Chapter 179: Red: The Last Life is Mine
2024-05-15 Author: Samsung Charmander (Author Name)
"BOOM! BOOM!!"
Waves of flame surged forward, enveloping Ariados. Unlike Fire Spin, each flame now possessed a heavy, tangible substance, stretching on without end.
Ariados was terrified by the sky full of scorching flames. The innate fear of fire that all Bug-types possess finally welled up in its heart. It retreated again and again, only to find the path behind it was also covered in flames. Looking around, it realized the entire battlefield was now blanketed in fire—a scorching red glow like a fiery hell, leaving it with nowhere to dodge.
"BOOM! BOOM!!"
The flames of Inferno converged, striking Ariados from all angles. The terrifyingly high temperature scorched its body.
This was a dual torment of both body and mind. Even a Pokémon as mentally composed as Ariados let out a pained wail from within the inferno.
"This move..."
Koga's eyes widened considerably. It was the first time he had ever seen such an all-encompassing Inferno.
To be able to unleash such a powerful Fire-type move as a Charmeleon... it seems this one's potential is incredibly high.
"BOOM!!"
Amidst the flames, another burst of fire suddenly erupted from Ariados's body—the sign of it entering a burned state.
Three minutes later, the endless flames of Inferno vanished. Ariados's body was covered in scorch marks, twitching uncontrollably. It was clearly on its last legs.
The scent of a roasted spider lingered in the air.
"SWOOSH!!"
However, the battle wasn't over. A fiery red figure suddenly shot down from mid-air, pouncing on Ariados. The immense force sent both of them rolling across the ground several times before they came to a stop.
Charmeleon was now straddling Ariados imposingly, one foot planted on the spider's abdomen. It held one claw high in the air, shaped like a spike and wreathed in a dense coat of dark energy.
It was getting revenge for being pinned to the ground earlier!
"BOOM!!"
Without hesitation, Charmeleon mercilessly thrust its Throat Chop forward. However, its target wasn't Ariados's head, but the wooden arena floor right beside it. The floor was instantly pierced half a meter deep, as if it were made of tofu.
Splinters of wood and terrifying, sinister Dark-type energy splattered onto Ariados's head.
Charmeleon lowered its head, its flame-wreathed maw mere inches from Ariados. It then slowly opened its jaws, and flames mixed with scorching steam began to waft out.
"ROOOAR!!!"
A draconic roar exploded next to Ariados's ears, the sound deep and resonant, shaking it to its very soul.
Though not yet fully mature, this Charmeleon already possessed the faint majesty of a true dragon.
In Ariados's eyes, this Charmeleon was no different from a fiery demon god.
"Hisss..."
A red light suddenly flared from Ariados's body. In a flash, it returned to the Poké Ball on Koga's belt with a swoosh, refusing to come out again.
The referee, Janine, was also terrified by this fearsome Charmeleon. It took her a moment to compose herself and announce the result.
She secretly calculated her chances of winning against this Charmeleon, but no matter how she ran the numbers, the outcome was always her own defeat...
"Ariados has lost the will to battle! Charmeleon is the winner!"
In a Pokémon battle, losing the ability to battle and losing the will to battle are both considered a loss. Ariados's expression clearly showed it had completely lost its will to fight—its spirit was broken.
"Avenging its companion, is it..."
Koga glanced at the Charmeleon, its mouth still emitting hot steam, then looked back at the Pidgeotto he had beaten so badly its spirit was broken. A slight smile touched his lips.
Such passionate, hot-blooded camaraderie was something a ninja like him had abandoned long ago. It made Koga feel a touch nostalgic.
"NICE!"
Having won the second round, Ash yelled from the sidelines.
"Aaargh!"
Charmeleon beat its chest with both fists and excitedly shot a gout of scorching flames into the air. It was on a complete rampage now, barely able to contain the fire surging through its body!
"Pidgeooot!"
Resting in Brock's arms, Pidgeotto also lifted its head and stared blankly at Charmeleon.
The latter had defeated its opponent in a way similar to how Ariados had defeated it, and had even left a greater psychological scar. How could Pidgeotto not recognize what it had done?
In terms of intelligence, Pidgeotto was likely the smartest member of Ash's team.
Don't be fooled by its silly daily act of letting Ash call it 'Utility Bird'; it was all an act. In its own mind, it was just calling Ash a 'Tool'.
Ash might think that calling it "Utility Bird" while giving it high-grade feed would psychologically condition it to associate the nickname with happiness. In reality, Pidgeotto was just playing along to get the free food.
It just never expected that its most rebellious and unsociable teammate would go this far for it.
"Hmph!"
Charmeleon seemed to sense Pidgeotto's gaze. Without turning its head, it gave a cool thumbs-up in Pidgeotto's direction.
After losing to Ash in a contest of physical strength, it had acknowledged him as its trainer. That meant its teammates were its brothers. And anyone who dared to scare one of its brothers was courting death!
"Pidgeooooot!"
Seeing this, Pidgeotto struggled free from Brock's rock-solid grip, spread its wings, and cried out toward the sky.
One dragon, one bird—the feeling of their bond was instantly maxed out.
"Swoosh!"
Koga suddenly threw a small object like a hidden weapon, interrupting the heartwarming moment.
Ash's expression immediately turned serious. Pushing his focus and reflexes to their peak, his hand shot out like lightning and caught the object.
He opened his palm and saw that it wasn't a hidden weapon, but a pink, heart-shaped badge.
"This is proof of your victory over the Fuchsia Gym. The Soul Badge."
Koga cracked a smile and slowly explained, "Although I haven't sent out my third Pokémon, your strength is more than enough to earn this badge. However, my next Pokémon is far stronger than what you'd typically face in a gym challenge. I'm giving you the badge now, regardless of the next match's outcome. You could even just turn left, walk out that door, and decline my third challenge."
Without a second thought, Ash tossed the Soul Badge right back.
Although he coveted the badge, he craved a battle with a strong opponent even more. A loss was a loss, and a win was a win. There was no sense in taking the badge first.
"Heh heh."
Koga wore an expression that said, 'I knew it.' His previous words had just been a simple taunt. For his final battle in the Kanto Region, even he was eager to fight a powerful opponent.
This Charmeleon was strong, but it was far from enough.
He could sense that the power contained within this Youth was far greater than what he'd shown. He wanted him to fight without any burdens, to battle with everything he had!
Koga smirked and reached out, intending to catch the returning Soul Badge. But just as it drew near, he shuddered. His keen ninja instincts screamed at him to pull his hand back immediately.
Otherwise, he might lose his hand!
"CLANG!"
The Soul Badge zipped past his palm like a miniature cannonball, blasting a large hole in the wall behind him.
Koga: "..."
It seemed this youth's physical strength was also absurdly high...
Meanwhile, Ash and Charmeleon were already impatient for the third battle. But just as Koga took out his third Poké Ball-shuriken, a sentence suddenly popped into Ash's mind.
"Three lives. The last one is mine to play."
Red suddenly spoke, his voice tinged with playfulness.
He had already sensed that the Pokémon in the ball Koga was holding was not something the current Ash could handle.
Ash: "?"
"I'm seriously challenging a gym here. You think I'm playing a video game?"
"Hmm, the difficulty is indeed a bit lower than a video game," Red replied bluntly.
Ash: "..."
(end of chapter)