Homeward Journey and the Defiant Taillow

While Yuga was engrossed in conversation with Grandpa Mr. Moore, Flannery on the other side was left in complete shock.

She never could have imagined that Yuga would actually defeat her own grandpa, her admired and respected grandpa. Her grandpa, who was one of the Elite Four of Hoenn, how could he be so easily defeated? Who was her grandpa? How could he have lost like this?

Devastated and doubting life itself, Flannery watched as Mr. Moore, Yuga, and Ninetales left for the volcanic crater where Ninetales used to live.

The Pokémon in the volcanic crater were the ones Mr. Moore kept here. The rich fire Pokéemitted near the crater promoted the growth of fire-type Pokémon.

Compared to the last time Yuga had been here, not much had changed in the crater. It still housed a variety of fire-type Pokémon. Among them, the most prominent were the same Typhlosion and Charizard that Yuga had seen earlier.

These two Pokémon were sprawled near the magma, dozing off contentedly, occasionally letting out a hearty snort.

Seeing his old companions, Ninetales bounded over joyfully. However, much like the case with Houndoom, initially no one recognized the elegant and beautiful Ninetales as the once petite Vulpix.

Yet, with a little explanation from Growlithe, everyone soon realized, and familiarity was rekindled.

Watching Ninetales happily reconnecting with its friends, Mr. Moore, the old man, contentedly remarked, "You've nurtured Ninetales very well."

Yuga humbly replied, "It's Ninetales' own effort."

Mr. Moore chuckled and shook his head. "No matter how hard Ninetales works, it couldn't have grown without your help. When I gave you Vulpix back then, it was just because I didn't want you to return empty-handed after climbing the mountain. I never expected you to be so much more remarkable than I thought."

At this moment, Mr. Moore recalled his granddaughter, Flannery. Although she was not much younger than Yuga, she was far from making a breakthrough. This was probably the difference between a genius and an ordinary person.

Unbeknownst to Mr. Moore, the young man before him might not necessarily be a genius, but he was undoubtedly quite gifted.

After Ninetales finished reminiscing with its old friends, Yuga bid farewell to Mr. Moore.

Watching Yuga, Ninetales, and Roselia heading down the mountain, Mr. Moore turned to Flannery and said with a mix of frustration and exasperation, "Learn something from him. You're almost driving me insane."

"Oh," Flannery, who hadn't fully recovered from the earlier shock, replied listlessly, further infuriating Mr. Moore.

When Yuga returned to Houndoom, he saw Houndoom teaching the other Houndour some techniques. After a brief moment of affection with Ninetales, Yuga recalled it into its Poké Ball.

After bidding farewell to Houndour and the others, Yuga released Great Flygon, hopped on its back, and flew towards Verdanturf Town.

As Yuga leisurely rode Great Flygon back home, passing over a forest, he suddenly noticed a vast "dark cloud" moving in his direction.

Upon closer look, it wasn't a "cloud" at all, but a large group of Taillow, their eyes red and charging furiously at Yuga.

Yuga thought to himself, "What bad luck have I gotten myself into? Just going home, and now trouble is rushing to greet me."

"Caw!" "Caw!" "Caw!"...

As the Taillow drew closer, their raucous cries invaded Yuga's ears, greatly agitating him.

Originally, Yuga planned for Great Flygon to turn and avoid the Taillow, but its speed was too fast. As a result, it collided headfirst into the group.

These Taillow began pecking fiercely at Yuga with their beaks, attacking him like a barrage of raindrops.

Fortunately, the Taillow were all low-level Pokémon. When their attacks hit Yuga, he merely felt a bit of pain and wasn't significantly hurt.

Finally, unable to endure any longer, Yuga said to Great Flygon, "Great Flygon, use Rock Slide."

Great Flygon had grown tired of these annoying flies circling around. Upon hearing Yuga's command, it didn't hold back.

Numerous large rocks appeared above the Taillow's heads under Great Flygon's control, then mercilessly came crashing down.

These low-level Taillow couldn't withstand Great Flygon's brutal onslaught. They fell like dumplings, dropping from the sky.

However, these Taillow were indeed as defiant as their name implied. They exuded an excessive amount of pride and confidence, evident by how, just as one wave of them fell to the ground, the next wave immediately took flight again.

Facing the powerful Great Flygon, they showed no fear whatsoever. Time and time again, they launched fierce attacks at Great Flygon.

However, no matter how defiant these Taillow were, their stamina was not limitless. Eventually, they were brought down by Great Flygon's might.

What was going on with these Taillow? Yuga wondered. Taillow were common Pokémon in the Hoenn region. While they might not be gentle-natured, they certainly weren't known for being aggressive. So why were they suddenly attacking people for no reason today?

Yuga gently landed on the ground while riding Great Flygon. After recalling Great Flygon to its Poké Ball, he took a look around the forest, hoping to uncover the reason behind the Taillow's outbreak.

Observing the forest for a while, Yuga realized it was an orchard. However, all the fruits from the trees had disappeared, leaving behind a carpet of discarded cores.

It seemed that the Taillow's revolt was triggered by the fact that something had eaten all their food, prompting them to attack Yuga.

Taillow, being the kind of Pokémon with larger appetites, generally consumed more than other bird-type Pokémon. As a result, they attached more importance to their food.

If anyone dared to touch the food within their territory, it was akin to murdering their parents—no different. Regardless of who the intruder was, Taillow would charge at them without hesitation.

These Taillow were usually found in large flocks, so most weak Pokémon wouldn't provoke them. Therefore, their food had always been safe.

However, unexpectedly, this group of Taillow had suffered a great setback today.

Picking up a discarded fruit core from the ground, Yuga examined it. He noticed that the one who had taken the Taillow's food had eaten it quite cleanly, leaving no trace of fruit flesh.