After yesterday's big day of shopping, today was the time for solid training.
They began with a warm-up, which meant running laps. After finishing, he stopped to rest.
Eichi let Scyther and Beedrill take a short break. When they were ready, he took out the Skill Installer, inserted the TM for Substitute, and pressed the fixture onto Beedrill's head.
He flipped the switch, and an electric current surged through. Beedrill froze in place. It wasn't its first time, so it already knew what to expect.
It learned quickly, not needing nearly as much time as before.
Scyther watched with curiosity from the side. It knew it would be next soon.
Once the first move was done, he replaced the disc with the TM for Protect.
It took fifteen minutes for Beedrill to master Protect.
The higher a Pokémon's potential, the faster it learned moves, and Beedrill's learning speed was especially impressive now.
Eichi sent Beedrill off to practice the two newly learned moves.
Next was Scyther's turn. It looked curious as Eichi pressed the fixture onto its head and loaded the TM for Brick Break.
When the switch was flipped, electricity surged into its brain. At first it hurt, but after a while, the discomfort faded.
About forty minutes later, it finished learning. Then came Swords Dance, which took half an hour, and finally Hidden Power, which also took about thirty minutes.
After those three moves, Eichi decided to stop. Three were enough for now.
Removing the fixture, he said, "Scyther, how do you feel? Have you mastered them all?"
Scyther raised both blades proudly, showing it had.
"Good," Eichi said with a smile. "Then show me what you've learned."
Scyther nodded. Eichi set up a training dummy and stepped back to watch.
Scyther rubbed its twin scythes together, took a stance, and with a sharp kick, its wings began to vibrate rapidly.
It dashed toward the dummy, its blades glowing brighter and brighter. Just as it was about to collide, it twisted its waist and struck hard.
A heavy thud echoed through the clearing.
Eichi clapped in approval. "Not bad, Scyther. You just learned it, and your control and power are already that high. Excellent."
Scyther smiled shyly. Then Eichi continued, "Now, show me Hidden Power."
Scyther, full of energy, recalled the flow of Hidden Power energy. It felt power gathering in its mouth, and before it could hold back any longer, it unleashed it in a burst.
A pillar of flame shot out from Scyther's mouth.
"This is… Fire-type!"
"Impressive, Scyther. That's some good luck."
Eichi, thrilled inside, then asked Scyther to demonstrate the last move, Swords Dance.
This one was less surprising. It performed it smoothly but could only use it once.
Brick Break had progressed so quickly because it was similar to Slash. Once it learned Brick Break, its proficiency shot up, reaching the Skilled level right away. Eichi believed it wouldn't be long before it reached Mastery.
He let Scyther rest and called Beedrill over.
"Beedrill, show me the moves you just learned, Protect and Substitute."
Then he said, "Scyther, attack Beedrill with Brick Break. Beedrill, use Protect to block it."
The two Pokémon nodded and took their positions, creating some distance.
Scyther nodded at Beedrill, and Beedrill responded with a buzz.
Scyther charged forward, its blades glowing white. As it neared Beedrill, Beedrill focused energy, and just before the attack hit, a green semicircular barrier appeared in front of it.
Scyther's Brick Break had no effect.
Eichi watched the entire process from the side. Although the Brick Break was completely neutralized, that didn't mean Protect was perfect. In theory, Protect could block any attack, but in practice, if a move's power exceeded its defensive limit, it could still break through.
Right now, Beedrill had only just learned Protect, and its release speed still needed improvement.
When Eichi checked the time, it was already lunchtime, so they headed home to eat.
At the table, Scyther and Beedrill's meals now included a new addition: Pokéblocks.
Eichi took out the Pokéblocks and prepared two for each of them. Beedrill's were Bug-type Pokéblocks, while Scyther's were Bug- and Flying-type ones.
After tasting the new Pokéblocks, Eichi asked, "Beedrill, Scyther, how do they taste?"
"Delicious," they both answered.
Scyther nodded in agreement.
Eichi smiled. "Glad you like them. Eat up."
***
That afternoon, in the small forest, training began again.
Eichi watched Beedrill training hard. He could see how much effort it put in.
Now, aside from the two newly learned moves, all of Beedrill's other moves had reached Mastery.
Several were already close to Peak level, just a step away.
Scyther, though improving quickly, hadn't managed to close the gap. In fact, the gap seemed to be growing wider.
Scyther was already working very hard, but not as desperately as Beedrill. Beedrill pushed itself to the limit. Scyther couldn't quite match that intensity.
Still, recently, Scyther had been pushing itself more than before.
Learning Slash early was proof of its determination, but that still wasn't enough. Eichi had already decided to push it harder.
Beedrill was currently practicing Twinneedle, its weakest move, but also its favorite.
It liked the feeling of continuously stabbing with its twin stingers.
Watching its movements, Eichi noticed something was off. Twinneedle was already at a very high proficiency, yet it didn't look as smooth as it should. It felt like the motion could be shorter.
"Beedrill, stop for a second," he called. Beedrill stopped immediately and turned toward him.
Eichi walked over and said, "Use Twinneedle again, but do it in slow motion."
Beedrill obeyed, performing the move slowly, step by step. It slightly raised its stingers, pulled its arms back, then thrust forward with its whole body.
After one repetition, Eichi didn't stop it, and Beedrill continued in slow motion. Watching closely, Eichi finally realized what was off.
"Stop," he said.
Eichi adjusted Beedrill's stingers, crossing them slightly.
"Beedrill, lean your body forward a little."
Beedrill tilted forward as instructed.
"Good. Now, use Twinneedle like that."