Red accompanied Erika to the entrance of the Celadon Gym and glanced down at Eevee, noticing the blazing fighting spirit in Eevee's eyes. Red silently nodded to Eevee.
"Eevee!"
Eevee jumped down from Erika's arms and landed on the ground, staring at Red with intense fighting spirit. Eevee didn't want to enter the Poké Ball on its own; it wanted to earn Red's recognition through real combat.
(I'm not some useless decorative vase!)
"Hitmonchan, I choose you!"
Red tossed the Poké Ball in his hand and sent out Hitmonchan, the Pokémon specializing in boxing, to face Eevee.
As soon as it appeared, Hitmonchan began moving its legs back and forth and continuously punching the air, quickly warming up. Although it didn't understand why its opponent was Eevee, the battle-loving Hitmonchan didn't think too much about it. Its fighting spirit locked firmly onto Eevee.
Seeing this, Eevee launched the first attack. With a flick of its tail, it used Swift, sending countless stars flying toward Hitmonchan.
"Comet Punch," Red said calmly.
Hitmonchan's rapid punches left only afterimages, cleanly dismantling Eevee's attack. It then stepped forward and rushed in front of Eevee, its right fist filled with chilling force about to strike Eevee's body.
Eevee hurriedly dodged. After a brief moment of hesitation, it chose to change its form. Enduring the pain, Eevee finally transformed into Flareon.
"If you torture yourself like this again, I won't take you in," Red said unhappily, scolding Eevee for ignoring its own physical condition just for the sake of battle. It was simply foolish.
After hearing this, Flareon showed no grievance at all. Instead, it listened happily to Red's scolding. The smile on its face was as bright as if it had eaten candy—it clearly liked Red's concern for it.
"Power of Viridian..." Red murmured as a green aura spread from his body, using the Power of Viridian to heal Eevee's injuries.
"Don't relax too much. Hitmonchan, use Mach Punch!"
Hitmonchan's supersonic punch slammed directly into Flareon's face and sent it flying!
Enduring the pain, Flareon quickly retaliated, spewing scorching flames from its mouth toward Hitmonchan.
Seeing this, Hitmonchan used Detect, perfectly avoiding the flames. It then smoothly shifted its stance and used Bulk Up, increasing its attack and defense.
In order to improve Red's impression of it, the anxious Flareon immediately used Fire Spin, trapping Hitmonchan inside a pillar of flames.
"A showy Pokémon always reveals a flaw," Red said leisurely, looking helplessly at the Flareon in front of him.
(Showy? A flaw?)
Just as the confused Flareon tried to check the situation inside the pillar of fire, it discovered that Hitmonchan's figure had already disappeared. Sensing the heat behind it, Flareon suddenly leapt forward, narrowly avoiding Hitmonchan's powerful Mega Punch!
'I didn't expect you to withstand the flames!' Flareon said in shock.
'How could such flames stop my attack!' Hitmonchan said disdainfully, shaking off the scorching flames from its body. Earlier, it had already used Agility to leave its original position.
After the initial exchange, Hitmonchan had already keenly noticed Flareon's weakness. Whenever it became anxious, it would unleash powerful moves without hesitation, giving Hitmonchan the opportunity for a sneak attack. However, Red did not want Flareon to lose without understanding why.
"Hitmonchan, use Vacuum Wave!"
Hitmonchan's swinging fists continuously released waves of air. To avoid the Vacuum Waves, Flareon had no choice but to abandon its plan to attack, and its stamina gradually drained away.
"Mach Punch!"
Hitmonchan's figure blurred again and instantly appeared in front of Flareon.
From Flareon's perspective, Hitmonchan's fists suddenly filled its entire field of vision. Just as the fists were about to strike Flareon's head, Red announced the end of the battle.
"You lost quite thoroughly, little fool," Red said with a teasing smile.
Flareon puffed up its cheeks in anger. A white light flashed and it returned to its Eevee form, turning away as if unwilling to pay attention to Red.
But then it thought again—if it wanted to become Red's traveling companion, it had to behave. Eevee obediently ran to Red's side and rubbed against his leg in a spoiled manner, hoping for Red's affectionate pat.
(I always look so humble when I take care of Eevee…)
Erika looked at the scene before her in despair. Whenever she took care of Eevee, she was always the one lowering herself, gently coaxing Eevee to eat. Otherwise, the timid Eevee wouldn't even dare swallow the food she gave it.
Yet on Red's side, Eevee was the one actively clinging to him. Red hadn't done anything to please it at all. This completely shattered Erika's "fragile" maiden heart.
"In order to prevent your body from continuing to suffer from the side effects of the experimental modifications, I need to send you to Professor Oak's Laboratory first," Red explained to Eevee.
Although he wanted to start training Eevee immediately, for the sake of Eevee's health, Red decided to entrust Eevee to Professor Oak for the time being.
After all, Professor Oak was an authority in Pokémon research. Previously, the Crimson Gyarados had also received Professor Oak's help to control its berserk power, so Red had full confidence in him.
Red then looked at Eevee seriously.
"Eevee, think carefully about what form you want to become. Once you decide, you won't be able to regret it. Or you can remain in your current Eevee form."
Eevee was stunned after hearing this. It had never seriously considered which form it wanted to maintain. Although it hated the pain caused by the experimental modifications, the ability to change forms had indeed made it much stronger.
After all, once someone becomes immersed in power, it's difficult to break free from it…
(It seems the current three forms don't work against that guy at all…)
Eevee glanced at Hitmonchan and then told Red its wish.
"I see. You don't want to remain in Eevee's form, but you also don't want to become Flareon, Vaporeon, or Jolteon." Red stroked his chin and thought for a moment. "You have multiple evolution paths, and that choice belongs to you. I don't want to erase your wishes because of my own preferences."
Red took out a Poké Ball and threw it at Eevee. Eevee turned into a red light and was captured inside the Poké Ball. Red then used the Pokédex in his hand to send it to Professor Oak's Laboratory and marked the relevant information for Professor Oak.
The message Red sent requested Professor Oak to treat Eevee's physical condition and also allow Eevee to decide its own evolution.
Declining Erika's invitation to stay the night, Red headed to the Pokémon Center and changed the Pokémon in his lineup.
He sent Beedrill and the Crimson Gyarados back to Professor Oak's Laboratory, then transferred Milotic and Cubone back to his side.
This battle meant Red no longer needed to worry about incompatibility with Beedrill's Mega Evolution. Since Eevee had also been sent to Professor Oak's Laboratory, Red asked Beedrill to help train Eevee's strength as well.
"Red, I've received all your Poké Balls. Let's end the call here for now—I've been quite busy lately!"
Professor Oak showed a joyful smile and ended the call with Red. Recently, Red had been constantly rotating different Pokémon, which made Professor Oak very happy, because most of Red's Pokémon were exceptionally powerful and possessed special talents.