Pokemon: A New Path

Chapter 208: Storm Buns



"Sure enough, it's from the same series of ingredients as the feather powder of Zapdos!" Naoki thought to himself, calming down after seeing the information about the feather powder. He wasn't too surprised.

After returning to the ranch, he greeted his Pokémon with a wave and said, "You guys go play by yourselves for now; I have something to take care of."

The Naclstack ran off to entertain themselves, and Naoki turned back toward the house. He went into the kitchen and began preparing the ingredients for his next dish.

The most important element was flour, followed by the tools for kneading the dough.

Naoki planned to mix the Lugia feather powder into the flour to make steamed buns, just as he had done last time with Zapdos' feather powder.

Unfortunately, Lugia's feather powder contained a large amount of flying energy, most of which had been lost during the grinding process earlier.

Looking at the thin layer of silvery-white powder at the bottom of the transparent glass bottle, Naoki sighed. "Compared to the feather powder of Zapdos, this is much less- probably only a quarter of the amount." He felt it was a pity, but there wasn't much he could do.

Another problem arose in his mind-would such a small amount of powder affect the cooking results?

After a brief thought, Naoki decided to give it a shot.

He started kneading the dough, adding the silvery-white powder into the flour, and poured in water. As he began kneading, he noticed the same sensation he had felt with Zapdos' feather powder-a tingling, electrifying feeling.

This time, when Naoki touched Lugia's feather powder, he felt a strong gust of wind wrapping around his hand. The flying-type energy manifested as a milky white airflow, swirling within the container.

Sometimes intense, sometimes gentle, the energy seemed alive. Even after the flour and feather powder were completely mixed, the milky white wind still lingered on the dough, like a special effect that wouldn't go away.

"Impressive," Naoki muttered, raising his eyebrows in surprise.

After the dough was kneaded, it needed time to ferment.

Naoki covered the dough with plastic wrap and set it aside, giving it three to four hours to rise.

He wasn't in a hurry, so he sat on the sofa and turned on the TV to pass the time.

The Indeedee siblings stood nearby, ever the loyal companions.

The younger sister, ever thoughtful, made Naoki a cup of hot tea.

Naoki took a sip, feeling the warmth and relaxation wash over him.

He looked at the two siblings and said kindly, "No need to stand. Take a seat and rest!"

"Ai-ah~" sister Indeedee responded happily, taking a seat on the sofa closer to Naoki. Her older brother, more serious, sat at the far end.

Meanwhile, deep in the ocean.

In the silent depths of the sea, Lugia, who had just returned home and was about to get some rest, suddenly opened its eyes.

It sensed that one of its feathers had lost connection with it.

Surprise and confusion filled Lugia's gaze.

Pokémon like it rarely shed feathers.

Only human trainers with pure hearts were ever gifted its feathers.

If the chosen one took the feather to the deepest part of the Whirl Islands and prayed with all their heart, Lugia would reveal itself to them, acknowledging their courage and kindness. Those Silver Feathers contained its unique energy, and because of this, Lugia could sense wherever they were.

In ancient times, long ago, Lugia even promised some humans who became friends with it that if they were ever in danger and needed help, they could call it using the Silver Feather.

At that time, Lugia would rise from the sea to assist them.

But now...

It had lost contact with one of its Silver Feathers and could no longer sense the energy within

it.

Lugia looked solemn.

'What happened to that feather?'

---

At 2 PM, the dough had finally finished fermenting.

Naoki carefully peeled off the plastic wrap covering the dough, shaped it into buns, and began steaming them.

Because of the limited amount of the key ingredient-Lugia's feather powder-Naoki managed to make only six steamed buns.

But he wasn't sure if these buns would be similar to the "Lightning Buns" he made before, each of which carried the power of Zapdos.

When the buns finished steaming, Naoki's curiosity was finally answered.

[Storm Bun (S+): A legendary dish made from the feather powder of a legendary Pokémon. It is said that eating this bun will grant the power to control storms and the weather. Cooking Effect: God of the Sea (1/6). After consumption, a Flying-type Pokémon gains the ability to control the weather, in the way the master of the feathers desires. However, full control is granted only after eating six buns in total. It is limited to Flying-type Pokémon. Comment: This is a one-of-a-kind dish. Feed it to your Flying-type Pokémon! However, due to the ratio of ingredients, the dish cannot produce its full effect on its own.]

