Ding! Today's battle data successfully collected. Scratch Card ×1 acquired.
With a mere thought, a scratch card featuring a red and white Poké Ball appeared in Natsume's hand.
"System, why isn't it a Great Ball?"
Battle data collection rewards grant scratch cards of random quality.
"Fine." Natsume nonchalantly tossed the standard Poké Ball scratch card back into the system space.
He figured it was better to accumulate a bunch of these low-tier cards and scratch them all at once.
"Rotom, open the map."
"Roto~"
The smartphone Rotom floated in front of him, projecting a detailed map of Pewter City.
After examining it for a moment, Natsume tapped a spot on the map and began heading there, following the navigation.
To avoid getting separated from Ash at any point, he had secretly attached micro-locators to his clothes.
Soon, following Rotom's directions, Natsume located Ash and his companions.
They were by a small hydroelectric station next to a stream on the outskirts of town.
When Natsume arrived, flashes of electricity could already be seen inside the power station.
A massive water wheel sat on the riverside of the station.
But since it was the dry season, the water flow was too low to turn the wheel.
Ash stood on top of it, pedaling it like a bicycle despite being barely as tall as two paddles on the wheel.
Seeing this mismatch in size, Natsume's mouth twitched slightly.
No wonder they call him the "Superhuman of Pallet Town."
At the entrance, Misty held her backpack in front of her, seemingly intimidated by the intermittent sparks of lightning flashing from within.
"The flashes will get stronger soon."
Natsume passed by and offered a heads-up.
"Huh? Are you telling me to leave?"
"No, you could also choose to stand behind a reliable man—like Ash."
Natsume shrugged.
"What's that supposed to mean?!"
Blushing, Misty hugged her backpack and quickly trotted backward.
Creak~
Natsume pushed open the wooden door, which groaned as it swung open.
Inside, Pikachu sat calmly on a stool, its electric sacs on its cheeks hooked up to wires running from the generator.
"Natsume, you're here."
Brock spoke without turning, as if he'd expected Natsume's arrival.
"I'm curious—how did you even come up with this method?"
Natsume narrowed his eyes at the generator's monitor. The displayed values matched Pikachu's average electrical tolerance limit. Clearly, Brock wasn't just experimenting recklessly.
Sigh. "Back when I was a Gym Leader… I was also a Pokémon Breeder. Pewter Gym ran a Pokémon daycare as well."
Brock's tone grew nostalgic as he began to recount:
"This method… I discovered it by accident. Running specific electric currents through the body greatly enhances the moves of Electric-type Pokémon."
"For those with exceptional talent, it could boost their strength by more than threefold!"
Takeshi emphasized this point. Natsume looked genuinely surprised.
Three times stronger!
Even though Pikachu's base stats are generally low, if its moves were boosted threefold, its attack power could rival that of Legendary Pokémon!
No wonder even Arceus needed to block Pikachu's Thunderbolt with a plate.
And if you added a Light Ball on top of that… whew.
This was the first time Natsume had heard such a specific claim, and he quickly forced his imagination to quiet down and asked:
"And then?"
"Then…" Takeshi suddenly looked despondent. "I shared this method with Trainers who left their Electric-type Pokémon at my daycare…"
"That sounds like a good thing, doesn't it?" Natsume paused.
Wait. If it were really good, this method would've become widespread by now.
"But the good times didn't last." Takeshi's voice trembled slightly.
"After a while, those Electric-types that underwent the enhancement started to drastically lose levels. Many Trainers ended up abandoning them…"
"I… I'm to blame. I'm unworthy of being Pewter City's Gym Leader…"
Natsume: "???"
He was stunned for a moment, then realized:
So this is the reason why Pikachu resets to level 1 every time Ash travels to a new region?!
"You still used this method on Ash's Pikachu?!"
Natsume fired off a soul-piercing question.
Takeshi froze mid-sob. After a long pause, he wiped his tears and looked at Natsume.
"After spending time with them, I realized the bond between Ash and Pikachu runs incredibly deep. He's definitely not the kind of Trainer who would abandon his Pokémon!"
Natsume blinked and followed Brock's gaze toward the window.
Outside, Ash was still pedaling the water wheel, completely unaware of their conversation.
"…Yeah."Natsume didn't say more. Based on what he knew of Ash—
Even if Brock told him the full truth, Ash would probably just smile and say, "It's no big deal! We'll just get stronger together, right, Pikachu?"
Ash had never judged his bond with a Pokémon based on strength alone.
Still, this wasn't ideal. Natsume wondered if he could somehow eliminate the side effects of this method.
"Let's go, Pikachu!"
Ash's voice rang out enthusiastically from outside.
"Pika!"
Inside, Pikachu's face was strained with effort.
"Pikachu is about to hit his limit. Let's step out."
Brock suggested.
Natsume silently nodded.
He was actually a bit annoyed at Brock for acting without consulting him first.
If he'd been informed beforehand, maybe he could've found a way to remove the negative side effects—maybe even published a research paper on it.
Just as they stepped out of the wooden hut, a bolt of lightning shot skyward. In Natsume's mind, the system chimed in:
Ding! S-Rank Task – Decode Ash's Pikachu: Complete. Rewards distributed. New task issued.
S-Rank Task – "Develop an Electric-type Power-Up Method with No Side Effects" issued!
A new scratch card with a Master Ball icon appeared in his backpack—another S-Rank mission unlocked.
Natsume raised an eyebrow.
But then he suddenly felt a jolt run through his body.
"Pika—!!"
The lightning behind them surged, blowing the hut's roof clean off.
Everyone fell silent; only the crackling of electricity filled the air.
Eventually, the flashes faded.
"Huh? Is it over?"
Behind Ash, Misty peeked her head out from behind her backpack like a shield and scanned the area cautiously.
What she saw shocked her.
The entire hut had been scorched black. The surrounding cobblestones were charred.
At the doorway stood two soot-covered figures—Natsume and Brock—both exhaling black smoke from their mouths.
"Pika!"
A flash of yellow darted out of the hut.
"Pikachu!"
Ash, also covered in soot, looked completely unfazed. In three quick steps, he scooped up Pikachu.
"Natsume! Let me check him!"
Natsume, face pitch-black, walked up.
"Sure, Natsume! Go ahead!"
Ash raised Pikachu toward him.
Smartphone Rotom floated over and scanned Pikachu.
After reviewing the data, Natsume stroked his chin with a knowing expression.
Pikachu's Attack and Special Attack stats were now double their previous base values.
Its base stats had increased!
This wasn't just a temporary power-up—it meant Pikachu would gain more Attack and Sp. Atk with every level up than any normal Pikachu.
If you gave this Pikachu a Light Ball, even Mewtwo would need a shield to survive Thunderbolt.
"N-Natsume, is Pikachu okay?"
Seeing Natsume go silent, Ash looked worried.
"He's fine. Pikachu's in great shape."
"Whew! That scared me—I thought something was wrong!"
Ash let out a big sigh of relief, instantly perking back up:
"Alright, no time to waste! I'm going to challenge the Pewter City Gym right now!"
"Wait!"
Brock stopped him.
"It's getting late. Pewter Gym is already closed for the day."
"Yeah, Ash. We're all covered in soot. Maybe we should go back and clean up first."
Misty walked over, backpack in hand, supporting the idea.
"Let's return to the Pokémon Center and rest up first."
Natsume made the final call.