Upon receiving Tetsuya's command, Beedrill extended its stingers and was about to fly toward Rhydon, when suddenly the twin stingers emitted a dazzling white light.
Under the white light, streams of silver sharp needles shot out from the twin stingers, vigorous and powerful.
"Pin… Missile!??? It finally learned Pin Missile!"
Tetsuya could not help but shout. Beedrill had finally learned a long-range physical attack move!
Due to the usual training Tetsuya had given it, Pin Missile had already shown considerable power just after being learned.
With this move, it would be better utilized in hit-and-run tactics, and dealing with Rhydon would be more assured.
Seeing that Rhydon was now only a little more than ten meters away from him.
"Go, Beedrill! Use Pin Missile!" Tetsuya shouted, then released Rhyhorn, placing it at the innermost part of the Toxic Spikes field. At this moment, the Rhyhorn was still unconscious, which made it appropriate to "use" against Rhydon.
With everything prepared, Tetsuya returned to the high ground, and the Poké Ball was ready to recall Rhyhorn.
Beedrill flew above Rhydon, thrust its twin stingers forward, and fired Pin Missile!
Rhydon reacted quickly, swinging its arms to block, and all the Pin Missiles were knocked down.
Although Rhydon did not suffer any damage from Pin Missile, its mood that day had already become extremely terrible!
Early in the morning, Rhydon had finally managed to send its two children out and had some "warm-up" activity with Rhyhorn-chan~
Unexpectedly, when it came out, it found its children had been knocked unconscious, then it was attacked by several strangers. After finally killing two to vent its anger, it was lured into the forest and toyed with until it became disoriented.
Because Rhydon was worried about its mate and children, it rushed back in time, only to find another Beedrill attacking it for no reason!
Against Bug-types, Rock-type moves held a great advantage, so Rhydon was very confident.
Rock Blast shot out and directly attacked Beedrill!
Beedrill easily dodged and flew backward with a provocative motion~
Rhydon became even more furious!
…Until it felt a stinging pain under its feet and a numb sensation throughout its body.
Only then did it realize it had fallen into Beedrill's trap. Just as it was about to leave, it discovered Rhyhorn lying not far away, which was its mate.
In panic, Rhydon rushed over, ignoring the Toxic Spikes under its feet that had already pierced its soles, with the poison already entering its bloodstream.
Rhydon finally reached Rhyhorn's side. Just as it was about to reach out and shake Rhyhorn's body… Rhyhorn turned into a streak of red light and flew away!
This shock was no small matter. The Rhyhorn that had just been here had suddenly disappeared without a trace.
Looking in the direction of the red light, it saw Tetsuya standing on a high point holding a Poké Ball, having recalled Rhyhorn.
Only then did Rhydon understand that this human had caught Rhyhorn…
It immediately let out a loud roar and stomped the ground fiercely with both feet!
'Oh~ Stomping Tantrum?'
That was exactly what he wanted!
Tetsuya was worrying that Toxic Spikes could not penetrate deeply into Rhydon's soles. He saw Rhydon reveal an extremely pained expression, and a faint hint of purple could be seen on its face.
It was already poisoned!
Tetsuya let out a slight sigh of relief. Once it was poisoned, it would be easier to deal with. Otherwise, with that armor-like skin, Beedrill would have had a very hard time attacking it.
Rhydon began charging toward Tetsuya. Its soles had already been pierced by Toxic Spikes and were unbearably painful. In addition, climbing uphill was already difficult, so Rhydon's speed was not fast, and it was gritting its teeth as it rushed upward.
"Beedrill, Pin Missile."
Beedrill had already flown back to his side, and Pin Missile shot out like a rainstorm!
In Rhydon's current state, the faster it ran, the greater the damage it suffered. At first, Rhydon used Rock Blast to resist Pin Missile, but the number of Rock Blast was limited, and its resistance against Pin Missile was insignificant. It soon became unable to hold out.
Faced with such dense silver needles, Rhydon could only stop and use Hammer Arm to block them.
It was at this moment…
"Double Team, [Twin Fury]."
Tetsuya seized the best opportunity to attack. Beedrill instantly split into more than a dozen clones and turned into streaks of light, stabbing wildly across Rhydon's body.
With its footing already unstable, Rhydon stumbled and rolled down the slope once again.
However, Rhydon did not give up, after all, its mate was in Tetsuya's hands.
No matter how many times it charged, it was futile. Again and again, it was knocked back down to the bottom of the slope. The concentrated damage from Pin Missile and Twin Fury, the continuous pain in its feet, and the toxin constantly draining its stamina.
However, this Rhydon's willpower was indeed strong. It persisted through more than a dozen attempts before finally collapsing at the bottom of the slope and losing its ability to battle due to the combined damage.
It was finally over…
Tetsuya took out a Poké Ball and caught this Rhydon.
Now, while Rhydon's consciousness was still unclear, Tetsuya released it again. Fortunately, it was still in an unconscious state. He took out an Antidote and stuffed it into Rhydon's mouth. If it remained poisoned, even inside the Poké Ball its vitality would continue to drain. It must not die before he could exchange it back for Golett.
After putting both the Poké Balls of Rhydon and Rhyhorn into his backpack, Tetsuya followed the direction where the Cherrygrove City team had fled. When they were attacked, he had never appeared, and they still did not know that he had caught Rhydon and Rhyhorn. It would be best if they never found out… for their own good.
---◓---
At the boundary between the mountain area and the forest, he found two corpses. One had been pierced through the back by a horn, and the other had its head smashed by Rhydon. The forest entrance was also left in a mess, with trees destroyed.
At this point, Tetsuya could almost confirm that only four people remained in that team. After entering the forest, the terrain would become complex, and they might be able to avoid Rhydon's direct attacks. Now those four people were probably already separated, and the level of danger would increase accordingly.
In this way, their team was basically finished. They might not even dare to return to this mountain area. Even if he exchanged Rhydon, they might not be able to return to the Shadow Team base.
Now his objective was to catch Houndoom!
---◓---
Tetsuya entered the forest from the direction opposite to where the four people from Cherrygrove City had fled, to avoid encountering them again.
After being in the forest alone for more than two months, he had still not encountered Houndoom. Moreover, Houndoom's movements were unpredictable and impossible to track. The forest was so vast, and there was no clear direction. In addition, Houndoom was agile and had a keen sense of smell, making it difficult to set traps.
It could be said that catching Houndoom was even more difficult than capturing Rhydon!
Wandering alone in the forest, there was no direction, and no one knew where Houndoom would appear. He remembered that the team from Cianwood City also needed to capture a Houndoom. 'Perhaps they might have some clues…'