Pokémon: Dreams Come True Starting in Sinnoh

"Seriously! Why is it like this?! Why is it that when I most hope for an accident, it never happens?!"

Standing at the exit of the Black Gold Gate, looking down at the Black Gold City that seemed to be shrouded in yellow sand, Xiao Guang shouted helplessly to express his feelings at that moment.

"It's really strange... The trip these past two days has gone so smoothly, it doesn't feel like I'm traveling with Ash at all."

"Hey! What do you mean by that?" Xiao Zhi immediately expressed his dissatisfaction with Xiao Gang's evaluation.

Why would someone say that once a trip goes smoothly, it doesn't feel like they're traveling with themselves? This makes it seem like they're the root cause of the travel problems.

"The problem wasn't caused by me at all. Most of the trouble we encountered on our trip was caused by those three idiots from Team Rocket, okay?"

"Hiss, you mean...?"

What Xiaozhi said seemed to make some sense, which prompted Xiaogang to think further.

So that means they haven't run into Team Rocket again recently. Since their last meeting, the trio seems to have given up on capturing Pikachu and disappeared without a trace. While Team Rocket's quietness isn't necessarily a bad thing, Brock is always worried that they might be plotting something big.

"But even if everything goes smoothly, it's still a bit strange that we can't even encounter a single wild Pokémon!"

"Hiss, you mean...?"

Ash also began to think about what Dawn had said.

Although they saw quite a few wild Pokémon on Route 203 on the first day, none of them were Dawn's target. Dawn's goal was to catch a Pokémon in the mountains to strengthen her team. However, when they climbed the mountain, the wild Pokémon seemed to understand Dawn's thoughts and were deliberately going against her, as not a single one appeared in front of them.

Of course, Hwang, unwilling to give up, couldn't just leave like that. So, dragged along by Hwang, they spent another half day searching for wild Pokémon in the mountains. But no matter how hard they searched, they couldn't find a single Pokémon. Helpless, Hwang had no choice but to give up for the time being and followed Ash and the others to the entrance of Ogre City.

"Could something have happened in the wild? For example, a territorial dispute has caused most of the wild Pokémon living here to leave?" Ash guessed.

"I'm afraid not." Brock, who has a lot of knowledge about Rock and Ground-type Pokémon, retorted, "The probability of that is too low. Wild Pokémon living in the mountains and caves are generally different from those living in forests and grasslands. They basically don't have any worries about food. They can survive by eating various minerals. Therefore, there is no need for large-scale battles. Moreover, even if a battle did occur that could affect an area, the nearby newspapers should have published the information to warn pedestrians."

"What exactly happened... I was all ready to recruit new companions."

Xiao Guang sighed, but even Xiao Gang couldn't explain the specific reason. After all, he was only good at studying Rock and Ground-type Pokémon that lived in this environment. He had neither seen it with his own eyes nor heard of similar news, so of course Xiao Gang couldn't figure it out. The question of why the wild Pokémon in the mountains suddenly disappeared could only be left unresolved.

As they descended the stone steps, Ash and his friends took out their handkerchiefs to cover their mouths and noses. At the cave entrance, their attention had been drawn to Dawn's question, and they hadn't noticed what the environment of Black Gold City was like. But once they stepped into the city, they clearly sensed that something was wrong.

"No, I don't remember Black Gold City in the picture looking like this, right? Why is there such a big sandstorm? We shouldn't be in the desert, should we?"

Ash squinted, waving his hand to brush away as much sand as possible as he could while making this comment.

"I do not know."

Xiao Gang was also a little puzzled by this. Although the book did mention that sandstorms occasionally occurred in Black Gold City, there was no record of such a large sandstorm. Could it be that they were just lucky to have encountered some extreme weather?

"Anything is fine! Let's go! Whether it's the Pokémon Center or the Gym, I can't take it anymore..."

Xiao Guang cried out, almost in tears. She was already frustrated enough that she hadn't been able to catch any Pokémon, but she didn't expect that the environment in Black Gold City would make her even more frustrated. She no longer wanted to catch any Pokémon. All she wanted to do now was go indoors and catch her breath.

.......

After finally arriving at the Pokémon Center, Ash and his friends were finally able to breathe properly without worrying about sand getting into their mouths and noses. However, after resting for a while, they noticed that there seemed to be hardly anyone in the Pokémon Center, except for Nurse Joy, who looked worried near the front desk.

Seeing this scene, even the usually carefree Xiao Gang lost his desire to strike up a conversation. The three of them walked side by side to Miss Joey and asked with concern, "Excuse me, what's the situation in Black Gold City right now? Is it experiencing severe weather?"

Xiao Guang said this.

"?! Welcome to the Pokémon Center. Sorry, I was distracted and didn't notice you." Nurse Joy apologized to Ash and the others for noticing that someone had arrived while she was distracted, and then explained, "Actually, I'm not entirely sure what happened here... This strange phenomenon of yellow sandstorms has been appearing in Ogre City for the past two days... The Ogre City Gym Leader and the local ecologists are investigating the cause, but so far they haven't found any evidence."

After Miss Joey finished speaking, she sighed. The extreme weather in Blackgold City over the past two days had become unbearable for many visitors and even local residents. The visitors left Blackgold City directly because of the weather and headed to the next city, while many local residents simply chose to travel and return after the problem here was resolved.

The current weather has made Blackgold City unusually desolate in just one day. If this weather is not stopped, the situation in Blackgold City may get worse and worse. Miss Joey probably understands this, which is why she is so absent-minded during work hours.

.......