Krabby: Big Bro Is Amazing!

Dongshu suddenly realized something and hurriedly turned around.

Sure enough, Fire Emperor was staring in this direction with a stern expression.

When he saw Dongshu turn around, Fire Emperor's gaze slowly settled on him.

"I want to talk to them!" Dongshu said. "Fire Emperor, don't scare them!"

Fire Emperor gave a slight nod, then reminded him with some concern, "Don't go too far from me."

"Mm!" Dongshu nodded firmly. Seeing Fire Emperor continue picking Berries, he turned back and began searching the area for wild Pokémon.

Just then, a rustling sound came from the bushes nearby.

Was that a Pokémon? Dongshu immediately looked that way.

Soon, a small figure emerged from the bushes.

It was a Pokémon with a body like a little dinosaur. It wore a skull helmet on its head and held a bone club as a weapon.

It seemed to be chasing butterflies in the grass.

Dongshu could tell because an ordinary butterfly had been startled and was now flying away in a panic.

A few blades of grass were perched on the Pokémon's head as it poked it out of the bushes.

At first, it had meant to keep chasing after the butterfly.

But it soon spotted Dongshu nearby.

Its eyes immediately lit up.

"Krabby... Krabby!" Dongshu wasn't used to pronouncing the word, so he stumbled over it a little.

That's right. This Krabby was the one that had nearly choked to death on a Berry pit last autumn!

Krabby was just as excited to see Dongshu and practically leaped out of the bushes at once.

It had clearly recognized him, too.

"Krabby!" Krabby's voice sounded rough, almost like sandpaper.

"Long time no see, Krabby!" Dongshu tried greeting it. "Where's your mom?"

Of course, they were communicating in Pokémon language.

Krabby understood what Dongshu meant and happily replied, "Krabby!" (Mom's at the nest. I came out to play!)

Dongshu watched Krabby's tone and expression closely. Combining what Fire Emperor had taught him earlier, he was astonished to realize—

He really understood what Krabby's cry meant!

Krabby was overjoyed to see the human child again.

It remembered that it had only been saved because Dongshu had helped it back then.

Thinking of that filled Krabby with gratitude.

"Krabby!" (You're good! Hi!)

Krabby's eyes sparkled.

Dongshu naturally understood what Krabby meant.

When it said "you're good," it wasn't greeting him. It was saying that he was a good person.

Dongshu grinned. Krabby was pretty interesting.

He noticed what Krabby had just been doing and asked curiously, "Were you trying to catch butterflies?"

Krabby turned to look at the butterfly and nodded. "Krabby!" (Playing!)

It meant that it was playing.

Then, as if to show Dongshu, Krabby pounced at the butterfly.

But before it could get close, it startled the butterfly, which beat its wings and flew away.

Krabby scratched its head, suddenly disappointed.

"Krabby..."

Dongshu: "..."

"That's not how you catch butterflies." Dongshu shook his head. "Watch me!"

He then started demonstrating how to catch butterflies for Krabby.

Dongshu looked around and eventually spotted a blue butterfly resting on a flower.

He slowed his pace and approached carefully, moving as slowly as he could to avoid startling it.

When he was close enough, Dongshu suddenly clapped his hands together.

Krabby's eyes widened.

Dongshu stepped in front of Krabby and carefully opened his hands. The butterfly was trapped between his palms.

"Look, I caught it!" Dongshu showed Krabby.

Krabby stared at the butterfly, excitement shining in its eyes.

"Krabby!"

You're so, so amazing!

[You caught the butterfly in one go, leaving Krabby utterly astonished!]

[Shock Points from Krabby +20!]

[Current balance: 185!]

Huh? Dongshu blinked.

Looking at Krabby's astonished, admiring expression, he smiled and let the butterfly go.

The startled butterfly beat its wings frantically and flew off.

Krabby couldn't help looking up after it.

By then, Fire Emperor had finished picking the Berries. It carried the large leaf wrapped around them in its mouth and walked over to Dongshu.

"Time to go back, Little One," it said.

Just then, Krabby's mother, Graveler, came over to find it.

"Krabby..."

Krabby looked reluctant to part.

"Let's play together again tomorrow!" Dongshu said.

Krabby's eyes lit up once more.

"Krabby!"

Having tested out the power of Pokémon language, Dongshu was incredibly excited.

From now on, he could understand Pokémon just like N!

Dongshu rode on Fire Emperor as it carried him back to the cave.

But halfway up the mountain, perhaps the large leaf couldn't bear the weight of so many Berries. With a ripping sound, it tore.

The next second, the round Berries tumbled out and rolled down the mountain path.

Fire Emperor frowned slightly at the sight.

Looks like I'll have to find another leaf, Fire Emperor thought.

Watching this, Dongshu thought of something else.

As expected... using only leaves to carry Berries was way too inconvenient and unreliable.

In a situation like this, a bamboo basket would be much more useful.

At the thought, Dongshu's mind stirred, and the shop interface appeared in front of him.

Search: [basket].

The next second, the shop interface changed completely.

[Wicker basket: An ordinary basket for storing and carrying items. Required for exchange: 30 Shock Points.]

[Storage basket: A tool for organizing items, suitable for storing Berries, vegetables, and other things. Required for exchange: 30 Shock Points.]

"..."

He needed one with a handle, so Fire Emperor could carry the Berries by gripping it in its mouth.

Fortunately, he'd saved up quite a few Shock Points by now.

Dongshu had originally planned to save them to buy a few decent outfits, but a basket was clearly a more important household item.

"Fire Emperor, this will help you!"

As soon as Dongshu finished speaking, a wicker basket suddenly appeared out of thin air in front of Fire Emperor.

Fire Emperor paused in surprise, then realized what had happened. Little One had used his power again!

Fire Emperor was already used to it. Once it learned that this power wouldn't hurt Little One, it simply let him do as he pleased.

Fire Emperor picked up the Berries from the mountain path and put them back in the basket. Then it gripped the handle in its mouth and continued toward the cave.

But before it could get close, it sensed a familiar presence at the cave entrance from far away.

Raikou was back.