Hello all Storm here with a new chapter! Here we'll be seeing Naruto and May heading down Route 111 to reach Lavaridge Town, only for things to not go as planned along with some surprises as well. So, without further ado.
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The next day after getting ready, Naruto and May made sure they'd gotten everything they needed before leaving Mauville City, going down Route 111 to reach Lavaridge Town. Having made sure to get up early, so they could also get some training done after leaving the city.
With the two having found a clearing in the forest to start their training, with Zorua having also begun showing improvements in his personality thanks to the Luxury Ball. As for the training, Naruto and May focused on expanding their Pokémons' respective movesets and unlocking some of their Egg Moves.
Naruto having Zorua work on learning Shadow Ball and Dark Pulse, given how powerful the attacks were when they were attacked by Dusknoir and Gardevoir, along with unlocking Extrasensory. While he had Ralts training to learn Psychic, Psybeam, and Future Sight, as well as unlocking Misty Terrain and Shadow Sneak. Having looked up the moves he didn't recognize, learning Misty Terrain prevented the user from getting Status Effects like paralysis, poison, or getting put to sleep, as well as weakening Dragon-type moves.
Plus, with how Gardevoir used it, Naruto figured it'd also be a good means of ambush in battle as well as cover themselves if they ever need to escape from powerful Pokémon, again. And with Zorua already knowing Shadow Sneak, Naruto also saw it as a good opportunity to help them bond with Zorua helping Ralts unlock Shadow Sneak.
As for May training Torchic, she worked on having Torchic unlock Night Slash and learning some moves she saw performed in the Contest she watched. With ones that really had her attention being Will-O-Wisp, Double Team, Fire Spin, Bounce, and Sunny Day. Having enjoyed not only how they were used in the Contest, but what they could do in battles as well.
They'd continued training until the afternoon, both of them being pleased at the progress they've made, knowing their Pokémon would have a good variety of moves to use. With May also returning Torchic to her Pokéball rather than leave her out. Not wanting to be unfair with Zorua having to remain in his Pokéball for the time being to have it work on him. Before they continued on their way down Route 111, only to learn it wouldn't be as easy reaching Lavaridge as they thought.
Seeing as the majority of the route turned out to be a large desert, outside of the small patch of forest near Mauville City, the further they went. Leading to Naruto and May also changing their clothes to better handle the hot and humid desert, along with being relieved they made sure to stock up on water and everything they'd need. Though it still didn't make traversing the desert any easier.
"I'm starting to wish we just stayed in the forest part of the route and travelled through the desert at night." May muttered before taking a large drink of water, with Naruto doing the same from his own bottle.
"It definitely would've made it easier, with it being cooler at night. But it's too late to turn back now. And I'm sure we'll be reaching Route 112 soon." Said Naruto, since they've already been walking for a few hours now, it'd be better to keep moving.
"Let me check." May said, pulling out her PokéNav to check their current position and how much further it was to Route 112.
"It looks like…the entrance to Route 112 is just a couple more miles ahead of us and we should reach it by the time the sun starts setting. Thankfully, we'll be out of the desert once we get there, since Route 112 is mostly grassland with rocky terrain from the surrounding mountains." Said May in relief, glad that they won't have to spend the night in the desert.
"Great! Then let's ke-woah!" Naruto said, only to stumble when the ground suddenly collapsed underneath them, the brunette letting out a short scream as they fell down a large bowl-shaped pit.
"Are you alright, May?" Naruto asked while trying to stand up, only to have trouble getting a grip on anything, with May sitting up and spitting out sand that got in her mouth.
"Yeah, I'm…I'm fine. Ugh, this is gross! Where'd this hole even come from?!" May said, spitting out sand as they worked to climb out of the pit.
"It might've just formed from the shifting sands or from Pokémon burrowing underground. And if it's the latter, we really need to get out of here since Pokémon that form these pits usually do it to catch prey." Naruto said, causing May to pale slightly before quickly scrambling to climb out of the pit, only for them to hear something bursting out of the sand.
"Trapinch!"
Looking down at the bottom of the hole, Naruto's and May's eyes widened when they saw a Pokémon's head burst up from the sand.
