Dark Cloud/Matataki

Enter Village
When you first enter the village you spot a strange looking boy who quickly disappears into a passage.

The layout here is a bit confusing at first. The entrance to the north. To the left as you enter, on the east side, is an arch with a section of river through it. This leads to a waterfall where you can start fishing right away if you wish. Opposite the entrance is the passage where the strange boy went. To the right near the west wall is the aptly named Peanut Pond and next to it a gate leading to the dungeon for this village, the Wise Owl Forest. The pond is dry at the moment so you can't fish there yet. To the south of this is another section of river going into a second passage. Enter this first.

You see a very large tree next to the dry riverbed. Approach and the Fairy King appears to explain what's going on. The tree is Treant, a Tree Fairy, but his water supply has been cut off and he can't speak without it. You must reconnect the river so Treant can get water; in return Treant will help you with your quest. The Fairy King says that you can restore this village by releasing the Atla in Wise Owl Forest. He then opens the gate for you.

Meeting Goro
It's optional for now, but you may want to find the strange looking boy spotted earlier. Follow him into the passage with the large boulder next to it, across from the village entrance. You enter a wooded area with a treehouse in the middle. Approach the ladder to start a dialog. The strange boy drops down and accuses you of working for the Dark Genie, Then a dual begins, this is the third dual in the game.

There are two schools of thought on this dual. One says you should intentionally lose because then you can enter the treehouse and collect any treasure that appears there. (Actually, this dual is more difficult that the previous ones so it's easy to lose without intending to.) The other school says to give it your best shot since the treasure will be there later and you may get a prize for winning. If you win the dual, the boy disappears into his treehouse, but not before telling his name. You can change his name from the default, Goro, here. You also get the Hunter's Earring which will allow you to talk to Treant if you can ever get his water supply connected again. Once you win the dual, Goro will stand guard at the ladder and you won't be able to enter the treehouse until he joins your party. If you lose and want to try again, just exit, come back, and approach the ladder; Goro will gladly administer as many beatings as you're willing to take.

Wise Owl Forest
Enter the forest through the gate next to Peanut Pond. The gate at the village entrance is very similar looking but it's just a minor annoyance if you go through the wrong one.

The level keys work a bit differently in this dungeon than in the others. Instead of just one key like Dran's Crest, there are three possible keys, Pointy Chestnut, Red Berry and Shiny Stone. One of them, there's no telling which, will be accepted by the Wise Owl who guards the entrance to the next level. You can either collect all three and take them to the owl all at once, or you can take each one when you find it since you don't need all three if you already have the right one. Mustache Keys take the place of Bone keys here, and Sun Dews take the place of Tram Oils.