"Looks like we've wandered into Ariados territory."
As Ash said this, he threw out Aipom's Poké Ball.
He still didn't know exactly how many Ariados there were, so he had to be on guard and couldn't afford to be careless in the slightest.
"Be careful... we don't know how many of them there are yet."
"Hmm... although I don't know, there are definitely more than just the few we see in front of us," Ash said cautiously.
Including the time he traveled before transmigrating, he had been traveling for at least ten years.
During such a long journey, even if he didn't specifically study them, he was already familiar with the habits of common Pokémon like Ariados.
Unlike Beedrill and Teddiursa, which swarm out at the sight of enemies, Ariados are more cunning and slick when facing intruders.
Generally, Ariados will divide the entire group into vanguards and rearguards based on the skills that each individual in their clan excels at.
The vanguards are responsible for confronting the enemy at the front lines as soon as possible, while the rearguards hide in nearby bushes or trees, using skills like String Shot and Poison Barb to launch sneak attacks.
Although Ariados' individual combat ability is weak, in terms of teamwork and cooperation, it can be called one of the strongest enemies encountered in the wild.
It's not easy to deal with them in a normal environment, let alone in this foggy weather.
"Pikachu, be careful when using electricity, don't shock us too."
"pika~"
Before the battle, Ash didn't forget to remind Pikachu, of course, the surrounding environment was too humid.
He was already covered in moisture after only walking into the fog for a short while.
If Pikachu used Thunderbolt in this environment, although it could take care of the Ariados in one go, they would not be spared either.
"ari~!"
With the fog as cover, the Ariados were obviously more confident.
Seeing that Ash and the others hadn't moved, they thought they had gained the upper hand.
The front claws of the vanguard began to be entwined with dark purple poisonous gas, pressing towards Ash and the others.
In response, Ash simply switched positions with
Dawn, letting Pikachu guard in front of Dawn, while he concentrated on directing Aipom.
"Double Team, then Swift!"
Although the skills released by the individual clones cannot cause any damage to the opponent, in this environment, the amount of confusion it can bring to the opponent is far more important than how much damage it can inflict.
Aipom leaped upwards, instantly dividing into six shadows.
The six Aipom waved their tails simultaneously, and Swift rained down like a dense downpour towards the Ariados in front of Ash.
The Ariados, used to throwing their weight around in the wild, had never seen anything like this before.
Intimidated by the momentum of Swift, they began to retreat one after another.
Several Ariados that were too slow to retreat were directly hit by Swift.
On the other side, Pikachu, unable to freely use Electric-type moves, had no choice but to use Iron Tail to confront the Ariados' Poison Jab attacks head-on.
Dark purple claws and silver-white Iron Tail collided constantly, emitting dull thuds.
Despite fighting multiple opponents, Pikachu, relying on its combat experience and level advantage, was not at a disadvantage at all.
Taking advantage of a few moments of stiffness caused by Iron Tail, Pikachu didn't forget to use moves like Quick Attack to further strike the Ariados that showed openings.
Despite being outnumbered two to ten, under the attacks of Aipom and Pikachu, the Ariados group that had surrounded them earlier was now constantly retreating.
Seeing this, Ash did not feel relieved, because he knew that if the Ariados' vanguard troofailed to win the battle, their reinforcements would be ready to attack.
"Get ready! Watch out for Poison Barb and String Shot skills flying out of the mist!"
"Pi!"
"Oki!"
Although Pikachu and Aipom didn't know why Ash knew this information, out of trust for Ash, the two little ones also took this statement, which should have been a guess, as a fact that would definitely happen.
Sure enough, after the Ariados retreated to a certain distance, the originally stable mist seemed to begin to change a little.
The surrounding mist began to surge towards several specific
points.
Pikachu and Aipom, who had already received Ash's warning, knew that an ambush was probably coming, so they prepared themselves.
"Whoosh——!"
A crisp sound of the air being cut broke the silence, traveling through layers of mist and flying towards their location.
Seeing this, Aipom jumped directly into the air.
After confirming that the attacks were a series of small Poison Barbs, it swung its tail, which had already gathered power, and knocked down all the Poison Barbs one by one while constantly waving it.
On the other side, Pikachu wasn't facing Poison Barbs, but countless webs rushing out.
Without the help of Electric-type moves, even with Iron Tail, it was difficult for Pikachu to disperse the sticky webs.
After only a few rounds, Pikachu's tail was already covered in them.
"pi....."
Pikachu landed on the ground, aggrievedly grabbing its tail, trying to pull off the webs tangled around it.
But, the Ariados in Pikachu's direction seemed to see that the String Shot skill was effective, and one by one, they began to intensify their attacks.
At this moment, not only the support troohiding in the back, but even the vanguard troowho were originally supposed to engage Pikachu in close combat began to frantically use the String Shot skill on Pikachu.
Seeing this, Pikachu knew it couldn't take it anymore and began to run away from Dawn, with wisof electricity surging around its body.
"Dawn, get away! Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"
Ash noticed Pikachu's condition while commanding Aipom in battle, so after saying that to Dawn, he had Pikachu unleash its Electric-type moves, preparing to launch a final offensive against the Ariados.
But is that really okay?
Subconsciously touching his already damp clothes, Ash couldn't help but think.
Oh well, the worst that could happen is getting shocked, I'll get used to it eventually anyway.
Ash looked at Dawn and sighed sympathetically in his heart, but just as he thought Dawn was inevitably about to get an afro, they heard a spirited Growl from behind them.
"Piplup!!!"
At the same time, a tight but orderly barrage of Bubble broke through the fog and directly bombarded the location where the Ariados were gathered, overcoming countless webs.