Chapter 1173: Wimpod
Chapter 1173: Wimpod
Yuga's clumsy maneuvers seemed to amuse Tapu Lele, which swayed joyfully in the air before unleashing another Moonblast aimed at him.
At that moment, Mega Gengar and Mismagius had already reacted, stepping in front of Yuga to jointly counter the attack with Dark Pulse and Mystical Fire.
Watching Tapu Lele's innocent demeanor suddenly ignited a feeling of frustration within Yuga; it was unbearable to him. Damn it, why should I take your nonsense here!
"Gengar, Mismagius, hit it hard!" Not only that, but Yuga also released his Lapras, Chimecho, and Florges.
"Everyone, let's go all out!"
Florges quickly set up Grassy Terrain, tossing a seed into it that it had picked up in the forest.
Under Florges's control, the seed grew at an astonishing speed, transforming into a magical vine that reached toward Tapu Lele with menacing tendrils.
After learning its abilities from Tapu Bulu, Florges's combat power had drastically improved, already showing signs of becoming akin to a legendary Pokémon.
Seeing this, Tapu Lele quickly dodged, but Florges's companion, Chimecho, suddenly appeared above it and activated Gravity, causing Tapu Lele to be pulled toward the ground.
The magical vines seized the opportunity, their numerous tendrils wrapping around Tapu Lele's body with apparent precision, suspending it in mid-air.
At this moment, Lapras, Mega Gengar, and Mismagius had prepped their attacks, unleashing Ice Beam, Sludge Bomb, and Shadow Ball all at once, striking the immobilized Tapu Lele.
It wasn't until the pain registered throughout its body that Tapu Lele realized it was being attacked.
Tapu Lele's childish nature flared up at the sight of Yuga summoning so many Pokémon to surround it, especially as it took a beating; it was furious.
For Tapu Lele, it had always been the one teasing others; it could never accept being bullied in return.
After a series of explosions, Tapu Lele burst out of the smoke, its eyes filled with rage as it glared at Yuga and Florges.
Its innocent laughter and carefree demeanor were nowhere to be found!
Soaring into the sky, Tapu Lele angrily scolded Yuga and Florges, with countless beams of moonlight pouring down from it, the Moonblast raining down like a machine gun.
Tapu Lele was now serious.
Seeing this, Chimecho took the lead, rising to match Tapu Lele's altitude, with purple energy surging around it. Multiple light walls sprang up just in time in front of Yuga, Florges, Lapras, Mega Gengar, and Mismagius, stabilizing and blocking the barrage of attacks from Tapu Lele.
After successfully weathering this wave of assault, the magical vines in the Grassy Terrain began to grow wildly, gathering together to gradually weave into a gigantic hand reaching for Tapu Lele.
Tapu Lele narrowly dodged the grasp of the magical vine's hand just as Mega Gengar's Sludge Bomb struck. It managed to evade the attack again, but then Mismagius's Mystical Fire came next. It dodged that as well, but Lapras's Origin Pulse was right behind.
This time, the flustered Tapu Lele couldn't evade in time and was hit directly by the Origin Pulse, crying out in pain as it fell from the sky. As soon as it landed, Florges teleported above it, activating Gravity once more.
The extreme anger fueled Tapu Lele, amplifying its power. It unleashed a move only a guardian of the Alola region could use—Nature's Madness—aimed at Chimecho, who had imposed Gravity on it.
Caught off guard, Chimecho was struck squarely by Nature's Madness, instinctively dispelling the Gravity. Seizing the opportunity, Tapu Lele dashed upward, radiating a brilliant pink light that illuminated the entire sky, resembling a dazzling little sun.
In the face of this Dazzling Gleam attack, the relatively weaker Mismagius fell instantly, unable to be saved even by Wish move that Florges had been secretly prepared.
Chimecho that has been injured by the Nature's Madness also nearly succumbed to the attack, but thankfully, Lapras was close by and shielded it with its body.
However, just as Tapu Lele finished this devastating attack, the giant hand formed from the magical vines suddenly struck, capturing it firmly.
Tapu Lele cried out in panic, but the giant hand held it tightly; no matter how much it struggled, the grip did not relent in the slightest.
