Several days passed.
On this day, the morning sunlight streamed through the wide windows of the dojo, transforming into mottled pillars of light that illuminated the dust slowly drifting in the air.
Inside the main training hall of the Fighting Spirit Dojo.
The sounds of intense panting and the dull thuds of physical collisions intertwined, shattering the original tranquility.
"He's growing so fast..."
"This talent is no worse than Bea's. I'm really curious what will happen when they meet in the future."
Shandou watched, feeling his hands itch with the desire to fight, but unfortunately, there was no opportunity for him to step in. After all, Shandou's level was simply too high.
It was useful for him to feed moves to Ash.
But it couldn't help Ash improve his tacit understanding with his Pokémon.
Ash was, after all, not a professional Martial Artist, but a Trainer.
So what Ash needed to do was fight his own Pokémon.
In the center of the field.
Ash and Charmeleon were locked in a fierce confrontation.
Charmeleon's sharp claws were tightly wrapped in specially made, tough black gloves to avoid causing serious scratches during sparring.
Even so, every punch it threw still carried a fierce gust of wind.
The flame on its tail flickered violently with its movements, displaying all the passion and power it was pouring into the fight.
Charmeleon: Fight!
"Ga-oh!"
Charmeleon blasted a swift straight punch toward Ash's face. Its footwork was solid, generating power from its waist and abdomen; it already possessed quite a bit of a Martial Artist's demeanor.
The strict and painful training of these past few days had yielded genuine feedback.
Charmeleon felt that it had become much stronger.
This wasn't just an increase in stats, but a growth in operational technique.
Ash's gaze was focused. He didn't dodge or evade, but instead met the attack with a straight punch of his own.
The surface of his fist was covered with a layer of imperceptible, lustrous sheen—the instinctive condensation of the Power of Aura.
Bang—!
The two fists collided, producing a solid, muffled sound.
Ash's figure swayed slightly, his feet steady as if rooted to the ground.
Charmeleon, however, was pushed back half a step by the rebounding force. A trace of surprise flashed through its eyes, immediately replaced by an even more vigorous fighting spirit.
It was a Pokémon!
In terms of pure physical strength, how could it lose to a human Trainer?
This point was very hard for Charmeleon to accept. How...
How could such a thing happen!
"Keep up with the footwork! Turn your waist! Power doesn't rely just on the arms!" Shandou's booming voice rang out from the sidelines.
He stood with his arms crossed, observing every detail of the battle.
"It's difficult for your strength to have a qualitative leap in a short time."
Although Charmeleon could still evolve into Charizard, the interval since its last evolution was too short.
It needed to wait a while longer.
Theoretically, even if continuous evolution were possible, it was best to have a small interval in between.
"So, since you can't improve strength, then improve technique."
"Remember what I said: technique and the method of exerting force can make up for the gap in absolute strength to a certain extent!"
Shandou paused for a moment.
"Although I haven't been able to master a mystical power like Aura, decades of experience struggling in the world tell me that for a true Martial Artist, nothing increases the tacit understanding and comprehension between both parties more than engaging in direct close-quarters combat with a Pokémon!"
"The touch of the skin, the trembling of muscles, the rhythm of breathing, even the exchange of gazes..."
"All of this is more direct and profound than any verbal command!"
"You must exchange hearts through fists in battle, use your bodies to feel the other's thoughts, and let your wills merge into one amidst the collision!"
This was Shandou's voice of experience, and also the highest core technology of Martial Artists.
True wisdom can be conveyed in a single sentence, while false teachings fill ten thousand books.
Many powerful Martial Artists were trained this way.
In battles with Pokémon, their physical fitness became stronger and stronger. They could even feel the Fighting-type energy of Fighting-type Pokémon.
And Ash and Charmeleon had taken Shandou's advice to heart.
—Exchange hearts through fists...
—Feel the other's thoughts...
Ash took a deep breath, a trace of resolution flashing in his eyes.
He no longer viewed this spar merely as a honing of skills, but truly regarded it as a bridge to communicate deep into the soul with his partner.
"Did you hear that, Charmeleon?"
