"I choose you, Dugtrio."
The Pokémon Giovanni sent out was not some particularly rare Pokémon.
Instead, it was a Pokémon that could be found almost anywhere by the roadside, even more common than Pikachu in Viridian Forest, Dugtrio.
It had three identical heads and looked as though three Diglett had combined together.
Pokémon: Dugtrio
Type: Ground
Level: 75
Ability: Arena Trap
Moves: omitted
Level 75. A Dugtrio at the level of a League Champion's main team!
"Tch, this just got a little troublesome."
Grey and Giovanni had sent out their Pokémon at the same time. When Grey saw that Giovanni's Pokémon was Dugtrio, he could not help raising his brows.
Arena Trap.
It meant he could no longer freely switch Pokémon during battle.
In other words, he had to defeat Dugtrio first.
And the Pokémon Grey had sent out was Genesect, who had only barely reached level 72.
The gap between the two sides was a bit too large.
Whether it could defeat Giovanni's Dugtrio was still unknown.
"Earthquake!"
Rumble!
Dugtrio's three heads began trembling in perfect sync. Their rhythmic shaking triggered a powerful resonance.
The entire battlefield immediately shook violently. The intense tremors made Genesect lose its balance at once, and its steel body, which had been standing firmly on the ground, staggered and swayed!
Although Dugtrio's overall base stats were on the lower side, its Attack and Speed were exceptionally outstanding, making it one of the best of its kind.
Under this fierce assault, Genesect had already been seriously injured, with clear damage left across its steel body.
"Tch, this hazard strategy really is disgusting."
In a six-on-six battle, entry hazard tactics were very effective.
Grey's team had no hazard remover, which made things rather uncomfortable.
He let out a long breath, then suddenly shouted, "Genesect, don't let Dugtrio's Ground-type moves hit you again! Use Magnet Rise!"
Bzzzt!
Dazzling electric light burst around Genesect. Using electromagnetic levitation, it quickly rose into the air and floated lightly upward, just in time to avoid Dugtrio's second Earthquake!
The corner of Giovanni's mouth curved into a cold smile, and he leisurely ordered, "Stone Edge."
"Dug-dug!"
Dugtrio's three heads let out a low hum at the same time, and brown rock energy burst around it.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Countless sharp stone pillars broke through the ground, packed densely together as they shot toward Genesect in the air!
"Genesect, use Agility to get close to Dugtrio, then use Ice Beam."
The next moment, Genesect turned into a red afterimage, weaving nimbly through the storm of stone pillars.
Using Agility, it perfectly avoided every attack and took the chance to close in on Dugtrio. The steel cannon on its back had already begun adjusting!
Cold light flashed from the cannon on Genesect's back. An ice-blue electric serpent wrapped in bone-chilling cold shot out in a winding arc and struck Dugtrio with perfect accuracy!
The freezing lightning instantly spread, freezing all three heads into ice sculptures.
"Heh, you don't actually think the frozen condition would work on Dugtrio, do you?"
Before Grey could even raise the corner of his mouth, Giovanni's leisurely voice rang out.
"Dugtrio, show Gym Leader Grey what true power looks like."
The state of the battle changed in an instant.
The second after the ice covered Dugtrio's heads, an ominous black glow suddenly burst from its entire body!
The frozen effect shattered with a crack. All three heads were wrapped in Dark-type energy as they slammed into Genesect like heavy hammers!
Crack!
Genesect was smashed backward, staggering. The cannon on its back had just begun gathering ice-blue light when a precisely aimed giant stone struck it hard, knocking it toward the ground.
Its steel body violently collided with the rocks, sending dazzling sparks flying.
Rock-type Smack Down!
The effect of Magnet Rise faded because of that move's effect. Genesect was forced to stand back up and reassess Dugtrio.
But very quickly, confusion flashed through Genesect's eyes.
Dugtrio suddenly vanished without a trace, leaving only a deep, dark hole in the battlefield.
"Holy crap!"
The audience instantly erupted. Shouts surged like a tidal wave!
This was Dugtrio's classic Dig strategy!
With this tactic reappearing after so long, the entire arena was instantly swallowed by a fanatical roar!
The spectators waved their arms excitedly, countless voices blending together.
