I am Giovanni

Chapter 90: One-on-One

"Use Bite to finish it!" Giovanni commanded, his face cold.

Seizing the opportunity, the Persian leaped up and sank its fangs into the Raticate's vulnerable neck. Just as it had in its previous hunts, the full-power Bite directly severed the Raticate's spine. Blood spurted from the torn flesh. The Raticate let out one last tragic cry, its body stiffening before going limp.

"You damn brat!" Tyson roared. "Primeape, use Focus Punch!" The enraged Pokémon leaped up and charged towards the Persian. Having just dealt with the Raticate, the Persian had no time to retaliate.

The Primeape landed a heavy Focus Punch, sending it flying backward, groaning in pain. Though it struggled to get up, it spat out a mouthful of blood, looking disheveled— but even so, it refused to retreat a single step. It struggled to its feet and charged towards the Primeape again.

On the other side, the battle between the Nidorino and the Grimer was also in a stalemate. Giovanni had to focus most of his attention on the Persian and the Beedrill, who were fighting two opponents each, so he could only offer minimal assistance to his other two.

However, both of them were proving themselves, which he was happy to see.

"Nido!" the Nidorino roared. As Giovanni's Pokémon, it would feel disgraced if it couldn't challenge opponents beyond its level. Furthermore, the Grimer wasn't many levels higher, and both were Poison-types, so their moves couldn't cause significant damage to each other. Their abilities were also similar, which made the fight quite interesting.

The Nidorino made the first move, using Glare. Its eyes emitted a sharp light, aiming to lower the Grimer's stats and narrow the gap in their strength. It then seized the opportunity to rush forward, its horn gleaming like a sharp dagger as it used Horn Attack. The Grimer, being slow, was caught off guard. It retaliated, using Mud-Slap, but the Nidorino was quick-witted, immediately dodging the attack.

"Toxic Spikes," Giovanni instructed. "Use less energy, focus on quality." His Nidorino immediately complied. One by one, venomous spikes landed in front of the Grimer.

As it moved, its body was pierced, causing chunks of its sludge-like form to fall off. It dared not move carelessly. While slowly absorbing the spikes, it used Sludge Wave to counterattack.

The Nidorino nimbly dodged, then took the opportunity to approach, continuously attacking with Fury Attack. The Grimer appeared somewhat disheveled under the fierce assault and quickly used Minimize, increasing its speed and dodging the Nidorino's attacks— but the Nidorino pursued relentlessly. It was a tough nut to crack, not afraid of anyone.

Next was the battle between the Machop and the Arbok. At this point, Giovanni had a perfect opportunity to attack Tyson himself, but he didn't know if the Squad Leader had any hidden tricks, so he didn't dare to take the risk.

The Machop actually had an advantage. The fragments of the Flame Orb had already stimulated its Guts ability. Encountering the Poison-type Arbok, it would inevitably get poisoned, which would fully activate its ability and skyrocket its combat power.

The Arbok spread its hood, the patterns on its body seeming to come alive as it used Glare. Even as a Fighting-type, the Machop couldn't help but stiffen under the pressure.

The Arbok seized the opportunity and used Poison Sting, embedding a large number of needles in the Machop's body. The Machop cried out in pain, then let out a roar as its Guts ability fully activated.

Its adrenaline surged, and its body, now a purplish-brown from the poison, charged towards the Arbok, using Low Kick to try and quickly overwhelm it.

But Arbok was not slow. It quickly dodged, its agile movements allowing it to successfully avoid the attack. Watching it flee, the Machop did not pursue, but instead took the opportunity to use Focus Energy— seeing this, the Arbok opened its mouth, revealing sharp fangs, and charged, preparing to use Bite.

However, the moment it charged, the Machop was already prepared. "Use Revenge!" Giovanni shouted.

The Machop seized the momentum and delivered a heavy punch, unleashing its power without reservation. The force of the punch was immense, and the air seemed to reverberate with its impact. The Arbok, caught off guard by the sudden fierce attack, was sent flying.

The Machop pursued relentlessly, continuing its attack with another Low Kick. Though the Arbok tried to dodge, it was still grazed, its body swaying, almost losing its balance. When it stabilized itself, it opened its mouth and unleashed a series of Acid Spray attacks.

Tss! Tss! Tss!

The corrosive acid landed on the Machop's body. Its flesh was instantly corroded over a large area, and it buckled, kneeling on the ground.

The Arbok gave a cunning smile, seized the opportunity to rush over, and with its thick, long body, coiled around the Machop, using Bind to continuously tighten its grip— the immense crushing force made the Machop let out cries of pain.

Its cries urged Giovanni to quickly turn his head. He looked at the miserable Machop and the boiling energy within it. "Machop, that's enough!" he shouted. "We're going to Saffron City soon, aren't we? Do you want to lose?!"

"MACHOP!" it roared, its eyes bloodshot. A faint white light enveloped it.

— — —

(because a reader wants to be immersed in the power scaling of the novel, here you go.)

0 - 10 for Apprentice Trainer

10 - 20 for Junior Trainer

20 - 30 for Intermediate Trainer

30 - 40 for Senior Trainer

40 - 50 for Veteran Trainer

50 - 60 for Gym Leader Level Trainer

60 - 80 for Elite Trainer

80 - 90 for Champion Trainer

90 - 100 for Pokémon Master (Tier 1 Legendary Pokémon and some Mythical Pokémon) 

also, Pokémon aptitude is categorized into seven levels:

Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Violet. Red is the lowest, while Violet is the highest, with Green and above being considered high aptitude.