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After the dust dispersed, Charizard looked forward and sensed an astonishing surge of air pressure. It glanced upward and saw an enormous tail composed of solid rock swinging downward.
The tail gradually took on a metallic sheen, and combined with Onix's massive body, when that tail descended, it formed an attack of tremendous devastating power.
Seeing this incoming strike, Charizard beat its wings slightly and shifted its body just enough to evade Onix's Iron Tail attack.
CRASH!
An incredible force impacted the ground. The entire surface was torn apart as huge amounts of dust filled the air and rocks crumbled from the violent collision.
Upon landing its attack, Onix immediately surged forward again, its gigantic body executing a direct Tackle toward Charizard's position. Seeing this assault, Charizard continued adjusting its position, and Onix's charge hit nothing but empty air once more.
BANG!
Onix's body crashed into the mountain wall again. A violent sound erupted as the cliff face collapsed instantly under the impact. Charizard flew around behind Onix and prepared to launch a counterattack.
However, Onix seemed to sense Charizard's presence behind it. Its tail suddenly whipped up from below and released another Iron Tail, swinging toward Charizard from an unexpected angle through the air.
This time the speed was so tremendous that Charizard couldn't dodge immediately. It instinctively raised both arms defensively.
WHAM!
Charizard spread its claws wide and caught Onix's tail in its grip. Its body was forced downward uncontrollably by the power behind Onix's Iron Tail, rapidly descending toward the ground. When Charizard's feet touched down, the earth instantly cracked and splintered beneath the pressure.
However, Onix's massive tail remained suspended some distance above the ground. As the smoke slowly cleared, beneath Onix's tail, Charizard could be seen gripping the rocky appendage with both claws.
The Fire-and-Flying-type struggled to hold up Onix's crushing weight. Although their body sizes were vastly different, Charizard's physical strength was equally formidable.
Facing a behemoth like this particular Onix, it would be impossible to execute a move like Seismic Toss. However, simply blocking and holding back an attack was still within Charizard's capabilities.
"ROOOAAR!"
Seeing its advantage, Onix pressed down with its tail to continue suppressing Charizard. While maintaining this pressure, Onix slowly turned its head and looked down toward where Charizard was pinned.
Opening its massive jaws wide, light-green energy began condensing within its mouth. The gathering power was clearly visible as the energy continuously increased in intensity.
Obviously, Onix was currently using its tail to pin Charizard in place while simultaneously charging up energy. When the condensation reached completion, it would unleash a devastating finishing blow against the trapped Charizard.
Charizard seemed acutely aware of this danger. At this critical moment, the entire valley was illuminated by the energy Onix was concentrating in its jaws.
"Charizard!" A familiar voice suddenly called out, making Charizard's eyes flash with renewed determination.
"GRAAAAH!"
Upon hearing that voice, Charizard's eyes blazed with fierce light. It suddenly opened its own mouth as powerful Dragon-type energy began gathering within.
Unlike Onix's Dragon Breath, this energy glowed bright orange like a blazing fireball, forming an energy sphere crackling with orange electricity in Charizard's jaws.
BOOM!
The Energy Ball was released directly upward, striking the tail of Onix that Charizard was holding. An astonishing explosion erupted immediately.
Although Onix possessed amazing strength and an incredibly heavy body, under the bombardment of this Energy Ball at point-blank range, its tail was forcefully pushed upward by the explosive force.
Onix hadn't anticipated this sudden counterattack. Under the impact of the energy sphere, its tail lifted up uncontrollably, and in the next instant, swung directly into its own head.
CRASH! BOOM BOOM!
"ROOOAAR!"
Because Onix's body was so tremendously large, when its tail was blown upward by the Energy Ball's force, it ended up striking its own head instead.
Simultaneously, the Dragon Breath energy that had been condensing in its mouth lost stability and exploded prematurely. This detonation also triggered the Energy Ball that Charizard had released.
In an instant, massive clouds of smoke filled the entire area. Onix's upper body fell heavily from its upright position, crashing down onto the ground with tremendous impact.
"GRAAAAH!"
Seeing its attack succeed, Charizard looked toward the sky and roared triumphantly. At that moment, several figures rushed quickly from behind and arrived at Charizard's side—it was Ash and his companions.
"It's that same Onix!" Brock exclaimed in surprise as he recognized the enormous figure flickering through the dust ahead.
"Why is Charizard fighting with Onix?"
Misty looked genuinely confused. Charizard had clearly been asleep just moments ago, so she couldn't understand why it had suddenly run up the mountain and started this battle with Onix.
"It seems your Charizard wanted to stand up for you!"
At that moment, Bruno observed the scene before them and seemed to sense the underlying motivation. He looked at Charizard and spoke knowingly.
"I think that's partly true, but Charizard probably also wanted to battle against a stronger opponent! If I'm not mistaken, that move just now was Dragon Rage! It seems the training during this period has really paid off!"
Ash didn't refute Bruno's observation. That was certainly part of Charizard's motivation, but his Pokémon's natural personality also played a significant role.
Although the other Pokémon on his team frequently challenged Charizard, it often seemed quite lazy about those matches—but that was because it had already fought against them extensively before.
When facing an unfamiliar and powerful rival, however, Charizard's interest would be reignited immediately. This represented constant self-improvement and growth. Once Charizard had already surpassed a particular opponent, that rival would struggle to capture its attention again.
The facts proved that battling powerful opponents was beneficial. Charizard had just used a new technique, and Ash was certain he'd recognized it correctly as Dragon Rage.
The power and appearance of Dragon Rage varied depending on which Pokémon used it and their individual characteristics. When used by Water-and-Flying-types like Gyarados, it produced a tornado-like effect.
Pure Dragon-type Pokémon like Fraxure generated the purest blue energy form.
Since Charizard belonged to the Fire-type category, its Dragon Rage effect was naturally biased toward its own elemental abilities, manifesting in a fireball-like form.
Although Ash hadn't deliberately trained Charizard to learn any specific new moves, as its training intensified and it grew stronger, Charizard had naturally learned other techniques on its own.
If this particular battle hadn't occurred, Ash might not have discovered this new capability yet.
"ROOOAAR!"
At that moment, the dull, thunderous roar sounded once again, instantly capturing everyone's attention. Charizard's eyes narrowed slightly with renewed focus.
Misty and Brock both displayed panicked expressions as they watched the scene ahead. As the dust dispersed, they saw the massive figure slowly rising back to its feet.
"It... it still hasn't fallen!"
Incredibly, even after suffering such a devastating combined blow, Onix's stamina was truly extraordinary—it had not been knocked down.