Hey guys I'm sorry I haven't updated for a while. I kinda lost the desire to write this for some reason. But don't worry my desire has returned and I promise I will update as often as possible. This chapter was written and deleted so many times and I still don't know if this is good enough but I have plans for future chapters and I wanna start on those. Please tell me if you think this chapter could do with rewriting because I would get around to doing that at some point.

Thanks for the reviews guys I really appreciate you taking the time to write one.

I wanna give a shout out to thor94. I usually send people individual thanks for reviewing but he always reviews as a guest so this is the only way I can send him a personal thanks.

Here's chapter 9 I hope you enjoy.

In conversations:

'- Translation of Poké Speech – No human unless otherwise stated can understand it.

"- Human speech

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon.

About an hour after leaving Rustarka Village Ash found a clearing that would be good for training. Since he hadn't done any since the tournament in Rotarka Town he had a bit of catching up to do. He took all the Pokéballs off his belt and threw them revealing his Pokémon

"Ok everyone it's time to start training."

Everyone cheered clearly eager to start training again.

"Snorlax I want you to show Raichu how to use Hyper Beam. When he can use it keep working on Flamethrower. Phanpy I want you to try to improve your Earthquake so stamp on the ground as hard as you can. Don't worry about the rest of us we'll be fine. Meowth work on Hidden Power hopefully it will give you an extra elemental attack. Noctowl I want you to have a go at Zen Headbutt so charge the psychic energy you would for Psybeam but instead of firing the energy focus it into your head. Mudkip we'll start with Bite so focus on making your teeth as sharp as possible and Totodile you're with me."

Everyone nodded and went off doing as they had been told. Totodile followed Ash as he walked to an isolated area of the clearing.

"Alright Totodile I want to try something new today. I want to combine two of your attacks to make one much more powerful one. What do you think?"

Totodile nodded and danced happily.

"I'm glad that you agree. So what you do is first use Aqua Jet and then use Ice Punch to freeze it as you are descending. A bit like how Wartortle combined Aqua Jet and Skull Bash."

Totodile nodded and started trying. Ash watched and at first it wasn't looking good. Totodile was managing to freeze it but due to a bit of bad timing he was freezing it to soon which meant he lost all momentum and just fell to the ground. But he refused to give up and he was gradually getting better. Ash was proud that he kept trying and knew that he would get it. It would just take a while but if he got the results he hoped for then the time spent learning this would be time well spent.

"Don't overdo it. Take a rest when you feel tired."

Totodile stopped long enough to nod to show he had heard and then was off again. Ash went and sat down putting his two young Pokémon in his lap and he started grooming Ralts who sighed in content. It wasn't long before a whine came from the other Pokémon sat in his lap so he turned his attention to her who like Ralts sighed in content.

Ash hadn't been keeping track of time however his stomach grumbling told him it was lunch time. He took a quick look around and saw Raichu was managing to form an orange orb but couldn't sustain it long enough to fire a Hyper Beam from it. Snorlax was there still helping Raichu who looked a bit frustrated probably because he wasn't mastering the move already. Meowth was able to form six red orbs around him however the attacks didn't have much power behind them yet. Noctowl was doing well her knowledge of Calm Mind obviously making this a lot easier for her as she was easily channelling psychic energy into her head. Mudkip looked to have done what Ash had asked which didn't surprise him as it was a rather simple but useful move. Ash didn't need to look at Phanpy as he felt the ground shake and could tell that it had gotten stronger. He was proud of all the work they'd put in and at the dedication they showed. Ash whistled and all his Pokémon came to him.

"Okay everyone I'm incredibly proud of you. You've all worked really hard this morning."

Ash rummaged through his pack and got out their food placing it in bowls in front of them. All the Pokémon started scoffing their meals as Ash fed Ralts and Eevee. None of them noticed a dark shadow that was behind Ash however a mongoose in a nearby bush did., He quickly shredded the sling that had been trapping his arm and got ready to attack.

