Rebirth

Ash stood facing the direction of the Cinnabar Island gym from the Pokemon Center. His loss wasn't all that bad but it was the fact that it could have been prevented that made him so… he didn't even know what he was feeling apparently.

He sighed as he took out his pokeballs and released his pokemon. Each of them came out with various cries as they awaited their trainer's commands or instruction.

Ash stood facing all his mon, Blaze, Volt, Golduck, Blastoise, Primeape, Glaceon, Venusaur, Clefable, Emerald, Night, Riolu and Tyrunt. Blaze in particular looked to be distraught and angry and Ash had a feeling that he was blaming himself for their loss, especially when he spat flames into the sky and his tail flame was hotter than usual.

Ash took a deep breath and spoke loud enough that they could hear him. His intents and words were very clear. "We lost to Blaine."

At first there were just murmuring about the disbelief that Ash could have lost, that they could have lost to a Gym Leader when they weren't using their main team. They continued murmuring until Blaze shot a flamethrower into the sky and he didn't let up as flamethrower after flamethrower escaped his mouth.

Ash could clearly see that his starter was venting out his frustration at losing but it wasn't just that. He lost to a fire type clearly and he was unhappy with the results. All trace of disbelief soon left his pokemon as they began to see clearly that they actually lost the fight, and gradually they began to express their dissatisfaction in the various ways that they knew how to.

Tears soon made way to Ash's eyes as he cried. He didn't do anything to stop them as he let them to continue displaying their various levels of frustration for the ones that were in the match, and anger for the ones that were not present during the match. They had gone on for about ten minutes before Ash decided to stop them.

"Enough!" came his clear voice. "We lost and that's the truth. We must accept it but are we going to dwell on it. Hell no. We are going to learn from this error and grow. Failure is but a stepping stone to success, only if it is applied correctly, and that is exactly what we are going to do. We are going to train and then we are going to challenge Blaine in three days and we are going to win."

They all cheered but the loss had hit them far greater than they had imagined. Misty could only watch from afar as Ash tried to remove the loss from his mind and move on with his pokemon. She thought about heading to help him but she doubted that she would be able to do anything. She wasn't exactly the most experienced when it came to emotions.

"We didn't lose because we were not strong enough, we lost because our opponents were better and that's what we are going to do. We are going to become better than our opponents."

Ash paused as he considered his next words carefully. "We are going to beat Blaine in our next encounter and we are going to do it mon for mon. The rest of you guys are going to spar against each other but the five that lost against Blaine are going to be working with me and I am going to work you all to the bone to the point where we won't even be able to lose to Blaine."

His pokemon gave various cries as they understood where he was coming from and they were going to give their all during the training.

"I am going to prepare some pokefood with the help of Nurse Joy and I am going to make it custom tailored to suit each of you. We are going to eat and rest and then tomorrow, we are going to start training."

-Break-

The previous night had been a bit enjoyable with the little feast that he and his pokemon had and now he was in a clearing with all of them assembled in front of him.

He gave them instructions on how to engage in training and he turned to face the five pokemon he would be using. Blaze, Volt, Primeape, Golduck and Blastoise appeared in front for their training.

"What we will be going over will be simple. We will be working over what went wrong in the battle with Blaine and we will be making sure that each area will be covered."

They nodded their heads in agreement. They all trusted him to be able to look out for them.

Ash looked at the notes he had made on his pokemon. "Blaze… let's start things of with aerial maneuvers. I want you to fly as fast as you can and as long as you can. Let's get those wings of yours into proper working shape. I want them better than ever and if you feel the need, increase the altitude of your flight."

Blaze nodded and growled something.

"No, that will be all for now. When you're tired, get down and we will move unto the next order."

The fire type grinned as he flapped his wings and took off with the wind shaking all that it could under the small pressure he had released.

Ash turned to Volt. "I want you to blow yourself up with your electricity."

Volt looked at Ash quizzically as he was trying to read just what his trainer had been getting at.

"I don't know how you are going to do it but figure it out. Afterall, you are the creative one."

Volt looked puzzled and then his face bore one of mischief as he turned and walked towards a clearing on his own.

The next on his list was Primeape who he had to admit had a lot of potential that he just wasn't exploiting in the right ways.

