The two Pokémon exchanged a glance, each seeing the amusement in the other's eyes.
The joy they had shared in the sky, the feeling of soaring side by side, the little secrets known only to them—they quietly buried them in their hearts.
Xinhai stood nearby, watching Blaziken and White Cloud interact, the smile on his lips growing deeper.
As Blaziken's Trainer, he noticed the changes in Blaziken immediately.
The old Blaziken, how should he put it... had been too tense.
Not the kind of focus it showed during training, but something deeper, something almost etched into its bones: "I can't let my guard down."
Ever since its first Gravity test, it had desperately pushed itself to grow stronger—to prove its worth, to protect the companions around it, and to live up to Xinhai's expectations.
Even though Xinhai often helped it relax, told them bedtime stories every day, and occasionally even forced it to stop training and rest, it rarely truly "relaxed."
It was like a fully drawn bow, its string always taut.
Though Blaziken improved quickly and grew stronger every day, Xinhai knew this was not good.
If a bow remained drawn for too long, its string would eventually lose its elasticity, and the bow itself would grow fatigued. Then, one day, under strain—snap—it would break.
The best way to live was to give everything during training and never Slack Off; then, during rest, to relax completely and recover properly.
Life itself was all about knowing when to tighten and when to loosen.
And now, Blaziken had finally loosened up.
Not the forced, temporary kind of rest, but a genuine ease that came from deep within.
Its state of mind had become much calmer. It no longer constantly thought, "I need to get stronger," "I can't fall behind," or "I