In the interest of not wasting resources, Aoki considered using the Pokeball to capture the Bronzor, thinking that even if it wasn't used in battle, it could still be kept as a decorative antique at home.
As for his subordinates—
There was no way they could control a Pokemon of this level now. Their current limit was the elite level.
But when Aoki threw the Pokeball at the Bronzor, it failed to capture it. The Pokeball simply bounced off as if it were empty, completely unresponsive.
Aoki was startled.
Soon, the Unown explained the reason—Pokemon on this island could not be captured.
This left Aoki speechless.
After defeating a powerful and unique-looking Pokemon, he still couldn't catch it. The main purpose of coming to this island had been thwarted, leaving Aoki feeling somewhat lost.
But there was no other choice. If it couldn't be captured, Aoki had no choice but to leave the Bronzor behind. The thing was heavier than Larvitar, and Aoki had no interest in carrying it around.
Florges provided treatment to both Slowking and Drapion.
Just one battle against a single Pokemon had left them feeling pressured.
But there was an upside—pressure could push Pokemon to grow stronger, and it might even help Drapion break through to the pseudo-champion level.
With lingering curiosity about the island, Aoki pressed onward.
However, the restrictions here were severe. Only three Pokemon could be summoned for battle—perhaps because the three Spirits represented three Pokemon, thus limiting others?
Storage devices didn't work, meaning many of Aoki's recovery items, medicines, and even PokeBlocks couldn't be accessed.
Worse still, there was no way to obtain food or drinking water.
The Pokemon on this island were also surprisingly strong. Aoki felt as if he had returned to the trial island from his early days—no food, no items, no potions.
He was starting from scratch.
But this time, he didn't have the help of his system, nor could he craft PokeBlocks with makeshift tools.
So his first priority was finding a water source, securing a safe location, and setting up a basic camp.
From there, he could explore the surrounding area.
The key difference from his early trial island experience was that Aoki now had multiple strong, well-trained Pokemon, which gave him the confidence to venture deeper.
As for leaving—
An untouched island like this was rare. Aoki wanted to learn as much as possible. Who knew if he'd ever get another chance?
What if the Unown couldn't find the way back?
With Drapion and Slowking slowly recovering, they continued forward. Fortunately, Aoki had Florges, who could heal injuries and treat minor wounds. Without her, just the battle with Bronzor would have forced him to retreat.
Luck soon turned in his favor.
Not far from where he had fought Bronzor, Aoki heard running water. Following the sound, he found a small lake.
Forest lakes like this were usually the primary water source for wild Pokemon, so Aoki had to be cautious. If he encountered territorial Pokemon, they might attack on sight.
Even a normally docile Pokemon like Bronzor had attacked immediately.
Fortunately, as Aoki approached the lake, an Altaria was just leaving, having not noticed him.
Aoki spotted a massive tree nearby.
The Unown's Secret Power had no effect here—they were in a separate space. How could they create another subspace within a tree in an already isolated dimension?
Luckily, the tree was large enough to shelter Aoki and his Pokemon.
Drapion swiftly sliced off a section of bark, hollowed out the trunk, and fashioned a crude but functional treehouse.
Aoki then sent Slowking to fetch water with its Psychic powers.
Without pots or pans, Drapion improvised—
Using its claws, it split a thick branch into sections, hollowed them out, and turned them into makeshift bowls and basins. Since they were fresh wood, hygiene wasn't an issue.
For boiling water and cooking, they simply found sturdy rocks and carved them into crude pots.
Drapion handled all of it.
After some effort, basic survival tools were ready.
Florges lined the inside of the tree hollow with leaves and petals—an easy task for her Grass-type abilities.
The water was treated carefully.
While Slowking and the others could drink directly from the lake, Aoki couldn't risk it. Untreated water could contain harmful bacteria, and without medicine, falling ill here would be disastrous.
Once shelter and water were secured, Aoki reattached the bark, and Florges used her Grass energy to seamlessly seal it, making it nearly invisible to wild Pokemon.
Once again, Aoki was living like a survivalist.
The challenge excited both him and his Pokemon.
In ordinary forests, training lacked intensity—either the opponents were too weak to pose a threat, or they were evenly matched but outnumbered.
Here, even Slowking felt genuine pressure.
Drapion, meanwhile, was thrilled.
Its pincers twitched eagerly—it had found the kind of battles it craved.
And then—
After only a few steps, Aoki encountered another powerful Pokemon.
One he recognized—a Pokemon that could enhance Psychic abilities.
A seemingly simple, dopey-looking creature with sly eyes.
A Grumpig.
But this wasn't just any Grumpig—this one was level 58, stronger than the Bronzor from earlier.
The battle began the instant it spotted them.
No hesitation. No negotiation.