"Primeape, let us work on your maneuverability with your moves. I want to see how you can do those with ease."

Primeape nodded and smashed his fists together. He had work to do and he was down for anything that meant improving himself.

"Golduck… your psychic abilities need brushing up a lot. Let's start with that for now."

The Duck pokemon quacked as he made his way to a little area he wanted to make into a training spot. Ash watched as Golduck slammed his hands on the ground, causing it to cave and fill with water. He had the area around it confined to within some few feet of himself as the depth reached somewhere above his knee and below his chest to the point that he could swim in it without much stress.

Ash turned his attention to his final pokemon, Blastoise as he recalled the fight he had with Flareon and how surprisingly the water type had lost.

"Blastoise, I want you to work on hydro pump and get to the point where it becomes easier to use."

Blastoise nodded and hurdled over to a rocky area where he would blast rocks to his satisfaction.

Ash smiled to himself only being brought out of it when Blaze made a dangerous turn and swerved just right above him, almost taking Ash's hat with him if not for the trainer holding onto it.

-Break-

There was a burst of electricity as Volt made an explosion once again and proceeded to absorb the current into his body.

Ash looked at his electric type. His fur was singed all over and he clearly had been working hard at it. It was ways off from what the usual lightning that Electabuzz usually absorbed but it was still something.

"That's enough!" Ash called to him. "Let's change things up a bit." Volt saw his trainer raise his hand and point at something. "That's your goal. You are going to go some back and forths."

He saw Volt smirk and flex his hands as he revved them up. "Oh and one more thing. No powerups. No abilities. No electricity."

Volt couldn't see it but Ash's face was one that carried a smirk. He knew just how to knock the electric type down a peg or two. He frowned at the idea that his trainer had made, but if he wanted to improve, he would have to pay the price.

He smirked as the electric type began his run. He looked at his notes again as he thought of the next pokemon that he would take into account. He had also requested a video call with the aid of Professor Oak to his pokemon that were currently at the Professor's Ranch, during which he had given them training instructions that they were to follow to the tee.

He turned his eyes to see Riolu counter Clefable since apparently both of them were sparring. It warmed his heart to see his pokemon, his secondary family, taking to his training the way they were. The league was about to roll by and they only had two hurdles preventing them from reaching the league. Blaine, the ex-elite four fire type specialist and Giovanni, the man who was referred to as the strongest Gym Leader in the Kanto region and Ground type specialist.

He now had a grasp of Blaine's abilities from their previous encounter. It was a close fight and while he had had some advantages over the gym leader, it appeared that the fire type master was rather adept at battling even while faced with challenges. He knew how he was going to counter him now and he was going to make sure that he left Blaine shocked at the amount of growth that he would have attained by the time the three days were up.

The final gym leader was one that he would need an adequate amount of training to take on. Giovanni typically battled a six-on-six format and he was rather skilled. Having turned down the offer of being an Elite Four simply because he wanted to give trainers a tough challenge, Giovanni was a force to be reckoned with. From the stories that his dad told him, Giovanni had started out with a Rhyhorn as a starter and from what he said, Giovanni had trained that Rhyhorn into a beast of a pokemon so much so that when it fought as a Rhydon in the Indigo Conference, it was a force to be reckoned with. Giovanni had taken out Blue and had gone to face Red in the finals of the Indigo League where he lost but had frustrated Red's team due to his pokemon's endurance levels.

That was the last he ever participated in a league. Giovanni had gone off the radar to train and decided to settle as a Gym Leader as he became the final stop for all trainers that would want to make it to the Indigo League. Final stop in the sense that he only challenged those that had seven badges already and nothing much of that. When asked why he did that, his reply was simple. "The Pokemon League aims to train the best and I in turn am in support of that. But, what I want is to help only those capable of achieving those heights realise their potential. Anything short of that and that is not Giovanni. My joy lies in battling and it is only when the stakes are high in a six-on-six battle that one can feel the joy of battling."

Ash knew that if he wanted to face Giovanni then he would need to be prepared and from what he had seen, type advantage should not be his sole reliance when he faced the Earth King.

