Chapter 136: Ultra Instinct
2024-05-15 Author: Samsung Charmander
"Prepare for battle, Hitmonchan!"
"Ei!"
Hitmonchan grabbed the horizontal ropes, vaulted into the arena with a clean and sharp motion, and even threw a few quick sets of punches on the spot, its fists clearly very agile.
"Go, Hitmonlee!"
On the other side, the Martial Artist Neku waved a thumb forward. The composed humanoid Pokémon beside him opened its eyes. But instead of using the ropes, its spring-like legs suddenly stretched to three times their length, allowing it to step directly into the arena.
The sight was a bit jarring.
"Pokédex: *Beep*. Hitmonlee, the Kicking Pokémon. Its legs possess incredible elasticity, and it excels at a wide variety of kicks."
The Pokédex prompted.
Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan both belong to the Tyrogue evolutionary line family, and their conditions for evolution are quite unique.
When a Pokémon's aptitude leans towards being offensive, it evolves into Hitmonlee; when it leans towards being defensive, it evolves into Hitmonchan.
Therefore, the offensive aura of the Hitmonlee in the arena was a cut above.
Of course, Tyrogue has a third evolution: Hitmontop, which just spins in place like a fool and serves no purpose other than being a cute mascot.
It could be said that the battle in the arena was the most primal form of a fighting match—a contest of fists versus legs. Ash couldn't help but swallow, curious to see what kind of sparks these two Pokémon would create.
"Dong!!"
The bronze gong rang, but neither Pokémon made the first move. They stood their ground, watching each other intently.
In a fighting competition, the essence was to strike second, to act only after settling in. Whoever moved first, lost.
However, with his sharp eyes, Ash could see a drop of profuse sweat trickle down Hitmonchan's forehead, and its arms were trembling slightly. Hitmonlee's legs were in a similar state. It was clear the difference in strength between these two Pokémon was likely not that great.
"Ei!"
Soon, Hitmonchan could no longer bear the suffocating atmosphere. It launched a straight punch right at its target, its speed as fast as lightning.
Mach Punch!
"Smack!"
The Mach Punch landed squarely. Hitmonlee slid back half a meter, its wide feet carving two black marks on the ground, before it nonchalantly wiped at the wounds on its cheek.
Even with the boost from its Iron Fist ability, this priority Mach Punch still wasn't very effective.
But just after the punch, a vertical eye-like afterimage suddenly appeared in front of Hitmonlee's face, instantly locking onto Hitmonchan and making the latter's hair stand on end.
Seeing this, the Martial Artist Neku's lips curled into a smirk as he commanded:
"Hitmonlee, use High Jump Kick!!"
At the command, Hitmonlee's spring-like leg shot out, its foot glinting with a sharp, cold light as it kicked.
High Jump Kick is a major Fighting-type move with immense power. Hitmonchan could only avoid it for the moment, hurriedly dodging to the side.
Neku thrust his fist forward and shouted, "It's useless!"
Sure enough, the spring-like leg of the High Jump Kick suddenly bent, changing direction in mid-air. This time, it struck squarely on Hitmonchan's chest, leaving a black footprint.
"Clang!!"
Hitmonchan was thrown back several meters, its retreat only halted when it slammed into the ropes at the back of the arena.
"Is that... Mind's Eye?"
Shandou's eyes narrowed as he blurted out the words.
High Jump Kick has low accuracy, and if it misses, it can even injure the user's own knee, causing significant damage. It's an extremely risky move.
But by using Mind's Eye beforehand to lock onto the target, that risk can be perfectly circumvented.
"He's a veteran..."
Shandou shot a hostile glare at the man in the white training uniform before his gaze hardened. On the arena, Hitmonchan understood, slowly getting back to its feet.
Although the damage was immense, it was still far from a one-hit knockout.
It closed its eyes and began to bounce lightly on the spot. Its whole body suddenly felt lighter, and its condition seemed to be entering a profound and mysterious state.
"Shhaaa!!"
Hitmonlee attacked with a heavy kick. With one foot supporting it on the ground, the other leg unleashed dozens of kicks in an instant, each one aimed at Hitmonchan's vital points.
But the latter's aura didn't change in the slightest. Its body, head, and limbs continuously shifted their positions amidst the high-speed kicks, each movement just enough to dodge. It weaved and bobbed on the spot, perfectly evading dozens of kicks.
Its breathing didn't even show the slightest disorder.
"This is..."
Neku was no country bumpkin; naturally, he had seen this technique before.
Detect.
Although the Pokémon League considers Detect and Protect to be the same type of defensive moves, anyone familiar with fighting battles knows they are two completely different methods of defense.
Protect materializes a green barrier around the body to nullify an opponent's move once. It's essentially using the barrier's special power to block an attack, providing direct immunity.
Of course, one cannot use Protect to protect Protect. Anyone who tries to force a second consecutive use must have a screw loose.
Moreover, this immunity has its limits. Just as a Rattata's Protect could never block Groudon's Precipice Blades, once the power gap reaches a certain point, even Protect becomes as flimsy as paper.
But Detect is different. It doesn't rely on some shield for direct immunity, but on the Pokémon's innate perception, reflexes, and physical agility to evade attacks.
In other words, it's the ultimate version of "Dodge it!"
Of course, using Detect twice in a row can also fail, but that's for ordinary Pokémon.
For Fighting Pokémon, their steel-like constitutions can fully support using Detect two, three, or even four times in a row...
As for the highest level of Detect, according to Elite Four Bruno, it's no longer a matter of using it three or four times in a row, but a realm in itself.
It relies on the conditioned reflexes of every part of the body. The body and consciousness separate, allowing each part to surpass instinct and perceive surrounding danger, no longer needing the brain to think before acting.
Bruno calls this realm...
Ultra Instinct!
But even he can only maintain it for a dozen or so seconds at most.
Perhaps lasting a mere dozen seconds in another realm would be laughable, but to maintain this realm for that long is enough for Bruno to look down on all his rivals.
"If I could maintain this realm for three minutes," Bruno once described it, "I could even crush Champion Lance, despite his type advantage over the Fighting-type."
That was how Bruno described this realm. A few simple words were enough to show how terrifying it was.
Of course, the Hitmonchan before him wasn't a hundred and eight thousand li from Ultra Instinct, but it was at least a hundred and seven thousand.
Even so, it was enough to effortlessly evade all of Hitmonlee's attacks.
"Not bad, that Detect of yours."
On the other side, the Martial Artist Neku showed not a hint of caution. Instead, his lips curled into a sinister smile.
"However, this is a move that every Martial Artist knows..."
He snapped his fingers, and the Hitmonlee before him struck the same pose. Its breathing deepened, and it began to bounce on the spot, entering the same profound state.
In fact, because Hitmonlee was better suited for leg-based attacks and had a more stable lower body, its condition seemed to be on an even higher level.
Detect!!
The two Pokémon—one of fists, one of legs—both entered this profound state simultaneously. They faced each other, bouncing lightly. With every bounce, they seemed to be performing an evasive maneuver, or perhaps a punch or a kick.
Ash couldn't help but rub his eyes. For a moment, he saw dozens of Hitmonlees and Hitmonchans on the arena, each performing different actions, either dodging or attacking.
When he rubbed his eyes again, he found the two were just standing there in an unremarkable confrontation, with no flashy moves at all.
"This move is incredible..." Ash blurted out. He couldn't tell if the two on stage had predicted his perception, or if he had predicted their movements.
Immediately after, his eyes widened, and he stared intently at their every minute movement, his face flushed and his breathing ragged.
"Great move. I'm stealing it."
(end of chapter)