"Rain Dance." Yozora snapped his fingers, issuing the opening command.
Overhead, dark clouds quickly gathered, and within moments a heavy rain poured down upon the battlefield.
Cold raindrops splashed onto both Golduck and Arcanine. For Arcanine, the rain was hardly an obstacle. At its level, such weather only slightly weakened its Fire-type moves. Its physical prowess itself remained completely unaffected.
Golduck, however, was greatly empowered. The rainfall infused it with energy, its vitality and combat strength visibly rising.
Most of all, its speed—thanks to its Swift Swim Ability—doubled under the rain.
Gary clearly hadn't noticed this. With a proud grin, he ordered, "Charge in, Arcanine! Use Take Down!"
"Awooo!" Arcanine howled and tore across the field, its figure a blur in the rain as it lunged straight toward Golduck.
Arcanine's speed was exceptional. At the Senior Level peak, it already boasted top-tier quickness among its peers.
But Golduck was even faster.
Just as Arcanine closed in, Golduck's body flickered out of the way, leaving it charging into nothingness, far behind.
The difference in speed was simply overwhelming!If Arcanine represented the pinnacle of speed at the Senior Level… then Golduck had already stepped into a higher realm altogether.
In fact, under rainy conditions, Golduck's speed could rival even Commander-tier Pokémon—it was among the fastest of them all!
"So fast!" Gary's eyes widened in shock. Could Golduck really move at such speed?
"Hydro Pump!" Yozora commanded without hesitation. Golduck darted forward and unleashed a roaring torrent of water from its beak, blasting into Arcanine.
"Arghh—!"
Arcanine cried out in pain, hurled backward through the rain. Water against fire—super effective.
That single strike left Arcanine reeling, its body trembling. Just remaining on its feet was already a struggle.
"Psychic!"
Yozora's timing was perfect. The bond between him and Golduck was so attuned that the moment his order left his lips, Golduck had already seized Arcanine with Psychic power, flinging it high into the air before smashing it brutally back into the drenched arena floor, scattering water everywhere.
Arcanine, battered by two consecutive devastating blows, collapsed unconscious, its eyes rolling back.
"Not bad, Yozora. Didn't expect you to raise such a powerful Pokémon so soon." Gary recalled his fainted Arcanine with practiced ease, his tone light, even teasing. But his expression had grown solemn.
His Arcanine was the same level as Yozora's Golduck—both at the Senior Level peak.
Yet Golduck had naturally evolved through training, while Arcanine had only needed a Fire Stone.
In other words, even with money and shortcuts, all Gary had managed was to reach the same level as Yozora's effort-born strength.
Worse—Arcanine had been nearly one-shotted.
Same level. Vastly different power.
"The strength is one thing—but that speed is the real problem!" Gary's eyes sharpened. He tossed out his second Poké Ball.
A massive Nidoking emerged with a roar.
Indeed, most of Gary's early Pokémon came from Evolution Stones—quick to mature, strong in power, and favored by second-generation trainers like him.
But Gary was different from the average spoiled heir. Despite his arrogance, his foundation was solid.
[Pokémon]: Nidoking
[Type]: Poison + Ground
[Level]: Senior Level Peak
[Potential]: Elite Level
Another Senior Level peak Pokémon—Gary's strength was undeniable. Among his peers, he was already among the strongest.
"Golduck, Hydro Pump!" Yozora wasted no time.
"Dig!" Gary called instantly, as though prepared.
Boom! Nidoking slammed the ground, tunneling beneath the battlefield in an instant. The Hydro Pump blasted harmlessly across the surface.
Golduck blinked in surprise as its target vanished, scanning nervously in all directions.
"Calm down, Golduck!" Yozora shouted.
Though Nidoking was underground, Yozora could still sense its aura with his Wave Guidance.
Just now, he'd felt himself edging toward perfect synchronization with Golduck. If Golduck could remain calm, it might even hear his thoughts directly—allowing them to react as one.
"Golduck!" At his call, Golduck shut its eyes, relaxing fully, listening intently for Yozora's inner voice.
Boom! The ground beneath Golduck suddenly split apart, Nidoking bursting upward in a ferocious ambush.
But Golduck slid back smoothly, evading with uncanny precision—as if it had predicted the attack all along.
"Well done, Golduck!" Yozora's smile widened as Golduck opened its eyes.
The bond was complete.
In that moment, trainer and Pokémon had achieved true synchronicity.
"Close the gap—use Thunder Punch!"
