Yuga also smiled warmly at Floette and said, "Floette, long time no see!"
Floette seemed to be doing quite well after reuniting with AZ—Yuga could feel that its personality had become much more cheerful.
"Floette~ Floette~"
Floette's little feet and face were full of joy.
AZ had also changed from before; the gloom that once surrounded him was completely gone. His once messy hair was now neatly tied behind his head, the stubble on his face had been cleanly shaved off, and the well-fitted gray uniform he wore made his tall and burly figure look extremely imposing.
However, Yuga wasn't particularly familiar with AZ, so their meeting was limited to a polite nod and greeting.
In his heart, AZ was actually grateful to Yuga—if not for Yuga, he wouldn't have reunited with Floette so smoothly.
Since the League's team had only just arrived in Laverre City, after some initial greetings with Yuga, they didn't rush into discussing business. Instead, they first settled into a hotel in the city.
Because they came in a hurry, everyone simply got to know Yuga a bit and then went off to rest.
To make it easier to discuss their planned visit to the Arche Valley, Yuga also moved from the Pokémon Center to the hotel where Diantha and the others were staying.
The Pokémon Center was just too crowded and busy—a terrible place for discussing important matters!
After everyone had left, Diantha found Yuga in private and said, "Guess who I brought for you?"
Yuga wasn't dumb. The one he had the most connection with through Diantha was none other than Ninetales, so he happily replied, "Ninetales came too?"
Diantha joked, "You guessed it right away—how boring." With that, she took out Ninetales' Poké Ball and handed it to Yuga.
Yuga excitedly opened the Poké Ball and released Ninetales.
"Ninetales, how have you been lately? Is filming going well?"
Yuga's concerned tone melted away most of Ninetales' irritation, though it still grumbled awkwardly, "And here I thought you'd forgotten I was filming."
What Ninetales meant was: you obviously knew I was filming with Diantha, yet when you called her, you didn't even ask to talk to me.
Unfortunately, Yuga didn't pick up on the hidden meaning.
"You two haven't seen each other in a while, so I won't interrupt!"
Diantha knew Ninetales was upset, so she didn't want to stick around and play the third wheel. With a quick goodbye, she turned to leave.
Yuga gratefully said, "Thank you for looking after Ninetales all this time."
"It's nothing. Ninetales and I get along very well—we're already good friends!" Diantha waved her hand and walked off.
Ninetales nodded in agreement at Diantha's words.
Diantha was well aware of how powerful Ninetales was, so outside of filming, she often asked it for guidance on her training. Ninetales didn't hold anything back—if it knew the answer, it would share it with her.
Although Diantha didn't have any Fire-type Pokémon, she did have the Psychic-type Gardevoir. Ninetales was also well-versed in Psychic powers, so it gave Diantha and Gardevoir a lot of inspiration.
Once Diantha left, Yuga resumed asking about Ninetales' life during filming with genuine concern. Ninetales had been annoyed at first, but as Yuga continued asking, its anger gradually faded.
Thanks to Yuga's introduction, Ninetales met a new friend—Klefki. The two Pokémon got along very well.
Early the next morning, Yuga, Diantha, and the others held a meeting. The main purpose was for the League team to gain a detailed understanding of the situation in the Arche Valley.
The meeting lasted the entire morning. After it ended, everyone agreed that it would be best to head to the Arche Valley as soon as possible, so under Yuga's guidance, the group set off toward Mount Belljade.
During this time, Laverre City's mayor Raul and Gym Leader Valerie paid a visit and met briefly with Diantha. However, since the situation regarding the Arche Valley hadn't been finalized, Diantha didn't go into much detail with them.
Everyone rode their Flying-type Pokémon, and it didn't take long before they arrived outside Mount Belljade. Upon arrival, Yuga saw Naya and Simon, the sibling pair, each riding a Gogoat, waiting outside the mountain.
Leading the group down from their Flying Pokémon, Yuga asked curiously, "Why are you two here?"
Naya and Simon dismounted their Gogoat and gave the unique greeting of the Aura Clan to Diantha and the others before answering Yuga, "Grandpa Max said you'd be arriving around now, so he had us wait here for you since yesterday."
Upon hearing this, Yuga suddenly understood and said, "Then I'll trouble you two to lead the way."
Mount Belljade had a complex environment. Without someone familiar with the terrain to lead the way, it was entirely possible to get lost. Although Yuga had only been there once before, he still confidently guaranteed that he could quickly guide everyone through.
