"Return to formation."
At Paul's command, Electabuzz and Ursaring who had been grappling fiercely, immediately broke apart and returned to the lineup with the rest of his Pokémon.
"Today's training officially begins. Drapion and Dewott, your objectives remain the same—work on identifying weak points and critical openings."
"Use every method available to you in combination with your Scope Lens for precision training. However, the use of Poison-type moves or stat-boosting techniques is strictly prohibited. Ursaring will serve as your sparring partner."
"Ursaring, your focus remains on activating Guts without fully succumbing to burn status. Additionally, work on improving your control over Endure while burned to enhance your mastery of the technique."
As he spoke, Paul placed a pile of Rawst Berries and Oran Berries to the side, ensuring Ursaring had the means to recover from burns and restore stamina when necessary.
"Ursaaaa!"
"Raaah!"
"Chaa!"
With a chorus of responses, the three Pokémon immediately moved to a designated area and began their respective training.
"Electabuzz, Ninetales—collaborate with Metagross to refine and optimize both your meditation techniques and Electromagnetic Levitation."
Paul hadn't forgotten Metagross' legendary intelligence—often said to rival that of a supercomputer. If it could contribute to refining meditation techniques and enhancing the application of Electromagnetic Levitation, the benefits would be immeasurable.
"Wooo…"
Ninetales took the lead, sharing its own meditation method with Electabuzz and Metagross.
By this point, Ninetales' meditation technique had already reached a mature stage.
It first activated Nasty Plot multiple times before meditating to enhance mental clarity and efficiency. Then, by absorbing Life Energy (Energy Ball) and Solar Power (Sunny Day), it converted the gathered forces into either psychic energy or Fire-type energy through meditation, significantly enhancing its power.
"Grroo?!"
Hearing this, Metagross was stunned.
Despite its impressive strength, Metagross had always relied primarily on battle experience and move repetition to enhance its psychic abilities. It had never systematically incorporated meditation into its training.
The fact that Ninetales had developed such a method on its own fascinated Metagross, and its computational brain immediately went to work analyzing and adapting the technique to fit its own abilities—giving birth to what it termed the Cosmic Meditation Technique.
Simply put, Metagross would now harness the energy from Cosmic Power and convert it into psychic strength through meditation.
Since it already knew Cosmic Power, the only missing step had been meditation itself. But with the method now learned from Ninetales, the puzzle was complete. With diligent training, mastering this technique would be well within reach.
Electabuzz, on the other hand, was deep in thought.
Though it had initially studied Calm Mind purely to manipulate the trajectory of its Thunder attacks, now it was starting to see additional benefits.
Perhaps it should take meditation even further—maybe even take up Yoga training with Paul in the future? Practicing inside its Poké Ball wouldn't be a bad idea.
Alternatively, it could explore Natural Meditation Techniques as well.
Now it was Electabuzz's turn to share its insights on Electromagnetic Levitation with Metagross. It carefully explained its learning process and shared the finer details of controlling and fine-tuning the technique.
Metagross absorbed every word.
Previously, its primary reason for learning Magnet Rise was simply to avoid relying on its psychic powers to float or having to retract its four legs into a folded form while flying.
It had never thought about developing the skill further.
But after listening to Electabuzz's explanation, Metagross had an epiphany—why had it wasted time focusing on Gyro Ball and Hammer Arm when it could have been refining Magnet Rise into a high-speed mobility technique?
Had it optimized Magnet Rise earlier and combined it with Agility, the outcome of its last three battles would have been completely different.
Fortunately, it wasn't too late. With its supercomputer-level intellect, Metagross immediately began analyzing Electabuzz's method, refining and adapting it to suit its own abilities. The two Pokémon engaged in in-depth discussions, collaborating to perfect Electromagnetic Levitation—laying the foundation for rapid aerial combat in the future.
"Wooo…"
Watching Electabuzz and Metagross so deeply engrossed in their discussion, Ninetales—who neither had an interest in electricity nor any use for Magnet Rise—felt a little left out.
It turned to Paul, seeking an assignment of its own.
Though it often pretended to dislike training, the thrill of power and victory was something Ninetales relished.
This was why, despite its complaints, it always gave its all when training began.
"Talking is useless without action." Paul said after a brief moment of thought.
"Assist their training by disrupting their levitation. Apply moderate gravitational force as interference while launching continuous attacks to force them to evade."
"They are prohibited from using stat-boosting moves or relying on Electric- or Psychic-type attacks for offense."
"Wooo!"
Excited by the idea, Ninetales immediately returned to the training ground and relayed Paul's instructions to Electabuzz and Metagross—before launching an attack without hesitation.
Opportunities to freely attack Electabuzz were rare, and Ninetales wasn't about to waste this one.
It released a controlled Gravity field, disrupting Electabuzz and Metagross' movement before launching an oversized Fire Blast straight at Metagross.
