"Quick Attack?"
Seeing Pidgey dive straight down in a head-on charge, Ash immediately issued a countercommand.
"Frogadier, we'll use Quick Attack too!"
"Gua—!"
Frogadier let out a sharp, resounding croak. Blazing white light erupted violently from its body, and its frog-like eyes locked onto Pidgey like a radar tracking a moving target.
Its legs kicked off the ground.
Like a mid-range interceptor missile, Frogadier shot straight upward, charging head-on toward the diving Pidgey.
In a narrow path, the brave prevail—but with Pidgey's small frame, a frontal collision was never going to favor it, especially with a full six-level gap between them.
"Bang!!"
Both Pokémon, wrapped in the glow of Quick Attack, collided midair. Using the rebound force, Frogadier flipped backward gracefully and landed firmly on the ground.
Pidgey, on the other hand, was sent flying like a rubber ball, completely knocked off course by the impact.
Ash did not let this golden opportunity slip by.
Raising his hand, his voice rang out sharp and decisive:
"Frogadier—use Water Pulse!!"
Water Pulse was a single-target, fixed-point attack. Its power far exceeded Water Shuriken or Bubble, but its energy consumption was also much higher.
Unless the opponent exposed a clear opening—or temporarily lost mobility—this kind of skill was usually easy to dodge.
But right now, Pidgey had been blasted away by the Quick Attack clash.
This was the perfect window.
"Gua—!"
Upon receiving the command, Frogadier drew its webbed hands to its waist. With Master-level proficiency, its charge time was already far shorter than normal.
In barely a single breath, the Water Pulse was fully formed.
A condensed sphere of rippling water shot toward the airborne Pidgey.
"Pidgey!!"
Pidgey wasn't helpless. Sensing the incoming danger, it tilted one wing to reduce its backward momentum with air resistance, while the other wing slashed forward like a great blade.
"—!"
Two crescent-shaped wind blades shot out in interception.
Water Pulse vs. Razor Wind!
"BOOM!!"
The attacks collided precisely in midair.
The explosion echoed throughout Dashiwan Valley like blasting charges going off in a quarry. Shockwaves rolled outward, whipping up fierce gusts.
"Huff—!"
Ash instinctively raised an arm to shield his face, protecting his eyes from the blast. Neither he nor Frogadier were affected by the shockwave.
Pidgey, however, was far less fortunate.
Frogadier had unleashed Water Pulse after catching Pidgey in a moment of vulnerability, while Pidgey's Razor Wind had been launched hastily. The collision occurred barely two to three meters in front of Pidgey.
Even though it wasn't struck directly—and wasn't at the very center of the explosion—the violent shockwave still sent it flying.
"Smack!!"
Its small body slammed into the rocky cliff like dough slapped onto a griddle. From its expression alone, it was clear the damage was severe.
Ash's combat style was simple and ruthless:
When evenly matched, stay calm and trade moves patiently.
But once the enemy exposed a flaw—press the advantage relentlessly, striking like a storm and never giving them a chance to recover.
Pidgey had been blown into the cliff.
Ash would not waste such a perfect opening.
"Frogadier—keep attacking! Continuous Water Shuriken!!"
"Gua—gua!"
Frogadier responded instantly.
It sprinted across the ground with agile footwork, arms hanging low near its waist, rapidly forming and hurling Water Shuriken toward Pidgey.
Frogadier's shuriken technique wasn't as refined as that of a true ninja, let alone comparable to the legendary Uchiha-style precision from Ash's previous world.
But after focused training, its Water Shuriken proficiency had reached Master-level. Accuracy was no longer an issue—even while moving at high speed.
And with rain pouring down, water vapor was abundant. The time needed to condense each Water Shuriken was drastically reduced.
The result was an overwhelming sight—
Frogadier darted around the battlefield, arms whipping in constant motion, Water Shuriken flying one after another as if it had no mana bar, no cooldown, and infinite firepower.
"Bang—bang—bang—!"
"Thud—thud—thud—!"
Pinned against the cliff face, Pidgey became a living target, battered again and again by the relentless storm of Water Shuriken.
Rain suppressed its mobility. Consecutive exchanges had gone badly against it.
Under Frogadier's hurricane-like assault, Pidgey couldn't mount any effective counterattack.
At this point, it couldn't even dodge properly.
Relying purely on its iron will—the very trait Ash admired so deeply—Pidgey endured two more volleys.
Finally, its head tilted to the side.
It lost all battle capability.
"Poké Ball—go!"
Seeing Pidgey collapse and fall, Ash pulled an empty red-and-white Poké Ball from his pocket and threw it.
As a Trainer, throwing a Poké Ball was a fundamental skill.
Ash might not know fancy tricks like curveballs, banana arcs, or spinning throws—but his basic aim was flawless.
"Thunk!"
The Poké Ball struck Pidgey cleanly. Soaked to the bone and unconscious, Pidgey was instantly transformed into a red beam of light and drawn inside.
"Beep… beep… click!"
Thanks to the life-saving bond they had already formed—and the fact that this was a fair, honorable capture battle—Pidgey offered no resistance.
The Poké Ball shook gently twice, then fell still with a clear chime.
"I caught Pidgey!!"
Picking up the Poké Ball from the ground, Ash raised his hand and flashed a triumphant V-sign, his face glowing with excitement.
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