"Drow—zee!!"
The paralysis didn't weaken Drowzee's will to resist—if anything, it drove it into a fiercer counterattack.
Psychic energy surged.
The violent Gust whipped up by Pidgey—like a raging "threefold divine wind"—was instantly torn apart by Drowzee's Confusion, shredded piece by piece under invisible force.
But Drowzee wasn't facing a single opponent.
It was being besieged.
Paralyzed by Pichu's Thunder Wave, Drowzee had only just ripped open the wind barrier—
When Frogadier, the designated main attacker, seized the opening.
Two Water Shuriken shot out first, clearing the path.
Immediately after, Frogadier chained into Quick Attack, its body flaring with sharp white light as it burst forward at explosive speed.
"Drowzee is a special-attack–oriented Pokémon, and its mobility is poor," Ash analyzed calmly from outside the battle circle, arms crossed.
"Frogadier—close in and lock it down in close combat."
"Pichu, Pidgey—provide feints and fire support with Thunder Shock and Air Slash."
"Frogadier!"
"Pichu!"
"Pidgey!"
The three Pokémon responded in unison, executing Ash's orders without hesitation.
Bang!!
Confusion tore through the remaining airflow.
Frogadier slipped in through the opening, accelerating violently in a flash of light—and slammed straight into Drowzee before it could react.
Drowzee's only truly outstanding stat was its Special Defense.
Its other attributes—especially physical defense—were mediocre at best.
And Frogadier, now LV.27, wasn't far behind Drowzee in overall strength.
"Drow—!!"
The impact sent Drowzee flying, a painful cry escaping its mouth.
Having studied battle footage extensively, Pichu and Pidgey both understood the principle of pressing the advantage.
The moment Drowzee was knocked airborne, they struck.
"Pichu~!"
"Pidgey~!"
Pichu slapped its cheeks, electricity surging like a switch had been flipped.
Crackling current wrapped around its tiny forearms as it swung them sharply—using the momentum to hurl a bolt of Thunder Shock forward.
Above, Pidgey reacted just as swiftly.
With wings spread wide, it looked like a peerless blade master raising a great saber—then brought it down in a decisive arc.
Crack—!
Whoosh—!
A bolt of electricity as thick as a baby's arm shot out first.
Close behind it followed a crescent-shaped, azure wind blade—Air Slash.
Bang!
Crack—bang!!
Whoosh—bang!!
Drowzee, which had just slammed face-first into the ground and hadn't even managed to stand up, was hit head-on by both attacks.
"Drow—!!"
Struck by three consecutive hits, Drowzee let out a pained wail.
Pichu was LV.18, Pidgey LV.20—both more than ten levels below Drowzee.
Yet the gap wasn't large enough for Drowzee to completely ignore their damage.
Unseen but undeniable, Drowzee's "HP bar" dropped sharply once more.
And Ash's offensive wasn't finished yet.
The instant Pichu and Pidgey's attacks ended, Frogadier charged again with another Quick Attack.
Bang—!
"Pichu, while Frogadier is attacking, weave in Sweet Kiss, Play Nice, and Tail Whip," Ash commanded.
"Pidgey, stay alert—either follow up with Frogadier or suppress Drowzee with Gust during the gaps."
Although Drowzee was nominally the ace Pokémon of Cassidy's elite Team Rocket squad, it knew its own limits well.
Its role was support.
It excelled at Hypnosis, assisting in special missions.
In direct combat, the heavy lifting was usually done by Pokémon like Raticate, Houndoom, Granbull, or Haunter.
Now—
Facing Frogadier, whose strength wasn't far below its own,
plus Pichu and Pidgey as capable partners,
and forbidden from using Hypnosis while deliberately suppressing its own power—
Drowzee never recovered from the moment it was knocked down by the first Quick Attack.
Wave after wave of attacks crashed down.
Each assault linked seamlessly into the next, leaving Drowzee no room to breathe—no chance to recover.
...
It didn't last long.
Drowzee finally collapsed, losing all combat capability.
[Ding! Congratulations, Host—defeated LV.32 Drowzee. Gained 640 EXP.]
[Ding! Multiple Pokémon participated. EXP distribution initiated.]
[Ding! Pichu gained 213 EXP. Level requirement met—leveling up… Pichu is now LV.19.]
[Ding! Pidgey gained 213 EXP. Level requirement met—leveling up… Pidgey is now LV.21.]
[Ding! Frogadier gained 213 EXP.]
System notifications rang continuously in Ash's ears as the battle ended.
A total of 640 EXP was earned and evenly divided among the three Pokémon.
Pichu and Pidgey each leveled up.
Frogadier, being much higher level, required more EXP—so it didn't level up this time.
Ash wasn't disappointed in the slightest.
Grinding Drowzee—this living EXP pack—was far more efficient than fighting low-level Rattata.
Most importantly, the Level Advancement Module of the Ascension Trainer System had far fewer restrictions than Skill Copy.
As long as real battles kept happening, EXP could be gained continuously.
The only requirement was that both sides must fight seriously, and the opponent must be truly defeated.
Only then would the system recognize the battle as valid.
This prevented fake matches—but the system, heavily damaged and lacking full intelligence, still judged battles like this one—half real, half restrained—as legitimate.
"Pichu, Pidgey, Frogadier," Ash said with a smile,
"you performed very well—especially your control over attack rhythm."
"Instead of launching everything at once for maximum burst, the rotating, interwoven offense you used just now was far more effective."
"Also—Pichu," Ash continued seriously,
"you're built for speed and burst damage, but you haven't evolved into Pikachu yet."
"The electric power your cheek pouches can store is still limited."
"At this stage, your main role is to use support moves like Thunder Wave and Sweet Kiss to create better openings and a safer output environment for your teammates."
"Do you understand?"
After praising them, Ash also pointed out the flaws and areas for improvement they'd shown.
"Pichu!"
"Pidgey!"
"Frogadier!"
All three Pokémon nodded seriously, taking his words to heart.
The lesson was learned.
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