"Marowak, use Bone Rush!"
"Pikachu, use Iron Tail!"
After leaving the mysterious garden, Red accompanied Ash and the trio once again on their journey toward the Cinnabar Gym. To check whether Ash and Pikachu had been slacking off during this period, Red decided to send out Marowak to properly sharpen Pikachu's strength.
The thick bone club and the silver-glowing tail collided at the same time. Marowak used one hand to clash against Pikachu's tail, both sides exerting all their strength to suppress the other.
But the bone club's strikes didn't come just once. Marowak proactively widened the distance from Pikachu, then swung the bone club with both hands together. Its power directly crushed Pikachu, smashing Pikachu's tail onto the ground.
Pain instantly flooded Pikachu's mind. Before Pikachu could even cry out, Marowak's swinging bone club struck Pikachu's body again, hitting Pikachu four times in total.
"I didn't expect that just Marowak alone would be enough to suppress Ash's Pikachu. I can't even imagine how powerful Red's original six-Pokémon team must be," Brock said in disbelief. As a traveling companion, Brock naturally understood Pikachu's strength, yet today it was so easily crushed by Marowak.
"Isn't part of it due to type advantage?" Misty asked. "If Marowak couldn't channel Pikachu's electricity into the ground, Pikachu might not look this miserable."
"That's true, but we also can't ignore how outstanding Marowak is," Brock agreed.
"Finish it, Marowak," Red said with a frown, his tone slightly displeased.
The muscles in Marowak's right arm bulged, and the bone club in its hand was about to strike Pikachu's face.
"You can't give up now, Pikachu!" Ash shouted.
Perhaps encouraged by Ash's words, Pikachu struggled to its feet and used Quick Attack, cleverly dodging Marowak's strike. The ground where it had stood was smashed into a spiderweb-like crater by the bone club, a sight that made one shiver.
Taking advantage of the dodge, Pikachu used Iron Tail, striking Marowak head-on and dealing considerable damage.
This scene barely earned Red and Marowak's acknowledgment, and the two Pokémon ended the training battle.
"You barely passed. Remember to train Pikachu's close-combat abilities more," Red said calmly.
"Got it, brother."
Seeing that Red was no longer angry, Ash grinned and moved closer to him, acting spoiled as if asking Red not to keep frowning.
"Ash only acts this childish in front of Red," Brock teased.
"Well, they are brothers after all," Misty laughed.
After the training ended, Marowak and Pikachu shook hands and made peace. Fortunately, Pikachu was already used to training against Red's Pokémon. After all, the previous encounters with Pidgeotto and Scyther had left a very deep impression on Pikachu.
"Crack! Crack!"
Suddenly, a sound came from the grass not far away. The cautious Marowak immediately threw the bone club in its hand toward the direction of the grass.
"Smack!"
A crisp sound came from within the grass. Marowak and Pikachu exchanged glances, then rushed in together and dragged out the one hiding inside.
"So it's a Pokémon photographer."
Seeing the boy desperately protecting the camera in his arms, Red immediately understood his identity.
The boy's name was Todd, a photographer who loved capturing natural scenery and Pokémon, aiming to photograph Pokémon in their most natural expressions.
Not long ago, Todd had come to Great Canyon and accidentally captured a midair battle between Charizard and Aerodactyl, later publishing it in the magazine Pokémon Friends, becoming a widely known genius young photographer.
"No idea…" x4
Red and the other three spoke at the same time, the contrast instantly making Todd collapse awkwardly to the ground.
"But I know you, Sir Red!"
After getting up, Todd looked at Red with admiration. Just as he was about to step forward to shake hands, Marowak beside him blocked him with its bone club, signaling him not to get too close.
"Ahem, I once saw in Pokémon Friends a photo of you commanding Pokémon to defeat the giant Tentacruel. People are still talking about that event to this day. I never expected to meet you here—it's truly my luck!"
It was as if stars were shining in Todd's eyes. Unable to resist his excitement, Red and Marowak reluctantly took a photo with him. However, Marowak rolled its eyes in annoyance, clearly showing no respect.
But Todd believed that even Marowak's disdain was a natural expression, so he happily recorded it.
Fortunately, Todd didn't know that Charizard and Aerodactyl both belonged to Red, or else it would have required even more troublesome explanations.
To apologize for hitting Todd with the bone club, Red and the others invited him to join them for lunch. This almost moved Todd to tears, because as a Pokémon photographer, he often rushed from place to place without even having a proper meal just to capture natural scenes.
A short while later...
"I think Ash gets his badges every time just because others pity him."
The five of them sat on a picnic cloth eating sandwiches. Misty, who had been comparing Red and Ash, suddenly said this.
"Cough—"
Ash, who had been leisurely chewing his sandwich, choked immediately at Misty's remark and hurriedly patted his chest.
"Aren't you worried yourself? Maybe your strength just isn't enough!" Misty suggested. If Red hadn't temporarily joined them, she might not have said something so blunt to discourage Ash.
But Red's brilliance was just too dazzling, making Misty unconsciously compare Ash to him, speaking in a tone of frustration.
"Calm down, Ash!"
Seeing Ash choking, Brock quickly handed him a glass of water while Todd patted his back.
"Luck is also a kind of strength," Ash said proudly, not feeling embarrassed at all.
"But the only ones you've truly defeated are Team Rocket, right?" Misty teased.
"Achoo!" x3
Far away, the Team Rocket trio suddenly sneezed, wondering who was badmouthing them.
"What?! Did you have to say it so bluntly?!"
Ash instantly broke down, jumping to his feet and taking out a Poké Ball from his waist.
"If that's the case, I'll battle you right here right now!"
Seeing Ash so impulsive, Pikachu stepped forward to try to calm him down.
"That's enough, Ash. Misty isn't entirely wrong. You should stop being so impatient," Red said, criticizing him.
"Yees…" Ash replied weakly. After all, it was criticism from his older brother, so he had to take it seriously.
"Click! Click!"
Todd, unable to resist, immediately took out his camera and captured the moment of Pikachu pulling Ash back—this was exactly the kind of natural expression he admired.
"No, I'm going to prove my strength right now!"
Ash shoved his face in front of the camera, signaling Todd to listen carefully.
"Alright, alright. In short, as long as your strength can be tested, that's fine, right?" Todd said helplessly.
"Exactly!" Ash nodded.
"In that case, wouldn't it be better to have someone evaluate it?" Todd suggested.
"Have someone evaluate it?" Ash asked in confusion.
"The Pokémon League Admissions Exam!" Todd said.
(The Pokémon League Admissions Exam? Another torturous test…)
Todd's presence finally proved useful. To photograph battle matches, he had already figured out the location of the Pokémon League Admissions Exam, and he conveniently became the guide for Red and Ash's group.