VS Bug Catcher (Part 2) (Please Bookmark, Please Vote)

He immediately ordered Weedle, "Weedle, use String Shot on Butterfree."

Upon hearing the command, Weedle quickly spat out a strand of silk, but Butterfree dodged the first one.

Just as it was about to breathe a sigh of relief, the second strand came flying in.

It was too fast. Butterfree had no chance of dodging.

It was tightly bound and fell from the air.

Seeing Butterfree crash to the ground, Eichi revealed a victorious smile.

"Weedle, give it the finishing blow. Use Poison Sting."

Weedle nodded and used Poison Sting on the wrapped-up Butterfree.

After being hit by Weedle's Poison Sting, Butterfree completely lost its ability to battle.

Takahashi announced, "Butterfree has lost its ability to battle. Weedle wins, so the winner is Eichi."

Eichi looked at Butterfree and shook his head inwardly. Bug Catcher's strength really isn't much.

Not only did he not know how to raise Pokémon, but his Pokémon's individual strength was poor, and his own level as a Trainer was lacking too.

Butterfree's most annoying moves were its three powder moves.

Yet Agawa had not once thought of using those powder moves to hinder Weedle.

If Agawa had done that, he might have won. But he insisted on having Butterfree fight Weedle head-on.

Would that work? No. Eichi's Weedle enjoyed the best treatment available to Bug-type Pokémon every day.

It drank MooMoo Milk and honey made by the Beedrill clan.

It ate the finest Pokémon food, along with two kinds of Pokéblocks best suited for Bug-type Pokémon.

These Bug Catchers spent every day blocking the road here to challenge people to battles, without properly training their Pokémon at all.

They only fed their Pokémon the most ordinary Pokémon food and lacked Eichi's determination.

They could not spend large amounts of money to raise a Weedle.

That was why their strength was only at this level. No wonder rookie Trainers called them "experience dispensers."

Of course, Shorts Boys were no different. They were about evenly matched with Bug Catchers.

They were only slightly stronger than Bug Catchers because their Pokémon had a type advantage.

As a former Bug Catcher himself, Eichi planned to find a time to have a proper talk with the Bug Catchers.

Things could not go on like this.

Whether they listened or not was their own business, but at least Eichi's conscience would be clear.

The surrounding Bug Catchers were shocked yet again. Their leader had lost—to a Weedle, no less.

Weedle: ...

What was wrong with Weedle? Had Weedle eaten their rice or something?

Agawa looked somewhat dejected. "I lost."

But the next moment, he said, "It's okay. Eichi, I'll win it back next time."

Then he became fired up again.

Eichi: ...

Eichi had originally wanted to comfort Agawa, but it seemed completely unnecessary. Why were all these Bug Catchers like this?

Agawa sincerely praised him, "Eichi, you're really amazing. You actually won."

"Yeah, Brother Ying Shi!"

Eichi humbly shook his head. "I'm not that impressive. There are plenty of people much stronger than me."

After chatting with the Bug Catchers for a while longer, Eichi said goodbye and headed home.

Weedle had fought several battles today, so it needed to go to the Pokémon Center to recover and get a checkup while it was there.

In the afternoon, he would go play at Sister Amelie's Breeding House. Though he called it playing, he was actually going there to help out.

Why not make use of free labor? By now, Eichi had become familiar with everyone at the Breeding House.

With his plans made, Eichi headed toward Tokiwa City.

When he reached Tokiwa City, Eichi saw a large crowd gathered around something ahead.

Curious, Eichi stepped forward to find out what was going on.

It turned out that a well-known large Department Store from Johto was holding an event.

Eichi went over to take a look. The event involved Pokémon battles on a ring set up at the store entrance, and the champion could receive a one-million-yuan shopping card from the store.

As long as they shopped at that store in the future, they could use the card to pay for their purchases.

There was a large open space in front of the store, with a temporary battle ring built right in the middle.

The competition had now reached the finals. Standing on the ring were the two contenders for the championship:

A burly man and a delicate-looking youth of around seventeen or eighteen.

The burly man used Machamp. With its two pairs of arms and bulging muscles, it really resembled its Trainer.

Though it was a little ugly, even from a distance, Eichi could feel Machamp's power.

That aura belonging only to the strong could not be faked.

The delicate-looking youth used Fearow. Judging from its aura, it was even stronger than the one Eichi had seen in Viridian Forest.

Not just a little stronger—much stronger.

The battle between the two Pokémon was about to begin. Machamp used Karate Chop against the incoming Fearow, striking it head-on.

But Fearow only suffered a minor injury. It flew back into the air and used Air Slash.

Machamp could not dodge and could only take the attack head-on, but it was completely fine. At most, it had suffered a few insignificant scratches.

Fearow flew through the sky, where Machamp's attacks could not reach it.

This was very unfavorable for Machamp, but the burly man was not anxious in the slightest.

Though Machamp kept taking hits, it was also looking for a chance to counterattack.

Eichi released Weedle. There were too many people here, so he found a spot with a clear view.

Eichi said to Weedle, "Weedle, watch too. See how other powerful Pokémon battle."

Hearing this, Eichi's Weedle began watching the battle intently.

The match had reached a critical point, and the air was thick with tension.

The people below the ring stared with wide eyes, hardly daring to breathe.

They were afraid of missing even a single thrilling moment.

The power of both Pokémon's moves had already reached the level of the League Tournament's top four.

The energy fluctuations radiating around them were terrifying.

At this point, although Machamp had been constantly attacked, the strikes were nothing more than superficial.

They had not made any real progress, and the delicate-looking youth began to lose patience.

Once his patience had run out, the burly man had Machamp deliberately expose an opening.

The delicate-looking youth fell for it and ordered Fearow to attack.

Fearow dove down and was blocked by Machamp. Though Machamp was injured as well, it also used Seismic Toss.

It finished Fearow in a single strike.

In the end, amid a round of applause, the burly man won the championship and received the one-million-yuan shopping card.

Weedle's eyes began to shine with longing. The joy of winning its battles earlier vanished at once. It had originally been feeling rather smug.

It had thought other Pokémon were nothing special, but the battle just now made it feel ashamed.

Weedle let out a series of chirps at Eichi.

It seemed to be asking whether it could become as strong as they were.

Eichi smiled and said, "Weedle, the Pokémon you fought today were all the weakest ones. There's nothing worth celebrating about defeating them.

"Because they aren't our goal. Our goal is the two on that ring, and one day, we'll become even stronger than them.

"And Weedle, you definitely can do it. One day, you can become that strong too. No, even stronger than them."

"Let's work hard together!"