Ash's Greninja

Ash's Greninja was the first Pokémon that Ash caught in the Kalos Region and his forty-third overall.

## Personality

Greninja is extremely similar to Ash personality-wise, as he is not afraid to leap into danger regardless of his own safety and doesn't back down from a fight. He is clear that it recognizes these traits in Ash, hence why he was finally willing to accept being taken into Ash's wing. Greninja is a responsible Pokémon that can take initiative to protect his friends and allies. Greninja also seems to care deeply for his friends and would go to great lengths to keep them safe from danger.

Greninja seems to appreciate and respect bravery and selflessness, and as such, aims to be so himself. This is first shown when he took a hit for Ash's Pikachu during Team Rocket's attack despite not knowing Pikachu or his Trainer, and then proceeded to help them both in combat. He respects those with these traits, as he does Ash. Greninja was impressed and surprised by Ash's willingness to put himself in danger to help a Garchomp that wasn't his Pokémon and barely knew, and admired this show of self-sacrifice and selflessness to the point Greninja as a Froakie went alongside Ash to face Garchomp. He also showed genuine concern for Ash's safety when Ash jumped off the Prism Tower. A lack of these traits in his previous Trainers may be what caused Greninja to leave them.

## History

### Prior to Series

Greninja was a Pokémon Ash caught in the Kalos Region and was one of his main Pokémon during his Kalos journey. He was left at Kalos to protect the region from the negative energy left from the Team Flare Incident.

## Gallery

As a FroakieAs a FrogadierUsing Double TeamUsing Aerial AceUsing SmokescreenUsing Night SlashGreninja and AshUsing Double Team as Ash-GreninjaUsing Cut as Ash-GreninjaUsing Aerial Ace as Ash-GreninjaUsing Water Shuriken as Ash-Greninja
## Trivia

* Greninja's capture as a Froakie marks the first time that Ash catches a starter Pokémon as his first Pokémon in a region.
	+ Greninja is also the first of Ash's first regional catches that is not a Normal/Flying-type since Heracross, as well as the only one that is incapable of flying.
* Greninja is Ash's first Pokémon to be owned by more than one Trainer before him.
* Greninja is the first Water-type starter Pokémon to have ever evolved under Ash's ownership.
	+ Greninja is also the first fully evolved Water-type starter Pokémon owned by a main character.
	+ As a Froakie, Greninja was also Ash's first Water-type to evolve under his ownership since *Round One - Begin!*, 776 episodes earlier, when Krabby evolved into Kingler.
	+ Greninja is also Ash's first Water-type to have evolved twice.
* Greninja is the first of Ash's starter Pokémon to have its Egg revealed on-screen.
* When Greninja evolved from Frogadier in *A Festival of Decisions!*, it evolved in a similar situation to when it evolved from Froakie in *A Stealthy Challenge!*, with Ash's Pikachu and Sanpei's Greninja already hurt by the enemy and were laying down in defeat.
* Greninja is Ash's first and only starter Pokémon that he has released at any point in his Pokémon journey.
	+ He is also the first of his released Pokémon to physically appear outside of the series it was released in.