-Break-

"You're doing fine," Ash called out to Golduck who had wrapped a water pulse in psychic energy and was moving it from place to place. Ash could see the strain on him as he battled with the force of the water. It wasn't easy taming an element but Ash was determined to see it happen. Blaine would not know what hit him. As he thought this, Golduck slammed the orb of water into the ground, creating a crater.

"Good job," Ash said as he gave the Duck Pokemon some treats which he happily accepted.

Golduck quacked.

"That should be all for this part of the training. Unto the next. Are you ok to continue or would you like to rest?"

Golduck quacked and then nodded causing Ash to smile.

"Blaze!"

Within seconds, the fire starter of Kanto was in front of Ash. His aerial maneovers had gotten better and Ash was grateful for that because he intended to use Blaze's wings to his advantage.

"I want you to attack Golduck with weak flamethrowers. Aim them at his head. Your goal is to make him woozy and lose his balance and focus." He turned to the Duck Pokemon. "Resist for as long as you can and when you can't anymore, let Blaze know."

Both pokemon nodded before turning to face each other as Ash left the clearing.

The Raven haired trainer had some training of his own. He wanted to meditate and clear his mind because he had a feeling that he wasn't thinking straight throughout the match.

He sat crosslegged as he focused on nothing but the aura in himself and around him. He started swirling it around himself and flowing it into his head as he tried to feel around every corner of his head.

He stayed in that position for about twenty minutes before starting to sweat and pant profusely. He had hit his limit and so he stopped the meditating. It was almost three in the afternoon and so he decided to call a break. He let his aura pulse out as it reached every one of his pokemon and soon they came to him.

"We will be taking a break guys. Let's eat."

He dug his hands into his bag and tried to get out some of the treats he had bought in the morning. They needed food to fill back the holes that have been dug throughout the day spent training.

Lunch went on for about thirty minutes before they broke up and went on with the training session again. He went over his notes again as he watched them train. Electricity crackled and exploded some distance away from him as Volt went on with his training. Ash was pulled out of his little analysis by Misty walking into the clearing, barely avoiding some embers that landed next to her.

"Hi Ash!"

"Misty, what's up?"

"I am good. Just wanted to check on you."

Ash nodded. He understood where she was getting at. "Don't worry Mist, I am fine."

"Are you sure? You seemed really distressed the other day and I thought I should ask."

"I am sure Mist. I really am fine."

"If you say so. Just know that if you need anything, I am always available."

"I know." He smiled slightly. "And Misty… I honestly apologise for the fact that I have pretty much slightly neglected you for some time, but I promise that after I beat Blaine then me and you can have some sparring matches."

"I'd like that and I promise you that you will be surprised at how far we've come."

Ash smiled. He knew that she had been training relentlessly and for about three or so weeks they hadn't sparred. He wanted to see how good she had gotten. He watched as she left and then turned towards his pokemon intent on giving commands.

-Break-

It was the final day of his training and the next day, he was going to challenge Blaine. Ash turned to see Blaze take a hydro pump head on for the third time as it nailed him right in the chest and sent him sprawling across the ground. It took him sometime before he got up to his feet and growled.

Three super-effective moves and he looked like he still had enough strength to battle. But for how long was the question. "Maximum output flamethrower and take to the sky."

Blaze flapped his wings as he soared with a torrent of flames spewing from his mouth. While he did that Ash turned to Blastoise who had nailed the hydro pump. The water type seemed to have more ease as he released the hydro pump from his cannons.

"Nice work on the hydro pump," Ash told the large water type. "How are you feeling?"

Blastoise grunted and gestured.

"Okay. Rapid spin around the clearing. Let's see how long your stamina lasts."

Blastoise nodded and retreated to his shell as he forced himself to start spinning.

The progress in the performance of his pokemon was impressive and he had the feeling that he was ready. Tomorrow he would face the fire type gym leader and the fight would be very great.

-Break-

Ash watched as Primeape jumped from tree to tree before twisting and spinning himself back to land on the ground as he rolled, switching into a fire punch and ice punch combo before slamming into the ground with his fists and pushing himself back to his feet with his arms.

His mobility was what Ash aimed to maximize and take advantage of. He just needed to get used to the fighting type's preferred battle style.

He turned his head to see Blaze duck under a hydro pump and proceed to swerve round a couple of attacks before being hit by an ice beam and then a shadow ball. He had been at it for some time and he was starting to ease his way into things.

