No, that's not right. Caterpie looked at the black swirling pattern on the belly of Poliwag and became increasingly dizzy.
By the time Caterpie realized something was wrong, it was too late.
Caterpie had been overly complacent, relaxing its guard. It thought victory was certain but was hypnotized by the swirling pattern on Poliwag's belly.
Caterpie fell into a coma, unable to continue battling.
Therefore, Poliwag won the match.
However, even Poliwag's victory felt frustrating...
From the very beginning, when Poliwag underestimated its opponent, it fell into a passive position and was suppressed by Caterpie.
Poliwag, taking advantage of its strength, was nearly toppled by Caterpie due to carelessness. Although Poliwag quickly recovered from underestimating its opponent, it was too late—the opportunity had already been lost.
Both Poliwag and Caterpie made the same mistake—underestimating their enemy...
Caterpie made a comeback from a disadvantageous position, only to lose in the end.
How could they lose with such an advantage?
In his previous life, Ryan would have been berated relentlessly by people from Zuan for such a mistake until he was left utterly demoralized.
Both of these Pokémon have serious flaws in both their skills and personalities.
Poliwag's flaw lies in its tendency to get overly emotional, as it's typically both food-driven and fun-loving.
Its emotions are easily stirred, becoming angry, excited, or aggressive, which leads to losing its ability to make clear decisions and only wanting to destroy the opponent.
For instance, when taunted by a Wingull, it will fly into a rage if it can't hit its target. After being frustrated, it'll seek comfort and hugs.
This state usually occurs when Poliwag faces an opponent it cannot handle or defeat.
However, when facing opponents like Caterpie, Poliwag tends to underestimate them, becoming complacent and overconfident.
After being praised, it's easy for Poliwag to become overly proud.
Facing the setback of underestimating its opponent and nearly losing, I hope Poliwag can change this bad habit of arrogance.
When Poliwag matures and becomes more stable, it should be able to rid itself of this flaw.
The downside of being easily influenced by emotions is evident, but there are advantages too.
If someone can guide Poliwag through rigorous training, it could still develop a good temperament.
The key is whether someone will guide Poliwag properly, instead of letting it rage without purpose or effectiveness.
Without correction, Poliwag is likely to fail frequently in the near future.
Ah, it feels so exhausting. Poliwag hasn't even been dealt with yet, and now there's another problem with Caterpie.
Caterpie, for its part, tends to get carried away, failing to secure victory when the opportunity arises. It thinks it has everything under control, taunting and provoking its enemy. It's the classic case of the villain losing by talking too much.
It's like the villains in classic movies, who after capturing the protagonist, feel victorious and start talking about life, ideals, and then begin monologuing excessively—overconfidence inflates their ego.
In short, Caterpie has many shortcomings—overestimating itself, underestimating its enemy, refusing to flee when outmatched, not finishing off an opponent when given the chance, and insisting on wasting time talking. All of these lead to its downfall.
I hope this bitter defeat will make Caterpie reflect and change its habit of not finishing battles properly.
Caterpie's behavior of celebrating prematurely is not advisable, not advisable at all...
Ah, it's tiring. These two troublesome Pokémon are really difficult to deal with.
Seeing Poliwag bound and Caterpie unconscious, Ryan had no choice but to step in and use warm water to dissolve the sticky white thread that bound Poliwag.
The white silk thread spit out by Caterpie is very sticky and protein-based. It only melts under high heat. You can use warm water heated by the sun, but it can't be completely dissolved. There will still be residue on Poliwag's feet, so it needs to be soaked in water to fully dissolve.
"Poliwag, your level is much higher than Caterpie's, but you almost lost. Do you know why?" Ryan asked Poliwag after freeing it.
"Poli," Poliwag responded, seeing Ryan's serious expression. Its mood dropped as well. It lowered its head, not daring to meet Ryan's gaze. It knew Ryan was upset.
"Poliwag, remember, never underestimate your enemy, even if it's just a Caterpie. Now, go back to the bucket and reflect on what happened," Ryan ordered, pointing to the bucket for Poliwag.
Then, Ryan turned to Caterpie, which was pretending to be knocked out. Poliwag wasn't very skilled at using Hypnosis, and Caterpie had some resistance to it. There was no reason it should still be asleep. "Caterpie, wake up, wake up..."
"Huh?" Caterpie, hearing its name, woke up from the grass, blinking its big eyes. It looked at Ryan in confusion, unsure of what had just happened and how it had lost consciousness.
Seeing Caterpie pretending so well, Ryan didn't criticize it but simply said, "Caterpie, you lost."
"Huh?" Caterpie blinked its confused eyes and looked at Poliwag, who was blowing bubbles in the bucket nearby. Even though it won, Poliwag wasn't very happy.
In an instant, Caterpie began crying crocodile tears, stepping forward and hugging Ryan's leg, whining, "Wooooo..."
"What a little drama queen..." Ryan thought helplessly as he saw Caterpie's exaggerated performance.
Still, he reached out to comfort it. Since Caterpie enjoyed acting, he decided to play along with it.
Once Caterpie had calmed down, it subtly glanced at Poliwag in the bucket, eyes full of mischief. Even if it lost the battle, it planned to win in other ways.
This scene made Poliwag seethe with anger. It never expected this bug to not only take its food but also steal Ryan's attention and care.
How frustrating! (*￣︿￣)
Though it was furious, Poliwag didn't show it. The only sign of its anger was the continuous stream of bubbles rising from the bucket, reflecting its sour mood.
"Caterpie, do you know why you lost?" Ryan asked, noticing Caterpie's smug expression. His patience was wearing thin.
"Huh?" Caterpie acted indifferent. Losing was no big deal—who cared?
But seeing the nonchalant expression on Caterpie's face, more black lines appeared on Ryan's forehead, and he couldn't contain his frustration.
If this was his daughter, she'd have been sent to reflect on her mistakes until she understood, standing there until she figured it out.
"Take this seriously, Caterpie," Ryan demanded, seeing that the bug was still glancing mischievously at Poliwag. It acted like a villain reveling in a sneaky scheme.
"Huh?" Caterpie hadn't expected Ryan to get angry. Startled by his serious tone, it pouted, turned its head, and acted like it wasn't listening.
It had once held a good opinion of this human, but now, its fondness was dwindling...
"If you lose, you must accept punishment. Go stand by that tree until you understand why you lost," Ryan said firmly. "Only then will you have something to eat."
As soon as those words were spoken, Caterpie became even more defiant. Why should it listen?
With a sigh, Ryan watched Caterpie remain unmoved. So, he looked toward Poliwag and commanded, "Poliwag, you'll supervise Caterpie during its punishment. If it doesn't understand, it won't get any food."
Hearing this, Poliwag immediately perked up and jumped out of the bucket, eagerly heading toward Caterpie, urging it, "Poli! Poli!"
While supervising, Poliwag secretly relished Caterpie's downfall. Its earlier smug expression crumbled, and Poliwag almost went mad with joy.
Having been tasked with overseeing Caterpie's punishment, Poliwag excitedly continued to push the bug to comply.
Caterpie, however, stood its ground, chin up, unmoved by Poliwag's encouragement. It still thought, "Why should I?"
Poliwag looked to Ryan for guidance, unsure if it should try persuasion or force.
"Caterpie, this is your Poke Ball. If you want to leave, I won't stop you. You're free to go," Ryan said, placing the Poke Ball in front of Caterpie, offering it a choice.
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