Chapter 274 Mind Power!
"Scythewrath, use agility!"
With a nod, Scythewrath suddenly darted from one side of the field to the other, increasing in speed as it continued darting here and there. Its movements were erratic and sporadic, and even the White Lion had a hard time keeping up with his eyes.
"Heh, how'd you like that? My Scythewrath's agility had been honed to greater speeds since I've been hunting a lot of speedy beasts with it." Bug catcher Ray pointed out, extending his right hand towards the field while covering his face with his left. It was the usual expression of a beast tamer taking pride in his tamed beast.
Even though the White Lion was slightly amazed due to the surprising ability of Sythewrath to change from one position to another. Even though the White Lion was leaps and bounds faster than Scythewrath, he was still amazed by how much it could move— not that the White Lion was looking down on Scythewrath since he could tell just how much it had to practice to be that nimble. The White Lion was respectful enough to not scoff at the Scythewrath who was trying its best to do what it can.
"White Lion, use lightning domain," Satoshi called out. Scythewrath may be nimble, but Satoshi knew the White Lion could still match it in terms of raw agility and speed. That's why he decided to test it out by making his White Lion use his area of effect move, the lightning domain. This is different from the move electric domain since the electric domain just charges electricity in the air, while the lightning domain is actually lightning from the sky, shooting down on the field.
The Scythewrath was surprised that the White Lion would use such an underhanded move, attacking the entire area without as much as batting an eye. Of course, such a skill wasn't illegal since anything goes in a beast battle.
"Scythewrath, keep on avoiding and then use string shot!" Bug catcher Ray called out.
Scythewrath continued avoiding the lightning, and it was actually capable of dodging everything and even performing a counterattack. Of course, Satoshi just needed to mentally command his White Lion to avoid the string shot attack, but he was impressed by the Scythewrath's capabilities. He clearly underestimated how agile Scythewrath could get when it focused hard enough.
This was what shocked Bug catcher Ray the most, his mouth gaping open as Satoshi's White Lion dodged in an instant. Satoshi didn't even have to say anything and he moved on his own.
"What was that?" Bug catcher Ray asked himself in a perplexed manner. He then shook his head a split second later since he almost fell into Satoshi's trap. Right then and there, he almost forgot to issue a command to his Scythewrath!
"Scythewrath! Keep on dodging no matter what but try to limit your movement and pace yourself so you won't get tired." Bug catcher Ray said.
Even the spectators, who were just there for the fun of it, noticed how White Lion dodged even though Satoshi never said anything. This was a rare occurrence since most beast tamers would issue out a command and in turn, their tamed beast would execute it. If such a case didn't happen, then that means the tamed beast doesn't really listen to its owner.
There were rare cases when trainers could feel and sense their tamed beasts to the point where they could communicate with their minds but such is a rare occurrence. Throughout history, only a couple of beast masters could pull off such a feat as it required intense training and a deep love for tamed beasts.
That's why everyone in the crowd including Bug catcher Ray immediately assumed that Satoshi wasn't like that. There was no way someone who just came here without prior experience with beast battles could have such an innate talent.
With a light chuckle, bug catcher Ray scoffed at Satoshi. He could tell that he'd be able to win the beast battle without too much difficulty. After all, Satoshi's Altered Type White Lion could be pretty powerful, but if it doesn't listen to him then it might as well fight a losing fight.
Meanwhile, Satoshi had no idea why a couple of spectators started shaking their heads while bug catcher Ray was lightly laughing at his face. Even Ash, who had been supervising the match as a stand-in referee, started shaking his head as he assumed what was going on.
The only ones who didn't react like them were Emma and Jack Michael (Star Spangled) since they had no idea what was going on. Jean Grey and his wife, Dahlia, also didn't react like the others. In fact, they were shocked at the sudden revelation.
"It looks like Satoshi is having a hard time reining his White Lion as the match progresses!" Ash announced. "How will Satoshi overcome this challenge?
Satoshi incredulously looked at Ash. 'Me? Having a hard time controlling my White Lion? Since when?' Satoshi asked himself in confusion.
"Scythewrath! Use vines to tie the White Lion and then solar beam!" Bug catcher Ray called out and Scythewrath immediately attacked.
Meanwhile, Satoshi was still deep in thought since he had no idea why everyone was frowning upon him. He didn't even look at the battlefield, he just looked down and rubbed his chin with his hands. 'Did I do something wrong? What's going on? What's wrong with everyone? It's not like I broke any rules, right?' Satoshi said to himself.
Just then, he received a signal from White Lion, asking him what he'd do since Scythewrath had already wrapped him with his vines and also preparing to blast a solar beam on his face.
'Ah, that's right! I'm in a fight!' Satoshi said to himself, brushing his hands as if he was telling the White Lion to do what he wants. But unbeknownst to everyone, he actually gave the White Lion specific orders such as biting off the vines and then counterattacking with his lightning orb that he shoots out of his mouth.
At that instant, the White Lion nodded its head before it bit off the vines that protruded out of Scythewrath's body, forcefully removing it. After that, he opened his mouth and fired off a lightning orb just when Scythewrath was about to fire off its solar beam.
Much to everyone's surprise, the White Lion was actually a step early despite not receiving any commands from his master. Before Scythewrath could fire off its solar beam, it was already hit by the full blast of the lightning orb.
"And there it goes again! The White Lion running out of control!" Ash announced.
"Huuh?!" Satoshi raised a brow as he let out an exhale in front of Ash. "What do you mean by White Lion is running out of control?"
Everyone pretty much gasped at this point. Even though Satoshi had an Altered Type White Lion, they could tell that Satoshi had no idea what was going on. They totally gave up on Satoshi even though Scythewrath was in an even worse state compared to his White Lion.
"I mean... your White Lion... it's acting on its own, right?" Ash asked, confused.
"Since when?" Satoshi returned. He simply doesn't understand what Ash was referring to.
While Satoshi was talking to Ash, bug catcher Ray gave a set of orders to his Scythewrath. "Scythewrath! Use razor leaf before they can make another move!" He continued.
Scythewrath was nearing its limits since it was hit squarely by the lightning orb. But even then, it was able to respond to its owner, unleashing a flurry of razor leaves toward the White Lion. It was a pretty quick attack, and there was no way the White Lion could react just in time.
Meanwhile, Satoshi received another signal from his White Lion as he was talking to Ash. Satoshi then commanded his White Lion to use the move thunderbolt so he'd be able to deal with all the razor leaves at once.
The White Lion obeyed.
Once again, the crowd was shocked at the sudden turn of events... well, not everyone was shocked.
Scratching his head, Jean Grey walked towards his son, Ash Grey, giving him a good whack on the head before he heaved out a long sigh. "Seriously, do your job properly." He told his clueless son. "You're not giving out accurate commentaries, you know."
Jean Grey then lightly pushed his son aside and sat in the middle of the field. "Um... basically... " Jean Grey muttered to himself.
"You see that kid over there? I've seen him fight a legendary beast with my own eyes. And he doesn't give out orders to his tamed beasts." Jean Grey began.
"Now, you might think that his tamed beast is not listening to him but such is not the case. In fact, it's the exact opposite." Jean Grey continued, pointing at Satoshi before he spoke again.
"Tell me kid, is it easier to give commands to your tamed beasts out loud... or is it easier to command them in your mind?" Jean Grey asked the ultimate question.
"Um... it's easier in the mind. When I blurt out my commands, the opponent would react to them easily. So I'd rather give out commands in my head." Satoshi casually pointed out.
Everyone gasped at his comment.