"He's gone out?" Delia Ketchum - mother of one strangely unconventional Trainer - exclaimed in surprise before realizing that her boy ran off annually like it was a family tradition or something. "Typical Ash. Don't worry, Gary. I'll scold him when he gets back."

"Mime mime!" Mr. Mime cheered as he raised his broom, delighted that the upstairs bedroom had just become open for sweeping.

"Alright, just letting you know," the Pallet Town Trainer replied, smiling politely. "I'll be leaving too, so I can keep an eye out for him."

"Working hard on your dissertation, right?" the woman asked.

"Yup. If Castelia University likes my work, I might be on my way to becoming a Pokemon Professor."

"That's great!" Delia marveled. "Just like your grandfather. The Oak family has a reputation for being productive, you know?"

"I think all Pallet Town families have a knack for productivity, ma'am."

"You're talking about Ash, right? The Lumiose Conference finals were obviously rigged, but the poor boy refuses to hear any of it. In my opinion, he just doesn't want to make a scene, you know?"

"Uh, yeah. Sure," Gary replied sheepishly, knowing that Ash's mother was still a little sensitive about the last Pokemon League her son attended. Of course, the Researcher would make sure to ask his friend about it later, although he knew that the other teen wouldn't give a straight answer.

Not wanting to further incite the woman, he said his goodbyes and left.


Pikachu, Charizard, and Sceptile had been let out of their Pokeballs for dinner, and the Pallet Town Trainer had noticed that they seemed to gradually relax whenever he released them from their red and white capsules. Pokemon were naturally adapted to the outside environment, and the Trainer had begun to recognize the convenience of having them walk along the dirt path with him, especially since the activity could be considered as stamina practice for all of his Pokemon. Well, except for his spoiled Pikachu, who loved his shoulder, but whenever the Trainer got a chance, he was able to bribe the yellow rodent with ketchup into exercising as well.

He also enjoyed having Sceptile as an alarm clock rather than his faithful Mouse Pokemon. Rather than being shocked awake, it was much better to be shaken back and forth, especially since it wasn't as painful as the former. And Pikachu continued to get stronger each day, so there was no break for the poor teen.

Most of all, Ash liked the training that he and his Pokemon had done while walking through Viridian Forest. He had finally realized that there were more functions to Pokedexes other than scanning Pokemon for short blurbs and movesets. Pikachu had given him a weird look as he tried to scan a tree ("Beedrill: the Poison Bee Pokemon…") and a Trainer walking in the opposite direction ("Pokemon not identified, please try again").

The moveset function was perhaps the most useful function of his 'dex.

"You still know Volt Tackle?" Ash asked his Starter in surprise. "I thought you forgot it after we practiced Electro Ball so many times!"

"Pikapika." The Electric-Type replied with a smirk, which probably meant that he had learned the move again last night. After all, it was basically a combination of Quick Attack and Thunderbolt, just...slower. Right?

"Sure, I'll go with that. Can this thing recognize rocks?" the Trainer asked, waving his Pokedex at a particularly large stone like a Delphox would twirl its stick.


Pikachu crossed his arms, scolding his Trainer.

"I did not break it," Ash argued.

"Pika-chu."

"Very funny. The GPS function hasn't been working since we got back to Kanto."

"Pika, pika-chu."

"I mean, we're not in Kalos anymore," the Trainer reasoned. "But hey, look on the bright side. The National Pokedex still works, and so does my memory chip. That's more important than the stupid GPS, right?"

"Pika-pika." The Mouse Pokemon didn't sound convinced.

"Fine. At least we have my…" Ash trailed off.

"Pikapi?"

"Darn. I left my Pokegear back at the house. Oh well, no use in going back…"


"Pika-pika."

"Scep."

Charizard softly growled, turning away from his companions and crossing his arms.

"Scep-tile."

Ash turned around at the sound of his Pokemon arguing but decided that it wasn't important.

"Pika! PIKA!" The yellow mouse emphasized.

The Grass-Type started laughing.


"Charizard, Fire Blast, but try not to scorch any trees! Sceptile, deflect with Leaf Storm! Focus the leaves and move the flame upwards!"

Ash watched as the Hoenn Starter's tornado of leaves collided with Charizard's in a disconcerting explosion. The fire burned through the leaves and hit the Grass-Type with full force, charring both the Forest Pokemon and the surrounding grass. Ash grimaced, but both he and his Pokemon knew that training wasn't ever easy, especially since half of the Trainer's strategies didn't seem usable until they were actually called upon during a battle. Charizard had resorted to swatting stray leaves away unsuccessfully with his arms, and even Pikachu had stopped firing his own Thunderbolt to watch the spectacle as a flock of Pidgey dispersed from the towering trees.