It was an orange, insectoid-looking Pokémon. It has a round body with a white underside and four stumpy legs. It also has a proportionally large head, small black eyes with twinkle-shaped pupils, and a zigzagging mouth.
"It's a Trapinch!" Naruto exclaimed as Trapinch snapped its jaw at them, freaking the two Trainers as they scrambled to escape the pit, relieved when they saw a rock near the edge of it.
The two managing to get close enough to the rock, grabbing onto it and pulling themselves out of the pit before seeing Trapinch crawling out of the ground and beginning moving towards them. Leading to Naruto and May quickly moving back, while pulling out their Pokédexes and scanned Trapinch
"Trapinch, the Ant Pit Pokémon. Trapinch dig cone-shaped holes in desert areas. Its large and powerful jaws are capable of crushing stone."
"I'm really glad we got out of that pit." May stated, paling at learning Trapinch could crush stone with their mouths.
"Yeah, they're definitely tricky Pokémon as you never know where their nests could be in deserts. But they can also grow into really powerful Pokémon too, which is why I'm gonna catch Trapinch!" Said Naruto eagerly, knowing Trapinch's eventually evolve into Vibrava and then Flygon, a strong Ground/Dragon-type.
"Pinch?" Trapinch climbed out of the pit, only to stop when it saw one of the humans standing in front of it.
"Okay, let's go Ralts!" Said Naruto, throwing Ralts' Pokéball, seeing a good chance for her to get some experience in battling in addition to catching a new Pokémon.
"Ralts." Ralts appeared in front of Naruto before seeing Trapinch in front of her, the Feeling Pokémon realizing that it was her first battle with her Trainer.
"Pinch! Tra-pinch!" Trapinch narrowed its eyes, realizing what was happening, before opening its mouth and firing multiple mud balls at Ralts.
"Ralts, use Confusion and send the mud balls back at Trapinch!" Said Naruto, with Ralts' eyes glowing blue with the mud balls gaining a blue outline around.
"Ralts!" Ralts then raised her arms up before throwing them towards Trapinch, the mud balls following the gesture and were sent flying at the Ant Pit Pokémon.
With Trapinch crying out as one of the mud balls impacted its headed, covering its face in mud before the other mud balls began hitting it.
"Trapinch! Tra-Tra-Tra-Trapinch!" Trapinch shook its head to try and get the mud out of its eyes, before it quickly began digging underground to avoid the remaining mud balls.
"Quick use Double Team Ralts, then hide within the copies!" Naruto said, Ralts nodding before her body glowed white as multiple copies of herself appeared, the Emotion Pokémon and her copies shifting to new positions to try and confuse Trapinch.
Looking around for any sign of where Trapinch could be, Naruto and Ralts stayed their ground, waiting to see where it'll appear from. Before the whiskered blonde noticed the sand starting to shift right where Ralts was standing.
"Ralts, get out of the way, quickly!" Said Naruto seeing Trapinch still found where she'd been standing.
"Pinch!" Trapinch shot out of the ground before Ralts could dodge it and slammed into her, with the Ant Pit Pokémon then biting down on Ralts, making her cry out.
"Ralts! Use Disarming Voice now!" Naruto said in worry for his Pokemon.
"Ralts!" Ralts let out a loud shriek and beam of purple hearts right at Trapinch, the Ant Pit Pokémon flinch at being hit point-blank by the attack before releasing Ralts and moved back from the attack.
"Okay, now keep it up and use Growl too!" Naruto said, with Ralts letting out a louder cry along with her Disarming Voice barrage, making Trapinch flinch again as its attack went down.
"Tra!" Trapinch quickly started digging again to escape the loud cries.
"Oh no you don't! Ralts, grab Trapinch with Confusion!" Said Naruto, not wanting Trapinch to escape underground again.
"Ralts!" Ralts' eyes glowed blue before Trapinch froze as it was covered in a blue outline and was flung across the sands.
"Pinch!" Trapinch let out a cry as it hit the ground before its eyes started glowing blue, causing a tornado of sand to form around Ralts.
"Ralts?" Ralts looked around in confusion and worry at the sand swirling around her before crying out as the sand started hitting her.
