Primeape roared in fury, raising both claws as it lunged forward, clearly intent on giving Aaron a "full-body massage."
Fury Swipes!!
"Froakie—use Power-Up Punch!!"
Aaron quickly ordered Froakie to step in and block the attack, stopping that shameless Primeape in its tracks.
Power-Up Punch only had a base power of 40, but Froakie possessed the Hidden Ability Protean. In an instant, its type shifted to Fighting, perfectly matching the move's attribute and boosting its power on the spot.
Although Fighting-type attacks only dealt normal damage to Primeape's own Fighting type, the impact was still far from trivial.
Froakie's Power-Up Punch collided head-on with Primeape's Fury Swipes.
"BOOM—!"
A deafening crash rang out as both Pokémon were knocked backward. Froakie slid back barely two meters, while Primeape tumbled across the ground for several meters.
A single exchange decided the outcome!!
"Froakie—now! Use Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu, then use Power-Up Punch again!!"
Aaron had long been toying with an idea.
If he used Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu and had every clone land Power-Up Punch successfully, each clone would gain +1 Attack. Then, when the clones were dismissed, would all of those Attack boosts stack back onto the main body!?
After all, the system interface had clearly stated that when clones dispersed, all of their data returned to the original.
If this actually worked, then in Aaron's eyes, Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu would be nothing short of a top-tier skill!!
Absolutely broken.
Whether it was possible or not would be decided by this experiment.
A flash of excitement flickered in Aaron's eyes.
At that moment, seven Froakie had already surrounded Primeape. They all raised their glowing fists and slammed them into its body.
"Thump! Thump! Thump—"
Primeape howled in agony. Rage burned in its eyes as steam poured off its body.
"HNNNGRAAAH—!!"
It unleashed the powerful move Thrash—a skill with 120 base power!!
It charged straight toward Froakie in a frenzy.
"Froakie—dismiss the clones!!"
"And then use Power-Up Punch again!!"
Aaron's pupils shrank as he rapidly issued the command.
"Poof! Poof! Poof..."
The clones instantly turned into puffs of white smoke and vanished without a trace.
At the same time, a sharp, overwhelming aura burst from Froakie's body. Its right fist blazed with dazzling light, moving like the wind, unstoppable and overwhelming.
One punch slammed squarely into Primeape's body.
"CRASH..."
A massive explosion-like sound echoed as Primeape was blasted more than ten meters away, smashing through several trees along the way.
Its eyes spun wildly as it collapsed, completely losing its ability to fight.
"..."
For a brief moment, the battlefield fell into an eerie silence.
Aaron's eyes were wide with disbelief—and even more so with uncontrollable joy.
His theory had actually worked!!
This was straight-up cheating!
Aaron's heart raced with excitement.
When Froakie dismissed the clones, every clone's +1 Attack bonus had returned to the main body. Froakie's Attack instantly reached the maximum boost of +6, increasing its power by a full four times!!
That was why Primeape had been sent flying more than ten meters away.
Poor thing.
Primeape must have completely collapsed mentally…
"Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu is insane!!"
"Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu—I hereby declare you a top-tier technique!!"
Aaron roared triumphantly in his heart…
"Skree skree—..."
The remaining Aipom stared at Froakie in sheer terror, clinging to one another as they trembled.
In an excellent mood, Aaron ignored those mischievous monkeys and continued deeper into the forest with Froakie.
...
Meanwhile, inside the academy's surveillance room.
The old principal and several school leaders stared at the screen with their mouths agape, wide enough to stuff in a whole watermelon.
What were they even witnessing!?
A Beginner (Mid Stage) Pokémon had just punched a Beginner (Late Stage) Pokémon more than ten meters away in a single blow.
If not for the trees blocking the way, they might have had to head to the North Pole to retrieve that monkey…
Was this really a Froakie with a physical attack base stat of just 56!?
Was this Froakie secretly carrying the Huge Power ability!?
This completely shattered the traditional understanding of the old principal and the others, plunging them into deep existential doubt…
"Principal… this… is this Froakie a frog or a bull!? How can it have this much strength!?"
"Could it be the legendary bullfrog!?"
One of the school leaders smacked his lips, asking uncertainly.
"Err..."
The old principal was left momentarily speechless. He scratched his head, racking his brain.
"Maybe this Froakie is holding an item that boosts Attack?"
"And combined with Power-Up Punch increasing its Attack by one stage, that's why it's so strong…"
After thinking it over, the old principal finally came up with a barely passable explanation.
"Mhm… the principal makes sense!!"
"That's probably the only explanation…"
"But this student, Aaron, is truly exceptional. Not only did he create his own technique, he's also trained his Pokémon to this extent. We've been incredibly fortunate at Sealine Trainer Academy!"
"Exactly! Maybe this year's top scorer in the college entrance exam will come from our school!!!"
...
The other school leaders laughed happily, their gazes toward Aaron filled with increasing fondness.
The old principal stared intently at Aaron on the screen without blinking, silently thinking to himself:
"Come on… let me see what other surprises you still have, Aaron…"
...