So the group dismounted from their flying mounts, got on land-traveling Pokémon, and followed behind Naya and Simon as they stepped into Mount Belljade.
No one knew how long they had been walking when the group arrived at the foggy area. Naya took out a whistle and gave it a hard blow. A sharp, lingering whistle echoed out, and the fog gradually began to clear, revealing a path suitable for passage. At the end of the path was the very Stantler that Yuga had encountered during his first visit.
After passing through the mist, Diantha and the others turned around and saw the fog closing in again. Each of them clicked their tongues in amazement, and couldn't help but take the Arche Valley even more seriously in their hearts.
After crossing Windrest Ravine, Yuga and the others arrived at the valley entrance to the Arche Valley. But what surprised Yuga was that, although he had only been gone a few days, a number of wooden houses had already been built here. Many of the Transcendence Clan members were busily and methodically working.
Seeing the astonishment on Yuga's face, Naya quietly explained, "After you left, our chief and elders decided to relocate part of the clan out of the Arche Valley. In the future, they'll be settling here in this valley."
Since the Transcendence Clan had already decided to join the League, it was impossible for all clan members to remain secluded in the Arche Valley. That was why the elders decided to have some of the people move out and settle externally.
After the events involving the gods of time and space, the elders believed that having some of their people living outside would not only make it easier to communicate and interact with the outside world, but also help mitigate certain risks.
However, this plan was just beginning. Transforming the valley into a suitable living space for the clan would require a great deal of work and effort.
By the time everyone arrived at the entrance to the Arche Valley, Elder Pat and Mr. Max were already waiting with several other elders.
Appearing alongside the elders was also the Transcendence clan's guardian Pokémon—Jirachi.
This Jirachi had, during the battle with Dialga and Palkia, been trapped early on in the black hole along with Chief Ghris. So at first, Yuga hadn't seen it. It wasn't until the gods of time and space dispelled the black hole that he met it for the first time.
At that time, Jirachi had also sustained significant injuries, so after escaping, it didn't show itself in public much.
According to Chief Ghris, this Jirachi spends most of its time in a dormant state, transformed into a cocoon deep within the Arche Valley, only awakening when the valley is in grave danger.
The last time Jirachi awakened was several years ago, during the appearance of the Millennium Comet. It absorbed the comet's energy and used it to nourish the Arche Valley, then fell back into slumber. But now, only a few years later, it had been forcefully awakened again.
Jirachi is a very special Pokémon. Its "true eye" possesses the power to communicate with the stars—specifically, with the Millennium Comet, which appears only once every thousand years.
After absorbing the energy of the Millennium Comet, Jirachi can channel that energy back into the earth, making the land rich and fertile.
Therefore, to wait for the Millennium Comet, Jirachi typically doesn't wake up on its own, instead relying on sleep to accumulate strength.
Unfortunately, this recent battle between the gods of time and space completely wiped out Jirachi's efforts from a few years ago. The once-prosperous Arche Valley was reduced to ruins overnight.
Legend says that Jirachi can grant all wishes, but in fact, this rumor is inaccurate. While a Jirachi that has absorbed the power of the Millennium Comet does become incredibly powerful—possessing even some unusual abilities—it still falls far short of granting all wishes.
This time, the Transcendence clan had Jirachi show itself not only to demonstrate their respect for the League but also as a form of deterrence.
When Diantha and the others saw Jirachi, there was indeed a flash of astonishment in their eyes.
Elder Pat immediately stepped forward enthusiastically when he saw Yuga and the others approaching. "Mr. Shimizu, you're finally here! I've been waiting for you for so long!"
Yuga smiled and said, "Elder Pat, let me introduce the people with me. These are the representatives sent by the League to negotiate with the Arche Valley. This is Champion Diantha, and this is..."
The team the League had sent to negotiate with the Arche Valley, in addition to Diantha and AZ, included twelve more people. Among them were two Elite level Trainers, and the rest were all at pseudo-Elite level. The lineup was quite impressive.
After Yuga introduced everyone to each other, they quickly warmed up and began chatting cordially. Elder Pat was very outgoing and soon hit it off with the League members.
As the leader of this delegation, Diantha was likewise extremely articulate. During the conversations, she subtly extracted information from the elders of the Transcendence Clan, and even when facing the Master level Elder Pat, she remained neither overbearing nor servile.
