Chapter 270: A Thief Steals from a Thief
A crimson light surged. Cranidos, maintaining its Rock Polish speed, directly bypassed Nidoking's obstruction and charged toward James behind it.
"Hey, hey, we're Team Rocket! What do you think you're doing!?" James panicked, taking several steps back.
Was it actually trying to attack a Trainer directly?
Was it going to steal *that* too!?
James was horrified. He subconsciously closed his eyes and hugged himself. Although Jessie was the woman in their trio, she was as tough as three men.
The one who truly needed protecting had always been him, James.
"Aoo!!"
The crimson light passed through James, then returned to the Battle Arena. The oppressive prehistoric wild aura flashed by as if nothing had happened. After a delay of several seconds, James finally inspected his body again.
His delicate body was unharmed, which made him let out a sigh of relief.
"Huh?"
Suddenly, he realized something was missing. He quickly looked at his hand; it was indeed empty. He whipped his head around to look at the Battle Arena and saw the little dinosaur beast toying with something in its hands. He instantly flew into a rage and took the initiative to accuse it:
"Hey, you thief! You stole my rose!!"
The little Cranidos was now holding the thorny rose in its mouth, seeming quite fond of the item. Its tongue darted in and out as it panted heavily, its tail wagging.
"Pokedex Beep. Cranidos has learned a new Move: Thief."
The Pokedex also briefly made its presence known.
"You Idiot! Is now the time to worry about a rose? Your Instruction Manual! The Instruction Manual!" Meowth reminded him anxiously from the side. At times like this, he was always the only sane one in the trio.
"Oh, right!"
James finally reacted. On the Battle Arena, Cranidos, still holding the rose, had already tossed a note into the air and with a backhand, delivered a viciously sharp scratch, tearing it to shreds.
Its Thief Move was only meant to steal the Official Guidebook; the rose was just a bonus.
So you like to use the Formula Style?
Then I'll just tear up your Official Guidebook first!
"It should be fine, right? Your formula isn't a legal Item, so I'll just tear it up first."
A thief stealing from a thief—not a big problem.
Then, Ash's gaze hardened. With the troublesome formula gone, it was his turn to attack.
"Cranidos, use Ancient Power!"
"Aoo!"
Amidst the sky-filling red light, Cranidos once again condensed several Ancient Rocks around its body. This time, each Rock was not only larger, but also covered in a layer of vicious red light. The small blue beast, enveloped in this red glow, now possessed an even more extraordinary imposing aura.
"Nidoking, just do your own thing!"
James immediately chose the best strategy.
Since the Formula Style wasn't working, he would switch directly to the Fully Automatic Style.
He had only just started using this Nidoking, and giving it random commands might even have a side effect. It was better to let it battle on its own.
Unlike Jessie, when he said Fully Automatic, he meant it. He wouldn't interfere at all. He even walked off the Commanding Platform and started watching from the back like a spectator.
"Meowth, keep drinking champagne. I'm about to win, haha."
Meowth: "?"
On the arena.
"Nii-ho!!"
Recognizing the keyword, Nidoking finally moved. It spun in place, and a powerful swing from its tail, which was covered in a metallic sheen, completely nullified the Ancient Power, turning it into rubble.
It then retracted its tail, raised its two purplish-brown arms in front of its chest, and between its palms, condensed a stream of blue Water-type energy before flinging it forward.
Water Pulse!
"Aoo!!"
Cranidos didn't dare to be careless and immediately scrambled to dodge. The Water Pulse grazed past it. Although it was a Water-type attack, it blasted a deep pit of water where it hit, releasing bursts of steam. Its power was not to be underestimated.
"It can't get hit by Water Pulse."
Ash didn't dare to be careless. Cranidos didn't have much stamina left. If it got hit by any Water-type Move, big or small, this entire battle could be over.
"Cranidos, get moving! Don't let any attack hit you!"
Cranidos nodded. Its gray hind legs began to sprint across the ground, constantly changing its direction of attack, preventing the opponent from finding a pattern.
"Ni!!"
Nidoking, however, slammed a fist into the ground in front of it. Instantly, countless streams of blue water spread out from beneath it, forming a two to three-meter-high wave in just a few seconds, spreading out in all directions.
Since it couldn't find an attack pattern, it would use an AOE full-map attack!
Surf!!
"Cranidos, use Ancient Power to protect yourself!"
This time, Ash was prepared and immediately gave the command.
Nidoking wasn't a Water-type Pokémon; Surf was just a tool move for it, so its power wasn't that high.
"Aoo!"
Cranidos lifted its head and condensed several gray rocks around its body. This time, it wasn't a throwing attack; instead, it gathered them to envelop its body, blocking the surging waves of water.
*Pssh*
The Surf rushed past and quickly dissipated into white smoke on the arena. Seizing the opportunity, Cranidos released the Ancient Power, lowered its head, and charged forward again from a strange angle. Its speed was so extreme that its trajectory was impossible to capture.
"Ni!!"
Nidoking, having just come down from the wave, this time slammed its entire body onto the ground.
"Gurgle gurgle..."
Another wave of liquid erupted from the ground beneath its feet, but this time it wasn't a blue Surf, nor the fiery light of Earth Power, but a shade of purple.
The purple liquid gushed out like a current, its surface constantly bubbling menacingly as if boiling. It was extremely viscous, and its power was at least thirty percent stronger than Surf.
Sludge Wave!!
Surf was just a utility move for Nidoking, not getting a Same-Type Attack Bonus, but Sludge Wave was one of its actual Same-Type Attack Bonus moves!
"Pfft pfft pfft!!"
Wherever the Sludge Wave made contact, it emitted puffs of corrosive white smoke. This was an incredibly terrifying poison.
Cranidos had no choice but to halt its advance and retreat repeatedly. But the Toxic Sludge, unlike water, spread slowly and unstoppably like magma, engulfing everything in its path and emitting clouds of white smoke.
*Thud*
A moment later, Cranidos's back hit the wall. It had nowhere left to retreat.
Yet, the eyes of both Trainer and Dragon lit up with a fearless expression simultaneously.
Ash's battle intent surged. He punched his fist forward and roared:
"Then we'll just ignore it! Charge right through!"
"Aoo!!"
Cranidos also threw its head back and let out a ferocious roar. For a moment, the prehistoric, vicious red light from its body flared, and its limbs' muscles seemed to swell.
Without the slightest hesitation, it charged directly into the purple sludge!
*Thump thump thump*
Its hind legs continuously stomped through the Sludge Wave.
The instant its feet touched the highly corrosive liquid, a burning pain shot through it, causing Cranidos to frown involuntarily.
"Aoo!!"
The pain completely activated its prehistoric bloodline. Its fighting spirit soared, and its red beastly aura and a pair of blood eyes erupted as violently as a volcano, accompanied by continuous roars.
"Whoosh!!"
Another nearly three-meter-high wave of poison came rushing at it.
Ash sensed its awe-inspiring battle intent and shouted:
"Use Iron Head!"
"Aoo!!"
Cranidos's sapphire-like skull instantly turned into an iron one shimmering with a silver light. The might of metal was dense as it lowered its head and charged directly into the wave of sludge.
(end of chapter)