Ash heard a rustle behind him and turned to see a Seviper. Ash was almost certain it was one of the ones that Raichu had shocked. The snake had its jaws wide open ready to strike. Ash instinctively turned around shielding Ralts and Eevee. The attack he expected never came. He heard something cry out behind him and saw Seviper crash into a tree on the other side of the clearing. He looked to his own Pokémon expecting that one of them had saved him but they were all in front of him. Ash turned around and saw Zangoose standing there glaring at the Seviper.

"Zangoose you saved me. Thank you." Ash said.

Zangoose smirked at Ash and gave a nod. He then shot off slamming right into the Seviper and started bombarding Seviper with a flurry of punches. The brutal assault took a lot out of Seviper with a final slash the serpent was knocked out. Seeing this made Ash wonder how Zangoose had been in the state he was when Ash found him. The only thing he could think of was that there must have been several more Seviper attacking him before Ash got there. A couple more Seviper came out hissing at Zangoose preparing to attacking him to avenge their fallen brethren. But they stopped when all of Ash's Pokémon stood alongside him. The Seviper picked up their fellow Pokémon and fled. Zangoose quickly grabbed his arm and winced. The sudden movements had caused him a great deal of pain.

Ash walked over to Zangoose concerned for him but the mongoose ignored the pain in his arm and looked up at Ash. Ash then extended his arm.

"Thanks you again for saving me. So Zangoose do you wanna join us?"

Zangoose reached out with his good arm and shook Ash's hand. Ash took a spare Pokéball and presented it to Zangoose who pressed the capture button and was instantly caught. Ash smiled and looked at the poke ball in his hand.

"Well he came around quicker than I expected."

Ash let out Zangoose who allowed Ash to albeit reluctantly put his arm back into a sling. He had wanted to start training but he had to admit that his arm was still quite painful due to the earlier exertions. After finishing their lunches everyone went back to training. The only exception being Mudkip who believed he had done as Ash had asked. Mudkip walked to Ash wondering what he had in store for him next.

"I'm impressed that you've already done what I asked. So I'm guessing that you want something else to do."

Mudkip nodded in response. Ash started thinking through what Mudkip knew and could potentially learn. Ash then face-palmed.

"I'm an idiot. Mudkip you don't know Dig do you?"

Mudkip shook his head.

"Well I guess you can work on that. I'll just see if there is someone who can help you."

Ash looked around to see if anyone was free to help them. His eyes then fell on Phanpy who looked like he was taking a break.

"Hey Phanpy can you come here please?" Ash yelled.

Phanpy slammed his feet on the ground one more time making the most powerful Earthquake he had ever done. After the shaking stopped Phanpy ran over to Ash.

"Phanpy that was a great Earthquake."

'Thanks dad.' Phanpy replied happily.

"I need your help Phanpy. Would you mind showing Mudkip how we trained to learn Dig?"

Phanpy nodded and led Mudkip to where he had been training. He started demonstrating what he had done when he had been learning Dig. Mudkip thought it looked rather easy so he started copying Phanpy's actions but found that it was not as easy as he had first thought and was getting tired pretty quickly. But he refused to stop even when Ash advised him to.

Ash let his Pokémon train for the rest of the afternoon and he had to admit that he was impressed with their progress even more so than usual. Raichu was getting better at sustaining the orb of energy but still couldn't quite fire it. Snorlax must have been happy with Raichu's development as he had walked away to an area away from the trees so he didn't set the forest on fire and started firing bursts of flames which were gradually increasing in intensity. Phanpy was still with Mudkip helping him Ash couldn't believe he had forgotten to teach Mudkip Dig beforehand. It was a good move for him to know for two reasons. The first is that it increased the strength of the Pokémon while they are training. The second reason is that it's a good evasive move. Ash then glanced at Totodile who was sat with Zangoose. He had taken a break from trying to do the combo move and started talking with Zangoose. Totodile had stopped Zangoose focussing on the other's training which had been irritating Zangoose as due to his arm he was unable to do anything.

