"All right, everyone—your injuries have all been healed," Ash said gently.
"You can head back now. And after you return, remember to tell the Pokémon around you about the free clinic I've opened here at Dashiwan Valley—especially the Pokémon living deep inside Viridian Forest. Don't forget that part."
"I'm not stationed here all the time," Ash continued. "But I come by every few hours each day. If you arrive and don't see me, just wait a little while—I'll be back."
"Woo…"
"Woo…"
After expressing their gratitude one last time, the wild Pokémon gradually dispersed, leaving Dashiwan Valley and disappearing into the grassy flats and forest beyond.
Seeing them all depart and noting that it was already getting late, Ash was just about to turn and leave—
When he suddenly felt something.
A gaze.
A subtle but unmistakable sense of being watched.
Following the alert from his Aura Perception, Ash looked up.
On a cliffside rock above Dashiwan Valley stood a Pidgey, quietly observing him.
But this Pidgey was different.
Ordinary Pidgey looked like oversized, chubby sparrows—round, fluffy, and adorably plump, like living rice balls.
This one, however, was thin to the point of gauntness.
Its body looked undernourished, yet its eyes were sharp—razor-sharp. Its presence lacked the usual gentleness of a Pidgey and instead carried the aggressive intensity of a hawk or falcon.
Discovering such a Pidgey standing at a height and watching him from afar, Ash—still shaken by yesterday's pursuit by Team Rocket—instantly became alert. For a moment, he even suspected it might be a Pokémon trained by Team Rocket.
However, when Ash carefully probed with his Aura, he found no hostility.
What he sensed instead was curiosity, doubt, and a deep, instinctive wariness.
"So… just a wild Pokémon with an unusually strong sense of caution?"
Ash studied the Pidgey with growing interest.
Through Aura Perception, he could also tell that the Pidgey's aura was weak. It was likely injured—or sick.
"Was it drawn here by my Aura broadcast as well, just like the others?" Ash wondered.
"Pidgey," Ash called out softly, activating Natural Affinity as his Aura flowed outward.
"Are you hurt? If you are, come down—I can treat you."
"…."
To Ash's surprise, the injured Pidgey didn't show even the slightest sign of drawing closer.
Instead, it flapped its wings sharply—and flew away.
"…Did my Natural Affinity fail?"
Ash scratched his cheek awkwardly and muttered to himself with a wry smile.
Of course, he knew that wasn't true.
His Natural Affinity hadn't failed—there was no such thing as it "not working."
And precisely because of that, this made the situation far more intriguing.
This skinny, sharp-eyed Pidgey—radiating the aura of a top-tier predator—had resisted the soothing influence of Natural Affinity.
That alone told Ash one thing:
This Pidgey's willpower was extraordinary. Far beyond normal.
"This one's extremely cautious," Ash thought.
"Maybe if we meet a few more times… after some prolonged contact… it'll lower its guard."
He glanced once more in the direction the Pidgey had flown, already looking forward to their next encounter.
What Ash didn't know—
Was that the Pidgey hadn't actually left.
After flying away from the cliff above Dashiwan Valley, the special Pidgey circled silently and doubled back, carefully hiding itself among the clouds.
As Ash turned and walked away, the Pidgey soared high above, watching him from a distance with eyes as sharp as a raptor's—tracking every movement.
Because of its unusual upbringing, this Pidgey deeply yearned for affection and companionship.
Yet because of that same upbringing, it was also terrified of those very things.
To desire closeness… and yet fear it.
Such contradictory, complex emotions were difficult to imagine—even for a wild Pokémon.
Ash's judgment earlier had been half right and half wrong.
The Pidgey did indeed possess incredible willpower.
But it hadn't resisted Ash's Natural Affinity at all.
In fact, when Ash released Natural Affinity—twice—the Pidgey felt an overwhelming, instinctive desire to draw closer to him.
That very feeling frightened it.
Its past had forced it to close off its heart.
From birth until now, the only being it had ever felt close to—the only one it had both loved and longed for—was that one special mother:
The mother who had hatched it.
The mother who had raised it.
The mother who was not its biological parent.
The mother who, in the end, had been forced to drive it away.
She was the only one.
And now—
A human boy had appeared, evoking the same feeling.
Curiosity.
Longing.
Fear.
All tangled together.
Unable to resolve those emotions, the Pidgey ultimately chose to do the only thing it could—
Follow.
From high above, it quietly trailed the human boy, watching him in secret, driven by pure instinct.
…
Ash, unaware that the special Pidgey had returned and was secretly observing him from the sky, was still feeling a bit regretful that it had left so quickly—before he even got the chance to check its Potential.
"So," Ash said with a smile as he walked out of Dashiwan Valley, looking at the two Pokémon resting together,
"How did your training go? You didn't slack off, did you?"
"Pichu—!"
"Gua—gua~"
Ash summoned their system panels to take a look.
[Pokémon: Pichu]
Level: LV.13 (53/76)
Type: Electric
Nature: Timid
Ability: Static (Hidden Ability: Lightning Rod)
Moves (Copyable):
Skilled:
Thunder Shock (200/500)
Wish (12/500)
Tail Whip (3/500)
Nuzzle (13/500)
Thunder Wave (1/500)
Sweet Kiss (1/500)
Nuzzle (Cheek Rub) (3/500)
-----
[Pokémon: Frogadier]
Level: LV.22 (32/460)
Type: Water
Nature: Serious
Abilities: Torrent, Protean
(Heaven-Gifted Ability: Bond Phenomenon)
Moves (Copyable):
Proficient:
Pound (200/1000)
Bubble (200/1000)
Aqua Ring (1/1000)
Quick Attack (1/1000)
Water Shuriken (2/1000)
Skilled:
Growl (23/500)
Water Pulse (347/500)
Lick (117/500)
Rain Dance (112/500)
Smokescreen (1/500)
…
After checking the panels, Ash nodded with satisfaction.
The training tasks he had assigned before opening the clinic—
Both Pichu and Frogadier had completed them perfectly.
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