The first rays of morning sunlight pierced through the gaps in the forest canopy, shining down on Minato and Pidgey. After saying goodbye to their newly cleaned wooden house, they stepped onto the dew-covered grass and ventured deeper into the forest.
"Today's training will focus on Extreme Speed and Air Slash," Minato said to the Pidgey perched on his shoulder as they walked. "These two moves are very important for your future evolution."
"Chirp!"
Pidgey chirped softly, rubbing its small head against Minato's cheek. Its brown feathers shimmered gently in the morning sunlight.
Soon, they arrived at an open clearing in the forest. The grass here was soft, and there was plenty of space for Pidgey to move freely.
"Let's start with Extreme Speed."
Minato took several brightly colored berries out of his backpack.
"I'll hang these berries on different trees. Your job is to touch them in sequence as fast as possible."
Pidgey flapped its wings and circled above the clearing, waiting for the command.
Minato hung the berries on branches in the east, south, west, and north directions—each roughly fifty meters apart.
For the current Pidgey, this distance was already quite a challenge.
"Ready?"
"Go!"
Pidgey shot forward like an arrow.
Its wings vibrated rapidly as it rushed toward the first berry, leaving behind a blurred streak in the air.
But just as it was about to reach the berry, it couldn't turn in time because of its excessive speed—
Bang!
It crashed straight into the branch.
"Chirp!"
Pidgey tumbled onto the grass.
Minato hurried over and gently picked it up.
"Are you okay? Speed is important, but control is just as important. Extreme Speed isn't only about moving fast—it's about maintaining precision while moving fast."
Pidgey shook its head and quickly flew back into the air.
This time, determination burned in its eyes.
During the second attempt, Pidgey slowed down slightly and successfully touched two berries, but when it tried to turn toward the third one, it lost control again.
"Use your tail and wings to adjust your direction!" Minato shouted. "Imagine you're a leaf in the wind—carried by the wind, but still able to control where you go!"
Pidgey closed its eyes briefly, as if sensing the airflow around it.
When it opened them again, its gaze was sharp.
It flapped its wings and launched forward.
This time, its movements were far smoother.
Like a bolt of brown lightning, it weaved through the trees—
Tap!
Tap!
Tap!
Tap!
The four berries were touched one after another with crisp sounds.
"Perfect!" Minato cheered, catching the returning Pidgey in his hands. "You did it!"
Pidgey puffed out its chest proudly and chirped happily.
---
After a short break, they moved on to training Air Slash.
"The key to Air Slash is compressing Flying-type energy and releasing it as a blade," Minato explained as he drew several target marks on a tree trunk.
"You need to focus and feel the flow of energy inside your body."
Pidgey hovered in the air, staring at the targets in the distance.
It flapped its wings, trying to condense energy—
But only a strong gust of wind blew out, scattering a few leaves.
"Don't rush," Minato said calmly. "First feel the energy. Then guide it."
Pidgey closed its eyes.
Its wings began vibrating at a steady rhythm.
Gradually, faint swirling air currents appeared around its body.
Suddenly—
Its eyes snapped open.
It swung its wings forward.
A nearly invisible air blade shot out—
But it dissipated after flying only a few meters.
"That's already great!" Minato encouraged. "You formed the prototype on your first try!"
They continued training.
Again and again, Pidgey tried.
Sometimes it succeeded.
Sometimes it failed.
Minato carefully observed every movement, giving advice along the way.
"Angle your wings slightly more."
"Increase the flapping frequency."
"Focus. Imagine the exact point you want to cut."
When the sun finally reached its highest point in the sky, Pidgey succeeded.
A complete air blade shot forward—
Slash!
A thin branch in the distance snapped cleanly in half.
"It worked!" Minato jumped in excitement. "You did it, Pidgey!"
Pidgey circled happily through the air, clearly thrilled with its progress.
---
At that moment, rustling came from nearby bushes.
A wild Rattata appeared, apparently attracted by the noise of their training.
This Rattata looked aggressive.
It raised its tail, bared its sharp incisors, and took an attacking stance.
"Perfect timing," Minato said. "Good chance for real combat practice."
"Use Air Slash, but control the power. Just enough to warn it."
Pidgey nodded and flew into the center of the clearing.
It condensed energy and swung its wings.
An air blade flew toward Rattata.
But Rattata jumped aside nimbly, and the attack only left a shallow mark on the ground.
"Don't worry!" Minato called out. "Adjust your angle and predict its movement!"
Pidgey tried again.
This time it carefully observed Rattata's movement.
Just as Rattata prepared to jump—
Pidgey released Air Slash.
The blade struck the ground right beside Rattata, startling it and causing it to stumble.
But Rattata wasn't backing down.
It used Tackle, charging straight toward Pidgey.
Pidgey quickly ascended to dodge, then dove down—
And as it approached, it suddenly accelerated.
It had instinctively used Extreme Speed.
"Careful!" Minato shouted.
At the last moment, Pidgey changed direction slightly, only grazing Rattata with its wing.
Even so, the force knocked Rattata onto the ground.
Rattata stood up again, shook its head, and seemed to realize it couldn't win.
It quickly fled back into the bushes.
Pidgey landed on Minato's shoulder, looking a bit downcast.
"It's not your fault," Minato said, gently stroking its feathers.
"When you practice a move repeatedly, it's normal to use it instinctively in battle."