"Okay everyone that's enough training for today." Ash yelled.

Everyone stopped and walked over to Ash. They all slumped to the ground looking exhausted several of their stomachs then rumbled. Ash placed their food in front of them and they all started scoffing the food which Ash had gotten used to. Snorlax was the first to finish his food as usual. As soon as he swallowed the last piece he let out a loud belch. He then yawned and fell to sleep everyone making everyone laugh at his actions. After everyone calmed down they finished their meals and one by one they fell asleep.

The next morning Ash packed up camp and got back on the road to Rustboro.

"Well guys we should be able to get to Rustboro today and then tomorrow we will get our first Gym Badge."

They continued to walk down the path enjoying the warmth of the sun and the cool gentle breeze. Suddenly several bullet like seeds hit the ground in front of Ash. Ash instinctively tightened his grip on Ralts and Eevee. Meowth and Raichu then jumped off Ash's shoulders and started looking around trying to spot who fired the attack.

"Up there guys." Ash said as he looked at one of the trees.

Raichu and Meowth followed Ash's line of sight and spotted a small, green, bipedal reptilian Pokémon stood on a branch. It was glaring at them with it's yellow eyes which had long, narrow pupils. The reptiles hands and feet had three digits which were covered with tiny spikes. Its stomach and throat were red. It also had a line across its stomach resembling a pouch. The most promonant feature was its large dark green tail which had two separate lobes.

"Awesome it's a Treecko." Ash said excitedly.

'Human you are trespassing. Leave now.' Treecko said as he maintained his glare.

"Meowth what did he say?"

"He says dat we're trespassing."

"Whoa we're not trespassing. We are just headed to Rustboro." Ash said.

'Turn back now.' Treecko growled.

"He wants us to turn back." Meowth said.

"I'm sorry but we can't turn back." Ash sighed. He had wanted to catch a Treecko but this one would not want to be captured. "We mean you no harm. We'll just walk past as quickly as possible."

Ash started walking but was stopped when Treecko leapt off of the branch and fired a barrage of bullet like seeds at him. However Raichu managed to react quickly enough to block the seeds with his tail. Ash now returned Treecko's glare.

"I tried to be civil and you respond by putting my daughters in danger. Meowth let's do this."

"Right boss."

Meowth stepped in front of Treecko who stood ready for battle. Treecko then took a twig out of his pouch and placed it in his mouth. He then started running at Meowth as streaks of white came off of him.

"Dig then Iron Tail."

Meowth quickly burrowed underground dodging Treecko who stopped inches away from the hole Meowth had dug. Meowth then burst out of the ground behind Treecko and swung his now metallic tail at the reptile. Treecko reacted quickly and swung his tail which was glowing white. The tails clashed and neither Pokémon was able to gain an advantage. Treecko then opened his mouth and fired several bullet like seeds that knocked Meowth back.

"Quick use Water Pulse then Thunderbolt."

Meowth quickly recovered and formed an orb of water. He fired the water at Treecko who stood there and took the attack not at all concerned by the water. Meowth then fired a bolt of electricity at Treecko who let out a pained gasp and fell to one knee. He quickly pushed himself back up and smirked at Meowth and Ash. Treecko was enjoying this as it had been a long time since someone had given him a good fight.

"Meowth use..." a loud explosion cut Ash off.

They all looked to where the noise came from and saw smoke billowing from the forest. Treecko's eyes widened and he quickly shot off towards the smoke.

"Come on we've gotta follow him someone could be in danger."

Ash ran after Treecko until he finally came to a clearing that had a massive tree in the middle of it (Imagine the one from the James Cameron Avatar movie). Usually Ash would have been amazed by the tree but right now he was staring at it sadly. The smoke they had seen was coming from the tree. The leaves had all been incinerated and there were massive holes in the tree where the bombs must have impacted. He watched as several Treecko leapt out of the tree to get to safety. Many of them having minor injuries. Ash could see a young Treecko stuck in the tree. At the base of the tree a Treecko was being held back presumably stopping him from jumping back on to the tree to save the young Treecko. Ash quickly made a decision and placed Ralts and Eevee on the ground.

