Mark was genuinely thrilled to have caught Feebas. True, it was ugly and weak for now, but with proper training, it had the potential to shine brilliantly in the future. Using his system, Mark quickly checked Feebas's data.
Feebas – Female, Fish Pokémon, Water-type, Ability: Swift Swim, Nature: Calm (+Sp. Def, -Physical Atk), Height: 0.6 m, Weight: 7.4 kg, Aptitude: Rare, Potential: Elite Trainer-level, Current Strength: Novice Pokémon, Moves: Tackle, Headbutt, Dragon Breath.
Dragon Breath! What a delightful surprise! A move that Feebas could only learn through inheritance — excellent aptitude indeed. Misty, standing nearby, was speechless. She couldn't understand why Mark was so happy about such an ugly Pokémon.
Soon, they arrived at the doors of the Pokémon Center. Officer Jenny had likely returned to duty elsewhere. Upon entering, they saw Ash speaking to someone at a large screen. Looks like they arrived slightly earlier than Misty would have, probably due to her notoriously poor sense of direction.
Mark recognized Ash was speaking with Professor Oak and approached confidently. "Hello, Professor!"
"Mark! So you've come to Viridian City as well! That's wonderful! By the way, how many Pokémon have you caught so far? I can't believe Ash hasn't caught a single one — I really had high expectations for him!" Professor Oak said with a wry expression.
"I only caught one Pokémon so far, but I also unexpectedly received a Pokémon Egg," Mark replied, carefully leaving out the system-related details.
"Oh, then that counts as two Pokémon! Not bad for a newcomer in just one day. The egg hasn't hatched yet, so who knows what's inside. But what Pokémon did you catch?" Oak asked, curious.
"Take a look, Professor," Mark said, opening Feebas's Poké Ball.
"Wow, Mark, you've already caught a new partner? That's impressive!" Ash said with genuine envy as he stared at Feebas.
Misty and Mark exchanged glances — even she was surprised. But Ash's admiration wasn't for Feebas's appearance; it was for his passion for Pokémon. Mark realized that Ash's love for Pokémon, even without deep training knowledge, would carry him to success in tournament after tournament.
"Feebas, really? It's from the Hoenn region and incredibly rare here. Plus, it has strong potential and is highly trainable," Professor Oak noted, clearly impressed. He understood Feebas's future evolution into the elegant Milotic.
"Really? This ugly little Feebas will become so strong? It's hard to believe…" Misty murmured in amazement.
"By the way, Mark, your starter and first caught Pokémon are both from Hoenn. You must have some kind of connection with that region," Oak said, chuckling.
"Professor, I didn't catch anything new, but I did see Ho-Oh!" Mark added, naming the legendary Pokémon.
"No way! Ho-Oh hasn't been seen for ages. You actually saw it?" Oak exclaimed, incredulous.
"Yes, Professor. After today's storm, Ash and I saw it fly off toward the other end of the rainbow," Mark explained.
"Truly Ho-Oh? Then you two experienced an extraordinary encounter!" Oak said, trusting Mark and genuinely impressed.
Ash pouted, "Hey! Why does Oak believe you without question? That's not fair!"
"Sorry, Ash. Anyway, my noodles are going to get cold, so goodbye for today. Keep up the good work, Mark, Ash!" Oak chuckled before ending the call.
"By the way, Ash, how's Pikachu?" Mark asked.
"Much better now. I owe you my sincere thanks — the emergency care you gave Pikachu likely saved its life. Nurse Joy completed the initial treatment, and after some rest, it will be fully healed," Ash replied gratefully.
"Hmph, now that Pikachu's fine, maybe it's time to settle the bicycle issue, Ash," Misty pointed at her charred, fishbone-like bike.
"Ah… you're the girl from the river earlier? How do you know my name?" Ash asked.
"I told her," Mark said calmly. "By the way, this mess was caused by yourself, Ash. I'm not taking the blame — you handle it yourself."
Ash had no choice but to apologize profusely and promise compensation, finally calming Misty's fury.
Suddenly, the glass windows above shattered. A familiar duo jumped down — Team Rocket, the notorious trio.
"Who are you?" Ash shouted.
"Since you asked so sincerely, we shall generously enlighten you! To prevent world destruction and maintain peace, implementing evil with love and truth — we, Jessie, James, and Meowth, traverse the galaxy as Team Rocket! The white hole, the bright tomorrow awaits us — that's all, Meowth!" they delivered their classic, flamboyant introduction.
Mark was intrigued, especially by Meowth. He quickly checked the system.
Meowth – Male, Cat Pokémon, Normal-type, Ability: Pickup, Height: 0.4 m, Weight: 4.2 kg, Aptitude: Mythic, Potential: None, Moves: Scratch Frenzy. Note: This Meowth's stats were misallocated — it can stand upright, speak, and invent, but has no combat potential.
"Misallocated stats, huh? System is spot-on," Mark muttered.
The loud noise drew Nurse Joy over.
"You… you're the notorious Pokémon thieves?" she exclaimed.
"Yes, we're here to steal rare Pokémon," James replied.
"You want my Pikachu?" Ash shouted in anger.
"This ordinary mouse Pokémon is worthless. We want strong and rare Pokémon," Jessie sneered.
"There aren't any rare Pokémon here," Joy explained.
"Then we'll catch all the injured and sick Pokémon first, then pick what we want," Jessie said, sending out her Ekans . James released a Koffing to fill the room with toxic gas.
"Everyone, this is toxic gas! Nurse Joy, use the transport system to move the Pokémon to another center. Ash, Misty, help me block them," Mark commanded calmly. Joy nodded and rushed inside.
"Go, Treecko!" Mark ordered. Despite facing two attackers, Treecko remained fearless. Team Rocket, intrigued by this unfamiliar Pokémon, commanded their Pokémon to attack.
"Ekans , bind it with Wrap!" Jessie ordered. James instructed Koffing to use Smokescreen, obscuring Treecko's vision. Ekans successfully wrapped Treecko.
"Not so fast! I let myself get wrapped on purpose — otherwise, you'd never catch me! Treecko, use Leer!" Treecko's piercing gaze startled Ekans , loosening its hold. With incredible speed, Treecko leapt free and struck Ekans 's head with a devastating Pound.
"Koffing, use Tackle!" James ordered.
"Use Pound, bounce off the ground, and amplify the force downward!" Treecko countered. With precision, it avoided the Tackle and delivered a crushing blow to Koffing.
Treecko fought two Pokémon alone, holding its ground, though fatigue began to show. Ash watched anxiously. Pikachu ran forward and nodded at Ash.
"We can't be useless. Let's fight alongside Mark!" Pikachu chirped. Other Pikachu in the center focused their electricity to empower Ash's Pikachu. Misty's bicycle pedal further boosted the charge.
As in the original story, Mark commanded Treecko to retreat. The supercharged Pikachu unleashed a devastating Thunderbolt. Ekans, Koffing, and the Team Rocket trio were blasted away, with Koffing's gas exploding as well, leaving the Pokémon Center in ruins.
"This power… it's incredible!" Mark exclaimed, amazed.
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