Chapter 9: He Knows Pokemon Better Than I Do
2024-05-15 Author: Samsung Charmander (Author Name)
Pewter City Pokémon Center.
Ash sat there, dejected. His gloomy expression was a stark contrast to his high spirits from just ten minutes ago.
"Ash, are you alright?"
Misty and Brawly walked over. Seeing the scene, they could more or less guess the plot the author had just skipped.
Clearly, the rookie had just been given a harsh dose of reality.
Pikachu's pride and joy, Thunder Shock, had been completely useless against the Pokémon called Onix. It was then caught in the latter's Bind, squeezed to the point of near-suffocation, and before long, was Unable to Battle.
To meet his Waterloo in his first official Gym battle was a huge blow to Ash.
"I got too full of myself."
Ash said in a low voice.
Defeating the Bug Catcher Boy and Team Rocket in succession had made him a little arrogant.
But the crucial thing now was how to defeat the man named Brock. Ash wasn't going to give up on that.
Deep within his soul, Red was synchronously perceiving his emotions, feeling the boy's self-blame and vexation.
But more than that, he felt a rekindled Fighting Spirit, which made him smile in relief.
"..."
It's good for rookies to get stomped in the beginning. It makes their willpower more resilient.
For example, his own first defeat had laid a solid foundation for him to later become the strongest Expert.
"Speaking of which, who did I lose to for the first time?"
Red pondered for a long time before it hit him.
"Right, I don't think I've ever lost?"
Heh.
But that didn't mean he couldn't understand Ash's situation.
Now, in this state of neither life nor death, living as a parasite in the boy's body, Red planned to have a proper chat with Ash one day. He couldn't just keep hanging around in his mind, could he?
A year or two would be one thing.
But if in twenty years, Ash got married and had kids, would he have to watch a live broadcast of that too?
That was something Red absolutely could not accept.
Back in reality, Misty couldn't help but suggest,
"How about I lend you a Water Type Pokemon? That should make it easy to deal with."
"No thanks, I'm going to use my own strength!"
Ash immediately rejected her offer.
He believed in Pikachu's strength. Even if they couldn't beat that Onix now, as long as they kept training, one day they would be able to overwhelm it.
Borrowing a Pokémon from someone else, wouldn't that be the same as admitting defeat for him and Pikachu?
However, how to defeat Brock was a big problem.
Just as he was lost in thought, the Pokedex hanging from his waist suddenly emitted a mechanical sound.
"Pokedex Beep. A Move Pikachu can learn: Iron Tail."
"Iron Tail?"
Ash rubbed his head, clearly unfamiliar with the Move.
Brawly, on the other hand, was quite knowledgeable.
After all, he was a Trainer who had been traveling through various Regions for twenty years. Aside from never having won a Champion title, he was quite experienced in other respects.
"Iron Tail is a Steel-type Move. It's also a new Type that only appeared in the neighboring Johto Region in recent years. It would indeed deal a lot of damage to Onix."
Hearing this, Ash shot to his feet, an unquenchable Battle Intensity once again flaring in his eyes.
"Then it's decided! I'll have Pikachu learn Iron Tail!"
"Ahem, but how are you going to get Pikachu to learn Iron Tail?"
"Don't you just shout the name, Pikachu does the motion, and it learns it?"
Brawly and Misty: "..."
"Learning a new Move isn't that simple! Especially since Iron Tail is a very strong Move, the difficulty of learning it is not to be underestimated, young man!"
Brawly explained with a stern face:
"Generally, there are three ways to learn a new Move. The first is with a Skill Learning Machine, but those are expensive and only sold at the Department Stores in big cities."
"The second is to be taught by another Pokémon."
"And the third is to rely on enough natural talent to master it on one's own..."
Without a second thought, Ash cut in, "Then we'll go with the third one. My Pikachu is a prodigy with extremely high talent."
Brawly suddenly felt a headache coming on. Was this Trainer an idiot?! he thought to himself.
He rubbed his temples and slowly offered a suggestion.
"In any case, Iron Tail can't be mastered in a short time. However, I do have a way to increase Pikachu's Combat Power quickly."
"Let's do that, then!"
Ash didn't hesitate any longer. The three of them waited for about ten minutes until Pikachu was healed and discharged from the Pokémon Center, then they headed urgently towards the outskirts of Pewter City.
Pikachu's body was as if it had been injected with hormones; it was now in a Full Power State.
As it happened, Ash saw a huge boulder on the road and a mischievous idea came to him. He immediately commanded:
"Pikachu, use Iron Tail on that rock!"
"Pika...?"
Pikachu turned its head 180 degrees like a Rowlet, its expression a perfect 0-0?
*You're making things difficult for this Pikachu.*
"Just believe in yourself! Imagine your tail is made of steel! You can do it!"
He cheered frantically.
Misty and Brawly: "..."
Hearing this, Pikachu's expression hardened, and it no longer hesitated.
Its short legs pushed off powerfully, launching it high into the air. With a low cry, it brought its tail sweeping across the boulder.
