Pokemon: Farm Story-Chapter 182: Chi-Yu: Are Human Trainers All Doing Charity Work or What?!

Chapter 182 - 182: Chi-Yu: Are Human Trainers All Doing Charity Work or What?!

Narrowing its eyes, Chi-Yu stared at the human before it, brimming with confusion and doubt.

It really couldn't understand why this human would dare to show up alone in front of it.

To a Pokémon, the human body was just too fragile.

Out in the wild, even a weak Weedle could, with a single poisoned sting, send a careless Trainer straight back to the respawn point.

Let alone something like Chi-Yu.

Every year, the number of Trainers who went missing — well, "missing" — in the wild stayed frighteningly high.

They called it "missing," but in truth, it wasn't much different from death.

It was just a way to leave the family a shred of hope, that was all.

As for the whole "miraculous encounter leading to overnight success" fantasy...

Well, let's just say: young people should stop daydreaming and focus more on what they're having for their next meal.

"Wu~"

Tilting its head, Chi-Yu gave a tentative cry toward Natsume.

The general meaning was clear: What are you doing here?

Chi-Yu had already noticed something earlier.

This human seemed to be able to understand Pokémon speech.

That had genuinely startled Chi-Yu a little.

It had never seen a human who could communicate with Pokémon without barriers.

Normally, only Pokémon who had mastered telepathy could manage that kind of exchange.

And even then, telepathy wasn't true conversation — it was more like projecting emotions and thoughts directly into the mind of another, letting them feel your intentions.

Not quite the same as real dialogue.

"I came to check on you," Natsume said casually.

"Now that you've been officially captured, you're part of the farm too."

"If you have any requests, you can bring them up. If they're reasonable and I can manage it, I'll do my best to fulfill them."

"Oh, and one more thing — no fighting with other Pokémon on the farm.

It's kind of an unwritten rule."

Hands on his hips, Natsume was sizing up Chi-Yu even as Chi-Yu studied him in return.

Strictly speaking, this was the first time he was properly taking a good look at it.

If you ignored the overly watery big eyes and the two inexplicable magatama patterns, Chi-Yu's design was actually pretty decent.

...Well, that was a completely useless observation.

Like saying, "Hey, if that guy wasn't ugly, he'd actually be pretty handsome."

Still, Natsume genuinely liked Chi-Yu's design.

At the very least, it was way better than Chien-Pao's.

Among the four Treasures of Ruin, deciding who was the best-looking was tough.

They all had their own... abstract aesthetics.

But if you had to pick the one with the worst looks?

No doubt about it — that title belonged to Chien-Pao.

Honestly, there was zero beauty to it.

And not just the traditional sense of "good-looking" beauty either — even terrifying, monstrous creatures could sometimes have a unique kind of aesthetic charm.

But Chien-Pao?

Yeah, no.

It absolutely looked like a Pokémon born out of pure, ugly resentment — just as the lore said.

No way that thing was ever playing the role of a good guy.

Natsume's gaze shifted from appreciation to mild pity, and finally to resignation.

His expression changed several times before he finally nodded as if reluctantly convincing himself:

Well... it's fine, I guess.

"?"

Tilting its head, Chi-Yu slowly produced a giant question mark over its head.

Hold up — you little punk!

There were just too many points to complain about, and it didn't even know where to start.

Sure, it admitted there were a few big shots on the farm it couldn't beat.

But still!

Just because it couldn't beat Mew, Manaphy, or Cresselia...

Didn't mean it couldn't crush a random human!

How dare a mere human act so cocky in front of me?

Glaring fiercely, Chi-Yu flared up — the air around it subtly shimmering with heat.

It was planning to give this human a little scare.

Just to see if he was genuinely calm or just pretending.

If he turned out to be truly unshakable...

Well, staying here quietly for a few decades might not be so bad.

It would count as a proper vacation.

After all, a human who could face it so calmly deserved a little recognition.

If, however, he was just putting on a brave front...

Then Chi-Yu would still hold back — it wasn't planning to actually hurt anyone.

There were way too many bosses around it couldn't beat anyway.

But its attitude toward Natsume might turn a whole lot colder...

Huh?

Just as it was contemplating the best way to intimidate him, Chi-Yu was caught completely off guard.

Natsume casually reached out, pressed his hand against Chi-Yu's tilted head, and — with an effortless movement — straightened it.

