Eichi continued, "In this world, having powerful and rare Pokémon alone does not make you the strongest trainer."
"What the saying about no weak Pokémon means is that every Pokémon has the potential to become strong."
"But whether a Pokémon's potential can be fully realized depends on the trainer's ability."
"A trainer trains them and feeds them excellent Pokémon food to help them grow strong."
"Do you understand that, Akira?"
After listening, Akira fell into thought. Seeing he still did not understand, Eichi said, "Do you think my Beedrill is strong?"
Akira replied, "Strong, of course it's strong."
"Much stronger than an ordinary Beedrill, right?"
"Yeah," said Akira.
"Do you know, my Beedrill once fought against a Bulbasaur from a rookie trainer in Pallet Town when it was still a Weedle. Guess who won."
Now Akira was very curious. Bulbasaur, one of the Kanto starter Pokémon, had huge potential.
In his impression, Weedle was very weak. Even if Beedrill was strong now, it would not have been strong as a Weedle.
He asked, lifting his head slightly, "Who won?"
Eichi looked a bit proud and said, "Of course, I won."
"Ah? Weedle won?"
"So you see, there are no weak Pokémon, only weak trainers, understand?"
"I carefully raised Weedle from birth and started training it the next day. Every day I trained it until it was exhausted. Sometimes I even pushed it to its limits, breaking through them, fully realizing its potential."
"I see, then I should raise my Pokémon carefully too."
The topic then shifted to Akira himself.
Eichi said, "Akira, you've graduated, right?"
"Yes," replied Akira.
"How are your grades?"
"They are very good," said Akira.
"Oh? Then, which trainer school do you plan to attend?"
"I don't plan to attend a trainer school. I will learn a skill at a vocational school, then go home to train for two years before traveling."
Eichi was a little surprised. "I see, you have your own plan! You want to be a practical trainer."
"Brother Eichi, what is a practical trainer?"
Eichi felt a little uncomfortable sitting and stood up. Akira also stood, and Eichi explained, "Trainers are divided into two types: practical and academic."
"Practical trainers can have their Pokémon after turning ten, then travel, battle gyms, and earn badges. Academy trainers stay in school, study, and battle Pokémon there."
"After graduation, they go travel and participate in league tournaments. Some schools allow students to compete in leagues without badges."
"So I say you should be a practical trainer. But I suggest you delay traveling a bit. Even though you can travel at ten, those trainers do not raise Pokémon well. They only battle, which wastes potential."
"You might see their Pokémon at the league fully evolved, but you don't know how much talent is wasted."
Akira understood, and seeing the time, Eichi called Scyther and Beedrill back, taking Akira home.
After this conversation, their relationship became closer.
At dinner, Akira started asking questions again.
Eichi said, "We can talk about it this afternoon," and Akira finally ate quietly.
In the afternoon, Eichi got up on time to train. When he went downstairs, Akira was already waiting.
Eichi said, "Let's go," and they went outside. Akira quietly closed the door behind them. Grandpa and Grandma Ishi were still napping.
In the small forest, they started warming up with a run. Scyther and Beedrill disappeared immediately.
Eichi told Akira to wait nearby and started running. After a short while, Akira ran up.
"Brother Eichi, why are you running?" he asked.
Eichi patiently explained, "For a practical trainer like you, strong physical fitness is necessary. On a journey, danger is unavoidable. If you face a powerful Pokémon and your Pokémon cannot fight back, what can you do?"
"You run. If you can run, you survive. If not, you die."
Akira's face changed. "Ah, it's that serious?"
"And that's just Pokémon danger. There's also human danger. Do you know the saying, 'The human heart is treacherous'?"
"In the wild, if a bad person attacks and your Pokémon cannot react, good physical fitness can help you fight back."
"I understand. From now on, I will train my body every day."
Eichi nodded approvingly. After running, Eichi felt fine, but Akira was exhausted.
He had never exercised before, and after running so long, he collapsed to the ground, panting heavily. "Brother Eichi, you're amazing. You ran so long and are fine. I feel like I'm dying."
Eichi complimented him, "Not bad, Akira. You managed to persist."
Akira gave a grim smile, "Not really."
After resting, Scyther and Beedrill returned from warming up.
Eichi arranged their training. Once set, they trained on their own, and he watched, chatting with Akira intermittently.
Eichi realized he was talkative today, likely showing off a bit.
Akira asked, "Brother Eichi, did you come up with their training methods yourself?"
Eichi crossed his arms. "Yes, all by myself."
Akira carefully asked, "Brother Eichi, can you teach me?"
"Of course," Eichi replied generously.
Suddenly, Eichi asked, "Akira, can you watch TV at home?"
"Yes," said Akira, a little puzzled.
Eichi said, "The Indigo League starts tomorrow. I want to watch it."
Akira suddenly realized, "Right! I almost forgot. The Indigo League is tomorrow. I watch it every year."
"Brother Eichi, let's watch together."
Eichi said, "Sure, we will watch together tomorrow."
Sunday arrived, and everyone was still in bed.