-060- Mastering a New Skill (2/3)

Having resolved to teach Electabuzz the Thunder Punch move, Kirito had made up his mind. But what skill should Leafeon learn? That was the question!

From what he remembered, Leafeon was capable of mastering quite a few Grass-type skills. At present, it already knew Leaf Blade. Kirito considered Magical Leaf, but honestly, the nature of Magical Leaf was quite similar to Leaf Blade—almost like an advanced version. If he exchanged points for Magical Leaf, it would feel redundant to have both skills, a waste of his hard-earned points.

He had also thought about Solar Beam and Solar Blade, but immediately discarded those options. These two moves were among the most powerful Grass-type skills, but they required a lengthy charge time. If Leafeon reverted to its Eevee form, its ability to absorb sunlight would surely lag behind its Leafeon form, making these moves less practical. Besides, both required over a hundred thousand points—far too expensive.

After much deliberation, Kirito finally managed to narrow down his choices. Energy Ball, Leaf Blade, Synthesis, and Giga Drain. Energy Ball was a ranged special attack, while Leaf Blade was a close-range physical move. Given Leafeon's exceptional physical attack, learning Leaf Blade seemed the most cost-effective. However, Eevee's physical and special attacks weren't that different, and it would seem odd for Eevee to use Leaf Blade.

As for Synthesis and Giga Drain, both were restorative moves. Synthesis depended on the weather, whereas Giga Drain inflicted damage and restored half of the damage dealt as health. Kirito thought it over and decided Synthesis was more stable. The main reason, though, was that he felt having Eevee use Giga Drain made it seem like a vampire—somewhat unsightly.

After wrestling with his decision, Kirito ultimately chose to teach Leafeon Energy Ball and Synthesis. He made the trade with the system, spending a total of three hundred thousand points for these three skills. Incidentally, defeating the man in brown earlier had earned him another ten thousand points. Kirito now had five hundred seventy thousand points remaining. Of these, five hundred thousand were reserved for Leafeon's de-evolution.

In his “Backpack” under “Skills,” Kirito saw Thunder Punch, Energy Ball, and Synthesis, each marked as (New).

“System, teach Electabuzz Thunder Punch, and Leafeon Energy Ball and Synthesis.”

“Beep-boop.”

“Successfully taught Electabuzz Thunder Punch.”

“Successfully taught Leafeon Energy Ball and Synthesis.”

As the system announced completion, Kirito could not help but want to test them out.

“Electabuzz, use Thunder Punch! Leafeon, use Energy Ball!”

He issued the command to his two Pokémon. The pair exchanged glances, their bodies surging with energies of different natures. Electabuzz’s right arm transformed, charged with powerful electric energy as Thunder Punch, crackling with intense electricity. Leafeon, meanwhile, gathered grass elemental energy at its mouth, forming a moderately sized Energy Ball.

“Yah~!”

Leafeon, seeming to want to compete with Electabuzz over whose move was stronger, fired the Energy Ball directly at Electabuzz.

“Beep beep!”

Electabuzz slammed down its Thunder Punch with a sudden force.

“Boom!”

Electric and grass elements collided fiercely. In the next moment, Electabuzz shattered the Energy Ball. It wasn't that Energy Ball lacked power, but rather that Thunder Punch was simply too strong!

Despite just learning Thunder Punch, Electabuzz wielded it as though it had practiced hundreds of times, displaying remarkable skill. Its powerful right arm and ferocious electric energy made for an impressive combination.

“Beep beep!” Electabuzz cried out in excitement. It loved this skill—Thunder Punch felt tailor-made for it, fitting perfectly.

“Excellent, Electabuzz!” Kirito was thrilled for Electabuzz; its long training had not been in vain.

“Yah~” Leafeon maintained its cool demeanor. As a beam of white light shone, the sunlight warmed the surroundings, and grass elements danced on the wind. Leafeon basked in the sunlight, glittering like a radiant fairy.

When the light faded, Kirito slapped his thigh in regret—he wished he had captured that moment. If he uploaded it to a short video site, it would surely get more views than those old Eevee dancing videos.

Ah well! Eevee wouldn’t think of this, so it probably wouldn’t blame him.

“All right, let’s hurry and chase down the Bronze Mane Gang’s truck!” Kirito said, leading his two Pokémon onward.

With Electabuzz and Leafeon clearing the way, Kirito moved forward with ease. Along the path, he noticed many plants bearing the marks of being run over.

“How do these guys drive, anyway?” Kirito muttered, not so much criticizing their destruction as wondering how they could not be shaken to pieces. Driving a truck through such a rugged path?

What puzzled him more was how they managed to get their truck into the forest at all. The Forest of Green Leaves had more than one entrance, but each was guarded by staff. The perimeter was fenced, except by the lakeshore. But that lake was vast, home to fierce Water-type Pokémon.

Kirito remembered hearing that daily battles broke out by the lakeside. Crawdaunt and Clawitzer were bitter enemies, constantly fighting and impossible to separate. Worse still, savage Bass of red and blue hues also lived in the lake. Whenever the two colors met, they fought to the death. The battles in that lake must be fierce indeed.

As to why sea-dwelling savage Bass ended up in the lake, Kirito admitted he had no idea.

Following the tire tracks for a long way, Kirito finally saw other Pokémon in the forest besides Beedrill and Kakuna.

“The Caterpie family…” Kirito observed a group of Caterpie living there, careful not to disturb them. Some Metapod hung from the trees.

Usually, Caterpie and Weedle lived apart. Though both were first-generation Bug Pokémon, their relationship was anything but harmonious, and their habits differed. As a result, their habitats were separated by some distance. Only bug-catching kids, ignorant as they were, would catch them and raise them together. That was sheer torture for the bugs.

“Hm?”

After leaving the Caterpie family's territory, Kirito spotted a solitary Combee.

“It seems wild Pokémon are becoming more numerous here…” Kirito instinctively concluded.

…(To be continued)