"Koffing, Tackle!"
James furrowed his brow and issued the command again.
*Koffing!*
*Pikachu!*
Midchu cried out in pain as his HP dropped below half once more.
Then, under James's stunned gaze, a glowing orb surged from Natsume's body, entering Pikachu.
> **Trainer Natsume used Full Restore!**> *Midchu's* HP has been fully restored!
Midchu sprang back to life, vigorous and alert.
"Midchu, Quick Attack!"
Natsume, the *Medicine King*, repeated his tactic, striking Koffing head-on.
Critical hit!
*Koffing!*
Koffing cried out in pain as its HP dropped below half again.
Just two more repeats of this tactic, and victory would be secured.
"Phew!"
Seeing this, James drew a deep breath, a surge of emotion in his chest. He looked straight at Natsume and said:
"You really are something else."
No sarcasm—just genuine praise.
So far, James had roughly understood the battle system this kid had created. It wasn't much different from many game rules.
That meant someone with this battle system could do things ordinary people couldn't.
Carrying enough medicine, they could defeat overwhelmingly powerful Pokémon—even Legendary Pokémon—out of their league.
In that instant, James thought of a lot. Coming from a top-class family, he had a sharp eye for these things. He was genuinely curious how an ordinary researcher like Natsume had managed to create something like this.
"Midchu, Quick Attack!"
*Pikachu!*
With a full-charged cry, Midchu transformed into a flash of white light and struck Koffing again.
*Koffing!*
After the pained cry, Koffing's HP fell by another sixth.
This time, James showed no expression at all; instead, he looked at Natsume confidently, certain of victory.
"Hmph, kid, I've figured out the rules here. I don't know how you do it, but—"
"Koffing, use Sludge!"
Sludge's power was nearly twice that of Tackle. Yet whether it could KO this Pikachu outright was still uncertain. Two Tackles would be enough, but Sludge's power was slightly less.
*Boom!*
A massive glob of purple sludge shot from Koffing's mouth, smashing toward Midchu.
James tensed as the attack hit. The HP bar plummeted like a rollercoaster, almost bottoming out.
But Midchu still didn't fall.
*Pikachu!*
It shakily stood up again.
The HP was low—but not gone.
Natsume had used *Just a sliver of HP left!*
"Huh?"
Allowing James no time to react, Natsume pressed the advantage:
"Volt Tackle."
*Pika!*
Midchu transformed into a white lightning bolt and charged Koffing again.
*Boom!*
The white lightning struck Koffing without resistance.
*Koffing!*
Koffing's HP hit zero, teetering on the edge.
"Tch!"
Seeing Pikachu at full health, James felt frustrated. He swore that next time he would carry as many healing items as possible.
"Koffing, use… huh?"
James suddenly noticed a purple glow on Pikachu.
> *Midchu* is poisoned and took damage from the poison!
Pikachu was no longer at full health; his HP dropped by one-eighth.
James realized what had happened. Sludge had a 30% chance to poison the target.
Now Pikachu wasn't full health, and it was his turn again. One more Sludge attack could defeat Natsume!
"Yes! James, even the heavens favor us, meow!"
From outside, Meowth's excited voice rang out.
"All right, Koffing, use Sludge again!"
From desperate straits to sudden hope, James didn't hesitate. He waved his hand, sending another purple glob toward Midchu.
*Boom!*
It hit perfectly, kicking up dust across the battlefield.
"Success, meow!"
Meowth cheered.
Yet strangely, the battlefield didn't dissipate.
As the dust cleared, a small figure remained standing resolutely.
> To prevent the Trainer from being sad, *Midchu* withstood the attack!
"Huh? What is this?"
James stared, dumbfounded, at Pikachu still barely standing, his scalp tingling.
"So, James, you're basically an NPC?"
Natsume concluded. In the game rules, only against NPC leaders would this kind of *bond* Easter egg appear.
"All right, Midchu, Quick Attack!"
With the final flash of white lightning, Koffing's HP bar was fully depleted.
"What is this!?"
James collapsed in defeat.
"You're quite a worthy opponent!"
At that moment, a Full Restore was tossed onto James.
He froze, surprised.
After using the Full Restore on Koffing, James stood up and looked at Natsume approaching. His heart softened slightly.
"You… kid, you—"
"Five thousand!"
Natsume held out his hand, asking for a ridiculously high sum.
"What the heck is wrong with you!?"
James reached to return the Full Restore but realized he had already used it.
"Don't worry. If you don't have the money now, you can owe me. After your defeat, the billion-dollar allowance you owe me will be on hold too."
Natsume casually jotted the debt down in his little notebook and had his Rotom Phone record the moment.
Yes, from this point forward, Natsume unilaterally declared that one of Kanto's top elite families owed him money.
"What billion-Pokédollar allowance?! You're outrageous, meow!" Meowth stormed over, ready to stand up for James.
But then, a familiar voice rang out from the distance.
"Go, Pikachu—use Thunderbolt!"
*Boom!*
A thick bolt of yellow lightning struck James and Meowth dead-on, blasting them sky-high.
Even though Natsume was well within range… only James and Meowth were launched.
Natsume noted this in his little book.
"Natsume, are you okay?!"
Ash rushed over, checking Natsume with concern.
It seemed Ash and Misty had already taken care of Jessie.
"Of course I'm fine," Natsume waved him off.
"Rotom, cut the footage before the part where they got blasted."
He turned to the Rotom Phone, still silently recording.
This footage, after all, might come in handy when he goes to visit James' parents someday.
*Roto~!*