Chapter 326 – Subduing Kleavor!
Chapter 326 – Subduing Kleavor!
"Really? Wouldn't that be too much trouble, Mr. Asahi?" Pesselle asked again, feeling guilty.
Kleavor was their division's noble Pokémon, and failing to care for it properly was their fault.
Asahi had already provided them with Pokéblocks, and now he was offering his personal help?
"It's no trouble," Asahi replied. "I'm curious about the nobles Pokémon of Hisui anyway."
Kamado, standing to the side, didn't object—he saw this as a chance to observe Asahi further, to see if the outsider had any ulterior motives.
As for Colza, while his Diamond Division held differing views from the Pearl Division, he was still glad to see a chance to calm the rampaging Kleavor.
Just then, Gary raised his hand and asked, "Umm... What exactly is this 'Kleavor' Pokémon you guys keep talking about?"
...
Kleavor – The Axe Jaw Pokémon.
A regional evolution of Scyther found only in Hisui.
After witnessing it cleave an entire tree in half, Kanto Champion and International Police Officer Gary Oak had only one thing to say:
"Shiny and golden, yeah—but still doesn't beat Scizor."
He nearly sparked a diplomatic crisis between Team Rocket and the Pearl Division.
"I'm sorry, I was wrong!!" Gary apologized sincerely.
Opposite him, the caretaker of Kleavor, Field Warden Lian, glared at him furiously.
"Lian, don't be mad. He's not from Hisui—he doesn't understand what nobles mean to us," Pesselle intervened. "Mr. Asahi and Gary came to help us soothe Kleavor."
But Lian retorted, "That golden light is the blessing of Sinnoh the Almighty. The noble doesn't need to be calmed."
He firmly believed the golden aura on Kleavor was a divine gift.
"But Kleavor doesn't seem to think so," Asahi said calmly. "I can sense its turmoil... its rage."
"Be honest with me—do you think it wants to be like this?"
He pointed toward where Kleavor was.
The massive Pokémon was currently spinning 360 degrees, its axe-like arms slicing a tree into clean sections.
As if sensing Asahi's gaze, Kleavor turned toward him—its eyes wild with fury.
Before Lian could say a word, Kleavor suddenly charged straight for Asahi like something had drawn its interest.
"Mr. Asahi, watch out!" Pesselle shouted.
A noble's power was immense—especially in a berserk state.
"Ice Glaceon—!"
She was just about to summon Glaceon to defend him, but the golden-glowing Kleavor was already upon Asahi.
Its axe was about to fall—
Gardevoir's eyes flared blue—
Quack!
A Psyduck popped out of its Pokéball, just in time to raise its bill in front of Kleavor' axe—
CLANG!
The clash of metal echoed.
The impact knocked Psyduck straight into Asahi's arms, while even the rampaging Kleavor was forced back by a single step.
Just one step.
But that alone shocked both Pearl and Lian.
That plain-looking Psyduck had actually blocked a berserk noble's strike?!
The dizzy Psyduck nestled in Asahi's arms still managed to raise a hand proudly, looking for praise.
Asahi patted the three tufts of hair on its head. "Good job."
"Quaaack~"
Psyduck beamed with pride.
Asahi then looked up at the attacking Kleavor—who was now staring right back at him.
Their eyes locked.
And under Asahi's gaze, the wild look in Kleavor's eyes slowly began to fade... becoming clearer.
It made a gesture—an invitation to battle.
Lian: "!?"
Pesselle: "!?"
This was the first time they'd met, so why was Kleavor being polite to Asahi now?
Asahi was just as surprised.
He hadn't even used the Verdant Force...
Could it be... Arceus was pulling strings behind the scenes?
Accepting the gesture, Asahi followed Kleavor into an open clearing.
Kleavor raised its arm—and threw out a green-colored plate that lodged itself in a nearby tree.
"Klea!"
Asahi understood what it meant.
"You want me to challenge you. Win, and I get the plate... huh."
There was a scent of divine fate in all this.
But hey—he was in Hisui now. In Arceus' backyard.
What choice did he have?
Asahi nodded.
But before he could even act—Kleavor had already lunged forward.
You Hisui Pokémon really don't play fair, do you?
Fortunately, Asahi's Aura powers warned him in time. He sensed the Kleavor's move and dodged its vicious attack.
