After taking off his vest, Charmeleon bounced on his feet a few times, his body feeling lighter than it had in weeks. A rush of energy coursed through him, so this was what it felt like to be free of that burden. Every movement felt effortless, his muscles crackling with pent-up power.
"Good! Use Fire Punch!" Ash called out sharply, eyes gleaming with excitement.
This time, there was no need to dodge or play it safe. It was time for a head-on fight.
"Roar!" Charmeleon bellowed, his claws bursting into blazing flames tinged with faint streaks of seven-colored light. The air around him grew scorching hot as waves of heat shimmered outward.
With a thunderous push from his feet, Charmeleon launched forward, flames trailing behind him and leaving a brilliant arc of fire through the air.
"Hoo-cha!!"
Primeape met the charge with his own roar, not flinching an inch. His fists blurred again, fists glowing with fierce energy, Close Combat!
The two collided in a furious flurry of blows.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Their fists smashed together again and again, fire and fighting energy exploding at every impact.
A punch from Charmeleon, a counter from Primeape, neither side willing to yield. The ground beneath them cracked, embers and dust flying with every exchange.
But soon, the balance began to tip.
Primeape's Close Combat barrage started to falter. His fists, though fast, met flames too intense to bear. Each time he struck, the fire clung to his fur, searing his arms.
Normally, a Fire Punch could never stand toe to toe with Close Combat. But Ash's Charmeleon wasn't a normal one.
This was a Charmeleon who trained his body relentlessly. While most Charmeleon preferred ranged flame attacks, this one thrived in physical battle, his claws, his fists, his scales honed through sheer hard work.
And his fire wasn't ordinary either. Deep within that flame burned a trace, a spark of Ho-Oh's Sacred Fire.
It was a power Charmeleon had absorbed through the Rainbow feather, one-ten-thousandth of the legendary flame's essence. But even that faint spark transformed his ordinary fire into something divine.
Sacred Fire could either heal or destroy, and in battle, it chose destruction.
Primeape gritted his teeth as each blow left charred marks across his arms and chest. The sacred heat seeped through his aura and into his body, forcing him backward inch by inch.
Finally, both Pokémon halted at the same time, panting, eyes locked.
Charmeleon's tail flame roared higher, heat shimmering violently in the air. Primeape gathered every ounce of strength into his fists.
This final strike would decide everything.
"Now!" Ash shouted.
The two Pokémon charged.
"Whoosh!"
"Bang!!"
Their fists collided mid-air, and a shockwave burst outward, sending dust and sparks flying.
When the smoke cleared, Primeape's body trembled, then collapsed to the ground.
Charmeleon stood tall, breathing heavily, a proud flame spiraling from his mouth as he roared at the sky.
In Ash's eyes, Charmeleon's ability values, which had temporarily dropped to A-rank after evolution strain, had surged back to S-rank. That battle had pushed him beyond his limits, shattering his bottleneck and surpassing Kirlia once more.
Ash smiled, eyes shining with pride. "Well done, Charmeleon... Go, Poké Ball!"
He tossed the Poké Ball, which struck Primeape and drew him in with a flash of red light.
One, two, three shakes, click.
"I caught Primeape!!" Ash shouted, pumping his fist.
"Pika Pikachu!!"
"Char!!"
Pikachu cheered, Charmeleon roared skyward, and sparks burst from his mouth like fiery fireworks.
Ash picked up the Poké Ball, still grinning ear to ear. But instead of sending Primeape to Professor Oak, he released him right away.
A soft green glow of Tokiwa Power flowed from Ash's palms as he knelt beside the fainted Primeape, his hands moving in smooth, practiced motions. The healing warmth spread through Primeape's body, easing his pain while Ash's massage techniques soothed every muscle.
Primeape slowly opened his eyes, blinking in confusion at first, then relaxing as that comforting warmth wrapped around him.
The strength in those hands, the mysterious healing energy, and the kindness behind them… it all told him one thing.
This human was different.
Not just strong, but special.
Although Primeape once saw himself as a top-tier Mankey, he had to admit that becoming Ash's Pokémon was an unexpected blessing.
That night, after a full meal with everyone, Primeape quickly blended into the lively group. Even the usually reserved Kirlia seemed amused by his fiery personality. Pikachu, as always, welcomed the newcomer by sharing a few berries from his pile, sealing Primeape's place in the team.
As they ate, Ash noticed something odd in Primeape's move list. Among familiar attacks like Close Combat and Cross Chop, there was a move he'd never seen before, Rage Fist.
Curious, he pulled out his Pokédex and typed it in. Nothing. No results, no data, not even an entry placeholder.
"Huh? That's strange," Ash muttered, frowning.
Misty, who was cleaning up the dishes nearby, looked over. "What's strange? What are you looking up now, Ash?"
"Uh…" Ash improvised quickly. "Primeape said he knows a special move called Rage Fist, but since he just evolved, he hasn't really practiced it. I wanted to see what it does, but the Pokédex has no record of it."
Across the campfire, Primeape froze mid-bite, blinking in confusion. When did he ever say that? Sure, he did have a move like that somewhere deep in his instincts, but he didn't remember mentioning it, let alone calling it "special."
Still, since no one else could understand him, he just grunted and kept eating.
Brock frowned thoughtfully. "Rage Fist, huh? I've never heard of that one. Sounds like a Fighting-type move, but even I don't recall any Pokémon using it."