"Smack!"
A sharp, loud whipping sound echoed out, as if a Long Whip had struck the rock, instantly leaving a stark white mark on its surface.
"Pokedex Beep. Pikachu has mastered a new Move: Slam."
The Pokedex automatically announced.
Misty and Brawly: "???"
Is this how you learn new Moves nowadays?!
Everyone shook their heads. Iron Tail would have coated the tail in a metallic sheen, and its power could shatter gold and break stone.
The power of this Slam was still insufficient; it was unrealistic to think it could defeat Onix.
Still, learning a new Move was an unexpected bonus.
The outskirts of Pewter City.
The trio arrived in front of a simple Wooden House. Behind it was a River with a small Waterfall.
"Ahem, let me explain. This is a Hydroelectric Power Plant. The force of the Waterfall turns the Waterwheel, and according to the right-hand rule, this cuts magnetic induction lines to generate electricity."
Brawly pulled out two wires from inside the house.
"Then, we just need to attach these two Charging Cables to Pikachu's Electric Sacs to channel the Electric Current into it. This will max out its electric energy, and the power of Pikachu's Thunder Shock will skyrocket in a short time."
"I don't get it, but it sounds like it makes a lot of sense."
Ash looked at Pikachu.
"What do you think? Want to give it a try?"
"Pika!"
Pikachu clenched its two small fists, full of Vital Spirit, sparks flying from its cheeks.
It felt utterly humiliated by its defeat at the hands of that Onix.
You have to understand, it considered Red's Round-faced Pikachu its idol and harbored the wolfish ambition of one day overwhelming it in battle as well.
But now, it had lost its very first match.
It's enough to make a mouse furious!
"Say... isn't this Waterfall a bit pathetic?"
Misty walked around to the back. It was called a Waterfall, but the water flow was extremely low.
Even the absolute worst Magikarp could probably clear it with a single Splash.
Brawly laughed it off and explained:
"It's the dry season, so the Waterfall is indeed not at its best. But I can see the strong Bond between you and Pikachu. You can totally generate power with love."
"Alright, Pikachu! We'll generate power with love! Let's get fully charged tonight, and we'll go get our revenge tomorrow!"
Ash was fired up. In a great leap, he flipped onto the Waterwheel.
Grabbing the handles above, he let out a loud shout and started running on the wheel, putting all the strength of his thighs and lower back into it.
*Rumble rumble!!*
The huge Waterwheel actually began to turn, slowly and heavily.
"This kid's physical strength... is terrifyingly immense."
Seeing this, Brawly couldn't help but be secretly astonished.
How could this 10-year-old Youth's strength be so absurd?
When he said "generate power with love," he actually meant "get paid."
Ash just needed to hire him, and he would send out his female Machamp to help turn the Waterwheel and generate power.
He never expected Ash to be so reckless!
Brawly quickly pressed the two wires to Pikachu's cheeks and taped them down with some insulating tape to prevent the Electric Current from straying.
"Bzzzt..."
As the Waterwheel turned, the Electric Current began to flow along the wires, pouring into Pikachu's cheeks and then being completely absorbed by its Electric Sacs.
Who says you can't store electricity without the Volt Absorb Ability?
"The harder you work, the luckier you get!"
Ash shouted repeatedly, cheering himself on.
Then he took a deep breath and began to run wildly on the Waterwheel, its speed increasing crazily!
"Pika..."
A continuous stream of Electric Current poured into Pikachu through the wires. The Energy contained within its small body was constantly increasing...!
"Too hasty..."
Red sensed everything around him and finally sighed.
Learning a new Move isn't something that can be done in a short time.
Furthermore, this external method of charging with a generator was undoubtedly like pulling up a seedling to help it grow. For a Pokemon with a weaker constitution, this would be overdrawing its Potential, and it could be completely drained in minutes, its body too weak to handle the nourishment.
Perhaps because he was just a fragment of code from the Digital World, Red discovered that he could actually communicate with Ash's Pokédex.
That was how, just a moment ago, he had managed to subtly hint at the path forward.
The proper way was to train hard, master Iron Tail, and then challenge the Gym, defeating the opponent with perfect Type Effectiveness. That's what a qualified Trainer should do.
This "generating power with love" method, aside from making Pikachu suffer for nothing, was completely useless.
BOOM!!!
The next moment, the sound of a terrifying thunderous explosion interrupted Red's thoughts.
Following Ash's line of sight, he saw an incredibly brilliant golden light shoot into the Sky, as if it had pierced right through it.
The terrifying crackle of the Electric Current illuminated the entire outskirts of Pewter City.
"Pika!"
At this moment, countless powerful streams of electricity burst from Pikachu's cheeks. Its eyes were sharp and its movements were strong; it was clearly in a Peak State.
"Pokedex Beep. Pikachu has learned a new Move: Thunderbolt."
The Pokédex reported automatically.
Even the usually silent Red couldn't help but widen his eyes, staring at the scene in utter shock.
Oh.
So he knows Pokemon better than I do?
Never mind, then—