The black, cat-like Pokémon was one Natsui had seen more than once. It was the Dark- and Ice-type, Sneasel.
Sneasel's design likely comes from the Kamaitachi, a weasel-like yōkai from Japanese folklore, or perhaps a mix of a weasel and a cat. Its body is mostly black with red tail feathers, silver-white claws, and small gold spots on its forehead and chest. Sharp claws are hidden in its fingers.
Although he had encountered them many times before, Natsui had never truly learned about them.
Seeing it jump in front of him now with a fierce expression, he took out his Pokédex and aimed it at the Sneasel.
Pokédex:"Beep. Sneasel, the Sharp Claw Pokémon. A Dark- and Ice-type. Sneasel generally live in cold places. They have a cunning and vicious nature. They will suddenly extend their sharp claws to intimidate opponents who attack them. They often hide in the darkness to remain inconspicuous and rely on teamwork to hunt at night. One will lure the parents away while another steals the eggs, though they will often fight amongst themselves over who gets to eat. In the Alola region, they have even been recorded preying on Sandshrew."
Putting away the Pokédex, he looked at the Sneasel before him again.
It was clearly wild. It was now opening its mouth and saying something to him, while the Machoke and Machop at its side stood like bodyguards or underlings.
Natsui looked down at his feet. "Hey Gengar, what is it saying?"
Gengar's head emerged from his shadow. "It says, 'This is my territory. You're not allowed to trespass.'"
"Your territory?" Hearing this, Natsui looked at the Sneasel in surprise. "Isn't this a temple? How did it become your territory? Are you a Pokémon from this temple?"
This question seemed to provoke the Sneasel. It suddenly let out a loud cry, leaped at Natsui, and slashed at his face with its claws.
Natsui dodged backward, avoiding the attack, and his brow furrowed.
"What are you doing?"
Sneasel spoke again, and Gengar translated. "It says it's not a Pokémon belonging to you despicable humans, and it told you to leave quickly."
Just then, hearing the commotion, a young man in black training robes ran out of a nearby building. Seeing the situation, he hurried over.
"Are you alright?" he asked Natsui, then looked at the Sneasel with a troubled expression.
Seeing that he was clearly a staff member here, Natsui asked, "What's with this Sneasel?"
The staff member sighed. "It's a wild Pokémon from around here. It's been staying here and won't leave. We don't know what to do with it."
Natsui was very surprised. "If that's the case, can't you just drive it away?"
"Well..." The staff member scratched his cheek in embarrassment. "We've tried several times ourselves, but we can't beat it. Even when we asked some trainers for help, they were defeated by it too. And recently, it recruited that Machop and Machoke as its underlings, so we're even more helpless."
Hearing this, Erika couldn't help but speak up. "So... it's basically become the king of this place?"
"We're very troubled," the staff member sighed again. "The Silver Conference is about to start. With it occupying this area, forget taking the Sacred Flame, we can't even get close."
"I see," Natsui said with a nod. "Since we've run into this, I might as well help. I just need to drive it away, right?"
"...Then I'll be counting on you."
The staff member didn't seem to hold out much hope for his words, offering only a polite smile. As he had just said, he had asked other trainers for help before. They had also made big promises, but in the end, they were all helpless and their Pokémon even got hurt.
Perhaps this would end the same way as before...
Natsui took a few Poké Balls from his belt pouch and sized up the Sneasel once more.
The fact that it had driven away so many trainers proved it was quite capable. He certainly wouldn't underestimate it.
And for him, this was a good opportunity to train his own Pokémon.
With a wave of his hand, he threw the Poké Balls. After the flashes of blue light, his Dragonite, Tyranitar, Scizor, and Eevee appeared before the Sneasel.
It was clear that, whether against Machop, Machoke, or Sneasel, the four Pokémon Natsui sent out were at a type disadvantage in one way or another.
He had done this intentionally. He wanted to use this opportunity to train his Pokémon on how to turn the tables when facing an unfavorable matchup.
Of course, to avoid losing, he sent out four Pokémon. A four-on-three fight would increase his chances of winning.
Upon seeing Natsui's Pokémon, before they could even move, the Sneasel let out a roar and charged forward.
At the same time, the Machoke and Machop at its side charged with it, aiming to flank Natsui's Pokémon.
As expected of a Pokémon that had defeated so many trainers, it dared to take the initiative even when outnumbered.
This made Natsui's opinion of it rise a little.
"Tyranitar, Scizor, you two handle the Machoke and Machop. Eevee, you and Dragonite take on the Sneasel!"
At his command, the four Pokémon split up, each focusing on their target.
As Fighting-types, Machop and Machoke had an absolute type advantage over the Rock- and Dark-type Tyranitar. Fortunately, Scizor's Bug-typing helped to weaken their Fighting-type moves.
Dragonite and Eevee surrounded the Sneasel. The Normal-type Eevee was fine, but against the Dark- and Ice-type Sneasel, the Dragon- and Flying-type Dragonite was in a very bad position, just like Tyranitar.
Looking at the matchups, Erika asked with some concern, "Is this really a good idea?"
"If we win, we win," Natsui said, not at all concerned. "It's not an official match anyway. If they can't win, I have other Pokémon to back them up. Just think of it as training for them."
Hearing him say that, Erika didn't say anything more. But she couldn't help but worry. These were Natsui's Pokémon, and her affection for him extended to them. She naturally didn't want to see them get hurt.
Fortunately, Natsui's Pokémon were all quite strong, and the Machoke and Machop weren't that powerful. For a while, Tyranitar and Scizor actually had the upper hand.
But Dragonite's situation looked grim.
It had failed to dodge in time and was hit by one of Sneasel's Ice-type moves. Its condition worsened considerably. If it weren't for Eevee constantly distracting Sneasel, it probably would have been defeated already.
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Hey guys, I want to apologize for not uploading any chapters lately. My mother passed away a week ago, and honestly, I just didn't have the energy to do anything. The chapters that were uploaded were the ones already scheduled.Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your patience and for still being here. Starting tomorrow, uploads will return to normal.