(This one is excellent—far better than that Electric Mouse back then.)
Scizor looked at Pikachu with approving eyes and nodded, casually channeling the electricity on its body into the ground.
They were both Pikachu, yet the difference in strength between them was so obvious.
This was Scizor's subconscious thought, and it also indirectly acknowledged Pikachu's strength.
Back when it trained Ash's Pikachu, Scizor had not yet evolved, and its strength had not grown much.
But even at that stage, Scizor could still "train" Pikachu to the brink of collapse. If it hadn't held back at the end, Pikachu might not have passed Scizor's training at all.
"The first stage of training can end now. Next is the second stage. Pikachu, you need to quickly master the technique of using Electric Net," Red said earnestly.
As soon as he finished speaking, Scizor repeatedly used high-speed movement to close in on Pikachu. Under Pikachu's stunned gaze, its right pincer pressed against Pikachu's forehead and gave a light tap, signaling Pikachu not to underestimate its speed.
"Gulp!"
Pikachu swallowed nervously, not expecting that the speed it was so proud of would look so laughable in Scizor's eyes.
Scizor's action also sparked a determination in Pikachu to quickly master the move Electric Net.
To learn Electric Net, Pikachu continuously used Electric Ball, trying to use the sensation to simulate the shape of a net.
The second stage of training thus began!
...
After two days of training, Pikachu had skillfully mastered the use of Electric Net. Thanks to Scizor's terrifying close-combat training, it had also barely learned the melee moves Thunder Punch and Brick Break, though it still needed more practice.
After a short journey, Red once again arrived alone in Viridian City.
To prepare for the upcoming battle with Mewtwo, Red specifically went to the Pokémon Center and called Professor Oak's Laboratory, contacting Professor Oak to have his original team transferred over.
"Red, what happened? For you to call back your original team like this!"
Professor Oak looked at the calm Red with a worried expression.
"I just want to challenge a strong opponent. There won't be any danger," Red said lightly, reassuring Professor Oak on the screen.
Perhaps because of Red's calm expression, or perhaps out of trust in him, Professor Oak chose to remain silent. He stopped asking further questions, turned, and ran to the backyard to call over all of Red's original team.
After a short while,
Red reassembled his six Poké Balls. After entrusting Professor Oak to carefully look after his Pokémon and having a brief chat, he ended the call and headed toward Viridian Gym.
At this moment, Ash and his two companions had already arrived outside Viridian Gym.
"The strongest Gym's Earth Badge is right here. I'm definitely going to get it!" Ash said excitedly.
"So hot—my fighting spirit is burning today!"
Ash's eyes burned with the flames of battle, full of anticipation for the upcoming Gym challenge.
"Ash is really fired up!" Brock said in surprise.
"What the heck… why are you starting a fire here?!" Misty scolded.
A dramatic scene unfolded. At some point, several torches had piled up near Ash's feet, pieced together and burning.
No wonder Ash felt like his whole body was heating up—it turned out his feet were almost set on fire.
"Thanks, Pikachu. You're trying to ignite the fire in my heart, right?" Ash said.
"Pika!" Pikachu nodded.
"I won't let down your passionate friendship!"
"Pika~"
Ash and Pikachu, like a pair of goofballs, had teary eyes as they excitedly clasped each other's hands.
"So great—this is the friendship between men!"
Seeing this, Brock was moved to tears.
"I seriously can't understand this at all…" Misty said helplessly, waving her hand in exasperation.
"Hahaha! You're still the same, putting on such a boring comedy act… Ash!"
A luxurious red sports car appeared in the trio's sight, and a familiar figure stepped out.
"Gary, Gary, he's the best! Gary, Gary, he's the coolest!"
A group of beautiful cheerleaders waved their pom-poms, cheering for Gary.
"Gary!" Ash exclaimed, not expecting his rival to appear here.
"I thought you'd already given up on becoming a Pokémon Master and gone back to Pallet Town. But it looks like you made it this far—worth some praise," Gary said mockingly, instantly provoking Ash's anger.
"What did you say?!" Ash snapped.
"Calm down, Ash," Brock advised.
"Judging by you, I bet you haven't collected eight badges yet, right?" Gary said smugly. Just as he was about to take out his badge case to show off, he suddenly saw Ash burst into laughter.
"Hahaha! Gary, don't underestimate me! I've collected a total of nine badges!" Ash bragged, even pulling down his collar to let Gary see the badges he had obtained.
"How is that possible?! You even got the Qualification Badge? With a brain like yours…"
Gary said in shock, counting the League badges on Ash's collar, confirming that there were indeed an astonishing nine.
Feeling inexplicably embarrassed, Gary let go of his right hand that was about to take out the badge case. In a more composed tone, he said,
"I've only 'barely' collected ten badges. I already secured my spot in the Indigo Plateau Conference. I was just passing by on my way back to Pallet Town today, so I came to spar with the trainer of the strongest Gym!"
After saying that, Gary stepped out of his sports car and shouted to the two guards at the gate,
"I'm Gary from Pallet Town. I'm here to officially challenge the Gym Leader!"
After stating his purpose, Gary was granted permission by the guards and entered Viridian Gym along with his cheerleaders.
Seeing Gary enter, Ash rushed forward anxiously, but was stopped by the guards.
"According to the rules, only one challenger can battle at a time!"
"What?! How can that be!" Ash complained.
"I am a trainer who possesses the Earth Badge. May I enter Viridian Gym?"
Ash's ears twitched. Hearing the familiar voice, he turned his head in delight and saw Red approaching with the Earth Badge in hand.
"Permission granted!"
Although Ash and his group were not allowed in, Red, who possessed the Earth Badge, had the privilege of freely entering Viridian Gym—simply because of his awe-inspiring strength.
"Brother, what should we do?" Ash asked anxiously, wanting to go in with Red.
"You should just follow the rules and wait outside for now," Red said calmly, rejecting Ash's idea.
In the end, Red was still worried about Ash's safety and didn't want him recklessly entering the danger-filled Viridian Gym.
As for Gary's safety—first, Red could rush in to help at any time; second, as Professor Oak's grandson, Team Rocket wouldn't be foolish enough to harm him.
(Mewtwo, I wonder if you can ignite my desire for battle. I'm really looking forward to it…)
The stone gate slowly opened. Under the respectful gaze of the two guards, Red stepped into Viridian Gym.