The strongest Bug-type move, "Megahorn," has a bunch of common unofficial translations—Million Horn, Megaton Horn Strike, or even "Mega-Amplitude Audio"!
It boasts a hefty 120 base power, but its accuracy is only 85. It's basically in the bottom tier of "high-power moves," barely missing the honor of sitting at the same table as Zap Cannon.
Because, as everyone knows!
95% accuracy = 50% accuracy = 0% accuracy!
If accuracy isn't absolute,
then it's absolutely not hitting!
Of course, optimistic people can look at it this way: "Wow, it's got a 50% chance to hit! This move is insanely strong!"
Optimistic people are optimistic about everything, but Megahorn just can't be optimistic.
The strongest Bug-type nuke, and more than 80% of its users aren't even Bug-type!
Just like the Falinks right now!
Watching that invincible formation charge in with savage momentum, the horns on Falinks' helmets suddenly shot forward, like the long spears of a Roman infantry phalanx!
Falinks are a Pokémon formation that's used to fighting as a team. They battle while shifting formations!
And they use their extendable horns to issue formation-change commands!
"Gira!"
Girafarig had been locked onto by the Falinks legion phalanx. It wanted to flee, but in front of Falinks at +6 Speed, it was completely powerless!
From six directions, Falinks' long horns stabbed in, almost surrounding Girafarig from all sides!
Phalanx transformation!
"Gira!" Girafarig grit its teeth, and its eyes suddenly flashed with light!
It tried to use an AoE move to hit Falinks… and the light it forced out at the brink of desperation was—
"Eeta!"
Falinks' leader made its horn shine—and struck Girafarig directly!
Comrade Love, activate! Watch me hit you six times!
The arena thudded and trembled, like it was about to be trampled into碎片 at any second. Girafarig had no ability to resist as it was launched skyward by Falinks—one hit, two hits… three, four, five, six!
Girafarig, doubly weak to Bug, simply couldn't withstand a +6 Megahorn.
Tulip-san never expected to lose in such an absurd way.
Mean Look and Gravity were originally meant to patch up the move's accuracy problems, and to prevent the opponent from running laps around the field.
But now, they'd ended up handing the opponent the perfect gift for free!
"And my Speed wasn't fast enough—otherwise, I could've used Power Swap!"
Psychic-type Pokémon have plenty of scummy moves in battle.
Power Swap is one of them.
Using psychic power, it swaps your Attack and Sp. Atk stat changes with the opponent's.
But No Retreat didn't just raise Attack—it raised Speed, too!
Hikaru said, "In battle, the terrain and statuses you activate… sometimes won't only be used by you."
"In certain situations, the enemy can also make good use of them to fight."
"So the shift between victory and defeat often comes down to a single move!"
Listening to the "lesson" from the newly appointed Elite Four, Tulip-san blinked and fell into brief thought, then let out a helpless sigh.
To think she was getting lectured by someone even younger than her.
So that was why Geeta could recruit him as an Elite Four member with such special treatment?
"There's a lot I know, and a lot I don't."
"As a Gym Leader… it seems I still have many shortcomings."
Admitting defeat wasn't something shameful. And through this entertainment match, Tulip-san had found the weaknesses in her own tactics even more clearly.
"It's impossible for anyone to be completely clear on every Pokémon's abilities, moves, secondary effects, and effect interactions."
"Being able to specialize in a single domain is already enough to be called a master."
"But I heard you're a Steel-type expert. I didn't expect you to have studied moves and status interactions this deeply, too. Is this the Elite Four's 'knowledge'?"
"That infinite invincible formation—this is a hole in my tactics. And it just happened to be a Fighting-type Pokémon that could use this method… that really is…"
If Dendra-san had known this fighting style ahead of time…
Then that wager of "whoever loses has to listen to the other" might've ended with her losing—and getting dragged by Dendra-san to run one hundred laps around the track!
When she thought of it that way, losing to Hikaru was truly a blessing in disguise!
