[Pokémon: Totodile]
[Attribute: Water]
[Ability: Torrent (When HP is low, the power of Water-type moves increases)]
[Skills: Dragon Dance, Scratch, Leer, Water Gun, Bite]
"Wait, it already knows Dragon Dance?"
Looking at the notification from his system, Caster's face broke into a grin.
He'd figured that Dragon Dance, being such an advanced move, would be harder to come by. Yet after catching just one undersized Totodile, he'd gotten a Dragon Dance TM right off the bat.
"Must be an egg move!"
Caster glanced at the little blue crocodile still chomping down on the bait, dangling in midair and swinging back and forth, and nodded to himself.
The Totodile in front of him was less than half a meter long, noticeably smaller than normal, clearly just a hatchling.
Its move list confirmed as much.
A baby Totodile like this obviously hadn't learned Dragon Dance through training. It had to be inherited.
Caster couldn't help but grin. "Gotta hand it to the Pokémon living in the Dragon's Sanctuary. Even a Totodile knows Dragon Dance!"
So what didn't know Dragon Dance around here?
"Todo~ Todo~"
After dangling in the air for a while, the Totodile finally polished off all the bait and released its massive jaws, plopping back into the water.
But it didn't swim away. Instead, it sniffed around, immediately zeroed in on Caster's bait box, and started paddling rapidly toward the shore.
"Todo~"
As it neared the bank, it suddenly launched itself out of the water like a rocket, aiming straight for Caster's head as he worked the fishing rod.
"Pichu, help!"
Caster's heart nearly stopped.
Small as it was, Totodile was a violent little thing. If something moved, it bit first and asked questions never.
Its powerful jaws could crush rocks without breaking a sweat.
Caster wasn't some prodigy from Pallet Town. If that Totodile clamped down on his skull, his Dragon's Sanctuary adventure would be over before it started.
"Pi~"
Pichu had already woken up when the Totodile took the bait.
Zzt!
Yellow electricity crackled from Pichu's cheeks, striking the airborne Totodile before it could reach Caster.
"Todo~ Todo~"
The Totodile shrieked and crashed to the ground, smoke rising from its body.
A second later, the little guy burst into tears with a wail and bolted back into the water, disappearing beneath the surface.
"The Pokémon in this place are something else!"
After making sure the coast was clear, Caster finally stepped out from behind the tree and let out a breath. "It actually came ashore to bite me!"
Watching the spot where the Totodile had vanished, Caster felt a twinge of regret.
There was nothing he could do, Dragonite had made it crystal clear that catching any Pokémon from the Dragon's Sanctuary was off-limits.
That was non-negotiable.
Otherwise, finding a talented Totodile like that? No way would Caster just let it swim off.
After all, this was a Pokémon that could mega evolve.
"Getting the rewards is more than enough," Caster muttered, talking himself down.
He baited his hook and cast his line again.
The recent ruckus had been pretty loud, so no fish bit right away. Caster sank into his fishing interface to check out what he'd just earned.
[Dragon Dance: Dragon-type move. The user performs a mystical, powerful dance that raises Attack and Speed.]
[Damp Rock: A stone charged with mysterious energy. When held by a Pokémon, it extends the duration of rain.]
"Nice haul!"
Caster's eyes lit up, and his anticipation for the next catch grew even stronger.
The quality of Pokémon in this lake was clearly leagues above what he'd found at the Seaking Fishing Competition.
A few more minutes passed before the bobber moved again.
But before Caster could reel in, it went still.
Then, from the calm surface of the lake, a small crocodile head popped up, chattering at him in a series of chirps.
Caster smirked. "Well, look who came crawling back."
But the next second, his smile died.
Because right next to the Totodile, another enormous crocodile head surfaced.
This big one had blue scales all over, with rectangular armor plates jutting from its body.
Its forelimbs looked absurdly powerful, its lower jaw and belly were beige, and its head, back, and tail bristled with jagged red spikes.
Totodile's final evolution, Feraligatr.
Normally, Caster would've been thrilled to see a caught Pokémon run home and bring back reinforcements.
But right now? He felt nothing but dread.
Because this Feraligatr's eyes were narrowed with fury, fixed on Caster with undisguised murderous intent.
The little Totodile had clearly run home to tattle and brought backup.
"ROAR~"
With a vicious snarl, water surged around Feraligatr's body. It became a thick column of water and shot toward Caster at blinding speed.
Priority move: Aqua Jet!
