"Alright, then let Rhydon be the first to challenge. Which Pokémon do you want to challenge?" Ethan nodded and addressed Rhydon.
"Rhhhydodnn!"
Rhydon nodded rapidly, then swept his gaze over all the Pokémon present. In the end, his eyes locked directly onto Cacturne.
"Eh... Cacturne?"
Ethan rubbed his chin.
Was it confidence, or had Rhydon not fully understood the rules of the competition?
Each Pokémon only had one chance to challenge. If Rhydon failed, then he would be permanently stuck in last place in the rankings.
"Rhhhydodnn!"
Rhydon was still brimming with confidence, completely oblivious to the sympathetic looks from his companions.
"Cac!"
Seeing that Rhydon had chosen it, Cacturne nodded and stepped forward, facing him from a distance.
"Then, let the battle begin."
Ethan smiled faintly. At that moment, Vibrava flew over to his side and perched on his arm.
At the same time, Gengar slowly emerged from the shadow behind Ethan and floated beside him.
Since this was not a standard battlefield and there were no protective walls or other safety measures, they could only rely on the Pokémon's own control to avoid accidents.
Very soon, Rhydon and Cacturne took up their combat positions.
At Ethan's command, Rhydon charged forward immediately.
Boom, boom, boom!
The ground trembled. Although Rhydon was extremely heavy, his running speed was not slow at all.
"Cac!"
Cacturne's expression turned serious.
It firmly planted one of its feet into the ground, and instantly several roots burst violently out of the earth, tangling straight toward Rhydon.
"So fast! It seems Cacturne hasn't stopped training the move Ingrain during this time."
Seeing the execution speed of the move Ingrain, Ethan's eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but praise it silently.
Swish, swish, swish!
A total of three roots wrapped in green light quickly reached Rhydon and coiled tightly around his body.
"Rhhhydodnn!"
Rhydon narrowed his eyes.
Then, Rock-type energy suddenly enveloped his entire body.
He stomped heavily on the ground, and his speed surged instantly. Using the momentum of his charge, he directly tore apart and shattered the roots restraining him.
"It's the move Smack Down!"
Ethan's eyes lit up once again.
The Rock-type move Smack Down involves hurling rocks or projectiles to attack airborne opponents, knocking them down to the ground.
Originally, the way to use Smack Down was to wrap an object in Rock-type energy and then throw it.
In the past, after Professor Harris's in-depth development, Rhydon had already managed to envelop his entire body in this Rock-type energy and, through impacts, integrate the energy into his own body as a form of physical training.
Now, after even further development, Rhydon was able to use the move Smack Down by taking his own body as the medium, executing the move directly.
Just as the heavier an object is, the greater the force when it is hurled, using Smack Down directly with Rhydon's massive weight was truly terrifying.
Facing Rhydon's furious charge, the root defense that Cacturne had prepared was completely shattered.
Just as a smile appeared on Rhydon's face, believing victory was already assured, Cacturne brought both fists together. From its forearms, it created a circular shield, forming a green energy space covered in spikes that enveloped its entire body.
It was the move Spiky Shield, which allows the user to briefly enter a near-invulnerable state, protecting against most of the opponent's attacks.
Moreover, when blocking the enemy's attack, this move also counterattacks with spikes, dealing damage to the attacker.
Therefore, although the Smack Down executed by Rhydon was incredibly powerful, it was blocked by Spiky Shield. When the shield shattered, a strong rebound force was transferred to Rhydon, shaking his body and forcing him to stagger back several steps.
At that moment, Cacturne moved.
It extended both arms, and one after another, spikes emitting a purple glow emerged from them.
Then, Cacturne violently swung its spiked arms and slammed them directly into Rhydon.
"That's the move Needle Arm!"
Ethan smiled faintly. After focusing its training on close combat, Cacturne had mastered that Grass-type move with great ease.
Boom!
Cacturne's arms were extremely flexible. As they lashed out, they let out a sharp whistle through the air, wrapped in Grass-type energy, and struck Rhydon's body heavily, forcing him back despite his massive weight.
Boom, boom, boom!
Taking advantage of the success of the first blow, Cacturne continued attacking. Its arms covered in Grass-type energy struck left and right without pause, accompanied by loud booming sounds. In the end, Rhydon's body was violently smashed to the ground, making the earth tremble.
"Rhhhydodnn!"
Rhydon lay on the ground, groaning in pain.
The move Needle Arm, as a Grass-type move, had quadruple effectiveness against Rhydon, who was both Ground- and Rock-type. After taking several consecutive hits, Rhydon had suffered severe damage.
However, at that moment it also became clear just how resilient his body was, having been trained since youth with the move Smack Down. Even so, he had not immediately lost his ability to fight.
But just as Rhydon struggled to get back on his feet, an unhealthy purple aura suddenly appeared over his body.
Without realizing it, Rhydon had entered a poisoned state!
"It's an attack with poisonous spikes. Cacturne has already transformed all the spikes on its body into something similar to Poison Barbs, temporarily gaining an ability similar to Poison Point."
"Using the move Needle Arm with poisonous spikes all over the body, dealing heavy damage and also poisoning the opponent... the power of this combination is truly terrifying!"
Ethan was secretly shocked. Cacturne's progress during this time had been truly astonishing. Even without relying on root-based techniques, it had already forged its own path in close combat.
Boom, boom, boom!
In the subsequent battle, Rhydon, weakened by poison and having lost a great deal of energy due to the continuous attacks of Needle Arm, was defeated without any surprise and lost his ability to fight.
"This battle is won by Cacturne. Rhydon's ranking remains unchanged."
Ethan announced it immediately. Rhydon, who had not yet lost consciousness, upon hearing that his ranking had not changed, seemed to react suddenly; his eyes rolled back, and he fainted on the spot.
(End of chapter)