The high-temperature steam created through the precise control of water and fire, as well as the lava infused with the power of sandstorm through a more complex structural transformation, were both powerful offensive techniques Castform possessed without relying on the weather.
Although Castform was not attacking at full strength at the moment, merely maintaining the states of lava and steam, it still caused great trouble for Jade Joy and Lan Jenny.
The ground beneath Lan Jenny's Sandslash had turned into a magma-like substance. Scorching heat surged upward continuously, and though Sandslash kept reinforcing its body's defense, it still couldn't withstand the scorching heat of the lava.
Its entire feet had already been eroded by the magma, suffering severe burns.
As it left the ground, Gengar was enveloped by a mass of high-temperature steam; the searing steam constantly transmitted intense heat, inflicting Gengar with severe burns.
Under Castform's control, both the lava terrain and the steam clouds were being perfectly used. Whenever the two Pokémon tried to break free, the environment would immediately change to interfere and block them.
"The terrain that Castform has changed is not complete. The lava under Sandslash's feet is just a special substance covering the ground, so all I have to do is expel this special substance."
Lan Jenny's thoughts raced as she sought a way to escape the lava terrain. Sandslash's feet were now too badly burned to move much, and as time passed, the burns grew worse, possibly even spreading to other parts of its body. Just as the situation was becoming increasingly dire, Lan Jenny assessed their predicament: "Lan-chan, let's first deal with the steam together."
Sandslash tried to create sand to cover the lava, but as soon as the sand touched it, Castform instantly assimilated it, swallowing it completely. After one failed attempt, Lan Jenny had to abandon that idea.
However, while Sandslash was helpless against the lava, it wouldn't be as powerless against the steam troubling Gengar. This realization made both of them understand that acting separately was highly inefficient.
"I was thinking the same thing."
Jade Joy nodded. She and Gengar had also tried various methods, but relying on Gengar alone, they couldn't break through the surrounding steam. Seeing that they were in the same situation, Lan Jenny and Jade Joy both realized that perhaps Terrance had intended from the start to test their teamwork.
Team coordination was also a compulsory subject for the International Police, but faced with this complex environment, neither dared to act rashly.
If their Pokémon failed to work together properly, the resulting backlash could be even more severe. This made both of them more cautious, but only relatively so. Before long, they reached a mutual decision: since they couldn't just stand by and watch their Pokémon suffer continuous damage, they had to break through Castform's move as quickly as possible.
If one person couldn't counter it alone, then they would work together and counter them one by one.
"Sandslash, use Stone Edge to lift yourself up, then use Rapid Spin to create a Sand Tomb!"
"Gengar, surround Sand Tomb with Psychic. Help Sand Tomb dispel the steam!"
After the two gave their orders, a sharp stone instantly pierced out of the ground, scattering lava. Using the thrust generated by the sharp stone's eruption, Sandslash's body rose into the air and simultaneously used Rapid Spin to deflect the splashing lava. At the same time, the power of the sandstorm gathered, forming a Sand Tomb around Sandslash, turning into a sand tornado that clashed fiercely with the high-temperature steam in the sky.
The sandstorm, empowered by high-speed spinning, was equal in might to the steam. The two moves quickly intertwined. Seizing the opportunity, Gengar used Psychic to strengthen the cohesion of the sand tornado, preventing the sandstorm from being easily eroded by the steam. As the power of sandstorm and psychic power merged, the sandstorm quickly drove away the steam.
Seeing their strategy succeed, the two exchanged another glance. This time, Gengar acted contrary to expectations. Psychic, which had been unable to lock onto the gas, finally found an opening. Gengar immediately used its powerful psychic power to scatter the lava across the ground, creating favorable conditions for the sandstorm to spread. The scattered lava lost its previous devouring power, and facing the sandstorm, which had already gathered tremendous power, the entire battlefield instantly reverted to ordinary earth through the coordinated efforts of the two Pokémon.
Castform watched helplessly as the environment it created was dismantled, floating in the air without moving. With its strength restrained, it could no longer withstand the opponents' combo move within the limits of strength Terrance had set for it.
Unless it unleashed even greater power, but that would no longer be a test, it would be murder.
"The timing is just barely acceptable," Terrance said calmly after glancing at the time.
Mutual cooperation to deal with it was, of course, a means within Terrance's acceptable range. Terrance had this intention when he allowed the two of them to undergo the test together. However, if the two of them could have dealt with it on their own, Terrance would have likely regarded them even more highly.
Considering that both had only just become members of the International Police, however, their current level of strength was already extremely impressive.
"Does that mean we passed?" Jade Joy asked.
"Barely qualified," Terrance nodded, then continued, "Aside from cooperating with each other, can you think of any other ways to counter the lava and steam?"
The two paused, and then Jade Joy spoke. "With our current abilities, there aren't many options. But if I had enough time, I could train Gengar to learn more moves, like Icy Wind. With that, it would be much easier to neutralize the steam."
"There are no 'ifs' in a battle," Terrance said, shaking his head.
"Sandslash could have taken the initial opportunity to forcibly break through the lava, risking minor injuries, and used Dig to escape, but if countered, the situation would have become even more dangerous, so I didn't try it rashly."
Lan Jenny continued, "Actually, there's a simpler method, just seize the opportunity to subdue Castform's Trainer…"
"Me?" Terrance smiled faintly. "That's indeed a good idea, but only if you're sure you know your opponent well enough. How can you be certain the enemy only has one Pokémon?"
"And besides…"
Terrance looked at the two of them. "Even if both sides' Pokémon are holding each other off, that doesn't necessarily mean the enemy Trainer is defenseless. Exposing yourself to danger is something that should only be done as a last resort."
When considering his future team battle system, Terrance realized that the Trainer was the weakest link in the team. Without the constraints of official tournament rules, a team could collapse instantly if the Trainer was eliminated in a decapitation strike.
"So, Captain, are you a defenseless person yourself?" Lan Jenny asked.
"Me…" Terrance's eyes glinted mischievously. "Why don't I test your skills for myself?"
Test their skills?
"Hand-to-hand combat?"
"That's right."
Hope instantly flared in Lan Jenny and Jade Joy's hearts. In their pursuit of becoming detectives, they had never been lax in their hand-to-hand combat training; even against several ordinary adult men, they were confident they could take them down. Unless one side possessed extraordinary natural talent, the physical disparity between humans wasn't nearly as vast as that between Pokémon.
After all, humans who wielded mysterious powers were extremely rare; most were just ordinary mortals of flesh and blood.
So upon hearing that Terrance wanted to compare their hand-to-hand combat skills, neither of them thought there would be a significant difference between them. After all, Terrance was about their age and didn't look like someone who practiced hand-to-hand combat regularly. His physique didn't suggest that.
They could give it a try.
"Both of us together?" Jade Joy asked slyly.
"As you please," Terrance replied with a faint smile, his hands clasped behind his back.
The next moment, the two rookies burst forward with surging momentum, their bodies moving swiftly. They channeled their entire body's explosive power as they attacked Terrance.
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