The host looked a little flustered, and the live audience was also stunned as they stared at the battlefield below. But unlike the growing murmurs and noise of the audience, the host remained professional. He quickly picked up the commentary and said,
"...It's not uncommon to see a Pokémon evolve during a battle to reverse the situation when it's at a disadvantage, but evolving right at the start is extremely rare. Looks like Ryuuske came well-prepared this time—Brock might be in trouble!"
A brilliant light burst forth from Gible's body. For Pokémon with two stages of evolution, the first is usually easier. After more than a month of intense training in the Viridian Forest—constantly in danger and on high alert—Gible's will had already transcended. Along with its growth in strength and energy, it had long since been ready to evolve. Ryuuske had simply been suppressing it.
Now, on this gym challenge stage, under the spotlight, and with countless eyes watching, Gible—pushed to its limit—finally released all restraint under Ryuuske's command and underwent a complete transformation.
The audience craned their necks to watch Gible's evolution. In the world of Pokémon, evolutions are moments of excitement and awe. Except for a few cases where evolution is delayed for special purposes, most people never hold their Pokémon back—evolution signifies growth, maturity, and power!
"It's here! Gible has evolved into Gabite!"
The host, not particularly familiar with Sinnoh-region Pokémon, hurriedly looked through his notes while explaining to the audience, "...As a rare species native to the Sinnoh region, Gible's data is already limited. According to Sinnoh researchers, wild Gabite are usually about 1.5 meters tall. But as you can see, Ryuuske's Gabite looks to be over three meters tall! This shows just how perfectly Ryuuske has raised it!"
"...When trained by a Trainer, Pokémon often surpass their wild and domesticated counterparts in height, weight, and power. Just how powerful is this extraordinary Gabite? Keep your eyes wide open and witness Ryuuske's performance! Let's go, Gabite—crush that Onix!"
The host shouted himself hoarse. Even though they were in Pewter City and Brock had the home-field advantage, every real Trainer held a status far above ordinary people. They were bound to receive cheers. The host hyped up the crowd like a man possessed, trying to push the atmosphere to its peak.
"Woooahhh! Go! Go!!"
Over 70,000 people roared unconsciously. Thunderous drumbeats echoed through the stadium, pounding against everyone's chests. The sheer noise seemed to scatter the very air. Though many didn't know what they were yelling, the excitement had already exploded.
Ryuuske glanced around. The nervousness he had felt facing such a huge crowd was now fading. In fact, he was starting to enjoy being in the spotlight, basking in the cheers. Standing at the center of the stage, he felt like the world revolved around him—his blood boiled with adrenaline, a feeling too intense to bottle up.
The screams of girls in the crowd were especially pleasing. Ryuuske was quite satisfied with his current appearance. Among the people he'd met so far, only Gary Oak could rival his looks. As for Brock... well, not to be mean, but let's just say his face wasn't exactly what young girls would go wild over.
"Nice. Gible has evolved, taking one more step toward its final form. But this height…"
Looking up at the now over three-meter-tall Gabite—which stood nearly twice his own 1.7 meters—Ryuuske felt a bit of a headache coming on. If it was already this tall as a Gabite, wouldn't it be over eight or even ten meters tall as a Garchomp? At that size, no one could deny Garchomp was basically a tyrannosaurus. He thought about the Sinnoh Champion's Garchomp, which was exactly that kind of towering beast, and could only shake his head with a bitter smile.
"A shame. With a body this big, Gabite can't stick around by my side much anymore. I'll have to keep it in its Pokéball most of the time."
Bringing a three-meter-tall dragon out into the streets would probably cause a panic.
Gabite's once chubby body had become long and sleek. Its gaze was fiercer, far more aggressive than Gible's. Sharp bone-like spikes jutted from its feet, knees, and wrists. Its arms—shaped like shark fins—gleamed dangerously. Ryuuske had no doubt that even with just a basic slash, Gabite could slice through giant boulders like butter.
"You've waited long enough, Brock. Now the real battle begins. Gabite!"
Ryuuske called out to Gabite. It turned its head and gave him a firm nod—gone was the cute, playful demeanor it had as Gible. The entire Pokémon now radiated calm and maturity, like a little girl who had grown into a young woman.
"Good, still obeying commands like second nature. This Dragon Tamer power really shines when facing Dragon-types."
Seeing how his instructions still flowed smoothly, Ryuuske relaxed a little.
Brock looked at the evolved Pokémon and could only smile wryly. Due to League regulations, when facing a new Trainer with no badges like Ryuuske, he had to use Pokémon of similar level. Though this Onix had been trained for a while, it still fell short of Brock's main team. It had been raised specifically to challenge newbies. When Brock saw Ryuuske's practical combat skills and how well Gible performed in the preliminaries, he knew this Onix wasn't going to cut it. And now that Gible had evolved and grown even stronger, the gap between the two sides had only widened.
"Let's at least go out with some dignity."
Brock thought to himself. As a Gym Leader, he'd experienced both victory and defeat. Losing didn't bother him too much. But for the sake of pride, he could accept defeat—just not a humiliating one!
"Onix, Rock Tomb!"
Since defeat was inevitable, he would make it a dazzling show of continuous attacks, turning the battle into something visually impressive. The audience wouldn't know the behind-the-scenes balance rules—they'd just see a hard-fought loss after a good fight.
Brock's plan was solid.
But Ryuuske had no intention of following his script. Watching the massive rocks suddenly materialize on either side of Onix and crash down, he curled his lips and muttered, "...Every time I see these moves, I can't help but think how unscientific they are. Are these rocks solidified energy or something?"
Even while pondering pseudo-scientific questions, Ryuuske gave Brock a small smile, snapped his fingers, and said, "...Gabite, just like in the prelims—let's end this quickly."
In that moment, Brock felt a chill run down his spine.
To be continued…