Pokemon: Trait Master

A person's values are shaped from a young age. 

In the original timeline, Serena didn't particularly like Pokémon battles. 

She wasn't even that interested in Pokémon. 

That's why her journey was delayed for so long. 

(Of course, this timeline follows a more realistic progression—unlike the anime, where Ash somehow travels across multiple regions while still being ten years old. That just makes no sense.) 

But now— 

Under Ash's influence, Serena not only started her journey early, 

She also developed a strong passion for Pokémon battles. 

The result of this butterfly effect? 

She embarked on her journey ahead of schedule—traveling alongside Ash! 

And now, a new philosophy was quietly taking root in her heart. 

---

That night, after talking for a while, 

The two of them headed to the tent to sleep. 

Serena had packed a lot of things for this trip— 

But a tent wasn't one of them. 

Her original plan was to just sleep in a sleeping bag under the stars, 

Or simply stay in cities overnight instead of camping outdoors. 

But now… 

Why would she sleep outside when there was a perfectly good tent available? 

Besides, the mosquitoes were horrible out here! 

At first, Ash offered to sleep outside, letting Serena take the tent. 

He figured—he was a guy, and it didn't feel right to let a girl sleep outside. 

But Serena strongly disagreed. 

It was Ash's tent, after all. 

How could she kick him out and take it for herself? 

And so… 

The two of them ended up sharing the same tent. :)

Not that it mattered—their sleeping bags were separate. :(

But even so, it took a lot of courage for Serena to invite Ash inside. 

Compared to the embarrassment of sharing a tent with him, 

She felt even worse about letting him sleep outside. 

Before falling asleep, Ash casually remarked: 

"Serena, you've had the perfect wife qualities since you were a kid!" 

"Whoever marries you in the future is going to be so lucky." 

Then he fell asleep immediately. 

Meanwhile, Serena lay awake until the middle of the night, 

Her face burning red, her heart racing, 

Before she finally drifted off. 

---

The next morning, the two acted completely normal, 

As if nothing had happened. 

They packed up the tent and sleeping bags, 

Had a simple breakfast, 

And continued on their journey. 

But along the way, Serena was too embarrassed to walk too close to Ash. 

Although their conversations were normal, 

Ash's words from the night before had completely thrown her off balance. 

The guy just said that and then fell asleep like it was nothing! 

Did he even consider how she felt?! 

Anyone overhearing their conversation would have thought Ash had just confessed to her! 

---

It wasn't until they reached Viridian City around noon 

That Serena finally started acting normal again. 

Ash had noticed her awkward behavior, 

But he didn't really think much of it. 

Not because he was dense, 

But because— 

They were only ten years old! 

I mean, come on—what could a ten-year-old even do? 

Sure, their bodies looked like they were around fourteen or fifteen, 

And their minds were more mature… 

But ten years old was still ten years old. 

Who in their right mind would start thinking about romance at ten? 

…Oh, wait. 

Gary Oak already had four or five girlfriends. 

…Was his body even holding up? 

Ahem. 

---

After arriving in Viridian City, 

The first thing Ash did was head to the Pokémon Center. 

He wanted to heal up Pikachu and Froakie before anything else. 

Pikachu was still in top condition. 

After all, he hadn't been battling much these past few days. 

Most of the wild Pokémon were so weak that Pikachu didn't even bother fighting. 

The experience points they gave weren't worth it— 

Doing a few push-ups was more effective for training. 

Right now, Pikachu was constantly wearing weighted gear designed by Ash. 

Aside from eating and sleeping, he spent his entire day training. 

But for someone who was already near Elite Four level, 

This was barely even a challenge. 

The real difficulty came from combining weight training with move practice. 

---

While Pikachu's training was more self-disciplined, 

Froakie's growth was entirely battle-driven. 

Though rest and special meals helped with recovery, 

There were still deep fatigue and minor injuries that needed the Pokémon Center's technology to fix. 

The healing machines here were basically black magic. 

As long as a Pokémon wasn't dead, it could be saved! 

---

And the results? 

Froakie had already reached Intermediate Beginner level— 

In just a single day. 

Leveling up once per day, even at the Beginner level, 

Was an insane growth rate! 

That was the power of Ash's stacked Trait effects. 

After healing his Pokémon, 

Ash gave Professor Oak and his mom, Delia, a call. 

He also told Professor Oak about his encounter with Ho-Oh 

And even sent him a photo. 

Even though it was just a photo, 

It was still a huge breakthrough in Ho-Oh research. 

Professor Oak promised to apply for a reward on Ash's behalf. 

After that, Ash and Serena wandered around Viridian City. 

Compared to Pallet Town, the city was far more lively. 

Tall buildings, shopping centers—the whole place was bustling with activity. 

Ash used this chance to buy supplies. 

Whatever Serena wanted, he bought for her without hesitation. 

Perfume, hairbands, scrunchies… all sorts of girly items. 

Money was just a number to Ash. 

Ever since he became Professor Oak's research assistant, 

He had received so many research grants and rewards that he didn't even know how much money he had. 

As long as he didn't spend on super expensive battle items, 

His funds were more than enough to last a lifetime. 

At first, Serena felt guilty about letting Ash pay for everything. 

After all, in the past few days, 

He was the one cooking and the one spending money. 

But in the end, she gave in, 

Since Ash insisted that these were just small expenses. 

---

After finishing their shopping, 

They arrived at Viridian Gym. 

This was the closest Gym to Pallet Town. 

But it was also one of the strongest Gyms in Kanto! 

Its Gym Leader Giovanni, 

Was rumored to be as strong as an Elite Four member! 

Even though Gym Leaders went easy on challengers, 

Viridian Gym was still far beyond a beginner's level. 

Ash wasn't here to get a Badge. 

He just wanted to see if his near-Elite Four Pikachu 

Could defeat Giovanni in a one-on-one battle. 

But when they arrived at the Gym's entrance… 

The guards told them— 

The Gym Leader wasn't home.