For Magikarp, whose stat focus was clearly Physical Attack > Physical Defense > Stamina, there was no need for further explanation.
Right now, training together with Spearow was specifically meant to strengthen Magikarp's physical defense.
On Spearow's side, its development priority was Speed > Physical Attack.
By repeatedly using Peck on Magikarp, Spearow was honing its physical offensive power.
Whether it was Spearow now or Fearow in the future, as a physically oriented Pokémon, there were only three natural weapons it could use to attack:
Beak
Claws
Wings
And if these three "body weapons" were ranked by lethality:
No.1 — Beak
No.2 — Claws
No.3 — Wings
For Spearow's physical offense training, Ash had already broken the plan down into two major parts:
Strength training for the beak, claws, and wings
Skill training matched to each of those body weapons
Correspondingly:
No.3 Wings → Wing Attack, Steel Wing…
No.2 Claws → Scratch, Fury Swipes…
No.1 Beak → Peck, Pluck, Drill Peck, Fury Attack, Sky Attack…
Although Spearow had already reached LV.20, both its physical foundation and skill framework were scattered and unstable.
At this stage, Ash needed to temporarily ignore what Spearow already had—and rebuild everything from scratch.
It was like laying down a foundation…
then stacking steel and concrete layer by layer until a skyscraper finally rose.
…
[Ding! Skill Iron Tail trained once. Proficiency +1]
[Ding! Skill Spikes trained once. Proficiency +1]
[Ding! Skill Toxic Spikes trained once. Proficiency +1]
[Ding! Skill Double Team trained once. Proficiency +1]
[Ding! Skill Water Gun trained once. Proficiency +1]
[Ding! Skill Peck trained once. Proficiency +1]
As the Pokémon continued training nonstop, the system notifications echoed endlessly in Ash's ears.
Following Ash's structured, logical training plans, their overall strength steadily and visibly improved.
Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
Once again, it was a bright, sunny afternoon.
After finishing lunch, Ash Ketchum hopped onto his bicycle and headed out.
"Pidge—!"
"Cheep—!"
From the fence surrounding the yard, Pidgeotto and Spearow leapt into the air, wings beating as they shot skyward like arrows.
The blue-and-white off-road bicycle looked far less cool than it could have—
a basket for Pikachu was mounted in front, and a custom rear seat for Frogadier was fixed behind.
But Ash didn't mind at all.
His Pokémon liked staying outside, and Ash liked keeping them close.
It helped strengthen their bond.
"Ring—ring~"
Above, Pidgeotto and Spearow circled through the sky.
On the bicycle, Pikachu and Frogadier rode along as Ash pedaled forward.
As for Magikarp and Feebas—because of their limited mobility, they were kept inside their Poké Balls.
However, Ash had activated the external perception function, allowing them to see and sense what was happening outside.
This afternoon's trip to Viridian City wasn't just for his routine matches at the Viridian City Arena.
There was another matter he needed to attend to.
The special Pokémon that Team Rocket wanted him to heal had already been transferred from Dr. Fuji's laboratory on New Island to Viridian City.
It was time for Ash to honor the agreement.
After all, Team Rocket had already paid the agreed reward—
a Key Stone and a Pidgeot Mega Stone.
Last time, he had only treated a Rattata, which served merely as a test to see whether his psychic healing worked on that type of condition.
Only after successfully healing that special Pokémon would the deal truly be complete.
Ash had always treated Team Rocket with extreme caution—
even now, despite his teacher–student relationship with Giovanni.
Just as Ash had said from the beginning:
his teacher was Giovanni, the Viridian Gym Leader—
not Giovanni, the head of Team Rocket.
At the Viridian Gym, Giovanni taught him sincerely, holding nothing back, truly treating him as a disciple and successor.
For that, Ash deeply respected him as a teacher.
But Ash had no doubt that if Giovanni stood in his role as Team Rocket's boss, and Ash lacked the protection of Kanto's top families—
Giovanni would eliminate him without the slightest hesitation, even if Ash was the League's most promising seed talent.
And likewise—
If one day Ash stood against Team Rocket, against Giovanni as its leader, he would show no mercy either.
Given the chance, he would destroy Team Rocket and kill Giovanni himself.
Many things needed no words.
Both sides understood perfectly well.
-----
Viridian City · Viridian Gym · Team Rocket Underground Base
"Boss… can we really trust that kid?"
Dr. Fuji asked gravely.
"The Mew genes extracted from the Mew eyelash fossil have already been completely consumed in previous experiments."
"This batch is the last remaining sample."
"If that kid sabotages the process midway and the experiment fails—then the Mewtwo Project is truly finished."
"Don't worry," Giovanni said calmly, shaking his head.
"Ash won't sabotage it. He's a man with principles, and it's obvious he doesn't want to tear things apart with Team Rocket right now."
After spending so much time with Ash, Giovanni had gained a clearer understanding of his character.
"…Very well."
"If you trust him, Boss, then I have nothing more to say."
"But regarding the Mewtwo experiment…"
Dr. Fuji's eyes suddenly gleamed with feverish excitement.
"I've had a new idea recently."
"Our original plan was to use Mew's genes as the base, then fuse in some violent, aggressive human genetic traits."
"But I suddenly wondered—what if we also added Ash's genes?"
"Wouldn't the resulting Mewtwo have even greater long-term growth potential?"
"That child is hailed as the Light of Kanto and the future Indigo League Champion. Even Lance has praised his Trainer talent."
Giovanni's secretary, Matori, scoffed coldly.
"What's Lance worth?"
"Boss Giovanni is the strongest talent in the Pokémon world."
"Dr. Fuji, if you want to add high-talent human genes on top of Mew genes + violent human genes, why not use Boss Giovanni's instead?"
"Boss Giovanni is indeed the most gifted individual in the Pokémon world," Dr. Fuji replied calmly.
"But Ash is only six years old."
"His growth potential far exceeds the Boss's."
"If we want to maximize Mewtwo's future growth ceiling—
Ash's genes are more suitable than Giovanni's."
--------------
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