35 Chapter 35:

The already incensed Murkrow did not hold back, unleashing his fury upon the Raticates with precision under the orders of his trainer, Cain. But as the battle raged on, more and more of the rodent beasts appeared, overwhelming Cain and Murkrow. Realizing that they had stumbled upon a rat's nest, Cain quickly ordered a retreat, knowing that they would not be able to fend off the hordes for much longer.

With the Raticates hot on their heels, Cain and Murkrow fled through the dense underbrush, dodging obstacles and narrowly escaping the grasp of the relentless creatures. The average level of the colony was around 20, with a few Rattatas mixed in, but it was these smaller beasts that proved to be the most dangerous.

Nevertheless, Murkrow was not one to be outdone. With the Raticates unable to keep up with his speed, he took turns unleashing Gust and Dark Pulse, decimating the ranks of the Raticates and leaving them nothing but easy targets for his practiced moves.

As the Raticates realized that they would not be able to catch up to Cain, they retreated underground, angry and defeated.

Panting heavily, Cain collapsed onto the ground, his chest heaving as he struggled to catch his breath. "My body's still too weak," he thought to himself, sweat pouring down his face as blood seeped through the bandages on his wounded hand.

It was only now that Cain had the chance to look around and realize that he had strayed from the original path in his haste to escape the Raticates. The most important thing now was to find his way back to safety.

After catching his breath, Cain set about tending to the wound on his hand. Consulting his map, he realized that he had strayed too far from the path, and that any further could have led him to an area not even marked on the map.

But just as he began to feel ill-fated, a sound caught his ear. "Woosh," the sound of clear, flowing water came to him intermittently from a distance, and a hint of water vapor filled the air.

Cain quickly realized that there was a small waterfall nearby, the furthest point marked on his map. And so, with a moment's thought, he decided to make his way to the water source to recover. Blood had begun to flow again from his freshly torn wound, which had begun to turn white from the sweat that had soaked it.

Following the sound of running water, Cain led the weary Murkrow, pulling a few pokeblocks from his belt to feed him.

As they finally reached the waterfall, Cain was amazed by the scene before him. The waterfall cascaded straight down, releasing a thick mist, the sky-high ancient trees were lush and green, and the sunlight, originally blocked by the forest, shone brightly, creating a small rainbow in the mist, making the scene even more picturesque.

Noticing Cain and Murkrow's arrival, the Pokemon that had been playing in the water quickly jumped in, and the birds that had been looking for food fluttered their wings and flew away, leaving the previously lively valley a bit cold.

But Cain didn't seem to mind, and continued on his way into the unexplored valley, the mist falling on his face, providing a touch of coolness and comfort.

Only one Pokemon remained indifferent, lying dumbly by the river, its little pink tail resting in the water and its eyes staring straight ahead.

That pink Pokemon was none other than Slowpoke.

Cain stared in amazement at the Slowpoke, who was not in the least afraid of him. As he got closer, Slowpoke's silhouette became clearer in the fog.

"Wait what?" Cain exclaimed in surprise after finally getting a full view of the figure.

Although the color of this Slowpoke's body was still pink, there was a hint of white in that pink, more white than other Slowpokes.

Could it be? A Shiny Slowpoke?

A glimmer of light shone in Cain's eyes as the system's scan activated, and the Slowpoke's data appeared before him.

Pokemon: Shiny Slowpoke (Green, Decreasing)

Gender: Male

Level: 20

Type: Water + Psychic

Ability: Oblivious

Held items: None

Egg moves: Rest, Rain Dance, Teleport

Basic moves: Curse, Yawn, Tackle, Growl, Water Gun, Confusion, Disable

Taught moves: Calm Mind, Psyshock

Technical Machines (TMs): None

Green aptitude? And it's actually decreasing?

Cain was struck by the incredible potential of this Slowpoke's moveset. It was a veritable repository of psychic-type moves. In particular, 'Teleport' was a highly practical move, useful for both escape and pursuit. Even as an ordinary Slowpoke, its value would be greatly increased with this move at its disposal. From this perspective, this Slowpoke possessed top-notch psychic talent.

Slowpoke remained calm as he looked at the human and the flying black Pokemon. He was used to this kind of reaction, as he was born with a different color than other Slowpokes. Though Slowpokes were not particularly xenophobic, every time he interacted with them, or any other Pokemon for that matter, they would look at him strangely, as if he were some rare creature. But to Slowpoke, he was nothing but a Slowpoke!

Not only that, but his personality was completely at odds with the entire Slowpoke community. Slowpokes were lazy and didn't even bother to move when an enemy appeared, but his personality was so active that if an enemy appeared, he would be the first one to rush out and fight.

After living with the Slowpoke community for two years, he was finally rejected for being too active. While all the other Slowpokes were lounging in the sun, he was training. When all the other Slowpokes were asleep, he was training. Even when all the Slowpokes were in a daze, he was training. He was at odds with the entire Slowpoke community.

After numerous unsuccessful attempts to negotiate with the leader, he finally decided to leave on his own. He hoped to change, hoped to learn to stay dazed for a day like the other Slowpokes, and then return to his community.

So when Cain and Murkrow approached, Slowpoke remained motionless, mimicking the behavior of a true Slowpoke in this scenario. His active mind prevented him from completely stilling his thoughts, but he had learned to imitate a Slowpoke more and more. To others, it may have seemed like a joke that a Slowpoke had learned to imitate being a Slowpoke. But to him, it was all that mattered. He wanted to be recognized by his people, and he wanted to stop feeling alone.

But Cain was unaware of all this. What he saw was a Slowpoke with incredible talent, though he seemed no different than any other Slowpoke. And without hesitation, Cain had decided to catch this Slowpoke.

"Murkrow, come on, say hello to your future companion. Use Dark Pulse!" Cain said to Murkrow with a smile, his determination to catch this Slowpoke unwavering.

Whether it was its green aptitude or the moves it possessed, it was enough for Cain to act.

"Caw!" Murkrow nodded, excited at the prospect of a new companion. But when it came to fighting, he wouldn't hold back. If it couldn't even withstand one of his moves, it wasn't fit to be his teammate.

Thick malice engulfed Murkrow, bringing with it a series of black threads that quickly converged. Dark Pulse couldn't be unleashed instantly, but after a morning of training, there was still a significant improvement.

Psychic-type Pokemon were (2X) restrained against Dark-type Pokemon, so when the Dark Energy gathered, Slowpoke sensed it immediately. A feeling of disgust overcame his heart for the type of energy he despised the most. Slowpoke dropped his disguise as his originally dull face instantly became dignified, and a look of intelligence appeared in his large eyes.

"Huh?" Seeing the change in Slowpoke, Cain couldn't help but think that there was indeed something different about him.

But this wasn't the time to be surprised. Murkrow's Dark Pulse had gathered, and as the malice spread, it targeted the Slowpoke who had just gotten up.

Even though Dark Pulse was directed at him, Slowpoke did not panic. His years of battle experience allowed him to react with ease. His mouth opened slightly and a stream of water shot out, fast and vicious, like a bullet from a gun. It slipped past the Dark Pulse move and headed straight for Murkrow.

"Bang!" Dark Pulse slammed into Slowpoke, causing him to scream. Battle intent and ferocity gradually appeared in his eyes as his true nature, hidden under the veneer of sluggishness, was revealed.

"Bang!" The 'Water Gun' also managed to hit its target. Murkrow hesitated to unleash another Dark Pulse, not expecting this Slowpoke to trade injuries instead of dodging.