On the field, Whitney had already withdrawn Miltank. Miltank isn't a legendary Pokemon, and if it receives that kind of attack and stays outside, its injuries would only worsen, potentially even threatening its life!
Ash excitedly high-fived Infernape, though Infernape's condition wasn't great, it was far from losing its fighting capability and could even continue battling.
The physical strength depletion was one aspect, and the injuries were mainly from that Rollout attack earlier, so the impact wasn't significant.
Therefore, Ash didn't rush to put it back into a Pokeball but let it savor the feeling of victory outside for a while.
Whitney withdrew Miltank, lowered her head in silence for a moment, then looked up and gave Ash a relieved smile.
"It was truly an incredible battle, Ash. That golden flame... What's its name?"
Ash paused, then after thinking for a moment, laughed and said, "Let's call it—Corona Blaze."
The name perfectly reflected Infernape's flame's color, and it sounded quite cool. The primary factor for naming, naturally, was coolness, while the secondary was fitting the skill's symbolism.
"Corona Blaze... It really is a powerful flame, I've never seen golden flames before."
"Hehe, that's my Infernape's exclusive flame, and this power awakened just today."
Upon hearing this, Whitney's lips twitched, "I don't know if it's lucky or unlucky for me, for such a new power to awaken during our battle~"
Whitney walked over to Ash, extending her hand, and Ash reciprocated by shaking it, signifying friendliness post-battle.
Whitney said earnestly, "This match I lost, your Infernape is truly stronger than my Miltank. But next time we meet, I won't lose so easily."
"I'll be waiting for it." Ash smiled.
Whitney pulled out a golden, diamond-shaped badge from her pocket and handed it to Ash, saying, "This is the official badge of the Goldenrod Gym, take care of it."
"I got the official badge!"
"Pika Pi!"
"Hoozah Hoozah"
Ash and Pikachu posed with their signature move and shouted in unison, with Infernape on the side swinging its arms and displaying an excited smile.
"What are your plans next?" After handing over the badge, Whitney was no longer involved, and thus curiously asked Ash about his next destination.
"The next place should be Ecruteak City." Ecruteak City, the nearest place to Goldenrod City, is starkly different from the bustling city; it's said to possess ancient artifacts.
If Goldenrod City represents modern urban glamor, then Ecruteak City is an emblem of ancient cities, with various historical artifacts inside and traces of the legendary Ho-Oh's appearances...
"Ecruteak City huh... Morty, the Gym Leader there, is no ordinary person; he's adept at using Ghost-type Pokemon and reportedly his prowess rivals that of a typical Elite Four Level Trainer." Whitney pondered Ecruteak City's details, providing Ash with some intel.
The Gym Leader in Ecruteak City is of Elite Four Level!
Facing an Elite Four Level Trainer is nothing new for Ash, but having a Gym Leader at Elite Four Level is notably rare across global Gyms.
"Moreover, the resident Gym Leader in Ecruteak reportedly is incredibly powerful as well, famed as the strongest Gym Leader in Sinnoh, specializing in Electric Type Pokemon, named... Volkner!"
"Volkner..." Ash murmured the name while recalling the details about him.
Professor Oak had provided information about Foreign Resident Gym Leaders, most of which Ash had memorized, though he hadn't noted down the resident cities.
Sinnoh's strongest Gym Leader Volkner, equipped with extremely powerful Electric Type Pokemon, is famed in Sunyshore City for being unbeatable by challengers.
Due to this, Volkner gradually lost interest in Pokemon battles, instead focusing his hobbies on Gym mechanism and tools.
This time coming to the Johto Region is due to the Silver Conference, perhaps hoping for a challenger capable of defeating him.
Additionally, Volkner carries a nickname, Yellow Flash!
This nickname refers to his Pokemon being as swift as a flash.
Thinking about facing such powerful Trainers in Ecruteak City, Ash became entirely thrilled.
"Alright, let's set out towards Ecruteak City next, Pikachu!"
"Pika Pika!"
...
After bidding farewell to Whitney, Ash and company first arrived at the Pokemon Center, treated their Pokemon, then exchanged two Pokemon before directly setting off for Ecruteak City.
Misty and others hadn't expended much physical strength today, as for Ash, who could be described as a perpetual motion machine under normal circumstances.
Thus, even though it was already midday, they chose to proceed towards Ecruteak City.
Typically, it would take about a week to reach Ecruteak City, and if anything arises along the way, possibly extending a few more days.
...
A week later—
Ash and company hadn't reached Ecruteak City yet, having instead only traversed half the journey, hindered by Team Rocket's obstruction, alongside Ash stopping to capture several new Pokemon.
One of the Pokemon is the last Water Type among the Johto Three Starter, Totodile.
This Totodile is quite special, biting almost everything it sees. Team Rocket's trio once targeted this Totodile, but it ended up biting off a chunk of Jessie's hair, causing Jessie to burst into a furious rage!
The terrifying aura made even the usually brave Ash hesitate. When a woman's hair is harmed, she can unleash power comparable to that of a Legendary Beast!
Even the gods would have to give way at this moment!
Eventually, Ash captured the Totodile and then used the Power of Viridian to stimulate the growth of Jessie's hair, allowing it to grow back.
Even after her beloved hair was restored, Jessie didn't forget her original goal of capturing Pikachu, not even glancing at Totodile.
The result, as expected, was that the trio once again flew into the sky.
Later, Ash captured a shiny Noctowl in a forest!
This Noctowl was red and much smarter than ordinary Noctowl by a significant margin.
