Chapter 97 – Steelix vs Tyranitar

Before Tyranitar could launch its attack, Nathan quickly shouted and released a Pokémon from a Poké Ball.

A red beam of light flashed.

Larvitar appeared on the field.

Seeing its child, Tyranitar—who had been about to trigger Earthquake—suddenly froze.

"Tyranitar, the Poké Ball is here. I'm also returning your child to you safe and sound. Leave these two troublemakers to me—I'll punish them for you. What do you say?" Nathan said in a low voice.

At the same time, he tossed the Poké Ball toward Tyranitar.

Tyranitar looked at the Poké Ball, snorted white mist from its nostrils, and stomped down hard. The Poké Ball was instantly crushed into pieces.

Then it let out a furious roar.

Clearly, it refused.

"Damn..." Nathan sighed in frustration. Without hesitation, he grabbed another Poké Ball from his waist.

"Steelix, come on out!"

A flash of red light lit up the area.

An even more terrifying aura than Tyranitar's erupted from the field.

"ROAR!!"

The moment it appeared, Steelix let out an earth-shaking roar, eager for battle.

"So... so scary!"

"That's a Steelix? Isn't it a bit too huge?!"

The siblings behind Nathan stood frozen in shock, their eyes wide with disbelief.

The younger sister, being more timid, was already hiding behind her brother, clearly frightened.

After all, they had just been chased by a furious Tyranitar, and Nathan's attitude toward them hadn't exactly been friendly.

"Steelix, help me out here. Just drive Tyranitar away and I'll give you five energy cubes for dinner tonight!"

Not paying the siblings any mind, Nathan spoke to Steelix with a touch of helplessness.

Because he hadn't formally captured it yet, Steelix's roar upon entering the field wasn't directed at Tyranitar in challenge—

—it was demanding payment from Nathan!

"ROAR!"

[Five isn't enough! Seven or eight! At least eight!]

Steelix immediately started haggling.

Sure, Rainbow Pokéblock were filling, but Steelix still hadn't gotten any snacks or late-night treats!

"Fine. As long as you help drive off Tyranitar—eight it is!" Nathan agreed without hesitation.

If not for Steelix, hiring a master-level Pokémon would be next to impossible!

And even if it were possible, the cost would be astronomical.

Compared to that, Steelix's demands were relatively low.

That was also why Nathan started with five blocks—figuring even with bargaining, the price wouldn't climb too high.

But at that moment, Tyranitar had had enough!

"ROAR!!"

[A mere human dares to ignore ME?! DIE!!]

With a furious roar, Tyranitar swept one arm.

A spinning stone blade shot directly toward Steelix!

Nathan's pupils shrank as he saw this. He immediately shouted:

"Steelix! Use Iron Tail to smash it!"

With the Viridian power, Steelix instantly understood what Nathan meant and instinctively used Iron Tail!

Its already rock-hard tail was coated in a layer of energy and swung directly at the incoming stone blade.

BANG!

With a loud crash, the stone blade—which could have caused serious damage—shattered instantly.

Steelix glanced at Nathan with a strange expression, then turned and glared at Tyranitar with fury.

Whatever the reason, Tyranitar had just made Steelix mad.

"Perfect—that's the attitude I want! Go, Steelix! Use Double-Edge!"

Nathan's eyes lit up, and he gave his command without missing a beat.

For a Master-level, Gigantamaxed Steelix, there was no better move than Double-Edge!

Its massive, armored body was its greatest weapon!

"ROAR!!"

Steelix let out a furious cry and charged straight at Tyranitar like a runaway tank.

If Tyranitar weren't a pseudo-legendary, even a fellow Master-level Pokémon would be forced to flee from such raw power!

"Who is that guy...? So young, yet he can command a Pokémon that strong..."

The boy stared at Nathan's back, filled with awe.

The girl nervously peeked out from behind her brother. "That Steelix... might be as strong as a Champion's ace Pokémon..."

"Brother, we should run. What if he decides to turn on us next?"

Honestly, the girl was already regretting everything. She never should've dragged her brother along to steal Tyranitar's child.

But the boy shook his head firmly. "We can't run. This guy is way stronger than we imagined."

"Besides, if he wanted to kill us, we'd be dead already."

While the siblings whispered, Steelix had already gotten close to Tyranitar.

Tyranitar, after setting its child behind it, showed no signs of backing down!

"ROAR!!"

With a defiant roar, Tyranitar began charging a terrifying energy in its mouth.

"That's Hyper Beam! Steelix, zig-zag to dodge it!"

Sensing the devastating energy wave building up, Nathan shouted again.

He instinctively treated Steelix like one of his own Pokémon—like Volcarona!

And if Volcarona got hit by that Hyper Beam, it would be crippled or worse!

Though the command was technically wrong, Steelix could feel the deep concern in Nathan's voice.

Some strange emotion began to sprout inside it—something it had never felt before.

It was weird.

But not unpleasant.

"ROAR!!"

With a roar, Steelix didn't dodge—instead, it accelerated toward Tyranitar!

At the same time, Tyranitar fired its fully charged Hyper Beam, aimed directly at Steelix!

A Master-level Gigantamax Pokémon versus a Champion-level pseudo-legendary—

When they clashed in the wild, the resulting explosion kicked up massive dust clouds!

Even the ground beneath them trembled!

"I almost forgot... Steelix still isn't officially mine yet."

"But that's fine. At least it followed one command—just once is enough."

As the dust cloud billowed like a storm, Nathan first froze, then smiled in relief.

Every beginning is hard.

But if Steelix listened once, it would listen twice, three times...

And from there, full capture was just a matter of time.

"Flyy~"

While Nathan was lost in thought, Flygon gently flapped its wings, blowing away the dust. Its calm gesture warmed Nathan's heart.

No matter how strong Steelix was, his own Pokémon would always be the most important!

That bond—that word—bond—was what a true Trainer should care about most!

"Cough... cough... So... who won?"

The siblings, who had no Pokémon to protect them, could only cough and squint through the dust, trying to see what happened.

They had no idea what the difference between Tyranitar and Steelix even was.

Either way, both were way out of their league!

"Steelix! Steelix won! And it's totally unharmed—so strong!!"

As the dust cleared, the girl saw the massive figure still standing proudly and shouted in excitement.

She couldn't help it.

If Steelix had lost, they'd definitely be dead!

"Good... that's good..."

The boy patted his chest, face filled with relief and the thrill of surviving danger.

But in reality, they had never needed to worry.

Even as a pseudo-legendary, Tyranitar couldn't leap an entire tier to challenge Master-level Pokémon.

Especially not one in Gigantamax form!

Even if they were the same level, Tyranitar wouldn't have had the upper hand.

As the dust finally settled...

There stood Steelix—completely unharmed!

Just as Nathan had believed all along—he had never once doubted Steelix's victory.

"As expected of Tyranitar... It didn't retreat even a single step."

When the dust fully cleared and Nathan saw Tyranitar's condition, he couldn't help but sigh in admiration.

Steelix was completely unharmed.

Tyranitar, however, had clear wounds on both arms.

And yet—even so—it didn't retreat at all. Its gaze only grew more ferocious.