Was he becoming like Little Ming, the beast tamer who challenged a 100-win streak?
But Ash didn't even have a Sandshrew that could use Fissure.
Right now he had only reached around thirty consecutive wins. There were still more than seventy battles left.
Couldn't several Trainers fight him together?
A long gauntlet battle was taking way too much time.
"I really underestimated Ash," Misty muttered as she watched yet another Trainer get crushed.
She was especially curious about that Shiny Gyarados.
Its Ability was actually Moxie.
"Good thing I only battled him once," Brock said with relief. Back then Ash hadn't used all these tricky strategies against him.
Ash tossed an Energy Cube to Gyarados and looked at the defeated Trainers.
"So—do you admit defeat?"
"No! Even if you beat us, we still don't accept it!" Wang Laoji shouted stubbornly.
Perfect. That's exactly what I want.
Ash's real goal was the System reward:
Energy Cube Crafting
(The technique of producing Energy Cubes using the characteristics and varieties of Berries.)
Energy Cubes were extremely expensive in stores.
The higher the quality, the more expensive they became.
If he could craft them himself, he could save a huge amount of PokéDollars.
"You refusing to accept it doesn't change anything," Ash said casually.
"You still can't beat me. You're just getting angry because you're powerless."
His real intention was to make them call more Trainers over.
He wanted to reach 100 wins as quickly as possible.
After waiting so long, he had only reached thirty wins.
If he had to slowly challenge 100 Trainers one by one—
Who knew how long it would take?
Wang Laoji and the others could barely tolerate Ash's smug expression.
If they looked any longer, they might actually smash their shoes into his face.
"Don't get cocky!"
Helpless, Wang Laoji used the move "Threaten and Call Backup."
"If you've got the guts, stay right here! I'll call people to battle you!"
He took out his Pokédex and began contacting others.
"Let's see if someone can't deal with you."
"You should call more people," Ash added helpfully.
"Otherwise it really won't be enough."
"Are you sure it's safe to talk like that?" Misty facepalmed.
What if the other side got furious?
If they couldn't win in battle—
They might just jump him together.
Single battle or group battle?
Single battle: You fight all of us alone.
Group battle: We all fight you together.
Brock set their equipment back down again.
Looks like they weren't leaving anytime soon.
Might as well rest and watch the show.
"Pikachu… are you really okay doing that?"
Ash stared.
Pikachu was lying on a mini lounge chair, happily drinking Moomoo Milk.
"Pika~"
Pikachu waved casually and continued drinking.
Moomoo Milk
A highly nutritious milk that restores stamina. Both humans and Pokémon can drink it, though the effects differ.
Ash watched several Pokémon competing to drink the milk and sighed.
If Tauros joined the team someday…
That would be a terrifying sight.
"Ash, aren't you tired from battling so many Trainers?" Misty asked, wearing sunglasses.
"Not really."
Ash took a sip of Moomoo Milk.
It was delicious.
No wonder Tauros loved it.
He shrugged.
"Come on—I was born with the body of a battle prodigy."
"This level of battling is nothing."
Brock originally wanted to remind Ash to let the Pokémon rest.
But after drinking Moomoo Milk—
Ash's Pokémon were actually sparring with each other, full of energy.
Reinforcements have arrived…
Ash saw a large group of EXP fodder marching toward him.
"Ji! Where's that guy you said used dirty tricks?" someone shouted.
"There he is," Wang Laoji pointed at Ash.
"Pfft—HAHAHAHA!"
Misty burst into laughter.
Brock couldn't help laughing as well.
Dirty tricks?
Those were clearly called tactics.
Ash felt the need to clarify.
Otherwise his reputation would be ruined—
Even though he was using Gary's name.
"That's called strategy—"
"Who cares what kind of 'strategy' it is? We're here to challenge you!"
The Trainers didn't care whether it was tactics or tricks.
Their only goal was to defeat Ash and break his win streak.
"Fine by me," Ash said.
He wanted to finish the mission quickly anyway.
After all, he still needed to test Energy Cube crafting later.
"You're challenging a win streak, right?"
"I don't believe all of us together can't beat you!"
Looking at the eager Trainers, Ash revealed his signature honest smile.
With this wave of battles—
He should reach halfway to 100 wins.
"Pikachu, Pidgeotto, Butterfree… aren't those all super common Pokémon?"
"Only that Shiny Gyarados looks strong."
"Looks like a one-carry team."
The Trainers discussed Ash's lineup.
They even suspected they had been tricked.
How could such a team achieve dozens of consecutive victories?
"I'll go first," one Trainer said, releasing a Pokémon.
"Go—Tauros!"
Since Ash didn't have a Fighting-type Pokémon, the Trainer felt confident.
Pokémon: Tauros — Lv. 23
Ash, however, immediately released—
"Go, Butterfree!"
He planned to kite Tauros.
"Oh…"
The Trainers who had already fought Ash looked at the Tauros Trainer with sympathy.
Soon enough—
Tauros lost.
Next came Ariados.
It was defeated by Pidgeotto in less than a minute.
Ash mostly relied on type advantages to defeat his opponents, which saved time.
Ariados used Baton Pass, switching into Machop.
Machop was instantly defeated.
Trainer after Trainer stepped forward.
Their Pokémon were mostly Lv. 21–28.
Defeating them wasn't particularly difficult.
By the end of the afternoon—
Ash's record had reached:
63 / 100 wins
Misty even used a wooden signboard to record the count.
She wanted to see exactly when Ash's streak would finally break.
Meanwhile, Brock carefully monitored the Pokémon's condition and handled logistics.
Night soon fell.
Ash and his group decided to camp there for the night.
Their Pokémon were eagerly eating dinner.
After such a long day of battles, their appetites were larger than usual.
After treating their injuries, the three companions sat around a campfire, chatting quietly.
The atmosphere was warm and friendly.
"Little brat has already beaten 63 Trainers, meow."
Meowth tapped the wooden board with its claws, counting Ash's victories.
"Truly worthy of our Pikachu," Jessie said excitedly.
"Gyarados is impressive too," James added.
The Shiny Gyarados was now added to their capture list.
Hidden in the forest, Team Rocket secretly observed Ash's battles.
Originally they came to steal Pikachu.
But the brat kept battling all day long.
So the trio had patiently waited—
Even secretly cheering for him.
"Tomorrow…"
"We'll capture Pikachu!!!"
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