svetikya Chapter 156 Sticking to the Path You've Chosen
Chapter 156 Sticking to the Path You've Chosen
"tie!"
After seeing its two companions being dealt with cleanly and efficiently, the last Zangoose Blade took two steps back in fear.
They have always liked to bully others by relying on their power, but now that their reliance on each other has been so easily defeated, they inevitably feel a sense of loss and begin to fear Ash and Chimchar.
"There's one left."
Ash muttered to himself as he looked at Zangoose, whose tail had completely drooped.
Then he glanced behind him.
Somewhat surprisingly, Dawn and Piplup completely overwhelmed the leader of the Zangoose Slash. Ash had initially thought this mission would be difficult for Dawn, but it seems he underestimated her.
"Alright, let's continue the battle, Chimchar, Flamethrower!"
"Oji!"
"tie?!"
As the last flame faded, all the Mongoose Slashers that had initially attacked Hikari lost their ability to fight.
After finishing the battle here, Ash began to watch Dawn and Zangoose's fight. Dawn, who was originally suppressing her opponent in an orderly manner, suddenly made some mistakes in her command after realizing that Ash was watching her from behind.
However, Hikari managed to stabilize the situation in the end. With Bogarman's all-out attack, Bubble Beam, the leader of the Zangoose Slashes finally succumbed to the pressure and collapsed to the ground, losing his ability to fight.
......
On a small hill not far away, Shinji witnessed everything from Hikari's initial ordeal to her defeating the Zangoose leader with Ash's encouragement.
He then put the Poké Ball he had been holding in his hand back away.
"Is this guy already capable of fighting Mongoose Claw head-on?"
Shinji muttered to himself, his brow furrowed.
He understood exactly what the Mongoose Slash meant to Chimchar, but he didn't expect that in just a few days, Chimchar would have overcome its inner demons.
No, it's not so much a few days, but rather a few seconds.
If Chimchar initially chose to stand in front of Dawn and confront Zangoose Slash simply because he was forced to do so to protect her, then...
Now, under Ash's command, it easily defeated the three Zangoose Claws, and its expression no longer showed fear. This is enough to show that it has completely overcome its past fears and is moving towards a new life and a new future.
Moreover, what Shinji should care about even more is...
"That powerful jet of flame and fire wheel... has it grown so much in such a short time?"
Shinji recalled how easily the little fire monkey defeated the three mongoose slashes, and couldn't help but feel a little doubtful.
After all, by the time he was on his side, Chimchar's strength probably hadn't improved for a long time.
Even if it's true, as Ash said, that encouragement and praise are a better way to help Chimchar grow, Shinji doesn't think this method will help Chimchar's growth in the short term.
In his eyes, the little fire monkey should have been close to reaching the limit of the first stage when it was with him, or rather, it should have been close to its own limit without activating Blaze.
Was it the extraordinary fire that day that spurred its growth, or did Ash have some more mysterious and effective way of training Pokémon?
Shinji closed his eyes and thought for a moment, then shook his head.
Regret?
He will not regret his choice.
He has a clear understanding and awareness of everything he does and every decision he makes.
He certainly understood that his training methods for Pokémon would not be accepted by the public; he certainly understood that his actions at the Combination Tournament would provoke the hatred of many trainers.
However, external opinions do not affect him; his goals are clear, and he has a clear understanding of himself.
Therefore, he wouldn't be swayed by the opinions of outsiders, even though Ash had already presented him with the initial results of his training of Chimchar and "told" him—
Your training methods are wrong for Pokémon.
He wouldn't care, nor would he regret whether he should have let the little Chimchar go.
The world is cruel. No matter how talented or capable you are, if you can't perform at the crucial moment, you will fail.
The world is never short of geniuses, nor is it short of hardworking people.
If one cannot translate their talent and effort into tangible results, and thereby solidify their inner beliefs, disregard external opinions, and dispel inner confusion, then...
Only then will he truly regret everything he did.
"Let me see just how far you can train that guy."
Shinji took one last look at Ash and Chimchar's retreating figures before turning and leaving.
Although he didn't know if Chimchar had the courage and determination to face the raging fire, he was prepared to confront its power in the battle, regardless of Chimchar's situation.
......
"Oh?"
"Hmm? What's wrong?"
After confirming that all the Zangoose Cutter pieces on the scene were no longer able to fight, Ash was just about to stretch and relax a bit when he noticed Chimchar looking at a hillside not far away with a slightly puzzled expression.
Looking in the direction of Chimchar, Ash didn't find anything special. When Ash asked him, Chimchar just scratched its head, looking puzzled.
"Phew... finally done. Why did I have to handle this...?"
"Poga~"
Hikaru and Bogarman collapsed to the ground, both looking exhausted.
This was the first time that Hikari and Piplup had faced a wild Pokémon of this caliber. Although this Zangoose was not as good as a Pokémon under the command of a trainer, and its intimidating presence was not as great as Ash and Pikachu's usual battles.
However, since this Zangoose was a wild Pokémon, Dawn remained on guard throughout the battle, fearing that it might suddenly turn on her and switch its attack target.
Of course, Hikaru's concerns were not unfounded, since he did indeed have such a plan during the Mongoose Slash.
However, its plans were silently abandoned each time under the watchful eye of the Circular Bear.
Wild Pokémon are valuable for having self-awareness.
With everything settled, just as Ash and Dawn retrieved their respective Pokémon, Brock and Pikachu finally appeared in the distance and joined them.
The noise from the battle must have alerted Brock and Pikachu, right? From this perspective, perhaps being attacked by Zangoose Slash wasn't all bad?
Otherwise, given their level of disorientation, finding each other's location in such a short time would not be an easy task.
......
P.S.: I'm asking for gifts every time!
(The data has started to drop drastically again recently. I heard it's because there are too many authors and books being signed and recommended lately, so the bookstore doesn't have enough space to distribute them... (；へ：))