Chapter 181: Bond Power
2024-05-15 Author: Samsung Charmander (Author Name)
"Another Pikachu?"
Koga was stunned. His gaze swept to the floor behind Ash, who was now possessed by Red. A small mattress and a blanket lay there, the latter adorned with a cute lightning symbol.
How bizarre.
"Zzz..."
The first time he came in, he had noticed an electric mouse sleeping soundly in the room. It hadn't interacted with Ash at all, so he'd thought it was a wild Pokémon.
The commotion from two massive battles had been immense, yet this electric mouse was still fast asleep, dead to the world.
Before he could even process it, another Pikachu had appeared?
Koga looked at this Pikachu that had sent his Arbok reeling with just a single blow. Its appearance was somewhat different from the one he had seen earlier.
Pikachu were a dime a dozen in the Kanto Region. Generally, their faces were flattish and round, somewhere between a rectangle and a circle.
But this Pikachu before him had a distinctly round face, with no trace of a rectangular shape. Its build was also extremely well-proportioned, not at all like the chubby Pikachu he was used to seeing.
It had a somewhat exotic feel to it.
"Chaaarbok!!"
As if it had been smashed in the face with a steel bar, Arbok's head was spinning. It shook its head, and upon realizing its attacker was a tiny electric mouse, its expression turned to utter fury. It opened its cavernous mouth and roared from afar, the powerful sound seeming to materialize and rush forward as a shockwave.
The dangerous, reptilian stench of a snake instantly filled the arena!
Snakes love to eat mice!
"Pika!!"
Seeing this, the round-faced Pikachu showed no weakness. It planted its feet firmly and let out a low cry at the giant purple snake, its fur ruffling in the surging shockwave. Then, the corner of its mouth quirked up as the electricity on its cheeks burst forth. A golden bolt of lightning shot up from its body, piercing straight through the ceiling and continuing unabated toward The Sky.
"Boom—"
The golden lightning seemed to be calling down thunder from the heavens. Instantly, dark clouds gathered above Fuchsia Gym, rumbling ominously.
"BOOM!!!"
A few seconds later, a terrifying, world-shaking clap of thunder exploded from the sky. A deafening roar filled everyone's ears, the lights flashed, and everyone couldn't help but tremble. Even the roaring Arbok on the other side hitched its breath and coughed a few times, clearly startled by the sound of the thunder.
Koga: "..."
He and Arbok both took half a step back simultaneously, their faces grim. A large drop of sweat trickled down his forehead.
This electric mouse... seems to be a bit of a problem...
Seeing that the giant purple snake had finally calmed down, Red slowly walked to the center of the arena, picked up the fainted and exhausted Charmeleon, and walked toward Brock and Misty.
Its injuries were too severe and needed immediate treatment. Recalling it to its Poké Ball now wouldn't preserve its condition.
It was worth noting that while using Ash's body, he could easily lift the Charmeleon, which weighed nearly as much as an adult human.
"We get it, we get it."
The two-person support crew saw this and quickly took out medicine from their backpacks. They pried open Charmeleon's mouth and stuffed everything inside—Sitrus Berries, Antidotes, you name it.
All medicine has its side effects, but since it's already poisoned, just give it more medicine. Fight poison with poison.
Even Pidgeotto, which had recovered a bit of its stamina, started using Heal Bell nearby, restoring the condition of its new "bro."
"Senior Red, we get to see your skill in action again?"
"You're finally out to stretch your legs. It hasn't been easy."
The two greeted him in hushed whispers. This aura, which both warned strangers away and was saturated with the presence of an expert, undoubtedly meant that the powerhouse from the otherworld had emerged again.
Red nodded in acknowledgment.
It was just that "stretching his legs" made him sound like a prisoner just released from jail, which made him frown.
But on second thought, he couldn't refute it.
"Is that guy Ash okay?" the two asked, a little worried.
It was the first time they had seen Ash fight in such an exaggerated manner.
Red said slowly, "He's fine."
Ash's body isn't just tough; his willpower is also strong. Right now, he has just overexerted his mental energy. After sleeping for half a day, he'll be as energetic as an ox again.
With both the boy and the dragon safe for now, the two felt relieved. Then, they finally couldn't resist asking the question they were most curious about.
How did that Flamethrower aimed at the ground actually hit Arbok?
"He used the marks from the previous battle."
Red took two items from the pile of medicine, left them with a single, cryptic sentence, and walked back to the arena.
"The previous battle...?"
Brock was the first to react. A light flashed in his deep-set eyes, as if his mind had been struck by a bolt of lightning.
He understood.
"He used the move from Ariados before!"
It had to be said, even Red couldn't help but be impressed by Ash after watching Charmeleon's battle with Arbok.
Upon entering the near-death state of his Blaze ability, those first few Flamethrowers weren't useless. He wasn't just outlining the snake's shape; he was forcing its position, constantly herding Arbok toward a target location.
Using a move to control positioning is far simpler than hitting a target with one.
And he endured the poison to fire several flames in a row, all to force Arbok into one specific spot: right in front of the hole created by Ariados's earlier Dig.
In the last battle, Ariados had used Dig to instantly pounce from behind Charmeleon.
This time, Charmeleon did the opposite, aiming its Flamethrower directly into the Cave without needing to aim at all.
He even fired the first few golden flames into Mid-air, drawing everyone's line of sight upward, leaving them no time to notice the marks on the floor.
Thinking of this, Red couldn't help but reveal a relieved smile, like a proud mother. *My little cabbage has finally blossomed,* he thought to himself. If he had been the one directing the battle, he might not have done much better than Ash.
"Did he enter some kind of state?"
He could sense that in that extreme state, Ash and Charmeleon seemed to have established some kind of wondrous connection, allowing them to perceive each other's thoughts and beliefs.
"Bond Power."
Red named this power on the spot.
Although, it seemed there was far more than just this one power within Ash's body...
Red and Koga once again stood at opposite ends of the arena, facing each other from a distance. The snake and the mouse before them were also locked in a standoff.
Fortunately, the earlier clap of thunder had finally woken up the Pikachu that had been in a deep sleep. It was now at the back, watching its senior's battle with wide eyes.
"Did he transform again?"
Koga studied the Red before him. Although his facial features hadn't changed, his entire aura and presence were as if he had become a different person.
As expected, trainers from Pallet Town all seemed to possess some secret art that allowed them to transform.
Verifying this theory would be quite simple. He just needed to find the third trainer from Pallet Town, force them into a life-or-death situation, and see if they would also transform like this.
Coincidentally, Koga knew that right now in the Kanto Region, there was indeed a third trainer from Pallet Town.
It seemed that before heading to the Johto Region, he would have to go and cause some trouble for this trainer...
"Tch, that look again."
Looking at the Youth before him, who had suddenly become somewhat unfamiliar, Koga couldn't help but frown.
Last time, after transforming, that Spiky-Haired Youth had looked at him as if he were an ant.
And this time, the look was so similar!
"Damn it!"
He was a trainer on the level of the Elite Four, an overlord in his own right, respected wherever he went!
"Your skill level isn't good enough," Red suddenly said, his voice light.
Hearing this, Koga didn't get angry. Instead, he quickly calmed down.
A clash of experts.
Those who know, know.
(end of chapter)