Pokémon: Above the Top-Chapter 234: Someone Else’s Pseudo-Legendary

Mark was tricked by Sato, but in truth, he was quite interested in the Pseudo-Legendary Pokémon of the Hoenn Region himself, so he naturally started muttering about it along the way.

The Hoenn Region was blessed with natural advantages. It was the only known region where two types of pseudo-legendaries lived: the Dragon/Flying-type Salamence and the Psychic/Steel-type Metagross.

The three of them walked along a relatively flat path. After about half an hour had passed and Mark started to doubt whether his ability had stopped working, a Metang floated into view in front of them.

The encounter happened so casually it was almost hard to believe.

However, the Metang paid them no attention and instead turned its head to look toward a patch of bushes.

After a rustling sound, a young Trainer with light blue hair slowly emerged, accompanied by a massive Aggron.

"Yo, hello there! Are you guys heading to Sand Arc Forest? There aren't many Trainers around here."

Mark watched as the Metang floated behind the newcomer and felt too embarrassed to admit that this had happened because of him.

They did encounter a 2nd stage Pseudo-Legendary, but it was clearly someone else's Pokémon. This time, luck was a bit off the mark.

Since the other person greeted them politely and casually introduced himself, there was no awkward "battle-on-sight" scenario between the group.

Steven Stone: Future renowned Champion of the Hoenn League, but who, obsessed with collecting rare stones, voluntarily gave the Champion title to his good friend Wallace.

To others, this seemed utterly unbelievable.

And now, Steven had somehow been "summoned" before them by Mark, meeting them coincidentally in advance.

"As I expected, there are indeed many beautiful sights worth seeing in Sand Arc Forest," Steven said with a smile, also noticing Sato's focused gaze on his Metang.

"Your Metang is really strong!" Sato met Steven's eyes and declared openly, the fighting spirit in his eyes clearly ignited.

Steven looked younger than Lance, but older than Sato.

"Your Pupitar is quite good too. How about a battle?" For unfamiliar Trainers, the best way to greet each other was, naturally, with an exhilarating fight.

---

"The match will now begin: Trainer Steven versus Trainer Sato in a 1v1 duel. The Pokémon used are Metang and Pupitar. The battle ends when one side loses the ability to fight."

Mark enthusiastically acted as the referee; though whether there was a referee or not didn't really matter.

"Battle start!"

"Pupitar, Earth Power!"

"Metang, Magnet Rise!"

The commands came simultaneously. Pupitar lightly landed on the ground, and a wave of earthy yellow energy burst forth beneath its feet, heading straight toward Metang.

Ground-type moves were strong against Steel-type, while Steel-type resisted Rock-type.

Unfortunately, Metang used Magnet Rise. Once it levitated off the ground, Earth Power naturally missed its target.

"Metal Claw!"

"Dodged with Dragon Dance!"

Metang's speed in the air was nothing like that of a bulky hunk of metal. Using its hands as thrusters, it instantly accelerated toward Pupitar.

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Metal Claw slashed down, but Pupitar, seemingly unfazed, continued performing Dragon Dance. Yet with each spin and twist, it narrowly dodged the Metal Claw attacks with uncanny precision!

The Dragon Dance dodge technique, one of Pupitar's longtime specialties.

"Change move, Bullet Punch!"

Steven reacted quickly. Metang's left claw had just executed Metal Claw, and as it spun its body midair, its right claw came up in a flash, transforming into a Bullet Punch.

It can't dodge!

Boom!

Sato didn't even have time to shout a warning, he could only watch as Pupitar was sent flying by a powerful blow.

"Pupitar!"

Fortunately, Bullet Punch wasn't a very powerful move. Though Pupitar was knocked away, it had successfully used Dragon Dance, significantly increasing both its Attack and Speed!

"Metang, Iron Defense!"

"Metang!"

Metang didn't give chase. Instead, it remained where it was and sharply boosted its own defenses. Iron Defense was activated instantly, greatly raising Metang's physical defense.

A man of great reputation never disappoints, Steven was not going to be easy to deal with!

"Charge in, Chip Away!"

Chip Away allowed the user to ignore the opponent's boosts to defense and evasion during an attack. Unfortunately, being a Normal-type move, its damage against Steel-types was low.

Still, all Sato needed was for Pupitar to close the distance.

Pupitar's tail suddenly contracted, revealing a dark nozzle-like opening. A violent burst of air then blasted out from its rear.

With that, Pupitar launched itself directly at Metang like a missile at an incredible speed.

Seeing no way to dodge, Steven called out without hesitation, "Block it! Counter with Metal Claw."

Chip Away hit its mark. The sheer momentum Pupitar carried caused Metang to be knocked back several meters.

But even so, Metang didn't stop its attack. Its silver claw gleamed with a piercing light as it slashed down with full force onto Pupitar, who had just regained balance.

'Si-yaa!'

A long, narrow gash was carved into Pupitar's armor, the sight of which was a little shocking.

Though Sato was clearly worried, he didn't hesitate to give his next command: "Counterattack, Crunch!"

"Tar!"

As expected, Pupitar seemed completely unfazed by the deep wound. Once again, it blasted air from its "tail", accelerating itself forward.

With a fierce charge, it opened its jaws wide and bit down hard on the only slightly vulnerable joint of Metang's arm.

A direct hit. And it was super effective!

Even with Iron Defense massively boosting its defense, that one bite still did considerable damage to Metang.

"Metang, hit back with Ice Punch!"

"Metang!"

What made the pseudo-legendary Metagross line so famous was the fact that its brain was composed of four merged brains, forming a complex neural network.

In theory, Metang could process two things of equal importance at the same time. For instance, one brain could register and handle the pain, while another was already executing the command for Ice Punch!

Pupitar, sensing danger, instinctively released its Crunch and shot upward with a sudden burst of movement.

But Ice Punch was no slouch either. It whooshed past and struck Pupitar's still-exposed tail. By bad luck, the tail was frozen solid.

The jet-like propulsion was now disabled. Pupitar's body slowed midair, but even through the pain, it managed to put some distance between them and land back on the ground.

"Pupitar, Earth Power!"

'Another Ground-type move?'

Steven froze for a second but quickly realized the issue. The effect of Magnet Rise had worn off. Though it could be used again, there was still a momentary gap in time.

Sato had been waiting for this very moment. Pupitar once again launched Earth Power, its intense shockwaves not only shattered the ice on its tail, but also surged directly at the falling Metang!