"Ok I'll be right back. Raichu take care of them."

'Ok but where are you going?' Raichu replied.

Raichu didn't get a response but could tell what Ash was going to do when he saw his trainer running towards the tree. Ash pushed past the Treecko and then to their surprise he started climbing the tree barely dodging several more shots that were fired at the tree. Ash finally got to the branch the young Treecko was on. He reached out for the Treecko who stepped back in fear.

"Hey don't worry I'm not gonna hurt you. I just want to take you to your family." Ash said softly.

The young Treecko could tell by the softness in Ash's voice that he could trust him. Treecko started slowly crawling towards Ash. Another bomb then crashed into the tree knocking the Treecko off the branch and he now screamed as he plummeted towards the ground. Ash immediately jumped off the tree and caught the Treecko. He wrapped his arms around the Treecko and shifted his body around so that Treecko would be safe. Ash braced himself for impact but was surprised when he landed on something soft. He opened his eyes and saw Snorlax lying beneath him. Ash then let out a sigh in relief.

"Snorlax I don't know how you move so fast but thank Arceus that you can." Ash said.

Snorlax chuckled and placed Ash on the ground. Eevee and Ralts ran to their dad and jumped into his arms. He could hear them whimpering and could see tears in their eyes.

"I'm sorry for scaring you." Ash said as he hugged them tightly.

Their whimpering quickly died down and they smiled at Ash. One of the Treecko was about to go to Ash to thank him for saving his child when suddenly all of the Treecko except for one were caught in several nets. The one who wasn't captured was the Treecko Ash had been battling earlier. Ash saw Treecko charge towards someone who was stood on the machine that was firing bombs at the tree. Treecko was blocked off by all six of the persons Pokémon and could only dodge their attacks as several more bombs were fired at his home. Ash ran towards the person intent on stopping this. When he got close he saw another bomb fired from of the machine which slammed into the tree sheering the top of it clean off.

"Raichu, Meowth use Iron Tail on the gun barrel."

Raichu and Meowth's tails turned metallic and they swung them at the gun barrel. Their tails slammed down on the barrel and broke it off. The man glared at Ash.

"Who the hell are you?" Ash yelled.

"Call me Moukoko. As you've probably guessed I'm a Pokémon Poacher and you little boy are getting in my way." the man replied.

"Why do you this?"

"Silly child. Do you have any idea how rare wild Treecko are? I'll make a killing on these when I put them on the open market." Moukoko said.

"So you're capturing them and destroying their home for your own profit. Not if I have anything to say about it. Everyone to the battlefield." Ash yelled angrily.

Ash's Pokémon appeared and all roared angrily when they saw all of the Treecko trapped in the nets. They all stood ready to battle the poachers Pokémon Ash was surprised when Treecko came and stood next to his Pokémon

"Zangoose go and free all of the Treecko."

Zangoose let out an annoyed grumble since he had wanted to battle the poachers Pokémon but did as Ash said and quickly ran to the trapped Treecko. He slashed through the nets freeing them. Zangoose and several of the Treecko ran back to Ash and surrounded Moukoko.

"You shouldn't interfere in adult affairs boy." Moukoko growled.

"Are you gonna stand there and talk or are you gonna battle?" Ash replied cockily.

Moukoko looked around and knew that he didn't stand a chance. Ash saw him pull something off his belt and then raise what appeared to be a small grey ball.

"Well boy it's been a blast."

Moukoko threw the ball on the floor which exploded and released a thick smoke. Ash and the Pokémon all coughed as the smoke filled their lungs. Once the smoke cleared Ash could see Moukoko in the distance flying on a Hydreigon

"Get back here." Ash yelled.