Through the Eye of Insight, Ash discovered that this color variant Noctowl possessed the Psychic Attribute, with its original Normal Type replaced.
This means that the Noctowl is a Flying and Psychic Type.
Not only did the color change, but even the attribute altered. Such a Pokemon's rarity is almost on par with ordinary Legendary Beasts.
Apart from Ash capturing new Pokemon, Serena's team also had some expansions.
She captured a Sneasel and a Mareep on the road, both having considerable talent as verified by Ash.
The evolutions of these Pokemon also hold decent combat power, and coupled with their different attributes, they enhance Serena's team's battling potential.
Furthermore, when Serena participates in Pokemon Contests in the future, the combined moves of Pokemon with different attributes will bring out even better effects.
As for Misty, she captured a Poliwag, adding another member to her team of Water-type Pokemon.
Due to these events, Ash and the group have only covered half of their journey.
Additionally, Pikachu and the other Pokemon still need training, especially Froakie, who has been part of Ash's team for almost half a month now.
During this period, Ash never sent it back to Oak's Research Institute but kept it around for training.
From being initially unfamiliar to gradually developing some teamwork, its Level has also advanced from Ordinary Peak to Advanced Peak, even completing its evolution!
It's no longer called Froakie now; it should be called Frogadier.
Frogadier's evolution was quite delayed, only occurring after reaching Advanced Level, not before the Advanced Junior Level stage.
According to Frogadier's evolution pace, to become Greninja will likely require reaching Elite Four Advanced Level and beyond.
Common Pokemon complete one evolution stage at Advanced Junior Level and a second at Elite Junior Level.
Quasi-God type Pokemon only complete their Final Evolution after Elite Four Advanced Level, as their evolution is much harder compared to ordinary Pokemon.
For ordinary Pokemon evolving this late, it's usually because of a physical problem or the accumulation of all its power, and Frogadier is evidently the latter.
Once Frogadier evolves into Greninja, there will be a qualitative change, and Ash will know what the feature known as Bond Evolution truly is.
...
Time flew by, and another week passed. After a month-long journey, Ash and company finally reached their destination, Ecruteak City!
"So this is Ecruteak City..."
Standing in the middle of the street, Serena looked around, her beautiful eyes filled with curiosity.
Unlike the steel-forest modernization of Goldenrod City, every stone slab and roof tile in Ecruteak City exuded an ancient and mysterious charm.
Wooden traditional buildings lined the cobblestone roads, and at the street's end stood the red torii, as if connecting the present and legendary worlds.
People on the street walked leisurely, occasionally passing girls in kimonos, their wooden clogs clicking crisply on the stones.
"They say Ecruteak City has a history of over a thousand years." Brock flipped through his travel guide. "The Bell Tower and Burned Tower are the most famous sites in the entire Johto Region, and it's said Ho-Oh once perched atop the Bell Tower."
"Ho-Oh..." Ash gazed at the Bell Tower and Burned Tower on both sides, with a touch of indescribable emotion in his eyes.
Speaking of which, he's encountered Ecruteak City's two legends, Ho-Oh and Lugia.
He also sensed the residual aura of Ho-Oh and Lugia here. Besides the Gym challenge, he might find something else in this place.
Holding Togepi, Misty pointed to a uniquely designed building in the distance, "That should be the visiting Gym Leader, Volkner, from the Sinnoh Region, right?"
Following her direction, they saw a building modernly styled, contrasting the other traditional architectures, with its silver-gray metallic wall reflecting a cold glow under the sun.
If this Gym were in Goldenrod City, it wouldn't stand out, but here it certainly seemed out of place, given the city's ancient ambiance.
"Where should we go first?" Brock asked Ash.
They had two choices: visit Volkner's Gym or the original Ecruteak Gym.
"Let's head to the Ecruteak Gym first." Ash looked towards where the Ecruteak Gym is situated, "I feel like something over there is calling me."
"Calling you?" The group scratched their heads, puzzled, but given Ash's special powers, it wasn't surprising he sensed things others couldn't.
Since Ash suggested the Ecruteak Gym first, they decided to go there.
In no time, they stood before the Ecruteak Gym.
The Gym blended seamlessly with the city, with red wooden pillars supporting a grey-tiled roof, and the lintel carved with ancient patterns resembling some legendary Pokemon totems.
Two paper lanterns swayed gently in the breeze, casting dappled shadows.
"It feels a bit eerie..." Misty held Togepi closer to Ash instinctively.
Ash calmly said, "Ghost Type Gym, it's normal for it to be like this."
Then he pushed the Gym's doors open.
Contrasting the exterior's ancient look, the interior was modernized, more like a dojo than a Gym.
Inside, several children sat on the ground, listening to a young man, appearing to be in his twenties, wearing a purple headscarf, teaching them.
Hearing the door open, the young man turned, "A challenger? Here so early today?"
Upon seeing Ash and his group, Morty focused on Ash.
"Hello, I'm Ash from Pallet Town, here to challenge the Ecruteak Gym. Are you the Gym Leader?"
Facing the polite Ash, Morty gave a nod, "I am Morty, the Ecruteak Gym Leader. You're Ash, huh? Your name's been buzzing around; my ears are almost worn out. Finally meeting you."
"Huh? Haha, am I that famous already?" Ash scratched his head, smiling brightly.
"Half and half," Morty replied ambiguously.
"What do you mean by half and half??"
"You'll find out when you battle me; let me see... what makes the one chosen by Ho-Oh so special."
Morty's words immediately changed the expressions of Ash and his companions.
How did Morty know Ash was chosen by Ho-Oh?
*******************************
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