Recent events had led Brock and May to watch Ash catch several new Pokémon, which made them want to catch some new Pokémon of their own! They were filled with anticipation for this unknown land!
Ash, with Ralts on one shoulder and Pikachu on the other, stepped forward and suggested, "In that case, let's see what we can do!"
They were all Pokémon Trainers, so they could use their Pokémon to try and climb this waterfall!
"I agree!" ＼＼\\٩('ω')و//／／ x2
"Then I'll go first!" Brock said, sending out Lotad! Using a rope and a boost from Lotad's Water Gun, he secured the rope to a tree at the top. As a former Rock-Type Gym Leader, he naturally had a knack for climbing and began to ascend with Lotad.
May (☆_☆) was inspired by Brock and immediately sent out her Silcoon. Using String Shot, Silcoon pulled May right up.
"What about us?" Max didn't have a Pokémon, so he could only rely on Ash.
"Come on out, Noctowl! Use Psychic to lift us up." Ralts was still too small and its psychic powers probably couldn't handle Ash and Max, so Noctowl was their only option.
And just like that, Ash and Max flew right up.
"That's so cool! Is this what teamwork between a Pokémon and a Pokémon Trainer looks like?" May cheered when she saw that everyone had made it past the waterfall.
Ash and the others looked around and found that the river above the waterfall was shrouded in mist with abundant water plants. The environment was beautiful, like a fairy tale!
"I can't believe it looks like this above the waterfall."
"The river here is flowing really slowly." The current was indeed very slow, which was probably why it created such a beautiful scene.
"That's because this is a tributary. The main river over there seems to be flowing very fast," Max said after checking his PokéNav.
Ash and his friends walked forward, and they found that the ground became looser the further they went. They could already feel themselves sinking.
Brock warned them, "Everyone, the soil around here is loose, so be careful!"
"Got it," the three of them nodded.
Ash's group walked out of the misty area, and the view brightened. A group of adorable Pokémon were playing in front of them.
"Look, those are Mudkip!" Max said excitedly, pointing at them.
"Looking at their size, these must be baby Mudkip!" Ash said, judging the Mudkip that were almost half the size of a regular one.
"When I first met Mudkip, I wasn't really a fan, but these baby Mudkip are so cute!" May's opinion had changed, and she was now interested. "This is a great opportunity! I'll catch one! Here I come!"
With that, May happily ran toward the baby Mudkip.
"Wait, May! The Mudkip here might be..." Before Ash could finish, an adult Mudkip leaped out of the grass and sprayed May's face with Water Gun!
[Mudkip]
[Strength: Early Elite-Level]
"Ugh! Mudkip is just naturally my nemesis!" (╥╯﹏╰╥)?
Just then, while the baby Mudkip were playing, one of them accidentally fell into the water. Its small body couldn't climb out, and it was carried away by the current!
"Pika!" Pikachu shouted in alarm.
"Ah! That's the main river up ahead!" Max exclaimed. The water in the main river was very fast, and the baby Mudkip was in danger!
Just as Brock was about to send out Lotad to rescue it, Ash shouted, "Noctowl, use Quick Attack to fly up and Psychic to grab the baby Mudkip!"
The elegant Noctowl quickly approached the baby Mudkip, grabbed it with Psychic, and brought it back to the shore.
"Phew~" Everyone sighed in relief.
Ash walked over and patted the baby Mudkip on the head. "Are you okay, little one?"
"Kip~" The baby Mudkip replied with a happy cry.
The large Mudkip's guard dropped a little when it saw this, but it was still wary of Ash and the others.
Brock then said, "You don't have to be so cautious of us. You used Water Gun on May because you were trying to protect your babies, right?"
"Kip~" The Mudkip thought for a moment and then ran back into the tall grass, disappearing from view!
Ash, holding the baby Mudkip, walked over to Brock and said, "It looks like it's no longer wary of us! Brock, can you check on the baby Mudkip for me?"
"Mhm!" Brock then checked on the baby Mudkip in Ash's arms and found that it wasn't hurt, which was a great relief.
