Onix roared and gathered energy. As it did, several huge rocks materialized out of thin air around it, then hurled themselves at Charmeleon under Onix's command.
"Charmeleon, [Aerial Ace]!" Eddie commanded.
Facing the slow-moving [Rock Tomb], Eddie gave a faint command.
"Roar!"
Charmeleon shook its body and charged directly.
Using its agility to dodge one rock after another, Charmeleon successfully reached Onix.
"What the hell! This Charmeleon can [Aerial Ace]?" Brock exclaimed in surprise. He was shocked to see that Eddie had a Pokémon at this level.
After all, Eddie had just set out on his journey and adventure today. The fact that he had already made it to Pewter City from Pallet Town and trained his Charmeleon to this level was astounding.
What shocked Brock even more was that a Charmeleon could use [Aerial Ace]!
It wasn't that he had never seen a Pokémon use non-native moves or moves not automatically learned through leveling up. These were actually quite common, thanks to a professional term called [teaching moves].
As the name suggests, a Trainer can teach their Pokémon moves that they can learn on their own. However, this requires a great deal of time and effort, as well as a strong bond between the Trainer and the Pokémon.
What made it even more impressive was that [Aerial Ace] was a Flying-type move, and Charmeleon was a Fire-type Pokémon. This made the training even more difficult.
It had taken Brock a long time to train his Onix to learn [Skull Bash], but here was Eddie, who had just begun his adventure today.
"This might be a genius," Brock thought, suddenly understanding. "That person must have wanted me to fight him like this."
Eddie's next command drew Brock's attention back to the battlefield.
"Charmeleon, [Iron Tail]!"
"Onix, [Gyro Ball]!" Brock ordered in return.
Despite his earlier distractions, as a Gym Leader, his reaction speed was quick. Although he was shocked by Eddie's [Iron Tail], he still issued the best command for Onix.
[Gyro Ball] involved rapidly spinning the body and tackling the opponent. The slower the opponent, the more powerful the attack.
Onix was fast and had high defense, but on this battlefield, Charmeleon was clearly faster. This made [Gyro Ball] a great move for Onix.
Most importantly, [Gyro Ball] was a Steel-type move, which could compete with Charmeleon's [Iron Tail].
Onix rapidly spun its body, then launched itself at Charmeleon.
At the same time, Charmeleon, prepared for the attack, spun in a 360-degree jump and sent its glowing [Iron Tail] crashing toward Onix.
"Bang!!"
The sound of two steel blocks colliding rang out as Charmeleon and Onix were sent scattering to opposite sides after their clash.
It seemed like they were evenly matched, but a closer look revealed that Onix had retreated a few more steps than Charmeleon.
After all, Onix had used its body to tackle Charmeleon, while Charmeleon only used its tail. Onix, being a Rock-type Pokémon, took more damage from the Steel-type [Iron Tail], making it worse off than Charmeleon.
In contrast, Charmeleon, as a Fire-type Pokémon, received less damage from the Steel-type move, reducing the impact.
So the result was clear. In the first round of the battle, Charmeleon had the advantage.
"Charmeleon first used [Aerial Ace] to close the distance, then followed up with [Iron Tail] to attack. You came prepared, right? But did you overlook one thing?" Brock analyzed Eddie's tactics, quickly identifying Eddie's critical weakness.
"As a Fire-type Charmeleon, if it gets hit by Rock-type or Ground-type moves, the damage will be doubled. How many hits can your Charmeleon take? And since [Iron Tail] is your only move that can damage Onix, all I have to do is keep my distance."
Brock had pinpointed Charmeleon's fatal flaw and acted immediately. "Onix, use [Rock Throw] continuously!"
Onix gathered energy as soon as he heard the command. Many large rocks materialized around him at high speed and in great numbers.
This move looked similar to [Rock Tomb], but it was actually less powerful and didn't have the speed-reducing effect. Instead, it was much faster and consumed less energy, allowing Onix to use it repeatedly.
Dozens of rocks hurled at Charmeleon. "Tsk, he saw through my plan."
Eddie realized the truth: Brock intended to use this strategy to prevent Charmeleon from closing the distance and slowly wear it down.
Eddie had already understood this weakness, and Brock's method was the best way to counter it. However, Eddie hadn't expected it to be recognized so quickly.
Was this the experience of a Gym Leader? His keen observation skills were impressive.
Eddie felt a little helpless. His main force consisted of only two Pokémon—Charmeleon and Frogadier.
Frogadier was the main choice for the gym match, and it was impossible for it to take the lead here. Charmeleon had to handle one of the opponent's Pokémon, or the battle would be unpredictable.
Honestly, in a standard gym match, against a level 12-14 opponent, Charmeleon could easily crush them even if the type matchup wasn't ideal. But now, his opponent's Onix had jumped +10 levels, creating a challenging situation.
"If Onix's level were lower, Charmeleon could still handle the attack and deal with it, but not now. The gap between level 24 and level 26 is too small."
Eddie sighed softly. "I guess I have to use that trick again. I wanted to win this fair and square."
The need to outwit his opponent meant Eddie's strength wasn't on par with Brock's, or he wouldn't have to resort to such tactics.
"Charmeleon, [Dragon Rage]!"