The next morning, both Selene and Kukui woke up quite early and head towards the harbor where a small yacht was already waiting for them to sail. The sun had barely risen and the dark hues in the sky began disappearing because of light. Below that sunrise sky, the yacht began its journey towards Poni Island.

It was the first time that Selene sailed on open sea. While she could enjoy the salty breeze whenever she went to the beach, having it caressing her face while sailing was on a whole new level. Even when the sun was already up and it was usually hot in the islands, it was still refreshing out there. The girl let her rest on the handrail in the prow of the yacht and glanced the infinite sea. A group of Wingulls flew over her and, at some distance, she seemed to see some Wailmers shaking playfully together. She began to understand a bit why Lana liked the sea so much.

After a couple of hours, the yacht finally arrived at its destination: Seafolk Village. It was a small town, if it could be called “town” as it was mostly build on top of the coast water, the buildings floating along with wooden roads and harbors. The professor didn’t lie about the wilderness of that island: there were a few people living at that place and they all seemed to make a living thanks to the sea, whether fishing or looking for things undersea. Selene found the place cozy, although she wasn’t sure how she could live in such a place. Once both she and the professor stepped down the boat, someone called them from afar.

“Alola, Professor! You sure came fast. As they say, ‘Early Pikipek gets the Grubbin’, right?”.

When Selene turned around, she saw who seemed to be a short child girl. She was quite tanned, with a black curly mane covered with a purple hat that matched her big purple ribbon on her neck. She wore a light brown working outfit and black boots, both of them stained with mud. That girl was waving her hand at them and smiling. Selene was a bit shocked, but the professor replied to her with naturalness.

“Alola, Hapu! Long time no see ya!”, greeted Kukui.

When Selene heard that name, she was shocked. That girl in front of her, the Kahuna of the island? Was she even a girl to begin with? Even though she tried to hide her surprise, Hapu could notice her confusion and smiled.

“Hah, you sure expected someone older, right?”, asked Hapu with a joking tone.

“Oh, well! Yes, I mean, no, I mean… I’m sorry!”, apologized Selene nervously, making Hapu laugh.

“Don’t worry, it’s fine. I may look short, but I’m old enough to get my hands dirty in the fields. And yeah, I may not look like a Kahuna, I’ve been recently appointed, but I can handle this!”, asserted Hapu with confidence. Then, she looked at the professor and said: “I guess this is her”.

“Oh, right! Let me introduce you”, said Kukui. “This is Selene, I’m taking care of her for now. And well, as you already see, Selene, this is the Kahuna Hapu”.

After saying that, Selene bowed shyly, still nervous about the confusing introduction. Hapu waved her hand at her as a response.

“Yeah, I’ve heard about you. I helped the police looking for something about you, but there were no clues around Poni Island. Sorry”, explained Hapu.

“No, please, don’t worry!”, exclaimed Selene. “Thank you so much for helping me”.

Even after the initial confusion, Selene could feel that Hapu was quite kind and she felt grateful for meeting someone else that tried to help her.

After their introduction, the whole group took their belongings and began their journey to Hapu’s house, which was located in an area called Poni Plains. Even though the town was quite humble and rustic, that didn’t prepare Selene for the sights she was going to find out just as they left the town.

“Woaaaaaaaaaah”.

The girl couldn’t help but exclaim in amaze at the huge landscape that spread in front of her. Being used to the big city and the small trails that led to nature in Mele-Mele Island, nature extended at that place without nothing to stop it. Grass, trees and big rocks were all mixed together without making any sense, but the area was open enough for Pokémon to run around freely. After contemplating that sight by herself, Selene was more excited for their adventure ahead.

The group walked around half an hour until they could see a small cabin in the distance. Once closer, Selene could appreciate its rustic appearance, truly fitting the wild atmosphere of the island. The walls were all made of big sturdy logs, so heavy that only a Pokémon could lift them and, at the same time, only a strong Pokémon could take that building down. Still, even from the outside, she could feel its coziness, a small place to live alongside nature. Next to it, there was a small field with little sprouts. Picking her curiosity, the girl walked towards the field, crouched and stared at them in silence. The sprouts were still small, but they already had a few leaves with vivid colors.

“They look nice, right?”.

Hapu asked Selene that question as she approached her. The girl could feel an aura of pride from the Kahuna, the one responsible for taking care of them.

“What are these”, asked Selene.

“You can’t tell? I can’t blame you, you probably don’t know about farming”, commented Hapu with a slight tone of deception before beginning her explanation. “These are Poni radishes, a specialty of the island. They are reaaaaaally long and a bit spicy, but they go so well with so many dishes. I’m sure you have already tasted them even if you don’t know, but don’t worry, I will prepare a dish for you later!”.

Once inside the cabin, Selene confirmed her suspicions: the place was comfortable while simple in design. The table, the stools and all the furniture were made of wood and even the stove was old-fashioned. There was a chimney, something Selene found curious given how hot Alola was. A small bed and a wardrobe were discreetly placed in one corner, as if they were trying not to catch the attention from the visitors. Funnily enough, Hapu didn’t seem to have any appliances, meaning she truly lived the wild way. Kukui left out a giggle and said:

“This place hasn’t changed at all!”