"Tra-pinch-pinch-pinch-pinch-Trapinch!" Trapinch then began firing more mud balls at Ralts now that she was trapped, the Emotion Pokémon crying out even more as the mud balls collided against her, knocking her to the ground.
"Ralts!" Naruto said in worry at seeing his Pokémon get attacked repeatedly and now way to escape, only to soon get an idea.
"Ralts, use Confusion on yourself!" Yelled Naruto, with Ralts slowly standing up as her eyes glowed blue.
"R-Ralts!" Ralts held her arms up as she was surrounded by a blue outline before flying up into the air, escaping the sand tornado and dodging the remaining mud balls.
"Now use Disarming Voice again!" Naruto said, Ralts instantly letting out a loud shriek and beam of purple hearts that slammed into Trapinch.
"Keep it up and use Hypnosis, now, to put Trapinch to sleep!" Said Naruto.
"Ralts!" Ralts nodded as she kept hitting Trapinch before light blue silhouettes of her eyes shot out towards it, hitting the Ant Pit Pokémon.
"Tr-Tr-Tra-Trapinch…" Trapinch tried fighting off the Hypnosis, only to succumb and fall to asleep, causing Ralts to stop her attack as well.
"Alright! Now go Pokéball!" Naruto said, pulling out a Pokéball and throwing it at Trapinch, the Pokéball bouncing off its head before opening up and sucking Trapinch inside.
Watching the Pokéball shake for a few moments, Naruto grinned when the button flashed red and let out a ping sound.
"Yes! I caught a Trapinch!" Cheered Naruto as he picked up the Pokéball, happy at catching his newest Pokémon.
"Ralts!" Ralts smiled happily at her Trainer, glad to have not only helped him catch a new Pokémon but also winning her first battle.
"Way to go, Naruto! You and Ralts were really great!" May said, smiling at the Uzumaki, happy for him catching a new Pokémon, which Naruto returned.
"Thanks May. And you were amazing, Ralts, you've really gotten stronger and I know you'll keep getting stronger." Naruto said, smiling at May before turning to Ralts, smiling at her and patting the Emotion Pokémon on the head.
"Ralts." Ralts' smile grew before she hugged Naruto's leg, enjoying the affectionate gesture and warmth she felt from his emotions.
Naruto then pulled out his Pokédex and scanned Trapinch's Pokéball to check its stats.
Trapinch
Gender: Male
Ability: Arena Trap
Moves: Sand Tomb, Dig, Laser Focus, Bite, Mud-Slap
Egg Moves (Locked): Signal Beam, Bug Bite, Mud Shot, Gust, Endure
Smiling at seeing Trapinch's moves, Naruto was pleased at getting a powerful new addition to his team.
Returning Ralts to her Pokéball, Naruto and May continued on their way towards Route 112, while hoping they'd still be able to reach it by sundown. Though as they continued walking, they began noticing something in the distance, something that seemed to be heading towards them.
"Uh…Naruto? Is that a…Pokémon or a group of Pokémon?" May asked, narrowing her eyes, seeing whatever it was looked like a giant cloud of dust, with Naruto narrowing his eyes to try and get a better look.
"I don't…think it's Pokémon. That's…a sandstorm!" Said Naruto before his eyes widened at realizing what it really was, the brunette doing the same.
"Is there any place we could take shelter?!" Said May, looking around, hoping to see something they'd be able to hide inside or behind for the sandstorm to pass, only to see nothing but sand around them.
"Looks like we're gonna have to just cover up and try pushing our way through it." Naruto said before opening up his backpack, making May groan before doing the same.
With the two pulling out long hooded cloaks, goggles, and protective masks, having gotten these in the event they were caught in a storm without any shelter. The Uzumaki having learned to always be prepared for any situation, no matter what it was. Something, he passed onto May.
Putting them on, Naruto and May began walking again, though grew tense the closer the sandstorm got to them before it soon hit them. Both Trainers stopping for a moment to regain their balance from the intense winds and sand pelting against them.
"We should just keeping walking forward! Hopefully, we'll come out of the storm on the other side and still go towards Route 112!" Naruto said over the wind, with May nodding in agreement before grabbing his hand in her own.