"Don't tilt your head so much. If you get used to it, it'll look weird later."

Satisfied, Natsume withdrew his hand and nodded approvingly at the dumbfounded Chi-Yu.

Sure, it was undeniably cute when girls tilted their heads while acting playful.

But after making Pokéblocks for over a decade, Natsume's heart had long since grown cold.

All he could think about was:

Bad for the spine.

Bad habit.

Looks stupid later.

Watching Chi-Yu tilt its head like that the whole conversation, Natsume finally couldn't resist — and reached out to correct it a bit.

Completely unaware of the stunned Chi-Yu in front of him.

Because in that instant when Natsume reached out, Chi-Yu knew — something terrible was about to happen!

Its body heat had already risen dramatically — not quite the full scorching 3000 degrees it could achieve, but definitely at a level a normal human couldn't survive.

Sure, it had only intended to scare the guy a little, not actually hurt him.

If it accidentally burned this human... Chi-Yu could already imagine a pink meteor — namely, a very angry Mew — crash-landing right in front of it.

And yet...

This human just calmly reached out and touched it??

He's not scared of pain?

Chi-Yu was utterly baffled.

Even more incredible — when it looked closely, Natsume's hand was still perfectly fine.

Smooth, fair, completely unharmed by the intense heat.

And that wasn't even the biggest shock.

The strength he had shown just now, the casual way he had corrected Chi-Yu's posture —

That was definitely not normal.

Sure, Chi-Yu wasn't exactly a powerhouse among Pokémon, but it was still a whole different league compared to regular creatures.

And yet, Natsume had easily, effortlessly turned its head straight without even seeming to exert any strength.

What the heck?!

You're not secretly a Legendary disguised as a human, are you?!

Chi-Yu fell into deep contemplation.

Originally, it had been planning to show off a bit — maybe cover the entire sky in fire, give this human a taste of its legendary might.

But now?

It was the one getting completely shaken up.

What kind of freak superhuman is this guy...?!

At that moment, Chi-Yu's gaze toward Natsume grew more and more complicated.

Those eyes weren't looking at a human.

They were looking at a kindred spirit.

Chi-Yu was certain—this guy in front of him was definitely not human.

At least, not a pure human.

Who knew, maybe he was some kind of Pokémon that just looked like a human.

What had initially carried a hint of tension now turned surprisingly harmonious.

When Chi-Yu spoke to Natsume, there was even a trace of flattery in his voice.

No helping it—he was the guest under someone else's roof now.

Just that little trick Natsume pulled earlier was enough for Chi-Yu to mentally bump him from the "easy-to-handle human Trainer" category straight into the "troublesome guy" list.

"Alright then, if anything happens, remember to let me know, okay?"

"Wuu."

Chi-Yu lowered his altitude, quietly floating in front of Natsume.

He didn't even drift around.

Don't ask why.

If you must know, it's because Natsume had won Chi-Yu over with sheer sincerity.

No helping it—he gave way too much.

Natsume had simply shown Chi-Yu a sample of his custom-made Pokéblocks and demonstrated his Viridian Power.

Chi-Yu immediately declared, "If you don't mind taking me in—"

Yeah, Natsume cut him off after that.

It was better not to say things like that—for both Natsume and Chi-Yu.

Still, that didn't mean he had no requests.

"Wooo!"

I report! Someone's plotting rebellion!

Thinking of that sneaky mutt from last night, Chi-Yu perked up immediately.

"Rebellion?"

"Is it Munkidori or Okidogi?"

Natsume wasn't actually surprised by Chi-Yu's report.

Those two were never the well-behaved types.

Munkidori didn't even need mentioning.

And Okidogi—he never stopped stirring up trouble.

Even though every time he made a move, he'd get mercilessly beaten down.

But somehow, that just seemed to make him even more determined?

Was this guy developing... some kind of special kink?

"Wuu."

Yeah, it was the dog-headed one.

Chi-Yu's words confirmed Natsume's guess.

No surprises there.

"What did he say?"

"Wuu."

Chi-Yu paused to recall, then began recounting the details to Natsume.

There wasn't much to it.

Just some nonsense about the humiliation of being defeated by Natsume, the disgrace of being captured by humans, the rage of getting beaten up by random unknown Pokémon—stuff Chi-Yu honestly couldn't really understand.

At first, Chi-Yu might've somewhat sympathized.

