Pokemon: Skybound

Chapter 623: 623. Battling Wattson

◉◉◉◉◉

Tyranitar charged forward with heavy, thunderous steps, heading straight for the Raikou before it.

At the same time, Raikou's attack arrived.

A massive surge of electricity erupted from its mouth, slamming directly into Tyranitar's body. The lightning crackled violently, its power unmistakable.

However, Tyranitar's typing ensured it wasn't directly countered by Electric-type attacks. Though the pain was obvious, it pressed forward relentlessly, closing the distance little by little.

In truth, Kai could have chosen a much simpler approach having Tyranitar fire a Hyper Beam from afar. In such a narrow passage, Raikou would have had nowhere to dodge, forced to counter with an attack of equal power just to survive.

But Kai already understood that this was merely a Gym trial. They were still inside the Gym itself, and causing structural damage wasn't exactly appropriate. Because of that, he deliberately opted for close combat.

Once Tyranitar reached melee range, it opened its jaws and lunged forward, using Bite.

Compared to a real Pokémon, this Raikou was clearly lacking something.

It stood motionless, making no attempt to evade, allowing Tyranitar to clamp down on it completely.

Rip—!

Though Tyranitar's teeth weren't especially sharp or large, they tore cleanly through the Raikou's body.

Only then did Misty finally see the truth exposed wiring and mechanical components beneath the golden exterior.

"So it's fake?!" she exclaimed.

The internal circuitry sparked erratically, and Raikou's eyes dimmed as it shut down, standing motionless like a powered-off machine.

"That's it?" Misty crossed her arms and shook her head. "It made such a dramatic entrance, but it broke after just one hit. Talk about overconfidence."

"It was probably just a preliminary test," Kai said calmly. "If it were any stronger or anywhere near a real Raikou's level most challengers wouldn't even make it past the entrance."

As soon as he finished speaking, a hidden door in the wall slid open.

Two men stepped out.

The one in front was an elderly man, easily in his seventies. He was short, with a round belly and a stocky build. His sparse white hair was styled carefully, and a thick mustache covered the lower half of his face.

He wore a camouflage vest decorated with lightning patterns over industrial work overalls. Despite his age, he looked energetic and cheerful, laughing heartily as he walked out.

Behind him stood a younger man wearing round glasses clearly his assistant.

Apparently having overheard Kai and Misty's conversation, the old man laughed loudly and said:

"You're absolutely right! That was just a small test. I call it Laughing MegaVolt No. 2—a little welcome gift for challengers, like charging up before a big battle! So? Did it give you a shock?"

Misty snorted. "Please. Compared to the real Raikou, that thing doesn't even come close."

"Oh?" The old man raised an eyebrow. "You know Raikou by name? Then you must not be from Hoenn. Judging by your words, you've seen the real one before?"

Misty froze, realizing she had spoken too freely, and instinctively glanced at Kai.

Kai stepped forward with an easy smile. "We have. I ran into it while traveling through Johto—and even battled it once."

That much was true.

He just left out the part where he'd captured it.

The old man didn't doubt him at all. Instead, he stroked his mustache and sighed with admiration.

"To have crossed paths with a Legendary Pokémon… your journey must have been quite extraordinary."

Kai recalled Tyranitar and smoothly changed the subject. "If I'm not mistaken, you must be Wattson, the Gym Leader of Mauville City?"

The old man nodded enthusiastically. "That's right! I'm Wattson, Mauville Gym Leader. This here is my assistant, Watt."

Watt gave them a polite nod. "Welcome to Mauville Gym."

"I'm Kai," he replied. "This is my traveling partner, Misty. I believe you already know why I'm here. May I challenge the Gym now?"

"Of course!" Wattson laughed. "Follow me!"

Under Wattson and Watt's guidance, they exited the corridor and entered a spacious battle arena.

Unlike Rock- or Water-type Gyms, the Electric-type battlefield was fairly straightforward—flat terrain, optimized for speed and power.

Misty found a seat in the stands and sat down casually.

Unlike her travels with Ash, where every Gym battle filled her with anxiety, watching Kai battle was completely different. All she needed to do was cheer a little and enjoy the show.

That alone spoke volumes about the difference between the two Trainers.

On the battlefield, Kai and Wattson took their respective positions, while Watt stepped forward to act as referee.

"Attention!" Watt announced loudly. "The Mauville Gym battle will now begin! Each side will use three Pokémon. The Gym Leader may not switch Pokémon at will. When all three Pokémon on one side are unable to battle, the match will be decided!"

Standard rules identical to those used at Rustboro Gym and common across the region.

Once the rules were declared, Wattson was the first to act. He tossed his Poké Ball onto the field.

A burst of light flashed and Electrode appeared.

"This is my Electrode," Wattson said cheerfully. "I'll give you a heads-up—it can fight for a long time. If you want to beat it, you'd better do it quickly!"

His tone was friendly and open, radiating confidence in his Pokémon.

"Thanks for the warning," Kai replied politely.

Without hesitation, he threw his own Poké Ball.

Blue light flashed and Combusken took the field.

Wattson blinked in surprise as he examined it. "Oh? Why not send out that Tyranitar from earlier? It looked incredibly strong. Ah—I get it! You're saving it for later, aren't you?"

Kai smiled faintly, neither confirming nor denying.

◉◉◉◉◉

~Support with 200 PowerStones = 1 Bonus Chapter

◉◉◉◉◉

For early access to advanced chapters on P-atreon:

P-atreon/iamxeno

(Just remove the - hyphen to access normally)

Thank you so much for your support and for reading!