Eichi mobilized the Bug Force within his body. The energy overflowed from every corner of his form, manifesting as ribbons of energy that circled his skin. He then funneled this energy into Nincada. Two seconds later, the stiffened Nincada began to emit a brilliant white light.
This was the light of evolution. The dazzling radiance dyed the surrounding area completely white. Wimpod found the light too piercing and quickly squeezed its eyes shut. Once it adjusted, it slowly peered open again.
Within the white light, a figure sliced a large opening through the back of Nincada and crawled out. After the figure emerged, the discarded shell left behind also began to transform, its body stretching and contracting. A pair of wings sprouted from the back of the emerging creature, and another set appeared on the shell.
The evolution was completed in mere seconds. A single Pokémon had split into two distinct beings.
On the left stood a Pokémon with a yellow head and a black stripe between its eyes, centered by a small circle. Its body was black with a pair of grey forelimbs and two pairs of wings. On the right was Shedinja. Its body was brown and hollow, making it incredibly light. Its abdomen was a deep brown, while its back and wings were light brown. A white "halo" floated above its head.
Wimpod stared at the two Pokémon with immense curiosity. Eichi looked at them and noted that they had made great progress. Not only had their talent improved, but their levels had also seen a significant jump. They had risen from Level 35 at the mid-Experienced stage to approximately Level 37.
Ninjask was now a Bug and Flying-type Pokémon, while Shedinja was a Bug and Ghost-type. Eichi recalled the data sent by Hara, which explained that Shedinja was essentially the discarded husk of Nincada that gained a new consciousness upon evolution. It was effectively a brand-new Pokémon, yet it miraculously retained its memories as Nincada.
This is perfect. Even without the Black-Patterned Beedrill, my team is full again. Eichi had returned the Black-Patterned Beedrill yesterday because the Indigo League rules prohibited using two of the same species. He wasn't about to bench his original Beedrill for the new one. Furthermore, he knew Nincada would evolve into two separate Pokémon, filling the gap perfectly.
Now that they had evolved, Eichi was eager to test their new moves.
"Heracross, go and attack Ninjask," Eichi commanded. "Remember, don't use too much force."
"Yak-lu," Heracross replied, understanding its task.
The moment the evolution finished, Beedrill, Scizor, and Heracross had all rushed back. Upon hearing the command, Heracross vibrated its wings and charged at Ninjask, aiming its large horn forward.
Facing the charging Heracross, Ninjask took action. Its two pairs of wings vibrated in unison. In the next instant, it blurred into a series of afterimages, and its true form streaked toward Heracross.
Wow, so fast! Eichi and Beedrill's eyes lit up simultaneously. Eichi was genuinely surprised by the speed. It truly was a Pokémon that had invested its entire talent into velocity.
A second later, Ninjask appeared above Heracross's head. Its arms, shaped like curved scimitars with sharp claws, struck directly at Heracross's back.
Fury Swipes!
It delivered a rapid succession of strikes against Heracross's back.
Thump, thump.
Feeling the sting, Heracross spun around and swung its arm with force, but it hit nothing. Ninjask had vanished again. In the blink of an eye, it flew behind Heracross and brought its arms down in a slashing motion.
Fury Cutter!
Every strike hit the mark, landing squarely on Heracross's back. Heracross grunted in pain and looked at Ninjask with annoyance. We said this was just an activity, are you going for real?
Ninjask felt a bit embarrassed. Having just evolved, it was in a heightened state, and its strikes were naturally heavier than intended. Heracross then turned and puffed out its cheeks, firing a volley of black seeds like bullets.
In response, energy surged around Ninjask, and it instantly split from one into more than a dozen copies.
Double Team!
As the seeds struck, the clones vanished one by one. Ninjask then charged at Heracross once more. While the others watched the duel intently, Shedinja stayed in the corner by itself, looking quite dazed. At least, it appeared dazed from the outside; Eichi couldn't be sure what it was truly thinking.
As the battle intensified, Eichi noticed Ninjask was getting even faster. Its speed increased at regular intervals, which reminded Eichi of its Speed Boost ability. Its speed would rise by one stage every turn.
Since Eichi had forbidden heavy blows, Heracross found itself in a difficult position, essentially becoming a target for Ninjask's practice.
"Alright, that's enough," Eichi called out, stopping the two Pokémon once he felt enough time had passed.
He noted that upon evolving, Ninjask had learned seven moves: Double Team, Fury Cutter, Screech, Swords Dance, Slash, Agility, and X-Scissor. Its move pool had expanded instantly. Furthermore, because Eichi had provided a solid foundation while it was still a Nincada, all these moves had skipped the Basic level and gone straight to Mastery.
"Shedinja, it's your turn. Your opponent is Scizor."
"Scizor, don't use too much force."
Shedinja was entirely different from Ninjask. For starters, Ninjask's base stat total was 437, while Shedinja's was only 236—a difference of over 200 points. Scizor flew over and stood opposite Shedinja. It didn't plan to attack first, knowing Eichi simply wanted to observe Shedinja's moves.
Shedinja flew over slowly. Its talent was focused entirely on attack; speed was not its forte—in fact, it was its weakness. Shedinja's eyes glowed with a dark light, and a silhouette identical to Scizor appeared behind the metal Pokémon, though it was entirely pitch black.
Shadow Sneak!
This dark silhouette emerged from Scizor's shadow and delivered a blow. It stung slightly, but did no significant damage. Subsequently, Shedinja used every move it knew on Scizor, but none had much effect.
Nevertheless, Eichi was satisfied. Upon evolution, Shedinja had learned seven moves: Grudge, Confuse Ray, Shadow Sneak, Phantom Force, Spite, Shadow Ball, and Heal Block.