The Shellder could actually have spat it out, but that Bulbasaur had looked so pitiful, as though it had given them its most precious food and its spiritual faith.
How could they refuse such generosity? How could they? Left with no choice, the leading Shellder had braced itself and tried a bite of Pokémon Candy.
It would never have known without trying, but that first taste had given it quite a shock. For a while afterward, the largest Shellder, their leader, had truly "soared into the heavens"!
That was not a metaphor. Mind you, that was not a metaphor—it had literally soared into the heavens!
The reason Bulbasaur had felt the Shellder beneath its feet flying faster and faster over the waves was not that its own Surf technique had improved dramatically in such a short time. That might have played a part, but it had accounted for only about ten percent.
The real reason was that Shellder had gone completely berserk and could no longer control itself!
If Bulbasaur had so much as glanced back at the time, it would have seen a "horizon line" stretching across the sea with no end in sight...
That was an experience Shellder would never forget. After learning that the other party was headed for the Huaxia Region, it had stayed away from the region for a long time, changing its migration route to run between Hoenn and the Kanto Region instead.
"Leafe..."
"..."
Leafeon looked sympathetic. Even Rillaboom patted Shellder's back with pity.
Rillaboom felt that the psychological damage from this experience was every bit as bad as the despair it had once suffered...
"I really am sorry... That Bulbasaur didn't mean any harm. It probably didn't know back then that eating the candy would have adverse effects on Pokémon that weren't