Chapter 128: The Strange Diglett
"Ah, it's still so scary," Misty muttered, hugging her arms nervously as they moved through the safari.
"Yeah, what if we get attacked… or worse?" Brock shivered.
"By the way, Mr. Natsume, if we get hurt in the safari because of the League's rules forbidding Pokémon, is the League responsible?" Giselle asked suddenly.
At once, several pairs of eyes turned toward Natsume.
They had just entered the safari, and many trainers were still around. Even Caesar, who had seen them off, hadn't left.
"Don't worry. If you die, the League will at least dress you up as a poacher," Natsume said casually, using his psychic powers to scan for Digletts.
"Ah?" everyone gasped.
"Grandpa Caesar, I regret it! I want to go back!" one trainer cried, hesitating.
Caesar's face darkened.
"Don't listen to him. The League has outposts here; your safety is generally guaranteed."
He rolled his eyes.
"Your biggest danger isn't wild Pokémon, but poachers sneaking into the safari."
His expression turned deadly serious.
"These poachers may carry lethal weapons.
Very dangerous. If you spot them, report immediately to the nearest outpost. Don't try to play hero. Understand?"
Caesar's voice rang out loudly, and the trainers froze.
"Understood!" Ash responded firmly.
Some trainers panicked further, canceling registration and retreating.
But they were in the minority.
Those who came to the safari generally understood the risks and had mentally prepared.
Natsume continued scanning for Digletts, with the others following closely.
The deeper they went, the fewer trainers were around.
Giselle stayed right behind Natsume, carrying her detection equipment, never leaving his side.
"Why are you following me?" Natsume looked back, puzzled.
"Security," Misty and Brock said, peeking out from behind Ash.
Without Pokémon, the strongest fighter was Ash, and the fastest was Natsume.
"Then…"
Natsume clapped his hands.
"Come out."
Dig Dig
A noisy rustling echoed around them as thousands of Digletts popped their heads out eagerly.
"Wow! So the Digletts have been following us!" Misty exclaimed.
Natsume crouched, communicating with the few leading Dugtrio.
After a moment, he stood.
"I've spoken with the Digletts. They'll leave some behind to protect you, so don't worry."
Misty and Brock's eyes lit up.
"Awesome! I'm heading to the river!" Misty said, dashing off with several pairs of Digletts.
"In that case, I'll head to the rocky area," Brock said, taking a few pairs of Digletts in another direction.
"Alright, Digletts, let's go capture Tauros!" Ash shouted, running toward the herd of Tauros in the distance.
"Ahem… Mr. Natsume, looks like it's just the two of us now," Giselle said, blushing.
"Nope, there are still thousands of Digletts underground," Natsume replied without looking back.
Giselle froze, then straightened and began scanning diligently.
This particular Diglett was extremely active.
Natsume found traces left by the Diglett in many places.
Even its tastes were unusual.
There were all kinds of Berries.
He collected information about every Berry the Diglett had abandoned along the way.
There were more than forty in total, roughly categorized as sour, sweet, or spicy.
Although the types varied, they all fell into these three flavor groups.
What puzzled Natsume most was that the Diglett would take a single bite of each Berry and then discard it.
Such wastefulness was completely at odds with the humble nature of most Digletts.
Curious as he was, Natsume carefully recorded all the details.
Following the Diglett's traces, Natsume and Giselle twisted and turned through the safari for quite some time.
By the afternoon, they finally stopped in front of a lake.
"Mr. Natsume, what a huge lake! And it doesn't seem to be on the safari map?" Giselle said in surprise.
Natsume tilted his head, looking at what appeared to be a small island in the center of the lake.
It looked exactly like the place where Caesar had taken a photo with Dragonair.
The island at the center of the lake was only about half the size of a Pokémon Center.
Using his psychic powers, Natsume brought Giselle onto the island.
The lake was deep, and the Digletts watched from the shore.
"Mr. Natsume, look here," Giselle said, pointing to a large rock.
Natsume looked up and saw that the bottom of the rock had been hollowed out, forming a small burrow-sized cave.
Dig
From inside, the Diglett called out.
"Found it, Mr. Natsume!" Giselle exclaimed.
Digg Another Diglett voice echoed.
Natsume froze for a moment.
Digg
Yet another Diglett voice called out.
Then the rock began to shake, and sounds of crashing followed—it sounded like a fight inside.
"Mr. Natsume," Giselle hesitated, looking at him.
"Did the Diglett fight the native Digletts here?" she asked.
"I thought there were no Digletts recorded in this part of the safari," Natsume said, equally puzzled.
The faint blue glow in his eyes flickered as he used psychic power to move the rock aside.
Digg?
Sunlight streamed onto the Diglett below, who squinted sleepily.
Behind the Diglett was a pile of Berries.
Natsume scanned them and noticed they were similar to the ones he had seen along the way.
Digg! The Diglett seemed happy to see Natsume and Giselle.
It held up two sweet Berries over its head and approached them.
Digg Digg Digg Eat this, this is tasty, Natsume sensed telepathically.
He froze.
The Diglett was offering them Berries, completely unlike the Diglett herd's reputation for being mischievous and bad-tempered.
"Thank you," Natsume said, taking the Berry.
The next moment, the Diglett snatched the sweet Berry from his hand.
Digg It took two bites, frowned, and dug a hole to bury the Berry.
"?"
Natsume and Giselle exchanged puzzled glances.
Digglet Diglet This one's no good. Eat this one instead!
The Diglett turned and held up two green Berries over its head, presenting them again to Natsume.
Natsume immediately recognized the two Berries as sour Berries.
As he took them, the Diglett suddenly let out a furious roar.
Diglett Diglett Diglett!!! Bandits! Why are you stealing my Berries!
"Huh?"
Natsume froze for a moment, only to see the Diglett charging at them aggressively.
The Diglett leapt into the air, and at the same time, a claw glimmering with white light appeared, striking toward Natsume.
You can read more (around 150+ free chapters) of Natsume's adventure ad-free at [https://ravenarchives.com/book/pokemon-who-let-him-leave-pallet-town]. Bulk uploads is a mess here, so updates here might be irregular.