Ash gave a low shout, assuming an offensive stance.
"Let's... have a real fight!"
If you want to improve significantly in a short time, then as long as you don't die, you train to the death.
"Ga-oh——!!" Charmeleon's response was an even more violent war cry.
The flame on its tail surged upward with a whoosh, almost licking the ceiling.
The next moment.
The intensity of the battle escalated abruptly!
With a thought from Ash, the mental amplification derived from his Psychic training quietly became stronger.
The world in his perception seemed to have been pressed with a slow-motion button.
Every tensing of Charmeleon's muscles, every slight adjustment of its center of gravity, and even the subtle changes in the fighting intent within its eyes, all flooded into his mind.
At the same time.
Ash actively relaxed his artificial control over his body, handing over command to his combat instincts and the extreme speed brought by Agility.
Swish——!
His figure no longer moved in straight lines of advance and retreat, but carried an erratic rhythm, changing direction in broken lines like a phantom.
Simultaneously, that nascent Power of Aura was fully mobilized by him.
One part diffused outward, capturing the flow of power and emotional fluctuations around Charmeleon with greater precision.
The other part poured inward, like a gentle yet tough energy stream, strengthening muscle fibers and supporting skeletal joints, allowing his body—already enhanced by Badges—to erupt with more terrifying power and withstand more violent impacts.
Bang!
Ash delivered a side kick from a tricky angle, bypassing Charmeleon's blocking arms and accurately striking the open space under its ribs.
The Power of Aura penetrated instantly, bringing a wave of intense soreness and numbness.
"Ga!" Charmeleon grunted in pain, its movements stagnating.
Ash didn't stop for a millisecond. Borrowing the momentum from Agility, his body closed in like a whirlwind.
Elbows and knees turned into an endless barrage of striking weapons, falling upon Charmeleon's body, arms, and shoulder blades like raindrops.
Ash, going all out, began to suppress Charmeleon.
Bam! Bam! Smack!...
The dense sounds of fists hitting flesh were heart-palpitating.
Charmeleon was beaten back step by step, only able to hold on bitterly thanks to its sturdy Pokémon constitution and the defensive techniques learned over the past few days.
Unwillingness churned and boiled like magma within its heart.
—Why?
—Why am I, a Pokémon, being suppressed by a Trainer in close-quarters combat?
The rules restricted its sharpest claws (the special gloves) and its most threatening flames, which made it feel incredibly stifled.
But the pride in its bones did not allow it to admit defeat just like that; instead, it incited an even stronger ferocity.
Charmeleon's nature was extremely bellicose.
"Ga-oh!!!"
It let out a roar, no longer just defending. It began to trade injury for injury, using its glove-wrapped claws to clash hard against Ash's attacks, attempting to break the deadlock with brute force.
However, under the triple buff of "Psychic Thought Acceleration + Aura Perception Prediction + Agility Movement Technique," Ash's basic reaction speed was higher than Charmeleon's.
Every one of Charmeleon's fierce strikes that looked like mutual destruction was dodged by Ash by a hair's breadth, or the majority of the impact was diverted using force-mitigation techniques.
A Martial Artist needs soaring fighting spirit.
But a Martial Artist's reason cannot be drowned by fighting spirit.
Only by mastering one's own fighting heart can one become stronger.
By the sidelines.
Misty had long since covered her mouth, her eyes staring round and wide.
She knew Ash had talent in fighting, and improved rapidly after special training, but the scene before her still exceeded her imagination.
He was clearly the dead last when learning Psychic powers.
She didn't expect him to be this strong when learning fighting.
"Heavens... Ash he... is he still human?"
She muttered to herself, her voice trembling with disbelief.
"That's a Charmeleon!"
"Even wearing gloves, its strength is..."
Misty felt that if she were to get close to Charmeleon, she would be taken out in one punch and wouldn't be able to get up for half a month.
And since Ash could suppress Charmeleon, it meant Ash could also take her out in one punch.
This made Misty feel a bit unable to keep her composure.
Brock nodded with a grave expression, his gaze tightly following the figures in the field: "Psychic amplification for reaction, Aura strictly reinforcing the body and perception, Agility providing absolute speed... he has preliminarily combined these three powers."