"Just so we don't end up getting separated!" Said May when Naruto looked at her in confusion, before nodding at her words, since it would be easy for them to lose track of each other.
Knowing what they needed to do, Naruto and May continued walking in what they hope is a straight line out of the storm and on their original path. But as they continued walking, they couldn't help but feel like they were only walking in circles. With it not helping when the two Trainers looked back at their tracks, the sandstorm was quick to cover them up with more sand.
"Can the PokéNav show us how much further it is until we reach the route?!" Naruto asked, looking at May, hoping to get some sense of the direction they were going, as it didn't even feel like they were going in a straight line anymore.
Taking out the PokéNav, May frowned as she opened it up only to see the map was glitching out, unable to get a lock on their current position or where Route 112 was anymore.
"No! The storm must be messing with its signal, I can't see where we are or even if we're still heading in the right direction!" Replied May, causing the Uzumaki to mentally curse.
Before he began looking around for something, anything they could stay close to until the storm passes, or to use as a marker they could use to decide a direction. Only to soon spot what looked like a large structure through the storm.
"Over there!" Naruto said, pointing towards the structure with May looking at it in surprise, not expecting to see something built in the desert.
"What even is that?!" Questioned May, only able to tell whatever it is was very large and tall.
"Whatever it is, it's something at least! And with the size of it, maybe something we'll be able to take shelter inside away from the storm!" Replied Naruto, the brunette nodding in agreement since anything would be better than staying out here.
The two began moving as fast as they could towards the structure, making sure not to let each other go or lose track of it in the sandstorm. With Naruto and May soon getting close enough to see it was actually a large stone tower, confusing them a little at what a tower was doing in the middle of the desert. Though not really caring why, only that it was a potential shelter away from the storm, making them start moving faster to reach it and get inside.
It wasn't long before they soon reached the tower, pushing open the large stone doors and running inside before pushing them close again. The two Trainers sighing in relief as they took off their cloaks, goggles, and masks.
"Thank goodness, I was honestly getting worried we'd be stuck walking through that storm the entire day or end up getting buried in sand." Said May, the whiskered blonde nodding in agreement.
"No kidding, I thought a Pokémon using Sandstorm was bad, but it'd nothing compared to that. At least when a Pokémon uses it, it'll end after a while, that looked like it'd go on for days. It also doesn't help that it gets sand everywhere!" Naruto said in annoyance as he took off his shoes and socks, dumping out all the sand that got inside of them.
"Well, one thing's for sure, at least we know not to take this route ever again! And the next time we see any large amount of sand again, it better be at a beach!" May stated, just as annoyed while shaking out her shoes, socks, and bandanna.
The two even having to move away from each other, removing some of their clothes that they could feel sand had gotten inside, doing their best to get rid of as much of it as they could.
"I can still feel sand where it should never be." May said while patting herself down to remove any remaining sand she could, Naruto doing the same before looking around.
"At least we won't have to worry about it, anymore. But…it's really strange that this place is here, whatever it even is." Said Naruto, looking around a giant entry room they were in, the brunette looking around as well in surprise and amazement.
"Yeah. I wonder why anyone would even build a tower in the middle of nowhere, since I doubt it was built for Trainers to rest in." Replied May, seeing as the tower didn't seem to be in the best condition.
"Maybe it was built before this route became a desert, as for whatever reason it was built, let's be glad it's keeping the storm out." Naruto stated, May nodding in agreement before they began exploring the chamber to see what they could find.
Luckily, they were able to find a few pieces of wood they gathered up, using them to start a fire to get started on making lunch. Along with letting out their Pokémon to eat as well, and to introduce Trapinch to the rest of them.
"Zor?" Zorua looked around the strange chamber his Trainer was in, only to turn his attention towards Trapinch.
"Torchic?" Torchic also looked around the chamber before turning to the newest addition.
"Zorua, Torchic, this is Trapinch, my new Pokémon. Trapinch, you already met Ralts. These are Zorua, my Starter, and Torchic, May's Starter." Naruto introduced.
"Pinch? Trapinch-Trapinch-Tra-Tra-pinch." Trapinch nodded to the other Pokémon, interested in seeing what other kind of Pokémon his new Trainer and his companion had.
