Pokémon, Ash's art style is off!

Xiaoxia stretched her stiff body slightly and rubbed her sleepy eyes.

Following the sound, the blurry vision gradually cleared.

Not far away, Ash, shirtless, was doing high-intensity weighted squats, one hand on each tree and the other on his forehead, sweating profusely.

What's striking is that he was steadily carrying the still dazed Pikachu, bouncing up and down with the swaying of the body, on his broad and sturdy shoulders, as if he were using the latter as some kind of special load-bearing equipment.

"Haa~ really..."

"So energetic so early in the morning..."

Xiaoxia yawned, a hint of helplessness in her voice, and propped herself up on her arms, preparing to climb out of her sleeping bag.

She's the kind of person who, once awake, rarely falls back asleep.

Muttering to himself, he was about to get up when his gaze unexpectedly met that of a creature lying on the edge of his sleeping bag.

Plump, vibrant green, with an imposing presence.

It even bears a strange resemblance to a legendary Pokémon from the Hoenn region that is fond of mediating disputes.

His eyes were dazed, as if he had just been woken up by Xiaozhi's voice.

This is a green caterpillar.

But this is not the point.

The key point is that this is the kind of Pokémon I fear the most.

An insect.

A living, moving insect.

You'll never know how much of a shadow such a big, fleshy, wriggling caterpillar can cast on a young girl in the prime of her life who loves beauty!

The two were so close that Xiaoxia could even see the fine downy hairs on its body trembling gently in the morning breeze.

Time seemed to freeze for a second.

"Aaaaaaahh ...

The next second, a terrified scream belonging to a young girl, powerful enough to startle countless resting Pokémon in the forest, pierced the peaceful daily life of the Evergreen Forest like a sharp blade.

Xiaoxia felt her hair stand on end, as if she had been electrocuted, and covered her face with her hands in terror.

"grumble--!!!"

The caterpillar was clearly startled by the sudden dolphin-like sound.

Its body stiffened, and the entire insect stood still like a green popsicle, even forgetting to twitch its red Y-shaped antennae on its head.

The loud noise immediately attracted Ash, who was exercising.

He paused, and Pikachu, who was still dozing off on his shoulder, lost its balance and slid softly to the ground with a soft "Pika!", landing on its bottom.

Xiao Zhi turned around and looked in the direction of the sound.

What comes into view is Xia and a green caterpillar, less than half a meter apart, performing a real-life version of the world-famous painting "The Scream".

His instincts made him react almost reflexively.

"Don't be afraid! I'm here!"

Ash let out a powerful shout.

A 100-meter sprint kicked up a cloud of grass and dust.

At the moment of approach, the body leaps into the air, delivering a clean and crisp flying kick!

The movements were completed in one smooth motion.

In an instant, it traversed the distance and arrived precisely beside Xiaoxia.

Then, a kick.

It landed squarely and mercilessly... right at the junction of Xiaoxia's waist and hips!

It protected the vulnerable victims.

Taking advantage of the momentum, Ash smoothly slid down to his knees, and with incredibly gentle movements, picked up the stiff Caterpie.

He lowered his head, his face filled with genuine worry and concern, and softened his voice as he asked softly.

"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid."

"Are you alright? Is anything bothering you?"

Caterpie finally recovered in Ash's warm embrace, cautiously shrank its neck, and then let out a pitiful chirp.

It wasn't uncomfortable, it was just startled.

It felt like if the voice on the other end had been any louder, it would have been so scared that it would have cocooned up on the spot.

Xia, who was kicked aside and almost made intimate contact with the damp ground, sat there dumbfounded, her mind buzzing.

She glanced at Satoshi, who was fussing over Caterpillar, and then at herself, covered in leaves and dirt.

It's hard to believe.

No?

Ash, aren't you a little mistaken about who you're protecting?!

Shouldn't it be this beautiful, frightened, and pitiful girl who needs care who is comforted and carefully protected?

Why that bug?!

"Little Zhi!"

Xiaoxia stood up, rubbing her aching bottom, her voice full of grievance.

What are you doing?!

Xiao Zhi then raised his head.

"Protecting the caterpillar, huh?"

His eyes were filled with pure confusion, as if Xiaoxia had asked a very strange question.

Xiaoxia: "???"

Although during this brief encounter, I learned that Ash's thought process was abnormal, but...

"Shouldn't I be the one being protected?!"

She almost jumped up.

What are you talking about?

"Compared to you, it's just a soft, pitiful, and helpless worm!"

Xiao Zhi said.

Pikachu, now fully awake, also came over.

It looked at Xiaoxia, then at the caterpillar.

I stand firmly by Ash's side.

This time, it's on Xiaozhi's side.

An ordinary green caterpillar, when it comes to direct combat, even a six-year-old child could subdue it with their bare hands.

Not to mention a sixteen-year-old girl.

Anyone would protect Caterpie, the weak one, right?

"You must have been terrified by how loud you were just now."

Xiao Zhi gently comforted him.

The green caterpillar in his arms nodded vigorously at the opportune moment, then turned its head and glanced at Xia with a slightly unfriendly look.

Pu Xin, female.

He also said he would protect you.

Steamed shrimp heads!

At that moment, Xiaoxia instantly grasped what she had failed to understand the previous night.

Silent communication.

It's just that the timing wasn't quite right.

"you!"

Xiaoxia was so angry that her chest heaved, and even her flat chest seemed to swell up with anger.

In an instant, I actually overcame some of my fear of insect-type Pokémon.

"grumble!"

Caterpie quickly shrank further into Ash's arms.

This left Xiaoxia with a difficult situation she couldn't express.

Looking at Ash's self-righteous and completely unperturbed demeanor, and then at the surrounding forest in the middle of nowhere,

Xiaoxia took a deep breath and swallowed back all her complaints.

People are under the eaves and have to bow their heads!

Xiaoxia, you've already put up with it!

7. Who is the villain among us?

Trainers who only have Pokémon in their eyes are indeed not uncommon in this world.

However, in the Kanto region, where the local customs are particularly simple and honest and the trainers' styles are generally quite hardcore, their numbers are exceptionally large.

It could even be considered one of the regional characteristics.

But... but it was just a green caterpillar!

A green caterpillar that can be found anywhere!