"Yuli, thank you for helping me transfer Machoke over so late at night!" Rex expressed his gratitude to Yuli on the other end of the phone.
"Boss, you're too kind! And remember, you're all alone in the Sinnoh region, so be sure to stay safe!" Yuli said with a smile, offering her advice.
After finishing the call with Yuli, Rex released Machoke from its Poké Ball.
"Machoke, I need your strength tomorrow to help me capture a Snorlax. Once we've done that, I'll send you back right away so your training schedule won't be disrupted!" Rex said, patting Machoke on the shoulder.
Machoke was pleased that its trainer thought of it. Although it would miss a day of training, Machoke decided to make up for it by training extra hard when it got back.
Early the next morning, Rex prepared to set out in search of the Snorlax.
"Rex, be careful out there. If anything happens, contact me immediately," Rowan said, his expression as serious as ever. Yet, Rex could sense a touch of concern in his words.
"I understand, Professor Rowan. If I run into anything I can't handle, I won't try to tough it out alone," Rex assured him. With that, he hopped onto his Swellow and flew toward the forest.
With the help of the two Ariados, Rex quickly arrived at their former territory.
From the sky, Rex noticed something unusual—this area had far fewer plants than the surrounding forest. The remaining trees even lacked leaves, a clear sign that Snorlax had wreaked havoc on the area. When Snorlax is hungry, it will eat just about anything in its path.
If Snorlax were to stay here longer, it would eventually leave the Ariados' territory in search of food elsewhere. However, by then, the land would be unsuitable for the Ariados colony to live in.
Of course, nature would eventually restore the damage caused by Snorlax, but in the meantime, countless Pokémon would have to endure hunger.
After surveying the area from Swellow's back, Rex finally spotted Snorlax, snoozing peacefully by a stream, clearly full after a recent meal.
When Snorlax sleeps, it naturally uses the Rest move, meaning regular attacks might not even match its recovery rate.
That's why waking a Snorlax usually requires a special flute. Snorlax is extremely sensitive to the sound, even in deep sleep.
Rex didn't have such a flute, but he was confident in Machoke's strength. He didn't believe Snorlax could completely ignore Machoke's attacks.
"Machoke, wake up Snorlax!" Rex commanded as he released Machoke from its Poké Ball.
Without hesitation, Machoke leapt into action. It focused Fighting-type energy into its right hand and delivered a Brick Break to Snorlax's belly.
Machoke held back slightly, intending only to wake Snorlax for a fair fight.
The impact of Machoke's attack caused Snorlax's belly to cave in slightly. Despite its layer of fat absorbing much of the blow, the remaining force still left Snorlax grimacing in pain.
Machoke's strike had clearly crossed Snorlax's threshold. It shot up, glaring furiously at Machoke for interrupting its slumber.
Snorlax gathered a terrifying amount of energy and launched a Hyper Beam straight at Machoke.
Machoke didn't dodge. Instead, it crossed its arms in an X-shape and used its Cross Chop, a technique it mastered after regenerating its right arm.
As Machoke executed Cross Chop, the Hyper Beam was sliced in two. Taking advantage of Snorlax's momentary stiffness, Machoke charged forward and delivered a powerful Brick Break with its left hand, slamming into Snorlax's belly.
The impact sent Snorlax tumbling head over heels. It lay there, clearly in pain from the force of Machoke's attack.
Realizing Machoke's strength was far beyond the Pokémon it had encountered before, Snorlax became serious, shedding its usual laziness.
Snorlax, now surprisingly agile, closed the gap between them in a few quick steps, its right hand faintly glowing with fire as it aimed a Fire Punch at Machoke.
But Machoke didn't dodge. Instead, it readied an Ice Punch, clashing with Snorlax's Fire Punch.
Though Snorlax's punches were powerful, its combat skills were no match for Machoke's. After blocking the Fire Punch with Ice Punch, Machoke immediately followed up with a Thunder Punch, striking Snorlax squarely in the face.
The Thunder Punch left Snorlax dazed, but it quickly shook it off. Leaping into the air, it attempted to flatten Machoke with a Body Slam.
But Machoke merely braced itself, caught Snorlax in mid-air, and slammed it back into the ground with a weightlifter's stance.
The impact was so strong that even Rex, watching from a distance, felt the ground shake.
Snorlax, after a brief pause, got back up, seemingly unfazed by the slam.
Machoke's eyes lit up with excitement. It had never encountered a Pokémon as resilient as Snorlax—not even Heracross had taken such a beating.
What followed was a one-sided beatdown. Snorlax was relentlessly pummeled by Machoke's Brick Break and Dynamic Punch. Rex couldn't help but feel sorry for Snorlax, which now resembled nothing more than a punching bag in Machoke's relentless assault.
Despite Snorlax's thick layer of fat absorbing much of the damage, it was beginning to reach its limit.
Snorlax tried to fight back but was consistently blocked by Machoke. After expending much of its energy in the earlier battle, Snorlax now seemed ready to give up.
Curling up into a ball, Snorlax used Defense Curl, increasing its defense. Seeing Snorlax in this state, Machoke lost interest in continuing the fight and turned to look at Rex.
"Snorlax, I know you've still got plenty of strength left. If you want to give up, I'll capture you with a Poké Ball. If not, we'll keep fighting," Rex warned Snorlax, wanting to make sure there were no misunderstandings before attempting a capture.
Snorlax, after considering Rex's words, nodded in agreement. For a Snorlax, the prospect of a place with guaranteed food and shelter wasn't too bad.
Seeing that Snorlax had been subdued by Machoke, Rex didn't hesitate. He threw an Ultra Ball at Snorlax. Ideally, he should have used a Heavy Ball, but he hadn't prepared one in advance.
Luckily, Snorlax didn't resist being captured in the Ultra Ball. The ball only shook a few times before Snorlax was successfully caught.
(End of Chapter)