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Seeing Pikachu join the battle, Quilava stopped its movements, standing a short distance behind Pikachu and watching quietly. Then, it glanced at Ash, who stood behind it and Pikachu, and the flames on its head and tail died down.
"Ash, Quilava's flames went out, is it alright?" Misty asked, concerned, upon seeing this. In her impression, the flames on Fire-type Pokémon, like the flame on Charizard's tail representing its life force, meant that a dimming flame indicated a life-threatening situation.
Ash shook his head. "Quilava's flames are different from Charizard's. These are its fighting spirit flames. It looks like this little guy is ready to watch the show!" Ash wasn't worried about Pikachu fighting two against one! Pikachu's Thunderbolt roasted the Tentacruel until it was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. Even if it hadn't completely lost its ability to battle, it couldn't do much.
"Damn it, Golem, Rollout!"
The massive Golem used Rollout, making the ground slightly tremble.
"Quick Attack to dodge, then Iron Tail!"
Ash's command was a bit complex, but he believed Pikachu could do it! Pikachu became a flash of light, deftly avoiding Golem's Rollout from the front, then chasing it from behind! Its tail gleamed with metallic light; Pikachu's Iron Tail skill was becoming increasingly proficient. The opposing trainer hadn't even reacted, watching wide-eyed as Pikachu leaped onto the rolling Golem and slammed down hard!
"Damn it."
In just two exchanges, Pikachu had already severely incapacitated both of the massive opposing Pokémon.
"Now you see, your strength, even with several Pokémon that counter Fire-types, is no match for this Quilava!" Ash, still holding his empty Poké Ball, quickly dispatched the other person. Capturing that Quilava was the real priority!
"Hmph, don't get too smug!" The person seemed to realize Ash's strength was overwhelming and he was no match. After recalling both his Pokémon, he looked at Quilava with an unwilling expression, but made no further moves. Ash didn't mind the person watching from the side.
"Quilava, let's battle! I'm going to catch you!" Ash aimed the empty Poké Ball at Quilava—this was the stance for initiating a capture challenge.
Quilava stared at Ash, then stood tall, and the flames of its fighting spirit appeared on its head and tail. It accepted the challenge! This meant it recognized Ash as its trainer!
"Damn it!"
Seeing Quilava's reaction, the trainer on the side gritted his teeth in frustration. He had gone to such great lengths for this Quilava, chasing it for an entire week. The battle alone had been countless times, even evolving it from a Cyndaquil. The evolved Quilava, both in strength and personality, was much tougher, making it even harder to catch. Now, it seemed all his efforts had only paved the way for Ash!
"Pikachu, use Quick Attack!"
Pikachu once again turned into a flash of light, dashing towards Quilava. At that moment, Quilava's figure also vanished from its spot, also using the Quick Attack move! From the speed it displayed now, it had indeed only been toying with the opponent in its battle with Sandslash earlier! Pikachu and Quilava, both using the Quick Attack move, collided fiercely.
With a thump, Pikachu cried out in pain and recoiled. Ash looked over, and poor Pikachu's head was red from the collision. The Quilava opposite seemed to be in a similar state. It rubbed its head, then suddenly lowered it, aiming the flames on its head at Pikachu!
"Flamethrower?"
Ash, of course, recognized this classic Fire-type move. It was very fast; Pikachu no longer had time to dodge!
"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"
The surging lightning and scorching pillar of fire collided again, and the resulting explosive air current blew away the trainer who had been watching from the side! This series of head-on collisions left him wide-eyed! Pikachu and Quilava were also blown away by the explosive air current. However, a blue light flashed in Ash's eyes, and he easily caught Pikachu, protecting it from the explosion's damage. Since it was a capture battle, this wasn't considered cheating by Ash.
"Now!"
The explosive air current hadn't fully dissipated, and Ash's eyes lit up. He threw the Poké Ball he had been holding for a long time! Under the amplification of Aura Power, this ordinary Poké Ball broke through the influence of the explosive air current, accurately hitting the Quilava, which had landed on the ground and was still a bit dizzy! The Poké Ball flashed only twice before its light went out!
Ash had caught this Quilava!
From their brief interaction, the Quilava had coldly observed the battle between Pikachu and Golem, which showed that this little guy's personality was brave, decisive, and even a bit cunning. Its compatibility with Ash was clearly also very high. Indeed, after system detection, Quilava's bond value directly reached 120/195, only 5 points lower than Bayleef, which had evolved for Ash. Of course, since it was just caught, a bond value of 120 was already quite good.
"I caught Quilava!"
"Pika-Pikachu!"
"Damn it!" Seeing Ash actually catch Quilava, the trainer swore in frustration. He merely glanced at Ash, then turned and walked away. A week's worth of effort had all gone up in smoke; anyone would be upset. But in fact, even if it hadn't been Ash, he wouldn't have been able to catch this Quilava. After a week of attempts, he should have recognized this fact long ago. Calming down and focusing on raising his and his Pokémon's levels would make his future journey smoother. Of course, Ash wouldn't be so kind as to remind him.
"Congratulations, Ash! Another great addition to your team!" After Bayleef's evolution, Ash had now acquired the Johto region's Fire-type starter, and an evolved form at that. Just at this moment, Ash's progress in Pokémon evolution had already surpassed his journey in Kanto. So, next, it was off to Azalea Town.
Pikachu: 215/255