"Pichu, Protect!"
Caster snapped to attention. While ordering Pichu to block the attack, he quickly grabbed Gyarados's Poké Ball.
The Feraligatr in front of him was too dangerous, and it had the jump on them. Pichu's small frame wasn't going to cut it here.
Whoosh!
Pichu leaped up, positioning itself in front of Caster as a translucent barrier formed around its body.
Boom!
Aqua Jet slammed into the Protect barrier. After absorbing most of the impact, the barrier finally cracked and dissolved.
Pichu was sent flying dozens of meters like a cannonball.
Thankfully, Gyarados had already appeared. Seeing its trainer under attack, it flew into a rage and launched itself at the vicious Feraligatr with Waterfall.
This Feraligatr stood about three meters tall, still massive, but compared to Gyarados, it was dwarfed.
Caught off guard, Feraligatr was slammed to the ground by Gyarados and pinned under its bulk, repeatedly crushed.
But Feraligatr was no pushover. Its massive jaws suddenly gaped open, gray energy gathering on its teeth before it clamped down on Gyarados's neck, its fangs sinking three inches deep.
Dark-type move: Crunch!
"ROAR~"
Gyarados cried out in pain, its roar shaking the air.
White light flashed along Feraligatr's arms as its muscles suddenly swelled to nearly twice their size.
Seizing the moment, it grappled Gyarados's massive body and executed a suplex, reversing the pin completely.
The tables had turned in an instant!
Gyarados thrashed wildly, trying to break free from Feraligatr's bite, even slapping Feraligatr's head repeatedly with its powerful tail.
It didn't work!
Feraligatr just took the punishment in silence, its jaws refusing to budge even once.
In fact, it clamped down even harder several times, making Gyarados scream in agony.
"This Feraligatr is insane!"
Caster stood frozen.
Sure, Gyarados had a massive body, but it had only just evolved, its full battle power hadn't kicked in yet.
Against Feraligatr's raw strength, it was getting demolished.
Luckily, Gyarados had backup.
"Pichu, Thunder Wave!"
Seeing Pichu return, Caster quickly gave the order.
Zzt!
Thin yellow electric waves shot from the tips of Pichu's ears toward the distant Feraligatr.
At the same time, unable to watch Gyarados get mauled any longer, Caster pulled out its Poké Ball, trying to recall it directly.
But Feraligatr saw it coming. With just a glance in Caster's direction and a casual flick of its tail, it whipped up a thick column of water that swept toward them.
Water-type move: Aqua Tail!
Crackle!
The Thunder Wave was swallowed by the water column and fizzled out instantly.
The massive water column kept coming, barreling toward Pichu.
"Pi~"
Luckily, Pichu was nimble and dodged the attack with a single leap.
But the next second, the water column exploded, transforming into a massive surge that swept across a huge patch of the flower field.
Caught flat-footed, Caster was swept away by the current, even dropping the Poké Ball.
If Pichu landed, it'd get caught in the flood too.
This was Feraligatr's plan, keep Pichu out of the fight and prevent Gyarados from being recalled.
But what Feraligatr hadn't counted on was that Pichu knew Surf.
"Pi~"
Pichu manipulated the water-type energy, standing steady on top of the waves and closing the distance.
Mua!
On the water, Pichu blew a kiss, and a heart-shaped energy orb floated out.
Boom!
The heart-shaped energy struck, and Feraligatr's head spun, little stars dancing around its vision.
Feraligatr fell into confusion!
But what made Caster want to scream was that even confused, Feraligatr's powerful jaws still stayed locked onto Gyarados.
Not only that, but the confusion seemed to make it even more vicious, causing it to shake its neck and tear harder.
Gyarados screamed in pain, completely unable to fight back.
"Pichu, Thunder!"
Soaked to the bone and completely done with this, Caster made his call.
This Feraligatr was absolutely ruthless. After biting down on Gyarados, it refused to let go.
Short of knocking it out, he couldn't think of any other way to save Gyarados.
"Pi~"
Pichu started charging up, electric sparks flickering constantly on its cheeks.
"Awoo~"
But just then, an orange figure flew over from the distant sky.
Like a gust of wind, the figure descended beside Gyarados and Feraligatr.
It frowned, clearly displeased, gently tapped Feraligatr's jaws, and gave a small shake of its head.
"Wu~"
After seeing the figure clearly, Feraligatr, whose eyes had turned blood-red with rage, instantly snapped out of it, its gaze gradually clearing.