Chapter 117: Ash VS Tierno! Fire Showdown!

At the same time,

The two Pokemon saw each other as opponents, but their attitudes were completely different,

All along, Charizard under Tierno's command had defeated countless Pidgey, Spearow, and even Fearow.

Thus seeing the enemy before them was only a second-stage Spearow, a flash of disdain and contempt crossed its eyes.

On the Spearow's side, facing a Charizard larger than itself, it felt pressure,

but having followed Ash, it had not failed to defeat bigger opponents,

thus it was more excited and stirred, its emotions rising higher!

Especially Charizard's contempt made the Spearow resolve to give that female dragon a good lesson.

As Ash and Tierno were about to battle, Clemont and Serena also returned to the shore.

His feet planted, Clemont's courage again seized the high ground,

His voice gradually grew louder, and he even voluntarily took on the role of referee.

"Battle start!"

Given Ash's past glorious record, especially many classic wins of the weak over the strong, Tierno opted to play it safe at the outset.

First, lower the opponent's attack!

"Roar!"

"Defend, Swords Dance!"

The two commands were uttered almost simultaneously from the mouths of the opposing trainers,

This choice genuinely made Charizard feel a bit dissatisfied—did it really need to be so cautious when attacking that little bird?

Nevertheless, out of trust in Tierno, Charizard carried out the command.

This choice surprised Ash a little,

Seeing that Charizard's move pool had no boosting move, Ash thought Tierno was the type of newcomer who liked straightforward attacks.

Upon closer inspection,

are these moves Charizard has mastered not exactly those learned through leveling up on its own?

In other words, Tierno does not dislike using boosting or weakening tactics,

but simply hadn't realized one could actively teach the Pokemon to learn in advance the moves the trainer wants it to master.

With this analysis,

Being able to do this right at the start of a journey by knowing to use Roar to limit the opponent already shows great potential for a complete newcomer who has never played Pokemon battle simulations.

Using this world's standard to evaluate,

that is, this one has the makings of a Champion.

However, although this command involved thinking one layer deeper than most, it also caused Tierno to lose the initial advantage it already had in stats, due to that extra thought.

It was somewhat overly hesitant,

Had it been a trainer with slightly weaker command ability, they might have just charged ahead as Charizard imagined, and instead could have laid down pressure.

In the same match, with a higher command level, like Ash,

It's obvious that a third-stage versus a second-stage, the stronger side holds the edge; knowing that relentless attacking will tip the victory scale toward the stronger side.

Ash would first choose to use Hot Wind to apply pressure!

While damaging the opponent, continuously pressuring them so they cannot catch their breath, ultimately securing victory!

Now Tierno's choice, on the contrary, became the worst option,

the status move was directly blocked by the Defend skill, and the Spearow's attack did not drop,

and because the attack was a status move, the Spearow's external Defend skill energy remained ample, not disappearing as it does in the game,

Within the Defend shield, the Spearow immediately began Swords Dance!

"Air Blade!"

Fortunately, Tierno wasn't stupid either, and decisively changed its move!

The long-awaiting Charizard immediately let out a roar, spread its wings and swung, sending blade after blade of wind slicing forward!

But most of the attacks were neutralized by Defend, and the Spearow only took partial damage.

Immediately after, Ash did the same again,

"Defend, Swords Dance!"

Although Defend cannot be used consecutively, the intervening Swords Dance meant a white shield soon reappeared on the Spearow's surface!

Seeing that long-range output was ineffective, Tierno switched moves again, showing her keen sense of the battle situation.

"Repeated Shadow Claw!"

Charizard's wings vibrated, and it swiftly perched up, closing in on the Spearow!

Jet-black energy claws fell upon the barrier,

Boom!

The attack was nullified!

The white shield shattered, and Charizard immediately launched another attack!

"Endure!"

Ash insisted that the Spearow use Swords Dance!

Bang!

The Spearow was directly blown away by Charizard's violent strike, smashing into the cliff wall and sustaining considerable damage.

However, seeing the '+4' appear above the Spearow's head,

Ash's mouth corner twitched slightly upward.

Charged Flame Strike!

The long-suppressed Rocket Quail naturally launched an assault without hesitation, flames blazing on its body!

Dragon Claw!

The Fire-spewing Dragon let out a roar,

Symbolizing mysterious and noble purple energy, it clung to the dragon claw,

At the moment the Rocket Quail, whose body seemed to turn into flame, rushed into the attack range,

The Fire-spewing Dragon's claws lashed out suddenly, but the Rocket Quail did not willingly accept death; its body suddenly dove to evade the attack,

Meanwhile, relying on the strong wind blowing upward from below the canyon, its speed suddenly surged, and it struck the Fire-spewing Dragon's cream-colored belly with greater force!

This scene was completely beyond Tierno and the Fire-spewing Dragon's expectations,

Bang!

After being strengthened, the Rocket Quail's huge force in one strike knocked back the Fire-spewing Dragon,

After landing the attack, Ash immediately pursued the advantage!

Acrobatics!

All along, the Rocket Quail not only learned acrobatics from the Koga Ninja Frog, but also, because it inherently has the Flying type, plus the boost from flying equipment,

Instead, it surpassed its teacher, excelling beyond the blue.

The Rocket Quail's body bathed in violent cyan-blue energy, it charged at the Fire-spewing Dragon that had no time to dodge!

Bang!

A massive sound wave rang out, the Rocket Quail's energy gradually faded, and it hovered in place.

The struck Fire-spewing Dragon's body instantly became like a shell fired from a cannon, swiftly slamming into the solid cliff below, leaving dense spiderweb-like cracks on the cliff, with countless rock fragments falling downward.

Although this blow did not render the Fire-spewing Dragon unable to fight, it had already severely injured it.

Meanwhile,

As battle experience accumulated, the Rocket Quail's level unknowingly rose to 36,

A soft white light also emerged, wrapping around the Rocket Quail's 0.8-meter body,

Evolved?!

Everyone gasped in surprise, all turning their gazes to the Rocket Quail wrapped in white light in the air,

In the light, the Rocket Quail's stature continually grew, quickly reaching the average length of its evolved form, the Fierce Arrow Hawk, at 1.2 meters,

But the limit of Ash's Rocket Quail was far more than that,

Perhaps it was the Energy Block specially formulated by Professor Da Mu's exclusive secret recipe, surpassing the effects of all Energy Blocks on the market.

Every one of Ash's Pokémon, when raised, grows to exceed the species' average size.

Bathed in the evolution light, the Fierce Arrow Hawk's length finally settled at 1.8 meters, sufficient to carry a person in flight!

As the white light faded, a more intuitive impression came into view,

Likewise, a Flight Guide who also owned a Fierce Arrow Hawk widened their eyes, exclaiming, 'What a huge Fierce Arrow Hawk!'

This is truly the 【Hawk】!

Looking at Ash's Fierce Arrow Hawk, its imposing stature and mighty pectorals caused Ash and Clemont, as men, to reveal fervent gazes.

You know,

The Fire-spewing Dragon's standard length is only 1.7 meters,

Ash's Fierce Arrow Hawk is a full 1.8 meters, and with wings spread, it reaches over twice its length, easily reaching nearly 4 meters!

This is truly a big fellow,

Even the Fire-spewing Dragon was shaken by the Fierce Arrow Hawk's imposing stature, feeling a hint of pressure!