Unexpected Reinforcements

Just then, the entire forest fell abruptly silent.

Gray figures appeared throughout the trees, their sharp eyes gleaming with displeasure and anger.

"Sentret!"

A Sentret twice the size of the little one jumped down from a tree. It planted its paws on its hips and gave the little Sentret a stern scolding.

"Sen... tret..."

The little Sentret's ears drooped at once. It hugged its tail and said nothing.

"Kec..."

Kecleon, standing behind it, opened its mouth to speak. But one stern look from Sentret made it wilt too, and it fell meekly silent.

Then Sentret raised its tail, turned around, and bared a pair of sharp claws.

Just as Dian sensed trouble and prepared to slip away—

"Sun!"

The Sunkern in the Grass-type clump let out a shrill cry, as if it had been frightened.

"Sun?"

"Sun! Sun!"

"Sun?!"

Sunkern answered from all across the forest. Countless voices joined in, raising a tremendous clamor in an instant.

Sunkern came bouncing out one after another, quickly surrounding Dian and the others before glaring at Sentret across from them.

"Sentret..."

Sentret backed away, then glanced upward from the corner of its eye.

"Furret!"

A commanding voice rang out. Its owner was an adorable, long-bodied Pokémon with brown-and-white fur, a long tail patterned in the same colors, and tiny pointed ears.

If not for that commanding voice, this Furret would have looked even cuter than Sentret.

"Sentret."

Sentret retracted its claws, promptly wrapped its tail around the two little troublemakers, and jumped behind Furret, ready for a fight.

"Sunflora."

At a deeper call, a Pokémon that looked like a sunflower darted out from the side and faced off against Furret.

"Furret!"

Furret called out sternly.

"Sunflora! Sunflora!"

Sunflora looked at the Sunkern from its group, still trembling with fright, and answered with two