Paul held the three Poké Balls he had just used to capture the trio of Starly.
As for Ash and his companions standing nearby, he completely ignored them.
"Come out, Starly."
Paul released the three newly captured Starly and pulled out his Pokédex to scan them.
The Sinnoh region's Pokédex had a feature that allowed trainers to check what moves their Pokémon had already learned.
Paul was using it to determine which of the three was the strongest.
Even if they were all Starly, the one that had learned the most moves would naturally be superior.
"Oh? This one already knows Aerial Ace?"
Paul stored away the Starly that had learned Aerial Ace and then looked at the other two.
"You two are free now."
Dismissing them so nonchalantly, Paul barely spared them a second glance.
This scene caught Dawn's attention. As a brand-new trainer, she couldn't believe what she was seeing.
"Hey! How can you just treat them like that?"
Paul finally turned to look at Ash and his friends.
"How I treat my Pokémon is none of your business. You're trainers too, right? What do you say—how about a three-on-three battle?"
A three-on-three battle...
Dawn immediately lost confidence. She had only just become a trainer and didn't even have a full team yet.
Anabel, having grown up among Pokémon, also disapproved of Paul's methods. She was about to step forward when Ash lightly tugged on her finger, signaling her to hold back. She understood right away.
"Fine. Three-on-three. Pikachu, I'm counting on you."
"Pika!"
Ash stepped forward.
Judging by Paul's demeanor, Reggie had likely not told him anything about Ash. But that didn't matter.
So Paul still came to Sinnoh after all, just like in the original timeline.
Paul glanced at Ash. A Pikachu?
He had never given Pikachu much thought. He believed its potential was too limited to be a serious contender.
But since a challenge had been issued, he had no problem accepting.
Anabel took on the role of referee.
"Starly, come out and battle!"
"Starr!"
Paul's first choice was the newly captured Starly.
"You train a Pikachu? You can't be that strong of a trainer. Go ahead, make the first move."
Paul spoke arrogantly, but Ash had already decided to teach him a lesson.
"Then I won't hold back. Pikachu, use Thun—no, use Discharge!"
Ash had originally intended to call for Thunderbolt but changed his mind.
He figured that Paul would likely abandon Starly if it performed poorly, so there was no need to go all out.
"Hmm? Starly, use Double Team and then Aerial Ace!"
Paul didn't understand why Ash changed his move, but that didn't stop him from giving orders.
"Starr!"
Starly flapped its wings and instantly multiplied into several clones.
"Pikachu, control your power and use Discharge to wipe out all the clones!"
"Pika!"
Paul thought Pikachu was weak?
Well, now he was about to find out the truth!
At over level 70, Pikachu could control its power with pinpoint accuracy.
The moment the electric field expanded, all the clones vanished, and Starly's real body was struck head-on.
"Starr..."
"Starly is unable to battle! Pikachu wins!"
Anabel declared the result.
"Yes! Ash won the first round! That was amazing! This is the first real Pokémon battle I've ever seen!"
Dawn and Piplup cheered excitedly.
Paul withdrew his fainted Starly.
"Your Pikachu can control its electricity so precisely? Impressive."
However, there were no words of encouragement for Starly. Instead, Paul muttered coldly:
"Pathetic."
He then took out another Poké Ball.
"Chimchar, come out!"
Chimchar?
Dawn immediately pulled out her Pokédex.
"Chimchar, the Chimp Pokémon. It easily climbs cliffs and sleeps without its tail flame burning."
Chimchar landed on the battlefield, ready for a fight.
Ash looked at it closely.
So here it was—Chimchar!
He had no idea where Paul originally caught it, so he couldn't have intercepted it even if he wanted to.
And truthfully, without Paul's harsh training and eventual abandonment, Chimchar might never have developed its overwhelming desire to prove itself and become the powerhouse that later evolved into Infernape.
In a way, Paul was responsible for creating the legend of the "Senior Brother of Power."
"Chimchar, use Flame Wheel!"
"Guga!"
Chimchar had no idea who Ash was. All it knew was that Pikachu was its opponent.
A blazing wheel of fire rushed toward Pikachu.
"Pikachu, Iron Tail!"
Fire may beat Steel in type matchups, but the level difference was far too great!
One clean strike from Pikachu, and Chimchar was down instantly.
"Looks like this one isn't much use either."
Two one-hit KOs.
Paul finally started taking Ash seriously.
If he had brought his original team, he might have used them instead.
"Elekid, come out and battle!"
"Bibi!"
Elekid emerged, sparks flickering from its body.
Paul watched Ash closely, waiting for him to use an Electric-type move.
Lately, he had been experimenting with the idea that Electric Pokémon could temporarily boost their own power by absorbing electricity from an opponent.
"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"
Just as Paul expected.
Except...
This was not some reset Pikachu.
This was a level 70-plus Pikachu that had permanently enhanced its Electric moves with a Light Ball!
BOOM!
"Bibi... Bibi..."
The powerful Thunderbolt struck Elekid dead-on.
Paul smirked, thinking Elekid would absorb the energy—
But instead, Elekid dropped to one knee, groaning in pain.
"What the...?"
Paul was stunned.
He had meticulously selected this Elekid. How could it be struggling like this?
"That's enough. The battle is over."
Ash crossed his arms and spoke calmly.
"Yes, Electric Pokémon can absorb electricity to boost their power. But you forgot one thing—each Pokémon has its own limits. Your Elekid simply can't handle Pikachu's electricity yet. That's all there is to it.
"One last piece of advice: don't be so arrogant. There are always stronger trainers out there, and there isn't just one path to becoming strong. Let's go."
Ash turned, letting Chimchar's journey unfold naturally.
"Pika!"
Pikachu leaped onto Ash's shoulder.
Anabel shook her head and followed, pulling Dawn along as they left Paul standing alone.
(Author's Note): It's true. Without the hardship Paul put Chimchar through, it wouldn't have developed the drive to become Infernape, the "Senior Brother of Power." Don't worry—he'll still be the one to take down Tobias!
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