Chapter 190: Catching Noctowl
After saying goodbye to Miki, Xiao Zhi's group continued their journey toward Goldenrod City, and today they arrived at a forest that remained dark even during the day.
"Vee!"
At this moment, Eevee pointed at a wooden birdhouse.
"Is that a birdhouse for Pokémon?" Misty asked.
"It certainly looks like a birdhouse, all right, but the size is off. It is too big for a Pidgey to live in, but too small for a Pidgeot," Brock guessed.
Ash pointed at a gray owl and said, "This should be a birdhouse for Noctowl."
"Noctowl, huh! The size seems just right, but why would there be a man-made birdhouse deep in this forest?"
Just as Brock was puzzled, Ash had already walked under the tree. "Hey, mister up there, you cannot catch a Noctowl with such a clumsy method."
"Eh?"
Up in the tree, a man covered in camouflage cloth resembling tree bark looked down at Ash in Telekinesis.
When he saw Ash's face clearly, he was startled and fell down. Fortunately, he was quite agile and managed to hook onto a branch with one hand, hanging in mid-air.
At that very moment, a Shinny Noctowl used Peck on him.
[ Pokémon: Noctowl (Shinny) ]
[ Type: Normal + Flying ]
[ Gender: Male ]
[ Level: Gym Beginner ]
[ Ability: Keen Eye ]
[ Potential: Quasi-Champion ]
[ Moves: Peck, Tackle, Brave Bird, Telekinesis, Reflect, Extrasensory... ]
"Stop it, it hurts, stop it!"
The man shouted loudly, but the Shinny Noctowl ignored him completely, continuing to Peck at his hand intermittently.
After seeing the man fall, the Noctowl twisted its neck, revealing a mocking smile.
Ash helped the man up and said, "Mister, I told you that you wouldn't be able to catch it with your clumsy methods."
The man stubbornly retorted, "How is that possible? If you hadn't been shouting, I would have definitely caught it!"
"Tch, this Shinny Noctowl isn't an ordinary breed; it is very smart, okay? Mister, that birdhouse in the tree must be what you prepared for this Noctowl, right? Look, has it paid any attention to your trap?" Ash exposed him.
"Uh... well, about that!" The man felt somewhat embarrassed.
Because not only had the Shinny Noctowl ignored his birdhouse, but it had even swatted it down with one wing.
"This is how you catch a Pokémon."
Saying this, Ash stood up and shouted at the Shinny Noctowl, "Noctowl, how about coming with me? With your intelligence, you shouldn't be cooped up in this tiny forest!"
"Hoot-hoot~" (Human, win against me first.)
Hearing this, Ash's face lit up. Anything that could be caught through battle was a good thing. "Alright, then let's have a battle to catch you!"
He took out a Poké Ball: "Gallade, come out!"
"Gallade, use Sacred Sword!"
"Ailu."
The elbow blades in Gallade's hands popped out, and he strode forward, rushing up to slash at the Noctowl.
After being hit, the Noctowl did not lose its ability to battle. It flew onto a branch of another tree and then unleashed Extrasensory at Gallade.
Under the influence of Extrasensory, Gallade's mind became slightly dazed.
"Gallade, pull yourself together, use Psychic!"
Gallade shook his head and sent a powerful Psychic attack at the Noctowl.
The Noctowl responded by using Psychic as well.
Clearly, this Shinny Noctowl's Psychic power was stronger than that of a normal Noctowl; the Psychic it unleashed was on par with Gallade's.
Although this was because Gallade was holding back, even while holding back, Gallade's attack was still at the Gym level.
"I told you, that Noctowl isn't so easy to catch." Seeing that Ash had not yet taken down the Noctowl, the man let out a long sigh of relief.
He had been playing a battle of wits with the Noctowl for so long without success; if Ash, a newcomer, could catch it so easily, wouldn't that make him look stupid?
"That's not necessarily true. Gallade, use Night Slash!"
Gallade seized the opportunity, rushed up, and slashed at the Shinny Noctowl twice. Both hits landed as critical hits, and the Shinny Noctowl immediately plummeted to the ground like a kite with a broken string.
Ash seized the moment, threw the Poké Ball, and caught it.
"Ding, detected that the host has caught a Shinny Noctowl. Reward obtained: 5,000 points, Flying Gem 1, Sharp Beak 1, Twisted Spoon *1."
"Caught... caught it?" The man looked at Ash with a dazed expression.
"Yeah, caught it. Thanks for your generosity, mister!" Ash said, somewhat maliciously.
"My name isn't 'mister', my name is Ayou!" the man shouted.
"Mr. Ayou, you must have been with this Noctowl for a while, right?" Ash asked.
"Yeah, but since you've caught it, then so be it. That guy is too smart."
The Noctowl had already been caught; no matter how unwilling Ayou was, he had to accept his fate.
After resting at Ayou's forest cabin, the group set off on their journey again.
After walking out of the forest, Xiao Zhi's group arrived by a Lake.
Looking at the sparkling Lake, Ash suggested, "Let's take a break here first!"
"Okay!"
After setting up camp, Ash released his Pokémon: "Everyone, come out!"
Of course, he wouldn't release the ones inside the Master Ball.
After the three of them released their Pokémon, it immediately became lively.
"Jigeng~"
As soon as the jealous Chikorita came out, it pushed Pikachu aside and climbed onto Ash.
"Chikorita, don't do that, it's ticklish!"
"Ash, your Chikorita is really clingy to you!" Misty exclaimed.
Ash nodded helplessly: "Yeah!"
"It feels pretty good to let them out to play occasionally," Brock remarked.
"Yeah! Everyone is very happy!" Misty agreed.
"By the way, Misty, how is the training task that Lorelei gave you coming along?" Ash asked curiously.
He remembered that when they parted ways, Lorelei had set a one-month training plan for Misty. It had been over a month now; if she hadn't finished it yet, he estimated that the next time she saw Lorelei, she would definitely get a lecture.
Misty said with some pride, "It's okay. The previous plan has been completed. Lorelei said she will send me a new training plan in the next few days."
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