Chapter 183: Kirin!!
2024-05-15 Author: Samsung Charmander (Author Name)
Extreme Speed – a move that completes impossible actions at a nearly miraculous speed.
.
Even with an Arbok's natural serpentine sensitivity to its surroundings, it couldn't perceive a single opening.
"Extreme Speed...?"
Koga's eyes widened, watching in disbelief at the constant flashes of cyan light on the Battle Arena.
The move Extreme Speed isn't common in the Kanto Region. Even if it were, not many Pokémon could master it, let alone an Extreme Speed that was clearly far beyond the ordinary, like the one before his eyes.
"Clang!"
From an awkward angle, Arbok was suddenly struck in the abdomen by an immense force. It couldn't help but suck in a sharp breath, pain flaring across its chest.
But by the time it tried to retaliate, Pikachu had already vanished.
"Thwack!"
"Clang!"
Flickers of cyan light dotted the arena. In less than a breath, Arbok had been struck multiple times, yet it couldn't even see its attacker.
"Arbok, hold your ground! At this intensity, an Electric Mouse's stamina won't last long!"
Electric Mouse Pokémon are naturally frail. With Koga's years of experience, he estimated that Pikachu couldn't maintain this state of Extreme Speed for more than a minute!
"Arbok, use Coil in place!"
If it couldn't attack, then it would just have to raise its Defense!
Hearing the command, Arbok's aggressive body recoiled and coiled into a tight ball. A hard, red light signifying an increase in Defense immediately glowed around it.
At the sight, Pikachu's eyes also lit up, the progress of its internal 'Copy' ability rapidly maxing out.
"Clang!"
"Thwack!"
And so, Arbok was pummeled amidst the cyan afterimages for a full ten minutes...
Even with its Defense boosted by Coil, after ten continuous minutes of Extreme Speed attacks, Arbok was now covered in wounds.
"Heh, one minute?"
Red's face was expressionless, but inwardly, he was sneering.
On the peak of Mt. Silver, a place of perpetual heavy snow and extremely harsh environments, his Pokémon's attack and defense might only be at a standard max level, but when it came to stamina, they were absolutely beyond max level, pushed to their very limit.
Forget ten minutes; another ten wouldn't be much of a problem.
"Then let's stop," Red said suddenly.
The moment he spoke, Pikachu's figure flashed into existence in a corner of the hall, as if it had used Teleport.
He could have easily finished off Arbok using only Extreme Speed, but that would be like the strong bullying the weak. It was time to try something new.
It was a perfect chance to test a little move he had honed during his training on Mt. Silver, one he had never officially used against an opponent before.
Red had been planning to use this move to catch Green off guard in a future battle.
"Pikachu," he said.
"Pika!"
He didn't give a specific command, but the Round-faced Pikachu already understood Red's intent. The communication between man and mouse had long since reached a point where words were unnecessary.
This wasn't like that miraculous state Ash and his Charmeleon had just entered at their absolute peak; it was simply the seasoned experience born from their many years of partnership.
Like an old married couple, a single glance was all it took to know if the other had been unfaithful.
"Use Thunderbolt."
"Pika!!"
Electric current appeared on Pikachu's electric sacs. A golden current condensed around its body, forming a visibly dark, blurry aura. The sheer spectacle of the lightning was a cut above Ash's ordinary Pikachu.
"BOOM!!"
The lightning transformed into a ferociously powerful electric snake that shot forward, its sound as sharp and chaotic as a thousand birds chirping at once.
"A head-on attack...?"
Koga admitted his inferiority in terms of Speed, but when it came to the power of a move, he would not concede.
"Use Sludge Bomb!!"
"Chaaa!!"
Arbok opened its mouth and formed a massive, purplish-black Energy bomb in front of it, then launched it forward.
"BOOOM!!"
Thunderbolt and Sludge Bomb collided in the center of the Battle Arena. The energies instantly clashed and detonated with a powerful blast, creating a huge fiery Explosion.
An even match!
"Arbok, now! Use Gunk Shot!!"
Before the smoke and dust had completely cleared, Koga suddenly gave his order.
Gunk Shot is a super-powerful Poison-type Move. Its Power is terrifying, but its accuracy is low.
However, the earlier Coil didn't just boost its Defense—it also raised its accuracy by a level!
"BOOM!!"
A dark brown stream of Poison energy, like a rope two or three meters in diameter, burst through the smoke. Brimming with terrifying power, it shot straight for Pikachu!
Red quickly commanded, "Pikachu, maintain Iron Tail and dodge!"
Any other Pokémon might have had to face that Gunk Shot head-on, but with Pikachu's Speed, it had more than enough time to dodge, even if it was a surprise attack.
Pikachu leaped up, running alongside the Gunk Shot to dodge it. But the attack seemed to have a mind of its own, shifting half a meter to close in on Pikachu.
"KSHHHKLANG!!"
