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Since Wattson clearly had a plan in mind, Kai was more than happy to play along. He chose not to switch Pokémon, continuing the battle with Combusken.
After all, Wattson was an elderly Gym Leader showing a bit of courtesy was only right.
More importantly, Combusken hadn't taken any serious damage in the previous match. While it had spent some stamina, it was still more than capable of fighting again.
When Wattson saw that Kai hadn't recalled his Pokémon, a faint, inscrutable smile appeared on his face.
This smile was different from before. Kai noticed it, but didn't dwell on it. He simply directed Combusken back into position, preparing for the second round.
Once both sides were ready, the referee waved his flag again, officially starting the second battle at Mauville Gym.
The moment it began, Wattson burst into laughter.
"Let's show them our new move! Magneton—use Zap Cannon!"
Zap Cannon!?
Hearing the move name, Kai's expression changed instantly.
This wasn't a Move just any Pokémon could use. Among Electric-type moves, Zap Cannon was one of the most powerful on par with Volt Tackle and other top-tier attacks, and in raw force, even surpassing Thunder.
And his Magneton had already mastered it?
That alone proved how formidable this Magneton was.
No wonder Wattson had worn that strange smile earlier he'd deliberately sent out a Pokémon with a move like this.
This old man really was sly…
Kai shook his head helplessly, clearly seeing the crafty side hidden beneath Wattson's cheerful exterior.
He'd been worried about sparing Wattson's pride and chose not to switch Pokémon, only to be hit with something like this right from the start.
He really had been fooled by that hearty laugh.
That said, as terrifying as Zap Cannon was, it also gave Combusken some room to react.
The battle had only just begun. Both Pokémon stood near the center of their respective halves, separated by a considerable distance.
Combusken wasn't paralyzed, restrained, or exhausted, and the battlefield was flat and open. Landing such a long-range attack wouldn't be easy.
Realizing that Wattson was trying to intimidate him and seize the initiative, Kai relaxed slightly.
Still, there was no denying it this Magneton was anything but an easy opponent.
All these thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant. At the same time, he shouted,
"Dodge it!"
After a brief charge-up, all six of Magneton's U-shaped magnets activated at once. A thick beam of compressed electricity formed in front of it and fired straight toward Combusken.
Zap Cannon looked like a massive rectangular projectile made entirely of electric energy, leaving a long trail of crackling light as it tore through the air.
By then, Combusken was already moving. Just as the attack was about to hit, it used Quick Attack, its speed surging explosively as it narrowly slipped past the edge of the beam.
The scorching electrical afterglow slowly faded in the air, brushing only a few of Combusken's feathers.
Using the momentum from Quick Attack, Combusken didn't slow down and instead closed the distance to Magneton even further.
Just like in the previous battle, under Kai's command, a burst of flames Ember shot from its beak toward Magneton. Unlike with Voltorb, however, Wattson now had more options.
"Thunder Shock!"
Magneton didn't dodge at all. Floating steadily in place, it chose to trade damage head-on.
Lightning and fire collided in midair but instead of canceling each other out, they passed straight through, striking both Pokémon at the same time.
Combusken and Magneton were hit almost simultaneously. Pain flashed across both their faces, though fortunately neither suffered any additional status effects.
Compared to Voltorb, Magneton's overall combat ability was clearly superior. At long, mid, or close range, it wasn't afraid of Combusken in the slightest. It lacked Voltorb's severe limitations, making it far more difficult to deal with.
If Kai wanted to win, there was only one choice go all out.
"Double Kick!"
At Kai's command, Combusken surged forward, launching a fierce and continuous assault.
Since he knew the opponent was troublesome and a prolonged fight would only work against him, Kai chose to pour everything into this exchange.
The sudden increase in tempo didn't escape Wattson's notice. His eyebrows lifted as he began issuing commands of his own, trying to respond to each move.
For a moment, the battlefield echoed with crackling electricity, bursts of flame, and the heavy breathing that accompanied Combusken's close-range Fighting-type attacks.
Combusken pressed Magneton at point-blank range, alternating kicks and chaining together Fighting- and Normal-type moves without pause.
Faced with this aggressive style, Magneton quickly found itself struggling.
The reason was simple: as a Pokémon without arms, Magneton couldn't smoothly link attacks in close combat. Under Combusken's pressure, it could only drift sideways to evade.
While moving like this, several of its moves became impossible to use, disrupting its offense and forcing it into constant defense a vicious cycle.
Grab, Double Kick, followed by a Peck…
In just a few seconds, Magneton was struck several times in succession.
Still, its strength showed. Even in such an unfavorable situation, it wasn't completely helpless, managing to land a Thunder Shock on Combusken.
Crackle—
Electricity surged across Combusken's body, making its feathers stand on end.
In the end, the barely-standing Magneton forced itself to the limit, dragging Combusken down with it. The two Pokémon collapsed at the same time.
That result was perfectly acceptable to Kai.
For Wattson, however, it was deeply frustrating.
He had tried to outplay the young Trainer yet still ended up losing.
But a loss was a loss. At least it wasn't without gain; he had successfully taken down one of Kai's Pokémon.
At this point, a brief aside was unavoidable.
In the anime, both Voltorb and Magneton were known for their high offensive power but poor durability.
When Ash challenged the Gym, his Pikachu after absorbing power from the generator defeated them each with a single move, securing three straight wins and earning the badge with ease.
It was arguably the easiest Gym battle Ash fought throughout his entire journey.
What made it even more astonishing was that Pikachu shared the same Electric typing, meaning the damage should have been reduced.
Yet it still overwhelmed them effortlessly clear proof that their endurance was indeed lacking.
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~Support with 200 PowerStones = 1 Bonus Chapter
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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!