Just like Pikachu, Fearow was also feeling an immense sense of pressure after learning that Ash was about to help Greninja awaken and master the power of Bond Evolution.
The difference was that Pikachu's pressure stemmed from his position as the team's elder brother. He had always been the one his teammates chased after and sought to surpass.
Fearow, on the other hand, felt pressured because the teammates ahead of him were becoming increasingly powerful. The gap between them continued to widen, making it ever more difficult for him to catch up or surpass them in the future. Combined with Fearow's fiercely competitive personality, it was only natural that he would feel anxious.
Ash had long anticipated the pressure his Pokémon would feel and had grown accustomed to it. He never considered it a bad thing.
After all, where would motivation come from without pressure? Without differences in strength, how could healthy competition ever arise?
The Pokémon under Ash's care all possessed exceptional talent. As they grew increasingly powerful, however, the pressure and motivation provided by external opponents would naturally diminish.
Take his first-tier ace Pokémon for example. Now that they had reached the Gym Leader tier, finding evenly matched opponents at the City Battle Arena had become significantly more difficult. That was despite Ash's immense popularity and the fact that countless Trainers eagerly wished to battle him.
If he were merely an ordinary Trainer, finding opponents of comparable strength would be extraordinarily difficult. It was much like reaching the highest ranks in his previous life's competitive games—the higher one's rank, the longer it took to find a suitable match.
Moreover, Ash's popularity would eventually become a double-edged sword.
While many people currently desired the opportunity to battle him, as his strength, status, popularity, and social standing continued to rise, even if others wished to challenge him, Ash would inevitably have to reduce the frequency of his battles.
Especially when it came to his first-tier ace Pokémon, he couldn't afford to constantly expose their true strength before outsiders.
Thus, the further they climbed toward the pinnacle of the Pokémon profession, the less pressure and motivation they would receive from the outside world.
Only their teammates—only the healthy competition within the team—would continue providing them with the motivation and pressure necessary to keep growing stronger.
Furthermore, every one of Ash's Pokémon possessed opportunities and fortunes unique to themselves.
Pikachu was the Child of Fortune among Pokémon. Although evolving into Pikachu meant it could no longer evolve further, it possessed Mythical-tier base stats of 600.
Moreover, an incomprehensible miraculous power slumbered within Pikachu's body. Back when Ash first began battling at the City Battle Arena, the very first item he exchanged for had been Pikachu's exclusive treasure—the Light Ball, a divine item capable of doubling Pikachu's physical and special attack power—which he had already permanently fused with Pikachu.
Then there was Pidgeot's Mega Evolution, as well as their chance encounter with Master Doran, the master craftsman hidden within the Phoenix's Auspice Jewelry Store. Not only had he crafted Pidgeot's Mega Evolution equipment, but he had also forged the accessories carrying the Mega Stone and Key Stone into the exceedingly precious and powerful Green Pearl Bracer and Divine Catalyst Rings.
Ash had likewise purchased six extraordinarily compatible items for Fearow to permanently fuse with, enhancing its strengths while compensating for the shortcomings of its species.
Gyarados and Milotic had been born as Shiny Pokémon, while Bulbasaur had once served as a guardian of the Pokémon Sanctuary before catching Ash's eye and joining his team.
These were all fortunes and opportunities unique to each of his Pokémon.
As Ash himself continued growing stronger and accumulated ever greater wealth and resources, whether it was Mega Evolution, Bond Evolution, Z-Moves, Dynamax, or Terastallization—Crystal Evolution—none of his Pokémon would be left behind in the future.
However, before their own opportunities arrived, Pikachu and the others needed to learn patience. They had to endure the waiting and remain steadfast. They couldn't allow themselves to become mentally unbalanced simply because another teammate suddenly obtained new powers and surpassed them.
No matter when or where, they needed to continue working diligently and steadily.
As Ash's team continued to grow and more exceptionally talented Pokémon joined his ranks in the future, it was inevitable that members currently occupying the upper echelons would one day be challenged and overtaken.
Therefore, whether it was Pikachu or anyone else, they could never become complacent when they were ahead, nor become discouraged when another teammate surpassed them.
There would always be times when one stood at the front and times when one fell behind.
Only hard work remained eternal.
"Alright, all of you don't need to feel pressured," Ash smiled reassuringly. "Bond Evolution is Greninja's opportunity. In the future, each of you will have opportunities that belong solely to yourselves."
"Rather than worrying about it here, why not use Greninja's Bond Evolution training as motivation to train even harder? For all of you, this might very well become an opportunity to overtake one another."
"And besides, I'll need everyone's help during Greninja's Bond Evolution training. You'll all need to battle against Greninja from time to time. Especially you, Rotom—I need your help monitoring and recording the changes in both Greninja's and my heart rate data."
Inside the room, Ash spoke earnestly to all of his Pokémon.
"Pika!" (Okay!)
"Pidgeot!" (Sounds good!)
"Fearow!" (No problem! Count me in!)
"Leave it to me, Rotom!" Rotom cheerfully volunteered.
Hearing Ash's words, all of his Pokémon enthusiastically agreed.
As for the second and third-tier members—Gyarados, Milotic, and Venusaur—they didn't have much of a reaction. After all, Greninja wasn't currently in the same league as them in terms of strength. If Greninja ever truly needed them as opponents, it would probably take all three of them working together.
"Alright, we'll leave the training for tomorrow. Everyone go have fun for now. After I finish today's Aura meditation training, I'll be heading to bed."
After saying that, Ash skillfully climbed onto Pidgeot's back and flew out through his bedroom window to begin tonight's "night excursion."
Pallet Town might only be a small town, but as someone who had lived there all his life, Ash was already intimately familiar with every corner of it. As a result, it had become increasingly difficult for Pallet Town itself to stimulate the effects of his All Things Listening meditation technique.
Fortunately, to the east and south of Pallet Town lay the boundless ocean, while to the west and north stretched the vast and endless Viridian Forest.
Both regions were unimaginably expansive, filled with complex terrain and inhabited by countless wild Pokémon.
In short, there was an endless wealth of things waiting to be heard and perceived.
Ever since discovering that "wandering" significantly increased the efficiency of his meditation training—and especially after returning from Cerulean City—Ash's Aura meditation had never once slowed down.
Whenever he felt his meditation efficiency beginning to decline, he would simply have Pidgeot fly farther away, allowing him to "refresh" his surroundings. Before long, the speed of his meditation would begin increasing once more.
Over the past half year, Ash's Aura cultivation had progressed at an astonishingly steady pace. Up until now, its growth had remained smooth and consistent without encountering even the slightest bottleneck.
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