"Come back, Girafarig. I'm sorry—it was my misjudgment."
Tulip-san recalled her Girafarig, which had fainted on the ground.
"I wanted to use Psychic's advantage over Fighting to rush into the finals in one go, and then stand at the peak together with Dendra-san. I didn't expect the plan to get cut off here. It really breaks my heart."
"But against Falinks with every stat boosted to the maximum and no weaknesses… even a Psychic-type that resists Fighting has no way to win. The moment Megahorn landed, my defeat was declared."
Hikaru didn't speak. He simply stared at the Girafarig whose eyes had just glowed, and at the Poké Ball that had recalled it.
What move was that Girafarig trying to use just now?
Could it be…?!
Hikaru's eyes brightened slightly, and he nodded to himself.
Looks like that Girafarig, under pressure, learned an interesting new move—and that move was its trigger to evolve!
However, because it lost to Falinks, it never completed the steps needed for evolution.
"Eeta-eeta! WAAAAAAAGH!!!"
Falinks were dancing!
Strong and dominant—Invincible Formation!
Sons of Rome, raise your spears and advance!
Fight without end, and WAAAAAAAGH without end!
When one big lad stands out among the Falinks, he'll gather the little lads around him and start a巡游 that spreads WAAAAAAAGH! Falinks sing loud and pound their drums!
If one big lad can make the other big lads all believe in him, he's called the Chosen!
We reckon, that temporary trainer of ours—he's the big red Chosen!
So as long as he leads us in WAAAAAAAGH!
There's no enemy we can't beat!
We will not disgrace Roman blood! Even though we didn't have any of that, but now we do!
Falinks roared a victorious legion war-cry, hopping and bouncing across the field. Watching these Falinks completely lose their minds in place—pure manic energy—Tulip-san could only smile helplessly.
WAAAAAAAGH echoes everywhere.
On the spectator stand, Dendra-san shook her head. "Awww, what a shame, Tulip-san! Against an Elite Four Pokémon, you really were still lacking in strength, huh…"
Tulip-san replied irritably, "Isn't this because of you? You told him my battle moves, and then he used them against me."
Dendra-san scratched her head. "Eh? Is that so? But I only—uh—after you used the moves… wait, was it really my fault?"
Tulip-san spread her hands. "Forget it. But that Falinks probably isn't his main Elite Four pick. I've never heard of him having that Pokémon before. And the type he specializes in is Steel, not Fighting."
Dendra-san didn't feel much about it. "Having Fighting is normal too, right? He's a martial artist. And he's going to participate in an Iron Fist Tournament held in a faraway region—being good at Fighting is no big deal."
"Iron Fist Tournament martial artist…" Tulip-san's gaze flickered as she murmured softly. "I see. The type he's best at is Steel, but he's also a martial artist, so his second-best is Fighting?"
"But that Falinks probably doesn't have Elite Four-level power. It's just… he used tactics to buff it into an unbelievable level of invincibility…"
Thinking about it any more was pointless. Tulip-san looked again at Hikaru leaving the field, pressed a hand to her forehead, and sighed.
If this new Elite Four were a woman, that'd be great.
Then she could talk cooperation with them—promote her cosmetics brand and all that.
Rika-onee-san in the Elite Four was also a woman, but she often wore men's clothes, and she didn't seem to put much effort into makeup at all. Seriously, she had no femininity whatsoever.
Mm… maybe not?
Because that cool green-haired girl Rika was always hanging around Geeta, she'd never really paid attention.
Her figure was kind of… flat—well, she's Ground-type; the ground being flat is reasonable.
But actually, she's pretty nice.
"Should I get that Ground Elite Four member to model for me? Such good material, and I've been ignoring it this whole time. My eye really is pretty 'terrible,' huh?"
Having thought of a new model candidate—though the other side might not agree—she finally escaped, at least temporarily, from her feelings of defeat.
Tulip-san said, "Losing can't be helped. Dendra-san, you'd better give it everything you've got. This is your only chance to beat me, you know. Defeat the Elite Four."