Just then, an old man with a hairstyle that resembled a Mudkip's fin walked out of the grass.
"Ah~ The Mudkip Elder... The person who has appeared before the May Exploration Team might be the legendary Mudkip Elder that has grown wise with age!" May was startled, but she didn't forget her job as the commentator.
"That's not possible, big sister, honestly!" (￢_￢) Max rolled his eyes.
"Who are you calling old?!" (╬?д?)? The old man was furious.
"Ah! It can talk!" May was completely oblivious.
Everyone else (????)
"You were trying to steal the Mudkip that I've been taking such good care of! That's unforgivable!"
Ash realized the misunderstanding and quickly explained, "That's not it! We did that to save the baby Mudkip."
The baby Mudkip in Ash's arms also said, "Kip~"
"Oh! Is that so! In that case, I'm terribly sorry." The old man quickly apologized.
"I'm Ash from Pallet Town. Nice to meet you!"
"Hi, I'm May."
"My name is Max. Please take care of us!"
"My name is Brock."
"I'm the person who raises Mudkip in this swamp. My name is Numata. You can just call me Grandpa Numata," Numata said, then questioned them. "This area is off-limits. Didn't you see the barrier at the entrance to the swamp?"
"Well, Grandpa Numata, we're not going to lie. We came this way for our Pokémon training, so we climbed up the waterfall," Brock explained.
"You're kidding me! You climbed over that waterfall?!" Grandpa Numata said in shock.
"We're sorry! We didn't know this area was off-limits," Ash and the others quickly apologized. "Pika" "Ralts"
"It's fine, no problem. Since you saved one of my Mudkip, why don't you have some tea before you go?" Grandpa Numata invited Ash and his friends to his home.
"Thank you, Grandpa Numata!" x4
Ash and his friends then followed Grandpa Numata to a small wooden hut.
May looked at the hut and asked, "Is this your house, Grandpa Numata?"
"You could say that. This is a little hut I built to take care of the baby Mudkip," Grandpa Numata explained.
Max immediately noticed an incubator with several Pokémon Eggs that were mostly blue with orange spots.
"Ah! Those are all Mudkip Eggs, aren't they?!" Starter Pokémon are given to new Trainers, but in the wild, they're actually very rare. The final evolution of each starter has great base stats and can be raised as a main Pokémon. Only Ash, with his incredible protagonist luck, manages to encounter starter Pokémon in the wild in every region.
"Yes, they are," Grandpa Numata nodded.
May and Max ran to the incubator and carefully examined the Mudkip Eggs.
"This is my first time seeing a Mudkip Egg!"
"A huge discovery for the Exploration Team!" May was still excitedly commentating.
"But where do these eggs come from?" Brock asked, confused.
"My wife always tells me not to be a gossip, but I just can't help myself!" Grandpa Numata suddenly got excited and asked Ash and the others, "Have you ever wondered why a Pokémon Trainer's first three Pokémon are all raised to the same level?"
"I have," Brock was the first to answer.
"I don't think I have," May answered next.
Ash remained silent!
"Oh, come on, big sister! That's a question every Pokémon Trainer thinks about at least once!" Max teased his sister.
"Really?!"
"Let me tell you, it's because there are people like me who are commissioned by the Pokémon League to specialize in hatching eggs!" Grandpa Numata gave them the answer.
"I see! So that's how it is," Brock said, understanding.
"So that means Professor Birch is one of them, too!" May asked.
"Professor Birch catches and raises his own Pokémon," Grandpa Numata shook his head.
"Oh, so there are all kinds of people, huh? It seems like most of them are Pokémon Breeders!" Max said with a sigh.
"Yeah, but it's a little different from what I thought my goal would be," Brock said, frowning in thought.
"Oh? You want to be a Pokémon Breeder, Brock? Then would you like to see a Mudkip hatch?" Grandpa Numata invited.
"Really?! Thank you, Grandpa Numata!" Everyone was overjoyed and quickly thanked him. ヾ(≧∇≦谢谢≧∇≦)ノ
To be continued...