"Charizard, Sceptile, focus your moves and control where they go after they come out. It'll add unpredictability, and yes, I've seen it done before so you have no excuse not to learn. Have variations to each attack. No two Leaf Storms should look alike, and Charizard, your Fire Blast should not collapse in on itself after a Grass-Type move takes out half the fire. Now Pikachu, attack me again. No, I don't want a Thunderbolt. I want a Thunder."

Pikachu fired, and Ash was able to jump out of the way a split second before it scorched the ground.

"C'mon, not fast enough! And just a bit more."

"Pika-pika. Pika-CHU!"

"Just make your Thunderbolt stronger and no one will know the difference. Thunder is pretty unreliable anyway."

Pikachu tried again, and it hit Ash again, scorching his left sleeve. The Pokemon Trainer, used to the feel of Pikachu's electricity, shrugged the pain off.

"Remember Unova?" he asked his Starter. "That Electro Ball was awesome. I know you were charged up, but just saying, I want your electricity to be on that level. You're already stronger that any Raichu I've seen, so let's get you powered up a bit more, 'kay?"

"Pika-CHU!" A bolt of electricity shot out again, electrocuting the Indigo Plateau Champion again.

"Alright, that was better. Is it just me, or are your Thunderbolts more powerful when you're around Team Rocket? You send them flying off every week or so."

"Pikapika. Pika-chu."

"I'll pretend that was a valid excuse."

After a few more Thunder-sized Thunderbolts (Pikachu had improved a little), Ash yelled, "Switch!"

Charizard flew over to where his Trainer was, gave a quick nod, and dosed him in a powerful Flamethrower.

"You've gotten stronger since Unova, haven't you," complimented a slightly charred Ash.

The giant lizard growled in agreement, head high.

"Okay, Charizard. Let's work on your agility. You've been having bulky opponents for way too long. I want you to run after me," Ash proposed as he pointed to a grassy, steep hill, "and try to use Flamethrower on me as many times as possible. Oh, and don't burn anything but me. Alright?"

The Fire and Flying-Type growled the affirmative. Or, at least, the Trainer thought it was affirmative. (Honestly, it was most likely some kind of sarcastic remark with the words 'you' and 'idiot' in the same sentence.)

With that, Ash took off.

They raced up the hill, and the teen picked up the pace whenever he sensed Charizard coming close, scolding him jokingly whenever he tried to fly into the air to gain an advantage.

Sceptile's Leaf Storm almost hit both Trainer and Pokemon as they climbed the hill for the umpteenth time, and Charizard directed his Flamethrower downhill for a few seconds, pausing only to roar in annoyance at the sparing Pokemon. It made the teen smile as he was reminded of the old times when Squirtle, Pidgeot and even Primeape and Butterfree were around.

As they were running up the hill again, Ash was exhausted and didn't notice a small piece of rock jutting out from the ground as the gradient got steeper. He tripped, fell, and realized that Charizard had fired another Flamethrower. Instinctively, his arms shot up, attempting to shield himself from the worst of the heat.

The blast never came.

When Ash finally opened his eyes, he suddenly realized how tired he was, and his hands dropped on the grass, head lolling. Pikachu and Sceptile had stopped their battle and were both rushing towards their Trainer as fast as they could.

Ash had no idea what was going on, but when he was finally fully conscious, he was lying in a patch of uncharred grass next to a river near the campsite, hat missing, with an overwrought Mouse Pokemon messing around with his hair.

"Hey, Pikachu...what's up?"

"Pikapika, pika-chu."

Ash tried to get up but was devoid of any energy.

"Pikapi! Pika-pika!" the Electric-Type scolded.

"I'm fine, Pikachu. Go back and train," the Trainer muttered, and soon closed his eyes, falling asleep.


By the next time Ash regained consciousness, Pikachu, Charizard, and Sceptile were sending powerful attacks at each other. The Indigo Plateau Champion smiled at the sight of arguably his three strongest Pokemon battling. In each step they took, the Trainer could see himself and his unorthodox strategies, like the teen was commanding them himself. Every second of the dodge-and-attack game was planned to be unpredictable. A perfect mixture of attack power, battlefield control, and using an opponent's own strategies against them.

Finally, the young Trainer found his strength and pulled himself shakily onto his knees before kneeling at the river to wash his face.

Ash blinked a few times in surprise as he gazed at his distorted reflection in the water. For just a second, it seemed like his eyes had turned just a little lighter than they were supposed to be. The Trainer blinked again, and for another split-second, his eyes flashed a brilliant blue before returning to their original color.

Pikachu, Charizard, and Sceptile had taken a break, unaware that Ash was awake, and the teen proceeded to sit up, combing the nest of his raven-black hair to the best of his ability. He assumed that his overwrought Pikachu had been sleeping on it again. Of course, it wouldn't stay put, but Ash had to make it at least presentable. Impressions were important, and Ash had learned that from Day 1 of his Pokemon Journey.

