The smoke slowly cleared. Ash and Pikachu held their breath, watching the aftermath of the Aura Sphere.
By Ash's own estimate, if that blast could knock out five or six Spearow and injure the rest, that would already be impressive enough.
But the actual result went far beyond his expectations.
The dozen or so Spearow that had been charging in the lead? Every last one of them was down for the count!
Ash glanced at his hands. That had only been half his strength. If he had gone all out with Aura Sphere…
So this was the power Aura Guardian Ash had described—force on par with a Legendary Pokémon?
Yeah… maybe he really should've paid more attention in Professor Oak's classes.
"Pika pi…" Monster…
Pikachu swallowed hard, blurting the word without thinking.
He'd been around humans for a long time, but he had never seen one this freakish.
When Ash had fought him earlier, it was obvious now that he'd been holding back. If he had used this level of power then, Pikachu wouldn't have just been knocked out—he'd be six feet under.
"Let's finish them, Pikachu! Half each!"
"Pika pika!" Eight for you, two for me!
Ash rolled his eyes but didn't argue. Fair enough—right now, he was the stronger one.
And with that, boy and mouse charged into the swarm!
Ash unleashed his Aura to the fullest, Aura Spheres blasting through the flock and taking the brunt of the battle on himself.
Pikachu stuck close by, waiting for openings to fire off Thunder Shocks, picking off one or two Spearow at a time.
Most of the pressure was on Ash. One hand hurling Aura Spheres, the other raising shimmering barriers, he stood like a warrior god in the midst of battle!
In less than five minutes, the last of the Spearow fell from the sky, defeated by the boy and his partner.
"Hahh… hahh… Had enough yet?! I told you—don't force me to fight. The consequences are serious!" Ash panted, hands on his hips, gazing proudly at the field of fallen Spearow.
Beside him, Pikachu mimicked the pose, paws on his hips, face smug with pride.
For a rookie starter Pokémon, one who had barely battled before, taking part in defeating nearly an entire wild flock—that was something that would earn him respect from every mouse alive!
Even if, truth be told, he hadn't been the main force behind it.
With the flock finally taken care of, Ash and Pikachu had a moment to breathe. Ash pulled out a map and checked their location. Thanks to the chase, they were already quite close to Viridian City.
At this pace, they'd probably arrive by tomorrow morning.
"You know, we ought to thank that flock. Without their little grudge match, we wouldn't have made it this far this fast." Ash folded the map away with a chuckle.
Pikachu nodded in agreement, and together they prepared to move on. As for the defeated Spearow, none were gravely injured.
They'd lost the ability to battle, sure, but wild Pokémon were tough. As long as nothing critical was damaged, they'd bounce back quickly.
Otherwise the League would've banned Trainers from battling wild Pokémon long ago. Wild ones didn't have Trainers to take them to Pokémon Centers—yet they always managed to recover on their own.
"Wait, Pikachu." Just as Pikachu was about to leave, Ash suddenly spoke, eyes narrowing on a tree not far away.
"You there—come out. I already noticed you."
The path they had fought on was a quiet country road, carpeted with grass, flowers and trees all around.
At first Ash hadn't realized it, but in the middle of the fight, he'd sensed it clearly: a pulse of Aura behind that tree.
And it wasn't Pokémon Aura—it was human.
Which meant someone had been hiding there all along, watching the entire battle.
Ash didn't really care about being seen. What puzzled him was why that person still hadn't stepped out.
If it was just fear of the Spearow, they should've come out once the flock was beaten.
And hey, he had just wiped out a swarm of Spearow with dazzling style. Shouldn't that at least earn him some applause?
That was exactly why Ash called out to them.
Who could watch such a cool battle and just keep hiding?
"Still not coming out? Don't make me force you!"
"Wait, wait, wait!" A clear, girlish voice rang out. Ash blinked in surprise. A girl?
From behind the tree stepped a figure—ponytail swaying, wearing a sleeveless yellow crop top that strained slightly against her chest, denim suspender shorts hugging her hips.
"A girl? What were you doing hiding back there?"
"Cough, cough—I… I just happened to pass by. I didn't see anything! I didn't see a thing!"
"Liar! You've been back there for a while!" Ash shot down her excuse instantly.
"I-I didn't mean to see anything! Please don't kill me to keep me quiet!" The girl clasped her hands together, bowing her head in supplication.
This time, it was Ash's turn to be dumbfounded.
"Kill you? What are you talking about?!"
"..."
After a bit of confused back-and-forth, Ash finally understood why the girl hadn't come out sooner—and why she looked so terrified now.
Her name was Misty. At first, when she'd seen Ash and Pikachu facing the Spearow swarm, she had intended to help.
After all, how could a lone Trainer with just a Pikachu possibly stand against so many Spearow?
But she had guessed wrong. The real powerhouse in that battle hadn't been Pikachu at all—it had been the human Trainer!
Watching Ash tear through the flock like some kind of war machine, Misty's imagination had gone wild. She pictured him as some kind of secret cyborg weapon, a human modified by a hidden organization…
That was why she hadn't dared reveal herself afterwards.
Listening to her theories spiral further and further, Ash quickly cut her off, insisting he was just a regular human with a bit of special power—and still a total rookie Trainer.
Only after much reassurance did Misty finally believe him, letting out a breath of relief. At least she didn't have to worry about being "silenced"…