Moukoko responded by cackling evilly. Ash glared at him until he was out of sight. He turned to look at the Treecko who were either looking at him gratefully or talking with his Pokémon

"Are all of you alright?" Ash asked.

The Treecko all nodded.

"I'm sorry about your tree."

An older looking Treecko walked up to Ash.

'In time it shall heal as it has done in the past when fires have burned the forest.' the older Treecko said.

"He says that the tree will be fine."

"Well that's good news."

Ash then felt someone tug on his trousers. He looked down and saw the Treecko that he'd battled.

"Hey Treecko what's up?"

'I apologise for my earlier actions. I wish to continue our battle and if you beat me I'll let you catch me.'

Ash looked at Meowth awaiting a translation.

"Treecko wants to battle you. If you win he'll join us." Meowth said.

"Ok sounds good to me. Meowth you wanna continue the battle from earlier?"

"You bet boss."

"Start off with Quick Attack."

Meowth shot off with streaks of white coming off him. Treecko copied Meowth and ran at the cat. They clashed and appeared even.

"Slash."

Meowth's claws extended and he swiped them at Treecko. However his attack hit thin air as Treecko leapt over him and was now swinging his tail which was glowing white at Meowth.

"Roll then Iron Tail."

Meowth rolled to his left making Treecko's Pound slam into the ground. Meowth tail then turned metallic and he slammed it into Treecko side making him stagger back and hold his aching ribs.

"Don't give him a chance to recover. Use Fury Swipes."

Meowth's claws extended again and he ran at Treecko who was still trying to gather himself after the last attack. This gave Treecko no chance to prevent the attack subjecting him to a barrage of scratches from Meowth. Treecko knew he needed to get some distance so he opened his mouth and fired several bullet like seeds at Meowth at point blank range. The seeds slammed into Meowth's face forcing the cat to fall back. As he watched the battle Ash had to admit that he was impressed with Treecko's quick thinking.

"Thunderbolt."

A bolt of electricity shot off from Meowth straight at Treecko. Treecko wasn't sure if Meowth was going to try the same strategy they used before so he moved to dodge the attack but pain shot through him from his injured side. Treecko knew he had no chance of dodging now so his only choice was to try and stop the attack with one of his own. He opened his mouth and fired another wave of bullet like seeds at the bolt of electricity. However the Thunderbolt was too close meaning that when his attack clashed with the Thunderbolt the ensuing explosion caught him in the blast. Treecko was shrouded in smoke and when the smoke cleared it revealed Treecko who was struggling to stand. Ash saw this as his chance so he threw a Pokéball at Treecko and the reptile was sucked inside. The Pokéball quickly dinged confirming the capture. Ash picked up the Pokéball quickly sending out Treecko and Ash healed him up so he could say a final goodbye to his family and friends.. Once Treecko was done saying farewell they walked away waving back at the Treecko until they were out of sight.

It wasn't long until rooftops were in view. The sight surprised Ash as he didn't think they were that close to Rustboro. They walked in from the western entrance of the city and took a look around. Ash saw the massive building to the north and knew that must be Devon Corp. He briefly considered going and checking out Devon Corp to see about those upgrades Professor Oak had said about. But he decided to do so after his Gym battle.

Ash started walking through Rustboro and came across the Trainer School. As he stared at the building he remembered his past experience with Trainer Schools and decided to see how this ones compared. He walked inside and saw that it was a rather small facility. He looked around the room and saw that there was about twenty children sat at desks. They appeared to be between six and nine presumably learning for when they start there journey's. Ash followed their line of sight and saw that they were watching what Ash thought was a video recording of Professor Oak. Ash jumped when Professor Oak looked straight at him. The children all looked back at Ash and he suddenly felt a bit uncomfortable.

"Hi Professor." Ash said.

"Hello Ash." he replied.

"Um Professor who's that?" one of the children asked while pointing at Ash.

"He is Ash Ketchum. He's been a trainer for a little over four years now."