"Torchic! Tor-Tor-Tor-chic-chic-Torchic!" Torchic went up to Trapinch, waving at him with her wing, while Zorua slowly approached his Trainers newest Pokémon.
"…Zorua." Zorua nodded at the Ant Pit Pokémon after a few moments before nodding at Ralts, given she's the one Naruto used to catch Trapinch.
"R-Ralts." Ralts hesitantly returned the nod, still nervous around Zorua from their battle, but could also sense the Normal/Ghost-type seemed much calmer in comparison to when they first met.
"Glad to see you're getting along. We also may be here for a while, since there's currently a sandstorm going on outside. Unless you know how to get to Route 112 from here, Trapinch." Said Naruto, looking at Trapinch, wondering if he'd be able to guide them out of the sandstorm.
"Trapinch. Tra-Tra-pinch-Trapinch-pinch-Trapinch." Trapinch shook his head, not knowing how to navigate through sandstorms, usually staying underground whenever one formed, along with having never really traveled far from his nest prior to now.
"That's fine, we'll at least be able to find our way once it clears up." Naruto said as he continued making lunch for all of them.
*Later*
After finishing lunch and eating, Naruto and May had returned their Pokémon to their Pokéballs before they began exploring the tower. Curious to see what exactly they could find inside, if there were any rare Pokémon, either seeking shelter from the storm or that lived here. Or the chance that they may find any treasure inside from whoever built the tower.
"I gotta admit, this place is pretty impressive. But why did it have to be built this big?" Naruto asked, confused with how large the hallways, rooms, and doorways were, as if the tower was built for giants.
"Who knows. Maybe it wasn't built for people, but to be like a home for giant Pokémon! Wouldn't that be a shock, everyone, finding a home built for giant Pokémon!" Said May, making Naruto stop and look at her in confusion at who she meant by "everyone".
Only to see the brunette making a camera lens with her fingers and looking through it, like she was recording something.
"Uh, May? What're you doing?" Questioned Naruto, causing May to turn her "camera" towards him.
"I'm filming the first part of May's Expeditions! Recording all the secrets, mysteries, and adventures the Hoenn Region has to offer! And with me on this journey is my friend, Naruto Uzumaki!" May said, like she was hosting a show, much to Naruto's amusement.
"Well then, maybe this will be better at getting everything." Naruto said before pulling out an actual camera from his backpack, surprising May before grinning when he gave it to her.
"Awesome! This will so much better than just pretending to record everything! But where did you get this, Naruto?" May asked, not thinking he'd have brought a camera with him.
"I got it while we were in Mauville. I figured it would be a good thing to have, should we ever encounter anything worth recording. It's also waterproof, so no worries about it getting wet, either from us going swimming or if its hit by a Water-type attack." Naruto replied, the female Trainer smiling happily as she turned it on.
"Sweet! That means we'll also be able to record anything amazing we may find underwater! Now let's really get started on the first part of May's Expeditions!" Declared May, happy she'll be able to actually record their adventure than just pretend to with her fingers.
The two continued exploring the tower with May now recording everything they came across, along with adding commentary. Before they soon arrived in a giant circular chamber with numerous murals carved and painted into the walls.
"Is it just me, or does this tower seem much bigger on the inside?" Naruto asked, looking around the room and at the murals in amazement, with May nodding in agreement.
"It really does, doesn't it. But check out these murals, it looks like they're telling a story, with it starting here." May said, pointing at what she assumed was the first mural.
Seeing what looked like a giant Pokémon with dozens of people bowing down and worshipping it, Naruto and May being amazed at seeing the Pokémon pulling what looked like continents.
"Is that Pokémon pulling…continents?" May asked in disbelief and amazement, not believing there could be a Pokémon that strong.
"It…looks like that, but maybe it's an exaggeration of how strong it was." Said Naruto, though he wasn't completely sure, knowing there were plenty of legends about Pokémon and what they were capable of.
Moving onto the images, they saw how people worshipped the Pokémon for its power and strength, giving it tributes and offerings. Only for the Pokémon to not seem interested in the offerings, and instead moved around gathering materials for…something. Collecting ice from a mountain, a large amount of rocks, magma from a volcano, electrical energy, and crystalized energy.
