The battle between two Charizards at the mountaintop not only caught the attention of Yuga and his group but also the other teams that had arrived at the dormant volcano.
They all felt relieved, knowing that Mr. Moore had come this time; otherwise, they wouldn't have stood a chance against this formidable Elite Charizard.
Due to the mountain's battle, countless Fire-type Pokémon hurriedly fled from the mountaintop in a panic.
Watching the Fire-type Pokémon rushing down, Yuga said to the other two, "Let's split up; staying together isn't efficient."
Both Flannery and Beidou nodded, agreeing with Yuga's suggestion.
"No matter what happens, safety comes first!" Yuga reminded them.
"Alright, let's meet up directly at the base!" Beidou suggested.
"Agreed!"
"Agreed!"
And so, the three of them split up on the mountainside.
Because of the fright, the previously clustered Pokémon scattered, making it much easier for Yuga and his group to capture them.
They managed to capture several Numel and Camerupt that ran toward them, but Yuga didn't spot any Pokémon with green or higher potential, which left him somewhat disappointed.
With so many Fire-type Pokémon running down from the mountain, Yuga soon realized he couldn't handle them all. He decided to focus on capturing fully evolved Pokémon with high potential.
Although their numbers is small, this approach still yielded a decent amount of merit points, and it also provided valuable training for his Pokémon.
Moreover, with more teams arriving at the dormant volcano, the missed Pokémon could be handled by others.
Yuga also found a few fire stones from the rocks that rolled down from the top of the mountain, and collected them all without ceremony. After all, he still had several Vulpix at home waiting to evolve!
As Yuga continued to capture lower potential Pokémon, he finally encountered a high-potential one—a green potential Typhlosion, at a level exceeding forty.
Typhlosion, a species classified as a Volcano Pokémon, was known to frequent areas near volcanoes, so Yuga didn't find it too surprising to come across one.
The Typhlosion glared angrily at Yuga, blocking his path and unleashing a powerful Eruption.
Intense smoke and scorching flames billowed from its body, heading straight for Yuga's Absol.
The attack had a wide range, and Absol couldn't avoid it. It used Dark Pulse to create a circular opening amidst the flames and smoke. Then, it leaped through, escaping the fiery onslaught and delivering a fierce hit to Typhlosion's abdomen using Sucker Punch.
Typhlosion staggered from the impact, nearly falling to the ground. The intense pain in its abdomen further fueled its anger. After steadying itself, Typhlosion retaliated with a blazing Eruption aimed at Absol.
Typhlosion, known for its fiery temper, had already been startled on the mountaintop and now found itself blocked by Yuga and Absol. Its patience had worn thin.
Unable to use its powerful moves like Eruption repeatedly, Typhlosion resorted to spewing Flamethrower towards Absol.
Witnessing the incoming wall of scorching fire, a massive Psycho Cut appeared, slicing the flames into fragments, ultimately extinguishing them. Only a few sparks landed on the ground.
Realizing that the Pokémon before it was stronger than expected, Typhlosion hesitated for a moment. Its fiery personality didn't mean it was foolish; it recognized a formidable opponent when it saw one.
However, the bold nature of Fire-type Pokémon wouldn't allow it to retreat. It stared at Yuga and Absol with a solemn expression, and all signs of restlessness and impatience vanished from its face. Then, it opened its mouth and exhaled a large cloud of black smoke mixed with waves of heat.
This time, it used the move Lava Plume, which not only caused significant damage but also had a chance to inflict a burn status.
The waves of heat and black smoke quickly filled the area, nearly engulfing Absol. Just as it seemed that Absol would be overwhelmed by the Lava Plume, Absol raised its head and let out a powerful roar, creating a tornado-like soundwave pillar that tore a hole through the Lava Plume. This allowed Absol to successfully dodge the Lava Plume attack.
Emerging from the Lava Plume's range, Absol swiftly used the move Sucker Punch and charged towards Typhlosion.
However, Typhlosion was incredibly fast and agile, skillfully evading Absol's attack.
Just as Typhlosion was starting to relax, two rings of light suddenly appeared in the sky, perfectly striking Typhlosion's head. Typhlosion, not understanding what had just happened, collapsed without a clue.
That was Absol secretly using its future sight ability.
Yuga had captured another Starter Pokémon, and he happily recalled Typhlosion into its Poké Ball.
Thinking about it, this was Yuga's first Fire-type Starter Pokémon he obtained.
Just as they were preparing to leave, they noticed a small tail with flames flickering behind a massive rock.
Yuga and Absol quietly moved around the rock, and there they saw a Charmander cowering behind the rock, its tiny hands covering its head, trembling in fear.
Charmander!
Yuga was pleasantly surprised. It seemed that Fire-type Starter Pokémon were becoming quite common these days. They had encountered two without much effort.
...
<<Charmander>>
Type: Fire
Gender: Female
Ability: Blaze
Potential: Indigo
Level: 10
Moves: Scratch, Ember, Awakening Power (Electric), Dragon Dance, Outrage.
...
When Yuga checked Charmander's information, he was shocked. What an extraordinary Pokémon! Its potential was not only the rare indigo, but it also had two inherited moves among its five abilities. And all of them were top-tier Dragon-type moves.
I must be incredibly lucky! Yuga thought to himself.
It appeared that Charmander had heard Yuga's footsteps. It lifted its head, tears welling up in its eyes, and stared at Yuga with a fearful expression.
It's just a child! Yuga realized.
"Don't be afraid, I won't hurt you!" Yuga whispered gently.
Could this Charmander be related to the one on the mountaintop? Yuga wondered. If so, it would make sense for it to have such outstanding potential. However, the one on the mountaintop had only shown a potential of blue. Yuga had seen that before.
But at that time, the two Charizards were locked in such an intense battle that he couldn't see much. Aside from knowing its potential was blue, he couldn't make out any other details.
In fact, Yuga's guess was correct. This Charmander was indeed the offspring of the Elite Charizard on the mountaintop.
After Mr. Moore arrived, Charmander's mother instructed her subordinates to take her child away from the mountaintop. However, on their way down, they were separated due to the onslaught of other Pokémon. Charmander and its guardians were left with only a Typhlosion, and that's how Yuga got his chance.
Yuga's soft-spoken reassurance didn't calm Charmander down; instead, it burst into tears, wailing loudly enough to give Yuga a headache.
Without further ado, Yuga threw a Poké Ball toward Charmander, and the frightened Pokémon was instantly captured inside.