Ash smiled. Blaine wouldn't know what hit him.

-Break-

Ash stood face to face with the gym leader that had caused him his first defeat.

"So Ash. You ready to take me on again?"

Ash nodded, fire burning in his eyes as he faced the fire specialist. "I am going to win this. I guarantee it."

"We'll see about that," Blaine said as he turned to go to his side of the arena. Ash turned to his side as he fumbled a pokeball in his hands. Blaine's defeat had been planned. It was time to execute it.

Blaine tossed a pokeball and released Ninetales once again. Ash smirked. He tossed the Duck Pokemon's pokeball unto the field as he released the water type who eyed Ninetales carefully.

Blaine nodded as he acknowledged his opponent and issued the first command. "Quick attack and fire blast."

Ninetales shut off outlined with white streaks as flames flooded her mouth.

"Future sight and hypnosis."

Golduck's eyes glowed as he tore a hole and sent a wave of psychic energy in as he faced Ninetales who was forced to swerve around Golduck.

"Hydro pump in a circle."

Golduck's mouth unleashed a torrent of water as he slammed it into the field below, kicking up trace amounts of steam and dirt and succeeding in stopping Ninetales' charge.

"Now disable."

Golduck's eye glowed again as he held Ninetales in her tracks.

"Hydro pump."

The super-effective move slammed into Ninetales' face and sent her flying. Ninetales tried to right herself and regain balance and as soon as she did, Blaine issued his next command.

"Flamethrower."

The flames that raged out of her mouth slammed into Golduck and sent the Duck Pokemon tumbling backwards.

"Now fire spin."

"Shadow ball."

Thin streams of flames made their way out of Ninetales' mouth, only to clash against the ball of ghost energy that Golduck had created. An explosion occurred and smoke obstructed their vision.

"Quick attack and extrasensory."

Ninetales burst out of the smoke with her eyes glowing as waves of psychic energy rippled from her and made their way towards Golduck. Golduck responded by sending a psychic attack at the incoming wave of energy and this time he almost overpowered Ninetales before a stalemate occurred. Ash smiled. Everything had been going well so far.

"Calm mind."

"Focus blast."

Ninetales had merely settled into a crouched stance as she let psychic energy wash over her body before focus blast slammed into her and sent her flying.

"Propel yourself with hydro pump and enter focus punch."

"Ninetales evade."

Golduck's right hand glowed bluish white as he launched himself with hydro pump. Ninetales growled as she got up, barely avoiding the attack before she spat a blob of flames in Golduck's face. The water type reeled slightly from the attack as he cleared his face and unleashed a jet of water that slammed into the fire type just as future sight landed. It was time for the finisher.

"Water pulse and make it powerful."

The orb of water was formed between Golduck's hands and it was about double the normal size. With a mighty quack, he launched it at Ninetales who had yet to recover from the future sight attack. The impact was loud as water erupted from the pulse attack and covered the fire type. She was knocked out.

Blaine returned her with a smile. Ash had found a rhythm and if he didn't get it right, he might just lose to the raven-haired trainer. He took a pokeball from the field and was about to toss it out when he saw Ash recall Golduck.

"Are you substituting this time around?"

"No. I promised my pokemon that we would win you mon for mon and that is exactly what I am going to do."

"Big words. Hope you can back it up," Blaine said as the sun reflected oddly from his glasses. "I am getting all fired up Ash. Hope you can keep up with me and not get burned." The pokeball he held flew from his hands and poured its contents unto the arena, releasing his Arcanine.

The fire type barked loudly as he awaited his opponent. Ash's friend ball also flew from his hands and released light that coalesced to reveal his Primeape and on seeing Arcanine, he saw red. Anger washed over Primeape as primal instincts took over but Ash sent out an aura wave, calming the fighting type.

"You'll get your revenge. Play it calm."

Primeape smashed both fists together as it hopped on both legs. He was going to ensure the beat down that he would give Arcanine.

Arcanine on the other hand smirked as it saw this display. It had held back a bit when it fought Primeape but this time, it appeared that the pokemon was serious and had come prepared so it would have to play all its card right. Arcanine turned to Primeape and barked to its trainer.

"Don't worry. They won't be winning this."