Chapter 35: Sunrise Valley's Grand Counterattack
Just then, a large number of Pokémon suddenly leaped out from the grass and among the trees.
"Use [Bullet Seed] and [Fury Cutter], cut down the trees!"
The Oddish and Gloom that appeared in the woods, under Scyther's lead, each used their proficient skills. In a short time, several tall, straight trees fell one after another.
"Thump, thump, thump," the thick tree trunks fell heavily to the ground, kicking up rubble and dust.
"[String Shot]!"
Flower, who leaped out from the grass, gave the command. The Caterpie, Weedle, and Paras that followed, puffed out their chests and spat sticky insect silk from their mouths, winding it around the fallen tree trunks.
"Brothers, put your backs into it!"
Brother Machop, leading the Machop, Mankey, and Geodude, ran to the back of the tree trunks. Grouping up, several Pokémon at a time, they lifted the tree trunks, which were larger than their entire bodies, and aimed at the group of Pokémon from the Toxic Swamp.
"Three, two, one, go!"
"Ha!"
The Fighting-type Pokémon used all their strength to forcefully hurl the lifted tree trunks.
Watching those thick tree trunks spinning and flying through the air towards them, the Pokémon from the Toxic Swamp instantly panicked, scrambling in terror to dodge.
However, this gave the Pokémon lurking in the stream their chance.
Over a dozen figures leaped out from the stream.
A Squirtle wearing sunglasses had intense blue Water-type energy fluctuating around its body. The few Squirtle, Goldeen, and Poliwag behind it also puffed out their cheeks, brewing their attacks.
"[Surf]!"
The stream's current was no longer flowing gently. As the Squirtle Boss unleashed the [Surf] move, the water surged violently, converging into a wave over 2 meters high, crashing towards the panicked Pokémon by the stream bank with imposing momentum.
The wave roared and churned. Even if the water flow weakened slightly, it was quickly replenished by the Water-type Pokémon's [Water Gun].
With rolling, surging waves on one side and whistling, flying logs on the other, the Pokémon from the Toxic Swamp found themselves in an awkward situation with no way forward or back.
"Boom!"
The extremely powerful wave crashed into the Pokémon from the Toxic Swamp, sending them tumbling head over heels like gourds rolling on the ground. The spinning logs, arriving shortly after, "rumble, rumble," rolled over the fallen Pokémon. The sticky insect silk on the tree trunks adhered to the Pokémon, immobilizing them.
Rio and Takuma, observing this coordinated effort, were utterly dumbfounded.
"I finally understand why Sunrise Valley can be a dominant force in Newmoon Forest."
Rio muttered to himself.
He had been away from Sunrise Valley for some time now. Whether it was the Pokémon of Crescent Lake, Sky Nest, or even the Toxic Swamp, apart from some newly hatched Pokémon, many had already evolved to their second stage, and some even to their third. These evolved Pokémon constituted the main strength of these Pokémon factions.
But Sunrise Valley was exceptionally different. Apart from a very few evolved Pokémon, the entire valley was still primarily composed of unevolved Pokémon in their most basic forms. As everyone knew, evolved Pokémon possessed a different level of strength compared to unevolved ones. Therefore, Rio had always been curious how Sunrise Valley managed to contend with other Pokémon clans with its many unevolved Pokémon. Now he understood: this united, coordinated fighting style was the foundation upon which Sunrise Valley stood.
Returning to the battlefield.
The Squirtle Boss, seeing the Pokémon from the Toxic Swamp stuck to the tree trunks and unable to move, let out a slight sigh of relief and walked ashore from the stream.
Flower, Scyther, and Brother Machop also brought their Pokémon over to regroup.
"Yay!"
Oddish swayed the leaves on its head and happily high-fived a little Squirtle that came bouncing over. The Caterpie and Weedle twitched their tails and lay lazily on the ground; they had nearly exhausted their silk reserves from spitting earlier.
Brother Machop thought for a moment, then said to the Squirtle Boss with some joy, "If all the Pokémon from the Toxic Swamp are here, then that means there are no other Pokémon in the Toxic Swamp right now. Boss, this is a good opportunity for us to cross the Toxic Swamp."
The Squirtle Boss also thought of this point and nodded lightly in agreement. "Indeed, this means we just need to wait for Rio to return and solve the poison gas problem. We mustn't delay; let's set off now to..."
Before he could finish, an arrogant voice sounded from behind the Pokémon.
"Ants, I admit your little tricks were played quite well, making these incompetent subordinates of mine run around in circles. However, such laughable tricks, against me, against me who possesses absolute strength..."
The Hegemon Nidoking had previously been standing in the shadow of a towering rock wall, which was why the Pokémon of Sunrise Valley hadn't noticed this hegemon, who exuded a terrifying aura, for a moment.
At this time, two crimson, ferocious eyes emerged from the shadow.
