Chapter 266: The Groomer Pokémon
2024-05-15 Author: Samsung Charmander
"BOOM—!!"
Misty Explosion detonated in mid-air, unleashing a violent wave of Fairy energy. Both its source, the Pink Butterfree, and the Golem it had struck head-on were sent reeling from the blast, plummeting from the sky.
"Butterfree!"
Ash, with remarkable agility, lunged forward, rolling three times before securely catching the Pink Butterfree in his arms.
However, the Pokémon's large, adorable pink eyes were now swirling. It had already been rendered unable to battle when struck by the fifth Rollout, let alone after the recoil from its own unconscious, self-sacrificial move.
"You did a great job."
Ash gently rubbed Butterfree's head and carefully returned it to its Poké Ball.
It was clear there was a significant level gap between it and the Golem, not to mention the latter had Jessie's heavenly aid. For it to have achieved this much was already beyond his expectations.
So much potential!
This Pink Butterfree of his wasn't just for show; it was a powerful Pokémon, a true fighter.
"You will definitely become stronger!"
Taking a deep breath, Ash stood up again, his gaze turning to Team Rocket and their Golem nearby, his expression stern.
Although Team Rocket's strategy was a mess, the Pokémon emerging from that Gashapon machine were clearly high-level. They even possessed a terrifying capability for independent combat. That fluid combo was obviously the result of rigorous training.
"Is this what a Shared Pokémon is?"
"Gole..."
The Golem, having taken the Misty Explosion head-on, was not faring well either. It had fallen from mid-air, its spherical body tumbling several times across the ground.
Don't be fooled by its rock-covered body, which seemed thick-skinned; that was only effective against Physical Attacks. Against Special Attacks like the Fairy-type Misty Explosion, even a tough-hided Golem couldn't withstand many hits.
Its Special Defense was not high.
"Golem, are you okay!?"
Having gained a rare advantage against Ash, Jessie was overjoyed with this Golem. She hurried forward, anxiously checking its wounds.
Despite having been hit by two ultimate moves, Moonblast and Misty Explosion, and being covered in wounds, the Golem was still able to battle. Its HP Effort Values must have been maxed out. How terrifying.
"As expected of my Golem! To be so tough even after a self-destruct!" Jessie couldn't help but hug the Golem, speaking smugly.
"Gole...?"
But as soon as her words fell, the Golem seemed to recognize something. It froze for a moment, its expression of complete bewilderment directed at Jessie.
But as a Shared Pokémon, its powerful sense of duty made its gaze sharpen, its eyes filled with the resolute determination of a noble sacrifice.
In the next second, a terrifying white light bloomed from its rock body. The white energy condensed to its peak, and the arena was instantly filled with a thick, dangerous aura. The suffocating pressure of the energy was even more intense than the previous Misty Explosion.
Jessie: "?"
Soon, the brilliant white light illuminated her utterly baffled face.
"BOOM—!!"
Finally, the white energy violently detonated, setting off a massive explosion on the spot with world-shattering power!!
Golem used Self-Destruct!
The terrifying energy wave and clouds of dust danced wildly. The force of the explosion made everyone present tremble—not just Team Rocket, but even the spectating Ash was baffled.
After a long moment, once the dust and the blast had dissipated, Golem was lying on the ground, its eyes swirling.
And Jessie, too, lay on the ground, charred black from head to toe.
Golem and Jessie were both unable to battle.
Ash: "?"
James and Meowth: "?"
An awkward silence fell over the crowd.
"Beep... Shared Pokémon will identify move keywords in a trainer's speech. Trainer Jessie said the keyword 'Self-Destruct'."
Amidst the awkwardness, the Pokédex suddenly provided a tip.
Because the Shared Pokémon system being promoted by Team Rocket was not yet fully refined, its response to commands was very robotic.
"Use Self-Destruct" and "Don't use Self-Destruct" meant the same thing.
James and Meowth fell silent, shaking their heads in unison at Jessie.
The whole point was its 'fully automatic style.' Jessie should have just thrown the Poké Ball and taken a nap, letting the Golem do all the work on its own.
The battle had been going perfectly fine; even after taking a Misty Explosion, it was barely scratched. But the moment she got close, she ruined everything, getting both herself and her Pokémon knocked out.
"Sigh, Jessie's fully automatic style still isn't refined enough..."
A Pokémon that could perfectly match Jessie's fully automatic style had yet to appear.
James and Meowth had no choice but to drag Jessie's remains to one side. Her leg was still twitching.
"Hmph! Twerp, it's my turn to be your opponent!"
This time, it was James who stood at one end of the battle arena, a thorny rose held between his lips.
He considered the first round a draw. Right now, it was just one-all. Besides, from the first battle, James had already understood that these Shared Pokémon might not be so simple. He wasn't like Jessie, who went with the fully automatic style.
Caution!
That was James's consistent style.
Before the battle had even begun, he had already committed all the information about the Shared Pokémon to memory, even memorizing several combos down to their button inputs.
"Come forth, my champion!!"
James forcefully threw out a Poké Ball. A red light flashed, followed by a ferocious roar.
"Nido-roar!!"
Before him now stood another enormous Pokémon. It had the appearance of an upright dinosaur, standing over two meters tall. Its abdomen was white, while the rest of its body seemed to be clad in purplish-brown armor. Its back was lined with a ridge of sharp spines, its teeth were sharp, and a single horn grew from its forehead, wreathed in a faint, dark purple poison element.
This Pokémon swung its arms, and its large, purplish-brown tail whipped around, stirring up a gust of wind. Its momentum was intimidating!
"Beep... Nidoking, the Groomer Pokémon. Its skin is very tough, and every one of its spines is coated with poison. Only males of this species exist. But here's some trivia: it's a veteran groomer."
The Pokédex's announcement made this Nidoking's expression turn sour. It looked like it wanted to smash the blasted machine.
Grooming was something all members of the Nido family had to go through. It admittedly didn't sound very pleasant.
The Nido family was divided by gender. The males were of his Nidoking line, while the females were of the Nidoqueen line.
But their reproductive pattern was very peculiar. The male Nidoking line was relatively normal; they could legally mate in their first through third-stage forms.
However, the female Nidoqueen line was quite bizarre. Across their three stages, only the initial Nidoran♀ could reproduce. The second-stage Nidorina and third-stage Nidoqueen were both unable to lay eggs.
Essentially, it meant...
The moment they evolved, they were sterilized.
The males had it fine, but for the females, the great responsibility of continuing the species fell entirely upon the youngest Nidoran♀, while Nidorina and Nidoqueen could only watch from the sidelines.
This was the source of Nidoking's shame. The thought of a two-meter-tall behemoth like himself having to extend his wicked claws toward a palm-sized Nidoran♀ filled him with immense shame.
And yet, amidst the shame, there was a hint of excitement...
(end of chapter)