"This is… Froakie?"
Misty looks curiously at this light-blue Pokémon.
Overall, it resembles a frog, with big yellow eyes, and white foam on its mouth, back, and neck.
Mist y, who loves Water types, recognizes this Pokémon at a glance; it's the Water-type Froakie.
"Is it Froakie?" Ash looks at this small, adorable Froakie with great interest, and picks up the Pokédex.
"Beep~ Froakie, Water type, Bubble Frog Pokémon
Bubble is emitted from the chest and back, and elastic bubbles are used to block attacks and reduce damage."
"Froakie, the Water-type Pokémon Kalos region is handing out to rookie Trainers, right?"
Brock recalls.
"Yes, I think this matches Ash well; its final evolution is Greninja, a Water/Dark type."
Damian says with a smile.
"I actually really like it; can it spit bubbles too?"
Ash leans forward slightly, pokes the foam on Froakie's back with a finger, and it's very springy.
From the first sight, he really likes this Froakie.
Eye-for-an-eye, or rather a "gut feeling," can't be explained; some people just fall in love with a Pokémon at first sight, even if others don't think the Pokémon has a good shape.
But that's eye-for-an-eye.
Sensing Ash's action, Froakie tilts its head slightly, eyes fixed on Damian.
"Yes, if you like it that much, that's great; and Ash, there's also a very interesting info I need to tell you."
Damian looks at Froakie.
"In the Kalos Region there's a village called Ninja Village; supposedly in the village's history, a hero Greninja once saved the village, and since then the village has carried the hero legend forward."
Damian slowly speaks.
"Amazing!" Ash is very interested.
"If the bond with Pokémon becomes strong enough, your Greninja might also become your hero, Ash. If you're willing to accept this Froakie, I hope you'll treat it well."
Damian hesitates a moment, and still doesn't explicitly tell Ash about Greninja Battle Bond.
Bond phenomena are the special bonds between Ash and his Greninja in the anime.
After Battle Bond, Greninja can evolve into Ash's Greninja.
And this form of Greninja has been officially added to games, with base stats increased by 110 points—10 more than Mega Evolution.
Normally, in-game, there isn't a normal route to obtain Ash's Greninja; to transform, you'd need a Greninja with the Battle Bond ability.
Greninja typically only has Torrent and Transform as abilities.
Greninja with Battle Bond is only given in the Solgaleo/Lunala Special Experience edition by plot.
In this world, will Froakie eventually evolve into Greninja with a strong bond to Ash and transform?
Damian thinks if the person is Ash, it could happen.
After all, when it comes to loving Pokémon and believing in them, Ash has a natural advantage for forming bonds.
"Don't worry, leave it to me! I'll train it well!"
Ash, hearing that, freezes for a moment, then breaks into a big smile, and gives Damian a firm promise.
He senses there's something special in Damian's words, but doesn't quite understand what it is; is this Froakie special?
Anyway, whether or not Damian says it, as long as Ash accepts this Froakie, he'll treat it with care.
Because he truly loves all Pokémon, not to mention the ones he catches himself.
"Great, I'm looking forward to seeing it shine one day."
Damian nods with a smile; yes, he's really looking forward to a battle between Ash and Ash's Greninja against an opponent.
Speaking of which…
Damian suddenly thinks of a point: Mega Evolution, Z-Move, Dynamax, Terastal—all four buff systems.
And Ash can also bond with Greninja via Battle Bond—that's five systems fighting against four systems.
Yeah, that makes sense; in anime, Ash fights with multiple systems.
Moreover, anime has clearly stated the drawbacks of Battle Bond: when Greninja's bond with Ash is damaged, Ash will also feel some pain.
Battle Bond drains Ash's stamina quite a bit.
Compared to Battle Bond, other buff methods don't have such severe drawbacks.
Having handed Froakie to Ash, Damian takes Caitlin and Dawn back to the hotel.
"Froakie is very adorable; it just looks a little dopey."
Ash holds Froakie, attracted more and more, and can't help but grin.
"It's indeed a bit blankly cute; but since it's from Damian, there's no need to worry about its talent."
Brock says with a smile.
"Yes, Damian would never hand you a Pokémon with flaws, and he's really nice to you, Ash."
