Aaron then turned his gaze toward Greninja and Guzzlord.
Relying on its agile speed, Greninja dodged Guzzlord's attacks again and again, and from time to time, it would land an Ice Punch on Guzzlord, making it howl in pain.
But against the thick-skinned Guzzlord, those could only be considered light injuries.
After all, Guzzlord's HP base stat had reached an astonishing 223 points.
Its durability was absurd.
"GRAAAH!"
Guzzlord let out furious roars one after another, wildly swinging its tentacle-like mouths, yet it still couldn't touch the ghost-like, nimble Greninja.
"ROOOAR!"
Charizard stared at Guzzlord, a fierce cold glint flashing through its eyes, and let out an angry roar.
It opened its mouth and blasted a searing golden flame straight at Guzzlord.
"BOOOOM!"
The golden flame struck Guzzlord directly, triggering an explosion.
Guzzlord was forced back several more steps and let out another enraged roar.
"GRAAAH!"
A trace of crimson flashed through its blue eyes as it glared viciously at Charizard. A red energy dragon gathered in its mouth and shot toward Charizard.
Charizard tried to beat its wings and dodge the incoming attack, but a flicker of pain suddenly crossed its eyes.
The wings on its back were still fractured and hadn't recovered yet.
It simply couldn't fly.
It could only watch helplessly as the energy dragon came crashing toward it.
"Charizard, watch out!"
At that moment, Charizard heard an urgent shout by its ear.
Immediately afterward, a slender figure slammed into its body and shoved it aside.
"BOOOOM!"
The energy dragon slammed directly into the mountainside behind them.
A massive explosion rang through the entire valley, sending shattered rocks flying everywhere. Aaron, standing off to the side, was struck in the forehead by the scattered debris, and bright red blood began to run down his face.
"Are you okay, Charizard!?"
Aaron asked Charizard.
Charizard stared blankly at Aaron, as though it hadn't heard him at all. It simply gazed in a daze at the human before it, the one with blood running down his forehead.
A scene flashed through its mind.
In the valley, a little Charmander lay happily in a Charizard's embrace.
With a trace of fondness in its eyes, the Charizard said to the little Charmander,
"Son... one day, you'll meet a human who truly treats you well."
"When that time comes, you must treasure them!"
The little Charmander nodded vaguely.
...
"Charizard!?"
"Charizard, what's wrong!?"
Seeing the strange look in Charizard's eyes, Aaron called out anxiously.
"Roar..."
Charizard came back to its senses and shook its head at Aaron, indicating that it was fine.
"That's great."
Aaron let out a small smile and spoke to Charizard.
"Charizard... do you want the power to defeat this Guzzlord?"
"Become my partner."
"I can make you stronger."
"This place isn't your end. Your potential belongs to an even broader sky."
"Are you willing to come with me?"
Aaron looked at Charizard with complete sincerity and spoke in a solemn voice.
He didn't want to beat around the bush. He went straight for it.
Sincerity was the ultimate finishing move.
When Charizard heard Aaron's words, a strange light flickered in its eyes.
It had to be said, Aaron's talk-no-jutsu really was worthy of Apotheosis level.
There wasn't a single unnecessary word.
Yet every sentence struck straight into Charizard's heart.
It made Charizard's already burning heart blaze even hotter.
Looking into Aaron's sincere eyes,
"Roar..."
A look of determination flashed through Charizard's eyes.
It let out a low growl and nodded at Aaron.
A bright smile spread across Aaron's face. He took out a brand-new Poké Ball and said to Charizard,
"Charizard, you definitely won't regret the decision you made today!"
The Poké Ball instantly drew Charizard inside. It shook slightly twice, then the light on the ball turned yellow.
"I've captured Charizard..."
Holding Charizard's Poké Ball, Aaron wore a grin as bright as a blooming chrysanthemum.
Then he released Charizard again.
"Charizard, welcome aboard!"
Aaron said with a smile.
"ROOOAR!"
Charizard nodded at Aaron and let out an excited roar.
"Ding~ Congratulations on completing the mission: Capture Charizard!"
"Ding~. Congratulations on receiving reward: Chidori (Skill Card) x1, Pokémon Candy (Elite) x1."
The system notification rang out in Aaron's ears.
Aaron's lips curled slightly upward.
Then he looked toward the two skill cards in his backpack.
The Fire Dragon Slayer Magic (Skill Card), and the Lightning Flame Dragon Mode (Skill Card).
Without any hesitation, Aaron directly gave both to Charizard to use.
...