While Zelda was content to wander around the main part of the village, Link was determined to face the strongest opponent he could. He asked the Kokiri that told him about the pokecenter, who mentioned that the strongest pokemon in the village were in the Deku Tree's grove.
"You aren't allowed back there without Saria accompanying you, though, so the next best bet is through the tunnel in the training yard. Be careful, though; some Pikachu have been spotted back there, along with some evolved bug-types. Don't get yourself hurt."
Link thanked him again, then found and crawled through the tunnel he was told about. As he exited on the other side, he noticed a little spark in the nearby patch of grass. He called out Budew, eager to see how it performed. The grass flattened, and the battle with the Pikachu was on.
As Budew ran towards the electric rodent, it loosed a jolt of power. This did little to phase the plant pokemon, which latched on and began to drain the Pikachu's energy. The mouse kept zapping Budew, but each jolt was weaker than the one before. Eventually, it stopped and fell to the ground, defeated. Budew hopped off and wobbled back over to Link, obviously still reeling from the eight shocks the Pikachu had delivered. Link recalled it, noticing that Budew looked stronger for its efforts. He looked back up, noticing that something on the ground was shining and the Pikachu was no longer there. Curious, he picked up what turned out to be a blue rupee.
"Perhaps wild pokemon drop money," he spoke to himself, placing the rupee in his pouch. It didn't surprise him, as many people had told stories of finding rupees in strange places. He figured it would be a nice little bonus to training his pokemon. He called out Tael and resumed looking for opponents.
Just two wild pokemon later, Tael was limping, so Link returned to the pokecenter, satisfied with both the training his pokemon did and the stuff he had found. While he was at the shop, he spent the rest of his rupees on a shield. His Ralts seemed to be taking quite a beating, so anything that could help with that, in his mind, was a worthwhile purchase. Zelda came in behind him to get her pokemon healed, too.
As Link reclaimed his pokemon, the operator told him, "It seems your Budew has picked up some new moves. It battled a Pikachu, right?" Link nodded. "I thought so. It looks like its pollen now has the ability to paralyse foes. That means that they will be much slower, and may not be able to attack at all. It'll also make wild pokemon easier to catch."
"Well, that'll be useful," Zelda said as her pokemon were being restored. "You should use that the next battle we have." Link agreed.
"You're going to battle Saria soon, right?" the operator asked. "I'm not supposed to tell you what she's battling with, but I can tell you it'll be a tough battle."
Link thanked her, and Zelda asked, "Is there anything else we should know?"
The operator thought for a few seconds, clearly debating something with herself. "You know what… there is something else in the village that might help your battle go more smoothly. I can't tell you what or where it is, only that it's hidden from prying eyes." Zelda tried to get more information, but the operator was adamant. "I'm not allowed to tell you more. It's hidden somewhere you can find it, but you'll need to do that yourselves. I'm only telling you two this because you're from the castle." The two young trainers left the shop after that.
"Where do you think this thing could be?" Zelda asked.
"Well, there's the place I was training, behind the training grounds. I don't think I saw all of that," Link thought aloud. "It could also be on a high ledge."
"Good thought," Zelda agreed. "I'll check around here. If it's on a ledge, I might be able to see it from up there." She pointed at a pillar in the middle of the village. "You go back to where you were, I'll look from there."
They parted ways, wasting no time. Link quickly crawled through the tunnel again, and noticed a well-trodden path that he hadn't taken before. He followed it a short distance, and around a bend, until he saw a treasure chest sitting on a stump. He checked around him for traps, but found none. Opening the chest carefully, he saw a box inside. It was inscribed with the words, "Technical Machine 10: Hidden Power". Link picked it up, but suddenly had the creeping sensation of being watched run down his neck.
He turned around, but there was nobody around. He took a step off the stump and looked up at the trees. There were no Kokiri, just an elderly-looking Noctowl. That, he thought, was strange; Noctowl was normally nocturnal. It wasn't until it hooted at him in a strange twist of Hyrulean did he realize that this is what was watching him.
"Do you know what you hold, boy?" the owl asked. Link shook his head. "That is a technical machine, a portable move tutor for pokemon. That one in particular is special, as the move it teaches depends on the learner. Used wisely, it is a move of great power. Hoo… the Kokiri hold a stash of them, waiting for worthy trainers to claim one apiece. I advise you to think carefully about using it." At that, the owl flew away, dropping a feather to the ground. Link picked that up too, then went to find Zelda.