The Gunk Shot, its accuracy boosted by Coil, did indeed hit Pikachu. However, it only struck its steel-hardened tail. With the natural type advantage of Steel against Poison, the attack had no effect whatsoever.
Pikachu then used its tail to block the Poison attack while continuing to run at high speed. As it neared its target, it swerved half a meter to the side, then swung its Iron Tail around and slammed it down.
"CLANG!!"
Arbok moved back half a meter just in time. The Iron Tail grazed past it, smashing a small crater into the ground in front of it.
"Hmm?"
Pikachu's last movement had been the slightest bit stiff. An ordinary person would never have noticed, but the sharp-eyed Koga spotted it.
"Pikachu, use Iron Tail!" Red commanded again.
Pikachu's figure flashed, appearing in a different position relative to Arbok, and once again raised its Iron Tail to strike.
"Heh heh..."
Two consecutive awkward movements were enough for Koga to see right through Red's intentions, as both attacks were forcing Arbok to move in a specific direction.
He had even caught Red's subtle, almost imperceptible glance!
With a cold laugh, Koga shouted:
"This trick again? How boring! Arbok!"
Arbok raised its massive maw and, braving the danger of its body being grazed by the Iron Tail, slithered in the opposite direction.
He had noticed that Red's goal was once again to force Arbok toward a crack in the wall. Although he didn't know the purpose, he, Koga, would not fall for the same trick twice. He would force his way in the opposite direction.
He blindly guessed that this Pikachu probably had a move similar to an 'electric landmine' and was trying to deliberately force Arbok toward it.
No way!
"Chaaa!!"
After taking several hits from Iron Tail, Arbok successfully reached the spot opposite the intended destination. Though it was now covered in wounds, it let out a roar, looking tauntingly at the Electric Mouse.
Just as he thought, it was an old, worn-out trick.
The intelligence of a lowly Mouse was no match for a great serpent like him!!
Pikachu: "?"
Seeing that his target had successfully reached the designated spot, still wearing a look of arrogant ignorance, Red finally let out a laugh.
That's right, it was indeed the same positioning-forcing tactic as Ash's.
But he had executed the move in the complete opposite way.
Pikachu deliberately forced it in one direction. Having been tricked once, the ever-cautious Koga would naturally not fall for it again and would do the opposite, even at the risk of being attacked.
But that opposite direction was Red's true goal!
He had once again predicted Koga's prediction, completely playing the Ninja's mind in the palm of his hand.
Koga quickly scanned the ground. There was nothing out of the ordinary. His expression as he looked at Red was as if he were looking at a paper tiger, just posturing.
I wasn't wrong!
"Don't look down this time. Look up," Red couldn't help but suggest.
That's right. Ash's objective was the Cave on the ground, but Red's objective was completely flipped around—it was above.
The ceiling... the sky... thunderclouds...
Directly above Arbok, a large hole nearly two meters in diameter had been blown through the ceiling. This was the mark left when the Round-faced Pikachu had fired a thunderous blast at the sky to build atmosphere at the start of the battle.
"Rumble..."
After a battle's worth of roars, the thunderclouds in the sky above the Fuchsia Gym seemed to have grown even denser. The continuous rumble of thunder echoed, a sign of the coming storm...
And at this moment, the Round-faced Pikachu stood up straight, raising one small paw high. A ball of blue lightning swirled around it, slowly crackling. In time with the drumbeat of the thunder from the heavens, it sparked and sizzled as if communicating with the heavenly thunder itself.
"Pika..."
Looking at the Electric Mouse that was smiling right at it, both Arbok and Koga shuddered. A terrifying thought arose in their minds, and sweat instantly poured down their foreheads.
"Run, Arbok!"
"Chaaa!!"
Arbok quickly lowered its body to flee, trying not to remain exposed directly under the hole in the ceiling.
"It's useless. By the time you see the lightning, it's already over."
Red closed his eyes and spoke.
The Round-faced Pikachu was seen slowly lowering its small paw.
"BOOOOM!!!!"
In the next instant, a terrifying bolt of thunder and lightning crashed down through that hole!!
Arbok hadn't even moved before a blue pillar of lightning over a meter wide slammed down on its body. The immense pressure and terrifying electric current instantly pinned it to the ground, preventing it from even lifting its head. The earth beneath it instantly caved in by half a meter!!
"AWOOOO!!!"
From within the pillar of lightning, a bizarre, soul-shaking roar echoed. It was like the savage cry of a beast. The silhouette of a blue, lightning-wreathed beast with bared fangs and brandished claws appeared, circling in the sky for half a second before pouncing on its target.
The might of heaven and earth had actually condensed into a physical form!!
"BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!"
The entire Fuchsia Gym began to shake violently!!
This move was an original creation of Red's. It utilized the might of heaven and earth for its attack, with Red merely acting as a bridge to channel it, so the cost was not great. If he had to give it a name...
Kirin!!
(end of chapter)