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Pikachu recognized this familiar sensation, though the aura wasn't directed at it—merely passing through its vicinity.
The powerful presence continued expanding outward until it reached Onix. The rampaging Onix, which had been charging forward like a runaway train with seemingly no awareness, suddenly froze. Its pupils contracted sharply, and its massive body jerked to an abrupt halt mid-sprint.
Though it appeared frozen in place as if held by some invisible Psychic force, Onix's body trembled violently. The creature was clearly struggling against whatever restrained it, its expression twisted in even greater agony than before.
Camp
Meanwhile, back at the campsite where Ash and his companions had set up earlier, Charizard—who had been resting lazily on its side—suddenly snapped its eyes open. Charizard seemed to sense something alarming.
All traces of laziness vanished instantly. Charizard sprang to its feet, its massive clawed feet pounding the ground with such force that it created tremors, immediately drawing the attention of the other Pokémon resting nearby.
"GRAAAAH!"
With a powerful roar that left the other Pokémon staring in confusion, Charizard spread its wings wide and launched itself into the air, flying away from the camp at top speed.
Back on the mountain path, Onix continued facing Ash, its expression contorted with pain. The Pokémon had initially been venting its overwhelming emotions through its rampage, but this sudden mental suppression seemed to intensify its distress rather than calm it.
Ash could clearly sense the turmoil radiating from Onix. The creature wasn't truly being controlled—instead, it had suffered a severe psychic shock that temporarily robbed it of mobility.
However, its body wasn't completely immobilized. To put it simply, Onix had been frightened into stillness.
But the physical pain and restlessness coursing through its massive form soon overwhelmed its inner fear. After only a brief pause, Onix charged forward again, and this time there seemed to be no way to stop its advance.
Misty was so terrified by the sight that she covered her eyes with her hands. At that exact moment, a figure suddenly leaped out from the opposite side of the mountain path.
Just as Onix's massive head descended toward Ash, the mysterious figure vaulted over from the side and landed directly on top of Onix's head.
Using the momentum from the jump, the person grabbed hold of the rocky horn protruding from Onix's skull with both hands.
By combining the force of Onix's forward sprint with the lateral push from the side, the person managed to redirect the Onix's trajectory. Onix's head, which had been aimed straight at Ash, suddenly shifted several degrees to the side.
CRASH!
The massive Pokémon shot past Ash so closely that Brock felt the wind from its passage. He immediately pulled Misty back to safety. Onix slammed into the ground and continued its wild charge forward, its bulk carving an even wider path through the mountain trail. What had been a road three to four meters wide was now reduced to barely two or three meters.
Onix showed no intention of turning back to attack the group. Instead, it continued its frenzied rampage down the mountain path.
The figure who had leaped onto Onix earlier was thrown off by the tremendous impact force. However, the person executed a graceful mid-air flip and landed safely on the ground in a crouch.
Standing up slowly, the stranger watched Onix's retreating form with narrowed eyes and a slight frown creasing his brow.
After Misty and Brock realized the immediate danger had passed, they both breathed heavy sighs of relief upon seeing that Ash, Pikachu, and Togepi were all unharmed.
"GRAAAAH!"
At that moment, a familiar roar echoed from the sky above. A winged figure descended rapidly—it was Charizard.
From its aerial vantage point, Charizard surveyed the destruction Onix had left in its wake below. Glancing up the mountain path, the Flame Pokémon could easily spot Onix's massive silhouette through the thick clouds of dust it was kicking up.
Then Charizard's gaze fell upon the spot where Ash and the others stood. In an instant, it understood exactly what had transpired. As it looked in the direction Onix had fled, a dangerous glint flashed in Charizard's eyes.
The Fire-and-Flying-type descended slowly and landed beside Ash with a concerned growl, clearly checking on its Trainer's condition.
"I'm fine, don't worry!" Ash said reassuringly as Charizard touched down. He knew his Pokémon must have sensed he was in danger and rushed to help.
He gently raised his hand and patted Charizard's shoulder in gratitude. At that moment, Misty and Brock carefully made their way down from their position above and hurried to Ash's side.
"Ash, are you okay?"
Misty asked worriedly, her voice tinged with guilt. If it hadn't been for her losing track of Togepi, Ash wouldn't have been put in such a dangerous situation.
"I'm okay! Togepi's fine too!" Ash responded with his characteristic smile before carefully handing the Spike Ball Pokémon back to Misty.
Togepi was waving its tiny arms happily as usual, completely oblivious to how much danger everyone had just been in.
"Togepi, you scared me half to death! You absolutely cannot run off like that again!" Misty scolded as she clutched Togepi to her chest. Her initial worry quickly transformed into unusually stern discipline.
This time Ash had escaped unharmed, but if something had actually happened to him, she genuinely didn't know how she could have lived with herself. She couldn't continue treating Togepi like a carefree infant and letting it do whatever it wanted.
"Togi togi priii~!"
Whether Togepi actually understood the seriousness of the situation remained unclear. The little Pokémon simply smiled and bobbed cheerfully as always. Misty felt utterly helpless seeing this reaction.
"Are you all okay?" A rough but friendly voice called out at that moment.
"Oh! Yes! We're all fine, thank you so much!"
Hearing the question, Brock instinctively responded with his usual politeness, bowing slightly. However, when he raised his head, his expression suddenly transformed into one of complete shock.
As Brock stared at the person standing before them, his typically squinted eyes actually opened wide. He raised one trembling hand and pointed at the stranger, his face filled with utter disbelief.
"What's wrong, Brock?" Misty asked, puzzled by his unusual reaction.
"You... are you... are you Master Bruno?!" Brock managed to stammer out, his voice shaking with excitement and amazement.
Misty turned to look at the person as well. She saw a man who appeared to be in his thirties or forties, with his muscular upper body completely bare, revealing bronze-tanned skin and impressively defined muscles.
He wore white martial arts pants on his lower body, and his hairstyle bore a striking resemblance to Brock's own. Notably heavy-looking metal rings encircled both his wrists and ankles.
His face carried a weathered, experienced quality, but his lips curved in a warm, generous smile. His eyes were slightly narrowed in a friendly expression that, if someone wasn't paying attention, might make them wonder if he was somehow related to Brock by blood.
"Bruno?" Misty repeated the name. It sounded vaguely familiar, but she couldn't quite place where she'd heard it before.
"He's one of the Elite Four Trainers—Bruno, the Fighting-type specialist!" Ash leaned close to Misty's ear and explained quietly.
Having encountered various Champions during his journey, Ash wasn't particularly starstruck by members of the Elite Four anymore. Since arriving in this world, he'd frequently seen news coverage about the Elite Four on television, so the encounter didn't feel as dramatically significant as it might in the anime, or as overwhelmingly exciting as Brock clearly found it.