It seemed that Audino realized it had eaten a good amount of Yuga food and looked quite embarrassed.
Seeing how much Audino enjoyed the food, Yuga suddenly had an idea.
Yuga stared at Audino for a moment and said, "Audino, do you really enjoy taking care of other Pokémon?"
Although Audino didn't know why Yuga was asking this, it nodded. After all, it wouldn't have brought injured Pokémon back if it didn't enjoy taking care of them.
Seeing Audino nod, Yuga continued, "Here the thing—I'm the owner of a Day Care, and I have many Pokémon at home. I'm thinking of hiring you to help take care of them."
Audino tilted its head, not quite understanding Yuga intention.
Noticing Audino confusion, Yuga continued, "Here the deal—I'll pay you a salary, and you'll work for me. I'll provide food and accommodations, kind of food. I can make sure you have enough to eat every day!"
Audino eyes lit up at the mention of delicious food every day, but it hesitated afterward.
Seeing Audino initial excitement, Yuga sensed he had a chance and asked, "Are you worried that the other Pokémon here won't be taken care of after you leave?"
Audino nodded in agreement.
"But you can't take care of them here forever. This is the wild, and they need to learn to fend for themselves. If you keep looking after them, when will they learn to be independent? What if they face danger and you can't be there in time to help? They need to learn to live on their own from now on!"
Yuga offered some reasoning, hoping to sway Audino. He felt a bit selfish, but he believed his point was valid.
After hearing Yuga words, Audino found his reasoning quite sensible.
Seeing Audino wavering, Yuga thought for a moment and added, "If you're really concerned, you can take the Pokémon that are willing to go with you. I'll take care of their lives from now on. And if they want their own Trainers, I can try to help them find reliable ones!"
Many wild Pokémon were open to having Trainers, which was why defeating them during a Trainer journey allowed them to be captured.
However, this rule applied mostly to the shallow wilderness areas not far from human society. Deep forests and mountains untouched by humans were a different story.
Life in the wild was tough, involving constant search for food and being wary of danger at every turn.
Being with a Trainer was different. They wouldn't worry about food and drink, and don't think of the Pokémon as losing their dignity—it was all about survival.
Moreover, Pokémon had their own pride. If they chose to follow a Trainer, they needed a Trainer with convincing strength. Once a Pokémon chose a Trainer, they rarely left.
In the shallow wilderness areas like where Yuga was, there was some degree of interaction with human society. Many older generations of Pokémon in this area would tell their offspring, "Having a good Trainer is important."
Although the League didn't allow the trading of matured Pokémon, Yuga didn't mind keeping a few Pokémon himself to persuade Audino. If they wanted their own Trainers, he could assist with that too.
Upon hearing Yuga final proposal, Audino eyes brightened. It found the idea quite feasible and readily nodded in agreement.
Yuga cheered inwardly, "How can I be this excellent? Finding an employee isn't so easy, and it's quite skilled!"
With an agreement established between Yuga and Audino, the latter began summoning its companions.
Yuga had been wondering how Audino would notify its companions. It couldn't run around telling each one individually.
To Yuga surprise, Audino pointed its head towards the sky at a 45-degree angle and emitted a series of pink sound waves. It was using the move Hyper Voice. After that, many Pokémon started arriving one by one—flying from the sky and running from the ground.
Surprisingly, there were quite a few Pokémon in the area that had a good relationship with Audino. There was a group of Poochyenas, a group of Beautiflys and Dustoxs, a flock of Taillow, a few Zigzagoon, a group of Seedot and Nuzleaf, and more. There were around a hundred Pokémon in total, including several Breloom, Linoone, and Swellow.
Audino explained the whole situation to these Pokémon, including Yuga plan. However, there were only a few Pokémon willing to leave their home and join Audino and Yuga. Audino felt like it had received a critical hit of 120,000 points.
In the end, only one Linoone and one Swellow were willing to leave with Yuga and Audino.
Yuga looked at these two Pokémon.
Moves: Play Rough, Bulldoze, Hammer Arm, Rototiller, Headbutt, Odor Sleuth, Slash, Shadow Ball.
Moves: Beak Blast, Peck, Focus Energy, Roost, Wing Attack, U-turn, Agility, Steel Wing, Hurricane.
Seeing the strength of these two Pokémon, Yuga eyes lit up. They were both quite powerful. No wonder they were friends with Audino.
Especially Linoone, evolving in the wild to its final form with a yellow aptitude and reaching a level above forty—this was no easy feat. It was evident that it had gone through a lot of hardships and struggles that no one knew about.
Yuga thought for a moment and said to Linoone and Swellow, "Alright, both of you have good strength. How about becoming bodyguards at my shop? The treatment will be the same as Audino—food and accommodations included. What do you think?"
Linoone and Swellow had no complaints about the treatment Yuga was offering. They were good friends with Audino, and as long as they could be with it, the treatment didn't matter much.
If Yuga knew their thoughts, he would have to marvel at how simple and easily persuaded Pokémon were.
At this point, Yuga took out three Poké Balls and said to Audino and the two Pokémon, "So, do you want to try the feeling of being inside a Poké Ball?"
At this moment, Audino looked at Yuga as if he were an idiot. Yuga instantly understood its meaning from its eyes: "Do you really think we know nothing? We're not caught by you, so why would we go inside a Poké Ball? Why don't you fly up to the sky!"
"Uh... uh... just kidding, just kidding."
Seeing his attempt to persuade failed, Yuga awkwardly retracted the Poké Balls.