After some negotiation (and bribery), Zorua finally, reluctantly began demonstrating the skills it had already learned.
"Zor~"
It let out a soft, aggrieved cry. Its eyes instantly turned watery, and two tears formed as it looked up pitifully.
Silas stared.
"…You're way too good at using Fake Tears." His tone carried a hint of exhaustion. That move was honestly impractical, whether in daily life or battle, it was rarely useful.
"Do you have any actual attacking moves?"
Zorua tilted its head. Its fox ears twitched, and its bright eyes spun as if thinking hard.
"Zor~"
It seemed to remember something. Its small paws suddenly stretched out, claws digging rapidly into the ground, kicking up dust.
Silas squinted.
"Uh… that's Scratch… right?"
At least this time he recognized it. But the power? Honestly… it looked weaker than digging with bare hands.
Then Zorua took a deep breath And spat out a thin beam of black energy.
Crack!
A wooden target shattered instantly.
Silas's eyes lit up seeing it.
"Now that's more like it."
Just as the Pokédex indicated ,Zorua's close combat ability was mediocre, but when it came to ranged and energy-based attacks, especially Special moves ,Its talent was outstanding.
After that, Zorua demonstrated:
• Leer
• Torment
• Pursuit
• Hone Claws
Of course, at Level 5, the power was still quite weak But the potential was obvious.
Silas nodded.
"Zorua, your task today is to Break these ten targets using Dark Pulse."
The goal was simple:Improve accuracy, Improve control and Build familiarity But more importantly Ignite its will to train.
Because once a Pokémon truly wanted to grow stronger It would train on its own. After assigning Zorua its task, Silas released his other five Pokémon.
This was a high-grade training facility inside Team Rocket's base, so there was plenty of space.
Unlike Zorua, the others didn't need guidance. They immediately began training on their own.
A habit built over time.
Silas simply supervised.
He walked over to his Sandile.
"Sandile, Dragon-type power isn't just strength,it's pressure."
"A natural dominance over other attributes… that's Dragon's might."
Back when he first obtained Sandile, it had awakened Dragon-type Hidden Power.
That was extremely rare. Dragon-type energy was known for being:Rare, Noble and Powerful But also Very difficult to master, especially for non-Dragon Pokémon And yet, this path was necessary. Because when Sandile evolved into Krookodile, it would learn:
Outrage.
A signature Dragon-type move.
So the foundation had to be built early.
Silas had already helped by: Collecting training footage of Dragon-types, Creating special Pokéblocks to assist with Dragon energy perception But in the end Training depended on the Pokémon itself.
Fortunately, Sandile worked hard. So Silas was satisfied.
...
Next was Crawdaunt.
It had hit a bottleneck.
Crawdaunt's strength came from:
• High Attack (120 base)
• Ability: Adaptability
But to truly unleash its power It needed to master its signature move:
Crabhammer.
"Craaa!"
"Craaa!"
"Craaa!"
Crawdaunt kept swinging its claws again and again.
Water splashed.
Movements repeated.
Thousands of times.
Still It couldn't grasp that final feeling. Then It remembered Silas's words.
"The key is the hammer ,Imagine you're holding a hammer… and smashing it down with everything you've got."
Hammer.
Something clicked.
Crawdaunt's eyes sharpened. Water gathered around its claw And then–
BOOM!
The wooden post shattered instantly.
Silas's eyes widened.
"Crawdaunt… you finally got it."
Crabhammer.
Power: 100
High critical-hit ratio
Combined with:
• Swords Dance
• Rain boost
• Adaptability
• STAB
• Mystic Water
The damage potential was insane.
....
After training ended Silas looked toward a corner.
Zorua… Was asleep. Curled up beside a wooden post ,Still hugging a chocolate bar tightly.
Drool slowly dripped from its mouth.
Silas stared.
"…You can sleep through all this noise?"
That alone was a talent.
"But slacking off isn't allowed. Especially after taking my chocolate."
He grabbed Zorua by the scruff again.
Soft.
Warm.
No wonder people liked fox fur so much.
Startled awake Zorua instantly covered its eyes with its paws and curled up tightly. Only its ears trembled But It still refused to let go of the chocolate.
Silas chuckled.
"…Are you seriously pretending I can't see you?"
Honestly He wasn't someone who laughed much But in a place like Team Rocket's base Having a little troublemaker like this… Wasn't bad.
"Zorua…"
"Zor?"
Silas paused.
"…Nothing. Just wipe your drool next time."
"Zor~"
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(End of chapter)