"Is he strong." one of the other children asked.

"I believe so. In fact I believe he has the potential to win the Evergrande Conference."

"Professor your embarrassing me. Anyway Gary is collecting the Hoenn gym badges too. Shouldn't you be rooting for him?" Ash said.

"I am rooting for Gary and if the two of you battle I shall cheer for him. However out of the two of you I believe you are stronger."

"Really?" Ash replied in shock.

"Indeed. I believe that you are far more dedicated to your Pokémon and that you take training far more seriously than Gary does."

"Why do you think that?"

Professor Oak sighed. "After Gary returned from Johto I offered to teach him everything I knew. But he just brushed my help away claiming that he didn't need help. You on the other hand came and asked me for help."

Ash shook his head. He knew Gary was stubborn and big headed but to refuse help from one of the most famous Pokémon Professor's in the world was just stupid on his part.

"I'm glad you're here Ash. I had been intending to call you but now I don't need to. You see I have good news about Eevee. If you call me later I'll tell you about it."

Eevee perked up and yipped happily.

"Ok Professor. I'll call you later."

Professor Oak nodded and Ash turned around about to leave.

"Wait Ash." a man called.

Ash looked back and saw the teacher walking towards him.

"Listen Ash. Roxanne helps me run this Trainer School but she was busy today with challengers. So I have nobody to have a demonstration battle with to show the kids how a battle goes. So I was wondering if you could help us out if you have some time to kill?"

Ash looked at the young students and remembered when he was their age. It made him wonder how much different he would be if he had been in a Trainer School before going on his journey.

"Sure I'd love to help."

"Thanks for the help Ash. Oh my names Taylor."

"No problem Taylor."

Taylor walked back down to the front of the class and Professor Oak got back to his lecture. Ash sat down at one of the spare desks at the back and listened to the lecture. As the lecture went on Ash had to admit that he was impressed with the knowledge the children had. Even the youngest of them were able to answer many questions that a few months ago he wouldn't have been able to.

A few minutes later Ash entered the Pokémon Centre and handed all of his Pokémon apart from Eevee and Ralts to Nurse Joy. Ash took a seat and watched as Nurse Joy took them to the healing room. Ash spent the time giving Eevee and Ralts a quick groom which both young Pokémon seemed to enjoy. A few minutes later Nurse Joy walked back out with his Pokéballs, Raichu and Meowth. Ash got up and walked over to the main desk.

"How are my Pokémon?"

"Well I am impressed your Pokémon are healthy as can be."

"Thanks Nurse Joy. Can I have a room for the night?"

Nurse Joy nodded and handed his Pokémon back. She then pulled a key out from under the desk and gave it to Ash. He went into the cafeteria and sent out his Pokémon so they could get something to eat. Ash enjoyed the meal mainly because it was nice for Ash to not worry about making their meal. The only exception was Snorlax who was sat outside with his specially made food as Ash didn't want Snorlax to eat all of the Pokémon Centre's food.

A couple of hours later Ash went back to his room in the pokemon Centre upstairs. He looked for his room and quickly found it. After opening the door he collapsed on to the bed. Ash looked at the time and was surprised to see that it was only ten pm. Since there was really nothing else to do Ash decided to turn in earlier than usual as he knew they would need to be fully focussed for his first Hoenn Gym battle tomorrow.

Notes

Please give a review telling me what you liked/didn't like.

If you have any questions I am more than happy to answer them.

So Ash has caught Zangoose and Treecko.

As Treecko's addition shows I will use parts from the animé but I will heavily edit them to fit the story.

Ash:

Kanto – Raichu, Meowth, Ivysaur, Wartortle, Charizard, Pidgeot, Kingler, Muk, Tauros(x29), Snorlax & Eevee (Shiny)

Johto – Totodile, Bayleaf, Cyndaquil, Heracross, Noctowl (Shiny), Phanpy & Sneasel

Hoenn – Mudkip, Nincada, Treecko, Zangoose & Ralts