Pokémon: Starting with Ash's Mom

Back when Suzie confessed, things hadn't gone this far.

But now, with Misty taking the lead, Suzie had grown much bolder.

The next morning, sunlight filtered through the slit in the tent's curtain, casting a warm glow across the space. Kazuki slowly opened his eyes, feeling the warmth beside him. 

Turning his head, he saw Misty and Suzie curled up against him like two adorable kittens, sleeping peacefully and sweetly.

Kazuki gave a mischievous grin, then gently raised his hand to play a little prank.

"Mm… don't tease…" Misty murmured sleepily, snuggling closer into Kazuki's chest.

Suzie, however, was stirred by Kazuki's movement. Rubbing her eyes, she looked up at him with a bashful smile tugging at her lips. "You're such a bad boy."

Kazuki leaned down and whispered softly into Suzie's ear, "How could that ever be enough?"

"Mmm—ah! You meanie!" Suzie replied playfully, lifting her head slightly and leaning in for a kiss.

Misty blinked open her eyes groggily. Upon seeing Kazuki and Suzie being all lovey-dovey, she huffed with mock jealousy, "You two! Kissing first thing in the morning!"

"No fair! I want a kiss too!"

Misty rolled over and planted a kiss on Kazuki herself.

After their morning cuddles and kisses, the three of them finally began getting dressed.

"Kazuki! How did last night feel?" Misty asked as she pulled on her clothes.

Kazuki raised an eyebrow and pretended to think deeply. "Hmm… not bad. Just a bit… tiring."

"Tiring?" Misty blinked innocently. "Were we too enthusiastic?"

"It wasn't even as much as when I usually—" 

She trailed off, then quickly changed the subject. "Maybe you've just been having too much fun lately!"

"Not even as much as you usually?" Suzie blinked in surprise at Misty's energetic expression. "Misty, you're amazing. I'm still feeling a little sore!"

Kazuki couldn't help but burst out laughing. He reached out and pinched Misty's cheek. "You're getting cheekier by the day."

"I meant the tent was too cramped! Cramped, okay?"

"Speaking of which, why are you two squeezing into my tent?"

"What's the point of setting up three?"

"Pika… Pikachu needs its own tent, doesn't it? It's gotten chubby lately and needs the space!" Misty teased.

At that moment, Pikachu, sleeping in a tiny corner of the large tent, sneezed in its sleep.

The three exchanged glances—then burst into laughter.

As Kazuki finished dressing, he noticed Misty still hadn't put on her shorts.

"Come on, slowpoke! After breakfast we need to hit the road again. We haven't done any grinding in ages—my combo timing's getting rusty!"

"Uh… hey! Kazuki, wait outside for a bit! I'll… I'll be quick!" Misty said, clutching her denim shorts as a blush crept across her face.

"Alright then! Don't take too long. I'll go feed the gang," Kazuki said as he stepped out of the tent.

"Um… Suzie, you… you go out too, okay?" Misty tried to shoo her away.

Suzie glanced at Misty's flustered expression, then knelt down beside her.

"Ahem… It's okay, Misty. I… I'm in the same boat."

"Huh? You too…?" Misty looked up at Suzie, surprised.

Suzie pressed her lips together, face flushed, and nodded.

"You know how intense he can be…"

"He's just too good at this!"

With that, the two girls dropped all pretense of shyness and began changing their more clothes together.

The flirtatious little morning episode ended with giggles and blushes from Misty and Suzie.

Once the trio packed up their belongings, Kazuki began transferring the Pokémon he had captured. Meanwhile, Misty and Suzie went to return the Safari Balls.

The sisters had tagged along with Kazuki purely for fun, and together they had encountered over thirty wild Pokémon.

Watching the sixty Safari Balls laid out before him, Kaiser would have normally been grinning ear to ear.

But today, he looked utterly defeated, his eyes locked on the Poké Balls hanging from Kazuki's belt.

Kazuki noticed Kaiser's lovestruck gaze. After returning the balls, he took Misty and Suzie and quickly left the Safari Zone.

It wasn't that Kazuki feared Kaiser, but if the guy suddenly lost it and Kazuki had to smack him down, he'd risk getting a bad rep for bullying the elderly.

After leaving Kaiser's office, the trio hitched a ride on a passing off-road vehicle, aiming to get out of the area.

Their team's levels had stagnated too long—it was time for some serious grinding!

Kazuki's journey with the girls resumed smoothly. But back at Professor Oak's lab, chaos reigned.

"Ow! Stop pushing! Stop pushing!"

Professor Oak was being chased all over the courtyard by a herd of Tauros. His lab coat was in tatters and his glasses askew.

Seeing how many Poké Balls Kazuki had just sent over, Oak's curiosity got the better of him.

Though Kazuki hadn't only caught Tauros, they still made up a hefty portion—alongside many large Pokémon.

