After arriving at Charmaine's home, everyone enjoyed her hospitality and tasted the fresh apples she offered—especially Pikachu, who devoured one after another. How all those apples fit into that tiny stomach was something no one could quite understand.
Only Ash and Pikachu knew the truth: they were using self-created techniques—unique, personally developed moves. Powerful, yes, but not without consequences. While they didn't have elemental side effects, they consumed immense physical stamina.
Any Pokémon using energy-based moves expends a lot of physical strength to begin with. Pikachu, who also possessed the Thunder God–type physical technique, burned through energy even faster.
Still, perhaps due to constant use of the Thunder God mode, Pikachu's stamina had grown monstrous. Its digestion too had adapted in kind. Pikachu had been snacking on fruit nonstop during their journey, and the results showed.
If this were a guardian Pokémon raised in a royal palace, such gluttony and stamina might be normal—but for an electric mouse Pokémon, it was unbelievable. Fortunately, no one cared enough about these small quirks to question them.
Even Ash didn't see anything strange about it. His partner Pokémon simply had big appetites. With his financial situation, feeding them was no issue. Besides, all of his main Pokémon were heavy eaters.
If he didn't have the Pokémon Food Maker he had selected earlier, preparing meals would've been a nightmare. The machine's food was highly nutritious—far superior to the junk food sold elsewhere.
"Alright, stop overthinking," Sabrina said gently when she saw Ash still staring at the bite marks on an apple core. She reached out to smooth the crease between his brows, then lifted an apple on a toothpick to his mouth.
"Kabba."
Ash laughed after taking the apple from her. It was only a bite mark—not a big deal. But then, while watching Pikachu chew happily, a small figure suddenly overlapped in his mind.
"Bang! I know!"
Ash slapped both hands on the table and stood abruptly, making Sabrina, Shirō, and Charmaine jump in fright.
"You scared me! Don't make a scene, Ash. You're acting weird today," Sabrina huffed, tapping his arm.
"Sorry, sorry—I just suddenly realized it and got excited." His eyes brightened. "The bite mark on the apple... it's Pichu's. Pikachu had the same bite pattern before evolving."
Long ago, Pikachu—then still a Pichu—had fallen into a trap. Ash rescued him, and from that moment onward, Pichu became his very first Pokémon. They trained together every day.
Over time, Ash memorized all of Pichu's habits. The reason he didn't recognize the mark earlier was simply because it was too familiar—his mind skipped over it entirely.
"So it was Pichu… That means you raised your Pikachu from its Pichu stage," Sabrina said thoughtfully. She remembered Pikachu had always been beside Ash from the beginning.
"Yeah. When you first arrived in Pallet Town, Pikachu was still a Pichu. But since Pichu always stayed behind the lab's back hill, you didn't get the chance to see him."
"Pika!" Pikachu chirped happily, confirming his earlier days as Pichu.
Ash had just finished explaining, and Pikachu—still munching on apples—lifted its tiny paw excitedly, as if saying "I remember too!"
"It's definitely Pichu. Lately, the forest's had a shortage of fruit. A lot of Pokémon have been sneaking into my orchard to steal apples."
Ash's words immediately reminded Charmaine of the strange activity around her orchard.
"If that's the case, why not hire someone to help manage it? This orchard is huge. There's no way you're running all of this alone," Ash said casually while eating another apple, no longer bothered by bite marks.
"I've thought about it," Charmaine sighed, "but the nearest towns are too far away. I can't ask workers to live here, and the wages would be too much. With all that, I'd barely earn anything from the orchard."
"I only hire help during sowing season and apple harvesting."
She understood what Ash meant—having help would be ideal—but making a living wasn't easy.
Charmaine was only nineteen. After her parents divorced, neither of them took responsibility for her. Her grandmother raised her until she turned twelve. When her grandmother passed away, Charmaine took over the orchard and made it her livelihood.
Her grandmother had been elderly and not very mobile, so she used to hire villagers only during planting and harvesting, which meant profits were always thin. Still, it had been enough for food and basic living expenses, even allowing Charmaine to save a little.
This was also why, at nineteen, she still hadn't started traveling with a Pokémon—daily survival came first.
Jingle… jingle…
Suddenly, a bell rang through the orchard. It was one of the simple alarm devices Charmaine had set up—each would ring when triggered.
"That's the orchard bell! It must be the Pichu Ash mentioned, stealing apples again!"
Without hesitation, Charmaine ran toward the sound. Ash, Sabrina, and Shirō followed close behind.
When they reached the orchard, they saw a Spearow circling in the air, its sharp gaze locked onto something below as it suddenly dove downward like a missile.
"Pikachu—Thunderbolt!"
Ash's eyes hardened the moment he saw the terrified Pichu cornered beneath a tree, and he gave the command instantly.
(End of Chapter)
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