Cain was walking through Pallet Town with his Slowking. Although his goal was to find Ash and Gary, he wasn't fully determined to do so. Rather, he wanted to enjoy the walk and relax a bit.
Cain released his Torchic. This little one had suffered emotional trauma, and although it seemed fine under the comfort of Aron and Poliwag, Cain preferred to give it some time to relax and heal its mind.
Recently, Torchic's condition had improved considerably. In the coming days, it would be determined whether its potential would stabilize at a high level.
"Torchic, the air here is excellent, isn't it?" Cain said, gently petting Torchic's head.
Torchic, happy, closed its eyes and rubbed its head against Cain's hand, showing a greater dependence on him. The reason Torchic recovered so quickly was due to its cheerful nature as a Fire-type Pokémon.
Torchic began running joyfully through the fields of Pallet Town. Every now and then, it would shoot small flames into the sky, not damaging the environment, just expressing its happiness. It seemed like an emotional burden it had been carrying inside had disappeared.
Cain watched as Torchic's stats fluctuated in his system. The values of its abilities kept increasing, indicating that the improvement in its mood was aiding its stabilization.
"It seems that its happiness is helping stabilize its potential," Cain thought.
As Torchic continued running, two kids appeared in front of him. One wore a red cap and a black t-shirt, while the other had a green shirt and brown hair. The two seemed to be arguing heatedly and didn't notice Torchic running towards them.
"Ouch, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts...!" The boy with black hair, Ash, was sitting on the ground, holding his stomach.
Next to him, Gary, Professor Oak's grandson, had a surprised expression. He had avoided the crash, but Ash wasn't so lucky.
Cain ran over to them, first checking Ash and then Torchic, who was also sitting on the ground, a bit dazed. Cain couldn't help but smile at the situation. After all, Ash was known for being extremely resilient. Torchic had run fast, but Ash seemed to be fine.
"Are you okay?" Cain helped Ash up and then called Torchic. "Torchic, you got too excited and bumped into someone, go apologize."
Torchic, still a bit stunned, quickly got up and ran towards Ash, bowing repeatedly to apologize. Meanwhile, Ash, who wasn't injured, looked at Torchic in amazement and immediately hugged it.
"A Pokémon! A real Pokémon! It's so warm and soft!" Ash exclaimed with shining eyes, as if he had found the best toy in the world.
Cain watched the scene, a bit speechless. Beside him, Gary seemed even more confused, though he was used to his childhood friend's eccentricities.
"I'm sorry, big brother," Gary said, pulling Ash's t-shirt. "This guy has great resilience, nothing happened to him. I think your Pokémon got scared."
Cain patted Torchic's head and smiled.
"Don't worry, it's all fine. What's your name?"
"I'm Gary Oak, Professor Oak's grandson."
"Me! Me! I'm Ash! My dream is to become a Pokémon Master!" Ash shouted, raising his hand excitedly.
"Nice to meet you, I'm Cain, sort of a guest of Professor Oak," Cain replied with a smile.
Ash and Gary's eyes lit up when they heard that Cain was a guest of Professor Oak, making him, in their eyes, part of their close circle.
"Big brother Cain, is that Pokémon a Torchic from the Hoenn region?" Gary asked, observing Torchic, who was still shyly hiding behind Cain.
"That's right, no wonder you're Professor Oak's grandson. Recognizing a Torchic at such a young age is impressive."
"Hehe..." Gary, despite his usually cold demeanor, couldn't help but feel proud of himself after receiving the compliment.
"Hoenn region? Torchic? What are you guys talking about?" Ash interrupted, completely lost in the conversation.
Gary gave him an exasperated look and decided to ignore him. Then, he focused his attention on Slowking, who was standing next to Cain, and commented curiously:
"But I don't recognize that giant Pokémon."