Chapter 121. They're Two Growlithe; One of Them Is Brock
It was understood that the little Diglett had a somewhat eccentric temperament.
The little Diglett always immersed itself in its own world and easily drifted away from the group.
Natsume took out a device shaped like a mine detector.
He strapped the device onto his back, gripped the long rod with one hand, and hovered the huge disk over the ground while a green indicator stayed lit.
Honora wanted to help, but Natsume refused.
If they got too close, the devices would interfere with one another.
"There's nothing here at all. I can't find it," Natsume said, puzzled.
This was a detector made specifically for ground searches, with a range more than ten times that of his telekinesis.
As a Pokémon that lives in the surface layer of the ground, Diglett should, in theory, be very easy to find.
But in front of Natsume, there seemed to be nothing at all.
To avoid disturbing Natsume, all the Diglett groups trailed far behind, and even Ash's group walked as quietly as possible.
In the Digletts' shiny black eyes was a glimmer of hope.
That day, it had been this researcher who took the lead and stopped the dam's construction.
He had to be reliable.
"Beep beep beep!"
Suddenly, a harsh red light flashed on the device.
"Found it?" Natsume looked doubtful.
The Diglett swarmed over, only to discover that there was a small puddle in front of Natsume.
"…"
Feeling that Natsume might not be as reliable as imagined, a Dugtrio called to the gathered Diglett and split them into teams of three to begin searching as well.
"Huh? Why did the Diglett scatter?" Ash noticed that the Diglett who had been following them were all gone.
"Of course they had to split up."
Natsume's voice followed.
"They not only need to find the missing little Diglett, but also to look for a new habitat."
"Brrrrr—" The red light on Natsume's device flared, and the vibration grew even stronger.
"Could there actually be a Diglett in this puddle?" Honora leaned in.
"I don't think so." Watching the rippling puddle, Natsume looked off into the distance.
The device worked by emitting probing radio waves that bounced back upon encountering certain things depending on the dialed setting.
Sometimes, the returning signal wasn't from something underground.
"Rumble, rumble!"
Pebbles hopped as the tremors in the ground became visible to the naked eye.
"What's that!" Brock pointed into the distance.
On the horizon, a herd of brown, bull-like Pokémon charged forward.
"Whoa, what are those!"
Ash hurriedly stepped aside and pulled out his Pokédex.
"[Tauros, the Wild Bull Pokémon. It is brimming with energy, and once it starts running, it won't stop until it hits something.]"
"Whoa, that looks dangerous."
Misty retreated even farther back.
"So many Tauros… did we arrive at the Safari Zone?" Brock seemed to think of something and spoke in sudden realization.
"Safari Zone?" Ash and Misty turned to look at him together.
"It's a natural preserve for wild Pokémon in their native environment," Brock explained.
"In general, the Pokémon that live here move in herds."
As soon as Brock finished speaking, another herd of ostrich-like Pokémon came thundering by.
"[Doduo, the Twin Bird Pokémon. With well-developed legs, it excels at running. The nomads of the plains use it to carry goods.]"
"It's Doduo—ah!"
Ash stared, entranced by the Pokédex entry, and was promptly knocked flying by a Doduo.
"Hmph, don't stand in the way. If you're angling for compensation, I don't pay!"
At the rear of the Doduo herd, a young man riding a Dodrio gave Ash a sidelong glance.
"Hey, who do you think you—cough, cough!"
Misty wanted to argue, but the man urged his Dodrio on, kicked up a cloud of dust, and was gone.
"How rude. Even the wild Tauros herd is gentler than that Doduo herd he's driving."
Brock frowned, looking at the figure receding in the distance.
Not far away, Natsume thoughtfully put his device away.
The commotion just now seemed to have been caused by the ground tremors from the charging Tauros and Doduo herds.
"Everyone!"
A red-and-white blur flashed past as a splendid horse wreathed in flames skidded to a halt before them.
A beautiful young woman pulled on the reins atop the steed.
"Woof—"
Following behind the steed was a Growlithe.
"[Ponyta, the Fire Horse Pokémon. It has outstanding stamina for long-distance running.]"
Ash's Pokédex chimed again in his hands.
"Hello, my name is Lara Laramie of the Laramie clan who live around here."
"Have you seen my Tauros herd?"
Lara asked the group for help.
"We have. Allow me to lead the way," Brock said, hip-checking the Growlithe aside.
"Woof?"
The Growlithe stared at the man, puzzled.
Why did it suddenly feel like its status was being challenged?
"Ah, thank you."
Lara smiled lightly, and Brock saw stars.
"No trouble, no trouble at all!"
With that, Brock put his back into it and charged head-down in the direction the Tauros had gone.
"He just ran off with a stranger. What is he doing?"
Misty frowned.
"Natsume, what is the Laramie clan?"
Ash turned around just as Natsume, carrying the device, walked back over.
"Oh, that. If I remember right, they're a clan who live in this area."
Natsume tilted his head, searching his memory.
"The Laramie clan are a people steadfast in raising Pokémon within nature."
"When the League carried out urban–rural planning, this area was divided into Fuchsia City and the Safari Zone."
"One part of the Laramie clan stayed behind to live as nomads here, and the other part moved into Fuchsia City."
After speaking, Natsume pointed to the plain behind them.
"Strictly speaking, we're in the Laramie clan's nomadic grazing grounds. The actual Safari Zone is farther on."
"I see."
Ash nodded, looking like he'd learned something.
In the next second, Natsume shoved a device into his hands.
"You two shouldn't just stand around. Join in."
As he spoke, Natsume handed a detector each to Misty and Honora.
"Natsume, didn't you say traditional ground-wave detectors would interfere with one another?"
Honora looked at him in confusion.
"Don't tell me Natsume gave us some kind of cutting-edge equipment?"
Misty peered around from behind the pack with the device on her back.
"No. Seeing you idle irritates me."
Natsume set his own device on the ground and leaned back to take a short rest.
"…"
"Let's take turns, then," Honora suggested.
Everyone nodded, and they took turns searching for the whole afternoon.
At sunset, they collapsed to the ground.
"Still nothing," Misty said, taking a drink of water.
"Hey, my detector's vibrating—vibrating!"
Ash lit up like he'd hit the jackpot.
"No kidding. The rocks on the ground are vibrating too."
Misty turned her head and gave Ash a weary look.
He really had endless energy.
"Maybe Brock and the others are back," Honora said, looking into the distance.
In the setting sun, a herd of Tauros galloped by.
A Ponyta led in front, and two small black specks flanked the sides, keeping the Tauros moving in the right direction.
"What are those?" Misty pointed at the specks.
"Oh, those."
Natsume raised a pair of binoculars.
"The Laramie clan usually raise Growlithe to help manage the Tauros herds or the Doduo herds."
"Those two specks are two Growlithe."
Natsume's voice suddenly paused.
"No—one of them is Brock."
Natsume couldn't help but envy his physical stamina.
"Fwoosh!"
Lara swept past them with the Tauros herd.
"Let's go, everyone."
Brock skidded to a stop, panting hard.
"Miss Lara says there happens to be a Laramie clan gathering over there tonight, and we can rest at her home today."
Brock's excited voice rang out.
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