Note: In this chapter, the mechanics of some moves that may be difficult to imagine are explained. I know this might sound boring, but at least no one will complain later that I didn't explain how these moves work. Please be patient, the next chapter will be much more entertaining.
With that said, it was time to send out my first Pokémon. Unlike before, in this battle I was going all out.
"Let's start strong. Charizard, I choose you!" I said.
Charizard came out of her Poké Ball, ready to give it everything.
"Char!" Charizard roared.
Charizard roared and looked at Hypno with a serious expression, as if saying: "Get ready to lose!"
The last time she stepped onto the battlefield, she lost miserably against Entei. But that didn't discourage her—instead, it made her realize she wasn't strong enough yet, and that there would always be someone stronger.
That loss helped her become more humble and stop being arrogant about the strength she had gained in such a short time.
Before Ash appeared in her life, she was a weak Charmander who couldn't even defend herself from a few bullies. But now, thanks to Ash, she had grown much stronger.
After gaining so much power so quickly, Charizard became arrogant and believed few could challenge her. But after her defeat at Entei's hands, she realized she was still far from being the strongest.
Still, that loss wasn't bad at all. It didn't depress her—it taught her a valuable lesson:
"Never believe you're the best, because there's always someone stronger."
Those were the words Ash told her after seeing her down. Words she engraved into her mind—words that made her understand that she needed to keep training, keep improving, and that maybe one day, she would truly become the strongest.
But for now… she had to keep training.
During the three weeks of rest, Charizard didn't slack off. She kept training steadily and became stronger. But she had no way to measure her strength—she had no one to fight.
Now, against Hypno… she would finally show how much she had improved.
Charizard roared again, staring at Hypno with a challenging gaze.
Looks like she wants to test her new strength.
After her defeat against Entei, she had been depressed for a few days. Luckily, I managed to cheer her up, and that pushed her to keep training.
In fact, Charizard, Molly, and I spent several afternoons helping her train.
"Come on, Charizard. Let's show how strong you've become!" I said with a smile.
"Char!" Charizard responded.
That's exactly what I wanted.
"Hypno, let's not delay this any further. Use Hypnosis," Sabrina said.
Sabrina looked completely calm, as if nothing could disturb her. In fact, she didn't even raise her voice when giving orders like most trainers or Gym Leaders.
She was completely composed.
Hypnosis—a powerful Psychic-type move that can put the opponent to sleep.
Normally, avoiding this move would be difficult, and the Pokémon would fall completely asleep…
But I had already predicted this and prepared a strategy.
As I said before, I remember perfectly the Pokémon Sabrina used in the games, and assuming she might use the same or similar ones, I also planned a counter for Hypnosis.
In the games, you could just use a berry to wake up instantly. But I didn't have that berry, and the system hadn't given me one.
So I had to think of another way.
And the answer was simple.
"Close your eyes!" I shouted.
Charizard nodded and immediately shut her eyes.
That's right—in the games, Hypnosis has low accuracy, but in real life, that's not the case.
So how do you avoid falling asleep?
Simple.
Don't look.
In real life, Hypnosis emits something like waves that make the opponent look into the user's eyes, causing them to fall asleep.
In the games, sleep lasts 2 to 5 turns.
In real life?
There's no limit.
A Pokémon can stay asleep indefinitely.
There are ways to wake up:
taking a strong hit
hearing a loud sound
fainting
But why rely on that?
It's better not to fall asleep in the first place.
That's why I came up with this strategy.
If Charizard keeps her eyes closed, Hypnosis won't affect her.
"Mmm, I see. If she closes her eyes, Hypnosis can't put her to sleep. Not bad," Sabrina said.
It's the same strategy that girl, Green, used in her previous battle.
Interesting.
So far, only Ash and Green figured this out. Other trainers always had to wait for their Pokémon to wake up before attacking.
"That's right. If my Pokémon can't see yours, you can't put it to sleep," I said calmly.
"And what about everything else? Hypno, use Psychic," Sabrina said.
But I had already thought of that too.
The moment Charizard heard Sabrina's command, she opened her eyes.
"Dodge it and use Flamethrower!" I ordered.
Charizard nodded, barely dodged Psychic, and immediately fired a powerful Flamethrower at Hypno.
"Use Protect," Sabrina said calmly.
"Hyp!" Hypno cried.
A green barrier instantly covered Hypno's body, completely blocking Charizard's attack.
"I didn't think of that…" I said, slightly surprised.
Maybe I should have predicted Protect.
But it's not easy to prepare counters for everything, much less predict every move your opponent might have.
Thanks to my past life knowledge, I remember many moves Pokémon can learn—but definitely not all of them.
So I can only make educated guesses.
"Protect is a very useful move when facing stronger opponents or critical situations. In my opinion, it's one of the best moves a Pokémon can have," Sabrina said.
And she's right.
Even in the Pokémon tournaments from my past life, Protect was extremely common.
"You're right—but Protect also has a drawback!" I said.
In the games, Protect works 100% the first time, but repeated use lowers its success rate.
In the real world, it's similar.
After using Protect, a Pokémon needs time before using it again.
Trying to use it repeatedly is risky—and no one does it.
Getting hit even once can be decisive.
"Charizard, use Flamethrower!" I ordered.
"Char!" Charizard roared.
Once again, Charizard launched a powerful Flamethrower.
"Don't dodge. Use Hyper Beam," Sabrina said.
Suddenly, Hypno opened its mouth and fired a massive Hyper Beam toward Charizard.
The moment both attacks collided, a powerful gust of wind exploded outward, nearly forcing me to step back.
Even Sabrina took two steps back before stabilizing herself.
I quickly looked up.
Both attacks clashed mid-air.
Neither side was gaining ground.
They were evenly matched.
Gym Leaders really are strong.
Even the cloned Charizard we faced when Mewtwo appeared would have struggled against that attack.
"The world is vast… but some are destined to stand at the peak, while others remain at the base of the mountain!" I said.
Hearing that, Charizard understood instantly.
And just like a shounen anime protagonist—
Her Flamethrower surged in power.
Little by little, it began overpowering Hypno's attack.