New Ally

Kashiwagi was well aware of Chaida's foolishness.

But he didn't expect him to be so foolish.

Despite having Pokémon to assist him, he completely disregarded his current situation just to vent his frustration. His companions not only didn't stop him but even became his accomplices.

"There's a saying, 'Those who dig a pit will fall into it.' My old brothers are suffering because of this."

Kashiwagi sighed, hiding behind the corner.

Not far away, the remaining jade stone mine passage was occupied by numerous ferocious Pokémon. Chaida and his companions shivered in fear, huddled behind a Rhyhorn, pressed against the narrow corner. Despite their fear, they were still desperately trying to push backward, as if they could escape through the rock wall.

On the ground, a few other Pokémon, riddled with scars and in an unknown condition, lay motionless. Clear bloodstains inside the dim cave created an uneasy feeling.

Even in the Pokémon world, losing too much blood or sustaining severe injuries could lead to death. Currently, Rhyhorn and those Pokémon were locked in a stalemate, but who knows how long it will last?

They had to rescue them as soon as possible...

But who would dare to go out in this situation?

Kashiwagi struggled; he had some backup plans, but they weren't enough to safely evacuate everyone. Not to mention, he also planned to get all of them through the assessment to strengthen their power.

Crawling forward? Sneaking out and causing a distraction?

He needed to take action quickly.

He thought of using this opportunity to intervene, ensuring that he at least obtained a sufficient amount of jade stone to qualify.

Kashiwagi took a deep breath and waited for the right moment.

He believed that Rhyhorn wouldn't hold on for much longer. Sooner or later, some Pokémon would launch a probing attack, like a pride of lions hunting.

"Grr."

A clear Growl sounded like thunder in his ears.

In that instant, Kashiwagi's heart almost stopped. He stiffly turned his head and was shocked to see a somewhat familiar silhouette not far away.

In the jade stone mine passage, two Vibrava also heard the Growl and curiously turned their heads toward the source.

Kashiwagi and the approaching Aron locked eyes, full of helplessness and regret. Kashiwagi took out a purple Poké Ball from his pocket.

However, before he could make any move, the troublemaker calmly passed by him as if he were just strolling down the street, casually meeting the two Howl Bombs that were approaching.

"Grr!"

"pokemon noise"

The Vibrava glanced at each other and then turned away.

It seemed they thought the ones hiding were participants, not expecting to encounter such a disturbance. They preferred to bully the timid ones; otherwise, it wouldn't be as fun—hahaha!

The two Vibrava joyfully ran back, cheering for the Pokémon in front.

Aron looked at their receding figures with a hint of disdain, then turned back to Kashiwagi, who was still in a state of confusion.

This guy helped him just now?

Why?

Kashiwagi moved away from the jade stone mine passage, gestured to Aron, and tested whether it would follow.

Aron followed!

Seeing Aron slowly approaching like a little dog, Kashiwagi's heart trembled. He quickly walked to a corner away from the Pokémon and squatted down quietly.

Though he couldn't understand what was on Aron's mind, it shouldn't be malicious. Trying to test it with a Poké Ball would be foolish. It was better to attempt communication first.

He took off his mask and said, "Thank you for your help just now."

"Grr."

Aron stood in front of Kashiwagi, raising its head slightly. Its cute appearance, combined with the strange armor, made it look like a big dog.

Kashiwagi thought for a moment, then took out the iron ingot hidden in his chest and shook it. "Do you want this?"

"Grr?"

Aron was startled and hesitated for two seconds before nodding.

It seemed to be saying, "I think I want it."

Huh?

Kashiwagi was also stunned and asked, "If you don't want this, why did you follow me?"

"Grr!"

Aron pointed at the iron ingot with its little claw.

Liar!

Just a moment ago, it looked confused. It must have come up with this reason just now!

But the animated version of Pokémon had exaggerated intelligence. It effortlessly understood what Kashiwagi said.

Or maybe this Aron had extraordinary talent?

Kashiwagi wanted to ask more, but suddenly, the passage in the direction of the jade stone mine echoed with an uproar and was accompanied by faint explosions.

A fight broke out?!

"Well then... Aron, can you help me with something?" Kashiwagi quickly told Aron his request, saying that he would give the iron ingot as a reward and buy more for it if it wasn't enough.

After speaking, he worried that he might have spoken too fast for Aron to understand, so he repeated the request more carefully.

"Grr."

Facing Kashiwagi's expectant eyes, Aron hesitated for a moment but eventually agreed.

The two quietly returned to the tunnel.

However, Kashiwagi was surprised to see a strange scene inside the jade stone mine passage. Between Rhyhorn and the group of Pokémon, there was now a totem stone slab with a red serpent painted on it.

The serpent's head was broken and connected by a black substance, making eerie sounds.

"Shhh!"

They were negotiating with the Galar's Runerigus?

Kashiwagi and Aron exchanged glances, and Aron nodded before rushing in and biting the clothes of a person lying on the ground, pulling back with all his strength.

One of the Pokémon turned its head to look at Aron but turned back as if it hadn't seen anything.

The rule was that they couldn't continue attacking unconscious humans, and it wasn't fun to bully them since they were already in such a state. Moreover, they had to take responsibility for moving them after the situation ended.

It was too much hassle.

Just like that, Aron smoothly dragged the person to Kashiwagi's side.

"You are amazing," Kashiwagi said excitedly, unable to resist patting its head. But when he realized his impulsive action, he became aware that it might be reckless.

Aron also seemed shocked and stared at him with his blue eyes wide open.

However, the awkward moment lasted only briefly.

A slight groan from his colleague broke the awkwardness, and Kashiwagi quickly checked his condition. Meanwhile, Aron continued to carry the other unconscious people.

The situation didn't look good.

Although humans in the Pokémon world were physically strong, Chaida and the others had been beating them up, causing them to lose consciousness and remain unaware.

Kashiwagi could only observe their basic conditions, check their pulse, and breathing, and do some minimal treatment to prevent them from dying underground.

He hoped that the others' conditions weren't as bad; otherwise, things would become very troublesome.

Kashiwagi sighed deeply.

Suddenly, he stopped moving and turned his head to look behind him, catching sight of a sneaky shadow.

Another participant?

The person seemed hesitant to approach, without turning on their headlamp, making their movement in the dim environment somewhat eerie.

Kashiwagi narrowed his eyes, trying to recognize the person's appearance, then looked back at the jade stone mine passage, confirming that no one was paying attention to him, he decisively flickered his headlamp twice.

The silhouette paused.

Then, it silently and swiftly approached, rushing toward Kashiwagi like a ghost.

When the person was about five meters away, their appearance became clear.

Their faces were covered in bloodstains, hidden behind a damaged face mask. Their eyes were shining with excitement.

"Kashiwagi!"

Hong whispered excitedly.

"Shh!"

Kashiwagi covered Hong's mouth, shaking his head seriously.