Chapter 5

'A green aptitude Mankey!'

When Arthur saw the Mankey, his first reaction was to scan his status and unexpectedly, it was a Pokemon with green aptitude. 

Although it was lower than Charmander, it was the best aptitude he would find in the wild, especially on a place like route 1. 

One could even say that he had used most of his luck for today by encountering this Mankey. 

'I can't let this one go!'

He thought and looked at the detailed data of Mankey in front of him. 

* * *

Pokemon: Mankey (Green) (Evolution Possible)

Gender: Male 

Level: 6

Type: Fighting 

Holding items: Oran berry

Ability: Anger point (Maxes the attack stat if the Pokemon takes a critical hit)

Moves: Focus energy, Scratch, Fury swipes, Karate chop

* * *

"I need to be careful of his ability."

Arthur knew about this ability well and it was also one of the strong ones out there. If Charmander lands even one critical attack, then the Mankey will become enraged and his attack power would shoot through the ropes. 

If that happens, then he can only run away with his Charmander. 

'It can be my last chance to get such a strong Pokemon, I can't let it waste.'

He thought and looked at Charmander who looked raring to go. 

"Charrrr!!"

Charmander was certainly not happy with his food getting stolen. It was a creature with a lot of pride and that pride would only grow once it evolves. There was no way he would let anyone get away after stealing his food. 

He glared at the Mankey in an imposing manner. If not for Arthur, he would have already rushed at Mankey. 

"Charmander, we can't let him go. Use Dragon tail on the tree to shake off the Mankey." Arthur soon gave the order Charmander was waiting for.

His tail glowed brightly and its surface became hard. 

Charmander didn't have much mastery in using dragon tail, but it was still enough to shake off the Mankey from the tree. The tree shook and the Mankey lost his balance, falling down on the ground. 

"Mankk!"

Mankey didn't look happy at all, but before he could stand up, Arthur followed up with another attack. 

"Ember! Aim for his legs!"

Small flames left Charmander's mouth and directly burned the Mankey's body, especially his legs. Sizzling pain overcame him and the Mankey finally became focused. 

'The real battle will start now!'

The corner of his mouth slightly pulled up as Arthur finally felt how it feels like to have a real Pokemon battle. 

Although he had experienced it in video games, they were just too different. You attack and then, your opponent attacks. As long as your speed is good, you can easily one shot your opponent with a super effective move. 

It was far too simple.

But the battle Arthur was experiencing currently was a real one. 

One wrong move and the tides of the battle will change. The place where you are battling matters here and rather than the stats, it was more about persistence and strategy. 

"Mankkk!"

With a cry, the Mankey activated focus energy and his whole body glowed with fighting spirit. 

Arthur had thought that the Mankey would try to run away as most wild Pokemon do, but it seems like this one was different from the bunch. It also excited Arthur as he sent out another attack. 

"Charmander, use growl, then dragon tail!"

Charmander quickly growled loudly. The screaming growl made some ripples in the air and the attack power of the Mankey diminished. 

Then, it was followed by a Dragon tail which unfortunately was blocked by a Karate chop. 

"Mank!" "Charr!"

Both the Pokemon glared at each other as they exchanged in close combat. The power of both the moves were close to each other, but Arthur was quick to notice that Charmander was shaking a little. 

Although, there wasn't much level difference between the two Pokemon, both of them had different lives till now. 

While Mankey had lived in the wild, Charmander had lived a more secluded life as he was being groomed as a starter Pokemon since his birth. 

His potential was better than Mankey, but he wasn't a better fighter than him currently. That's why Arthur quickly ordered him to make some distance.

"Charmander, back down!"

Charmander was quick to listen to the order, but the Mankey didn't give him a chance and launched a Karate chop at his shoulder, injuring him greatly. 

"Charr." He cried out and gritted his teeth. It was the first time he was experiencing such a pain and he didn't know what to do. 

'Should I give up? Charmander is still new to battling and he wouldn't be able to hold out for long.'

Arthur thought as he looked at his Charmander and then, the Mankey. 

A good trainer is someone who knows when to give up and If Arthur really forced his way through, Charmander can get heavily injured which would be bad for both of them. 

But if they ran away, then he would lose a chance to get a Mankey. 

Arthur thought hard on it and took a deep breath. In the end, he decided to not give up and fight till the end. 

It wasn't because of his greed of obtaining a Mankey that he made such a decision. He made this decision due to two things. First, The Mankey was also severely injured and there were still burn marks on his body and second, he didn't want Charmander to lose his confidence. 

After all, it was also his first battle and if they really ran away, it can be a heavy blow to his confidence.

'Let's see who will win, Mankey!'

Now it was decided, he was not going to lose this battle at all cost. 

"Charmander, you can do it! Don't give up now and use ember!"

 

He commanded and Charmander who was still growling in pain quickly fired a string of embers towards the Mankey.

"Mankk!"

Mankey tried to dodge the embers, but he found out that his speed was not the same as before. 

'That's why, I aimed at your legs!'

Arthur had thought that the Mankey would try to run away. That's why he has aimed at his legs. After all, he can't run away with injured legs.

With no choice, the Mankey used another focus energy on himself and took a jump towards Charmander, planning to use a final karate chop on him. 

But Arthur was quicker. 

"Charmander, crouch down and use dragon tail."

Charmander listened to his orders swiftly and dodged the Karate chop that was aiming at his shoulders by crouching down. Then, he turned away and used dragon tail, directly slamming it into the Mankey's stomach. 

"Mankk?!"

Mankey let out a confused cry as he was slammed into the tree and that was the end of the battle. 

"Go pokeball!"

Arthur didn't waste any more time and threw his pokeball. The pokeball gave a red light as the Mankey was sucked into it. It continued to shake for a moment, before finally calming down.

That way, Arthur caught his first ever Pokemon!