Right away, the trio headed to the patch of grass Ash had pointed to.
Pushing the grass aside, they found a Geodude, made of large rocks, and a rather silly-looking Mankey fighting over a berry.
"Aww, it's not a Turtwig!" Dawn complained, disappointed that she didn't see the little green turtle she was expecting.
"Hold on, here it comes!"
Just then, Turtwig, with a seedling on its head and a brown shell, appeared. Seeing the two fighting, it came over to try and break them up in a gentle, pleasant manner.
"Man!" "Geodude!"
But neither of them listened. They both punched Turtwig, knocking it back. When talking didn't work, Turtwig changed its style. It used its body to knock out both Mankey and Geodude, forcing them to stop. It then took the berry they were fighting over, split it in half, and gave a piece to each of them, making them reconcile.
"Wow..." Brock was speechless.
"Haha, what a hardcore way to break up a fight. I like it," Ash said, laughing. Turtwig's style was to first talk to them, and if that didn't work, to use physical force. All in all, it was a very reasonable Pokémon.
"This Turtwig seems different from the one at Professor Rowan's lab. I thought all Turtwig were gentle, just like they look," Dawn said, surprised.
"Piplup~" Piplup nodded in agreement, unable to imagine a Turtwig from the lab with this kind of personality.
"It's normal for Pokémon of the same species to have different personalities. It just shows that, like humans, every Pokémon is a unique individual," Ash explained.
"Mhm!" Dawn nodded thoughtfully after hearing Ash's words.
After knocking out the two Pokémon, Turtwig went and found a large pile of fruit and pushed it in front of Mankey and Geodude. Seeing all the fruit, the two quickly forgot their grudge and the beating they just got.
"This personality is actually quite nice, don't you think?" Brock couldn't help but praise Turtwig's actions. It was clear that the seemingly tough Turtwig had won the affection of the three trainers and their two Pokémon.
"It's definitely a Pokémon with a lot of character." Ash's eyes lit up as he watched Turtwig.
"Pika Pi" "Piplup" Pikachu and Piplup both raised their paws in agreement.
"So... are you going to catch this guy, Ash?" Dawn asked, turning to him with wide, light-blue eyes.
"What, you like this little guy too, Dawn?"
Dawn nodded enthusiastically. She liked its personality, too, but after thinking it over, she decided to let Ash have it since he found it first.
"Of course, but you found it first, and its personality fits you better."
Ash smiled at the thoughtful girl, internally agreeing with her. Turtwig's actions, in a way, were very similar to his own personality, so he was determined to catch it. With that thought, he took out a Poké Ball and walked up to Turtwig.
"Turtwig~" Although it was a wild Pokémon, it didn't seem to be afraid of humans. Instead, it boldly stepped in front of Mankey and Geodude, shielding them behind itself.
"What a loyal Pokémon!" Ash felt even more satisfied with it.
"Don't worry, my target is you," he said, walking up to Turtwig and holding out the Poké Ball. "How about a Pokémon battle? If you lose, you have to become my Pokémon!"
"Twig~" Turtwig was a little stunned at first. After it realized what Ash was saying, its eyes filled with a fighting spirit, and it nodded in agreement.
"Then let's battle!"
Ash opened the Poké Ball in his hand and sent out his well-trained Starly. As the first Pokémon he caught in Sinnoh, Starly was not weak. With Pidgeot's training, its strength was more than enough to handle Turtwig. Not to mention, Starly had a type advantage against the Grass-type Turtwig.
"Turtwig~" When Starly appeared, Turtwig didn't say a word. It shook the seedling on its head and sent out Razor Leaf. Five or six green leaves flew towards Starly.
"Starly, dodge and then use Quick Attack!"
"Star~" Starly dodged the Razor Leaf with incredible speed, effortlessly avoiding the attack. It then became a blur and charged towards Turtwig with a Quick Attack. Seeing this, Turtwig immediately retreated into its shell to defend itself. This was a very smart and decisive choice. But since the difference in power was too great, Starly's Quick Attack still hurt Turtwig and even sent it flying.
"Now's our chance! Use Wing Attack!" Starly's wings shone with a white light as it quickly pursued Turtwig. The Turtwig was not to be outdone. It immediately came out of its shell and violently shook its seedling, this time sending out ten sharp leaves at Starly. It was hoping to deal a mutual-destruction blow, but Ash wouldn't let Turtwig get its way so easily.
"Double Team!" Starly immediately created six clones, causing the Razor Leaf to miss its mark and hit one of the clones. The real Starly had already flown to Turtwig and hit it with a Wing Attack, sending Turtwig flying. The blow was so powerful that it instantly knocked Turtwig out without a single struggle. The effectiveness of Wing Attack was clearly impressive.
"Great job, Starly!" Ash held out his hand and let Starly land on his arm.
"Star~" Starly was very proud and rubbed its face against Ash's shoulder.
Ash then went to Turtwig and healed it with a Potion. He also gave it an Oran Berry to restore its stamina, which slowly helped Turtwig regain consciousness.
"So, what do you say? Will you become my Pokémon?" Ash asked, kneeling down and looking at the now-conscious Turtwig.
Turtwig looked around, saw Starly on Ash's shoulder, and immediately remembered being defeated by it. It fell silent. After a few seconds, Turtwig nodded. It wouldn't go back on its promise. Ash quickly took out his Poké Ball and gently tapped the seedling on Turtwig's head. It turned into a red light and was sucked into the Poké Ball. The ball shook a few times before becoming still again.
"I caught Turtwig! We did it, Starly, Pikachu!" Ash said, holding up the Poké Ball and celebrating with his two Pokémon.
"Star!" "Pika, Pikachu!" Starly and Pikachu cheered, and Pikachu even gave a victory sign.
Brock, Dawn, and Piplup all smiled and offered their congratulations.