Before coming to Kanto, N had genuinely imagined what his battle with Dylan would be like.
After all, this was a clash between the "Hero of Truth" and the "Hero of Ideals"—a battle foretold for a thousand years!
The very embodiment of the Dragon Gods, coming to blows!
Of course, N was well aware of the vast gap between himself and Dylan. Dylan was simply too powerful. N had even seen the battle where Dylan utterly shut out Leon.
And even if Dylan chose to use his legendary Pokémon in this battle, N felt he could accept that. He just wanted to fulfill this long-awaited "fated" duel.
And to his surprise, Dylan hadn't used any overpowering legendaries to steamroll him.
In fact, Dylan had shown what you might call… restraint.
But now, N wasn't sure how to describe that "restraint."
He had come seeking Dylan's true self—but this "truth" was… a little too real.
"Thanks for your hard work…"
N muttered quietly as he recalled the fainted Archeops. He glanced down at the Poké Ball in his hand, his eyes dimming.
He could feel it—Archeops's bewilderment and frustration. That vile, underhanded, sinister black-skinned lizard had cheated it!
If it had been a straight fight, Bird Boss would've smoked that thing!
But that sleazy Salazzle had played dead and sneak-attacked it. Despicable!
"You did great. Rest well now."
On the other side, Dylan recalled his battered Salazzle and praised her with a gentle smile.
Then he casually pulled out another Poké Ball and looked up at N.
"Looks like you've been a bit too careless, N. If you're not more cautious, this battle won't end well for you."
He toyed with the Poké Ball in his hand, voice low and deliberate.
N: "..."
Alder: "..."
Iris: "..."
Not just N—even the spectators went silent.
Like… was that supposed to be a pep talk?
"…I understand."
N took a deep breath, trying to adjust to Dylan's peculiar battle style.
He'd realized it now—Dylan didn't fight like any other trainer he'd ever faced. Dylan's style was just… something else.
"Alright then. My third Pokémon will be…"
Dylan gave a small nod and tossed out his next Poké Ball.
"Arbok! Time to battle!"
A flash of light, and a massive, muscular purple cobra rose from the ground, flicking its tongue and locking its cold, menacing eyes on N.
It was Arbok!
"Wow, it's been ages since I've seen this Arbok fight." Ilene smiled with a touch of nostalgia, her thoughts drifting.
This Arbok had been one of Dylan's original Poison-type powerhouses. She'd even been there the day he caught it at Mt. Moon.
With time, Arbok's strength had grown rapidly. Eventually, it became too strong to use against average Gym challengers—unless they were particularly elite, Dylan couldn't justify sending it out.
And as Dylan began training teams of various types, Arbok saw less and less screen time.
But its power only continued to grow. Its size, too.
Last she remembered, Arbok had already grown over four meters—well above the species' average. Now it looked close to five meters, with a body thick enough to swallow a full-grown human whole.
A truly terrifying sight.
Yet, Ilene and Lillie weren't afraid at all. They were used to Dylan's Pokémon by now.
Over time, even this cold, brooding Arbok had become a familiar face.
"Arbok, huh…" N muttered.
Arbok was a pure Poison-type. But it could learn all sorts of moves, especially a wide array of biting attacks.
However…
N's gaze flicked to the ground. His brows furrowed slightly.
He had originally planned to have Archeops clear the Toxic Spikes after dealing with Salazzle.
But now that Archeops was down…
Of the Pokémon he brought today, only Archeops could clear hazards.
"…Klinklang, I'll need you again."
After some thought, N sent out his steel companion once more.
At least Arbok didn't have Corrosion, so Klinklang couldn't be poisoned easily.
"Oh, back to Klinklang?" Dylan chuckled.
"But N, my Arbok's no slouch either."
"My friend is strong as well," N replied calmly.
You think your Arbok's strong? My Klinklang isn't weak.
Dylan simply smiled and gestured politely for N to take the first move.
Arbok's cold snake-eyes locked onto Klinklang as an invisible wave of pressure swept over the field.
Intimidate.
Klinklang's body shimmered briefly—its Attack had dropped by one stage.
"Klinklang, Shift Gear!"
N's expression grew serious as he gave the order.
The gears around Klinklang began to rotate rapidly, producing a grinding metallic hum.
