Shelter

It wasn't clear whether it was due to extreme weakness or sensing Yuga's goodwill, but Pachirisu finally stopped struggling.

Feeling the comforting energy transmitted through Yuga's hand on its body, Pachirisu's vigilant expression relaxed.

Yuga quickly noticed the wound on Pachirisu's leg.

"No wonder you can't walk properly and have to 'slither' on the ground," Yuga thought.

"How did you sustain such a serious injury?" Yuga couldn't help but frown, although he knew his healing abilities wouldn't suffice for Pachirisu's severe condition.

Examining the wound on Pachirisu's leg, Yuga found that the bones were broken and beyond his ability to heal. He would need to take it to Nurse Joy.

"Let me take you to the Pokémon Center," Yuga said as he gently cradled Pachirisu, intending to bring it to Joyka.

In truth, Pachirisu was filthy, covered in dirt, with damp and greasy fur. But when he thought of its injury, Yuga suppressed the nausea in his heart and continued to hold Pachirisu in his hands.

"Pachirisu, Pachirisu," the creature protested vehemently as Yuga attempted to move it.

"Do you want to wait for your friend? What kind of friend is it? After we return from the Pokémon Center, we can help you look for them together. Considering your condition, your friend might not have waited and is now worried about you," Yuga reasoned.

Friend? Could this Pachirisu truly have been abandoned? Were its references to friends merely about its trainer?

Thinking this, Yuga gazed at Pachirisu with sympathy.

Poor little thing.

After Yuga's persuasion, Pachirisu reluctantly agreed to go to the Pokémon Center for treatment, with the condition that Yuga would help find its friend.

Yuga silently decided that once they found Pachirisu's trainer, he must let Liliana to capture them.

It's illegal to mistreatment or abadondon a Pokémon.

Hastily arriving at the Pokémon Center, Yuga handed Pachirisu over to Joyka.

Noticing the dire state of Pachirisu, Joyka didn't ask many questions. She, along with her Chansey, took Pachirisu to the emergency room.

After two or three hours, Joyka and Chansey emerged with Pachirisu, who appeared much improved after treatment.

Joyka seemed to have bathed Pachirisu, restoring its formerly darkened fur to a pristine white. However, due to the long neglect, some of its fur had become matted, leading Joyka to decide to give it a full trim. Thus, Pachirisu now bore patches of missing fur, making it look rather unsightly.

But fur would grow back quickly, and Pachirisu's appearance was the least of their concerns. The main thing was that Pachirisu was now out of danger.

"This Pachirisu was suffering from malnutrition. I've given it a nutrient injection, but it will need ongoing nutritional support. Take good care of it," Joyka advised as she returned Pachirisu to Yuga.

"Thank you; I appreciate your help," Yuga replied, carefully accepting Pachirisu, being mindful of the bandaged wound on its leg. While the broken bone had been mended, it still required careful care.

"It's no trouble at all. It's what I'm here for," Joyka said with a smile.

She could surmise that Yuga had likely found this Pachirisu, given that he had returned to the Pokémon Center so soon after leaving, now holding an injured Pachirisu in his arms. She could imagine what had happend.

As they left the Pokémon Center, Pachirisu urged Yuga to return to the intersection. It was determined to find its friend.

"All right, all right. We'll go find your friend," Yuga assured Pachirisu.

Yuga said helplessly.

After returning to the intersection, Yuga looked around but saw no one in sight.

"Do you know where your friend went?" Yuga still assumed that Pachirisu's friend was a human.

"Pachirisu, Pachirishu." Pachirisu wore a distressed expression and shook its head, indicating it didn't know.

How were they supposed to find its friend now? Yuga was quite puzzled.

Suddenly, Yuga spotted a dark mass charging towards him. He quickly released his Snivy.

Snivy flicked its two vines, suspending the assailant, which turned out to be a black, fluffy creature.

Yuga thought to himself, "Hmm, a bit weak."

"Buneary, Buneary, Buneary."

The frustrated attacker, unable to break free, began angrily berating Yuga and demanded that he release Pachirisu.

(_)_

Yuga, who was scolded for no reason, was confused.

What had he done wrong?

At this moment, Pachirisu in Yuga's arms finally reacted, excitedly explaining things to the black, fluffy assailant.

Listening to the exchange between Pachirisu and the black creature, Yuga finally understood.

So, Pachirisu's friend was this black dumpling?

What happened to being abandoned? What happened to the trainer?

Yuga felt embarrassed by his own assumptions.

Understanding that Yuga had saved Pachirisu, the black creature changed its attitude and expressed gratitude towards Yuga.

...

<<Buneary >>

Type: Normal

Ability: Run Away

Gender: Female

Potential: Yellow

Level: 12

Moves: Splash, Pound, Foresight

...

So, it was a Buneary!

Yuga observed the black creature with his Insight ability.

This was indeed an extremely weak Pokémon, which explained why it couldn't even handle a move from Snivy.

Its only advantage was probably the Run Away ability, which granted it superior escape skills.

This Buneary looks even dirtier than the previous Pachirisu, and it's hard to distinguish its species with just the naked eye.

Fortunately, this Buneary doesn't have any major physical issues. Well, it appears to be a bit malnourished but doesn't have any external injuries.

These two clearly look like homeless wandering Pokémon. So, Yuga said to them, "Why don't you come with me? Pachirisu's injuries aren't fully healed yet, and it's not good for it to keep wandering outside."

Buneary hesitated upon hearing this, as it didn't fully trust Yuga and maintained some basic caution.

Pachirisu, on the other hand, didn't think too much about it and encouraged Buneary to agree, thinking Yuga was a good person.

Pachirisu didn't want Buneary to continue carrying the burden of taking care of it while wandering. Without Pachirisu, Buneary wouldn't have had to endure such hardships.

Buneary looked at Pachirisu's injuries, which hadn't fully healed yet, and, after Pachirisu's persuasion, finally bit the bullet and agreed to go back with Yuga.

There was no other choice; if they continued to wander, both Buneary and Pachirisu would struggle to survive.