With the vast sky available, Aerodactyl's speed was finally no longer restricted. It freely unleashed its prideful high speed, vanishing from Charizard's sight again and again without a trace.
(What an annoying guy!)
Charizard thought irritably, spewing flames from its mouth to sweep across the surroundings, trying to scorch Aerodactyl's wings. Unfortunately, it was useless—Aerodactyl had already figured out Charizard's attack patterns and could predict the direction of the flames in advance.
Sharp stone blades struck again. Seeing this, Charizard immediately used Dragon Claw to shatter them, then flapped its massive wings and launched an Air Slash toward Aerodactyl's direction.
Seeing this, Aerodactyl's wings glowed with a silver light as it used Steel Wing to withstand the Air Slash. Taking advantage of the momentum, it used Agility to move behind Charizard, bared its fangs, and bit into Charizard's neck with Thunder Fang.
"I'm not afraid of electricity!"
Charizard said disdainfully, smashing its right fist crackling with electricity into Aerodactyl's wings.
(This is bad! Miscalculation!)
The pain from the electric current made Aerodactyl cry out. Unlike Charizard, which could offset half the damage from Thunder Fang, Aerodactyl was doubly weak to Charizard's Thunder Punch and was nearly knocked out of battle.
"Looks like your stamina is almost gone too. Let's just use our final moves together!" Charizard said casually, barely giving this king of the skies a bit of respect.
Aerodactyl let out a soft laugh and nodded in agreement.
Aerodactyl flapped its wings and flew high into the air, then gathered all its strength and dove toward Charizard. The airflow generated by the impact wrapped around its body—it had already used Giga Impact.
"Bring it on!"
Charizard said excitedly, covering its entire body in blazing flames. With its whole body engulfed, Charizard flapped its wings and charged toward Aerodactyl with Flare Blitz.
The battle between Charizard and Aerodactyl had already attracted Charmeleon, who had been dozing off earlier. Its gaze remained fixed on the two Pokémon, longing to join such a powerful clash.
Their battle also drew the attention of nearby trainers who were preparing to leave. All of them were shocked by the two Pokémon fighting in the sky, questioning in their hearts whether they could ever become as strong as Charizard and Aerodactyl.
"What an intense battle—this is a perfect shot!"
A young reporter exclaimed excitedly, quickly taking out his camera to capture the moment of their collision.
Originally, he had come to photograph the excavated ancient fossils, but unexpectedly captured such a breathtaking scene. The trip was truly worthwhile.
The clash of the two powerful moves produced thick, choking smoke, and everyone watching eagerly awaited the result.
When the smoke finally cleared, Charizard spread its massive wings and let out a thunderous roar, proving itself the victor of this battle.
The Pokémon released by the surrounding trainers trembled in fear, lowering their heads and submitting to Charizard's overwhelming dragon-like pressure.
As for the defeated Aerodactyl, it shook its head helplessly, acknowledging Charizard's strength. Then, exhausted, it fell from the sky—but just before hitting the ground, Charizard rushed over and caught it with its claws, preventing further injury.
"Couldn't you use a better posture?" Aerodactyl said speechlessly before closing its eyes weakly.
"Good work, Aerodactyl," Red said softly, throwing a Poké Ball from his waist to capture it, then sending it back to Professor Oak's Laboratory via the Pokédex.
"Nice job, Charizard!" Red praised. The delighted Charizard rubbed its face against Red's cheek, completely lacking its previous majesty, like the innocent Charmander it once was.
"Brother's Charizard is really amazing…" Ash said in amazement, staring blankly at the dragon scales on Charizard's body. Would his own Charmeleon have such a form when it evolved?
"Roar—"
Seeing Ash's attention completely on Charizard, Charmeleon angrily spat flames at him as a reprimand.
After attracting Red and Charizard's attention, Charmeleon strode forward with overflowing arrogance, staring at Charizard with fighting intent. It let out a low growl toward Red, indicating that it wanted to challenge Charizard.
(Is this kid getting ahead of himself? Forgot me so quickly?)
Charizard was amused by Charmeleon's antics. It didn't expect that the little guy it had completely crushed at the lighthouse before would now be so inflated as to challenge it.
When Charmeleon saw Charizard shake its head disdainfully, it stomped angrily, mistakenly thinking Charizard was belittling its current form and trying to force it to evolve.
A light of evolution began to emanate from Charmeleon's body. Seeing this, both Red and Charizard showed displeased expressions. Charizard then roared, forcibly interrupting the evolution.
After the forced interruption, Charmeleon panted heavily to stabilize itself. Red immediately released the Power of Viridian to heal its unaffected muscles.
"Foolish. For the sake of temporary strength, you're willing to abandon your future potential," Red scolded sternly. His harsh tone made Charmeleon lower its head in fear, not daring to meet Red's angry gaze.
"If you can withstand my flames, I'll acknowledge your strength and agree to battle you," Charizard said coldly. Seeing Charmeleon's stubbornness, it decided to give it a chance to challenge, lest it go down the wrong path in the future.
"Charmeleon, forget it. My brother's Charizard isn't something you can defeat right now," Ash advised. Though he trusted his Pokémon, he wasn't foolish enough to ignore reality—he didn't want Charmeleon to throw its life away.
Blazing flames shot from Charizard's mouth, a thick pillar of fire instantly rushing toward Charmeleon. Charmeleon stared in shock at the approaching flames, not understanding why it felt such fear. As a Fire-type Pokémon, it instinctively wanted to dodge and avoid the attack.
But stubbornly, Charmeleon chose to stand its ground, taking the full force of the flames. Its entire body was scorched, not a single part left unburned.
"How is that possible?! Even as a Fire-type, Charmeleon can't withstand Charizard's flames!" Ash exclaimed in shock, staring at Charmeleon's burned body in disbelief. His prideful partner was so vastly inferior to Red's Charizard.
"Give up. You can't fight anymore."
Sensing Charmeleon's persistence, Red gently urged it to stop tormenting itself.
But Charmeleon refused to yield, provoking Charizard in defiance.
"Why are you just as stubborn as Ash…" Red said helplessly, using the Power of Viridian to heal Charmeleon's injuries.
"Hey! I'm not like that at all!" Ash said awkwardly, his face flushing red.
At Red's signal, Charmeleon used Flamethrower. The scorching flames struck Charizard, but Charizard simply yawned indifferently.
When the flames ended, Charizard opened its mouth and swallowed them all, even letting out a mocking retch, implying how weak Charmeleon's fire was.
"Seismic Toss!" Red commanded.
Charizard flapped its wings and flew in front of Charmeleon, grabbing its body with both arms. Then it quickly soared into the sky, spinning its body like a sphere.
The spinning dizziness left Charmeleon disoriented, abandoning any thought of resistance.
Seeing that Charmeleon had given up struggling, Charizard descended rapidly. Just before hitting the ground, it slammed Charmeleon down in a powerful back throw, knocking it out instantly.