Chapter 56: Battle

"How could you make decisions for me!"

Winona looked at Professor Birch with some displeasure.

"Oh, since you don't want to battle with Rex anymore, I can use other Pokémon from trainers I foster to complete this battle."

Professor Birch smiled.

"Hmph, I'll reluctantly help you out!"

Winona originally wanted to have a match with Rex, she was just annoyed by Professor Birch's unilateral decision, not refusing to battle.

"Well then, Winona, please teach me a lot!"

Seeing Winona agreed to battle, Rex extended his hand and said.

"I won't go easy on you. If you fail the challenge, don't blame me!"

After shaking hands with Rex, Winona said.

"Come out, Swellow!"

"Go, Swellow!"

Rex glanced at Winona, who returned the smile. Apparently, both of them wanted to know the difference in strength between their Swellows.

"Swellow, use Tailwind!"

As Winona's command fell, a stream of air surrounded her shiny Swellow, boosting its speed significantly, so much so that Rex could barely keep up with its movements.

"Swellow, use Agility!"

At this point, Rex could only have his Swellow use its 'speed-boosting' skill. Although Agility didn't enhance its speed as much as Tailwind, it allowed his Swellow to barely keep up with Winona's, capturing its figure.

Then, the two Swellows began their rapid attacks, colliding in the sky incessantly. Rex couldn't issue any effective commands at this point, fearing that his Swellow would be distracted by his instructions.

However, as time passed, Rex's Swellow gradually gained the upper hand. The most significant advantage of Winona's shiny Swellow was its ultra-fast speed.

When its speed couldn't overwhelm Rex's Swellow anymore, Rex's Swellow gradually took the initiative, leveraging its size and endurance advantages.

As Winona's shiny Swellow suffered more injuries and expended more energy, it could no longer maintain its ultra-fast state.

"Swellow, use Brute Force!"

After seeing that her Swellow's stamina was almost depleted, Winona ordered directly.

"Swellow, Final Gambit!"

Rex was surprised when he heard the skill Winona was about to use. This skill was a powerful technique that forcibly balanced the vitality of both sides.

However, his reaction was quick. He immediately had his Swellow use Final Gambit, which greatly enhanced its power after losing a large amount of vitality from the opponent's Brute Force.

Sure enough, after being hit by the opponent's Brute Force, Winona's shiny Swellow endured the pain caused by this skill, directly using Final Gambit. After being hit by this skill, the shiny Swellow just screamed once and fell from the sky.

"Altaria, catch Swellow!"

Seeing her Swellow lose its combat capability and fall from the sky, Winona immediately had Altaria catch it midair to prevent it from suffering secondary damage from the fall.

"Swellow, Roost!"

Rex saw that the battle was over and hurriedly had his Swellow use Roost to recover itself, considering its current state was very poor.

"How's your Swellow? Is it okay?"

Rex walked up to Winona and asked.

"It's fine now. I just gave it some healing medicine. It'll be fine after resting inside the Poké Ball for a while. Also, the match just now was very exciting."

Winona looked at Rex and said.

"It was indeed an exciting battle. Rex, since you've won, I'll keep my promise to upgrade your Pokédex."

Professor Birch also walked over at this time and said.

"Thank you very much!"

Rex handed over his Pokédex to Professor Birch.

Winona had achieved her goal in Littleroot Town, so she politely declined Professor Birch's invitation to stay, planning to leave directly. After all, she still had a gym to take care of and couldn't be away for too long.

However, when she learned that Rex would go to the Rustboro Gym for a gym challenge later, she was very happy and said that she would let their Swellows have another duel at that time.

Because Rex only had one flying-type Pokémon with him, and his Swellow was already exhausted today, he agreed to Professor Birch's invitation to stay at his research institute for one night.

After that, he started wandering around the backyard of Professor Birch's research institute.

In Professor Birch's backyard, Rex saw many rare and precious Pokémon. He knew that most of these Pokémon were fostered by other trainers at Professor Birch's place.

All three forms of the Pokémon from the Hoenn region's starters were there. Rex also saw a physically strong Charizard, one of the Kanto region's starters. Rex had once dreamed of having such a tall and powerful Charizard before he crossed over.

Suddenly, a Machop appeared in front of him, doing push-ups. Rex didn't know how long it had been training.

However, from the puddle of water underneath it and the large amount of sweat on its forehead, it had been training for a long time.

Of course, these weren't the most crucial points. What caught his attention the most was that one of Machop's arms was missing. Yes, it was doing push-ups with only its left arm.

Rex didn't know why this Machop was working so hard, or why it had lost its arm, but seeing this scene touched him inexplicably.

Rex didn't mean to disturb it. He just took out a bottle of Moomoo Milk from his backpack and placed it beside the Machop, hoping it would drink it when it got thirsty.

However, the Machop just glanced at Rex faintly, without even pausing its movements. From its eyes, Rex saw indifference, a sense of rejection, and a barrier to communicate with the outside world.

This world was indeed real. He had experienced a period of wilderness survival before, so he knew how terrifying the wild environment could be.

Survival of the fittest was vividly demonstrated here. Many Pokémon and trainers would die or become disabled for various reasons. Rex no longer found these things surprising.

But the Machop in front of him, after losing its powerful right hand, still managed to pick itself up, train hard, and exhibit such a remarkable spirit. That was truly remarkable.

"Professor Birch, can I ask about the situation of the Machop in the backyard?"

During lunch, Rex couldn't resist and finally asked.

"You mean it? It's a very hardworking child, but unfortunately, luck hasn't been on its side!"

Professor Birch sighed when Rex asked about the Machop's situation.

Then, Professor Birch began to tell the story of the Machop.

It turned out that Machop wasn't born disabled. It used to be a trainer's Pokémon who set out from Littleroot Town. However, during an expedition deep into the Petalburg Forest, the trainer encountered a wild pack of Mightyenas.

Perhaps because the trainer injured a young Poochyena, it enraged the entire pack of Mightyenas. Machop's right arm was bitten off in that battle.

Naturally, the trainer also suffered serious injuries. If it weren't for another powerful trainer arriving in time, they would have been torn apart by the angry pack of Mightyenas and become one of the many missing persons.

However, since then, the

 trainer had been scared out of his wits. After recovering from his injuries, he gave up his trainer identity and settled in a big city. As for Machop, he abandoned it at Professor Birch's research institute.

Most trainers they approached refused to take Machop because it was disabled. Some trainers who appreciated Machop's efforts like Rex had tried to take it away, but they were all rejected by it.

"I see. Professor Birch, have you ever thought about finding another trainer for it?"

After hearing about Machop's ordeal, Rex asked directly.

"We tried before, but most trainers refused because Machop was already disabled. Some trainers who appreciated Machop's efforts like you tried to take it away, but they rejected them."

Professor Birch said helplessly.

"I think I can gain its acceptance. Professor Birch, just wait and see!"

After saying that, Rex ran to the backyard.

Thank you for the support!!!

(End of this chapter)