"I wonder what a Pokémon would need all that stuff for?" Said May, curious of why a Pokémon would need things like ice, rocks, and magma.
"It looks like it…was building Pokémon with it…Pokémon that look like it." Naruto said in surprise looking at the next mural, seeing the giant Pokémon now standing with five smaller ones that looked similar it.
But they could see how they looked to have been made from the materials the Pokémon gathered, one being made of ice, another made of rocks, a third made from magma that cooled into metal. And the other two being made from solidified electricity and the final one seemed to be made of crystal with what looked like a dragons skull around it. Before Naruto noticed a name seemed to be carved below the image.
"And it looks like whoever made this gave them all names, but I can't really tell what since the writing looks pretty different. Though I can read this, all of them were called…titans." Naruto said, looking at the images in amazement, wondering how powerful they were to be called titans.
"What're they doing, though?" Questioned May with a frown as she turned to look at the next image, making Naruto look only to frown as well.
Seeing how people seemed to be trapping the titans and restraining them, before having them all separated. With the ice, rock, and metal titans being taken to what looked like the Hoenn Region and sealed away in three separate locations.
"Hey, that looks like Route 120, while that's Route 111 and Route 105, you can only cross that one with a boat." Said Naruto, his frown deepening as he was able to guess where the three Pokémon were taken and sealed away.
"Yeah, I see it too. Does that mean there's potentially one of these…titans sealed away on this route? And two others sealed on Routes 120 and 105?" May asked, wondering if there actually Pokémon sealed away in tombs in those routes.
'If that's true, then it would explain what those poachers were looking for.' Naruto thought to himself as he balled his fists, while repressing the shiver of fear down his spine as the obscured image of the poachers' leader flashed into his mind.
Their most noticeable traits that he was able to make out and remember to this day was that they seemed to have greyish-blue hair as well as some kind of gauntlet on their arm.
Before they looked to see the electric titan and crystal titan as well as the original titan being taken away from Hoenn it. The original titan being taken by a much larger group of people than the other two.
"I'm confused. The first couple of murals showed that people worshipped the first Pokémon. But now we're seeing they captured and sealed them all away, taking three of them to different regions while leaving three here, in Hoenn. Why would they go from worshipping them to sealing them away?" May asked, confused as to why they'd seal the Pokémon away like that.
"Fear, maybe. I mean, if that first titan was super strong that people believed it could pull continents around, with it also being capable of creating the other five titans, then they all must've been pretty powerful. Maybe people became scared of their power and sealed them away, maybe the titans were just too powerful to be left alone. It could've also been so no one could try using their power for selfish and evil goals." Said Naruto while frowning, since he didn't really have an answer and could only guess the reason the titans were sealed away.
"Yeah, maybe." May muttered before they continued on their way to explore more of the tower.
Though it soon began getting darker, leading to Naruto pulling out his flashlight so they could see where they were going. Finding themselves only going down several different corridors while finding a few empty rooms along the way, with nothing inside them.
"You know, you'd think we would've found some stairs by now. Since I doubt there's only one floor to this pla-ah!" May said, only to stop and yelp when she felt the ground suddenly shift underneath her.
"You alright May?" Asked Naruto, shining the flashlight on her before moving it down to the ground where she stepped, only to find one of the tiles seemed to sink down into the ground.
"Y-yeah, just wasn't expecting the ground to-" Replied May, before the whiskered blonde suddenly tackled her to the ground, much to her surprise.
"Naruto?! Why did you do that?!" May said, only for Naruto to groan as he rolled off her, letting out a yelp in pain when he land on his back.
"That's why." Naruto said, shining a flashlight at where she was just standing, the brunette paling when she saw a spike trap swung down from the ceiling and would have impaled her if he hadn't gotten her out of the way.
Only for May to notice there was some blood dripping from the tip of the spikes, making her quickly turn towards Naruto just as he was sitting up, seeing some shallow tears in his shirt and red staining it.
"Naruto, you're hurt!" May yelled in horror seeing he was bleeding.
"I-I'm fine, it only really grazed me." Replied Naruto as he went to standup, only for May to stop him.
