Chapter 21: First Victory
[VIP Chat Group]
[Gary]: ...That Gyarados possesses remarkably sharp battle instincts.
[Ash]: Of course it does! Raina has always trained really hard!
[Gary]: ...Haven’t you noticed? Every movement it has made since the battle began has flowed seamlessly into the next. It counterattacked with its tail while dodging Thunder Punch and kept moving while shattering the stone pillars. Training alone can’t produce that.
[Brock]: Gary is right. This is the mutual understanding between a Pokémon and its Trainer. Gyarados knows what Raina wants it to do, while Raina knows exactly what Gyarados is capable of.
[Misty]: ...Could all of you stop analyzing everything?! The battle isn’t over yet!
[Cynthia]: Misty is right. It is still too early to draw conclusions.
[Steven]: ...I’m becoming increasingly curious about where this golden Gyarados came from.
On the screen, the corners of Brock’s mouth rose slightly.
"That was a good solution, but how will you deal with this? Tyranitar, use Stone Edge!"
Tyranitar roared.
Countless sharpened stones instantly erupted from the ground, stabbing toward Gyarados from every direction.
With nowhere left to dodge, Gyarados could only watch as the jagged stones closed in around it.
[VIP Chat Group]
[Ash]: This is bad!
[Gary]: It’s surrounded. If those stones hit, it’s over.
[Dawn]: Raina, hurry and think of something!
[Iris]: Can Gyarados... fly?
[Lance]: ...Gyarados can float above the ground, but it cannot fly like an ordinary Flying-type Pokémon.
[May]: Ah! It’s going to get hit!
On the screen, Raina took a deep breath before issuing her command.
"Gyarados, use Hydro Pump!"
[VIP Chat Group]
[Brock]: What?!
[Ash]: Hydro Pump?! But the sharp stones are coming from every direction!
[Gary]: From that angle... Is it trying to—
Gyarados opened its mouth as blue energy gathered within it.
Then—
Boom!
Hydro Pump was not aimed at Tyranitar.
It was aimed directly at the ground.
The powerful jet of water slammed into the battlefield, and the enormous recoil propelled Gyarados upward in the opposite direction.
The resulting shock wave sent dust and fragments of rock flying through the air. Using the force of the blast, Gyarados adjusted its posture in midair and landed steadily on a section of the battlefield untouched by Stone Edge.
[VIP Chat Group]
[Barry]: Aaaaaaaaaah! I’m fining her! I’m definitely fining her! What kind of move was that?!
[Bianca]: She used Hydro Pump’s recoil to launch herself into the air?! Is that even possible?!
[Lucian]: It is theoretically possible, but only if the Pokémon possesses extraordinarily precise control over its move.
[Gary]: ...Exactly how long has that Gyarados been training?
[Misty]: Raina has been raising it ever since she caught it as a Magikarp.
[Daisy]: Misty, have you completely accepted this already? You sound awfully proud of your daughter.
[Misty]: I do not!
[Violet]: You do.
[Misty]: I do not!
[Lily]: You definitely do.
[Misty]: ...That’s enough from all of you.
The video continued.
"Hyper Beam!"
Raina immediately pressed the advantage without hesitation.
Gyarados opened its mouth and fired a golden beam straight toward Tyranitar.
Considering Tyranitar’s enormous size, it was already too late for it to evade.
"Tyranitar, use Protect!"
A pale-green barrier formed in front of Tyranitar.
Hyper Beam crashed against it, causing the barrier to tremble violently, but it held.
Tyranitar breathed slightly heavier than before, clearly having expended a considerable amount of stamina, yet its imposing presence had not diminished.
Brock stared at Gyarados in silence for several seconds.
"You didn’t train this Gyarados entirely by yourself, did you?" he suddenly asked.
Raina froze.
"Huh?"
"I mean that you weren’t the only person who trained it," Brock explained. "With battle awareness like this, a highly skilled Trainer must have guided it."
Raina blinked before scratching her head in embarrassment.
"You noticed... Dad helped train it."
Brock pressed a hand to his forehead.
"Sigh... I knew it..."
"All right."
Brock lowered his hand.
"Then show me exactly how powerful it has become."
"Tyranitar, use Giga Impact!"
Tyranitar’s entire body erupted with dazzling white light.
It transformed into something resembling a meteor and charged toward Gyarados with unstoppable momentum.
Raina clenched her fist.
In the end, she chose to confront the attack head-on.
"Gyarados, use Hydro Pump at full power!"
Throughout the curtain of rain, the droplets surrounding Gyarados seemed to either freeze in place or converge toward the blue energy gathering inside its mouth.
Then a blast of water twice as thick as before erupted forward.
Hydro Pump and Giga Impact collided at the center of the battlefield.
Boom——!!!
The shock wave swept every loose stone from the field. Even Forrest was forced several steps backward in the referee’s stand, raising an arm to shield his face.
Dust rained down from the Gym’s ceiling.
When the light finally faded, Tyranitar and Gyarados stood face-to-face.
Neither moved.
Then Tyranitar took one step forward.
Then another.
Its knees suddenly buckled.
Its enormous body slowly collapsed and crashed into the ground, raising a cloud of dust.
Gyarados remained standing.
It was breathing heavily, and several fresh wounds covered its body, but it had not fallen.
Forrest stared blankly for several seconds before finally reacting.
"T-Tyranitar is unable to battle! Gyarados wins!"
Brock recalled Tyranitar.
"You did well," he said quietly to the Poké Ball.
He then raised his head and looked toward Raina on the opposite side of the battlefield.
Raina was already running toward Gyarados. She frantically searched through her bag, pulled out a Potion, and carefully sprayed it over Gyarados’s injuries.
Gyarados lowered its head and gently rubbed the tip of its snout against her cheek.
"That tickles!"
Raina shrank her neck away from it, but she could not suppress her smile.
"You won! You really won! You were amazing!"
Gyarados released a deep, rumbling sound in response.
[VIP Chat Group]
[Ash]: That battle was incredible!
[Bonnie]: It really was! Raina’s Gyarados is so strong! Tyranitar’s final Giga Impact looked unbelievably powerful, yet Gyarados actually defeated it in a head-on clash!
[Clemont]: Bonnie, that was because Gyarados had already used Rain Dance. Rain greatly increases the power of Water-type moves.
[Bonnie]: I see! Clemont, you’re amazing!
[Clemont]: Hehe. That’s just basic knowledge.
[Lance]: A man capable of raising such an exceptional Trainer... I’m becoming more and more curious about Asher’s true identity.
[Steven]: As am I.
[Wallace]: Hey, could the two of you stop making everything about Asher? Raina is the protagonist right now. Raina is the one who won.
[Steven]: You’re right. Congratulations to Raina on winning the first round.
[Lance]: But there is still another battle. I’m looking forward to it more than ever.