Chapter 93: Friendly Exchange (Thanks to Dack | Lei for the Alliance Leader boost, extra chapter)

"Get up! Get up!"

The spectators' roars inside the arena surged like an avalanche.

Almost everyone was in phase waiting for Aggron to stand, including the hosts in the broadcast booth secretly cheering it on.

And when Aggron rose, and the miraculous blue light flared, everyone's eyes went wide.

"It evolved! At the very brink of collapse! Aggron evolved! Friends, we are fortunate to witness a miracle unfolding!"

The host could no longer contain his excitement and began screaming hysterically.

At the same time, he didn't forget to keep an eye on Sannine on the other side.

Claydol still seemed a little dizzy and unable to make sense of the situation, while Sannine's face still carried a tangle of complicated emotions, fists clenched, lost in thought.

The view returned.

Countless people stared fixedly at the dramatically transformed Aggron, holding their breath.

It propped up its upper body, its former four-legged crouch shifting into a two-legged stance, its stubby tail instantly lengthening, two sharp long horns sprouting from its head, the metal armor at the tip of its nose extending outward, the back of its head layered like a helmet covering its entire skull.

More crucial was the body.

The already very thick metal armor thickened layer upon layer, making its silhouette resemble a heavy tank.

With all the metamorphosis complete, the evolution light faded, revealing Aggron's tall and terrifying form—bright silver armor gleaming in the sunlight, a pair of eyes flickering with a heart-stopping hue, white steam puffing with each breath, every movement exuding tremendous pressure.

"Roar—!

Aggron threw back its head and bellowed, the air trembling ceaselessly with its roar.

Immediately after.

It turned its head slightly, exchanged a glance with its trainer, and after swapping looks brimming with joy and conviction, it strode toward Claydol.

With every step its heavy body took, the pitted ground quivered violently, like a drumbeat pounding on the heart.

And when it took the third step, a blazing white light spread downward from between Aggron's two horns, instantly cloaking its entire body, inexplicably accelerating its charge so that it became like a high-speed white locomotive!

"Double-Edge! Aggron used Double-Edge!"

The host shouted excitedly, "If this hit lands it will be no small matter—can Claydol, after using Power Trick, withstand it? Ohhh! Claydol is attacking too! It's Earth Power!"

On the field.

Claydol had unknowingly come to its senses; watching Aggron charge furiously in, it followed its trainer's command and released Earth Power in front of itself.

Boom—!

Ground-type energy like a volcanic eruption instantly blanketed Aggron's body like a minefield, yet it failed to fully halt its charge; the vaguely outlined Aggron in the white light brutally slammed into Claydol.

Peng!

Under the immense force, the latter was sent flying backward at once.

But after completing this attack, Aggron also couldn't help but half-kneel on the ground, propping up its heavy upper body with one claw, panting in great gulps.

The stamina and type-energy feedback from evolution was limited, let alone that Aggron was still 4x weak to Ground even after evolving.

No matter how many sit-ups it could do, after a full burst it inevitably entered a half-life period.

"Roar…"

Aggron tried to stand, only to find its limbs completely unable to move; waves of numbness surged into its heart, every part of its body declaring its helplessness.

"The opponent's out of strength—give it the final blow! Earth Power!"

Sannine could not let such a fine opportunity slip; Claydol absolutely would not allow itself to lose to Aggron.

The opponent's repeated dodges earlier had already piled up considerable anger in it, and being hit head-on by Double-Edge and passing out for half a day was an even greater disgrace—it had to avenge itself!

"Humm—"

Claydol gathered a large amount of type-energy, channeling it beneath Aggron, determined to take the opponent down with this strike.

And in that instant.

Aggron launched another counterattack.

It opened its ferocious maw that seemed capable of crunching steel, a shimmering silver energy orb growing from small to large, finally transforming into a bright, thick silver beam that blasted toward Claydol!

Flash Cannon!

Claydol, which had focused all its attention on Earth Power, had no time to dodge, and together with the immobilized Aggron was swallowed by the blast.

yawenku.

"Humm—"

Peng Peng!

Thick dust and smoke enveloped both Pokémon, as well as Sannine's stunned expression.

"Both sides were hit by moves! What the final result will be, let's wait and see!" The host's voice made every spectator watch below in suspense.

A short while later.

The dust cleared.

Both Pokémon lay sprawled on the ground, status unknown.

But after several seconds, Claydol wobbled and floated up; despite looking like a candle in the wind that could collapse at any moment, compared to the completely unconscious Aggron, it was still standing.

The trainers on both sides showed helpless or complicated expressions in turn.

Beep—

The match-ending alarm sounded.

Baimu walked unsteadily to Aggron's side, stroked its face, and said softly, "Well done. You'll always be my pride."

He hugged Aggron tightly, then recalled it into its Poké Ball.

To be honest.

The instant Aggron evolved, he truly felt he was going to win.

Unfortunately, the gap in raw strength was still a bit too large, causing Aggron to fall slightly short—there was nothing to be done about it.

Not being able to let Blastoise and the others fight the enemy on an even footing, and instead having to struggle through a hard-fought underdog match — that was his immaturity as a trainer.

One day, sooner or later, he would break out of this predicament where he always had to fight above his weight class.

What a pity.

The battle at the Iron Arena Tournament ends here.

Baimu patted the dust off himself, but caught a glimpse of Yamatsumi out of the corner of his eye — the latter had not left, and was instead walking toward him of his own accord.

"You're very strong. In truth, it was I who lost."

Before Baimu could say anything, Yamatsumi spoke first with a startling remark, and extended his hand.

He hesitated briefly, then reached out and gripped the other's hand, letting Yamatsumi pull him up.

"I'm speaking of your level as a trainer. Your tactical commands and your Pokémon's execution ability left me in awe — without a deep bond, none of that would have been possible. A trainer like you could well be called brilliant anywhere else."

The man kept pouring out lavish praise without pause.

It made Baimu rather embarrassed.

"…You're too kind. Putting aside the fact that Espeon wasn't even your main Pokémon, in the final clash my Blastoise and I did clearly lose — even setting all that aside—

"My Blastoise was evolving, and your Claydol could already move by then, couldn't it? You deliberately gave me and Blastoise a chance — how could that count as my victory?"

He said it as politely as he could.

After all, the man before him was the mayor's honored guest — someone he couldn't afford to offend.

"Remaining silent while an opponent's Pokémon evolves is a matter of courtesy."

Yamatsumi looked at him deeply. "Just call me by my name — Yamatsumi is fine. All that 'sir' business, I don't really care for that kind of address. In return, I'll call you by your name as well. What do you say?"

"…That's fine."

Baimu didn't quite understand why Yamatsumi was being so friendly.

Did they know each other?

He rifled through his memory, but couldn't find a single familiar face from his life on Qingyi Street.

"See you next time."

Yamatsumi took the initiative to say goodbye. "You and your Pokémon are only a lot of training away from being strong — the two more important things, will and bond, you already have plenty of. I trust I don't need to say it, but this loss won't affect your condition. I'm looking forward to our next battle."

"See you next time."

Baimu nodded in acknowledgment.