“Hey, if it ain’t broken, don’t fix it!”, exclaimed Hapu with a smile, making Kukui laugh.

“Sure thing! OK, what’s the plan? Are we camping outside?”, asked Kukui.

“I don’t think we’ll need that. Plains Grotto is not that far and the pack usually goes to sleep at night”, explained Hapu. “We’ll be back by night. You can rest here or at the Pokémon Center, you choose. I will prepare some things before leaving”.

Selene remained silent while Hapu looked around the shelves and prepared things like gloves and what seemed to be natural medicines. However, the girl was already thinking about the Pokémon they were going to observe… and that’s when she realized something.

“Hey, Professor. What Pokémon are we looking for?”, asked Selene naturally. Hearing that question, Kukui opened his eyes in shock, dumbfounded at the situation.

“Right, I haven’t told ya! Sorry, we’ve been so busy these days that I forgot”, apologized Kukui.

Then, he picked out his phone from the bag, searched something and then showed it to Selene. On the screen, a picture of a grey Pokémon displayed in front of the girl’s eyes. It seemed tiny, with sturdy black claws and a short tail. Its body was covered with small scales while a big heart-shaped yellow scale crowned its head.

“This is the Pokémon we are researching: a Jangmo-o”, asserted Kukui.

Selene kept looking at the picture for a while. Somehow, it rang a bell.

“I think I’ve read about them in one of your books”, commented Selene. “They are Dragon-type, right? I didn’t know they were that rare”.

“They only live in Poni Island, but they are not rare per se. Still, we are looking for one specific Jangmo-o”, added Kukui.

“Specific? Is it special?”, asked Selene innocently.

Hearing that question, Kukui hummed doubtfully. Hapu, that was still preparing herself a bit far from them, seemed to hear the conversation, because she was humming as well. Both of them looked at each other, no finding the right words. Instead, Kukui said:

“Let’s say it’s… a different kind of Jangmo-o. I’ll explain it better once we find it, got it?”, said Kukui smiling.

Still not fully understanding what the Professor meant, Selene decided to trust him and wait to see with her own eyes what made that Jangmo-o so different. She knew it wouldn’t take long: when Hapu finished her preparations, the whole group set on their research goal.

According to what Hapu and Kukui explained to Selene, Plains Grotto was a special area mostly inhabited by different packs of Jangmo-o and its evolutions, Hakamo-o and Kommo-o. The area, as the girl began seeing from afar, was a group of caves that dig deep into the mountain of the island, quite close to the vast plains and the more forestry areas. Even though the access was easy, it was an area most people tried to avoid: these Pokémon were strong and wouldn’t hesitate to fight if they felt in danger. That was one of the reasons Hapu accompanied Kukui and Selene: as Kahuna, she was somehow recognized by those Pokémon as an “authority figure” and knew not to meddle with her. Still, the group decided not to get too close to the caves and instead, they walked through the bushes and few trees that set the limit to the forest, hiding their presence as much as possible.

As they kept walking through the area, Selene observed the Pokémon that formed the packs. She had never seen those species that close before and she didn’t know when the next chance would happen. Even from afar, she could perceive the strength and majesty of Kommo-o, with their hundreds of golden scales surrounding their heads like some kind of tribal hood, their body looking like an armor. As those creatures swayed their tails around, she could hear some tinkling, an aspect they revered so much. The middle ones, Hakamo-o, enjoyed their newfound strength in their arms to handle carrying rocks and logs around or training with each other. And then, the younger ones, Jangmo-o, played around innocently, with some of them playing tag or jumping around while others built what seemed to be nests. Contemplating all those behaviors, Selene understood actually watching Pokémon in the wild was far better than reading books. Was that what the Professor felt every time he worked on the field? She thought that was actually fun.

“It’s around the corner. We can hide behind those bushes”.

Hapu announced their destination to the group, bringing Selene back from her thoughts. After a few more minutes of walking, the group arrived to the round entrance of a cave, big enough to contain several houses the size of Kukui’s. They sat down on the ground and observed the cave, but there was nothing there. Hapu explained they would be inside yet and they had to wait a bit for them to come out, so they all took that chance to eat their lunches. The professor made sure to pack some sandwiches, given how early they had to prepare for their trip. They were not bad, but they couldn’t compete with the homemade lunch Hapu prepared, which Selene could try a bit. A spicy rush in her tongue was proof for her that it had Poni radishes, just as Hapu said earlier. Even though she didn’t like spicy food that much, the girl admitted she liked that dish. They kept enjoying their lunches when:

“Look! They’re coming out!”

Kukui, who had been checking the cave occasionally with some binoculars, alerted Hapu and Selene in low voice, making the two girls crawl closer to the bushes. Within seconds, a big amount of Pokémon were at the entrance of the cave and, from what Selene observed at first sight, there wasn’t any difference from what she saw at the other packs. They were all playing and doing their usual things. The girl tried to look among the younger Pokémon, but she didn’t perceive anything strange. The professor felt the same way and said:

“I don’t see anything”.

“Wait a second, it should be around…”, said Hapu while examining the pack. Then, she exclaimed: “There it is!”.