The morning light parted the mist in the Illusion Forest, and the birdsong in the woods was crisp.
Shinji and Hikari packed up their camp's tent and equipment, erasing the last traces.
A week of special training had quietly passed, and both of their Pokémon had made significant progress.
"We're finally heading to Jubilife City!" Hikari slung her backpack on, hugged Piplup, and her face was filled with undisguised anticipation. "The Contest will start soon, so I need to go familiarize myself with the venue and register in advance!"
Shinji did a final check of the campsite, confirming no items were left behind, before turning to follow.
After this week of high-intensity special training, his three Pokémon had all made a qualitative leap in strength, with their levels and skills improving far beyond expectations.
He subconsciously touched the Poké Ball at his waist, and the latest data of his three Pokémon already appeared in his mind.
Elekid had successfully broken through to Level 29, and after targeted flame energy perception training, it had now fully mastered Fire Punch.
Chimchar had also smoothly risen to Level 16, and through daily digging training, it had completely grasped the Dig move, now able to flexibly use this move for surprise attacks and evasion.
Shinji could clearly feel the surging evolution energy within it. At this rate, evolution was already close at hand, but he deliberately suppressed this evolutionary trend—he planned to let Chimchar evolve when challenging the Steel Gym. The power boost from evolution at that time would allow it to better handle the Gym battle.
As for Murkrow, its level increased the most rapidly. Thanks to continuous real combat monster grinding with Shinji in the forest for days, it had now reached Level 3.
Frequent battles made its combat experience richer, and the precision of its flight posture and move execution became more skilled.
Shinji planned to use a Dusk Stone to help it evolve when it reached around Level 36. Before that, he needed Murkrow to consolidate its strength and solidify its foundation so that it could accumulate power and unleash stronger combat capabilities after evolving.
...
The morning light filtered through the gaps in the branches onto the forest path, casting long and short shadows of the two. Hikari chattered excitedly beside him, talking about her aspirations for the Contest. The atmosphere of the journey was light and pleasant.
The two walked along the forest path for about half an hour when a series of panicked screams suddenly came from ahead:
"Help—!"
"Run! They're chasing us!"
"Oh no! Why are they chasing us too, Meowth!"
"Huh? I hear something!" Hikari instantly stopped, her azure eyes full of worry. Without thinking, she ran towards the source of the sound. "It sounds like someone's in danger, Shinji, let's go check it out!"
Shinji shook his head helplessly at the sight, a hint of impatience flashing in his black-purple eyes, but he still followed involuntarily.
This girl's meddlesome habit probably wouldn't change anytime soon.
He quickly caught up with Hikari, while vigilantly observing the surroundings to prevent any sudden situations.
Pushing aside a dense bush, the two looked out.
In the forest clearing, a group of people were scrambling to escape, closely pursued by a large swarm of bloodthirsty Beedrill, their stingers glinting coldly.
Shinji recognized the fleeing group at a glance: Ash and Brock were running at the front, followed by none other than the Team Rocket Trio—Jessie, James, and Meowth.
For some reason, these people were mixed together, fleeing for their lives.
"Useless." Shinji's lips curled into a mocking arc, his cold voice carrying undisguised disdain.
"Shinji!"
Hikari immediately frowned upon hearing his words, reaching out to gently tug his sleeve, signaling him to keep his voice down.
She spoke, her voice unconsciously softening, with a hint of Charm: "Can we help them? Please, Shinji~"
The slight upward inflection of her voice was like a feather lightly tickling his ear.
Shinji's body stiffened imperceptibly for a moment, his black-purple eyes glancing at her—Hikari was gazing at him earnestly with her large azure eyes, her cheeks flushed faintly from urgency.
"...Fine."
This side of Hikari made Shinji's initial impatience largely dissipate. He couldn't quite resist, so he averted his gaze, his hand unconsciously reaching for the Poké Ball behind his waist.
However, Ash and his group ahead, in their panic, ran straight into the base of a thick tree, where a stout Ursaring with a yellow ring pattern on its chest was feasting on a pile of berries.
With a muffled 'thud!', Ash and the others crashed squarely into the Ursaring, and the berries in the Ursaring's paws instantly dropped to the ground.
"Roar—!"
The Ursaring, whose meal was interrupted, immediately flew into a rage, raising its head abruptly and letting out a deafening roar.
A violent aura instantly spread out. The Beedrill swarm, which had been chasing fiercely, seemed to be put on pause. After a moment of stunned, they scattered in fright, disappearing into the depths of the forest in a blink of an eye.
The enraged Ursaring's eyes were bloodshot, its gaze fixed on the 'uninvited guests' who had disturbed its meal.
"It's an Ursaring!" Ash exclaimed, quickly shielding Pikachu behind him.
"Oh no, it's angry!" Brock's expression was grave.
The Team Rocket Trio were even more terrified, huddling together: "We didn't mean it, Meowth!" "Help—!"
The moment he saw this Ursaring appear, Shinji's eyes suddenly lit up, filled with excited light.
With a thought, the light blue system panel in his mind instantly unfolded, precisely Locking-On to the enraged Ursaring:
[Ursaring ♦]
Level: 3 (Superior Class)
Type: Normal
Ability: Guts
potential: Excellent
base stats: 50
Moves: Fury Swipes, Hyper Beam, Focus Blast, Hammer Arm, Slash, Headbutt
"That's it!" A gleam flashed in Shinji's eyes, and a surge of excitement welled up in his heart.
The right level, excellent potential—it was the one he was looking for.
"Elekid."
Shinji's voice rang out calmly. At the same time, a Poké Ball spun out from his hand. "Brick Break."
The command was concise, yet carried an undeniable decisiveness.
"Beep beep—!"
With a flash of white light, the agile Elekid instantly appeared in the clearing, its arms rotating rapidly, currents faintly flowing around its body, brimming with fighting spirit.
The moment it received the command, it pushed off with its feet, charging at the enraged Ursaring at high speed. Its right palm instantly lit up with a dazzling white light, carrying fierce armor-piercing power, aiming directly at Ursaring.
"Bang!"
Brick Break struck Ursaring's head squarely. The Fighting-type Brick Break move was super effective against the Normal-type Ursaring.
Ursaring let out a pained grunt, its massive body trembling and retreating repeatedly.
"Shinji! Hikari!" Ash's eyes lit up when he saw the newcomers.
"You guys came just in time!" Brock sighed in relief.
The Team Rocket Trio, meanwhile, hid behind a tree, only peeking out: "It's that cold guy!" "Can he beat Ursaring, Meowth?"
Shinji ignored them, his gaze still fixed on Ursaring.
Hikari, on the other hand, quickly called Ash and Brock over to hide.
"Thunderbolt."
Shinji launched another attack before Ursaring could react.
Elekid rapidly spun its arms, and a thick pillar of lightning, like a giant python, erupted from Elekid's horns, instantly blasting Ursaring.
"Roar—!!!"
Ursaring let out a painful roar, its fur standing on end, electricity surging wildly across its body. It staggered backward, unable to support itself, and fell directly to the ground.
Seeing this, Shinji wasted no more words, exchanged a Poké Ball from the shop, and threw it towards Ursaring.
The Poké Ball arced through the air, accurately hitting Ursaring's body. Ursaring transformed into a red light and entered the Poké Ball.
The Poké Ball landed on the ground, shaking continuously, while a red light flashed, once, twice, thrice...
"Ding."
With a crisp sound, the Poké Ball returned to normal, signifying that Ursaring had been successfully captured.