"The important part is that you controlled yourself at the end and didn't seriously hurt Rattata."
Pidgey's mood improved slightly, though it still seemed a little self-critical.
---
In the afternoon, they continued exploring deeper into the forest.
Sunlight filtered through layers of leaves, casting shifting shadows on the ground.
More wild Pokémon began appearing, giving them additional training opportunities.
A Caterpie slowly crawled along a branch.
"See that leaf?" Minato pointed to a dry leaf above the Caterpie.
"Use Air Slash to cut the leaf—but don't disturb the Caterpie."
It was an extremely precise task.
Pidgey hovered in the air, completely focused.
It swung its wings.
A thin air blade flew out—
Slice.
The leaf stem was cut cleanly.
The leaf drifted to the ground.
The Caterpie continued crawling, completely unaware.
"Perfect," Minato whispered.
---
Later, they encountered a group of Spearow.
The aggressive birds immediately attacked Pidgey.
Three Spearow swooped in from different directions.
"Use Extreme Speed to dodge!" Minato shouted.
Pidgey turned into a streak of light, weaving effortlessly through the attackers.
It ascended.
Dived.
Turned sharply.
Its speed grew faster and faster, demonstrating the incredible mobility of Extreme Speed.
The Spearow soon became dizzy and frustrated before finally retreating.
"See?" Minato said as Pidgey returned.
"Extreme Speed isn't just for attacking. It's also an incredible movement and evasion technique."
Pidgey chirped, understanding shining in its eyes.
---
As the sun set, they rested beside a small stream.
Tired but satisfied, Pidgey leaned against Minato while pecking at its Pokémon food.
"You made huge progress today," Minato said while grooming its feathers.
"You learned the basics of Extreme Speed and Air Slash, and you've started applying them in real battles."
Pidgey affectionately rubbed against his hand.
Suddenly, loud movement came from the bushes across the stream.
A large Raticate emerged.
Its eyes were fierce and its incisors sharp.
It was likely the evolved form of the Rattata from earlier—back for revenge.
"Well… looks like today's final test has arrived."
Minato stood up.
"Pidgey, battle positions!"
Pidgey flew into the clearing.
The Raticate immediately attacked with Hyper Fang, lunging forward viciously.
"Ascend and dodge! Then attack with Air Slash!"
Pidgey rose quickly while launching an Air Slash.
But Raticate dodged it easily and followed up with Quick Attack, leaping toward Pidgey.
"That's fast!" Minato exclaimed.
"Create distance with Extreme Speed!"
Pidgey flashed across the battlefield and appeared behind Raticate.
But Raticate reacted instantly and used Quick Attack again.
The two Pokémon darted around the clearing so quickly their movements were almost impossible to follow.
Pidgey attempted several Air Slash attacks, but Raticate kept dodging them.
Meanwhile, Raticate's Hyper Fang made close combat extremely dangerous.
"This won't work…" Minato thought.
"Pidgey, follow my command!"
"Circle to its left with Extreme Speed and pretend to attack—then immediately switch to the right and release Air Slash!"
Pidgey understood.
It rushed left.
Raticate turned to defend—
But suddenly Pidgey changed direction.
Slash!
The Air Slash hit directly.
Raticate cried out and staggered as its movements slowed.
"Good! Attack again!"
Pidgey launched two more Air Slash attacks.
The first missed.
The second hit.
Raticate swayed unsteadily.
"Final move!"
"Extreme Speed—control the power!"
Wrapped in white light, Pidgey shot forward like a meteor.
Just before impact, it adjusted its trajectory and lightly tapped Raticate with its wing.
The force was perfectly controlled.
Raticate collapsed to the ground, unable to continue fighting.
---
"Congratulations, Host. You have completed the hidden quest: First Battle Victory."
Reward:
Revive Spray ×10 (one bottle lasts 30 days)
Power Weight ×1
Wild Survival Gift Pack ×1
Minato was relieved.
"At least now I won't have to worry so much if Pidgey gets hurt…"
But seeing the defeated Raticate, he still felt a bit guilty.
He walked over and sprayed it with Potion.
"Sorry. We didn't mean to hurt you."
"It was a fair battle, and you fought bravely."
Raticate's eyes softened.
After a moment, it slowly stood up and walked back into the forest.
---
Pidgey landed on Minato's shoulder, exhausted but proud.
"You did great," Minato said gently.
"You didn't just win the battle—you showed what a real Pokémon Trainer should be."
"Respect your opponent. Know when to stop."
Night slowly fell, and stars filled the sky.
Beside the stream, Minato lit a campfire while reviewing the day's training with Pidgey.
"Starting tomorrow, we'll challenge stronger opponents and learn new moves."
"One day, you'll evolve into Pidgeot and soar freely across the sky."
Pidgey snuggled beside him, chirping softly.
Just as Minato was about to fall asleep, the system's voice suddenly rang in his mind.
"Host, you haven't claimed yesterday's Daily Quest Reward ^0^"
"Oh right! I almost forgot."
"Claim reward."
The moment he confirmed it—
A massive stream of knowledge flooded into his mind.
Berry types.
Berry growth.
Berry effects.
Berry cultivation.
The overwhelming information surged into his brain all at once.
The sensation of knowledge being forcefully crammed into his head caused Minato to instantly lose consciousness.