Chapter 88: Vs Growlithe!

Still taking name recommendations for Itsuki's identity! -Ice related.

Don't forget to drop those power stones!

*

Wartortle now stood several feet away from what appeared to be a yellow dog with black stripes on its body, a shiny Growlithe!

The moment Growlithe took notice of Wartortle,, it entered a defensive stance. It let out a growl, before fire energy converged in front of its mouth. Two large fangs made of fire appeared, and Growlithe dashed in!

"Fire Fang to begin with huh? Raph, strike back with Water Gun. Hit those flames dead on.", I said, using my first move.

Wartortle sucked in, letting its water energy burst forth. One big stream of water gushed forth from its mouth, aiming right at Growlithe.

"Grow!", Growlithe yelled out, only for it to dodge to the side, avoiding a clean hit with Water Gun. Wartortle tried to catch up to Growlithe by changing Water Gun's direction, which soaked the grass along the way, but Growlithe closed in fast. Just as Water Gun was about to hit, Growlithe jumped!

Using its momentum, Growlithe sped in, quickly arriving at Wartortle.

"Raph, hide in your shell and use Rapid Spin to block the incoming Fire Fang.", I said.

"Wartortle!", Wartortle replied back, only to move its limbs back into its shell, even its head. Darkness replaced them. In the next moment, Growlithe chomped down onto Wartortle's shell, creating a dull bang. Bang!

Flames dispersed as Wartortle kept spinning fast, effectively rendering Fire Fang useless. Not only that, Wartortle took this time to use its shell to strike back at Growlithe.

"Good. Keep up the momentum. Keep spinning and use Water Gun continuously.", I said my next move.

Wartortle kept spinning with Rapid Spin. After that, water energy converged from all of its holes in its shell. Whoosh. Water splashed forth from each hole, shooting out of each one. The water cane out fast. Growlithe tried to jump back to dodge, but while it was still in the air, the Water Gun struck multiple times, causing Growlithe to roar in pain.

"Grow!", Growlithe yelled out in pain, getting blasted back a few feet. Good, it took some good damage there. But that seemed to only anger Growlithe. Seeing it take damage, Growlithe let out a howl.

"Awooo!", Growlithe howled. As it did, it got covered in a thin layer of red energy. It wasn't fire, but pure red energy.

"Howl? Quite the unique move there...", I said. Afterward, Growlithe didn't stop there. Fire energy burst forth, which quickly covered Growlithe entirely.

"This...Flame Wheel?", I began to say, only to reach a different conclusion. "No, this is...", I continued to say, only to see Growlithe's fire energy change color. It went from fiery orange to an azure blue.

"Quick, Raph use Withdraw and follow up with a full power Aqua Jet. It's going to use Flare Blitz so be ready for a heavy impact!", I said my next my next move.

Wartortle acknowledged and tucked its shell in, letting a calm blue energy envelope its shell. Withdraw bolstered Wartortle's defense so it effectively negated Growlithe's Howl. Wartortle then popped out, only to let jet streams of water envelope Wartortle, before it became a large singular jet stream. Wartortle rushed forth, using the soaked grass to its advantage.

Growlithe also entered a dash, burning nearby grass as well. It didn't take long for the two to clash. Sizzle! Hiss!

Hissing noises echoed around us, creating a huge cloud of steam as a result of hot fire trying to disrupt a big jet stream of water. This steam enveloped Wartortle and Growlithe. But in the next moment, a shadow was sent out of it, only for a pained howl to follow after.

Growlithe was sent flying. Wartortle soon became visible and it wasn't without damage either. Burn marks appeared on its shell while Wartortle knelt down, wincing in pain.

It wasn't looking good for Growlithe either. Not long after Growlithe hit the grass hard. It tried to stand back up, but quick bursts of red lightning crackled over its entire body. Growlithe let out another painful growl as it happened, which caused Growlithe to fall back down on all fours, unable to move.

While Flare Blitz is really powerful, its not without repercussions. It causes recoil damage, and if one has sustained damage already, it might be pretty painful if its used later on.

"Itsuki, now!" , Serena suddenly yelled out, seeing the status Growlithe is currently in.

