Chapter 232

Chapter 232: Chapter 232

"Snivy~"

[Thank you for saving us. You worked so hard~]

Hattrem used her two long braids to support herself beside Snivy and answered with a bright, adorable smile.

More figures emerged from the smoke moments later.

Glameow approached first, silently examined Hattrem’s newly evolved form, then lightly tapped her with her tail before turning away as though she hadn’t done anything and returning to Mike’s side.

Hattrem’s happiness was obvious.

Beedrill flew over her head next and gave her a solemn nod of acknowledgment, while Rotom finally returned as well.

"I thought we were going to get kidnapped and sold! That scared me to death, roto!" Rotom immediately began circling Hattrem before switching into Pokédex mode.

"Hattrem, the evolution of Hatenna. The Serene Pokémon—"

"Shut up for a bit," Mike said quietly.

Rotom fell silent in confusion as Mike looked at Hattrem, and the familiar interface appeared before his eyes.

{Hattrem}

{Gender: Female}

{Type: Psychic}

{Ability: Magic Bounce}

{Known Moves: ...}

{Affection: 100 — Loves Mike the Most}

{Mood: Happy — Protected Her Companions}

{Condition: Confident; Freed Herself from Past Trauma}

{Description: A Hatenna who was once captured by Pokémon Hunter J and forcibly separated from her companions. That experience became the memory she least wanted to revisit. Faced with a similar situation today, she became terrified of losing everything again. Mike’s comfort, together with her love for her companions, gave her the courage to stand up and protect both Mike and everyone around him, triggering her evolution.}

Hattrem turned around and found Mike looking at her.

She immediately gave him a sweet smile.

"Hattrem~"

Mike couldn’t help smiling just as brightly in return. "Hello, Hattrem. And... thank you."

For a moment, Hattrem simply stared at him, then joy seemed to overflow from her entire body as she began bouncing happily from side to side.

"Hattrem~! Hattrem~!"

"Damn it!"

Jessie’s furious voice suddenly came from inside the lingering smoke.

Mike looked over and saw two figures climbing out of the wreckage, and when the dust finally cleared, Jessie and James were both standing upright with no more than a few minor injuries.

They dusted off their Team Rocket uniforms and glared at Mike and Hattrem.

"Don’t think you’ve won just yet!" Jessie shouted. "This isn’t over!"

Mike stared at the two of them with twitching lips.

They had just fallen out of the sky inside a giant robot, yet their uniforms were barely dirty.

’Team Rocket is built different. What kind of absurd physical durability is that?’

Ash and the others quickly gathered beside Mike, and Ash immediately pointed toward them.

"You’re the ones who should be worried! Team Rocket, are you ready to get blasted off?!"

"Twerp, we’ll see who blasts off who!" James retorted, clenching his fist.

Jessie immediately sent out her Pokémon. "Dustox, use Psybeam! Seviper, use Poison Tail!"

"Carnivine, use Bullet Seed!" James ordered.

Ash, Dawn, and Brock responded at once.

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"

"Piplup, use Bubble Beam!"

"Croagunk, use Poison Jab!"

The attacks collided in the middle of the battlefield and exploded violently, filling the area with thick black smoke.

Before Jessie or James could react, Gengar emerged through the haze directly in front of them with a broad grin, dark energy already gathering around his body.

"Gar—!"

[Bye-bye sucker!]

Dark Pulse erupted point-blank.

BOOM!

Jessie, James, Meowth, and all their Pokémon were launched high into the sky together.

Gengar raised one hand above his eyes like a visor and watched their rapidly shrinking figures disappear into the distance; only after he was satisfied that they were truly gone did he lower his hand, dust his palms off, and float back toward Mike.

"Gar—!"

[Done.]

...

High above the ground, Meowth slowly regained consciousness and opened his eyes only to discover that all of them were flying through the air.

"Wh-What’s going on, meow?!"

Jessie’s face was completely blackened from the explosion.

"That Gengar was ridiculously strong..."

James sighed helplessly. "Well, anyway..."

The three of them drew breath together before their familiar cry echoed across the sky.

"WE’RE BLASTING OFF AGAIN!"

Mike heard them and looked upward, although they were already too far away for him to see.

’They’re not going to die when they come back down, are they?’

Then again, considering how often people in this world survived falls from ridiculous heights, perhaps humans here were simply naturally superhuman.

Ash, meanwhile, pulled out his Sinnoh Pokédex and tried scanning Hattrem, only to find that the device had no information on her.

