A cold heart may hide a genius mind.
"Frog?"
The sudden scolding caught Froakie off guard.
A moment later irritation flashed across his face as he glared at Snivy.
"Frog!"
You insolent snake!
Unlike many composed swordsmen, Froakie was not particularly patient. After all, this was the Pokemon who had drawn his blade against Ash the very first time they met.
He placed the glowing blade at his waist.
His body lowered slightly.
A classic iaijutsu stance.
Froakie intended to force Snivy into battle.
Of course, he hadn't yet determined whether this opponent was truly strong or merely bluffing.
So he held back a portion of his strength.
If Snivy turned out to be fragile, his strike wouldn't instantly knock her into critical condition.
Once battle mode began, Froakie suppressed every emotion.
His mind became still—like an ancient well without ripples.
All his attention focused on two things.
His blade.
And the Snivy before him.
"Snivy?"
Seeing Froakie's sudden shift in aura, Snivy paused.
Then she examined him more carefully.
Interesting…
She hadn't expected this frog to possess such presence.
But a moment later her expression returned to calm indifference.
"Snivy."
So what if he's strong?
There's no way he could defeat her anyway.
"Frog."
The instant Snivy's expression revealed that tiny trace of contempt—
Froakie's eyes flashed.
An opening.
SHING!
His blade left its sheath in a brilliant flash.
"Frog!"
The strike came instantly.
Though there was only a single sword, Snivy felt as if attacks were coming from every direction.
"Snivy."
But she did not panic.
Instead she stared directly into Froakie's eyes.
Then—
She gave a playful wink.
Ding~
A small heart appeared in her gaze.
In the next instant it turned into a streak of light and shot straight toward Froakie.
"Frog!"
Froakie saw the attack clearly.
The heart projectile was fast—but not beyond his ability to dodge.
If he wanted to evade, he absolutely could.
Yes.
If he wanted to.
The glowing heart approached closer and closer.
Froakie knew logically he should move.
Yet his eyes remained fixed on the light.
It was as if something inside it pulled at his attention.
His body refused to react.
He could only watch helplessly as the light approached—
Closer.
Closer.
Then—
SHINK!
The light pierced directly into his body.
For a brief instant Froakie felt an overwhelming charm emanating from Snivy.
But the next second he slammed his eyes shut and shook his head violently.
When he opened them again—
Clarity returned.
His expression hardened.
Raising his blade, he prepared to finish the strike.
But suddenly—
CRACKLE!
Electric sparks burst across his body.
Froakie staggered.
His sword movement twisted out of form.
Instead of striking Snivy, the blade slammed into the rock beside her.
Meanwhile Froakie dropped to one knee before her.
Froakie was paralyzed!
Snivy calmly extended two slender vines.
The vine whips snapped forward.
SMACK! SMACK!
She slapped Froakie across the face without mercy.
WHOOSH—
Froakie was sent flying off the rock.
He landed heavily in the grass.
"Snivy."
After knocking him away, Snivy didn't pursue.
She simply issued a warning not to bother her again—
Then turned back around and resumed sunbathing.
"Ash!"
Seeing the rare sight of Froakie being beaten, Ash rushed over and picked him up.
"Are you okay?"
"Frog."
Froakie waved dismissively.
Rubbing his stinging cheek, he stared at Snivy with burning intensity.
She's worth cutting.
Just as he prepared to charge again, Ash grabbed him tightly.
"Hey!"
"Frog?"
"Don't bother her anymore," Ash said quickly.
"Can't you tell she doesn't want to fight?"
Froakie paused.
After a moment of thought, he finally calmed down.
A warrior without fighting spirit—no matter how strong—was merely rotten flesh.
Useless for sharpening a blade.
Seeing him relax, Ash sighed with relief.
He quickly pulled out medicine from his backpack and treated the paralysis.
Then Ash looked toward Snivy with confusion.
"What move was that just now?"
"Why did Froakie get paralyzed?"
Serena thought carefully.
"It looked like… Glare?"
"But Glare doesn't normally look like that."
In her memory, Glare relied on intimidating body patterns.
This Snivy had practically thrown a flirtatious wink.
Unable to figure it out, Ash turned to the Pokédex.
He aimed it at Snivy.
The device scanned briefly.
"Snivy's observed moves: Glare and Attract."
"Attract!" Serena exclaimed.
"That opening motion she made—that's the starting gesture for Attract!"
"But Attract doesn't cause paralysis," Ash said slowly.
He thought back to what he had seen.
"Could it be… she combined the two moves?"
Serena blinked.
"Fusion…?"
After thinking about it carefully, she nodded in astonishment.
"That actually makes sense."
"If that's true… this Snivy's talent is incredible."
Combining techniques required extremely high mastery.
Even trained Pokemonrarely achieved that level.
For a wild Pokemonto do it—
Was extraordinary.
Ash immediately turned to Cui.
"Miss Cui, is this Snivy one of the Pokemonrecovering here?"
"Well… sort of," Cui said.
"That child drifted here about ten days ago."
"When I found her she was covered in wounds, lying unconscious on a wooden plank."
"She even had a high fever for two days."
"That serious?" Ash looked at the lively Snivy again.
It was hard to imagine.
"Did she get those injuries from fighting?"
"Probably not."
Cui shook her head.
"Have you heard about the Pokemonsmuggling incident in Vermilion City recently?"
"Pokemonsmuggling?" Ash and Serena exchanged looks.
They had been traveling through forests and mountains for days.
