help it.
This Celebi seemed braver than most others.
They cleaned its wounds, applied medicine, and carefully wrapped the worst areas with bandages.
May was very good at this. She had traveled for a long time, and she was also gentle and kind. The wild Celebi quickly started to trust her.
Natsui took out some instant noodles. The wild Celebi was starving, and by then, it was no longer afraid.