Chapter 23: Special Training
(First update!! New book, please collect and give flowers!)
"Don't mind it." Xiao Zhi took Pikachu's towel and wiped its body while responding.
"That, my name is Xia, I'm from Cerulean City. What's your name?"
As expected! Xiao Zhi thought to himself.
He had already recognized her, but his starting journey was different from the original, he thought he wouldn't encounter her. Unexpectedly, the process changed, but the outcome remained the same. It seems they were truly destined to meet.
"Xiao Zhi, from Pallet Town. This is Pikachu!" Xiao Zhi wiped Pikachu's body, Pikachu was also lying in the tent, enjoying it, and Xiao Zhi introduced them together.
"Don't you put Pikachu back in its Poké Ball?"
Xia found it strange, wiping Pikachu's rain off like this was much more effort than simply putting it in the Poké Ball.
"No... my Pikachu doesn't like being in the Poké Ball." Xiao Zhi felt Pikachu's body tremble slightly after hearing Xia's words, but it relaxed after hearing his.
"Is that so? That's special." Xia had never encountered such a situation, she found it special, but didn't say anything more. After all, this was Xiao Zhi and Pikachu's own business.
After wiping Pikachu dry, Xiao Zhi started wiping the rainwater off his own body. This scene further refreshed Xia's good impression.
Two towels, one for her, and then he and Pikachu shared one. He even dried Pikachu first. This was enough to show that the boy in front of her was very caring towards his Pokémon.
It was completely dark outside, the sound of rain was clearly audible inside the tent, and it was still raining heavily.
Xiao Zhi turned on a small lamp, then took out Pokémon food from his backpack and placed it in a bowl for Pikachu. Afterward, he continued to take out some emergency food.
It was all simple dry rations. He could actually cook himself, but he didn't have all the necessary equipment. Plus, it was raining. He had brought some emergency rations with him, and unexpectedly, he used them on the first day.
"Here." He handed Xia some emergency biscuits.
Although it was just a few biscuits, in this world, because trainers are always traveling, they often encounter unexpected situations. Coupled with high consumption, there were many emergency rations specifically researched. Just one small piece of this compressed biscuit could satisfy a grown man.
"Thank you!" Xia felt a little moved looking at the food in front of her. She thought to herself, her luck was pretty good. She had met a considerate boy.
She completely forgot the straight-man persona she had assigned to Xiao Zhi when they were arguing earlier.
In this world, nighttime life was still relatively boring. If it wasn't raining, he could train with his Pokémon, but with this weather, there was no training.
Without much entertainment or good weather, Xiao Zhi went to sleep early.
Xia was initially a little nervous. Although she was saved by Xiao Zhi and knew he was a good person, she was still a little nervous about being alone with a boy, especially in the same tent.
She huddled on the other side of the tent, cautiously looking at Xiao Zhi under the dim light. Pikachu was curled up in his arms, breathing evenly as if it was asleep.
Gradually, Xia relaxed. Looking at his face under the light, she couldn't help but stare, her cheeks flushed slightly.
This eventful day tired Xia out as well. Unconsciously, she fell asleep.
The first day of Xiao Zhi's journey passed like this...
The next morning, Xiao Zhi got up early. It should only be around 5 am according to the time. The rain had stopped, but the sky was still not completely bright, but Xiao Zhi didn't continue to sleep. He had gotten enough sleep from waking up early.
He glanced at Xia who was still fast asleep and carefully unzipped the tent without disturbing her. Pikachu's senses were very sharp, it had woken up when Xiao Zhi woke up.
After going to the river to brush his teeth and wash his face, Xiao Zhi released Magikarp. There was a river, which was a good place for Magikarp to exercise.
He prepared breakfast for Pikachu and Magikarp, filling their bellies. Then he walked upstream along the river, reaching the jungle next to the campsite.
"While we still have time, let's have some special training!" Xiao Zhi said to Pikachu and Magikarp in the water.
"Pika!" Pikachu and Magikarp responded in unison.
Xiao Zhi then found a wooden stake over a meter long, weighing about ten kilograms. He found some vines and tied them to the stake, binding the other end to Magikarp's tail.
Because Magikarp couldn't learn many moves, the only way to improve its strength was to improve its physique. Letting it swim with a weight would increase its physical strength. Binding it would increase its strength and stamina. Maybe it could learn Tackle.
"Magikarp, it might be a little tiring, but I'll be with you." After tying it up, Xiao Zhi gently patted Magikarp's head.
Magikarp's round eyes hardened, then Xiao Zhi stood up and looked at Pikachu.
"Pikachu, we're going to train Iron Tail next. First, we need to improve the flexibility and strength of your tail. Today's goal is 10 kilometers, use your tail as a spring to move forward."
According to the anime, Pikachu's tail and Iron Tail were played with in various ways, so this skill was extremely important. No matter how difficult, he had to hone it.
"Pika!" Pikachu clenched its fists and responded with confidence. Then it began training with the two Pokémon, jogging upstream along the river.
Pikachu used its tail as a spring to bounce forward step by step, while Magikarp swam upstream against the current, making the resistance of the stake stronger.
Originally only weighing a dozen kilograms, facing the upstream current, it must have added thirty or forty kilograms. Xiao Zhi didn't slack off and trained with them.
While Xiao Zhi was training with Pikachu and Magikarp, Xia woke up on the campsite. She rubbed her eyes and got up in a daze.
"Morning!"
She greeted them in a daze, but no one responded. She opened her eyes to find that no one was in the tent, her heart skipped a beat. Had they already left?
But she quickly saw her backpack was still there. At the same time, she felt something slipping off her body. She took a look and found it was a blanket. Feeling the warmth of the blanket, she felt a little touched.
Actually, she had her own sleeping bag, but she was too tired last night and fell asleep without using it.