Gary wasn't done. Nidoking lunged forward, its fist crackling with electricity as it slammed into Golduck.
Gary's style—extravagant, overwhelming.
But—
Even in his wildest dreams, Gary hadn't expected this. The Thunder Punch, which should have devastated Golduck, barely harmed it at all!
Golduck staggered a step from the physical blow—but the electric damage was completely nullified.
"No way…" Gary's eyes bulged, disbelief written all over his face.
In his mind, that Thunder Punch should have left Golduck severely injured, if not outright finished.
"Hydro Pump!" Yozora took advantage of Gary's stunned hesitation.
Golduck unleashed another torrent of water, blasting Nidoking off its feet and straight into defeat.
With its dual Poison and Ground typing, Nidoking was especially vulnerable—Hydro Pump was devastatingly super effective.
Gary's second loss in a row.
"Young Master Gary!"
"Don't give up, Young Master Gary!"
"Young Master Gary is the best! You can do it!"
Gary's personal cheer squad of girls immediately sprang into action, waving pom-poms and shouting frantically to rally him.
The spectators around the arena, however, could only gape.
"Master Gary!"
"Yay, come on, Master Gary!"
"Go, Gary, go! You're amazing, Gary!" Seeing Gary struggling, the beautiful cheer squad behind him immediately panicked and began shouting encouragement with all their might.
The crowd outside the battle arena clicked their tongues in awe at the scene before them.
tsk tsk tsk… with this kind of setup, how could he possibly lose…
But then again, Yozora really was incredible—he had easily defeated the two Pokémon of this wealthy young master!
And yet, Yozora's Doublade, clearly stronger than Golduck, hadn't even entered the battle yet.
Having spent several days here, winning more than losing, Yozora had long earned the recognition of the onlookers.
Now, with Yozora showing such ferocity and astonishing strength, some of the spectators began cheering loudly.
The momentum of the crowd rivaled that of Gary's beautiful cheer squad.
"Gary still has his final Pokémon… who could it be? Dratini or Squirtle?" Yozora wondered in his mind.
By this stage, Squirtle should have already evolved… into Wartortle?
If this were the original timeline, Gary's last Pokémon would undoubtedly be Wartortle.
But in this world, Gary had been raising a Dratini from childhood.
To Gary, Dratini was undoubtedly the strongest ace, far surpassing Squirtle or Wartortle.
Moreover, since Green didn't exist in this world, perhaps Gary's presence had absorbed Green's aura entirely…
"Go, Dragonair!" Under Yozora's expectant gaze, Gary finally sent out his final Pokémon.
Dragonair.
So the little Dratini had finally evolved.
[Pokémon]: Dragonair
[Type]: Dragon
[Level]: Early Commander-tier
[Potential]: Champion-level
[Description]: A Dragonair with extraordinary talent. Its genes are exceptionally strong, and it possesses multiple inherited moves.
…
"Wow… it's a Dragonair!" Seeing Gary's Dragonair on the battlefield, the crowd erupted in astonishment.
Truly befitting a rich kid—he even owned such a rare Pokémon.
Outside the arena, the little chubby boy's eyes sparkled as he stared at Gary's Dragonair. This was his dream!
"Has the Dratini finally evolved? By the way, Gary, what about your Squirtle?" Yozora couldn't help but ask.
Gary replied calmly, "It evolved. It's a Wartortle now. But it's still not on the same level as Dragonair, Nidoking, or Arcanine…"
Yozora nodded in understanding.
Dragonair, having been raised from childhood, was naturally the ace among aces.
As for Nidoking and Arcanine, they had been evolved using Evolution Stones, allowing them to quickly reach battlefield-ready strength.
Squirtle—or Wartortle—could not use Evolution Stones; it could only evolve naturally.
Raising it to its full potential required more effort, so it was understandable that Wartortle's current strength lagged behind Nidoking and Arcanine.
However, Wartortle still had higher potential. Once it evolved into Blastoise, it would become Gary's strongest Pokémon besides Dragonair.
"Yozora, now you'll witness the power of a evolved Dratini! Dragonair, use Twister!" Gary commanded. With a fierce roar, Dragonair summoned two enormous tornados, one on each side, to sandwich Golduck.
So fast… and that attack covers such a huge area… Yozora marveled internally. The little one from back then has finally grown strong.
The attack's range was so vast that, aside from using Dig, there was almost no space to dodge.
Golduck didn't know Dig, so it could only endure Dragonair's Twister head-on.
…
…
(End of Chapter)