A look of concern flashed across Eichi's face.
As the dust settled, the scene within the crater was revealed. Rocks were scattered everywhere, and embedded among them was Scizor. Its body was covered in wounds, and it had completely lost consciousness.
The referee observed the Pokémon briefly, and after confirming it was unable to battle, he announced:
"Scizor is unable to battle! Aerodactyl is the winner!"
"Wraoooh!!!"
Aerodactyl roared toward the sky and began to circle in the air, proclaiming its might. At this moment, it truly looked like a majestic overlord of the sky.
In the seating area for the Indigo Academy first-year students, several students instinctively pumped their fists and began chattering excitedly.
"Yes! Asen won!" one shouted.
"Asen's Aerodactyl is too strong. That Scizor didn't even have a chance to fight back against its attacks," another added.
"Exactly! Why haven't we seen this Aerodactyl before?"
"Asen was hiding his strength deep!"
While the Indigo Academy side was buzzing with discussion, the Silver Academy side was relatively quiet.
"Sigh, Scizor lost. That was pretty brutal," Tetsu remarked.
Just as he finished speaking, a voice came from behind him. "Scizor didn't have much stamina left to begin with. Getting hit by a Flamethrower on top of that makes this a natural outcome."
Tetsu turned around. It was Konan who had spoken.
On the field, Eichi watched as he recalled Scizor into its Poké Ball, then gave Asen a meaningful look. Aerodactyl's recent tactical sequence had been truly excellent.
Asen knew Scizor was low on stamina. To prevent Eichi from using other moves to stall for time, he used Taunt right at the start to force Scizor into a direct confrontation. Furthermore, knowing Eichi preferred starting with close-range physical moves, he shortened the distance between the two Pokémon to find an opening for a Fire-type move to take Scizor out in one breath.
On top of that, Asen had correctly guessed that Scizor could see through Double Team. Thus, he intentionally had Aerodactyl use the move to lure Scizor into closing the distance, only to unleash the prepared Flamethrower at point-blank range.
It had to be said that this tactic was superb. Eichi only realized the trap at the very last moment; he almost felt like applauding the play.
However, the match had to continue. He pulled out his third Poké Ball and tossed it. The ball opened, and a streak of white light coalesced into a figure in the air.
A Beedrill appeared before the crowd. Its twin stingers radiated a silver-white metallic luster. It possessed a sturdy body and an intimidating gaze, yet it didn't radiate any outward aura. When Asen and Sato saw Beedrill take the stage, their eyes narrowed.
The same thought flashed through both their minds: This Beedrill is not ordinary.
Akemi was exceptionally curious about the Beedrill. According to the data she had gathered, the final match of the Silver Academy Freshmen Tournament was a duel between a Charizard and a Beedrill. To her shock, the result was that Charizard lost to Beedrill—and in a direct, head-on clash.
When she first heard of this, she completely disbelieved it, thinking it was a joke. The biggest joke of the year: A Charizard is no match for a Beedrill.
Once she discovered it wasn't a joke but the truth, she was stunned. Could a Beedrill really be that strong?
Since she was a child, all her Pokémon had been rare and powerful species. In her mind, Beedrill were weak creatures with no future. Although she had never trained one, she felt that the facts supported her assumption. Moreover, the people she associated with rarely used Beedrill; most were very weak, and as trainers progressed, they would catch other Pokémon, and Beedrill would disappear from their teams.
Thus, she was very curious about Eichi. How did he train this Beedrill?
Asen carefully observed Beedrill in a very short amount of time. Physically, it was an entire size larger than a typical Beedrill. Its skin had an extraordinary luster, and the stingers on its arms were long and sharp, making one's scalp tingle with the fear of being pierced.
On the rostrum, Director Yanagi felt a surge of confidence the moment Beedrill appeared. Director Kimura looked at Beedrill and, while he agreed it was well-trained, he still didn't believe a Beedrill could be that powerful.
He turned with a smile and asked, "Director Yanagi, who do you think will win between Beedrill and Aerodactyl?"
Director Yanagi exchanged a glance with the Vice Principal beside him and smiled. "While the probability of Aerodactyl winning is certainly much higher when comparing the two species, I believe Beedrill will be the winner."
"Oh? Director Yanagi has such confidence in Beedrill?" Kimura asked meaningfully.
Director Yanagi maintained his smile. "Naturally, one must have confidence in the students of their own academy."
Director Kimura's expression darkened slightly. He turned away and stopped speaking, focusing back on the match.
Once the referee saw both were ready, he announced:
"Battle begin!"
Aerodactyl showed a look of disdain the moment it saw its opponent was a Beedrill.
"Wraoooh!!!"
Aerodactyl roared at the sky and flew in a circle. Eichi's expression shifted slightly. Aerodactyl was mocking Beedrill! So arrogant?
Asen frowned and shouted, "Aerodactyl, don't be careless!"
Hearing its master's reprimand, Aerodactyl finally restrained itself a little.
"Aerodactyl, Flamethrower!"
Aerodactyl held its position, rapidly gathering energy in its maw before firing it at Beedrill. A massive pillar of fire shot through the sky, reaching Beedrill almost instantly.
"Beedrill, Twineedle!"
Sensing the searing heat of the approaching flames, Beedrill's eyes narrowed, flashing with a red light. Its body moved; one second it was in place, and the crowd could still see its silhouette. In the next second, Beedrill vanished, leaving only an afterimage.
Around the pillar of fire, all that could be seen were black and yellow blurs flickering left and right. Within a single second, Beedrill appeared directly in front of Aerodactyl.
Aerodactyl felt its eyes were playing tricks on it. Its eyes widened—how did Beedrill get here so fast? It tried to redirect its downward-aimed mouth toward the Beedrill in front of it.
However, the moment the fire pillar swung up, Beedrill vanished again.
Gone?
In the next instant, it appeared right beneath Aerodactyl's head. Aiming at the abdomen, Beedrill swung its twin stingers, thrusting them one after another into the soft underbelly.
"Roar!!!"
Aerodactyl let out a roar of fury as a sharp pain radiated from its abdomen. It hurts!
At the same time, the same thought appeared in both Asen's and Akemi's minds: So fast!
Aerodactyl's reaction speed simply couldn't keep up with Beedrill's speed. If this continued, things would be very unfavorable for it.