"Thanks. In my opinion, your strength is already quite good. Reaching the Championship shouldn't be a problem for you. I hope that the next time we meet, your strength will have improved even further."
"This feather belongs to Ho-Oh, so I'll entrust it to you. I hope you will continue to love Pokémon and make up for the mistakes your ancestors made. When the feather becomes completely golden, come to Fantasy Island and find me. I believe Ho-Oh will be willing to see you then."
After receiving the badge from Morty, Ash took out a gray feather. It was different from the Rainbow Wing that Ho-Oh had given him before. The gray feather had no radiance at all—just a dull feather that had long since lost its luster.
When Ho-Oh departed back then, besides giving Ash the Rainbow Wing, it had also given him five gray feathers.
These five feathers were meant to be entrusted to trainers he could trust.
They were part of Ho-Oh's test for him. At the same time, they served as a way for Ash to recruit messengers—much like the Legendary Pokémon such as Articuno, or the legendary beasts and guardians associated with Ho-Oh and Lugia.
Ash didn't know whether Morty was truly a descendant of Takahashi Matsue or not. But he believed Morty was someone worthy of trust.
Moreover, if someone with ill intentions toward Pokémon obtained the feather, it would turn completely black and lose its power. This was because Ho-Oh had infused the feathers with a trace of the Fire of Life.
Anyone holding a gray feather could gradually brighten its color by making contributions to Pokémon.
Eventually, it would turn into a golden feather—the true feather of Ho-Oh—which could enhance the power of Fire-type Pokémon moves.
It was similar to the three ancient stone slabs Ash had discovered earlier in ancient ruins. Those slabs carried the power of faith.
Whenever Pokémon that had been helped by Ash expressed gratitude toward him, that gratitude would transform into a kind of faith.
This faith would then be absorbed by Ho-Oh's gray feathers, slowly changing their color.
"This gray feather is basically a token. Ho-Oh entrusted five of them to me because it trusts me. Once someone holding one of these feathers turns it completely golden, they will become my messenger—just like the legendary beasts under Ho-Oh. I hope you won't betray this trust."
After handing the feather to Morty, Ash explained its meaning.
This arrangement allowed him to guard against those with ulterior motives while also helping him find trustworthy allies.
For Ash, it was a win-win situation.
"Is that true? Don't worry, Ash. I will never betray your trust."
Morty looked at the gray feather in his hand with excitement.
"I will definitely not disappoint you. When the feather finally turns completely golden, I will go to Fantasy Island to find you. I swear that I will dedicate my life to assisting you."
Morty had always hoped to make up for the mistakes committed by his ancestors.
Now that he finally had the opportunity, he naturally wouldn't let Ho-Oh down.
That was also one of the main reasons why Ash was willing to entrust the feather to him.
After finishing their business at the Gym, Ash and the others left Ecruteak City.
Morty seemed far more energetic than before.
Holding the gray feather in his hand, he looked as if he had finally found a new dream.
"Master, your Gardevoir is really strong," Emiya Shirō said while walking along the road.
"Especially that move Solar Beam. I still haven't figured out a way to counter it."
Shirō had been silent for more than half an hour before finally speaking.
"That's because your strength still isn't high enough. You can't see the weaknesses of Solar Beam yet."
Ash began explaining calmly.
"First of all, although the power of that move is great, its energy consumption is also huge. With Gardevoir's current strength, using it three times is already the limit."
"Second, although the attack range is wide, it still has a maximum distance."
"Pokémon that can't fly can reduce the damage by using high-speed moves like Flame Charge to escape the core attack area."
"Of course, the Pokémon needs to be at least quasi-Champion level, otherwise it won't make much difference."
"As for Flying-type Pokémon, they can simply fly beyond the attack range to avoid the attack entirely—provided their speed is fast enough."
"After all, once Solar Beam is released, its attack speed is extremely fast."
After hearing Shirō's question, Ash calmly explained the weaknesses of the move.
In any case, opponents would eventually discover these flaws sooner or later.
There was no need for him to hide them.
The release speed of Solar Beam meant it couldn't be resisted by every Pokémon.
If a Pokémon wanted to withstand it head-on, it also needed sufficient strength. After all, Champion and quasi-Champion level Pokémon were not as common as cabbage in a market.
Because of this, Ash wasn't worried at all.
"I see… so the system of this move isn't completely without weaknesses," Emiya Shirō said after hearing Ash's analysis. He nodded thoughtfully.
Then he asked another question about the Fighting-type battle style and how it should defend against such attacks. After all, he specialized in Fighting-type Pokémon.
As his master, Ash naturally needed to guide him. If a teacher deliberately hid knowledge from their student, then what kind of master would that be?
Moreover, Ash had absolute confidence in the Pokémon he had trained.
"If you're talking about Fighting-type Pokémon, then directly blocking Solar Beam is almost impossible," Ash replied.
"But you don't necessarily have to block it head-on. Instead, you can develop defensive movement techniques to avoid the attack."
After thinking for a moment, Ash suddenly remembered something.
"By the way, your Hitmonlee and Hariyama—how is their training with those custom body techniques going?"
Hearing Ash's question, Shirō nodded.
"They're already quite familiar with them."
"Hariyama only learned Shave, so it was easier for it to master."
"As for Hitmonlee, it learned Shave, Tempest Kick, and Moonwalk at the same time. Now it's basically mastered all three techniques. What it needs now is more real combat experience."
Shirō felt very satisfied with the improvement of his two Pokémon.
Especially Hitmonlee.
With the combination of Shave, Moonwalk, and Tempest Kick, its combat ability had increased dramatically—almost reaching the level of a king among Fighting-type Pokémon.
"Good… that means it's almost time to begin," Ash said with a slight nod after hearing Shirō's explanation.
Now that Shirō's Fighting-type Pokémon had developed their own core techniques, they finally had the qualifications to stand as a true Fighting-type specialist.
In the future, Ash planned to accept more apprentices.
Each of them would learn a unique battle style from him.
And through competition with one another, they would grow stronger together.
(End of Chapter)
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