"This kid Kazuki… how did he catch so many Tauros?!"

As he ran, Oak grumbled, "My lab's turning into a ranch!"

After finally shaking off the Tauros, Oak collapsed into a chair, panting.

That's when something caught his eye—a particular Pokémon that made him sit up straight.

"Is that… a Dragonair?!"

His eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at the elegant creature before him.

Dragonair, being highly intelligent, understood this was the new home Kazuki had arranged for it, so it didn't panic like the others.

It glided gracefully over to Professor Oak and gave a polite nod, as if greeting him.

Oak nearly leapt out of his seat in excitement. "This kid Kazuki… he's incredible! He actually caught a Dragonair!"

Staring at the Dragonair, a wave of nostalgia washed over him. "Dragonair… it reminds me of the days I raised my own Dragonite…"

"Back then, my Dragonite and I went on so many adventures…"

Lost in memories, Oak didn't snap out of it for quite a while.

Shaking his head, he muttered, "No, Dragonair is rare—I need to get it a proper habitat right away!"

He immediately pulled up the notes he'd taken in his youth about raising Dragonite and got to work.

Meanwhile, Kazuki's team had left the Safari Zone and officially embarked on their grinding journey.

As soon as they left the zone, Kazuki activated his Minor Champion Aura and began leveling up with a vengeance.

The wild Pokémon around the Safari Zone were in for it.

"Charmeleon, use Flamethrower!" Kazuki commanded.

Charmeleon leapt high into the air, unleashing a fierce burst of flame from its jaws, instantly knocking out a wild Beedrill.

This marked the final day—and final minute—of the Minor Champion Aura, and Charmeleon's Flamethrower made for a fitting finale.

As Charmeleon landed, a brilliant white light suddenly enveloped its body.

"What's going on? Kazuki, is your Charmeleon… evolving?!" Misty's eyes widened.

Suzie held her breath beside her, ready to witness Kazuki's next leap in strength.

Within the light, Charmeleon's form began to shift.

Its body grew larger, wings unfolded from its back, and the flame on its tail burned even brighter.

Seconds later, the light faded, revealing a majestic Charizard before them.

"My boy!" Kazuki clenched his fist in excitement. "Finally, you've arrived!"

Misty's eyes sparkled. "Wow, Charizard looks so powerful! Kazuki, your team just took another huge step forward!"

Suzie nodded with a smile. "Yeah, Charizard's flames must be way stronger than Charmeleon's now."

"This'll definitely boost our chances in the upcoming Gym battle!"

Kazuki gazed at Charizard, thinking to himself: Now I've got one more ace for the Cinnabar Gym.

Charizard let out a roar, flapped its wings, and soared into the sky, unleashing a torrent of fire to show off its power.

Having been raised carefully by Kazuki, Charizard showed no signs of disobedience like in the original storyline.

After its fiery display, Charizard obediently returned to Kazuki's side.

Kazuki patted Charizard in satisfaction, then opened his system to review the rest of his team:

[Pokémon: Pikachu, Lv. 37 → Lv. 40]

[Pokémon: Pidgeot, Lv. 38 → Lv. 40]

[Pokémon: Primeape, Lv. 32 → Lv. 34]

[Pokémon: Wartortle, Lv. 33 → Lv. 34]

[Pokémon: Bulbasaur, Lv. 39 → Lv. 41]

[Pokémon: Gastly, Lv. 24 → Lv. 27]

[Pokémon: Charizard, Lv. 36]

[Pokémon: Dratini, Lv. 22 → Lv. 24]

Kazuki hadn't wasted a single moment with the Minor Champion Aura.

Aside from sleeping and eating, he was grinding non-stop.

Compared to the last time he used the aura, the level gains were even greater!

Thanks to his focused grinding, Pikachu, Pidgeot, and Bulbasaur had all broken into the Gym-level range.

The team's overall strength had taken a significant leap forward.

He had also given special attention to Dratini, using a Special Grade EXP Boost Potion to help it level up faster.

Still, Dratini's EXP bar was ridiculously long—even with the boost and targeted wild Pokémon battles, it hadn't gained as many levels as Gastly, who had been battling mostly at night.

Nonetheless, with Pikachu, Pidgeot, and Bulbasaur anchoring the team's top end, they were in solid shape.

Dratini was a late bloomer anyway—it was fine to raise it slowly.

After reviewing his team's progress, Kazuki saw that Misty and Suzie had wrapped up their own grinding sessions as well.

Influenced by Kazuki's determination, both girls had been working hard to level up their Pokémon too.

Even without the Minor Champion Aura, their Pokémon had gained several levels.

After reorganizing their teams, the trio headed back to the main road.

At last, a city appeared on the horizon.

The wild Pokémon in the area could finally breathe a sigh of relief—Kazuki's monster grinding trio was heading into town for supplies...

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