Chapter 54: The Power of the Veteran Legendary and Tapu’s Entrustment

Chapter 54: The Power of the Veteran Legendary and Tapu's Entrustment

"Charizard, Mega Evolve," Ron said. The Key Stone on his left wrist and the Charizardite X on Charizard's left wrist reacted simultaneously, engulfing Charizard in a glowing cocoon. The cocoon shattered, and a Mega Charizard X spread its wings and soared into the air, staring fiercely at Tapu Lele.

"Lele~" Tapu Lele giggled.

Ron replied, "Don't underestimate my Mega Charizard X! Shadow Claw!"

Charizard charged at Tapu Lele with a dark aura and ferocious energy. The Eight Wine Cups claw combo slashed wildly toward Tapu Lele.

"Lele, lelele~" Tapu Lele hummed a tune, dodging Charizard's strikes with ease, then slammed into Charizard's stomach with a swift attack.

Charizard bent over in pain, clutching its belly before slowly recovering. It looked up, glaring at Tapu Lele and roaring. A Flamethrower burst toward the guardian deity.

"Lele~" With a flick of its finger, Tapu Lele reflected the Flamethrower, sending it crashing back into Charizard.

Seeing that his Mega Charizard X had only half its health left, Ron fell silent.

"Is the gap really this huge...?" Ron muttered, disheartened.

"Lele~" Tapu Lele waved its finger at Mega Charizard X, smiling.

"Even if we lose, we'll go down swinging. Mega Charizard X, Flare Blitz!" Ron shouted.

"Roar!" Mega Charizard X bellowed. Its blue tail flame blazed wildly, igniting its entire body in blue fire, far more intense than usual.

Tapu Lele clapped the ground with one hand, summoning a pink shockwave that knocked Charizard backward. Rings of blue light appeared on the ground.

While Charizard lay on the ground, pink, blue, and yellow beams of energy violently bombarded it.

"Nature's Madness, huh?" Ron said helplessly. "That's just cheating. I can't even get close."

Charizard stood panting in front of Ron. It knew it wasn't Tapu Lele's match, but it was unwilling to accept defeat. What was the point of getting stronger if not for this?

"Final move, Giga Impact!" Ron shouted.

Mega Charizard X roared, charging Tapu Lele with fierce resolve.

"Lele~" Tapu Lele giggled. A wave of psychic energy stopped Charizard mid-air, rendering it unable to fight and canceling its Mega Evolution.

Tapu Lele chuckled again, sprinkling healing sparkle dust that restored Charizard. Ron stepped forward, bowed, and said, "A deal's a deal. I'll be your sparring partner for the next month."

Tapu Lele giggled and nodded.

Olivia looked at the now-calm Ron and asked, "Well? Now you understand how powerful Tapu Lele is, don't you?"

Ron plopped onto the ground, gazing at Tapu Lele. "The power of a veteran legendary is truly overwhelming. But I have my own path. One day, I'll lead my team into the realm of legends—and then we'll defeat Tapu Lele."

Olivia smacked the back of Ron's head. "Don't talk nonsense. Do you think capturing a legendary is that easy? Without opportunity or their willingness to follow you, just forget it. And you're right about one thing—only legendaries can defeat legendaries."

Ron pouted. Then how did Ash defeat Darkrai with a Sceptile? Is Sceptile a legendary now?

Ron then thought about his Mewtwo. If Mewtwo fought Tapu Lele in its current state, the win rate wouldn't even hit 10%! But wasn't Mewtwo a legendary?

No—Mewtwo was a legendary. Was it just a matter of time and growth?

"System, what exactly defines a legendary? Don't feed me game stats. Most of my Pokémon have over 600 base points already."

Ding. "The definition of a legendary lies in its mastery over world essence. Simply put, regular Pokémon use elemental energy, while legendaries use primal world energy. The difference in quality alone makes them worlds apart."

"So you're saying my future path is helping my Pokémon comprehend world essence?" Ron pondered. "How do I do that?"

Ding. "Currently no data available. If the host can find Arceus's Plates and allow the system to analyze them, a method may be found."

"...Where the hell am I supposed to find Arceus's Plates?!" Ron groaned in frustration.

Comprehending world essence was the first step toward becoming a legendary, but that first step already seemed impossible.

"Whatever. For now, I'll train with Tapu Lele for a month. Gotta get used to battling legendaries first," Ron said with a shrug—or maybe he was just too carefree.

He knew that legendaries were still far off for him. Even Mewtwo had been revived by a stroke of luck through the system. Ron had zero actual experience fighting legendaries.

Without overthinking, the next round of battle began. Ron released Dragonair and the others to observe. Even if they weren't battling, watching a fight against a legendary was a valuable experience.

Ron also pulled out a camcorder from his backpack to record the match. Even if he kept losing, the experience was invaluable.

Olivia watched as Charizard lost again and again, but kept getting back up.

Thankfully, Tapu Lele's sparkle dust had instant healing properties, allowing Charizard to undergo intense battles.

After a while, Olivia left. After all, she was the Island Kahuna and had plenty to do. Now that she knew Ron wasn't a threat to Tapu Lele, there was nothing more to worry about.

Ron also had no plans to return to Konikoni City for now. He asked Olivia to send supplies instead, and pitched a tent near the Ruins of Life, ready for a long-term battle.

One month later, it wasn't just Charizard fighting Tapu Lele—Dragonite, Gyarados, and Tyranitar all joined in, launching an all-out attack.

Tapu Lele danced gracefully through the battlefield, defeating them one by one.

"Phew… our month's up. Tapu Lele, I'm heading out," Ron said as he recalled the four Pokémon, now healed by Tapu Lele.

"Lele~" Tapu Lele nodded and called out.

"Huh? You're entrusting me with a Pokémon? Which one?" Ron asked curiously.

"Oooh!" "Moo!" "Kii!" Three cries rang out.

All four Tapus appeared before Ron.

Seeing the four guardians together, Ron suddenly remembered something: Ash was entrusted with one when he first arrived in Alola, chosen by Tapu Koko. Could this be the same?

Sure enough, a starry-looking creature was handed to Ron, protected by the four Tapus.

Ron looked at the Cosmog in his arms and frowned. "I'm not even from Alola. Is it really okay for me to take care of it? I'll be traveling to other regions. I might not return for a year."

"Lele, lelele~" Tapu Lele replied. Its meaning was clear: Take it with you. We'll handle the rest.

Ron hesitated for a moment, then said, "Alright. See you in a year. If you need anything, come to Pallet Town in Kanto. If I'm not there, my Pokémon can contact me."

The four Tapus nodded and chirped before leaving the Ruins of Life.

Ron hugged Cosmog and returned to Konikoni City to say farewell to Olivia. With the time he had left, he planned to collect more Z-Crystals in preparation for the battles to come.