Dendra-san felt something was off. She crossed her arms and tilted her head. "Eh, me fighting the Elite Four? No—well, I was going to anyway, but when you say it like that, I suddenly feel so much pressure. I've totally lost that relaxed mindset I had before."
"It's like I'm carrying some heavy mission—ugh, that's not supposed to be a thing! I'm just testing my own strength here!"
"It's not like I'm actually at the stage of truly putting myself in a corner and then surviving it!"
Dendra-san's fighting spirit surged, and at the same time, she thought about Hikaru's "Invincible Formation."
Mm, Tulip-san definitely has her guard up now. If Dendra-san fights her again next time, Tulip-san probably won't use similar moves to let her exploit loopholes.
But Hikaru-dono really is worthy of being Elite Four!
Fighting-type must be weaker than Psychic-type?
There's no such rule!
Even if it's Fighting-type, it can still smash Psychic-type with a type disadvantage!
"The bullfighting festival lasts three days, but in practice, the matches go pretty fast. Contestants get eliminated one after another, and you're already into the finals."
"My battle with Dendra-san is about to begin."
Hikaru looked at the three Pokémon beside him and shrugged slightly.
At this point in time, Dendra-san wasn't that strong. Of course, even in the Scarlet/Violet era, Dendra-san still wasn't strong anyway.
Among people who specialize in Fighting, Dendra-san was in the weakest batch.
Even though this battle didn't look suspenseful, Dendra-san would probably scramble at the last moment because she didn't want to lose… but underestimating an opponent was absolutely forbidden.
That's how Pokémon battles are: sometimes you get flipped by an opponent you looked down on.
"One wrong step, and the whole board is lost."
"This time, Dendra-san is using three-headed bullfighting—three Paldea regional forms. Luckily these three bulls are Gen 9 and not Kanto; otherwise, in the middle of the fight, they might suddenly pull out Fissure. That would be a real disaster."
Kanto Tauros is the kind that can learn Fissure, that ultimate move! Ash's Tauros seemed to have shown it before, too.
But Tauros from other regions can't learn it.
On the surface, it's because different regions have different 'climates and cultures,' causing big differences in the moves they can master… but in reality, it's just new-version nerfs and old-version福利.
"The move you really need to watch out for is Endeavor. Its distribution isn't that wide, but some Pokémon can pull it out and suddenly try to drag you down with them, or force your HP down to match theirs."
"All three Paldean Tauros forms can learn Endeavor, and two of them can also learn the binding moves Fire Spin and Whirlpool."
"The two Dendra-san uses most often just happen to be one Water and one Fire. The remaining pure Fighting-type bull… mm, its biggest role is making up the number. Without three bulls, you can't run a bullfighting match."
In the rest area, Hikaru walked toward Tulip-san, who was talking with Dendra-san. Tulip-san looked surprised.
"Ehh? Elite Four kid, you came to me主动? Are you planning to be a male model for me?"
"Uh, I have no such plan." Hikaru laughed and waved his hand, then said to Tulip-san, "I came here to confirm something."
"Your Girafarig—if I'm not mistaken, it should be about to evolve."
"Evolve?!" Tulip-san froze, then she and Dendra-san looked at each other. She was utterly confused. "Girafarig was studied a long time ago! The academic consensus right now seems to be that it's a 'complete Pokémon.' So how could it possibly evolve?"
"Geez, if you're trying to pick up an onee-san, don't use an excuse like that."
"Onee-san Tulip-san, you're not that much older than me." Hikaru was a bit speechless, then cleared his throat. "About that—soon I will… anyway, please pay attention to the next academic summit."
"'Complete Pokémon' and 'incomplete Pokémon' were originally Professor Rowan's hypothesis. I heard that he worked with Professor Oak at the Oak Laboratory to establish this hypothesis. Recently, to further完善 his research, he returned to Sinnoh."