"Already on it.", I responded back, reaching toward my waist to grab a Pokeball. I tossed it out, letting it fly right at Growlithe. Growlithe looked at it, but didn't slap it away. It let the Pokeball catch it.

Upon getting sucked in, a special roll played out.

Wiggle. Ding!

Only one wiggle from the Pokeball until it showed its capture. A critical capture! These are quite rare to experience and it was my first time seeing it in person. Seeing shiny Growlithe successfully captured, I smiled and walked toward it, picking it up. I then turned toward Wartortle, who was regaining itself from the battle just now.

"Good work, Raph. Enjoy a nice long rest.", I said, recalling Wartortle with a red light.

"Wartortle.", Wartortle replied as the red light enveloped it, returning to its Pokeball.

"That was fun to watch. Congratulations, Itsuki!", Serena walked up with a smile.

"Yes. That Growlithe put up a good fight. It knows some good moves and that one was a shiny Growlithe, wasn't it?", Lillie also walked up and asked.

"It was. I didn't think the first one we would find would be a shiny.", I responded.

"Either way, mission accomplished right? Are you going to check Growlithe's data?", Serena asked.

"Yup. Time to bring out the Pokedex.", I answered, bringing it out. I then navigated to Growlithe's page. I made sure to have five Pokemon on hand instead of six so Growlithe would remain in my active party. The Pokedex's voice then spoke out, giving us Growlithe's data.

"Growlithe, the puppy Pokemon. A Fire type. Growlithe have lived alongside humans since ancient times. They are extremely loyal, and friendly once a Trainer develops a good bond with one. Growlithe are brave and trustworthy, making them fearless going up against stronger opponents to protect its territory."

Growlithe

Gender: Female

Shiny Variant

Level: 30

Ability: Flash Fire

IVs: 31 in ATK, SP ATK, SPD

Moves: Ember, Bite, Leer, Helping Hand, Agility, Flame Wheel, Retaliate, Fire Fang, Howl, Flare Blitz, Morning Sun.

Seeing this moveset, I sucked in a cold breath. Sure enough This Growlithe had a couple of special moves. It even had Morning Sun, which was very similar to Recover. It was also dependent on the suns' rays, the stronger they were, the more healing it could do.

"This little fellow is probably going to be part of the main team I use in the Kanto League."

"I can definitely see that. This Growlithe is pretty strong. And with Flash Fire, Opposing fire moves are useless against it."

"I know, right? Say, is it alright if we spend another few days here? I want Growlithe to get familiarized with the others. I'm getting a feeling if we don't do this now, Growlithe might start getting feisty with Amber, since these two are quite territorial.", I decided to ask.

Serena and Lillie nodded their heads.

"That's right. Amber just needs to show Growlithe who's boss around here. Growlithe will sure fall in line then." Serena replied back with a giggle.

"I don't think it works like that, Serena...", Lillie retorted.

"No, Serena does prove a point here. Strength does mean a lot to Pokemon, and since we have a group of Pokemon ourselves, Growlithe will quickly learn to behave from its seniors.", I explained.

"Well, let's hope these next few days prove fruitful then.", Lillie responded, nodding her head.

"And that also means we can use these few days to relax right?", Serena said, clapping her hands.

"If that's what you want, sure. I'll be getting familiarized with Growlithe...I'll also spend some time with Porygon.", I said.

"Then lets head back on in! Celadon City is just before the horizon so we just need half a day to reach it. Once you're comfortable enough we can leave in middle of the week. I'm ready to take on the Gym. You are too, right Lillie?"

"I am. I'm also looking forward to our shopping. I can't wait to see if we can find those Eevee eggs.", Lillie responded with a smile.

"Hehe, I almost forgot you're more of a shopping fanatic than I am.", Serena retorted with a giggle, which caused a light blush to appear on her cheeks.

We then went back into our tent to let Growlithe get acclimated. Sure enough Growlithe was wary of the others at first, but it slowly started to open up to the rest. It also enjoyed spending its time around me as I searched for what foods it liked the most.

And just like that half of the third week of February blew by in the blink of an eye!