"Did you see that?! This is Dugtrio's ultimate secret technique!"
"Underground blitzkrieg! Forever the GOAT!"
"Perfect coordination between three heads! This is basically the peak of earthbound artistry!"
Grey's brows furrowed tightly, and his expression became unusually grave.
He quietly released his Aura power to sense the entire field, only to discover that Dugtrio's presence was almost impossible to capture, as if it had merged into the earth itself.
Even with Aura's sharp perception, he could only intermittently sense extremely faint energy fluctuations several meters below ground. He could not accurately lock onto its position at all.
"Experience really does win out."
Grey sighed softly. His fingertips rubbed the surface of the Poké Ball.
"I didn't expect Gym Leader Giovanni to even have a clever way to avoid Aura detection."
This kind of exquisite counter-detection method was clearly a targeted tactic developed specifically to counter the scouting abilities of power users.
"Gym Leader Grey, from the look on your face, are you surprised?"
Giovanni gave a faint smile.
"I'm all right. I just really didn't expect this situation to appear."
Grey nodded, did not refute it, and accepted it readily.
"Then how will you deal with this next?"
Giovanni lightly stomped his right foot against the ground, and the entire battlefield suddenly trembled!
Boom!
With a deafening roar, the earth opened like a giant beast spreading its abyssal maw. A fissure that cut across the entire battlefield violently tore through the surface!
Before Genesect could react, its steel body plunged straight into the abyss.
Crack!
Then the crust of the earth let out a deep roar. The fissure closed with overwhelming force, swallowing everything without a trace. Only a hideous scar remained across the center of the battlefield...
Grey: "?"
Did Genesect just get swallowed whole?
However, after only a few breaths, the earth suddenly trembled again!
That hideous fissure opened once more and violently "spat" Genesect back onto the field like something it had rejected.
Genesect crashed heavily onto the ground, chaotic arcs of electricity flickering all around its body. It had clearly lost its ability to battle completely.
Grey: "..."
"I didn't expect Gym Leader Giovanni's Fissure tactic to return!"
Guli TV slapped the desk hard and could not help exclaiming.
"I imagine many viewers don't know exactly what happened, right? Next, allow me, Darknight, to explain the tactic Gym Leader Giovanni just used."
Seeing that many people were still stunned, Darknight gave everyone an explanation.
"This Fissure tactic is a strategy Gym Leader Giovanni used long ago. At present, only Dugtrio can fully master this tactic."
"The principle lies in Dugtrio's perfect use of the underground environment as a natural barrier. Through precise control of the earth's structure, it creates a deadly, constantly shifting kill zone underground."
"This battle method, which completely merges with the earth's veins, can be called nearly unsolvable. Dugtrio's movements are completely hidden beneath thick layers of rock, making them difficult to track or predict. Most attacks cannot penetrate the dense geological structure at all. Even an opponent's Earthquake-type moves may instead be converted into tactical support for it."
"Against this absolute defense, where Dugtrio becomes one with the earth, conventional tactics are almost ineffective. Unless the Pokémon itself is stronger than Dugtrio, only then is there a chance to turn defeat into victory."
One-hit KO moves would only work against Pokémon of the same level or lower.
But once Pokémon reached high levels, there was usually no need to rely on one-hit KO moves. After all, they still involved a bit of luck.
Because of that, very few people used moves like this.
Giovanni was different.
He liked having Dugtrio use this kind of move, and had even improved it so Dugtrio could use it while digging underground.
How were you supposed to dodge that?
Unless you could fly or were overwhelmingly stronger, an ordinary Trainer would easily get caught by it the first time.
And Grey's Genesect belonged exactly to that situation.
It had clearly been able to fight Dugtrio back and forth.
But the result?
It got instantly taken down!
Grey fell into a brief silence.
In that last exchange, he had indeed been completely suppressed by Giovanni's seasoned tactics.
The other side had clearly calculated that he would rely on Aura detection, then specially arranged this targeted Fissure kill zone...
"Clap, clap, clap..."
Grey applauded.
"Today really opened my eyes. Giovanni of the Earth truly lives up to his name! Gym Leader Giovanni, the Pokémon I use next won't be so simple!"
