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In actual Pokémon battles, strategy mostly plays a supporting role; its purpose is to turn the situation around when both sides are evenly matched or close in strength.
But it's not the most important factor. Ever since Pokémon battles were recorded, the ultimate goal of trainers has always been the growth of themselves and the strength of their Pokémon.
Only those who have never stood on this stage would doubt Luther's ability.
Sho understood this very well. When facing opponents weaker than himself, Luther never went all out; he simply crushed them with raw Pokémon strength, just like he did against Hayata in the preliminary rounds.
As for Misaki, who had been eliminated in the first round, just how strong she truly was remained a hot topic among viewers even now.
That free-spirited girl, who came and went like the wind, may have left the Lily of the Valley stage early, but that one battle alone had won over countless fans.
And now, it was Sho's turn to face Luther.
Although the audience cheered for both contestants, when Luther's name was called, the thunderous roar that erupted across the arena was overwhelming. It felt as if he were fighting on his home ground.
Now he finally understood why "home advantage" was so powerful in sports; the crowd's cheers put immense psychological pressure on the opponent while boosting one's own morale.
Carrying a harp, Sho stepped onto the field and politely nodded to Luther. Under the referee's guidance, both released their first Pokémon.
Roserade vs. Darkrai.
As expected, Darkrai's appearance triggered another wave of cheers. As one of the most popular Pokémon in this tournament, it had plenty of fans.
Sho glanced at Darkrai, as if recalling something, and quickly came up with a plan.
"First move goes to Contestant Sho. Begin!"
Sho lightly strummed his harp. "Roserade, let's start with a greeting, use Pin Missile."
The Bug-type move Pin Missile was indeed quite effective against Darkrai.
Luther didn't immediately order a counterattack. Instead, he told Darkrai to evade first, wanting to observe how well it could dodge a barrage of dense attacks.
Glowing Pin Missiles wove together into a net, descending toward Darkrai.
But relying on its speed, Darkrai weaved through them effortlessly, completely unfazed.
"Roserade, close the distance and continue with Pin Missile!"
Breaking out of the barrage, Darkrai tilted its body slightly. After long practice, Luther recognized that this, it was Darkrai's most comfortable stance for releasing moves.
"Dark Void."
Sho had been prepared. From past observations, whether it was Dakota's Darkrai or Luther's, the activation of Dark Void was always slow; the hand-raising motion left an opening.
Sho had no intention of missing this opportunity. He ordered Roserade to cancel Pin Missile and switch to Toxic.
Darkrai had just broken through the Pin Missile barrage, its body not even fully straightened yet,
And yet, a pitch-black sphere suddenly shot straight toward Roserade.
Holding up the flowers in its hands, Roserade hadn't even had time to release Toxic before it was struck head-on by Dark Void, completely unprepared.
Even the commentator hadn't noticed the subtle motion of Darkrai releasing Dark Void, only reacting after Roserade collapsed onto the ground.
"Quick, use Sleep Talk!"
Against Darkrai, one must always prepare for the effects of Dark Void. Pokémon capable of using Sleep Talk were almost essential.
"Trigger your Nightmare Ability, then use Dream Eater."
Sleep Talk randomly selected Magical Leaf, but even as Darkrai was enveloped by the attack, it remained completely unmoved, calmly extending its psychic power outward…
The Nightmare Ability that causes pain to sleeping Pokémon, combined with Dream Eater, double damage.
Roserade, which had barely gotten up due to Sleep Talk, stiffened the moment it was hit by Dream Eater. Then its body went limp, collapsing backward.
Not smooth enough, still flawed. From Luther's critical perspective, he wasn't fully satisfied with that Dark Void.
If it had been Misaki's Pokémon, it might have dodged it. The motion was more concealed now, but the release speed still needed improvement.
Still, for Darkrai, this was already a solid result.
Since the seven-day break, it had been training with Houndoom and Mai's Gengar. The sessions were short and often interrupted due to stamina concerns, but the progress was clearly visible.
Luther didn't know if all Legendary Pokémon had such strong learning abilities, but at least his Darkrai certainly did.
This was Darkrai's first time putting its newly learned techniques into practice, and the results were excellent. It was obvious he felt a bit proud.
Back when Misaki's Tyranitar had forced it into close combat, Darkrai had felt a genuine sense of danger for the first time. Now, it seemed that sense of urgency had come at just the right moment.
Even though type advantage played a role, the fact that a single Dream Eater had taken down Roserade still put immense pressure on Sho.
Darkrai's agility while dodging the Pin Missile barrage made Sho reconsider, should he fight speed with speed?
This was the moment for a trainer's decision.
After hesitating for quite a while, long enough that the referee was about to urge him, Sho finally threw his second Poké Ball.
Altaria spread its cotton-like wings and rose into the air.
"Contestant Sho's second Pokémon is Altaria, coincidentally one that Contestant Luther has expressed interest in raising. This just made things interesting."
The commentator seized the moment to hype up the battle.
Dragon and Flying-type… wasn't that just a single Blizzard or Ice Punch from Azumarill?
But Darkrai had no intention of leaving the field. Its fighting spirit was surging.
After finally getting the chance to test everything it had trained for, how could one battle be enough?
Altaria's speed was impressive, clearly Sho's plan was to use speed to neutralize Darkrai's advantage, then gradually chip away at it.
The moment the battle resumed, Luther had Darkrai launch an aggressive attack.
An Ice Beam shot toward the sky, partly a gamble, partly an attempt to end the battle quickly.
Altaria widened the distance again, ensuring Darkrai couldn't close in with a sudden burst of speed, then unleashed Dragon Breath from its mouth.
A Dragon-type move with a chance to paralyze the opponent.
Luther held onto his final move slot tightly, he had reserved it for Haze.
For now, Dark Void, Dream Eater, and Ice Beam were more than enough.
He didn't want to give Sho even the slightest chance to set up.
As long as that last move remained unrevealed, Altaria couldn't rely on hit-and-run tactics to find an opportunity to boost itself with Dragon Dance.
It was clear Sho was starting to feel pressured, because Luther's response was extremely straightforward.
You want to keep your distance and trade attacks?
Then we'll trade attacks.
But if you're trying to bait out my last move slot…
That's not happening.
(End of Chapter)
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