Ash patted Scyther on the shoulder. By defeating several jujitsu students just now, he had finally accumulated enough exchange points. This was why he had swapped Scyther back into his party earlier—he was preparing for its evolution.
"System, exchange for Metal Coat!"
The Metal Coat produced by the system was incredibly expensive. After purchasing the Light Ball, Ash had saved for a long time to gather enough points for this. But a quality item was worth the price, no matter how steep!
"Evolve, Scyther!"
The moment the system-provided Metal Coat touched Scyther, it began to merge slowly into its body. Following that, the brilliant light of evolution began to bloom!
"Ash, you're evolving Scyther right now?" The Principal watched the scene in disbelief. No matter how many times one witnessed a Pokémon evolving, the moment was always deeply moving.
Within the evolutionary glow, the metallic coating slowly covered Scyther's body, forming armor. Simultaneously, a mysterious power caused its body to reshape—especially those twin blades, which were slowly transforming into a pair of massive pincers!
The evolved form of Scyther, the Red Flash—Scizor!
Bang!
The light shattered, and Scizor appeared before Ash and the gathered ninja students.
"Sciz!"
Scizor raised its arms, inspecting its newly acquired giant pincers. They bore eye-like patterns that gave off a menacing glare, as if the pincers themselves were staring at the opponent. It flexed its joints with a metallic clatter, clearly very satisfied with its new, hardened body.
Name: Scizor (♂)
Type: Bug + Steel
Ability: Light Metal
Bond Value: 240 / 250
Moves: Quick Attack, Bullet Punch, Metal Claw, Swords Dance, Fury Cutter, Razor Wind, Air Slash, Agility, Flash Cannon...
The Bond Value had jumped to 240, and even its compatibility was now only 5 points away from the peak following the evolution.
Most importantly, the system-provided Metal Coat had granted Scizor the Light Metal ability. This halved Scizor's weight. Normally, evolving into Scizor meant putting on heavy metal armor, more than doubling the weight compared to its time as a Scyther. With Light Metal, its weight returned to the same level as Scyther.
This would make Scizor, who was already naturally fast, even more agile! There were only 5 points of compatibility left to go.
"Scizor is so cool!" Molly ran to Scizor's side, holding its pincers and hugging its legs as she admired it from every angle.
"Principal, I want to test Scizor in battle. Would you be interested in a match?" Ash asked. Currently, the strongest person here was undoubtedly the Principal.
"Certainly!"
The Principal taking part in a battle personally was becoming a rare occurrence. Usually, the students were handled by the various department instructors; only a few, like Aya, were personally taught by him. Consequently, the students grew excited and quickly cleared the battlefield. They looked at Ash with wonder; his earlier arrogance had clearly been a front, yet the Principal regarded him so highly.
"Ash, my old partner hasn't had a proper fight in a long time!" The Principal tossed out his Poké Ball. "Let's go, Beedrill!"
There are many forests in Johto, and Beedrill is perhaps the most common Bug-type Pokémon found there. They often appear in swarms, causing plenty of trouble for traveling trainers. However, the Principal's Beedrill looked entirely different. It held its twin lances in a relaxed manner, but its aura was steadily rising. This was a battle-hardened Beedrill with extremely high combat power.
"The opponent isn't simple; we can't be careless!" In terms of typing, Scizor held the absolute advantage. As a Steel-type, it was immune to poisoning and Poison-type moves were ineffective against it.
Scizor: 241 / 251
Even before the battle started, the Bond Value and compatibility each rose by 1 point. Excellent!
"The Principal's Beedrill is incredibly strong!" Aya said, clearly familiar with its power.
"Beedrill, use Focus Energy!"
A mysterious aura began to gather around Beedrill. This would heighten its concentration, making it much easier for its lances to strike vital points.
"Focus Energy, huh?" Ash murmured. "Then we'll use Swords Dance!"
With their stats boosted, the battle officially began!
"Beedrill, use Double Team, then follow up with Twinneedle!"
At the command, Beedrill's figure suddenly vanished, replaced by a circle of clones surrounding Scizor. Its lances were raised, gleaming with a dangerous, cold light.
Clang!
Ash didn't give an order, and Scizor was hit, forced back several steps. Those lances had accurately struck the joints in Scizor's abdominal armor!
A critical hit!
"Even for a critical hit, it shouldn't be this powerful!" Blue light flashed from Ash as his Aura enveloped Scizor. Suddenly, his eyes widened as he looked at Beedrill. "Could it be the Sniper ability?"
The Sniper ability significantly increases the damage dealt by critical hits. This meant the Beedrill was a true ninja assassin, capable of landing a one-hit kill if given the slightest opening.
"Hmph, so what if it's a Sniper?" Ash clenched his fist. A match like this was a rare find. Encountering such opponents made traveling truly wonderful. "Scizor, use Agility and Quick Attack!"
The figure blurred past. Ash's "Red Flash" was born in that moment! Beedrill was sent flying back, but it stabilized itself by flapping its wings. The stinger on its abdomen suddenly began to glow.
Pin Missile!
A barrage of poisonous needles shot toward Scizor from multiple directions.
Scizor: 245 / 252
Thump-thump!
Ash heard that familiar heartbeat again—his own, and Scizor's. There were only 3 points of compatibility remaining. This was the first time both values were rising simultaneously.
"Let's go, Scizor! Double Team!"
This time, it was Scizor's turn to surround Beedrill. It held its pincers in a deceptively relaxed manner, settling into the stance for Cut!
"Beedrill, use Pin Missile again!"
The hail of needles dispelled the clones one by one, but Scizor tanked the remaining needles and landed a Cut strike directly on Beedrill's body!
"The resistance of a Steel-type is truly impressive," the Principal thought as he watched Beedrill. He wanted to teach this Scizor ninjutsu even more now.
"Principal, do you still have time to talk?"
The moment Ash spoke, Scizor closed the distance to Beedrill. Its massive pincers were glowing with a metallic luster.
Steel-type move—Flash Cannon!