Scizor unleashed incredibly fast Bullet Punches with its right hand, while its left hand seamlessly followed up with Metal Claw. Under Dakota's command, these attacks came in relentless waves, leaving Azumarill with no time to breathe.
Azumarill had to rely on Aqua Tail to fend off the attacks while looking for opportunities to counterattack with Bubble Beam after Scizor's assaults.
Misaki tossed a gummy sweet into her mouth. Watching the two Pokémon, she could not help but click her tongue.
"Hurry up and realize Scizor's other purpose."
Misaki's words drew smiles from Flint, Aaron, and Lucian beside her.
The person Cynthia held in high regard really did react quickly. The only question was whether she could remain this sharp if she were in the battle herself.
Azumarill panted heavily as it engaged in another clash with Scizor. Just like before, Aqua Tail blocked Bullet Punch, and the remaining force swept into Metal Claw, successfully defending against both attacks.
The Bubble Beam prediction was perfect too, sealing off Scizor's retreat route and forcing it to take the hit head-on.
This kind of exchange favored Luther.
Yet Luther began sensing that something was wrong.
Scizor's body was already covered in injuries. Logically, after sustaining so much damage, its movements should have slowed down at least a little.
Furthermore, Scizor had maintained an entirely offensive stance from start to finish. Even Azumarill, which had been fighting defensively and counterattacking, was gasping for breath to the point where it was difficult to use moves.
But Scizor's breathing remained long and steady, as though the battle had only just begun.
"Good work. Come back and rest."
Azumarill looked visibly relieved at Luther's words before being recalled into its Poké Ball.
Luther's decision also made Misaki sigh with relief.
Good, he finally realized it.
Had he failed to notice, he would probably have been tormented to death by the hidden setup behind this Scizor.
Luther took out Mismagius's Poké Ball, paused for a moment, then asked, "Your Salamence isn't in the lineup, right?"
"Your Salamence isn't in the lineup, is it?"
The fact that Luther could ask this question meant that he had already noticed something. Given how well the two knew each other, Dakota had no reason to hide it and nodded openly.
"It got injured a little. If it battled against you, you'd probably exploit that, so it's resting up for now."
Luther's third Pokémon, Mismagius, entered the field.
Its task was simple:
Send this specially trained Scizor, which is designed for endurance, off the battlefield.
Since Dakota's Salamence could not participate, all of the adjustments to his line-up were aimed at exploiting weaknesses in Luther's team.
One of Luther's weaknesses was his lack of Fire-type damage output.
The Pokémon in his team capable of delivering high damage were few and far between.
Azumarill had indeed inflicted a lot of damage on Scizor, but that was exactly what Dakota had wanted to see. After all, Scizor's mission had never been to win.
As a Bug/Steel-type Pokémon optimised for prolonged battles, it had already fulfilled its role profitably, either by luring out Houndoom or by draining the stamina of Luther's ace Pokémon.
"Mystical Fire."
"Night Slash."
Within the flames, smoke rose from Scizor's body.
Yet its eyes remained unwaveringly determined.
Ignoring the surrounding flames, Scizor tore through them with one claw, then smashed the other directly into Mismagius's face.
As expected, Night Slash hit Mismagius's vital point. The pain caused Mismagius's face to scrunch up.
Neither Mismagius nor Luther had expected Scizor to attack in such a suicidal manner.
Scizor stared at Mismagius and took another step forward.
That single step immediately made Mismagius forget about its pain. It revealed a terrifying expression in an attempt to intimidate Scizor.
Dakota had already taken out his Poké Ball when Scizor suddenly collapsed to the ground.
"Scizor has lost the ability to battle. Mismagius wins."
Before Scizor entered the field, Dakota had probably instructed it that, if it encountered a Pokémon such as Houndoom that could injure it severely with a single hit and if its own condition was poor, it should abandon all retreat options and inflict severe damage on the opponent at any cost.
Dakota had now lost two Pokémon in a row, while none of Luther's had fallen yet.
Mai could not help but let out a sigh of relief.
Candice glanced at Mai and decided to say nothing.
Hakuya, who was also watching from the VIP seats, wore a grave expression.
Luther had four Pokémon capable of carrying on with the battle:
Mismagius, Darkrai, Azumarill and Houndoom.
Mismagius had now taken a heavy hit from Night Slash, and it was unclear how this would affect its performance later on.
Darkrai had already been in a fierce battle from the outset, and the accumulated damage was still evident.
Azumarill had endured a prolonged struggle against Scizor, expending a great deal of stamina and sustaining considerable damage in the process.
Whether Houndoom would appear at all was still uncertain.
Although Dakota had lost two Pokémon, he had successfully forced Luther's three main combatants out of peak condition.
"Things are still going fairly smoothly."
Dakota looked at Scizor's Poké Ball and spoke softly.
Luther's aggressive opening had disrupted his rhythm somewhat and caused him to lose his judgment momentarily, but Scizor had successfully regained control of the situation.
Dakota then sent out Metagross, officially beginning his counteroffensive.
Luther did not change his Pokémon.
Mismagius had insisted on staying in.
Mismagius clearly understood the team composition this time. As Darkrai and Azumarill both needed more time to recover, Mismagius had to step forward and fight to maximise Luther's chances of winning.
The first move Metagross used was Agility, which boosted its speed.
Despite being injured, Mismagius's speed remained astonishing. Dakota's decision to use Agility instead of attacking directly was an acknowledgement of Mismagius's strength.
Luther did not hesitate either.
You boost; I boost too.
Mismagius calmly used Calm Mind.
There was no standoff.
The moment the strengthening was complete, Mismagius launched Mystical Fire. Just like Scizor earlier, Metagross crashed straight through the flames and charged forward.
Dakota's style was simple:
Trade blows with you.
He possessed tremendous confidence in the combat strength of his own team. At the same time, he also had a thorough understanding of the weaknesses in Luther's lineup.
Thunder Punch smashed into Mismagius's face once again.
This time, Mismagius was unable to steady itself and was knocked from the air onto the battlefield.
"Will-O-Wisp! Seal away Metagross's close-combat ability."
Mismagius floated back up and released a Will-O-Wisp towards the rapidly approaching Metagross.
Another Thunder Punch!
Both of Metagross's fists crackled with electricity.
Mismagius twisted its body to dodge the first strike, but failed to avoid the second. Although Will-O-Wisp had already been released, it would take a moment to activate, so Mismagius took the full force of the Thunder Punch.
"This is the final strike: Shadow Ball," Dakota ordered.
Lying on the battlefield, Mismagius gritted its teeth and raised its head.
"You can do it! Use Mystical Fire!"
Luther's words made Mismagius smile.
It rose up and charged directly towards Metagross.
Right before Metagross's astonished eyes, it reenacted Scizor's earlier desperate, all-or-nothing one-for-one tactic.
Even after being heavily wounded by Shadow Ball, Mismagius forced itself onward with sheer willpower and unleashed Mystical Fire at point-blank range, scorching the Steel-type iron giant.
(End of Chapter)
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