Roughly two kilometers to the south lay a barren stone canyon—desolate, lifeless, and utterly devoid of greenery. It seemed as though nothing existed here but gray-black rock and exposed mineral veins.
And yet, the world was often like this.
Places that appeared utterly inhospitable were, in fact, the preferred habitats of Rock-type Pokémon. These mineral-rich stones, laid bare on the surface, were nature's finest banquet for them.
Tonight, however, an uninvited guest shattered the canyon's long-standing silence.
A bipedal, catlike creature had blundered into the territory of the local overlord—and not only that, it had brazenly injured several of the boss's underlings.
"ROOOAAAR—!"
A massive rock serpent reared back and roared skyward. Its eyes, large as bronze bells, burned with fury. Not far from its side lay several Geodude, their bodies covered in claw marks and fractured stone.
These were two iconic Rock-type Pokémon of the Kanto region.
Onix was a solitary Pokémon—there would never be a second one within its territory. And any Onix capable of claiming such a vast canyon as its domain was, without question, formidable.
This one stretched over ten meters in length, its body noticeably thicker than that of ordinary Onix. Its pale, bone-white pupils were locked onto a raised stone outcrop ahead.
Standing atop it was a jet-black Pokémon with razor-sharp claws.
"Sneasel!"
The black Pokémon let out a piercing hiss. It extended its arms, flexed its claws inward a few times—and shockingly, made a distinctly human gesture of provocation.
That final insult was enough.
Already seething with rage, the Onix bellowed and swung its colossal tail. Metallic light flashed as the Iron Tail came crashing down toward the rock outcrop ahead.
BOOM—!
Stone exploded. Rubble scattered. A dense cloud of dust surged upward, swallowing the battlefield whole.
With a body exceeding ten meters and weighing over five hundred kilograms, Onix required no finesse—simply converting its mass and momentum into force was enough to unleash terrifying destruction.
"Didn't expect things to fall into place this easily," Kael muttered from behind a concealed cliff face, watching the battle below alongside Lulu.
"That Sneasel's personality is viciously aggressive."
High above the canyon, dozens of meters in the air, a drone hovered silently.
As a night breeze swept through, the dust gradually settled.
From its aerial vantage point, the drone's infrared camera immediately picked up Sneasel's position.
That cunning bastard had already slipped behind Onix during the brief window when the dust obscured its vision.
Its sleek, streamlined body launched skyward. The right claw rose at a forty-five-degree angle, completely enveloped in metallic light—identical to the sheen from Onix's tail moments earlier.
A cruel, excited grin curled across Sneasel's face.
The claw slammed down onto Onix's exposed back before it could react.
CLANG!
The sharp, unmistakable sound of metal striking stone rang out, accompanied by Onix's thunderous howl of pain.
Two deep grooves had been carved directly into its back.
"Metal Claw," Kael murmured, nodding in approval.
"As a Steel-type move, it's doubly effective against Rock-types."
"Snea—sel~"
Landing lightly on the ground, Sneasel let out a low, satisfied growl. A distinctly human expression of smug delight crossed its face as its long crimson ear twitched.
In a fluid motion, it sprang sideways, narrowly dodging another Iron Tail strike.
But before it could savor its success—
A rounded boulder, as large as an adult human's head, came screaming toward it from behind.
Sneasel froze.
Its keen ears had caught the sound—but its body no longer had the time to evade. The rock had been launched with near-perfect timing.
With everything it had, Sneasel lunged forward.
Still, the boulder smashed into its right shoulder.
CRACK.
The crisp sound of bone fracturing echoed through the silent night.
"S—Sneasel…!"
Its teeth clenched tight. Bloodshot eyes bulged as its body trembled violently from the pain.
The right arm was broken.
Sneasel was a speed-based assassin—its defenses were dangerously fragile. Had it not made that last desperate lunge forward, the boulder would have struck its head instead.
"That was incredible…"
Kael nearly applauded, stopping himself only for fear of alerting the two Pokémon below.
To witness such a brilliant exchange between wild Pokémon—
Onix's feint, drawing attention away before launching a lethal counterattack—
Even elite Trainers would have struggled to react in time.