"Yeah," Ash agreed, shaking his head. "Even the Pokédex can't find it. Not that it's any surprise, the thing couldn't even recognize Ho-Oh when I saw it."
That made both Misty and Brock glance at him, remembering that unbelievable story.
Back then, Ash had eagerly pointed his Pokédex at Ho-Oh soaring across the rainbow sky. The device had just buzzed and said, 'Unknown Pokémon detected.'
After that, Ash's trust in the "all-knowing" encyclopedia had dropped to zero.
'This thing's useless,' he grumbled. 'My own eyes tell me more than it ever does.'
"Don't overthink it, Ash. Maybe Rage Fist is just some rare technique. What's more important now is, who are you sending back to Professor Oak? You've already got six Pokémon with you."
That question made Ash pause mid-thought.
Every single one of his Pokémon still needed training. Each one was improving so quickly that sending any of them away felt like cutting off his own arm.
Hearing this, Ash was a little troubled. He wanted to keep all of his Pokémon with him, including the newly caught Primeape. Every one of them was in their prime training phase, and he didn't want to slow down anyone's growth.
The only option might have been Pidgeotto. But Pidgeotto was too useful for everyday travel, scouting, carrying supplies, and eventually, once it evolved into Pidgeot, even carrying people through the skies. That was one of the biggest reasons Ash had caught it in the first place.
Besides, Pidgeotto's progress had been steady lately. If he sent it to Oak's Lab, who would train it? Professor Oak was already up to his neck in research; he hardly had time to manage every Pokémon in the Lab, let alone train them.
"Let me think carefully…" Ash said aloud, closing his eyes as if deep in thought. In reality, though, his consciousness drifted into the group chat.
If there was one thing he'd learned, it was that when he didn't have an answer, his seniors in the group usually did.
After briefly describing his situation, replies quickly appeared.
Champion Ash: Send Primeape back.
Rookie Ash: Huh? Why? Primeape just evolved. Shouldn't I be focusing on training him right now?
Champion Ash: Because your Primeape is special. You mentioned he knows Rage Fist, right?
Rookie Ash: Yeah! Senior, do you know what that move is? Neither Brock nor Misty knew, and even the Pokédex didn't have any information about it.
Champion Ash: That move doesn't belong to your world… at least not yet. The Paldea Region hasn't appeared in your timeline, and the energy from Area Zero hasn't spread across your world.
Rookie Ash: Paldea Region? Area Zero?
Champion Ash: Don't worry about the details. You can't reach that stage yet. What you need to know is this, once Primeape has Rage Fist, he can evolve one more time.
Ash blinked in disbelief.
Rookie Ash: Evolve again? That's impossible! Primeape's already in his final form!
He immediately thought of another possibility.
Rookie Ash: Wait, could it be something like Mega Evolution?
Mega Evolution allowed Pokémon to evolve beyond their final stage temporarily, but only during battle. Could this be something similar?
Champion Ash: No, this is a normal, permanent evolution.
Rookie Ash: But if it's a natural evolution, why hasn't anyone discovered it?
Champion Ash: Because it only happens once Primeape has fully mastered Rage Fist, and that move shouldn't even exist in your region yet. Something unusual must've caused it to appear. But that's not what's important right now. What matters is that Primeape's next evolution, Annihilape, is a Fighting and Ghost-type Pokémon. To evolve, Primeape needs to understand Ghost energy and strengthen Rage Fist.
Ash's eyes widened. Fighting and Ghost type? That combination sounded both powerful and mysterious.
Champion Ash: So, send him to Oak's Lab. Have him train under your ancient Gastly. That Pokémon's over a thousand years old and has been a great teacher before. Remember how Butterfree learned Tailwind?
Ash immediately recalled the memory. Gastly had been the one to help Butterfree perfect Tailwind using its deep understanding of energy flow and air currents.
If Gastly could teach that, then surely he could guide Primeape in mastering Ghost-type energy too.
Rookie Ash: I see! Thanks for the advice, Senior. Logging off now!
Ash exited the chat and returned to reality.
"I've decided," he said confidently. "I'll send Primeape back to Oak's Lab. I found the strongest teacher for him."
Primeape looked a little confused, but when he heard the word stronger, his eyes lit up. That was all he needed to hear.
If this would make him stronger, and maybe even let him surpass that cocky Charmeleon, then he was all in!
Soon after, Ash sent Primeape back through the transfer system.
Misty watched the Poké Ball disappear in a beam of light and asked, "A suitable teacher? In Oak's Lab? Who?"
Ash grinned. "Gengar."
Misty blinked, speechless. "You're letting a Ghost-type teach a Fighting-type? Aren't those… completely opposite?"
Ash waved his hand dismissively. "Trust me. Gengar's lived for over a thousand years. He's seen more than any of us combined, and he can transform into different Pokémon types. That kind of adaptability makes him perfect for teaching. Primeape will learn more there than he ever could by staying with me."
Brock chuckled under his breath, amused but impressed by Ash's confidence.
"Alright," Ash said, tightening his backpack straps and looking toward the horizon. "Let's get going. We need to reach Celadon City by tonight and tell Oak and Gengar about Primeape's training plan."
From the hilltop, the tall buildings of Celadon City shimmered faintly in the distance.
Misty and Brock exchanged a look, half skeptical, half curious. But in the end, they simply smiled and followed Ash, their journey continuing under the warm glow of the setting sun.
...
Bonus @450
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