"It's just as I thought," Naoki murmured.

'Does the "1/6" mean a Pokémon has to eat six buns in a row to fully gain the ability?'

It was lucky that he had made exactly six buns.

Naoki decided to test it right away.

He happened to have the perfect Flying-type Pokémon on his ranch: Dragonite.

The sleek figure of Dragonite came to his mind, and without wasting time, Naoki asked

Indeedee to call Dragonite from where it was playing outside.

Soon enough, Dragonite came over, following behind the Indeedee.

It looked at Naoki in confusion. "Awoo?"

Naoki smiled and brought out the six steaming buns, offering them to Dragonite: "Want to

eat them all?"

Dragonite's nostrils twitched as it sniffed the delicious aroma of the buns. But it hesitated-it

wasn't exactly a fan of steamed buns.

Seeing this, Naoki raised an eyebrow and teased, "Don't you want to become the strongest Dragonite in the world? Eat these, and you'll be able to realize that dream."

Dragonite, who trusted Naoki's words and knew of his cooking's magical properties, immediately perked up. Its eyes widened with excitement. "Awoo?"

Naoki nodded with a grin. "Of course! These buns were made just for you."

Hearing this, Dragonite no longer hesitated. Regardless of the taste of the buns, it opened its

mouth wide and gobbled them down one by one.

When Dragonite finished the last steamed bun, Naoki noticed a strong gust of wind

emanating from its body.

The wind began to stir inside the house.

Naoki's eyes widened, and he quickly pushed Dragonite outside: "Go outside!"

As soon as Dragonite stepped outdoors, the energy inside it surged. Thick, dark clouds gathered in the once clear sky at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The commotion immediately drew the attention of the other Pokémon on the ranch. Five Dragonair and two wild Dragonite flew over, their eyes wide in astonishment at the newly empowered Dragonite.

Cyclizar, sensing a powerful aura, rushed over, eager to watch the scene unfold.

Only Koraidon remained calm, his eyes flickering as he glanced up, then nonchalantly

resumed his nap on the grass.

At that moment, Naoki and all the Pokémon instinctively did the same thing-looked up at

the massive dark clouds gathering overhead.

Dragonite, standing on the grass, could feel the changes within its body.

Excitement filled its eyes as Naoki's words echoed in its mind: 'One day, the whole world will

be covered by your rain!'

Dragonite had a feeling that this day had finally come.

'It's time to try it out!' Dragonite thought eagerly.

It let out a mighty roar and used its signature move-the move it had practiced countless

times-the Rain Dance!

With just a thought, Dragonite commanded the sky.

In the next moment, a light drizzle began to fall.

The gentle autumn rain soon covered the entire ranch and stretched far into the distance.

But Dragonite wasn't satisfied. It wanted more.

It spread its wings wide and soared into the sky, performing a fierce, joyful dance in the rain, unleashing the energy granted to it by the magic buns.

Meanwhile, the rain extended beyond the ranch, covering the town of Kosaji and even covered Casseroya Lake and Glaseado Mountain.

Incredibly, the rain reached even the scorching, dry desert.

There, raindrops fell on the head of a Sandile lying in the yellow sands, patiently waiting for

its prey to pass by.

Startled by the sudden coolness, the Sandile paused, looking up with confusion in its large,

black eyes.

In Kosaji, people and Pokémon on the streets hurried to find shelter from the rain beneath

shop awnings.

An office worker with a briefcase on his head arrived late. He ducked under the awning, shook the water off his briefcase, and said with confusion:

"Strange, didn't the weather forecast say it would be cloudy and then sunny today? Why did it

suddenly start raining?"

He wasn't the only one puzzled. At the same time, weather researchers at the Paldea Meteorological Observatory, located north of Glaseado Mountain and west of the Great Crater, stood under the eaves of their facility, staring at the unusually heavy rain, exchanging

bewildered glances.

"What's going on? Did the machine malfunction?"

"No, that's unlikely. The rain came so abruptly. One moment it was sunny, and the next it

started pouring. There wasn't any warning at all."