Misty agrees; she's envious too.
Honestly, she thinks Damian is really good to Ash.
Not only did he give an Ultra Beast, but he knows Ash's Squirtle is now part of Ash's "deficiency," so he immediately gave a Froakie that can be a Water-type great comrade to train.
This is clearly a Pokémon picked out specifically for Ash.
So thoughtful!
"Aha—" Ash scratches his head, a bit embarrassed.
"Earlier I misjudged Damian; but that's okay, I'll help Damian later!"
Ash says firmly; his impression of Damian has completely reversed.
As long as Damian doesn't do something bad next, anyone is fine; he'll stand by him.
Damian is a good person!
Elsewhere.
"You've put a lot of thought into Ash, Damian."
In a hotel suite, Caitlin tilts her head toward Damian.
Dawn isn't rushing to her room either; she sits nearby, holding a cup of milk and curiously watching the two.
This is a habit learned from Caitlin.
Drinking milk is supposedly good for health and development.
"Ash has this potential, and his network isn't ordinary."
Damian pours himself a glass of juice, takes a sip, and smiles.
"Oh?"
Caitlin is curious; if you only talk about potential, Rosa, Hilda, and others also have high potential.
But obviously, Damian hasn't invested so much in them yet.
"Ash comes from Pallet Town, Caitlin; Pallet Town is not simple."
Damian relaxes on the sofa, glancing at the other sofa where Tapu Fini, Jirachi, and Victini—the three seniors—are curiously sizing up the new Marshadow.
Marshadow tries to curl into itself as much as possible; it feels like it's going to melt.
Pressure is intense!
"Pallet Town is the town where Professor Oak lives, right?" Dawn recalls.
Because she worked as an assistant at Professor Rowan's Research Laboratory, she has heard Professor Rowan mention Pallet Town.
"Yes, Ash and Professor Oak have a close relationship; Oak raised Ash, and Ash's mother has a good relationship with Oak."
"Of course, this isn't a major factor; mainly it's Ash's Brother Brother."
Damian nods.
"Oh?"
Caitlin gets the point.
"This generation of Pallet Town is truly amazing: Ash and his twin Brother Red are unbelievably talented Trainers, especially Red; I once crossed paths with him in Celadon City."
"That guy is the most outstanding battle talent I've seen; there aren't many who can match him in the world."
Damian purrs in amazement.
Hearing this, Caitlin and Dawn are surprised; they didn't think Damian would joke like this.
So Red is really that exceptional?
"What kind of mom is that? To have twins this talented?"
Dawn exclaims in adorable astonishment.
This is basically two geniuses.
"Also, besides Red and Ash, Professor Oak's grandson Blue is a monster too; his talent for raising Pokémon is excellent, and his battle strength is strong; a rival to Red."
Damian slowly flexes his right hand, interested.
The only downside is that up to now, he hasn't met Blue yet.
As Red's childhood friend and rival, Blue's trainer talent is self-evident; even in the last Champion clash, Red defeated Blue and claimed the Champion throne, albeit in a crushing victory.
After that Champion clash, Blue restrained his arrogance and became Viridian Gym Leader; his pride was knocked down by Red.
Red, as Kanto Champion, kept growing, eventually reaching Mt. Silver and becoming a Mt. Silver legend.
Blue, also called a "battle legend," obviously didn't keep up with Red's strength.
"What?"
Dawn tilts her head, stunned.
Three monsters? All from the same generation and town?
Isn't that incredible? Yet this era is so grand.
Damian reflects; a few decades rarely yield a "monster," but in this era they're popping up one after another.
Actually, besides Red, there's Green in Pallet Town as well.
Green's training talent isn't as standout as Red's trio, but she's still a monster-level trainer.
That means Pallet Town produced four monsters at once!
Damn, that's the Kanto Region!
"Later there will definitely be a world championship, Caitlin, Dawn; you two mustn't slack off and let others see Team Rocket's strength."
Damian's lips curl; one leg crossed over the other as he speaks with a calm air.
World Championship—the global tournament to crown the strongest Trainer—Damian believes the League will host it someday.
Masters Eight? He envisions Team Rocket's female group taking the top.
~~
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