Steel-type move: Shift Gear!
"Move in close."
Arbok lowered its upper body and slithered forward at high speed.
Within moments, Klinklang's gears locked into place, glowing brightly—Shift Gear successful.
Klinklang's Attack rose by one stage; its Speed by two.
"Maintain distance! Gear Grind!"
N was playing it safe. He didn't want Arbok getting close.
Klinklang floated back and launched its twin gears at Arbok.
Steel-type: Gear Grind!
"Shadow Sneak!"
Arbok's eyes gleamed black for an instant. Its speed surged as it vanished from sight and reappeared behind Klinklang in a flash.
"N!" N's eyes widened in shock.
Too fast!
Even with Speed boosts, Klinklang hadn't seen that coming.
Arbok had deliberately moved slowly before—just to create a false sense of safety.
That devious snake!
Arbok lashed out, its tail wreathed in shadowy energy.
Wham!
The Shadow Sneak hit Klinklang squarely on the head.
Despite its high Defense, Klinklang staggered from the force.
"Fire Fang!"
Arbok wasn't done. It dropped from above, fangs glowing with fire.
"Gear Grind!" N yelled.
Klinklang grit through the pain and launched another gear—but Arbok moved too quickly.
CRUNCH!
The attack glanced off Arbok's belly, but it didn't stop the cobra.
The Fire Fang sank into Klinklang, fire erupting on impact.
The gear Pokémon let out a mechanical screech—it was in pain.
Arbok bit down and slammed it into the ground.
BOOM!
The two collided heavily. Fire Fang was super-effective—Klinklang wasn't taking that well.
Smoke rose from the point of impact. N frowned.
"Earthquake!"
Dylan wasted no time.
Within the smoke, Arbok's thick tail rose and smashed into the ground.
RUMBLE!!
The Earth trembled violently, shockwaves blasting the smoke away.
Klinklang had no time to react.
Arbok's tail landed squarely on its head—point blank Earthquake.
N pursed his lips, worry creeping into his eyes.
Klinklang was weak to Ground…
When the shaking stopped, the earth beneath Klinklang was cracked and broken.
Its gears gave a final twitch—then fell still.
Klinklang was down.
"So strong…"
Iris stared, wide-eyed, as Arbok slowly slithered back to Dylan's side.
That Arbok was terrifying.
"Winner: Arbok," Alder declared.
"..."
N silently recalled Klinklang, frowning at the massive, ominous serpent across the field.
"Something seems off, doesn't it?"
Dylan asked with a knowing smile.
"Yeah… your Arbok seems unusually fast, and…"
N trailed off as his gaze fell to the intricate pattern on Arbok's chest.
"I've heard of a secret technique from Kanto's old Ghost-type master Agatha—a method to alter an Arbok's chest pattern to boost a specific stat."
He was referring to the so-called "Death Makeup"—a special technique Agatha had once taught.
Her unique Arbok could alter its chest pattern before battle, granting it specific buffs.
Unlike Acupressure, which randomly raised stats in battle, this "Death Makeup" was a pre-battle ritual. Once changed, the effect persisted—even after switching out.
But of course, you couldn't just walk over mid-battle and paint a new design on your snake.
"Impressive, N. You're exactly right. I did study that technique with Agatha—and yes, Arbok's buff is Speed."
Dylan confirmed it openly. Since N already knew the concept, there was no point hiding it.
"I see…" N exhaled.
No wonder Arbok was so fast—and it had priority with Shadow Sneak too.
"This thing's way harder to deal with than Salazzle…" Alder muttered.
Typical Dylan—turning even a plain Arbok into a nightmare.
"And there's still the Toxic Spikes," Iris added with a frown, thinking through her own potential counterplays.
"Come on then, N. Show me how you plan to deal with my Arbok."
Dylan gestured again, smiling with curiosity.
"..."
N stared at the monstrous serpent, silent.
Toxic Spikes still lingered. He had three Pokémon left: Zoroark wouldn't help much, and his Turtle was already badly poisoned.
Double Ice-cream could float and avoid the spikes, sure—but if it couldn't handle Arbok's close-range assault, that wouldn't matter.
…Should he just flip the table and go straight to Zekrom?
He hesitated, wondering which of Dylan's Pokémon would come out in response…
End of Chapter 381.