After all, in the eyes of legendary Pokémon, humans had always seemed far too fragile.

The aftershocks of a true battle were enough to bring disaster to them.

But that was before.

Now?

Chi-Yu was pretty sure Natsume could solo Okidogi without breaking a sweat.

And honestly, if poison wasn't a factor, Natsume could probably take down the others one by one with just his fists.

Chi-Yu just wasn't sure if Viridian Power could neutralize poison.

If it could—even just easing the symptoms a bit—then Chi-Yu had no doubt that Natsume could wipe the floor with all four of them.

After all, these so-called legends... were honestly a bit pathetic.

Chi-Yu even wondered if they could beat the big Mightyena guarding the farm gate—the one with the red scarf around its neck.

Judging by strength alone, Chi-Yu thought that Mightyena was more worthy of the title of "legendary."

"Got it. I have a rough idea now."

"You don't need to worry about this—I'll handle it later."

"Usually, it's Ting-Lu who's in charge of drilling them."

"Looks like the training wasn't nearly enough."

Natsume smiled at Chi-Yu after he finished listening.

Kids causing trouble?

It could only mean one thing—their homework load was too light.

No other explanation possible.

Give them enough homework, pile on enough training pressure...

Where would they even find the time or energy to mess around?

Definitely needed to crank up their training from here on.

Munkidori had already proven with his own performance that while they were all kind of pathetic right now, they did have the potential of true legends.

Even the lamest legend... is still a legend.

As long as they worked hard enough, a bright future wasn't out of reach.

(Meanwhile, Okidogi, regularly beaten to a pulp: "Huh? Future? Mine???")

Chi-Yu had been half-listening absentmindedly—but the moment he heard Ting-Lu's name, his eyes sharpened.

Wait a minute—wasn't that a familiar name?

After confirming with Natsume, Chi-Yu dug up his memories of Ting-Lu's strength... and then compared it to the frankly comedic battle prowess of Okidogi, Munkidori, and Fezandipiti.

This guy might be strong, sure—but as a teacher? Absolutely terrible!

Thinking "I may not be great, but I can at least make things harder for you," Chi-Yu decisively volunteered himself.

He proposed to Natsume that he should help out with training too, joining Ting-Lu to form a coaching team to really put pressure on those troublemakers!

If the training went well, he could take credit.

Which meant an easier, cushier life down the road.

After all, slacking off could come in different flavors.

Slacking off under a boss's nose? Bad.

Slacking off when the boss thought you were hardworking? Perfect.

If the training didn't go well?

Well, then he could just blame Ting-Lu.

"Look what a lousy teacher you are! Now they're hopeless! You should go find a wall and smash your head into it!"

As for Ting-Lu, who had stomped him underfoot the day before—Chi-Yu was still furious.

If he could, he'd gut that bastard right here, right now.

Unfortunately... he couldn't.

There were higher powers keeping them in check.

"Sure, that's fine. I'll talk to Ting-Lu when he gets back."

After thinking it over, Natsume agreed to Chi-Yu's request.

Honestly, he could more or less guess what was going through Chi-Yu's mind.

But it didn't matter.

Natsume had always said—no matter how harmonious a farm might seem, a bit of internal friction was inevitable.

A world where everyone loved and cared for each other unconditionally... only existed in artificial, programmed simulations.

Reality? Far messier.

Still, if there was a shared enemy to hate, it would unite everyone else beautifully.

As for Ting-Lu and Chi-Yu—

Sure, they'd clash and bicker and fight.

But as long as they had someone to vent their frustrations on, it would be manageable.

Right, Okidogi?

Natsume felt a little bad about always picking on the honest ones...

But right now, Okidogi was the only one who could shoulder this noble burden.

Later, he'd bring Okidogi some tasty treats to make up for it.

"Woooh!"

Hearing that he was allowed to help, Chi-Yu's eyes lit up with joy.

At first, he'd been pretty resentful.

But after accepting that he'd been captured and shifting his mindset, he suddenly felt much more relaxed.

He didn't have to worry about anything.

He could just hang around and play all day, and delicious food would magically show up.

As expected—human Trainers were basically running a charity!

Meanwhile, on the other side of the farm—

Ting-Lu, who was in the middle of discussing Pokémon brotherhood ceremonies with Corviknight, suddenly shivered.

Something wasn't right.

Why did he feel like some filthy thing had its eyes locked onto him?

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