As for AZ, who was also a master level Trainer, his main role was to hold the scene with his presence. Most of the time, he was like a background figure, hardly speaking at all.
He was inherently a quiet and reticent person, having once slumbered alone for many years, and was extremely unskilled at handling talkative people like Elder Pat.
Elder Pat tried to engage him in conversation several times, but seeing that he wasn't particularly enthusiastic, he didn't get angry and instead very naturally shifted his focus to Diantha.
Yuga, acting as the intermediary between both parties, had more or less completed his task by this point, so he didn't join in on their conversation. He leisurely stayed at the rear of the group, casually chatting on and off with Naya and Simon.
Since the Arche Valley was located in Kalos and would be joining the Kalos League in the future, there was no need for someone from the Hoenn League like him to get too involved in their affairs.
After entering Arche Valley, Diantha and the others were left stunned with mouths agape at the sight before them.
Although some parts of Arche Valley that had been destroyed over the past few days had already been repaired, the damage was still heart-wrenching. Even though Diantha and the others had already learned about the disaster Arche Valley had suffered from Yuga's account, they couldn't help but show expressions of sympathy.
Elder Pat, however, didn't seem to mind. He knew Yuga must have already informed the League about what had happened in Arche Valley. Smiling cheerfully, he explained, "Our clan has just gone through a disaster. Please forgive us for the unsightly scene."
Diantha and the rest of the League delegation expressed that it was no problem at all.
After that, Elder Pat led Diantha and the others to meet Chief Ghris and the other elders of the clan. Both sides officially began discussing the details regarding Arche Valley's integration into the League.
Yuga felt that this matter no longer concerned him, so he didn't take part. Instead, he was led by Naya and Simon out of Arche Valley to the valley where they planned to settle in the future.
Naya and Simon's family were also among those who would be relocating out of Arche Valley. The siblings were not at all opposed to the clan's arrangement—on the contrary, they were quite happy about it.
Because the clan had already declared that their people would no longer remain secluded from the world. After relocating from Arche Valley, the clanspeople would be free to move about and train themselves in the outside world.
The brother and sister had lived their entire lives in Arche Valley since birth. The farthest place they had ever been to was just outside Mount Belljade. Their understanding of the outside world was limited to the handful of reports brought back by the few clanspeople who had ventured out, so they had always yearned deeply for the world beyond.
As Yuga walked through the valley with them, the two siblings eagerly asked him about the outside world, and Yuga patiently answered all of their questions.
Whenever members of the Transcendence Clan working in the valley saw Yuga, they would enthusiastically greet him. In their eyes, Yuga was the benefactor of their entire clan.
While the three of them were strolling casually through the valley, a sudden commotion broke out in the distance.
"What's going on?" Yuga asked in confusion.
Naya and Simon both shook their heads, indicating that they didn't know either.
But they quickly found out what had happened. A crazed Bouffalant was rampaging through the valley, crashing through everything in its path. A newly constructed wooden cabin was instantly smashed to pieces by it.
"It's Elder Torre's Bouffalant!" Simon cried out in alarm.
This Bouffalant was the same Pokémon that had been in the valley Naya had wanted to take Yuga to when he first came to Mount Belljade. Due to issues in its training, its mental state would occasionally become unstable.
Yuga activated his Insight ability to examine the Bouffalant.
...
[ Bouffalant ]
Type: Normal
Ability: Reckless
Gender: Male
Potential: Indigo
Level: 85
Moves: Pursuit, Leer, Rage, Fury Attack, Horn Attack, Scary Face, Revenge, Head Charge, Mega Horn, Revival Blessing, Uproar, Swords Dance, Giga Impact, Work Up, Taunt, Rain Dance, Double Team, Rage Powder, Protect, Earthquake, Smart Strike, Stomp, Wild Charge, Headbutt, Iron Head, Uproar, Thrash, Superpower, Stomping Tantrum.
...
Just as Naya had said, this Bouffalant was about the same level as the Stantler, but its combat power was on a whole other level. The Stantler specialized in illusions and was only average in battle strength, but the Bouffalant was clearly a purely offensive-type Pokémon.
"Isn't Elder Torre's Bouffalant usually kept from coming out? Why did it suddenly appear like this?" Naya exclaimed.
Bouffalant would only occasionally be taken out for walks by Elder Torre when it was in a clear-headed state. Most of the time, it wouldn't come out at all. Right now, Elder Torre was still meeting with the people from the League and wasn't even here.