"And not long ago, in my battle with Rika-onee-san, I discovered a new evolution. Primeape, which was first researched in Kanto long ago, after learning a new move in Paldea, revealed an entirely new姿态!"
"Not only that—there's also the evolution of Bisharp, and Duraludon's evolution…"
"Human activity, environmental pressure, differences in local climate, the passage of time—these are all factors that determine whether Pokémon can produce brand-new evolutions. This is new research content beyond regional forms!"
"Right now, we already have several comparison samples."
"And your Girafarig is next!"
"Under different regional influences, Pokémon can learn different moves. Back in Johto, it was discovered by accident that some Girafarig had mastered a move called Psychic Fangs—a newly discovered Psychic-type physical move."
Hikaru asked Tulip-san to send Girafarig out again. That injured Girafarig, sensing fear from Hikaru—like it was facing some apex predator—lowered its head slightly.
"Can you do it again? The thing from just now."
"Gira?"
At Hikaru's request, Girafarig thought for a moment, then looked toward an open area. Its eyes lit up with psychic power, and something like airflow circled around its neck twice!
Pew-pew!
Two beams shot out like lasers!
"Huh? What move is that? I've never seen it." Tulip-san was extremely shocked.
Dendra-san was also completely baffled.
"Yeah, I've never seen it either. If Tulip-san's Girafarig knew that move, she would've used it on me long ago."
Tulip-san: "…A move that attacks twice in an instant?"
Hikaru took out a Rare Candy and fed it to Girafarig as he explained, "For now, let's name this move Twin Beam!"
"And then, after mastering this move, if it defeats an enemy, or experiences some growth—look! The light of evolution has appeared!"
Girafarig let out a long whinny!
I'm psychic-whinnying!
When the evolution light faded, what appeared before them was a Pokémon that looked even more like a giraffe.
"Classified as the Long Neck Pokémon."
"Type is Normal plus Psychic."
"Height: 3.2 meters. Weight: 160 kilograms. Egg Group: Field. The smaller head that used to be on the tail has taken control of the main head—or rather, they've merged into a symbiotic whole. After the two brains were linked by thick nerves, its psychic energy was strengthened."
"By synchronizing the brainwaves of its head and tail, it's said that its psychic power has increased to ten times that of Girafarig!"
"A new evolution: Farigiraf!"
Even though, name-wise, it's just the same name with the order swapped.
But this thing has the noble ability Armor Tail!
"Abilities: Cud Chew, Armor Tail, and Sap Sipper."
"Among them, Armor Tail is a newly emerged Ability. By wrapping the head in a mysterious tail, it prevents the opponent from using priority moves against us!"
Of course, Cud Chew is also a very rare Ability. Only Paldea's three Tauros breeds have it.
Its effect is: after eating a Berry, at the end of the next turn, it will regurgitate it from its stomach and eat it one more time.
As for Sap Sipper, that one's a bit more common.
Looking at the astonished Tulip-san, Hikaru registered Farigiraf's data into the Pokédex, then smiled.
"A new evolution sample has appeared, and your Gym's overall strength has improved. Congratulations!"
"With a new evolution appearing, Geeta will probably send people to research this Farigiraf. I'm just giving you a heads-up in advance."
And for him, this also counted as a… work report? That's right—just a work成果 he could submit while helping someone out, nothing more!
However, Tulip-san keenly noticed the issue.
"Eh? If nobody discovered this evolution before, then how did you know?"
Hikaru smiled slightly. "That involves my secret. But as time flows onward, Pokémon evolution is endless."
Tulip-san thought to herself: the newly appointed Elite Four really does have something special about him.
His attitude toward Pokémon ecology and evolution—like he could see the future… right, he said he was a psychic, a trainer type that hadn't existed in Paldea before.
A psychic, a martial artist, and also a rare powerhouse who excels at Steel?
Ehh, why is your typing mastery so chaotic?
Truly mysterious and powerful. Mm, if she had to use one adjective, it would be: mysterious.
(End of Chapter)
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