"You're not fine! There's no telling what could be on those things and you just rolled onto the ground! You need to have those cleaned and bandaged, so they don't get infected." May said before she quickly began looking through her bag for some medical supplies to treat his wounds.
"May, really I'm fine. And it'd be better if kept-" Naruto said, only to be silenced when May covered his mouth.
"Naruto, you got hurt saving me. The least I can do is make sure it doesn't get worse, because they weren't treated properly. So, sit still and let me do this." May said sternly, refusing to let him move without treating his injuries, the Uzumaki sighing before nodding.
"Fine." Said Naruto before pulling up his shirt to let the brunette have better access to his injuries.
Seeing Naruto was right and they were just grazes, May began cleaning the cuts, Naruto flinching a few times from the stinging of the rubbing alcohol. Once they were clean, May began closing them up with butterfly bandages before covering them with gauze, ensuring they wouldn't get infected and can properly heal.
"Um…do you think maybe it'd be better if we stayed here or went back to the entrance? Since what if there are more traps in here." May said once she'd finished cleaning and bandaging Naruto's wounds, worried they may run into even more traps.
"Maybe, since we got lucky that this one seemed like a pretty simple trap. There are likely much more dangerous ones, the further we-" Said Naruto, only for both of them to freeze and shiver when they started hearing groaning and whispering voices around them.
Both Trainers looked around nervously for wherever they could be coming from, but couldn't see anything else around, which only made them more nervous. Even more so, that they seemed to be coming back from the way they came.
"…So…keep going it is, then." Naruto stated, the brunette quickly nodding in agreement, not wanting to head in the direction of the whispering voices.
"Y-yeah, definitely keep going. Though maybe you could also send out Zorua since he should be able to detect traps and deactivate them, which will at least make things a little safer. And Torchic could also help light the way for us." May suggested, figuring with Zorua being an actual Ghost Pokémon, he'd be able to find any more traps and deactivate them.
"Good idea, and it can't hurt to be prepared if there are any Pokémon, here." Replied Naruto before they both released Zorua and Torchic.
"Tor? Torchic-chic-Torchic!" Torchic looked around, wondering why her Trainer sent her out, only to freak out at how dark it was along with the spike trap.
"Zorua…" Zorua also looked around with a wary expression, now feeling something was very wrong with this tower with how much further inside they were.
"Hey Zorua, we need your help. It looks like whoever built this place also put traps inside, and we're hoping that you'll be able to find and deactivate any of them." Said Naruto, looking at his Starter, the Spiteful Fox Pokémon looking at him before nodding.
"Zor." Zorua nodded at his Trainer, knowing it wouldn't be hard for him to locate and deactivate any traps.
"And we're hoping you'll be able to help light the way for us, Torchic." May said to her own Starter, with Torchic looking up at the brunette before looking around the dark corridor.
"T-Torchic." Torchic nodded as well, though still didn't like being in such a dark place since she couldn't see anything.
"Maybe these will help, both with some light and helping us know where we've been." Stated Naruto, shining his flashlight along the walls, seeing there were actually torches lining them.
"Yeah! Torchic use Ember on those Torches." Said May, Torchic nodding before releasing several fireballs at the torches igniting them and illuminating the corridor.
Grabbing one of the torches off the wall, Naruto put his flashlight away so it could be used later if they have nothing else to light the way. Before they continued on their way, with Zorua walking in the front to keep an eye out for any traps.
*Later*
Naruto, May, and their Starters had continued exploring the tower, with them eventually managing to find the stairs leading up to the other floors. Though rather than going up, they decided to continue exploring the bottom floor. Wanting to make sure they'd checked every part of it before going to the upper levels.
With Zorua having succeeded in locating and disabling several traps along the way, though Naruto and May barely managing to avoid traps he couldn't detect or disable.
Though they came to a stop when Zorua suddenly stopped in his tracks, getting Naruto's, May's, and Torchic's attention.
"Is something wrong, Zorua?" Naruto asked, only for Zorua to turn around, glaring and growling at something behind them, making both Trainers tense before quickly turning around, only to be surprised at what they saw.
Seeing two women standing behind them, looking at them in surprise as well.
