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Looking at the situation before them, both trainers simultaneously took out their Poké Balls to recall Scizor and Nidoking.
At the beginning of the battle, Ash had maintained the advantage and landed several consecutive hits on Nidoking, but still failed to defeat it.
Scizor hadn't been attacked by Nidoking throughout most of the battle, but Scizor was truly vulnerable to Fire-type moves.
Although there was no longer a boost from Sunny Day, Nidoking had used Focus Energy while Scizor was using Sword Dance.
This move didn't enhance attack power, but after using it, the Pokémon's next attack had an increased probability of landing a critical hit on its opponent.
Combined with the Fire-type move, it had dealt a devastating blow to Scizor.
Scizor had used Sword Dance twice, which nearly reached the maximum limit for attack power boosts, and Nidoking was unable to withstand that final blow.
Ash praised Scizor before putting away the Poké Ball, while Giovanni remained silent as before. After storing Nidoking's Poké Ball, he retrieved his last Poké Ball.
"I assume you're going to send out Charizard next, correct?" Giovanni said while narrowing his eyes, holding the Poké Ball in his hand.
"So what if I am?" Ash didn't hide anything after hearing this. In the end, he did indeed plan to send out Charizard.
"You've already decided which Pokémon to use without even knowing what Pokémon your opponent will send? A kid is always a kid. This one is specifically prepared to counter your Charizard." Giovanni said mockingly.
"This is how my Pokémon and I have battled our way here. No obstacle can stop us!"
Ash took out his Poké Ball without hesitation, slowly raising his hand and pointing the Poké Ball in Giovanni's direction. Giovanni was slightly startled when he saw Ash's gesture.
"That pose...!" Giovanni looked at Ash's actions and felt a strange yet familiar sensation.
"The decision is yours! Charizard!"
BOOM!
"ROAR!"
As the challenger, he had the right to send out his Pokémon second, but at this moment, as Ash released his Pokémon, an astonishing roar suddenly erupted and filled everyone's ears.
A powerful gust of wind hit the surroundings as the massive figure landed on the ground. To Giovanni's complete lack of surprise, it was indeed Charizard.
"This feeling... what exactly is going on?"
"Why would I hesitate against such a kid? When did things become like this? Could it be that I'm being influenced by him?"
"Come out! Rhydon!"
With numerous questions swirling in his mind, Giovanni suppressed the doubts in his heart and threw his Poké Ball.
"ROAR!"
With an equally powerful roar, a figure dropped onto the field and slid forward. The ground kicked up a cloud of dust, and a towering figure approximately the same size as Charizard appeared—it was Rhydon.
Moreover, the appearance of this Rhydon differed from a normal Rhydon, whose body was typically covered in silver-gray armor.
But this Rhydon's armor was light gold in color, which formed a striking contrast to the gold and silver coloring of Rhydon in its standard form.
Obviously, it was similar to Ash's Fraxure—a Shiny Pokémon.
"A Rhydon? This is the first time I've seen a Shiny Rhydon." Misty said in surprise.
"Rhydon? This battle is very unfavorable for Ash!" Brock looked at the field with evident worry. Rhydon was both a Ground-type and a Rock-type.
The Rock-type could resist the Flying-type Charizard to a significant extent, and the effectiveness of Fire-type moves would be greatly reduced.
"Come on! The final victory!"
Standing behind Rhydon, Giovanni placed his hands in his pockets and spoke with a relaxed smile on his face.
"Bring it on!"
"Mega Punch!"
"Dragon Claw!"
After those words fell, both trainers spoke simultaneously. The two Pokémon rushed toward each other at the same time as a burst of orange energy was released from Rhydon's fist.
Charizard opened its claws, which flashed with green energy to form energy claws. The two combatants approached the center of the field, throwing punch and claw at the same moment.
WHAM!
The fist and claw each struck the other's face. With tremendous force, both Rhydon's and Charizard's heads were knocked back by their opponent, and their bodies retreated.
"Flamethrower!"
Stabilizing his position, Ash took the initiative to attack. Charizard stopped and rubbed its face with the back of its hand, then whipped its head forward and opened its mouth to release blazing flames.
BOOM!
Rhydon crossed its arms to block the incoming flame attack, and its body was pushed backward by the power of Flamethrower.
"ROAR!"
Letting out a roar, Rhydon exerted force with both arms simultaneously, directly dispersing the flames before it. Smoke rose from both arms, but it appeared the attack hadn't caused significant damage to Rhydon.
"Surf!"
Giovanni had stated it was a Pokémon specifically prepared to counter Charizard, and naturally that wasn't just empty talk. Not only did it have an advantage in type matchup, but even in terms of moves, it was equipped with attacks specifically designed to counter Charizard.
"What? Rhydon actually knows how to use Surf?!" Upon seeing this development, Misty was the most shocked.
"Is that really so strange? Doesn't Ash's Pikachu know the same move?"
Gary frowned slightly when he witnessed this. According to his grandfather's records, Rhydon could indeed learn Water-type moves with proper training.
"Fly!" Seeing this scene, Ash immediately called out his command.
Charizard immediately flapped its wings upon hearing the order. At that moment, waves of water erupted from beneath Rhydon's feet, and it rode the surging wave directly toward Charizard.
However, although the wave was high, it wasn't as high as Charizard could fly. Soon, Charizard's flight altitude exceeded the height of Surf.
"Rock Tomb!"
However, Giovanni wasn't concerned. Charizard had air superiority, but he had already prepared a counter for that.
After the command fell, Rhydon roared again, and its body began to glow. Above Charizard in the sky, rocks appeared out of thin air surrounded by white light, falling from above like a meteor shower.