They hadn't heard any outside news.
"What happened?" Ash asked.
"A cargo ship entering Vermilion Harbor exploded one night."
"People saw many Pokemonescaping from the ship."
"When police investigated, they discovered the ship was being used for smuggling Pokémon."
"I don't know many details, but a friend in Vermilion said the harbor was chaotic that night."
"Some people even claimed they saw Team Rocket."
Ash clenched his fists.
"Team Rocket…"
"Those scumbags."
"My guess is this Snivy escaped from that ship," Cui continued.
"The plank she floated on came from the ship's wooden cargo crates."
"I confirmed it with my friend."
"I see…" Ash nodded.
Then he asked,
"If she's that strong, why not ask her to protect this place?"
Cui looked toward Snivy.
"I thought about that too."
"But…"
"That child doesn't belong here."
"Huh?"
"She recovered here, but I can tell she doesn't want to stay."
"It feels like she still has something important to do."
"Sometimes at night I see her staring at the wooden plank she arrived on."
"Maybe someone she cares about was on that ship."
Silence fell over the group.
Finally Ash suddenly shouted—
"Alright!"
He ran straight up to Snivy's rock.
"Ash?" Serena called.
"Snivy?" Snivy glanced down.
Ash cupped his hands around his mouth.
"Snivy! I really like you!"
"Travel with us!"
"I'll help you find your friends!"
"Snivy?"
What nonsense is this human yelling?
Seeing her confused expression, Ash stretched out his hand.
"Will you become my partner?"
"…."
Snivy stared quietly at his outstretched hand.
Then at his sincere face.
For a brief moment something flickered in her eyes.
Then—
She turned her head away immediately.
"Snivy!"
Become your partner?
Who do you think you are?
Move aside. You're blocking my sunlight.
Ash scratched his head awkwardly.
"Guess that didn't work."
"You're dreaming," Cui said, rolling her eyes.
"She doesn't even know you. Why would she join you after a few sentences?"
"Well, it was worth a try."
Ash shrugged.
Then he looked back at Cui.
"Miss Cui, I'm going to help train the Pokemonhere for a couple days."
"We might bother you a little."
"That's fine," Cui said.
"But are you really going to spend time doing that?"
"Of course."
Ash clenched his fist with a grin.
"A place that gives wild Pokemona chance to recover shouldn't disappear."
"And don't worry."
"I know a little about training."
"Snivy?"
Snivy glanced over curiously.
Then Ash suddenly turned toward her again.
"Snivy!"
"For the next couple days—please take care of me!"
"I'll definitely make you my partner!"
"Snivy."
She turned away again without hesitation.
Over the next few days, Ash and Serena stayed at the rehabilitation center.
True to his word, Ash began training the Pokémon.
Early the next morning—
He gathered them all.
"Everyone, watch this!"
BAM!
Ash grabbed Kakuna and smashed a rock with it.
The boulder cracked in half.
Kakuna remained completely unharmed.
The surrounding Pokemonstared with shining eyes.
"Don't think you're weak!"
"With training, you can become as strong as Kakuna!"
Ash raised his arm dramatically.
"Alright everyone!"
"Let's run and sweat together!"
"Yeah!!"
The Pokemonenthusiastically followed him.
Soon they were all running around the lake.
It looked almost like a youth sports festival.
Naturally—
Snivy did not join.
But she quietly observed.
Day 1 — Physical training with Pokémon.
Day 2 — Practicing moves.
Day 3 — Real battle drills.
Unlike other trainers she'd seen, Ash trained with his Pokémon.
He cared about their feelings.
He even prioritized their safety above his own.
Snivy noticed everything.
By the fourth day, training was nearly finished.
Ash and Serena were preparing to continue their journey.
That evening Serena looked at Ash as he returned from the forest.
Seeing the disappointment on his face, she asked,
"Still no luck?"
Ash nodded helplessly.
"Yeah."
"Looks like Snivy and I just don't have that kind of connection."
He had tried inviting her many times.
But they barely exchanged more than a few words.
Without communication, catching her was impossible.
Still, Ash didn't force it.
He admired Snivy.
But if she didn't want to join—
That was her choice.
The next morning arrived quietly.
Ash glanced once more toward Snivy's rock.
Seeing the faint green silhouette, he finally let go of his last hope.
Then he turned to the Pokemonhe had trained.
Their spirits were completely different now.
"Alright everyone!"
Ash shouted energetically.
"Time to test our training results!"
"Let's defeat those invading Pokémon!"
"Yeah!!"
But before they could set out—
A distant wolf howl echoed through the forest.
Then came rapid footsteps.
Soon—
A massive black wolf burst out from the trees.
Behind it ran several gray wolves.
The rehabilitation Pokemonimmediately growled defensively.
The invaders had arrived.
Mightyena and Poochyena.
But something was strange.
Why were they attacking during the day?
Ash narrowed his eyes.
Then—
A voice came from behind the wolves.
"So these are the Pokemonyou want eliminated?"
"They don't look very strong."
At the sound of that voice—
Snivy's head snapped up.
From the bushes stepped a large, muscular man.
And on his chest—
Ash clearly saw the red R emblem.
"…Team Rocket."
🔥 Want to Read Ahead? Unlock 60+ Extra Chapters Right Now!
Support the story and get early access to unreleased chapters on Patreon.
👉 Join here: https://www.patreon.com/pikachu614
⭐ 300 Power Stones = 1 Extra Chapter Release!
Join Patreon and stay far ahead of the story!