[Ding! Skill successfully used. Frogadier has learned the new move Grass Knot!]
[Ding! Skill successfully used. Frogadier has learned the new move Mud-Slap!]
Frogadier was a Water-type Pokémon, naturally weak to Grass and Electric attributes.
To prevent it from being placed at a severe disadvantage when facing Pokémon of those two types, Ash deliberately chose to help Frogadier learn Grass-type and Ground-type moves.
When facing Grass-type attacks, Frogadier could use Grass Knot to activate its hidden Ability Protean, changing its typing into Grass.
In that state, whether it was facing Grass-type or Electric-type attacks, it would only take reduced damage.
As for Electric-type attacks—
once Frogadier switched to a Ground-type body via Mud-Slap, it would gain complete immunity to Electric damage.
Both Grass Knot and Mud-Slap perfectly matched Ash's original criteria:
low-power, utility-focused moves.
Since their purpose was purely to activate Protean, the simpler and faster the move, the better—allowing Frogadier to switch typings instantly during battle.
Of course, the Ascension Trainer System wasn't omnipotent.
It could only help Frogadier learn moves it was naturally capable of learning.
Among Grass-type moves, Grass Knot was the only one Frogadier could learn.
As for Ground-type moves, Frogadier had two options: Mud-Slap and Spikes.
Both satisfied Ash's requirements, and honestly, Spikes suited Frogadier's "ninja" positioning even better.
However, among the skills Ash had already copied, only Mud-Slap was available.
Even so, after learning both Grass- and Ground-type moves, Frogadier's raw stats and level hadn't increased dramatically—but its real combat effectiveness had risen by a huge margin.
Furthermore, because of Protean, and because Frogadier's final evolution—Greninja—would be a Water/Dark dual-type Pokémon, neither of which excelled at explosive frontal damage—
Frogadier was never meant to become a "reverse-type brute-force monster" like Pikachu in the original storyline.
Instead, it was destined to become a master of favorable matchups.
Because of that, every afternoon during study time, in addition to watching League Conference battle footage with Pichu and the others, Ash assigned Frogadier an extra task:
Memorize the type effectiveness chart—completely.
This wasn't just about remembering that Water beats Fire, Ground, and Rock, or that it's weak to Grass and Electric.
It meant fully understanding:
Which matchups deal ×1 normal damageWhich deal reduced damageWhich deal no damage at allAnd when Frogadier itself would take normal, reduced, or nullified damage
There were 18 Pokémon types, and each had complex offensive and defensive interactions.
For Pichu and Pidgey, it was enough to remember what countered them and what they countered.
But Frogadier was different.
Because of Protean, it was destined to become a matchup specialist—
dealing damage through favorable typings and reducing damage through resistance and immunity.
That meant memorizing not just weaknesses, but also effectiveness, resistances, and immunities.
And since Frogadier relied on skills to both deal damage and mitigate it, memorizing the type chart alone wasn't enough.
It also had to recognize moves instantly—
to react the moment an opponent used a skill, identify its attribute, and respond without needing Ash's constant reminders.
In short, both Ash and his Pokémon had a tremendous amount to learn.
But strength was never something achieved overnight.
Ash knew that.
Frogadier knew that.
And so did the rest of his Pokémon.
Rather than feeling impatient, they genuinely enjoyed the process.
------
The evening clouds were dyed like brocade, and the entire mountain was bathed in glowing sunset light.
After studying for an entire afternoon, everyone felt a bit mentally tired—but the moment Ash stepped outside and saw the dazzling evening glow, both he and his Pokémon were instantly refreshed.
"Pidgey~"
"Pichu~"
On the courtyard fence, tiny Pichu hopped onto Pidgey's back.
Once Pichu settled in, Pidgey flapped its wings and leapt into the air, carrying Pichu as they soared straight toward the glowing sunset.
"Frogadier, Rotom—let's go too!" Ash called.
"Frogadier!"
"Rotom~!"
Ash took Frogadier and Rotom for a walk outside town.
Many townsfolk smiled and greeted him warmly.
At such a young age, Ash had already become a well-known Trainer across Kanto, and everyone in Pallet Town believed his future would be extraordinary.
Shelling peanuts.
Breaking corn.
Harvesting wheat.
Threshing grain.
August was one of the busiest months of the year.
The afternoon sun was scorching hot, but now, with the sun sinking toward the horizon, the townspeople weren't heading home—they were just heading out.
Fields, paths, and slopes were filled with busy figures.
As the heat of the day faded, the land grew cooler—and livelier.
Ash led his Pokémon to the stone bridge by the river outside town, helping heal wild Pokémon that had gathered there.
The aunties washing clothes by the river teased him, saying that at six years old he'd already found a girlfriend—and that when he grew up, he'd probably marry more than ten wives.
Ash laughed awkwardly and hurried away.
He then headed toward Dashiwan Valley in the grasslands beyond town.
Walking along the field ridges, uncles and elders praised him warmly, saying he was truly something special.
A Pallet Town man, they said, must not only become a powerful Pokémon Trainer known across the world—
He should also have many girlfriends and marry many wives.
Laughing and chatting with them, Ash soon arrived at Dashiwan Valley.
Just like the stone bridge earlier, many sick and injured wild Pokémon had gathered there as well.
The moment Ash arrived, he quickly got to work treating them.
Stone Bridge: 14 Pokémon healed
Dashiwan Valley: 21 Pokémon healed
After healing every injured Pokémon from both locations, Ash's Viridian Blessing grew stronger once again.
…
Ascension Trainer System (Severely Damaged)
Host: Ash Ketchum
Gender: Male
Age: 6
Strength: 06 (Adult average: 10)
Stamina: 10
Intelligence: 10
Charm: 10
Talents: Viridian Blessing LV.29, Aura Powers LV.11
Pokémon: Pichu, Frogadier, Pidgey
Item: Soothe Bell
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