"Let's go again," Minato said.
Eevee nodded, looking somewhat resigned to her fate.
Seeing Eevee still wearing that expression, Minato immediately spoke seriously:
"Don't show that attitude."
"Bring out the same enthusiasm you had when building sandcastles."
"Just like then, I'll keep you company until you complete the special training."
This was special training—Minato couldn't maintain his usual casual, easygoing mentality.
One minute on stage, ten years of hard work off stage.
If Eevee feared hardship and fatigue now, she would feel the same resistance to the training the school organized after the semester started.
And when it came to actual battles, unless you voluntarily conceded, opponents wouldn't show mercy just because they pitied you.
The pain suffered then would be several times, even dozens of times, greater than now.
"Eevee!" Eevee called out firmly.
She wanted to become stronger,r too, so this time she had to overcome the difficulties!
Thinking of Minato's companionship during the sandcastle building and their shared joy after succeeding, Eevee suddenly felt ashamed. She walked over and rubbed against Minato's body to show her determination.
"Very good, let's continue. Yesterday, your best time was 117 seconds. This morning, you need to complete the round trip in under 110 seconds. If you fail, lunch is canceled. And no dramas for a week."
Eevee was instantly shocked and quickly ran back to the white line.
These two punishments were practically deadly for her. Since birth, Eevee had never suffered major setbacks—she had always eaten and drunk well, watching her favorite shows on her phone every day. If she suddenly lost these, it would kill Eevee.
So she had to seriously stare at the dense forest...
"Start!"
This time, because Minato had hardened his heart and spoken harshly, Eevee truly reflected on herself. Just as adults teach children that they can't be spoiled constantly, Pokémon also need appropriate discipline. However, driven by instinct, Eevee's movements were still sometimes hesitant and fearful. This time, Minato didn't urge her but let Eevee make her own efforts.
He didn't idle himself either—he exercised his body. Since the integration of Special Zones with Earth, the elemental composition of the air had changed, and human physical fitness had slightly improved. However, after training with Eevee yesterday, Minato's body still couldn't quite keep up. This wasn't the result he wanted.
Half a day passed, and the injuries on Eevee's body had clearly accumulated. Although Minato kept treating her, the pain was what Eevee endured. Unfortunately, she still hadn't managed to run under 110 seconds—just missing it by a bit.
Minato looked at his watch and didn't say much. He took the dejected Eevee back home.
No lunch...
And no dramas to watch...
At this moment, due to half a day of training, Eevee was already very hungry, her stomach growling long ago. It was precisely because of this that Eevee felt desperate now. She understood she could run under 110 seconds because the acceleration from Tackle gave her a much faster starting speed. However, due to some instinctive reactions, her training efficiency still hadn't improved.
"This is lunch and an Oran Berry."
After returning home, Minato busied himself briefly, then handed the food to Eevee.
Seeing the food and the Oran Berry, Eevee's eyes widened in confusion.
"Skipping lunch was punishment for me. No dramas is the punishment for you. Hurry up and eat. After eating, take a nap. The special training continues this afternoon, and it will be even stricter," Minato said.
After placing the food in front of Eevee, Minato sat back on the sofa, closed his eyes, and recalled the morning's training.
He was already very satisfied with Eevee's changes. As for canceling Eevee's lunch, he had never considered that. With such a large training volume, if he canceled Eevee's food as well and nutrition couldn't keep up, she wouldn't be able to sustain it.
But to make Eevee understand certain things, punishment was still necessary.
"Eevee..." Meanwhile, looking at the food and the equally exhausted Minato, Eevee hurriedly pushed the Oran Berry in front of Minato and called out.
After learning that it wasn't her food being canceled but Minato's, Eevee became even more unable to accept it.
"Hurry up and eat."
Seeing Eevee's gesture, Minato opened his eyes and shook his head: "Since we've made our determination, we must be stricter with ourselves. It's just one lunch—it's nothing. Eevee, remember, I am your Trainer. For a long time to come, we will be one entity. Only by working together can we live a better life in the future."
At least... the current standard of living that Eevee enjoyed was something Minato's finances couldn't sustain for too long.
Resources were already scarce. If Eevee and he wasted them, Minato would feel he was not only letting Eevee down but also his parents. This was why he became strict.
It was also for himself. From the very beginning, Minato never thought about remaining obscure. Trainer and Pokémon, as one entity, shared prosperity and loss—their futures were bound together.
Since that noon, after hearing Minato's stomach growl, Eevee began to understand this point. She wasn't a pet being cared for unilaterally by Minato, but a partner. She also needed to do something for her Trainer.
That day, Eevee trained with even more dedication. The training was extremely boring, but shortcuts to becoming stronger were truly too few. At least Minato and Eevee currently couldn't find any shortcuts.
In the afternoon training, Eevee ran under 100 seconds. Letting go of her inhibitions, she endured the pain and progressed rapidly. But the cost was that today's injuries couldn't be quickly resolved by Potions alone. For the first time, Minato actively recalled her to the Poké Ball and took her to the Pokémon Center.
Since it was the countryside, this Pokémon Center was just a simple, small clinic like in the anime—nothing like the tall buildings and formal hospitals in Heiwa City or Metropolis.
There were few Trainers in Minami Town, so the Pokémon Center was also very quiet. Most of the time, the doctors and nurses here had nothing to do. Upon arrival, Minato registered with his Trainer ID, handed over the Poké Ball, and began waiting.
About half an hour later, a young nurse who looked like an intern pushed a small cart out from the treatment room. At this time, Eevee had already fully recovered and was energetically jumping toward Minato.
"How is Eevee?" Minato caught Eevee and held her in his arms.
"Nothing to worry about now. Here's your Poké Ball," the nurse said.
Minato breathed a sigh of relief. Although it was just superficial wounds and he had already used Potions, he was really afraid of any unexpected situations.
Though small in scale, the Pokémon Center's efficiency satisfied Minato.
He would be coming back again.
Eevee: ???