'Aura,' Ash realized. 'That must've stopped Charizard's Flamethrower. And it's the reason I'm so exhausted…'

The Trainer didn't understand how the revelation came to him so quickly, but decided to ignore it. He was about to pass out again.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu was suddenly running towards him, followed by Charizard and Sceptile.

"Hey guys," Ash greeted, a bit sheepish. "Sorry about training. It wasn't any of your faults, just mine, I promise."

His Pokemon visibly relaxed a little.

"Well? We should eat something, right?" the Trainer asked, trying to lighten up his solemn-looking Pokemon. "There are probably some berry trees by the campsite, and as long as the forest Pokemon don't mind, I think we can take some. Besides, I'm starving."

Charizard grunted, and Ash climbed on his back, letting the Flame Pokemon fly him back to the campsite.


"Scep-tile," the Grass-Type muttered as he munched on an Oran Berry.

"It's good, isn't it?" Ash asked as he leaned against a tree, trying to ignore the fact that he was feeling terribly lightheaded.

'How long have I been out?' he asked himself, remembering Aura, and how he had used it at the Tree of Beginning. After the adventure in Cameron, Ash had slept for days (not literally) because he was just that tired. Brock, May, and Max were nice enough to stop and rest before continuing the journey, although they seemed a little skeptical of their traveling companion's excuses for suddenly being so sleepy.

Aura was the life force in every living thing and tended to reflect a person's disposition. Ash didn't know much about the mysterious power (other than the fact that Riley from Sinnoh was known to be one of the Aura Guardians) but now regretted pushing it to the back of his mind while he traveled through Hoenn and Sinnoh. To be honest, he'd forgotten about it by the time he stepped off the plane to Unova. But now wasn't the time to think about either...right?

Psh, it probably wasn't important anyway.

"Pika-chu, Pikapi?" Pikachu was suddenly right beside his Trainer, holding up another berry for him to take.

"Seriously, you know I can get my own food, right?" Ash asked, rolling his eyes in both amusement and annoyance.

"Pika-chu," came the exasperated reply.

"I'm not complaining, though. You guys make great servants."


The next few times they trained, Ash directed his Pokemon with his eyes closed.

"Pikachu, dodge Charizard's Flamethrower, then come in from behind and use Thunder Armor. Sceptile, I want you to form a Counter Shield with Leaf Storm. Don't let Pikachu get close to Charizard but attack both of them at the same time. Charizard, I want you to get through Sceptile and try to Mega-Punch Pikachu as many times as possible."

An outline of blue flashed in front of his closed eyes, barely outlining the figures of his Pokemon sparring before it went dark again. The Trainer couldn't help but feel a little spark of joy, although a wave of exhaustion ensued.

"Pikachu, spin on your Iron Tail as you touch the ground. You can avoid lower sweeps and kicks better with that," the teen suggested. "Good job. Charizard's just trying to pound the grass now. Don't do that, Charizard. Sceptile, you know you can attack from inside the Leaf Storm, right? Try a Bullet Seed!"

Ash knew that he was tiring quickly, but focused on keeping the Aura Sight functioning (to be honest, it wasn't working very well). But it might be useful in the future, so he would have to practice his talent to the best of his ability so that it would be easier when it actually became important. After all, that's how he trained his Pokemon.

"Sceptile, your Leaf Storm still has some holes. Yes, I can see your face right now."

"Scep. Scep-tile."

"Make your leaves swirl faster. A little more...now, Bullet Seed at Pikachu and Charizard! No, don't slow it down. Make your Bullet Seed powerful enough to get through the Leaf Storm." A pause. "If you can get through your Leaf Storm, Pikachu can too. Faster! And Charizard, that's not a Mega Punch. No, I refuse to believe that you'll be able to hit Pikachu with that stance. See? I told you. Pikachu, Electro Ball! Nope, that did too much damage."

That left his Pokemon wondering how an attack could do 'too much damage.'

"Sceptile, once you stop your Leaf Storm, your stats go down!"

"Scep. Scep-tile."

"Nope, not lying! It's happened before!"

And to himself, Ash muttered, "I really need to teach you guys some better movesets. But I'm just so tired…"


Umbreon, it's getting dark. Let's rest for a little, okay?"

"Bree."

Gary was in Viridian Forest and was headed towards Pewter City to check their nearby caves for Evolution Stones. And, of course, to do some research.

When the dense foliage lessened to reveal a city surrounded by rock, both the Pokemon Researcher and his Umbreon found themselves at their destination.

"Hey look! The Pokemon Center is just up ahead. We can sleep through the night there."

"Bree, bree."


AN: I tend to edit old chapters. A lot. You can probably see it in the way some of the sentences somehow get longer, or how the dialogue seems different somehow. New chapters come out every week (I hope), but in my free time, I'll be editing older chapters because my writing sucks sometimes (ahem, more than sometimes). Every few months or so, if you're bored, go ahead and read from chapter 1 again (if you actually enjoy my writing). I'm pretty sure at least a few things will be different.

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