Catching Pidgey

Name: Pidgey (level 3)

Gender: Female

Potential: B

Types: Flying, Normal

Held item: None

Basic moves: Tackle, Sand Attack

Egg moves: Foresight, Steel Wing, Brave Bird, Air Slash

Ability: Keen Eye (prevents opponents from lowering Accuracy by any means and ignores increases to the target's evasion.)

Notes: Pidgey, an airborne Pokémon. Among Flying-type Pokémon, she is one of the gentlest and easiest to catch, making her an ideal target for beginner Pokémon Trainers to test their skills.

This Pidgey certainly lived up to her B-grade Potential. With no fewer than four egg moves, she was exceptional even among her own kind.

Generally, only starter Pokémon had a high chance of possessing B-grade Potential or better. For a Pidgey, B-grade Potential was already outstanding.

After reading Pidgey's information, Zhang Cheng was determined to catch her.

At that moment, Zhang Cheng felt that buying five Poké Balls earlier had been an excellent decision. If he hadn't bought them in advance, all he could have done now was stare helplessly at this highly promising Pidgey.

How could he catch her without a ball? Knock her out, then go buy a Poké Ball and come back? That clearly wasn't realistic.

This Pidgey was brimming with energy. She quickly flew onto the tree trunk and opened her beak, ready to feast on the Pecha Berries.

Zhang Cheng couldn't let her get away with that. If she ate the fruit, his pay would be docked.

"Poliwag, stop Pidgey!"

At his Trainer's command, Poliwag aimed at Pidgey and fired a Bubble Beam.

Pidgey had been about to enjoy a delicious Pecha Berry and was caught completely off guard by the sudden attack.

The attack knocked several feathers loose. Pidgey immediately grew wary, fixing Poliwag with a fierce glare.

Pidgey were gentle Pokémon that generally wouldn't attack Trainers unprovoked.

But despite her mild temperament, this Pidgey was furious at being attacked.

She charged straight at Poliwag, her wings shining with a silvery light.

"It's actually Steel Wing!" Zhang Cheng exclaimed in surprise. "This Pidgey is only level three, yet she's already learned an egg move!"

Poliwag couldn't dodge in time and took the Steel Wing head-on.

After being injured, Poliwag became fully alert.

He dodged Pidgey's attacks while firing Bubble Beams from his mouth. Pidgey was extremely fast, narrowly evading several of his attacks.

But as her stamina drained, Pidgey's flight began to slow.

After all, she was a newly hatched Pokémon, and her stamina wouldn't last long.

Poliwag seized an opening and unleashed a powerful Bubble Beam, scoring a direct hit on Pidgey's wing.

With her wing struck, Pidgey lost her balance and tumbled toward the ground.

Just before she hit the ground, Pidgey summoned another burst of determination and flew off into the distance.

But she was much slower than before, partly because of her injury and partly because Poliwag's last Bubble Beam had triggered its speed-lowering effect.

Now, Pidgey's flight could only be described as painfully slow.

With such a perfect opportunity before him, Zhang Cheng didn't hesitate. He threw a Poké Ball, striking Pidgey squarely in midair.

The Poké Ball drew Pidgey inside, then dropped onto the grass as its momentum faded.

Zhang Cheng immediately turned his gaze toward it. The Poké Ball rocked slowly, but just as his anticipation mounted, Pidgey suddenly broke free.

He hadn't expected this Pidgey to be so tenacious that she could still escape the Poké Ball.

Zhang Cheng was growing fonder of her by the moment.

"Poliwag, attack with Water Gun again!"

"Poli~ Poli~"

The powerful jet of water struck Pidgey directly, instantly knocking her out.

Zhang Cheng immediately threw his second Poké Ball. After three shakes, he successfully caught Pidgey.

Luckily, he'd brought plenty of Poké Balls. A Poké Ball would break if a capture attempt failed.

If he carried only one or two, a failed capture would leave him in a difficult position.

Moreover, Poké Balls could only be purchased from League-authorized establishments, and every purchase had to be linked to the buyer's Trainer identity.

The main purpose of this measure was to prevent Trainers from catching Pokémon to sell. The League had clearly stated that Pokémon could only be used by Trainers for training and battles, not for monetary transactions.

With Poké Balls registered under real names, any private Pokémon trading would quickly be discovered by the League. Anyone caught selling Pokémon would immediately lose their Trainer credentials.

After catching Pidgey, Zhang Cheng immediately took her to the orchard's Treatment Room.

Pidgey had suffered serious injuries in the battle. Still in her Infant Stage, she couldn't withstand that sort of punishment.

Zhang Cheng left Poliwag beside the Pecha Berry tree to keep any other Spearow or Pidgey from stealing the berries.

After taking Pidgey to the Treatment Room, Zhang Cheng hurried back to Poliwag. He was rather worried about leaving Poliwag to face wild Pokémon alone.

Fortunately, everything was fine on Poliwag's end. No Pokémon had come to steal berries over the past few hours.

After handing over his post that evening, Zhang Cheng took Poliwag to the Treatment Room to check on Pidgey.

Thanks to the medical staff's treatment, Pidgey had almost fully recovered.

When Pidgey saw Zhang Cheng, she chirped softly.

"Pi~ Pidgey~"

Seeing Pidgey so full of energy made Zhang Cheng happy. He took out some Pokémon Food for her.

After eating, Pidgey grew even more affectionate toward Zhang Cheng. She flew straight onto his shoulder and rubbed her feathered wing against his cheek.

While feeding Pidgey, Zhang Cheng also gave Poliwag some Pokémon snacks. Once both Pokémon had eaten and drunk their fill, he took them back to his lodgings.

"Poliwag, Pidgey, from now on, you'll be teammates fighting side by side. Get to know each other."

"Poli~ Poli~ Poliwag~"

"Pi~ Pidgey~ Pidgey~"

The two Pokémon quickly began chatting. Poliwag was an outgoing little Pokémon and talked to Pidgey without pause.

Pidgey, on the other hand, had a rather aloof, prideful personality. Most of the time, she listened to Poliwag with a haughty expression, only occasionally responding.

But Poliwag didn't grow impatient. He seemed to enjoy having another companion and kept chattering away beside Pidgey.

Zhang Cheng guessed that Poliwag was telling Pidgey about him, their Trainer.

Of course, that was only Zhang Cheng's own guess. As for what they were actually discussing, perhaps only that talking Meowth could tell him.

Late that night, Zhang Cheng interrupted their conversation and urged Poliwag and Pidgey to go to sleep. They still needed to get up early tomorrow to guard the orchard.

At Zhang Cheng's urging, the two Pokémon soon drifted off to sleep. Looking at them, he smiled, then slowly fell asleep in a cheerful mood.