"Damn, I might be screwed…"
When Aiden commanded Empoleon to set Stealth Rock, beads of sweat broke out on Blue's forehead. His smile vanished instantly.
'Wait—I thought this was a weather battle? Since when did you start throwing entry hazards?!'
As one of Teacher Azure's star students (though he'd discovered Aiden's streams relatively late), Blue had studied all his tutorial videos. He understood hazard usage well enough.
For sun teams, nearly any Fire-type Pokémon took significant Stealth Rock damage upon entry.
Worse—Charizard, his absolute core Pokémon, retained its Fire+Flying typing even after Mega Evolution. One rock layer would cripple it, making casual switching impossible.
But here's the catch…
Few Pokémon could remove hazards. Only Flying-types learned Defog—and in Blue's team, only Charizard could use it. Other Pokémon were useless here.
To clear rocks, he needed Charizard.
But sending Charizard meant Aiden achieved his goal: Charizard-Y's HP would drop into kill range for half the opponent's team after stepping on rocks. Extremely dangerous.
So what now?
Clearly, Blue was trapped in a dilemma.
And Aiden wouldn't give him time to think.
"Empoleon—Hydro Pump!"
While Blue hesitated, Aiden commanded first.
Ninetales' previous Scorching Sands barely scratched Empoleon. Aiden seized the initiative to strengthen his position.
Even weakened by sunlight, Hydro Pump would steadily chip Ninetales' HP.
Combined with Roost and its solid resistances, Ninetales couldn't quickly eliminate Empoleon.
Even if Blue stubbornly tried to trade blows with Empoleon, Aiden still gained value.
Stealth Rock was already set. A weakened Empoleon could still re-enter later to absorb critical hits, disrupting Blue's momentum.
This sudden shift from defense to offense caught Blue off guard.
Instinctively choosing preservation, he recalled Ninetales and sent his only viable switch-in: Venusaur.
Losing Ninetales early—with Charizard crippled by Stealth Rock—would end this weather war immediately.
Post-switch, Venusaur's excellent Water resistance and bulk let it tank Hydro Pump with minimal damage.
Even adding Stealth Rock's chip, it lost only about 30% HP.
But…
He soon realized this was a blunder—or rather, Aiden had forced his hand.
Venusaur was also not a big threat to Empoleon. This handed Aiden another chance to reset the weather.
If Alolan Ninetales switched in, he wouldn't even get to use Weather Ball predictively.
Of course, he could try predicting Aiden's move—using Sludge Bomb (Venusaur's STAB) to brute-force Alolan Ninetales.
But if he guessed wrong—if Teacher Azure didn't switch…
The entire livestream audience would witness him using Poison-type Sludge Bomb on Steel-type Empoleon.
A legendary blunder in the making!
The psychological warfare in these few turns was masterful.
'Should I gamble now…?'
"Screw it—play it safe," Blue chose caution. "Venusaur—Earth Power!"
Even if Aiden switched to Alolan Ninetales, it would need time to set Aurora Veil. He'd still have adjustment options.
Worst case—sacrifice Venusaur to Toxic-lock Alolan Ninetales!
If Empoleon stayed? Better yet. Earth Power hurt it significantly. Damage trades could be broken with stat boosts.
No big loss either way!
As Blue thought this, Aiden moved instantly.
"Empoleon—Weather Ball!"
Hearing Aiden's command, Blue stared blankly at the screen.
Oh no.
'How did I forget this…?'
Weather effects are bidirectional. He'd been so focused on blocking Alolan Ninetales that he forgot his own sunny weather could be used against him!
Yes—under Sunny conditions, Weather Ball becomes Fire-type and gets a power boost.
And Venusaur? Weak to Fire…
Unless he Mega Evolved now—using Thick Fat to negate this weakness.
But his only Mega slot was already reserved for Charizard-Y. Using Mega twice per match was obviously illegal!
No turning back.
In Blue's despairing eyes, the sun-boosted Venusaur (activated Chlorophyll) struck first—shaking the earth beneath Empoleon.
But it wasn't lethal.
Absorbing the ground's power, Empoleon calmly formed a blazing orb. It hurled the sphere at Venusaur—where it expanded mid-air, exploding into violent sparks.
Venusaur had already taken Hydro Pump and Stealth Rock damage on entry.
The Fire-type Weather Ball finished it instantly.
Aiden's Empoleon, meanwhile, still stood with 30% HP.
[Spikes AND Weather Ball? IS THIS EVEN A SNOW TEAM, TEACHER AZURE?]
[Team is Snow, but playstyle is WRONG—who runs snow teams like this?!]
[Teacher Azure promised Snow team stream… watched an hour of dirty tactics…]
[THIS FEELS RIGHT—THIS IS THE FAMILIAR TEACHER AZURE! That stat-monster from the Type Masters was clearly possessed!]
As the danmaku pointed out:
Though the team was textbook snow, Aiden had spent the entire match baiting with Alolan Ninetales—never actually using Snow tactics…
Aiden shrugged internally.
