A surge of electricity, far stronger than before, suddenly erupted from Flaaffy's body and crashed violently against the Crystal Onix.
Previously, its Thunder Shock could only strike a single crystal on Onix's body.
But this time—the Thunder attack enveloped Crystal Onix entirely.
This was no mere doubling of power.
It wasn't Thunder Shock or even Thunderbolt.It was Thunder!
The ultimate Electric-type move. Normally, at the Senior level, very few Pokémon could ever hope to master it.
Yozora guessed that Flaaffy must have awakened its hidden potential in the heat of battle, suddenly grasping the move.
Unfortunately, even Thunder failed to truly harm the Crystal Onix.
Thanks to Flaaffy's earlier chain of attacks, Crystal Onix's Stamina ability had triggered repeatedly. Its defense rose, again and again—
Defense up one stage.Defense up one stage…
All the way to the maximum: six stages. Its defense had doubled!
If Crystal Onix's base defense was 150 points, then quadrupled, it now stood at a monstrous 600.
No wonder—even Thunder couldn't pierce that wall.
"Flaa…" Exhausted after releasing Thunder with all its might, Flaaffy's head tilted to the side as it collapsed into unconsciousness.
"A perfect chance." Yozora didn't hesitate. He tossed a Poké Ball. After some struggling inside, the Poké Ball clicked shut. Flaaffy was captured.
Immediately, Yozora began arranging its abilities—
[Pokémon]: Flaaffy
[Type]: Electric
[Abilities]: Static + Adaptability + Tinted Lens + Speed Boost
[Level]: Senior Peak
[Potential]: Pseudo-Legendary
[Moves]: Thunderbolt, Thunder, Charge, Brick Break, Cotton Spore, Cotton Guard, Take Down
[Description]: A gifted Flaaffy, though lacking in real battle experience.
Yozora assigned it Adaptability, Tinted Lens, and Speed Boost.
Adaptability enhanced the power of its Electric-type moves. Tinted Lens allowed its attacks to ignore resistances, ensuring at least neutral damage.
With the combination of these two, Flaaffy's Special Attack skyrocketed. Adding Speed Boost gave it blazing agility. Nearly perfect.
Once Flaaffy evolved into Ampharos, it would gain solid defenses and powerful resistances. With Cotton Guard, its endurance would rival a tank.
If he later granted it Sturdy as a fifth ability, then it would be flawless.
"Senior peak?" Yozora blinked.
Before the battle, Flaaffy had only been Senior High tier. Yet after losing, it had still leveled up.
"It must have awakened potential in a desperate situation…" Yozora smiled.
He had just arrived in Johto, yet his team was already stronger than last year's by far.
[Dragonair](Dragon): Commander Peak
[Eevee](Normal): Commander Mid
[Crystal Onix](Ice): Senior Peak
[Flaaffy](Electric): Senior Peak
In addition to these four, he carried Gengar and Miltank.
Gengar was already Gym Peak, only a step away from Elite Level.
Miltank had reached Lord Peak, invaluable for support and logistics. Gengar, meanwhile, was reserved for dealing with Team Rocket and other criminals.
Unless absolutely necessary, Yozora wouldn't unleash their power.
"Senior, congratulations!" The two rookies quickly rushed over, offering their heartfelt praises, snapping Yozora from his thoughts.
He turned in surprise. "You two haven't left yet?"
Only now did Yozora truly notice them. But the pair showed no embarrassment, eagerly introducing themselves.
"Senior, my name's Akai," said the Cyndaquil trainer, his fiery red afro suiting the name.
"And I'm Tiane," the other added, a Totodile trainer.
"Senior, please teach us your secret to becoming stronger!" Both bowed deeply, their sincerity clear.
"The secret to becoming stronger?"
Yozora shook his head lightly. "I have no such secret."
To him, a trainer's growth came from three things: raising levels, building bonds of trust with their Pokémon, and learning strategy.
As for strategy, it began with thoroughly understanding type advantages and disadvantages.
None of these could be mastered overnight. They required time, experience, and dedication.
Akai and Tiane seemed to grasp this truth. They quickly nodded. "Then please, let us follow you to learn! You must be challenging Gyms, right? Allow us to watch you battle up close!"
"…That's fine." Yozora agreed with a nod.
"Yeah!" Both cheered excitedly, as if they had already uncovered the very secret to strength.
After parting ways with the ranch owner, Yozora and the two rookies traveled together, first stopping at the Pokémon Center.
Once their Pokémon were healed and preparations made, the group headed for the local Gym.
"Azalea Town's Gym specializes in Bug-types. Fire is strong against them. With your Cyndaquil, Akai, you should stand a chance." Yozora offered casually along the road.
Since they were beginners, he wasn't sure how much they knew about type matchups. Lacking teaching experience himself, he simply shared whatever came to mind.
"Yes, Senior, that much I know. But… I still lost." Akai sighed helplessly.
"You already challenged Azalea Gym?"
"Yes. It was a 3-on-3 format. But I only have Cyndaquil worth using…" Akai's face was heavy with frustration. "Even then, Cyndaquil couldn't defeat a single one of the Gym Leader's Pokémon."
"Then you need to catch more Pokémon. Capturing is also part of growth, especially for rookies." Yozora advised.
"Yes!" The two responded immediately. Tiane even whipped out a notebook, jotting everything down as if Yozora's words were gospel.
The Azalea Gym wasn't far from the Pokémon Center. Before long, they arrived.
And there, they met the Gym Leader—Bugsy.
A youth with violet hair, only sixteen or seventeen years old, yet already renowned across the region as a top-tier trainer.
(End of Chapter)