Charmeleon and Magmar unleashed Flamethrower at the same time, but what Ash didn't expect was that the flames released by Charmeleon were completely unable to withstand Magmar's fire. In just a few exchanges, Charmeleon's flames were suppressed, and the attack followed through, striking Charmeleon's body.
Although Charmeleon, as a Fire-type Pokémon, could offset half the damage, the scorching flames still caused it to clutch its wound in pain.
"As expected of the second-strongest gym in the Kanto Region, the Cinnabar Gym. It's said that Mr. Blaine was once the Fire-type Elite Four of the Kanto League. I didn't expect that just the difficulty of a Gym Challenge alone could make Charmeleon, one of Ash's few main Pokémon, struggle this much," Brock exclaimed.
Perhaps unable to accept its defeat, the prideful Charmeleon actually ignored Ash's warnings and charged blindly toward Magmar. Its right claw glowed white as it prepared to use Slash and engage Magmar in close combat.
"Charmeleon, don't be reckless! With your current strength, you can't compete with Magmar!"
(That's impossible—I can't be this weak!)
After hearing Ash's words, Charmeleon didn't stop. Instead, it sped up and rushed straight toward Magmar without the slightest intention of retreating.
"Magmar, use Fire Punch!" Blaine commanded. Although he had been satisfied with Ash and his Pokémon's coordinated tactics in the previous two battles, he was now displeased with the performance of Ash and Charmeleon.
Because Blaine hadn't expected the bond between them to be so fragile—so weak that they couldn't even entrust their belief to each other. At this point, what kind of Pokémon battle was this? It was nothing more than Charmeleon fighting blindly on its own.
Magmar easily endured Charmeleon's Slash, looking at it with disdain as it burned with all its might. Its left fist ignited with blazing fire and struck Charmeleon hard across the face. The impact forced Charmeleon back several steps, nearly knocking it off its feet.
Unwilling to accept defeat, Charmeleon released flames again, using Flamethrower to hit Magmar. Yet to its shock, its proud flames had no effect whatsoever on Magmar.
That was only natural. Magmar had long lived beneath molten lava—ordinary high-temperature flames simply couldn't harm its body. This also indirectly revealed the weakness of Charmeleon's fire.
"Magmar, use Fire Spin Headbutt!"
Magmar quickly rushed toward Charmeleon, its flaming head prepared to slam into its body.
"Charmeleon, dodge it quickly! Magmar's Fire Spin Headbutt isn't something you can withstand!" Ash shouted anxiously, trying to make Charmeleon back down.
But those words had the opposite effect. With its immense pride, Charmeleon refused to concede and stubbornly used Fire Spin Headbutt as well, intending to clash head-on with Magmar.
Unfortunately, this was nothing more than wishful thinking. After just a second of confrontation, Charmeleon was sent flying by Magmar and slammed into the rocky wall outside the battlefield. The force of the impact embedded its entire body into the rock, leaving it unable to free itself.
With fading consciousness, Charmeleon tried to struggle and stand up again to fight, but in the end, its eyes spun, and it lost the ability to battle.
"Charmeleon!"
Ash shouted in worry, rushing to its side. Ignoring the scorching heat of Charmeleon's body, he placed his hands on it, trying to pull it out from the deeply embedded rock wall.
Brock looked at the struggling Ash with concern, wondering whether they should just let Ash take the Volcano Badge and stop being so stubborn about this battle.
"Ash, maybe we should…" Misty began to persuade him, sharing the same thoughts as Brock.
"Ash, if you choose to give up this match now, you can still take the Volcano Badge from me."
After saying that, Blaine took out the Volcano Badge and held it out before Ash, hoping to push the hesitant boy into making a decision.
Seeing that he could obtain the badge directly, Ash lowered his head and struggled in thought for a moment, unable to decide.
Confused, Ash looked up ahead and saw Red on the opposite side slowly nodding at him, his gaze filled with expectation.
Seeing this, Ash strengthened his resolve and shouted toward Blaine,
"I'm sorry, Mr. Blaine! Rather than accepting a badge that's half-given to me like this, I'd rather earn the Volcano Badge with my own strength!"
"Ash, you've already won two matches. According to the rules, you already qualify to have the Volcano Badge," Brock reminded him.
"I absolutely can't back down now! If I back down like this, how can I go on to challenge the Indigo Plateau Conference that I've always dreamed of!"
Ash immediately retorted, his eyes filled with a determination never seen before.
Ash's passionate words awakened the previously unconscious Charmeleon. At this moment, it began to see its Trainer in a new light—it no longer saw Ash as the carefree, foolish boy he usually was.
Charmeleon glanced at Ash's burned hands. Realizing that its body had been pulled out of the rock wall, it immediately understood what had happened.
Seeing this, Charmeleon lowered its head in silence, feeling guilty. It suddenly recalled how Ash had once risked himself in a torrential downpour, enduring attacks from Spearow, desperately using a raincoat to protect the flame of its life, saving its stubborn self and bringing it to the Pokémon Center for treatment.
Thinking of this, tears of regret fell from Charmeleon's eyes. It realized how willful it had been—refusing to follow Ash's commands just to prove its own strength, repeatedly putting Ash in awkward situations.
"Since you've experienced failure, then muster the courage to try and overcome this seemingly insurmountable mountain!"
At that moment, Red stepped forward and placed a hand on Ash's shoulder, encouraging him.
After seeing Red arrive, the determined Charmeleon looked at the Poké Balls at Red's waist, asking him to send out his Pokémon to train it.
Although it had never personally witnessed Red's training, Charmeleon felt no fear—because it wanted to grow stronger, so that Ash could truly earn Blaine's recognition, not through the leniency of the previous matches.
"Looks like you've regained your spirit."
Seeing this, Red turned his head toward Blaine across the battlefield.
"Mr. Blaine, let me arrange the battlefield for now. I'd like to take this opportunity to train Ash's Charmeleon."
Blaine nodded slowly upon hearing this, agreeing to Red's request.
After receiving permission, Red threw a Poké Ball from his waist and sent out his Dragon-Scaled Charizard.
The moment Charizard appeared, the entire battlefield trembled slightly. The powerful aura it faintly emitted made even the previously smug Magmar feel fear.
Seeing this, Charmeleon once again understood the significance of true strength. Just the pressure from Charizard's presence alone was enough to make the Magmar that had suppressed it feel terrified.
It was precisely because of Charizard's appearance that Charmeleon had once developed the idea of evolving. Back in Great Canyon, in order to battle Charizard, it had tried to force its own evolution, nearly ruining its own potential—fortunately, it had been stopped in time by Red and Charizard.
Recalling this, Charmeleon let out a relieved sigh. It hadn't expected that its past recklessness had almost destroyed its future.