"Although it's still very rough, the resulting effect is indeed formidable."
He paused, then added:
"Moreover, Mr. Shandou is right. This kind of unreserved, physical collision battle is deepening the understanding between them with amazing efficiency."
"Look at Charmeleon's eyes..."
If it weren't for the fact that close combat with Rock-type Pokémon was too dangerous, and he lacked talent in this area, Brock wanted to try it too.
In the field.
Although Charmeleon's eyes were filled with unwillingness and anxiety, deep down, a flame of desire to surpass was ignited.
It no longer viewed Ash merely as a Trainer who needed protection, but as an opponent and benchmark who required its all-out effort, someone it even had to look up to!
This was the form Martial Artists and their Pokémon needed.
Martial Artists and Pokémon are comrades-in-arms.
Unable to conquer for a long time, and with physical stamina consuming rapidly, Charmeleon's heart grew increasingly impatient.
After a forceful lunging strike missed, it subconsciously used a Pokémon's instinctual attack... spinning abruptly, its tail covered in hard scales swept toward Ash's waist like a steel whip, accompanied by the sound of whistling wind.
This strike was heavy and powerful. If it connected solidly, even with Ash's current physical constitution, it would not be pleasant.
It was like being whipped by a large stick.
However, Ash, who had maintained high perception throughout, had already "seen" the flow of its power and the attack trajectory of the tail the moment Charmeleon's shoulder moved slightly.
This was a prediction result based on the amplitude of movement and muscle stretching.
—Now!
A sharp light flashed in Ash's eyes. Not only did he not retreat, but he also advanced toward the sweeping tail.
In the instant the tail was about to hit his body, Ash suddenly ducked, narrowly avoiding the fierce tail whip.
At the same time, his hands shot out like iron pincers, successfully grabbing the middle section of Charmeleon's tail.
For Charmeleon, having its tail grabbed was like a human having their high kick caught.
"Ga-oh?!"
Charmeleon was greatly alarmed and struggled to break free, but Ash's ten fingers were locked tight as if rooted.
"Up!"
Ash exhaled and voiced his exertion. The Power of Aura and the kinetic energy accumulated from Agility throughout his body erupted with a bang at this moment.
His core strength in his waist and abdomen twisted into a single rope. His feet stomped the ground fiercely, and using the grabbed tail as a fulcrum, his entire person actually leaped into the air.
Immediately following.
A magnificent and powerful shoulder throw!
Charmeleon's body traced a helpless arc in the air. Accompanied by a heavy muffled sound, it was slammed solidly by Ash onto the hard wooden floor mats.
Seismic Toss!
Well... not that formal. This was just a conventional shoulder throw.
"——!!!"
The massive impact sound even caused the entire dojo to vibrate slightly, the scrolls on the walls rustling.
Charmeleon lay on the mat, which now had fine cracks from its own impact. Its eyes were half-open, and the flame on its tail flickered weakly a few times before it finally lost the ability to battle completely.
—Charmeleon VS Ash
—Ash · Wins!
—Charmeleon's Friendship ↑
The scene was completely silent.
Only the sound of Ash's violent panting remained.
Sweat streamed down from his forehead like a brook, dripping onto the wooden floor and spreading into dark stains.
He stood there, looking at Charmeleon who had lost the ability to battle. There was no joy of victory in his eyes, only the exhaustion and relief of having given his all with his partner.
Misty stared blankly at Ash standing in the field, then looked at Charmeleon lying on the ground.
After a long while.
Only then did she repeat her previous exclamation in a tone that seemed dreamlike, but this time with more certainty:
"He is simply... a superman..."
"Yeah." Brock took a deep breath, exhaled slowly, and finally nodded, tacitly accepting Misty's evaluation.
Looking at Ash's shadow stretched long under the sunlight, looking like a god of war.
The speed of Ash's growth was indeed fast, beyond imagination.
It had clearly been less than a year since he set out.
Unbelievable.
"Pika Pika!" Pikachu nodded from the side, expressing deep agreement.
____
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