Chapter 56: 56 Brock's Story
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"Huh?? Aren't you that stone selling uncle??" Hearing the voice, he turned around and saw a familiar figure.
"Uh... my name is Flint!" Although he was indeed an uncle, he had already introduced himself and felt a bit embarrassed that his name had not been remembered.
"What does Uncle Flint mean when he says we can't blame them all?" Misty asked suspiciously.
"Because they are all just a group of poor children!"
Flint sighed and sat on a nearby bench, looking up at the sky with a sense of weariness. Misty didn't understand why his demeanor had suddenly changed.
"Actually, Brock really yearns for a life outside Pewter City. He wants to travel like you!" Flint explained.
Hearing this, Misty's expression changed. At first, she was a little angry, but then she seemed to understand something.
"Is it because of his younger siblings?" The girl was still quite emotional, thinking it might be due to his siblings, and she immediately began to sympathize.
"That's right. With nine siblings to take care of, he can't leave," Flint answered truthfully.
"But, don't they have parents?" Misty asked, frowning.
"His father is very irresponsible. He said he wanted to become an excellent Pokémon Trainer, so he left Pewter City, and there has been no news since then."
"As for his mother, she may have been disheartened by her husband's departure, and she also left after a short while. So all the children in this family were left for Brock to take care of."
As Flint spoke, Misty didn't notice, but Ash could hear the deep self-blame and shame in his voice.
"So it's like this... These parents are really irresponsible!" Misty, not realizing Flint was Brock's father, scolded the couple without hesitation.
But Flint didn't seem angry. Instead, he felt even more ashamed, though Misty's scolding oddly made him feel a bit better.
Ash hadn't heard much of the conversation before, but when Flint mentioned his wife, Ash felt like laughing.
He wanted to tell Flint, "Uncle, you don't need to take all the responsibility yourself. Your wife doesn't think so."
Although it was a long time ago, Ash still remembered that in a Pokémon side story, when Brock returned to the gym after his journey, his mother, who had been away for many years, also returned.
After returning, she even changed the Pewter Gym into a water-type Gym as if nothing had happened, and Flint couldn't do anything about it. If Brock hadn't returned at the right time, the Pewter Gym would have been completely transformed.
When Ash was younger, he didn't think much of it while watching the anime. But as he grew up, he wondered if there was more to the story.
Brock's mother left Pewter City for Pokémon training, but like Flint, she returned to Pewter City without success.
Looking back, Brock's mother was quite the character, while his father was not only irresponsible but also overly submissive.
In the end, the most unforgivable thing about both parents was their irresponsibility towards their children.
Even though children in this world are more precocious and self-reliant, Ash still disagreed with Brock's parents' actions. While Ash had never met his father, his mother Delia loved him very much and never thought of her husband as irresponsible.
After Brock's mother returned, Flint always believed she ran away because he left first. Feeling indebted, he let her transform the Pewter Gym. Although Brock's parents were not hopeless, Brock felt a strong sense of duty, and only he could keep them in line.
However, Brock's trust in his parents was not as strong as his brother Forrest's. When Brock traveled, even if he asked Forrest to take care of the gym, he didn't trust his parents with the responsibility.
"In addition to running the gym, I also need to train and take care of Pokémon, and look after my nine younger siblings," Flint explained.
"The brothers and sisters also know Brock's hard work, so they defended the Onix that Brock trained so diligently." Flint seemed to be defending the children, but in reality, he hoped Ash could forgive him.
"So that's how it is! Huh? Were you there, Uncle Flint? How else would you know?" Misty listened and nodded, then looked surprised. How did he know so much unless he saw the match?
"Ah?? Oh! Hehe! Yes! I was indeed watching. I was curious about the match between you and Brock, so I came. You were too focused to notice me, hehe!" Flint sounded embarrassed as he scratched his head, trying to change the topic.
"Uncle Flint, you know a lot about Brock's affairs! Isn't this something everyone in Pewter City knows about?" Ash smiled faintly and then fixed his eyes on Flint, as if he could see into his heart, making Flint uncomfortable.
"Uh... this... yes! You just need to ask around to learn these things." Flint realized he had said too much.
"So that's the case, but this is Brock's family matter. A Pokémon battle is a Pokémon battle. Once the game starts, the outcome can't be changed by anyone," Ash responded calmly.
"Brock's Life is certainly worthy of sympathy, but on the battlefield, it's a Pokémon Trainer's duty to respect the battle."
"I won't blame the children, nor Brock. If this is the case, then the parents should feel ashamed," Ash said mercilessly to Flint.
"If I were in their shoes, after knowing these things, I would go home immediately and apologize to Brock, asking for his forgiveness."
"Hmm!!!!" Misty said lightly, and the pupils under Flint's knitted hat suddenly trembled. Flint was originally ashamed by Ash's words, but now his heart trembled even more.
Yes! As an irresponsible father, he had come back after so many years but didn't have the courage to admit his mistakes. Knowing how hard Brock's life had been and how he couldn't pursue his dreams, he was still here defending himself!
"Misty, let's go!" Ash stopped talking and turned to Misty beside him.
"Ah? Oh! Good!!" Misty didn't know what was going on but felt the atmosphere getting weird, so she didn't dare to say more and left with Ash.
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