Gengar noticed the problem, took out the Pokédex Mike had received from Professor Rowan’s laboratory, scanned Hattrem with that one instead, and handed it over to Ash.

The device began reciting Hattrem’s information while Ash and Dawn listened with complete concentration.

Mike’s attention shifted when he noticed Paul approaching.

The moment Electabuzz had been freed, Paul had recalled the Pokémon, and now he stopped in front of Mike with a clear understanding of how their interrupted battle had been going.

"Since the battle was interrupted by an outside factor, how about we call it a draw?" Mike suggested.

Paul immediately shook his head. "No. You won. I’m not like a certain someone who can’t accept losing."

Ash’s fist clenched at once. "What did you say?!"

Mike placed a palm firmly on top of Ash’s head before he could start another argument.

"Enough."

Once Ash reluctantly quieted down, Mike turned back toward Paul with a smile.

"Well, if you’re admitting defeat, then according to normal battle rules... shouldn’t you hand over some prize money?"

Paul stared at him for a moment.

"We never agreed before the battle that the loser would pay prize money."

Mike went silent.

Despite saying that, Paul still reached into his pocket, took out some money, and handed it over.

Mike accepted it without hesitation, divided the amount in half as usual, returned one portion to Paul, and gave the other half to Gengar.

Paul put his share away before looking directly at Mike.

"Your strength is impressive, but I still cannot agree with your philosophy. The next time we battle, I will defeat you."

"Paul."

Paul stopped when Mike called his name and waited for him to continue.

"There’s nothing wrong with Trainers having different philosophies. Everyone has their own way of battling and their own way of raising Pokémon, so deciding that one philosophy is absolutely right and another absolutely wrong isn’t really the most important part." Mike’s tone became more serious as he held Paul’s gaze.

"What matters is how you choose to live alongside your Pokémon."

He knew there was no guarantee Paul would take any of this seriously, especially coming from someone who technically possessed only two Gym Badges, but there was still something Mike wanted to tell him.

"Don’t underestimate Ash. I know I’m not some unbeatable Trainer myself, and I’ve only collected two Badges so far, but sooner or later, that guy is going to surprise you."

Paul glanced toward Ash, who happened to be standing nearby with a stupid grin on his face.

Mike stared at him for half a second before smacking the back of his head.

"Ow!" Ash immediately grabbed his skull.

Mike sighed. "Yes. Even this idiot."

Paul remained silent, so Mike continued, "If you want to challenge me again, why not arrange a proper six-on-six battle with Ash first? Beat him, then come back and challenge me."

"When?" Paul asked without hesitation.

Mike grinned. "No idea, but it probably won’t be too long."

Paul considered that answer before nodding. "I’ll remember that."

With their conversation apparently finished, Paul gave Mike a polite bow and turned to leave, but Mike called after him again.

"Paul."

Paul stopped and looked back, confusion visible in his eyes.

"Your Ursaring is very strong." Mike slipped one hand into his pocket and felt the Peat Block resting against his palm.

After hesitating briefly, he continued, "If there ever comes a day when you believe you’re ready to handle even greater power, come find me. For example... after you suffer a defeat unlike anything you’ve ever experienced before."

Paul stared at him for several seconds, clearly unsure what Mike was implying, before finally nodding.

"I understand."

He turned away and resumed walking.

"One more thing," Mike called after him. "The next time you’re in a battle, try saying something like, ’Get up, I believe in you.’ You might get a result you weren’t expecting."

Paul’s footsteps slowed slightly.

One of his hands slipped into his pocket, where his fingers gradually curled into a fist, but he didn’t turn around.

Mike watched him for a moment before adding, "You sure you don’t want to stay for dinner?"

Paul simply shook his head and continued on his way.

Mike watched until his figure gradually disappeared into the distance, wondering how much of what he had just said Paul would actually take seriously.

Paul was already an excellent battler with an exceptional ability to construct and adapt his teams; if he somehow added the legendary anime techniques of "Get up, I believe in you," "Dodge it," and "Don’t give up" to that tactical ability...

Mike slowly turned toward Ash, who was still rubbing the back of his head, and a deeply concerning thought entered his mind.

’Can this idiot still beat him?’

The image immediately formed in his head: a Paul who had embraced pure anime logic, commanding Electivire and Ursaring to charge forward while beating the hell out of their opponents, all while shouting about bonds, trust, and believing in themselves.

The longer Mike imagined it, the brighter his eyes became.

A Paul who fought like that actually sounded pretty damn exciting!