But this was not the end. The giant hand began to flicker with a faint green glow, and soon Tapu Lele realized its stamina was depleting.
Through the vines that was weaving the giant hand, Florges had also applied Leech Seed.
The rapid loss of energy left Tapu Lele without the strength to resist; it lay breathlessly in the palm of the giant hand, deeply regretting its decision to heed Tapu Koko's suggestion to stir up trouble.
Seeing Tapu Lele in such a helpless state finally relieved Yuga's pent-up frustration.
"Chimecho, go check on Mismagius!"
"Ring, ring!"
Chimecho hurried off to assess Mismagius's injuries.
After sending Chemicho on its way, Yuga began pondering how to deal with the trouble-making Tapu Lele. However, before he could formulate a plan, Tapu Bulu appeared before him in the night.
"Are you here to take Tapu Lele away?" Yuga asked, frowning at Tapu Bulu.
Tapu Bulu nodded, its tail swaying back and forth, the familiar ringing sound echoing.
"Alright then."
Yuga considered it briefly and agreed, remembering that Tapu Bulu had once taught Florges.
Upon hearing Yuga's response, Tapu Bulu looked overjoyed, its tail wagging even more energetically. It pulled out a silver bracelet from somewhere and handed it to Yuga.
"Is this for me?" Yuga asked in surprise.
Tapu Bilu nodded eagerly, extending the bracelet toward Yuga, afraid that he might refuse it.
"Thank you."
Yuga expressed his gratitude and took the bracelet. With this Z-Ring, his Z-Crystal would finally be of use.
Seeing Yuga accept the gift, Tapu Bulu joyfully flew in the air for a couple of laps before vanishing into the night with the unconscious Tapu Lele.
As Yuga watched Tapu Bulu and Tapu Lele depart, he came to his senses and noticed that the sky was already beginning to lighten; dawn was approaching without him realizing it.
After Chimecho checked Mismagius and confirmed there were no serious injuries, Yuga had Gengar take Mismagius back to the Shadow Space to rest.
Having worked through the night, Yuga decided to find a spot to enjoy the seaside sunrise, knowing he probably wouldn't be able to sleep if he returned to the hotel now.
Yuga summoned Palossand from the Shadow Space. After it absorbed enough sand to grow larger, he climbed onto the walls of Palossand's second floor with his Pokémon and quietly waiting for the sun to rise.
Thinking about how Persian, Rockruff, and Meowth were still at the hotel, he sent Dragonite and Charizard back to fetch them, wanting to avoid making them worry.
After such an intense battle with Tapu Lele, Yuga was indeed feeling a bit tired, so he took a lounge chair from his system space and reclined comfortably.
Perhaps because of the pleasant sea breeze, Yuga, who had initially felt no sleepiness, gradually began to feel his eyelids grow heavy, and before long, he dozed off.
However, he did not enter a deep sleep. When Dragonite and Charizard returned with Persian and her little ones, he was still somewhat aware, albeit in a daze.
Yuga hadn't slept long; the sky was not yet bright. Though there was a golden line on the horizon, the overall sky remained dark. Suddenly, Rockruff bit the hem of his pants, waking him up.
Rubbing his eyes, Yuga asked groggily, "What happened?" He seemed to hear a rustling sound near him, dense and continuous.
"Woof, woof!"
Rockruff barked twice, prompting Yuga to get up from the lounge chair and slowly walk over to the edge of the wall. He looked down and was immediately jolted awake, no longer feeling sleepy.
Goodness! Upon closer inspection, the beach was now teeming with palm-sized bug-type Pokémon.
Not only were these bugs crawling all over the beach, but many had also already entered Palossand's body, having been unconsciously sucked in and stunned.
Palossand didn't mind being covered in these bugs at all, but the sound they made as they moved sent chills down Yuga's spine. Not only were they swarming the beach, but there were also continuous streams of them crawling up from the sea.
Anyone with a fear of clusters would probably faint at this sight.
Yuga's movements seemed to startle these bugs; they almost instantly moved away from Palossand, displaying their timid nature as suggested by their name, Wimpod.