This is basic stuff.
"You're nitpicking," Aiden replied casually to chat. "Forcing snow against a Sun Team is suicide. Our firepower can't break through easily—we have to stall."
"Either way, victory is the goal~"
"I used Stealth Rock and counterplay to win. Does the unexpected method really matter?"
"So students—stay flexible in battles. Against type-disadvantaged teams, find unconventional paths. Sometimes anti-meta tactics catch opponents off guard!"
Eliminating the opponent's first Pokémon, Aiden exhaled in relief.
Both lineups were similar: single-type cores built around weather synergy, expanding coverage and defensive pivots.
With Blue's Venusaur eliminated…
He has almost no Water resistance left!
As long as the sunny day could be replaced, even the weakened Empoleon wouldn't need to attack. Cetitan, with its Slush Rush ability, could completely use Liquidation to one-shot opponents.
Blue understood this too.
Right now, neither Ninetales nor Charizard could safely enter first.
If Ninetales fell, Aiden's Alolan Ninetales would repeat its rotation strategy, widening defensive gaps.
His only hope—Charizard—needed perfect conditions to sweep.
Thus, Blue had only one viable switch:
"My choice is you, Heracross!"
After recalling fallen Venusaur, Blue sent his next Pokémon.
Instantly, Heracross's vibrating wings froze. Burns seared its carapace.
Clearly afflicted by Burn.
Blue smiled.
As his last ace, Heracross could turn the tide.
With Flame Orb triggering Guts, it became a monstrous Bug-type powerhouse.
He'd learned this combo from Teacher Azure's videos. After catching a Heracross in Route 22's forests, it became his secret weapon.
Of course, it had flaws—which was why he hadn't led with it.
First—4x weak to Flying. One hit and it's half-dead.
Second—mediocre Speed. Often lost priority, undermining its pressure.
As the pioneer of this strategy, Teacher Azure knew these weaknesses well. Any Flying-type move could collapse his position.
But no matter!
In THIS matchup—even Teacher Azure has no counter!
Empoleon was slower. And besides Gastrodon, Aiden had no reliable switch-ins against it.
So when he saw Heracross… Aiden must switch to Gastrodon!
Blue would predict Grass-type Seed Bomb, crippling the opponent while boosting Heracross' Speed. Letting this terrifying beetle fully awaken.
Even if Aiden didn't switch, Heracross could KO the annoying Empoleon.
Win-win either way.
Exactly as planned!
As he commanded, Blue thought confidently:
"Heracross—Seed Bomb!"
Yet…
Aiden didn't follow the script.
He did recall the weakened Empoleon—but his replacement made Blue break into a cold sweat.
"Return, Empoleon."
"And… go, Incineroar!"
Not the logical Gastrodon—but Incineroar, using Intimidate to cripple Heracross' offense.
"I admit Guts Heracross hits hard," Aiden smiled calmly. "But to Incineroar, all physical attackers are paper tigers."
He was confident Blue wouldn't risk Close Combat here—forcing Heracross to retreat.
Doing so would give Aiden a free rotation.
With Stealth Rock set, Alolan Ninetales had advantages against both Ninetales and Charizard-Y.
And if he reset Aurora Veil? Breaking it would cost Blue dearly.
Thus, Heracross' entry clearly aimed for a sweep—at minimum, trading one-for-one to break both teams' defensive cores.
In this situation, Incineroar was the safest. Even if it ate Close Combat, it could force Heracross out.
Now Blue was in an awkward situation again.
His goal was achieved—Heracross' Speed boosted, securing priority.
But its offensive power plummeted. Even Guts couldn't compensate.
His mentality shattered completely.
'Aiden's been toying with me. Each switch exposes my flaws, slowly eroding my team…'
'Maybe this whole match was Teacher Azure's lesson…'
'And my answers clearly disappointed him.'
Enough!
"Heracross—Close Combat!"
'If I knew this would happen, I should've gone all-in from the start! Might've traded blows with Teacher Azure, maybe taken a few Pokémon down with me—instead of this…'
Too late for regrets.
"Incineroar—Fake Out."
Aiden's offhand command became the final straw—shattering Blue's composure.
Fake Out disrupted Heracross' imminent attack.
Protect then stalled another turn.
Burned and frustrated, each failed strike felt like Heracross' life burning away. Blue squirmed as if ants crawled under his skin.
Finally landing a hit…
Guess what?
Teacher Azure switched again!
Thanks to Intimidate, incoming Gastrodon took Close Combat but retained just over half HP.
Its leftovers item then restored HP—returning it to a safe range.
After all—Gastrodon healed itself too…
This attack was meaningless. With Protect + Recover loops, it could stall until Flame Orb burned Heracross out. Easy victory.
Even if Blue stubbornly used Swords Dance to desperation-stack, Aiden would perfectly time Defog—resetting to square one.
Every move was predicted precisely. Blue's expression twisted, his lips twitching wildly.
Finally, when Heracross fainted from exhaustion and burn damage, Blue surrendered gracefully.
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