Asahi quickly released his Slowbro, grabbed it by the scruff of the neck, and hurled it straight at the Kleavor like a living cannonball.
"Go, Slowbro!"
No sooner had he shouted than the Shellder clamped on Slowbro's tail clashed directly with Kleavor's axe-like pincers.
Clang!
Sparks flew from the impact.
Launched like a missile, Slowbro finally came to its senses mid-flight.
Already used to Asahi's wild tactics, it took a deep breath and shot a stream of water at the dazzling, golden-glowing opponent before it.
Water Pulse!
The vibrating torrent of water hit Kleavor dead-on, causing the Steel-type Pokémon to stiffen for a moment.
But only for a moment.
With a burst of motion, Kleavor shook off the attack and lunged, twin pincers gleaming as it slashed at Slowbro again.
Clang!
Slowbro had learned to use the Shellder on its tail like a shield. It blocked the axe strike once more and turned to Asahi for help.
C'mon, boss, this guy's too much for me. Time to bring out the Gardevoir big sis, yeah?
But Asahi shook his head. "If Gardevoir has to do everything, what's the point of bringing you to Hisui?"
"Slowbro, pay attention to Kleavor's downward strikes. There's a tiny pre-swing delay… Catch that, and you can dodge cleanly!"
Kleavor, empowered by golden light, was faster and stronger than before. But its strength was now so overwhelming, its movements weren't fluid. The brute force was throwing off its technique.
That's what Asahi was counting on.
Slowbro focused on Kleavor's patterns and noticed it—there was a brief pause before each swing.
So it tried dodging sideways before the pincer came down.
And just like that, it sidestepped the strike with surprising ease.
Under Asahi's coaching, Slowbro changed its style. No more direct tanking. It started to move—agile, almost nimble…
Hard to believe, honestly, that Slowbro was being called "nimble."
But, one way or another, it worked. Slowbro avoided every attack Kleavor threw its way.
From the sidelines, Lian was stunned.
The mighty Forest King Kleavor—his idol—was completely suppressed.
And the one doing it was just a Slowbro? That was unbelievable!
Gary saw the look on Lian's face and smirked proudly. "Hah! That's nothing. Back when Asahi and I faced Rayquaza together, even that monster ended up captured."
"Rayquaza?"
Lian and Pesselle stared at him, as if seeing him for the first time.
Who would've thought this spiky-haired punk could battle a legendary like Rayquaza?
Gary, of course, conveniently left out that Asahi had done all the work.
On the field, although Slowbro had adapted to Kleavor's tells and dodged perfectly, it still couldn't hurt it. The golden aura surrounding Kleavor nullified all damage.
If this were the game, Asahi should've pulled out the so-called Calming Charm by now.
But he had no such item.
Instead, he pulled a specially-formulated Bug-type Pokéblock from his belt and tossed it at Kleavor.
The block exploded mid-air in a puff of shimmering powder that fused into Kleavor's golden glow.
Some of the light faded.
"Just as I thought."
Asahi gave a knowing smile.
In the original storyline, the Calming Charm used to pacify the frenzied lords and ladies was made from their favorite foods, scented to soothe them.
If that worked, then surely these high-tech, perfectly balanced Pokéblocks from the system would work even better.
"Let's go!"
He hurled another.
Tiny ripples spread across Kleavor's body as the aura weakened. But Kleavor, now growing agitated, launched a furious assault.
Double Hit, Air Slash—all blocked by the trusty Shellder shield.
Stealth Rock erupted from all directions, but with a base Defense stat of 110 and Iron Defense boosted, Slowbro barely felt it.
No matter how enraged Kleavor became, it couldn't get past Slowbro.
This continued until Asahi had thrown enough Pokéblocks to reach a certain threshold—
Boom!
The golden aura shattered, revealing Kleavor's true form beneath.
Asahi's eyes lit up.
"Now, Slowbro—Surf!"
A massive wave surged beneath Slowbro, crashing toward the now-stunned Kleavor.
Wham!
Before Kleavor could react, it was slammed against the Great Tree at the center of the Giantwood Arena.
Boom!
The Rock-type variant of Kleavor took massive damage!
As the water receded, the battered Kleavor fell from the tree, one knee on the ground, holding itself up with one bladed arm.
"I win," Asahi said calmly. "As promised, I'm taking the Plate."