[Newbie Ash: Caterpie? Why? Isn't Caterpie one of the weakest Pokémon?]
Tactics Master Ash's suggestion left Ash scratching his head. Even as a Beginner, he knew Bug-types—especially Caterpie and Weedle, which you could find everywhere in Kanto—were considered weak.
Sure, they evolved quickly, but even after reaching their final forms, they couldn't stay useful for long. Fast growth, fast to get discarded.
[Tactics Master Ash: Caterpie's weak? Tell that to my Focus Sash + Compound Eyes + Sleep Powder + Tailwind combo.]
[Newbie Ash: Wh-what… what combo?]
[Champion Ash: Heh… basically some real dirty tactics. Butterfree, Caterpie's final evolution, has an Ability called Compound Eyes. It boosts the accuracy of all moves by thirty percent. Moves like Sleep Powder normally don't hit reliably, but with Compound Eyes the accuracy jumps way up.]
[Champion Ash: Butterfree's base stats aren't high, but its Speed is exceptional. With Compound Eyes, all it needs is to move first, toss out a powder, then set up Tailwind for the team. Even if it doesn't move first, if it's holding a Focus Sash, it can't be taken out in one hit. It's one of the best support Pokémon you can have.]
[Newbie Ash: …]
Honestly, he didn't understand a word of it. The strategy sounded amazing, but he couldn't picture how it worked in practice.
[Tactics Master Ash: Anyway, just catch a Caterpie. Preferably one with good potential. Sure, a strong Trainer's bond with their Pokémon can overcome limits, but if that were easy, it wouldn't be called a miracle between Trainer and Pokémon.]
[Tactics Master Ash: After you catch a Caterpie, raise it into a Butterfree. Then I'll walk you through how to run the strategy. Personally, I love using Butterfree to turn battles around.]
[Newbie Ash: Got it. Then I'll head to Viridian Forest and take a look.]
…
That was part of Ash's chat with the group last night. Catching Caterpie—ideally one with strong potential—had been Tactics Master Ash's advice.
Still, the rule was simple: if there's no choice, then catch whatever you can and treat it well once it's yours.
But catching one after another and then releasing them once you realize they're weak? Every Ash in the group, including the real-world Ash himself, agreed that was unacceptable.
Of course, the real Ash had something special—the Eye of Insight. With such a powerful ability, it'd be a waste not to use it.
Why not check a Pokémon's stats and potential before catching it? That way he could start with a strong one and pour his heart into raising it.
No point deliberately picking weak ones to prove "there are no weak Pokémon, only weak Trainers." That was just needless suffering.
This Caterpie he'd caught was probably one of the strongest in Viridian Forest. It hadn't shown its ceiling yet, but Ash believed—with the group's guidance—this Caterpie would shine in his hands.
After catching it, Ash released Caterpie again and sprayed it with a Potion.
Pikachu's attacks hadn't done much—just enough to knock it out. Left untreated, Caterpie would need a day or two to recover. With a Potion, an hour or so would do.
From then on, Ash focused on training Caterpie, battling constantly to help it grow into Butterfree as fast as possible. Along the way, he even ran into kids in shorts or carrying bug nets.
Bug Catchers and Youngsters—the ones everyone said lurked in the forest.
They weren't much stronger than the wild Pokémon, but they gave Ash and his team useful Trainer-battle experience.
Before Viridian Forest, the only Trainers Ash had battled were those bumbling idiots who'd attacked the Pokémon Center.
Three days passed in a flash.
The days blurred together—resting when tired, eating instant food, missing the Pokémon Center's cooking, chatting about future plans and training directions. They sparred with wild Trainers here and there, and whenever they spotted wild Pokémon along the road, they'd use them to hone Pikachu and Caterpie's moves.
For Ash, the three days had been full and rewarding. For Misty… not so much.
Her bug phobia was getting pushed to the breaking point.
She regretted more than anything leaving her bike in Viridian City and walking with Ash to Pewter City.
She'd thought they could enjoy the scenery, savor the journey. Instead—nothing but misery. Every second in Viridian Forest was torture. She'd even gotten used to Ash's Caterpie being around.
Outside of enduring the bugs, Misty sometimes gave Ash pointers during his battles. Ash found it puzzling—she looked about his age, so why did she know so much? And her battle commands were way sharper than his.
Sure, he was still a Beginner, but with the veterans' daily lessons in the group chat, he felt like he was improving fast. Even so, compared to Misty, he was still behind. Just how skilled was she, really? That question gnawed at the back of his mind.
"…How much longer till Pewter City, Ash?" Misty's voice was weak. It was almost noon on the fourth day, and she felt like her feet were rubbed raw.
"Let's see… we're already halfway there. Faster than I expected." Ash compared the map and blinked in surprise.
Given how many battles they'd stopped for, their pace shouldn't have been this fast. Yet here they were, halfway already.
Misty rolled her eyes. "No kidding. Didn't you notice I haven't been clinging to your shirt? I'm pushing through my bug phobia just so we can get out of here faster!"
"Pushing through? Where? Every time Caterpie gets close you still scream! He actually likes you, you know. You're hurting his feelings~"
"Cut the crap. Just letting him within a meter of me without bolting is already me respecting him as a teammate, okay? Any closer and you might as well bury me now!" Misty snapped.
"Well, by the time you warm up to him, he'll probably have evolved already. Honestly, I think Caterpie's about to evolve any day now. He's got enough experience, just needs the right moment to cocoon… Wait—are you limping?" Ash's words trailed off as he noticed her uneven gait. Concern crept into his voice.
"What do you mean limping? Watch your mouth. My feet just hurt, that's all. Not everyone's built like you, some freak who never gets tired, body or mind." Misty stopped and rubbed her toes through her shoes.
If she kept walking, she'd blister for sure. She needed rest…
But before she could ask for it, Ash crouched down in front of her. "Get on."
"G-get on what?"
"My back. Don't you want to get out of Viridian Forest faster? At this rate, even if we stop to rest, your feet won't heal right away. We'll lose two, three more days. So I'll carry you."
"But… that… I…" Misty's pale cheeks flushed pink. She didn't know if it was from exhaustion or embarrassment.
"Don't overthink it. What, worried you'll crush me? Don't worry. Even if you weighed two hundred pounds I'd—"
"Two hundred pounds?! I don't even break ninety!" Misty's shriek cut him off mid-sentence.
And then Ash felt her body press against his back—soft, warm, and, just like she'd said, light.