As soon as the flames erupted, it followed up with a widespread Flamethrower, engulfing Electabuzz completely in fire.
Both Pokémon took a direct hit.
After a few minutes of struggling under Ninetales' relentless assault, Electabuzz suddenly realized something—Paul had only restricted the use of Electric- and Psychic-type attacks, not other types of moves.
A mischievous grin spread across Electabuzz's face.
With a swift motion, it Karate Chopped Ninetales squarely on the head, sending it flying backward.
Seeing this, Metagross also had a moment of revelation.
Raising both front legs, it accelerated using Magnet Rise, then rocketed toward Ninetales with a Meteor Mash.
In that moment, Ninetales realized something—it hadn't fully listened to Paul's instructions.
Realizing its mistake, it had no choice but to rely on sheer agility and Nasty Plot-enhanced reflexes to evade their counterattacks.
Though it was outnumbered, Ninetales' speed and cunning allowed it to hold its own within the confines of the battle's restrictions.
Once again, Ninetales reminded them—"Your sister Fox is still your sister Fox!"
The training continued in a structured manner, and Paul wasn't in a hurry to leave.
Several Days passed.....
In that time, every Pokémon made progress:
Drapion passed its Pressure Point Targeting Technique to Dewott, while Dewott mastered Focus Energy in return. Through constant exchange, both Pokémon reached a level where they could identify weak points without relying on the Scope Lens.
Their next goal was to achieve complete weakness identification using only their eyes, and eventually, mastering the skill with pure instinct alone.
Unfortunately, this ability wasn't as universally applicable as it seemed. At the very least, mastering it required Focus Energy, an understanding of pressure points, and an innate talent for striking weak spots and vital areas…
With so many conditions stacked together, only then was it possible to learn Detect.
If it were meant for widespread use, it wouldn't be nearly as accessible as Growth Training or Solar Meditation. As long as the necessary conditions were met, those techniques were surprisingly easy to pick up.
Meanwhile, Ursaring's endurance training had made its hide even tougher. Through constant sparring with the other Pokémon, it had significantly improved its resilience and tenacity, pushing past its physical limits. Its overall move proficiency had also increased.
Ninetales' training primarily focused on refining its move usage. Over the past few days, its mastery of Fire-type attacks had improved drastically, with both power and versatility increasing.
One particularly noteworthy breakthrough was Paul successfully guiding Ninetales to develop the Will-o'-Wisp Aura (Anti-Counter Shield), a fusion of Will-O-Wisp and Extrasensory.
Additionally, by incorporating Will-O-Wisp with other Fire-type techniques, Ninetales devised a new move—creating nine spheres of fire at the tips of its tails before launching them as projectiles.
Of course, this Fireball Barrage wasn't the same as Victini's signature move. It was simply a self-developed technique—Paul considered names like Ghostly Ember, Fireball, or Nine-Star Volley…
But in the end, Fireball Barrage had the best ring to it.
Besides, there weren't many Victini in the world anyway, so he figured he might as well take the name.
As for Metagross, its progress was undeniable. After mastering Calm Mind, it had fully grasped the Cosmic Meditation Technique and even started practicing yoga with Paul.
Furthermore, through training with Ninetales, it learned Agility, and after extensive research with Electabuzz, it also discovered a way to enhance Electromagnetic Levitation. With these developments, Metagross had begun shifting away from its traditionally slow combat style.
Electabuzz, on the other hand, had gained a deeper understanding of Electromagnetic Levitation from sparring with Metagross. Its previously slow progress suddenly skyrocketed—under Ninetales' standard gravity field, it could now hover freely. At this rate, it wouldn't be long before Electabuzz achieved full aerial mobility.
Over the past few days, Paul had also figured out Metagross' true role in his team.
A warrior? A mage? An assassin?
No, none of those.
It was a multi-functional training assistant and tactical optimizer.
Metagross had mastered Gravity-assisted Pokémon training and could serve as a high-level sparring partner.
But most importantly, with its supercomputer-like brain, it could analyze various training methods and moves, optimize strategies, and even simulate new techniques—allowing Paul to develop even more efficient battle tactics.
In short, this Pokémon was insanely useful.
On this particular day, Paul was in the middle of training, finalizing his itinerary, and preparing to leave Seamount City.
Suddenly, a deep, magnetic voice broke the silence.
"So, you were the one who captured that Metagross? What a shame—I arrived just a little too late."
Paul instinctively put his phone away at the sound of the voice, his expression turning serious.
The newcomer was a tall man in a crimson suit, his long violet hair flowing neatly past his shoulders. He wore light purple glasses, exuding an air of refined elegance—like a noble scholar steeped in knowledge.
He was none other than Lucian, the Psychic-type Trainer and member of the Sinnoh Elite Four.
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