After a night of rest, the Pokémon had almost all recovered.
From today onwards, it would officially be the start of their high-intensity battle training.
Natsuhiko had informed them in advance, so they were mentally prepared.
Beedrill naturally had no objections; it's definitely the one among Natsuhiko's Pokémon that loves battling the most.
Oh, now we have to exclude Doublade, who's entered another state.
Yujira wouldn't have any objections either.
Although compared to Beedrill, it prefers to train silently and enhance its psychic powers, it wouldn't refuse battles, as it's an effective way to improve strength, even more so than training.
Having witnessed Doublade's significant power boost after evolution, Yujira felt pressured again and became more determined.
Every night, when it's quiet, it would sit cross-legged in mid-air, honing its psychic powers, and when tired, it would use meditation to recover, serving as an alternative to rest.
Togetic might be the only one not as fond of it.
But not liking it doesn't mean refusal.
With all the Pokémon nodding in agreement, even Doublade, how could Togetic, being the "Social Butterfly," not conform?
So it chose to gladly accept.
As for Doublade, fresh after evolving, it indeed wanted to see how its strength had changed for better self-assessment.
If no surprises come up, in its normal state, Doublade would still be the most cautious and timid in the team.
Their goal today was...
On the southern slope where the cave was located, at the place with the best light, also the area with the densest vegetation.
Connecting to Tyrantrum's territory.
If successful today, this territory would be incorporated into the area Natsuhiko governs.
Riding on Tyrantrum to become an official "Dragon Knight," Natsuhiko brought the Pokémon to the edge of that area.
Tyrantrum's mere approach caught the attention of some Pokémon within the territory.
This time, Natsuhiko's target area was quite special because the residing Pokémon were relatively mild in character. It wasn't an area exclusively for one Pokémon species, but rather multiple species living together, helping and supporting each other.
They naturally weren't strangers to Tyrantrum as a "neighbor."
So their mere approach prompted a clearly "unwelcoming" and even hostile reaction towards Natsuhiko and his group.
The first to appear in their sight was a Pokémon with an oval shape, wrapped in thick dark blue shell, with a gigantic horn on its head, resembling a stag beetle, Heracross!
An insect-type and fighting-type Pokémon, very gentle in nature, yet possesses terrifying strength. Especially when angry, the horns on its head can undoubtedly instill fear in its enemies.
Heracross stared intently at Tyrantrum with a clearly hostile stance.
"What did you do to them?" Natsuhiko asked in slight surprise.
Tyrantrum opened its mouth.
What else could I have done?
Previously, feeling peckish, and with the tree fruit on the slope not fully ripe, I went in and snatched some.
"Heh—"
Natsuhiko chuckled lightly.
He didn't blame Tyrantrum, as it was quite normal.
Instead, it saved him a lot of trouble.
"Is Heracross the protector of this territory?"
Tyrantrum nodded its big head.
Tyrantrum couldn't deal with Heracross, and Heracross couldn't do much against Tyrantrum either.
Heracross seemed to have some advantage in attributes, and...
Natsuhiko glanced at the tree trunk behind Heracross, and a few small Pokémon poked their heads out.
They were helped by these Pokémon.
So, from a hard power standpoint, Heracross should not be a match for Tyrantrum; otherwise, Tyrantrum wouldn't have been able to charge in and take their tree fruit unopposed.
Heracross only then noticed Natsuhiko's presence.
Seeing him standing on Tyrantrum, which appeared docile, it immediately realized Tyrantrum had been subdued by Natsuhiko, showing surprise in its eyes.
Regarding Tyrantrum's strength, no Pokémon knew it better than Heracross. Losing was one thing, but being subdued was unexpected, doubling its pressure.
"In the wild, it's all about strength; defeat him first, and then negotiate slowly." Natsuhiko said, signaling the Pokémon to prepare.
Since they had auxiliary Pokémon helping, there was no need to talk about one-on-one strategies.
Psychic Arena, Sword Dance, and High-speed Movement were activated one after another.
Beedrill led the charge, followed closely by Doublade, with Yujira controlling the field and Togetic adding control.
The degree of synergy between the four Pokémon was high; battling together wasn't a one-time or two-time occurrence. If the enemy was just a single Heracross, it couldn't possibly be a match for them.
Bang!
A Flying Type Acrobatics move from Beedrill dealt massive damage to Heracross, causing it to cry out in pain.
The combination of insect-type and fighting-type is four times weak against Flying Type Techniques, a very noticeable weak point.
"Holla!"
After stabilizing itself, Heracross softly growled, with a faint cyan glow emanating from its body, its momentum rising.
"Insect's Premonition Trait?"
Insect's Premonition: When health is low, the power of insect-type techniques increases.
"Ying Treasure!"
Not only was the Insect's Premonition Trait triggered.
A clear, melodious bell-like voice rang out from behind Heracross, and pink cherry blossoms floated gently from the sky, falling on Heracross, further boosting its momentum.
Following the sound, Natsuhiko looked at one of his targets for this time.
A small, cute Pokémon wearing a dress made of pink cherry blossom petals with hair resembling cherry blossom petals, with two berry-like balls adorning its head, pink arms, and yellow legs.
A Grass-type Pokémon, Cherrim!
And those scattered cherry blossoms were the unique trait of a Pokémon like Cherrim, Flower Ceremony!
Flower Ceremony: During sunny weather, your own and your allies' attack and special defense abilities are significantly boosted.
This is a very OP aura-like trait; in games, Pokémon with this trait can increase their own and their allies' attack and special defense by fifty percent!
What does this mean?
A terrifying combination of group damage and defense buffs.
And they were the primary targets Natsuhiko had chosen.
Even if it's just this one trait on its own, it's enough for Natsuhiko to capture one to serve as a temporary team enhancement tool.
The attack boost would undoubtedly provide a massive increase for Beedrill and Doublade, while the special defense boost could compensate for Honedge's lack of special defense, strengthening Yujira and Togetic's already decent special defense capabilities.
Most importantly, not only does Cherrim have such traits, theoretically, its inherited techniques could include Healing Fluctuation, Wish of Healing, Aromatherapy, Grass Arena, and other healing techniques that Natsuhiko urgently needs.
A super support that combines buffing and healing capabilities!
Such a Pokémon was absolutely his greatest asset in this exploration plan.
Even if there were a Cherrim that met all of Natsuhiko's criteria, the combined value of Yanmega and Tyrantrum would be less than that of one Cherrim for him.
Of course,
The current premise is to defeat this Heracross that has received great enhancement.