The girl's attempt to stop him made Tetsuya find the situation rather amusing. No one understood his own capacities better than he did.
At the age of fifteen, Mamoswine had already become a mainstay Pokémon that surpassed the peak level of a Gym Leader.
Golurk was also capable of matching the ace Pokémon of a Gym Leader, while the rest of his Pokémon each had their own unique strengths.
If he were not limited by the many matters he still had to deal with, and by the fact that he had yet to establish his own "support team", leaving him incapable to raise more Pokémon, he would already be fully qualified of standing shoulder to shoulder with a Gym Leader.
In his previous life, he had not reached this level until he was well over thirty years old. Now, at only fifteen, aside from those Arceus's chosen with breathtaking backgrounds and extraordinary talent, there were virtually no people of his age who could be considered his equal.
"Steelix, take him to Terra Valley," The girl commanded. Steelix immediately swung its massive body as it charged toward Tetsuya. Dust billowed into the air during its charge, and a Sandstorm spread across the field.
Even as it attacked, it had already used Sandstorm!
Tetsuya found it rather puzzling. He had so many Pokémon on his side, yet she intended to fight using only a single Steelix. Where exactly did that confidence come from?
However, this Steelix already appeared extraordinary just from its appearance alone. Its sand-yellow body was exceptionally rough, clearly weathered by the passage of time, making it seem completely out of place beside such a young girl.
Within the Sandstorm, Steelix's enormous body gradually disappeared from sight. Tetsuya nodded. Normally, Steelix did not had the Ability Sand Veil, but this Steelix's unique sand-yellow body blended perfectly with the surrounding sandstorm, making it impossible to locate with sight alone.
However, such a huge and heavy body should have made a tremendous noise every time it moved. In Tetsuya's opinion, this kind of "camouflage" should have been completely meaningless.
Yet what happened next disturbed him. Steelix moved through the Sandstorm without making the slightest sound. Tetsuya had no choice but to use his psychic powers to track Steelix's position. From what he sensed, Steelix moved as lightly as a feather, making no sound whatsoever.
Autotomize!
Tetsuya immediately understood. This Steelix was anything but ordinary!
This Steelix alone was enough to function as the core of a team battle.
"Golurk."
Among all of his Pokémon, only the Ground-type Golurk was unaffected by the Sandstorm. Golurk retracted its legs into its body and blasted into the Sandstorm with rocket propulsion.
Mamoswine had exhausted a tremendous amount of energy and stamina after using Curse and Fissure, so Tetsuya could only recall it to its Poké Ball to rest. Beedrill had also fought two consecutive battles, and since its stamina had not improved much, it too had to be recalled.
As for Spinarak, its training period had been far too short, so it was also recalled.
Within the Sandstorm, Golurk could only be seen launching attack after attack, while Steelix itself remained completely out of sight.
Tetsuya had no choice but to change his plan. "Houndoom, use Nasty Plot." Tetsuya crouched down and gently patted Houndoom on the head.
Although he had psychic powers, the girl had only sent out a single Steelix so far. He had no idea what other Pokémon she still had, so he had to keep something in reserve.
Within the Sandstorm, Steelix and Golurk fought on their own. Neither Trainer gave any commands. Everything depended on their own battle experience and their ability to adapt in the heat of battle.
Besides Golurk, the Pokémon on Tetsuya's side that still had relatively good stamina were Ditto, Houndoom, Weezing, Miltank, and Drapion. They all had to remain ready to battle at any moment.
Tetsuya only needed to wait until Houndoom had pushed Nasty Plot to its limit before using Sunny Day to change the weather.
This Steelix was incredibly powerful. Houndoom alone had no chance of dealing with it, so if he wanted to overwrite its weather, he first had to raise Houndoom's Special Attack to its absolute limit.
Just as Houndoom completed its second Nasty Plot, Golurk was hurled out of the Sandstorm and crashed heavily onto the ground. Yet Steelix itself remained nowhere to be seen within the swirling sand.
Golurk climbed back to its feet, ready to continue fighting. At that moment, Houndoom finished using Nasty Plot, and Tetsuya called Golurk back.
Golurk had already been injured and could not continue battling. After all, it was his guarantee of escape. If it were incapacitated, relying on his half-mastered Teleport alone would never allow him to escape very far.
"Houndoom, use Sunny Day."
As soon as Tetsuya gave the command, Houndoom let out a long howl. Tetsuya looked up at the sky…
Houndoom's howl continued, yet the sky did not change in the slightest. Instead, the Sandstorm only grew even more violent, causing Tetsuya's heart to sink.
Houndoom had already raised its Special Attack to its absolute limit through Nasty Plot, yet even then it was unable to change Steelix's Sandstorm…
It was simply unbelievable!
The might of this Steelix was…
Even if Mamoswine had been at full stamina, it might not have been its opponent!
Only now did Tetsuya finally understand where the girl's confidence had come from.
"It's useless. My Steelix had the power of the Sand Soul. No Pokémon can change the weather created by its Sandstorm." The girl's voice echoed around him like a sound reverberating through an empty valley. It was Tetsuya's first time hearing the term "Sand Soul," and he had no idea what kind of effect it had.
Tetsuya recalled Golurk, naturally to conserve his strength in case anything unexpected happened. He also had Ditto Transform back into a wristband and return to his wrist.
With yellow sand filling the area, Tetsuya had no idea where to begin. Drapion's Toxic Spikes could not even be scattered into the Sandstorm, and besides, Steelix would not have been affected by Toxic Spikes anyway.
However, Drapion was exceptionally fierce. Seeing Tetsuya's predicament, it charged straight into the Sandstorm on its own.
Within the Sandstorm, four streaks of fire were clearly visible. The intense battle had awakened Drapion's potential, allowing it to learn Fire Fang!
After Skorupi evolved into Drapion, it could theoretically learn Fire Fang, Ice Fang, and Thunder Fang. Whether it could actually learn them depended entirely on its own talent -IVs-.
Watching the four streaks of fire within the Sandstorm, Tetsuya was certain they came from Drapion's fangs, its two pincers, and its tail. They moved in a coordinated rhythm through the storm, implying that it was engaged in a fierce battle against Steelix.
The battle continued…
One by one, the four flames were extinguished. In the end, Drapion was swept out of the Sandstorm by the raging sand, incapacitated.
Compared to Golurk, Drapion was still somewhat weaker, and unlike Golurk, it was also taking damage from the Sandstorm. The fact that it had managed to endure for so long was already remarkable.
Tetsuya then recalled Drapion…