he feels that the people that he’s traveled with are in very much large part responsible for his growth as a trainer & person , even more so when looking back on years past , noting that he’s become a much more level - headed & mature person than he ever was up until a good while after having started his journey . he’s also caught himself picking up certain things from the friends he’s traveled with , most notably related to pokemon & battles , but he sometimes finds himself saying things that sound like something an old friend would say & laughs that they’ve rubbed off on him . he considers his friends a part of his family , just like his pokemon , treating them as such all the time . he’s gotten better at parting with traveling companions over the years , the worst of the worst having been when he first parted with takeshi & kasumi . satoshi hates being on his own at the best of times & it was only exacerbated by the fact that he’d been traveling with the two of them for two , nearly three , years , that they’d been the first two people that even decided to travel with him to begin with , not to mention that they went through so much together & that takeshi & kasumi were there for so many of satoshi’s Firsts ( his first caught pokemon , his first gyms , his first complete set of eight badges , his first pokemon league , his first league win , just to name a few ) . but he’s learned to deal with the sadness that comes with parting , knowing it only feels so sad because they had such a good time together . it still hurts , though , to miss the friends he’s traveled with , & he misses a lot . but he uses the strong memories to build upon & continue on , knowing that , even if they’ve said goodbye , it’s not always a “ goodbye forever ” , it’s just a “ see you later ” .
