Chimchar had been bullied by other Pokemon since it first became aware in the wild, until one day it was surrounded by many Zangoose and accidentally unleashed an incomparable power, which caught Paul's attention.
After Paul's recruitment, its life in Paul's team was not particularly good, but Paul was the only person who reached out to him since its birth. No matter how poorly Paul treated it, Paul was the only one in its heart.
For Paul, it tried its best to repay him, knowing how much Paul valued strength and that Paul captured it because of that accidental burst of flame. However, no matter how hard it tried later, it couldn't release that mighty flame again.
Despite Paul continuously pushing its body to the brink, putting its life in peril to force it to evoke that flame to survive, for some reason, even on the verge of death, it couldn't channel the power within.
Not only Paul, but even Chimchar also began to doubt if that power explosion was a once-in-a-lifetime miracle. When that power erupted, it had no awareness at all. It was Paul who told it that it had such a terrifying power inside.
It believed Paul, so it also tried with all its might to excavate and stimulate that power, but the outcome wasn't very positive.
Unable to ignite the explosive flames, Chimchar began to improve from another angle. If the explosive power didn't work, it would stabilize its current state.
That meant leveling up.
However, despite its tireless efforts in another direction, there was no result. Its level couldn't improve, strength couldn't improve, and the explosive flames couldn't be ignited. In Paul's words, it was a waste.
Being abandoned by Paul was something it had long anticipated, but Chimchar didn't want to accept this reality and dared not think about that reality.
But reality is reality; it was still abandoned by Paul. What it didn't expect was that right after Paul abandoned it, someone chose to accept it.
This made Chimchar feel incredulous while also questioning if it was worthy.
It had already disappointed that person. Would it also disappoint this new person, who had a good feeling upon their first meeting and healed its body completely?
If, in the future, this person sees how useless it is, that it's just a Chimchar that can't be helped, will this person also choose to abandon it?
"Don't overthink it, Chimchar. You possess unrivaled potential. I can't say you are the most potent Pokemon globally, but I can confirm you are the most potent Chimchar worldwide. Just because that person couldn't bring out your power doesn't mean I can't!"
Ash's voice entered Chimchar's ears, causing it to suddenly lift its head and meet Ash's gaze.
In Ash's eyes, it saw a multitude of emotions: care, encouragement, trust... These were emotions Paul never gave it and never showed. Paul's emotions seemed to have only one type, which was apathy.
"I'll prove with my actions that it's not you who's useless but him. Let me excavate your potential, and let's surprise that guy!" Ash extended his hand towards Chimchar once more, and this time, Chimchar responded.
It placed its little hand on Ash's, a gesture representing its willingness and indicating that the kindness Ash released towards it was reciprocated.
...
The reality of the world is always dramatic, just like how Ash originally intended to dissuade Paul but ended up capturing the abandoned Chimchar.
Even when Chimchar entered his Pokeball, Ash felt a dreamlike awakening. Had he really captured a Chimchar with such extraordinary potential?
Merely capturing the Sinnoh Three Starter with such luck was incredible enough, let alone this starter with triple-S-tier aptitude, an abandoned one at that...
This is more outrageous than any TV drama, hard to imagine it's a situation encountered in the real world.
Speaking of which, his Charmander had a similar script, except Damian was more excessive than Paul, and Ash didn't capture Charmander immediately after Damian abandoned it.
The process of capturing Charmander was much more twisted, whereas capturing Chimchar seemed to follow a natural flow, almost as if it was being fed by God or even chased and fed by Arceus...
Paul's reason for participating in the Quartz Conference was to go to Dragon Island and capture a powerful, strong-bred Pokemon. However, he would never have thought about the incredible potential of the Chimchar he just abandoned!
This was potentially a future presence with the opportunity to reach the Divine Domain. If Paul knew Chimchar's aptitude, would he regret it? Given Paul's character, probably not.
Although their contact was short, Paul's character could be seen in his battles. Even at first sight, Ash could perceive Paul's vastly different personality.