Chapter 145: Bad Dancing
Several months ago, Erika had traveled to the Galar Region for a few days. There, she happened to see several newly developed and announced moves, and she secretly copied a few of them to bring back.
One of them was a Grass-type move, but its activation condition was rather peculiar. It required the user to be on a grassy field or a battlefield under the effect of Grassy Terrain. By leveraging a Grass-type Pokémon's innate advantage in controlling grassy fields, it could slide along the green lawn to rapidly attack its target.
The move's name: Grassy Glide!
This move's speed was extremely fast, on par with Pikachu's Quick Attack, not to mention its power was several times greater.
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!!
Coupled with the boost from Tangrowth's Chlorophyll ability after being exposed to sunlight, its speed had skyrocketed. The spectators could only see streaks of afterimages on the grassy field. Even Ash, with his excellent dynamic vision, could only make out a blurry afterimage, followed by a behemoth suddenly appearing in front of Bulbasaur. The visual impact was intense.
BOOM!!
As if struck by a heavy tank, Bulbasaur had no capacity to resist whatsoever. It was sent flying by Tangrowth, even soaring out of the battlefield and tumbling away.
"Bulbasaur!!"
Ash quickly lunged forward, catching Bulbasaur in mid-air like a baseball catcher. However, the powerful impact still sent him flying several meters, and he had to roll three times on the ground to fully disperse the force.
After a moment, Ash wiped the dust from his face and slowly got up. In his arms, Bulbasaur had already fainted and was unable to battle.
"Bulbasaur is unable to battle! Tangrowth wins!" the referee promptly and fairly declared.
"What a powerful move..."
Ash's gaze was profound. That Grassy Glide wasn't just superior in speed; it was also coated in a layer of Grass-type power. Factoring in Tangrowth's massive build, it was like being hit by a giant cannonball.
Nice move. I'm stealing this one, too.
He had already memorized the move's activation requirements, preparatory motions, and all other details. He would start Special Training as soon as he got back, aiming to master this move within five years.
"There's something a little off about your Bulbasaur," Erika said, unaware of what he was thinking. She simply looked at the Bulbasaur in his arms, mulled it over for a moment, and spoke:
"Counting the days, an incredible phenomenon might occur on the outskirts of Celadon City in the next few days. Perhaps it can solve your Bulbasaur's evolution problem."
Hearing this, Ash's eyes lit up, and he nodded gratefully at Erika.
He had been worrying about how to solve Bulbasaur's problem. Since she was a Grass-type expert, she surely wasn't speaking without reason.
Ash scratched his head and said amicably, "Looks like you're not such a petty woman after all. Misunderstanding resolved."
Erika: "?"
The situation became tense and hostile once more.
Swoosh!
Swoosh!
Ash and Erika recalled their Pokémon at the same time. This action made Ash look at her with confusion.
"Since you've recalled your Pidgeotto, I'll recall my Tangrowth as well. Let's decide the match with our last Pokémon," Erika explained.
Ash nodded, agreeing with her proposal, but inwardly he suspected she was just being lazy, too.
Still, it was for the best. He couldn't think of a strategy to counter that Grassy Glide on such short notice. Pidgeotto would likely just be cannon fodder, so it was better to focus everything on the final round.
"Go, my ace!"
Erika sent out her final Pokémon.
A red light flashed from the Poké Ball. To Ash's surprise, this Pokémon's body was countless times smaller than Tangrowth's, and it was even a little smaller than the Gloom from the beginning.
It was a small, green, humanoid Pokémon, only about the size of his bicep. Its lower body was wrapped in several long, yellow-and-green leaves, and it had two vibrant red flowers on its small head. It looked incredibly cute.
"This Pokémon is...?"
Ash couldn't see the back of its head. If not for the two red flowers in the way, he would have guessed it was a bald Pokémon.
"The Pokédex stated: Bellossom, the Flower Pokémon. It is an evolved form of Gloom. It excels at using graceful dances and vibrant petals to mesmerize its enemies, waiting for a chance to attack."
Ash nodded. He knew that Gloom could evolve into Vileplume, but he never expected it had a second evolution.
And its body was much smaller. So this was the legendary 'concentrated essence'.
Although its body was small, the aura this little one emitted was extremely dangerous. Ash didn't dare to underestimate it in the slightest.
"Then it's time for me to send out my ace Pokémon!"
Hearing this, the Pikachu beside him twitched its ears. Its battle intent flared, sparks flew from its cheeks, and it puffed out its small belly, about to take a heavy step forward.
"Pikachu, stop trying to steal the show. Go use Tail Whip on the side."
Pikachu: "?"
Ignoring its dumbfounded expression, Ash directly threw out another Poké Ball.
ROAR!!
Before the red light had even dissipated, a roar that shook the entire gym rang out. Although the sound couldn't yet compare to a mature dragon's roar, the intimidating aura it carried was in no way inferior.
This was followed by a pillar of fire shooting toward the sky, causing the temperature of the entire battlefield to rise by several degrees in an instant.
Only then did the red light fade, revealing Ash's Charmeleon.
"Charmeleon, I'm counting on you for this final round!"
Roar!
Charmeleon nodded at Ash, then turned its gaze toward the small Pokémon before it.
Although the two of them had not yet reached the complete, mind-reading bond he had with Primeape, the current Charmeleon was willing to listen to Ash's command if it meant defeating a stronger opponent.
It wasn't that it was afraid of Ash's fists.
"A Charmeleon, is it..." Erika, on the other hand, looked relieved. She had actually been afraid Ash would suddenly send out a Squirtle.
The battle began. Before Erika could make a move, Ash took the initiative, waving his hand with a grand gesture.
"Charmeleon, use Flamethrower on the ground!!"
ROAR!!
Charmeleon leaped up, aimed its mouth downward, and suddenly unleashed an intense stream of flame.
The moment the flame touched the grass on the battlefield floor, it instantly ignited and spread, engulfing the entire battlefield in a matter of blinks.
It didn't matter if this Bellossom knew Grassy Glide or not; this troublesome grassy field had to be eliminated first!
Whoosh whoosh whoosh...
The flames burned over half a meter high, and thick black smoke instantly billowed across the entire battlefield. Fortunately, there was a firebreak between the battlefield and the surrounding greenery, so the fire was contained to the battlefield floor.
After all, this was a Grass-type Gym. Plenty of trainers would use Fire-type Pokémon to challenge it. If they hadn't built this firebreak, this Gym probably wouldn't last half a month before being burned to the ground.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh...
Soon, the flames began to weaken, and the black smoke turned into faint white smoke. Erika quickly had a few of her female assistants open the glass ceiling to let the smoke dissipate.
The layer of turf wasn't thick, and the fireproof earth and stone slabs underneath were already exposed.
On the other side, to Ash's surprise, the Bellossom had not a single burn mark on it despite being in the middle of the inescapable blaze. It had begun to dance within the fire, and countless fallen leaves and red flowers instantly floated up, spiraling around its body like an indestructible shield, firmly blocking the great fire. It waved its small hands, and the leaves and flower petals beneath it danced along.
Only when the turf was completely burnt and the fire died down did Bellossom stop its dance. The surrounding green leaves and flowers immediately lost their energy support and fell to the ground.
Looking closely, the entire battlefield was now covered in scorched, blackened grass. But in a one-meter radius around Bellossom's body, a patch of green turf remained at its feet, completely untouched by a single flicker of the previous flame.
"That fire-proofing move is not bad..."
Ash couldn't help but applaud, but after a moment's hesitation, he added another sentence.
"It's just that the dancing is bad."
(end of chapter)