Skorupi was knocked out of the battlefield by Arbok's tail and slammed heavily into the railing separating the court from the audience stands. It had long since become unable to battle.
The previous Earthquake had merely been a feint. Although it knew it might be baited into a trap, if the Poison-type Skorupi had taken the full power of Earthquake, it would still have become unable to battle, so Skorupi had made the correct choice.
It was just that Arbok was even stronger. Its raw power went without saying, but its astonishing Speed had also come as a surprise. It seemed Asea's training had genuinely been excellent.
When Pokémon like Arbok hunt in the wilderness, they can sometimes remain perfectly still in ambush for an entire day. However, the instant prey enters their striking range, their explosive burst of speed is truly astonishing. Clearly, Asea had fully brought out Arbok's capacities.
Tetsuya recalled Skorupi. It had indeed been badly injured this time.
"Come on out, Weezing."
Tetsuya threw a Poké Ball, and a four-headed monster appeared on the field. It was clearly a Weezing, yet it had four heads sharing a single expression. Just looking at it was enough to make anyone feel dizzy.
The Sensational Sisters and Sabrina were completely dumbfounded. What in the world was that!!!?
Asea, being far more knowledgeable, said, "Could this be the four-headed Weezing recorded in the old records?"
"That's right," Tetsuya replied.
"""Four-headed… Weezing…?""" the Sensational Sisters asked in unison. It was clearly the first time they had ever heard the name.
"It's truly unbelievable. At such a young age, you actually own a Pokémon like this… I really don't know what kind of extraordinary fortune you've encountered, or whether Arceus have simply favored you." Clearly, Asea had become somewhat envious.
There was even a trace of resentment in her voice!
She was already around thirty years old, yet she still had not raised a Pokémon powerful enough to "intimidate" her opponents.
The only Pokémon with exceptional potential she had were this Arbok and a Gengar that her mentor Agatha had helped her raise. However, with just those two Pokémon, she could do no more than serve as a Gym Leader, and it would be impossible for her to join Kanto's strongest Eight Gyms, which represented the League's public image.
To become a powerful Pokémon Trainer, it was not enough to work hard personally, have abundant battle experience, and excel at raising and training Pokémon. Having Pokémon with outstanding potential and aptitude was also indispensable, yet that was something that could only be left to chance.
As for Tetsuya…
"According to the records, a four-headed Weezing is formed through the Fusion Evolution of two conjoined Koffing.
Even a single pair of conjoined Koffing is incredibly rare in this world, let alone two of them. It's enviable… truly enviable…
I can't wait to see just how strong this four-headed Weezing really is!" Asea said.
"Weezing, 'Poison Gas, Icy Wind'."
Tetsuya gave only two simple commands. The four heads each released Poison Gas, Smog, Clear Smog, and Belch, creating a mixture of four differently colored gases that surged toward Arbok under the driving force of Icy Wind.
"Dig!"
Asea had already witnessed Skorupi's toxicity. She did not believe this four-headed Weezing would be any weaker than Skorupi, so she naturally did not dare come into contact with such odd gas.
Arbok was extremely fast. It thrust its head downward and burrowed underground as smoothly as if it were diving, avoiding the poisonous gas. However, Weezing immediately redirected Icy Wind, forcing the gas into the tunnel.
Asea also realized her mistake. More than anything, however, she had never expected this Weezing to have such perfect control over its moves. Normally, airflow-based moves were like the wind, passing by in a single gust. Yet Weezing had forcibly changed their direction.
No matter how quickly Arbok dug, it could never be faster than the wind. Before long, the entire tunnel had filled with poisonous gas.
"Come out quickly and use Wrap!" Asea remained calm in the face of danger. Panicking now that Arbok had already been exposed to the poisonous gas would accomplish nothing. All she could do was trust Arbok.
"Weezing, rise."
Better safe than sorry!
Putting as much distance as possible between itself and Arbok was the safest option.
Arbok suddenly burst out of the ground. Weezing had just begun to rise, but the pattern on Arbok's belly appeared first. Unexpectedly, the pattern was extremely effective against Weezing. It was immediately overwhelmed by the pattern's influence, becoming rooted in place and falling into Paralysis.
"Tch, damn it…"
Tetsuya could not help but gasp. Whether it had been the Koffing on Shadow Island or the Koffing from the Black Market, both had suffered extremely painful pasts. Deep down, they were incredibly fragile.
Although Tetsuya's care and the help of many Pokémon had greatly changed them, Arbok's odd pattern still left Weezing unable to break free.
In that brief instant, Arbok had already coiled itself around Weezing. It then dragged Weezing down to the ground and continuously tightened its Wrap.
Weezing let out cries of pain!
Weezing was still affected by Paralysis. Tetsuya could only encourage it with his voice, hoping it would pull itself together as soon as possible.
As long as Weezing could regain its will, Tetsuya was still confident it could defeat this Arbok. Arbok was already covered in wounds, clearly corroded by Belch's acidic gas. Fortunately for Asea, it had not inhaled the poisonous gas. Otherwise, Arbok's condition would have been far worse.
"Weezing, pull yourself together! Use Sludge Bomb!"
However, no matter how loudly Tetsuya called, Weezing never responded.
Throughout the entire time Arbok was using Wrap, it deliberately kept both its head and the pattern on its belly facing Weezing, leaving it trapped in a constant state of terror.
Tetsuya was also at a loss. This weakness of Weezing was simply too fatal. If things continued like this, he would have no choice but to forfeit this battle. With Golurk's might, defeating this Arbok would not be a problem.
Sabrina was secretly growing anxious as well. Weezing had suddenly become completely dispirited. Just moments ago, when it had used Poison Gas and Icy Wind, it had fought brilliantly, leaving Arbok with nowhere to escape. Now it looked as though it had forgotten how to battle.
At this point, even the Sensational Sisters had little left to say. Being able to push Asea this far was already enough to demonstrate Tetsuya's skills.
At the very least, he was far stronger than the three of them; that means something… right!?
Tetsuya had already gripped Weezing's Poké Ball in his hand. For now, recalling it was his only option.
Suddenly, a "Burp!" could be heard!
A cloud of yellow gas escaped from Weezing's mouth and immediately shrouded Arbok's head.
'This…?'
It turned out that Arbok's Wrap had tightened more and more, directly forcing the Belch gas inside Weezing out of its body. It sprayed straight onto Arbok's face, and the highly acidic gas immediately caused Arbok to choke several times.
The battle had taken a dramatic turn!