"Look! It's a Treecko! Is this a Treecko forest?" Max pointed to the group of Treecko and yelled excitedly. Max really likes Treecko, which has gotten him pecked by Torchic more than a few times.
"Alright! A surprise find! That Treecko is mine!" With that, Ash ran after them.
"Hey, Ash, wait for us!" Ash, using his Aura, darted through the forest, while May and the others desperately tried to follow. Eventually, they lost him.
"I can't do it, let's take a break!" May said, out of breath.
"Okay." Brock saw that Ash and the Treecko were gone and agreed.
The three of them rested where they were.
Meanwhile, Ash, chasing the Treecko, came to a giant sinkhole. He slid down the slope and saw a giant tree at the center of the pit, with almost no life left in it!
Whoosh! Ash took a few steps back. A branch had landed right where he had been standing.
Ash looked up, and his eyes lit up. He saw a Treecko holding a branch in its mouth, standing on the branch and looking down at him.
[Treecko]
[Type: Grass]
[Ability: Overgrow (When HP is less than 1/3, Grass-type moves are powered up by 1.5x)]
[Strength: Early Elite-Level]
[Moves: Quick Attack, Pound, Leer]
[Terastal Type: Grass]
This Treecko is pretty strong, but for an Elite-level Pokémon, all its moves are basic ones. And for a Grass-type, it doesn't even have a single Grass-type move! That's ridiculous! Ash also knew that this was the "Hoenn's No.1" who would one day fight a Darkrai.
"Treecko, I'm going to catch you!" Ash said, pointing at the Treecko. "Pika~"
"Cha!" Treecko jumped down, ready for battle!
Just then, a group of Treecko rushed in, and an elderly Treecko came forward.
The young Treecko and the old Treecko began to argue.
In the end, the young Treecko left alone, and the other Treecko dispersed. "Pika~" (?) Pikachu looked confused.
"Let's wait here for a bit, Pikachu!" As someone who knew the story, Ash knew exactly what the Treecko was going to do.
Soon after, just as expected, the Treecko came back dragging a giant leaf filled with water. It carefully poured the water into the dead tree. It knew the giant tree was almost impossible to save, and the other Treecko were right, but it just didn't want to give up on the tree.
"Treecko, we'll help you!" "Pika~"
"Cha!" After Ash and Pikachu's encouragement, Treecko agreed.
"Come out, everyone!"
And so, they all helped Treecko water the tree. Suddenly, there was a loud bang, and Team Rocket began capturing the Treecko. Then, they took off in their hot air balloon.
"It's you guys, Team Rocket, again!"
"Since you asked so nicely… (Team Rocket's motto)
"Haha! Twerp, we won't take your Pikachu this time, but we'll take these Treecko!"
"That's right!"
"Don't even think about it! Go, Taillow! Show me what you've learned! Steel…"
"Cha!" Treecko stopped Ash. Ash looked at Treecko's eyes. "Alright! Go, Treecko!"
"Hmph! Come out, Cacnea!" Cacnea came out and immediately turned to lunge at James. "Ah! That hurts! Over there, Cacnea, use Pin Missile!"
[Cacnea]
[Type: Grass]
[Ability: Sand Veil (Increases evasion in a sandstorm)]
[Strength: Mid-Elite-Level]
"Oh?! A new member! Treecko, use Quick Attack and get on the balloon!" "Cha!" Treecko didn't hesitate and rushed forward, dodging the Pin Missiles.
"Dodging won't help! Cacnea, another Pin Missile!" "Wait, Meowth!" Meowth reacted too late! The hot air balloon was punctured.
"Treecko, feel the Grass-type energy inside you, and form it into a leaf. Go, Leafage!" With Ash's help, Treecko closed its eyes to concentrate. It finally formed leaves and cut the ropes, rescuing the Treecko.
"This feels so bad!" x3 "Wobbuffet! (?)~"
With the help of Ash and Pikachu, Treecko and the other Treecko reconciled! Just then, a crack started at the bottom of the giant tree and shot up to the top, splitting it in half.
"Cha!" Treecko stood frozen in disbelief.
"Pika~" (?)?
The Treecko pushed against the giant tree on both sides, trying to push it back together. They knew it was impossible, but they still wanted to do their part.
At that moment, the sun rose and shone on them. Before their eyes, they saw the process of the tree growing from a seed into a giant tree, and how that giant tree nurtured the forest.
"Wow! This tree was the mother tree of the entire forest! That's amazing!" Ash exclaimed. He then comforted Treecko. "Treecko, don't be sad. Even though the giant tree fell, the entire forest is its child. It's always here."
"Pika~"
When the sun had completely risen, the giant tree fully split apart, leaving behind only a single seed.
"Here, Treecko. This is the giant tree's gift to you to thank you for your help. This should be a Miracle Seed, which can increase the power of your Grass-type moves." Ash picked up the seed, looked at it, and handed it to Treecko.
"Cha!" Treecko took the seed and placed it on its chest.
"Let's go, Treecko! Let's finish the battle we started!" "Pika~"
"Cha~" Treecko nodded.
"Alright, go! Phanpy!"
Treecko charged forward, glowing white. "Phanpy, meet it with Iron Head!" The two collided and were pushed back.
"Cha!" Treecko formed leaves and attacked Phanpy.
"Phanpy, use Protect and then Rollout!"
"Cha!" Treecko was hit by Rollout!
Then, Treecko attacked with its tail. "Alright! Let's end this! Phanpy, Take Down!"
Wham! "Cha!" Treecko was sent flying!
"Pao Pao~" Phanpy evolved to Elite-level!
"That's awesome, Phanpy!" Ash first congratulated Phanpy, then said to Treecko, "What do you say, Treecko? Do you want to become my partner?"
"Cha~" Treecko was hesitant.
"Cha~" Just then, the old Treecko came over, and the two had a short conversation. Finally, Treecko made up its mind and accepted Ash's invitation.
"This is great! Welcome to the team, Treecko!" (?'?`?) Although Ash knew Treecko would agree, it was still exciting when Treecko personally agreed. That's the magic of catching a Pokémon.
Ash threw a Poké Ball. Soon after, it made a ding~ sound, and the capture was successful.
"Alright! I caught a Treecko!" "Pika" "Pao Pao"
"Ash!" Brock and the others heard the commotion and quickly came over, but they were too late and only saw Ash's successful capture.
"Pidgeot, go back to Professor Oak's lab for now! I'll swap you back in when we get to Rustboro City for the Gym battle." Ash discussed this with Pidgeot.
"Pi~" Pidgeot agreed.
Ash's team was now full, so he had to send one Pokémon back. His other Pokémon were all new and needed training, and he still needed to build a bond with Tyranitar, so Ash decided to send Pidgeot back.
And so, with the new addition of Treecko, Ash and his friends continued their journey toward Rustboro City.
To be continued...