Metagross was completely rattled by Tyranitar's sweeping tail blow—it was so disoriented, it couldn't even tell which way was up...
Tyranitar, being a power-type offensive Pokémon, was at an astonishing level 79. Even though it hadn't used any actual moves, a single tail swipe still packed overwhelming destructive force.
So much so, Metagross was nearly knocked out of the fight entirely.
It barely managed to stay afloat—and that was only because Tyranitar had held back a bit.
Charizard let out a booming roar and walked over.
Back then, Charizard also refused to follow Ash's commands. It wasn't until Ash tirelessly cared for him day and night, with a little help from Team Rocket's antics, that Charizard finally softened and became obedient.
So, when it came to unruly Pokémon, Charizard had plenty of authority to speak.
After exchanging a few words with Metagross, both Dawn and Anabel could clearly sense a change in it.
It had realized something important.
Having a bad temper doesn't mean you're dumb.
In fact, Metagross was very smart.
And now, it had been thoroughly humbled.
"Metagross, from now on, you'll train alongside Monferno and Floatzel."
"Pika pika!"
Ash and Pikachu stepped forward.
"M-Meta…"
Metagross muttered a few words bashfully.
"Alright, everyone, return. Metagross too—go rest and recover inside your Heal Ball."
Ash recalled all the Pokémon back into their Poké Balls.
"Congratulations, Ash! You've caught another powerful Pokémon. So, where are we headed next? I just checked the map—the nearest town with a Gym is Snowpoint City," Anabel said as she walked over.
"Mistralton it is," Ash nodded. "Now that Dawn's earned her five Contest Ribbons, there's no need for us to detour for Contest Halls for a while. Dawn, your performance skills in contests are already top-notch. What you really need now is more practical experience. From now on, train with Anabel and battle regularly."
With their next destination confirmed, the group resumed their journey.
Three days later, they entered a forest en route to Snowpoint City.
Here, Ash, Dawn, and Anabel had all their Pokémon out for training.
Dawn and Anabel battled each other—although Anabel, being a Pseudo-Elite Four-level trainer, mostly went easy on Dawn.
Her Metagross, Espeon, and Alakazam were all very high-leveled.
"Monferno, use Flame Charge! Floatzel, deflect the flames with Aqua Jet!"
"Electivire, Thunderbolt the ground and send rocks flying—target Grotle!"
"Grotle, Razor Leaf—shatter every incoming rock!"
"Gliscor, keep practicing your spring-jump tail technique! You've got to bounce higher and farther than yesterday!"
"Aiyaaah!"
As for Lucario...
Lucario was standing smack in the center of the crossfire.
Ash was testing its Aura sensing capabilities.
The goal was for Lucario to stand still and use Aura to sense attacks from Electivire, Monferno, Grotle, and Floatzel—and dodge them all!
At first, Lucario could only dodge the attacks of two Pokémon.
But after continued training, it was now able to avoid the moves of three Pokémon at once.
That was five days ago.
Today, Ash had increased the difficulty to four Pokémon!
What about Metagross?
For now, during these three days, it could only observe the others' training and gradually try to blend in.
But with its Steel typing, it had great durability and would probably integrate quickly.
Besides, Metagross was known in the Pokémon world by another name—the Super Brain of Pokémon!
Its brain power was said to rival that of a computer.
With a brain like that, once it improved its speed, it could potentially train using Lucario's style too.
The intense training continued for over half an hour.
"Alright everyone, take a break. Dawn, Anabel, you two rest up as well. You've worked hard today. I'll handle lunch," Ash said as he began preparing the ingredients.
"Hey, look over there—what Pokémon is that?" Dawn suddenly pointed to a shadow beneath a nearby tree.
There, they saw a snow-white figure.
"That's... a Snover?" Anabel recognized it immediately.
The moment it was identified, the Snover flinched and quickly ducked behind the tree.
But when it saw that Dawn and Anabel weren't approaching, it curiously peeked back out from behind the trunk.
Dawn and Anabel excitedly told Ash about the Snover they had discovered.
Ash, hearing this, immediately recalled the original timeline—that Snover.
Looks like luck was on their side. Who would've thought this mountain forest was the very one where that Snover appeared?
What a fated encounter.
"That Snover must've been living in this mountain all along," Ash mused as he prepared lunch. "There's snow on the mountaintop, so it's a good habitat. Given how rare it is to see one down here, it might be the only Snover in this entire area."
For some reason, Anabel felt a pang of sadness when she imagined the Snover living all alone up here.
While Dawn and Anabel prepared the Pokémon food and Ash cooked lunch, soon enough the air was filled with an irresistible aroma.
Snover, drawn by the scent, couldn't resist...
It waddled over with rapid little steps.
Maybe wanting to show its excitement and hospitality, it unleashed a sudden Blizzard in their direction!
"Gaa-gah!"
Before Monferno could even react, Charizard's tail flame flared up.
The Blizzard hadn't even reached them before being evaporated completely by the intense heat—instantly neutralized.
That was the power of absolute level suppression.
Snover looked on, puzzled, as if wondering why no one got frozen. Weren't they supposed to feel its warmth and friendliness?
This wouldn't do—definitely not!
Panicking slightly, Snover plucked a few of its own little snowballs—those round fruits that grow on its body.
Carefully holding five of them in its stubby arms, it offered them out. Snover was a clean freak by nature, so the snowballs were as pure and white as fresh powder.
"Oh! I remember now—those little snowballs from a Snover's body are edible! They're good for both people and Pokémon. I think it's trying to share them with us!" Anabel exclaimed.
Though Snover hadn't spoken a word, she could feel its intentions.
Snover eagerly nodded.
Its eyes, though, were fixated on something in Ash's hand.
Ash was holding a bowl of steaming, freshly prepared soup.
"Oh? You want this?" Ash grinned. "Sure, this bowl's for you. Let's call it a trade—for your snowballs."
He handed the soup to Snover.
Snover was overjoyed—and as it sipped the soup, new snowballs began rapidly growing from its body again.
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