The first woman had long red hair with spiky bangs on her forehead and kept up in a ponytail, violet eyes, and fair skin. With her wearing a light pink jacket, green shorts, long black thigh high stockings, and rose-pink sandals
With the second woman had long red hair as well with a white headband keeping her bangs back, dark black eyes, and fair skin. Her attire consisted of a purple, sleeveless kimono blouse with yellow trimmings held close by a traditional obi with a long, streaming bow tied to it, mesh armor underneath it and a short white skirt, along with being barefoot.
"Who are you two?" Questioned the second woman, narrowing her eyes at the two Trainers.
"Who are we?! Who are you two?! And where did you come from?!" May said in shock, wondering where these two came from and how they got behind them.
"I asked you first, as neither of you should be here!" Retorted the woman before the first woman put a hand on her shoulder.
"Honoka, it's alright." The woman said before stepping forward and smiled at Naruto and May.
"Please forgive Honoka, we just don't get many…visitors here, so it's strange that both of you are here now. And forgive my manners, my name is Sāra and this Honoka, my loyal vassal. Who are you two?" Sāra asked, looking at them curiously.
"Uh…I'm Naruto Uzumaki and this is May, we're Pokémon Trainers." Introduced Naruto, with May nodding slowly in agreement.
"And these are our Pokémon, Torchic and Zorua." May said, with Torchic looking at Sāra and Honoka nervously at how they appeared out of nowhere, while Zorua kept growling at them.
"It's a pleasure to meet you both, Naruto, May. Now, could you tell us why you two are here?" Said Sāra, Naruto and May turning towards each other, still confused and wary of where they came from.
"Well…we were traveling down Route 111 when a sandstorm hit us and we-" Naruto replied as he turned back towards Sāra and Honoka, only to freeze when he didn't see them anywhere in sight.
The whiskered blonde gave May a quick glance, seeing she was frozen in shock as well.
"T-To-Tor-Torchic…" Torchic moved closer to May, freaking out at how the two women appeared and then vanished.
"Zorua-Zor-Zor-Zorua-rua!" Zorua, though, glared at where they were before looking around for something only he could see or feel.
"M-Ma-May…d-di-did you…did you get that…on the camera?" Naruto asked, freaking out over how Sāra and Honoka both suddenly appeared behind them, but just vanished the moment they looked away.
"Y-ye-yeah." Said May, also freaking out now that they were seeing appearing-and-disappearing people.
Sharing another look, Naruto and May quickly began walking again with Zorua and Torchic following after them, none of them feeling eager to stop moving again.
So, what did you think, good. Yep we see Naruto and May going through the desert of Route 111, after getting some training done with their Pokémon, before they end up getting caught in a sand trap. With it being revealed to be a Trapinch's nest, which they quickly escape from, with Naruto wanting to battle and catch the Trapinch knowing it'd be a powerful new addition to his team, especially once it evolves. With Naruto sending Ralts out to battle Trapinch, managing to win in the end and catch him, before they continue on their way.
Though then we see a sandstorm coming towards them, leading Naruto and May to put on some protective gear and try to make it through the storm. Only to end up getting lost and unable to find where they are in the PokéNav, before taking shelter inside a tower they see through the storm (the Mirage Tower, but with several changes to it). With them then setting up a fire to make lunch for themselves and their Pokémon, along with being curious of who built the tower and why.
Next we see Naruto and May exploring the tower to see what they could find inside, with May doing one of her "May's Expeditions", which she's able to actually record with a camera Naruto got in Mauville. Before we see them find a room with murals carved into the wall depicting a large and powerful Pokémon that created other Pokémon like it (Regigigas and the Legendary titans), before they were sealed away.
Finally we see them continuing to explore the tower, only to discover there are also traps inside, with Naruto saving May from one but ends up being injured much to May's horror before she cleans and bandages it. With them then sending out Zorua and Torchic to help locate any more traps and light the way for them. Only for them to soon encounter two women in the tower who introduce themselves as Sāra and her vassal Honoka. But just as quickly as they appear they soon disappear, freaking Naruto and May before they quickly leave. So, for those that like the story, thanks for your support. For those that don't or at least don't like the direction taken, you're more than welcomed to drop the story. But thanks for giving the story a chance anyway.
Storm out