Early the next morning, Ash got up at 7:00 as usual. After greeting Brock, who also woke up, Ash left the Pokémon Center and headed to the beach for his morning exercise.
Misty went with Ash, as they had agreed the day before. She also felt that she needed special training to help her Pokémon break through their current levels.
"We're going to train all day, so let's prepare something for lunch." On the way to the beach, Ash and Misty bought breakfast. Ash reminded Misty to prepare lunch, mentioning that they had already packed food and extra medicine for the Pokémon in case of any injuries during training.
"Just sandwiches will do; keep it simple." Misty looked at the items in the store and decided that sandwiches were the most suitable and convenient option for takeout. She bought a few to go.
When they arrived at the beach, they didn't start training immediately. Instead, they released all the Pokémon and let them eat first.
"I always feel that... Charmeleon seems a little different...." While the Pokémon were eating breakfast, Misty observed Charmeleon and felt that it looked a bit different from the Charmeleon in her memory.
This Charmeleon was larger than usual and seemed fiercer. The flame on its tail also burned higher, as if it were in a constant state of excitement.
"It's because of evolution." Ash couldn't explain the details, so he gave a vague answer.
Misty didn't press for a reason. After hearing Ash's response, she nodded slightly, thinking that the changes might be due to evolution.
After the Pokémon finished breakfast and rested for a while, Ash and Misty took them to a more remote spot for training.
They chose a secluded location to avoid disturbing others who came to the beach to relax and to prevent any potential disputes.
"This is the training plan for these two days of special training. Now, I'll explain it to you..."
Ash and Misty stood in front of all the Pokémon, outlining the upcoming training plan. "In the morning, everyone will continue practicing the moves they've learned. I'll provide detailed instructions on the number of repetitions for each move later."
"And in the afternoon, we'll engage in non-stop sparring until we reach our limits!"
The training plan Ash and Misty had discussed was divided into two parts.
The morning session focused on improving the Pokémon's proficiency in their mastered moves, adapting them to their physical limits, and ensuring move stability.
To some extent, this also helped enhance their stamina.
The afternoon battles aimed to train the Pokémon's combat responsiveness. During a battle, anything could happen. In addition to following the Trainer's instructions, the Pokémon needed to develop their judgment and react independently if the Trainer didn't respond in time.
This type of intensive sparring also helped the Pokémon adapt to crises and maintain a calm mindset when facing danger.
After the Pokémon understood the plan, Ash assigned morning exercise tasks to each of them. Stronger Pokémon like Pikachu and Charmeleon received heavier training loads, while the remaining four had slightly reduced tasks, although they were still challenging and ensured complete exhaustion by morning's end.
Misty's training plan mirrored Ash's. During this time, her Staryu and Starmie had learned new moves, and they needed to practice them constantly to master their application quickly.
Hell-style training was not as simple as it sounded. At the beginning, the Pokémon felt as usual, but the continuous use of moves rapidly depleted their stamina.
Normally, Ash would let the Pokémon rest when their stamina ran low, but this time, he pushed them to continue training, allowing them to experience reaching their limits.
"Squirtle... Squirtle..." Squirtle panted heavily, feeling that it could no longer use any moves because its physical strength had reached its limit. It looked at Ash, only to find him shaking his head.
Gritting its teeth, Squirtle squeezed out its remaining energy to avoid losing its fighting ability and launched a Water Gun attack.
Bulbasaur, Pidgeotto, and Beedrill did the same.
They were constantly approaching and surpassing their limits, realizing that their true limits were further than they thought.
Even with low stamina, they still possessed the strength to fight!
Because Pikachu and Charmeleon possess inherited abilities, despite the intensive training's high energy consumption, they could replenish their stamina by accelerating their integration with these abilities as they became more familiar with them.
The morning's special training lasted for three hours. During this period, the Pokémon considered giving up multiple times, but seeing their companions persevere, they gritted their teeth and persisted until eleven o'clock.
Ash and Misty then called for a break.
Upon hearing they could stop, the Pokémon collapsed to the ground, nearly fainting. Only Pikachu and Charmeleon remained standing.
Ash and Misty immediately replenished the Pokémon's strength, providing them with food and healing potions for a quick recovery.
Although the training was grueling, the Pokémon felt the results of this intensive special training after recovering. The four Pokémon who were still at the normal level sensed that they were nearing the next stage.
Squirtle, in particular, felt on the verge of evolution, needing only a final push to break through its genetic boundaries.
Bulbasaur shared this feeling but hesitated. It didn't truly desire to change its current form, believing that even in its current state, it could become a powerful Pokémon, especially after the battle at the Vermilion Gym.
However, its thinking shifted in the afternoon. Eight Pokémon engaged in a chaotic melee, with the more powerful Pikachu, Charmeleon, and Starmie becoming the primary targets for the other five.
After holding out for a while, Starmie was defeated by the combined efforts of Beedrill and Pidgeotto, losing its ability to battle.
Pikachu and Charmeleon, however, persisted. Despite facing the combined assault of the five Pokémon, they didn't join forces and even attacked each other while responding to the other Pokémon's attacks.
Witnessing Charmeleon's strength, Bulbasaur was deeply moved. Charmander's strength had been nearly equal to its own before, but after evolution, it was almost on par with Pikachu. Could evolution truly bring about such a significant change?
Of course, Bulbasaur didn't understand that while evolution played a role, Charmeleon's strength also stemmed from the inheritance of the sun god Pterosaur. The combination of these two factors allowed Charmeleon to rival Pikachu's current power.
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