"Why does this feel so much like a Pokémon move?"

"You mean... Rain Dance?"

"The weather satellite shows it's raining in Glaseado, Asado Desert, Casseroya Lake... pretty

much the entire of Paldea!"

The group of meteorologists stood stunned.

After a long moment, someone finally spoke in a shocked tone, "Is this... really caused by a

Pokémon?"

What kind of powerful Pokémon could summon rain on such a massive scale? Could it be that a wild Legendary Pokémon had come to the Paldea region? Just like what

happened in the Orange Islands recently, when the clash of legendary Pokémon caused global weather disturbances.

Meanwhile, in the Pokémon League.

Geeta, the current top Champion of the Paldea region, stood by the window with her hands behind her back, gazing out at the heavy rain.

As an experienced Pokémon trainer, Geeta could sense something was off about the rain.

This was no ordinary weather change-it was caused by a Pokémon. More precisely, an unknown Pokémon under the control of a trainer.

Her fingers drummed lightly, her expression contemplative.

"I wonder what kind of Pokémon could be behind this."

Geeta pondered. If memory served, there was no local legend about a Pokémon in Paldea that

could manipulate the weather on such a grand scale.

This meant that the Pokémon responsible for this storm was likely brought to Paldea by an

exceptionally skilled trainer.

A trainer capable of capturing and controlling such a powerful Pokémon was surely someone

of great talent!

"I wonder if the Paldea League could recruit someone like that," Geeta mused.

But she soon realized that her suspicions had not been confirmed.

Geeta smiled and shook her head. She closed the window and decided to stop paying

attention.

If a trainer with this level of strength really existed, they would eventually reveal themselves

to the world. When that time came, she could simply reach out to them.

In the pasture.

Naoki, along with the Cyclizar and other Pokémon, huddled under the eaves, looking up at

Dragonite in the sky.

"Is this the power of Lugia?" Naoki thought to himself. Lugia, known as the Guardian of the Seas, was not the same as Kyogre, the legendary

Pokémon responsible for expanding the oceans. Lugia's role was more about maintaining balance by controlling ocean currents and influencing global weather patterns.

It has an incredible ability to calm stormy seas, and it's said that a single flap of its wings

could create storms lasting for forty days.

Judging by these legendary records, Lugia's power was beyond impressive.

Air currents, weather control, cyclones, storms.

"The Storm Buns certainly exceeded my expectations," Naoki concluded. "They've helped

fulfill one of Dragonite's dreams."

As he gazed at the seemingly endless rain, Naoki couldn't help but smirk.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

It looked like what he'd told Dragonite earlier wasn't an exaggeration after all.

Feeling sentimental, Naoki searched the sky for Dragonite, but to his surprise, it was nowhere

to be found.

He was slightly confused and turned to the Cyclizar, asking, "Where's Dragonite?"

Cyclizar pointed skyward and said, "Ga-ao."

That meant Dragonite had flown even higher.

Naoki sighed. 'This guy... really?'

He smiled helplessly. "Alright, let it have its fun," he thought and went back inside to wash

the dishes.

By the time he finished cleaning the pot, the rain had stopped.

Under the sunlight, a beautiful rainbow appeared in the sky.

Just then, Dragonite, having had its fill of excitement, finally returned to the ranch.

It rushed into the house with a big grin, wrapping its large paws around Naoki, who was

wiping down the table.

"Ouch~"

Naoki, trapped in Dragonite's affectionate grip, chuckled. "Are you that happy?"

Dragonite nodded enthusiastically, eyes twinkling. "Ouch!"

Seeing Dragonite so joyful, Naoki couldn't help but feel amused, though he was slightly

worried that Dragonite might get too full of itself.

He thought for a moment and said with a gentle warning, "Don't get too proud, okay? You

still need to stay grounded and practice hard if you want to truly master this power. Even

though you're strong now, remember that there are still many Pokémon in the world that are even stronger than us."

Dragonite blinked and nodded in understanding. "Ouch!"

It knew that very well.

In Dragonite's mind, the image of a powerful, mysterious, shiny Pokémon it once saw at the

center of a storm came to mind.

That memory alone reminded Dragonite that there was still much work to be done.

And so, it would continue to train with all its heart.