"Are merely futile!"
The colossal beast in the shadow lifted its right foot and stomped down heavily!
"[Earthquake]!"
What is an earthquake?
For Rio, who had been a human in his previous life, it was a natural disaster. Even though science had explained that earthquakes originated from the collision of tectonic plates, many superstitious people still believed it was a punishment from heaven, caused by the earth's fury. In the red nation where he had lived in his past life, earthquakes had caused untold, tragic suffering, shattering countless families and lives.
But in the Pokémon world, this kind of disaster was not just a natural phenomenon; it could be created by powerful creatures like Pokémon. The terror of earthquakes from his memories, stripped of the understated descriptions in games and anime, was now vividly replaying before Rio's eyes.
The earth cracked, and rock walls crumbled.
"Rumble—"
A violent shockwave radiated outwards rapidly in a circle with Hegemon Nidoking at its center. The flat ground affected by it instantly tore into countless fissures like shattered porcelain. The towering rock walls surrounding the valley fractured into large and small boulders, crashing down towards the ground.
"Waaah..."
The shaking and fracturing of the ground beneath their feet made it impossible for almost all Pokémon to stand stably. They fell flat on their backs. Some Pokémon standing closely packed were thrown into a heap. Unable to find their footing, they couldn't dodge the falling debris from above and were hit by boulders large and small, resulting in a chorus of miserable cries.
Not only were the Pokémon of Sunrise Valley scrambling for cover, but even Hegemon Nidoking's subordinates, the Pokémon from the Toxic Swamp, were caught in the disaster. What was worse, they had previously been stuck by the sticky insect silk on the tree trunks and couldn't move, so they could only passively be battered by the falling rocks until they were black and blue, in a miserable state.
The most significant drawback of a powerful move like [Earthquake] was its indiscriminate nature; any creature standing on the ground would be attacked.
Seeing the tremors continue without any sign of abating, the Squirtle Boss gritted his teeth, spread his arms, and used [Protect].
The familiar greenish barrier appeared again, enveloping the fallen Pokémon of Sunrise Valley, shielding them from the shockwaves and falling rocks.
This [Protect] move was truly worthy of being one of the Squirtle Boss's lv4 moves. An ordinary [Protect] could only shield the user, but the Squirtle Boss's [Protect] could erect a much larger and wider barrier, expanding the protected area several times over.
"Thump," "Thump," "Thump," falling rocks crashed against the barrier, only to be deflected to the side.
"Oh?"
Hegemon Nidoking had initially just been watching quietly. But upon seeing the large-scale [Protect] deployed by the Squirtle Boss, a flicker of surprise crossed its red eyes.
It ignored the uneven ground and strode forward. Facing the greenish grid-like barrier before it, it raised its powerful forelimb and slammed it forward with force!
"Ugh—"
The Squirtle Boss gritted his teeth and held firm. He felt as if he had been hit by a train at full speed. The powerful impact made the shell on his back tremble involuntarily.
Seeing that its punch only made the barrier tremble slightly, Hegemon Nidoking was very dissatisfied. It let out a low roar, and crimson energy currents blazed up around its body, flowing and converging onto its thick, sturdy tail. After the tail was covered by the energy, it took on a silvery-grey, steel-like texture.
A few sharp-eyed Pokémon saw Hegemon Nidoking's transformation and shrieked, "Boss, be careful of its tail!"
Before their voices faded, Hegemon Nidoking stomped its right foot hard, spun around, and its steel-hard tail whipped over fiercely.
"Bang—"
The greenish barrier cracked like a spiderweb at the point of impact. The light on the barrier dimmed further, and it looked as if it was on the verge of shattering.
"Just a little more, hold on a little longer..."
A trickle of fresh blood flowed from the corner of the Squirtle Boss's tightly clenched jaw.
Hegemon Nidoking continuously increased the force of its [Iron Tail], each lash more terrifying than the last, smashing against the [Protect] barrier.
However, every time the barrier seemed about to be shattered, the Squirtle Boss would grit his teeth and hold on, forcibly maintaining the crumbling shield.
At this moment, the aftershocks of [Earthquake] finally subsided. The fallen Pokémon, disregarding their injured bodies, staggered up from the ground and fled towards the rear.
Seeing his Pokémon limping away from the corner of his eye, and the remaining few severely injured ones being supported by others as they left, the Squirtle Boss felt a sense of relief in his heart, and the barrier he had been desperately maintaining instantly dispersed.
The moment the barrier vanished, Hegemon Nidoking, who had been furiously smashing against it, couldn't stop its momentum. Its tail slammed into the ground, kicking up sand and stones, and it itself stumbled sideways due to inertia.
Freed from his responsibilities, the Squirtle Boss rolled to dodge the impact of [Iron Tail], adjusted his slightly askew sunglasses, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and a focused expression appeared on his face.
"Next, it's a duel between us."