Wimpod is a very common bug and water-type Pokémon in the Alola region. They typically live in groups, have a broad diet, and will even eat garbage and decaying food, earning them the title of nature's cleaners.
However, Wimpod usually gather in groups of dozens or hundreds, so Yuga had never heard (or seen) of such a large number—probably over a thousand here.
Given the sheer number of Wimpod, Yuga wasted no time and quickly activated his Insight ability to see if he could find a suitable target for capture.
The evolved form of Wimpod, Golisopod, is a rare and powerful species among bug-type Pokémon.
However, precisely because of this, Golisopod prefers solitude. Once a Wimpod evolves into a Golisopod, it leaves its group to live independently.
So, even with so many Wimpod here, it was unlikely that Yuga would find a Golisopod.
Before long, Yuga successfully spotted the first green potential Wimpod among the swarm and hurriedly directed Charizard to catch it.
Wimpod not only has a timid personality but also weak abilities, so the process of capturing this one went smoothly.
However, Charizard's appearance frightened the other Wimpod, causing them to panic and scatter across the beach, even causing those climbing up from the water to retreat back into it.
Encountering danger and immediately fleeing is the survival strategy of Wimpod.
Yuga thought for a moment and commanded Lapras to dive into the water, where it began to make a ruckus. Soon enough, the Wimpod in the water were frightened and scrambled onto the shore.
As he saw more and more Wimpod crawling up onto the beach, Yuga began to get busy. He looked left and right, but he still couldn't find another high potential Pokémon.
The continuous stream of Wimpod crawling ashore made Yuga's scalp tingle, yet he endured the discomfort in hopes of spotting a high potential one, staring intently without blinking.
However, high potential Pokémon were indeed hard to find. After searching for quite a while and still coming up empty-handed, Yuga reluctantly decided to capture a dozen or so yellow potential Wimpod with decent skills. After using an innovation potion on them, they might still have a chance for improvement.
Just as Yuga was about to give up on finding a high potential Wimpod, a burst of white light suddenly erupted from the water, and a Golisopod broke through the surface.
...
[ Golisopod ]
Type: Bug, Water
Ability: Emergency Exit
Gender: Male
Potential : Blue
Level: 31
Skills: Tackle, Struggle Bug, Fury Cutter, Rock Smash, Slash, Razor Shell, Wide Guard, Leech Life.
...
Clearly, this hidden blue potential Wimpod had evolved unexpectedly in a moment of crisis.
After evolving, Golisopod was no longer as timid as Wimpod. It took the initiative to attack Lapras, using Slash to cut the sea and then slashing at Lapras with its sharp claws using Razor Shell.
In the water, Lapras was much more agile than on land. It dove beneath the surface and reappeared right behind Golisopod. With just a gentle breath of Ice Wind, Golisopod was frozen into an ice sculpture.
Having captured this Golisopod, Yuga selectively caught a few more yellow potential Wimpod. Opportunities like this wouldn't come often, so he had to seize the moment to capture a few.
By the time all the Wimpod had returned to the sea, the sun had completely risen, and Yuga had missed the chance to appreciate the majestic sunrise over the ocean.
After recalling Palossand, Yuga suddenly remembered something important: today was the day he was supposed to visit Aether Paradise as per their agreement!
He hurriedly hopped on Dragonite and flew towards the hotel.
When Yuga arrived back at the hotel, the person from the Aether Foundation who was supposed to pick him up was already there. He quickly returned to his room to freshen up and change clothes before boarding the luxury vehicle sent by the Aether Foundation.
However, Aether Paradise wasn't located on Akala Island but rather on Alola's largest artificial island.
Although Akala Island is an important activity site for the Aether Foundation, their true headquarters is Aether Paradise, which sits entirely on property owned by the Aether Foundation.
The car drove Yuga to the Aether Foundation's private airport on Akala Island, where he was greeted by Wicke, who had been waiting to welcome him and led him to a flying vehicle.
This flying vehicle would take Yuga to the artificial island where Aether Paradise is located.
Wicke is the deputy director of the Aether Foundation and a right-hand aide to Lusamine. Her personally coming to greet Yuga shows how much importance they placed on this visit.