Annihilape's level was not high enough.
Even Mewtwo was just barely within Fissure's effective range.
Since he could not let Kyurem appear too early, he had no choice but to send out Reshiram!
"I choose you, Reshiram!"
Grey took off a Premier Ball and placed it in front of him.
Within the rainbow light blooming from the Premier Ball, Reshiram proudly descended while spreading its snow-white wings.
Blue-green light flowed from the flames of its turbine tail. It lowered its gaze and looked down at the shattered earth, like a god examining a tiny creation.
"It's here! Gym Leader Grey's Reshiram! Unova's major Legendary, the Dragon of Truth, Reshiram!"
Guli TV could also be considered a Reshiram fan.
Seeing Reshiram appear, he could not help shouting.
Reshiram was just too cool!
"Reshiram! Come on! Crush Dugtrio!"
"What do you guys think? How many moves can Gym Leader Giovanni's Dugtrio last?"
"Awesome, I came here to watch a stomp! Reshiram, hurry up, hurry up!"
Reshiram's appearance drew cheers from everyone.
This was a major Legendary.
A true major Legendary!
Most people had not come to watch the match only for the Gym Leaders.
Some had specifically come to see Reshiram.
The moment Reshiram appeared, the entire venue erupted into discussion.
Not only in person, but also online. The official livestream almost got overloaded.
"Guys, I've got a question. Gym Leader Grey is from Saffron City in Kanto and doesn't have Unova residency, so how was he recognized by Reshiram?"
"Bro, that's a little intense. Major Legendaries don't care about regional borders. Everything just depends on whether they like you. If one of you gets recognized by a major Legendary from another region, we won't object to you going off to catch the major Legendary that has its eye on you either."
"Nice. If I could be recognized by a major Legendary, would I still be here watching a livestream?"
"..."
"..."
With one sentence, that person killed the whole match chat and made everyone go silent like Red.
"Grey, why is there a little mole in the ground that only knows how to hide?"
Reshiram turned its head and glanced at Grey, its tone full of disdain.
It was merely a Champion-level Pokémon. It could not enter Reshiram's eyes at all.
"So arrogant... but it has the right to be that arrogant..."
Giovanni cursed inwardly, but right now, he could only have Dugtrio hide underground to avoid being defeated by Reshiram's move the moment it came out.
"Hey, you're not exactly young, are you? Do you really think hiding underground means I can't defeat you?"
Seeming to know what Giovanni was thinking, Reshiram let out a cold snort and spread its wings into the sky.
Grey slowly raised his index finger, pointing at the battered battlefield.
"Blue Flare."
Reshiram's turbine tail suddenly erupted with brilliant blue light. The flames of truth poured down, swallowing the entire shattered earth!
The battlefield turned into a scorched-black inferno, and blue flames drilled into the cracks beneath the ground.
Dugtrio, hidden deep underground, seemed to fall into the core of molten lava. Terrifying heat pierced through the rock layers, making it feel as though it had been thrown into a furnace, the pain unbearable.
Before long, Dugtrio, now completely scorched black, struggled out of the ground.
The moment it returned to the battlefield, it completely lost consciousness and collapsed.
One-shot!
"Exactly, bro! I came to the venue to watch one-shots!"
"Gym Leader Grey is insane! Don't lose any more Pokémon after this! I bet on 6-2. If this battle wins, I'll be moving into a seaside mansion!"
The audience went wild, shouting and cheering.
Reshiram's appearance had undoubtedly made everyone feel the passion of battle.
One-shotting a Champion-level Pokémon had simply too much impact.
"Not bad, not bad."
Giovanni imitated Grey's earlier manner and began clapping.
He smiled.
Not out of anger.
He smiled because the strength Reshiram had shown made his blood boil.
Only by battling an opponent like this could he continue to surpass himself and climb toward the peak.
Giovanni did not fear failure. What he feared was losing the heart to keep moving forward.
That was why, after repeatedly witnessing Reshiram's strength, Giovanni felt more and more fired up.
Grey could catch a major Legendary.
Giovanni could create a major Legendary.
Rounding things up, did that not mean they both possessed the ability to fight a major Legendary one-on-one?
He was no worse than Grey!
"Grey, I should thank you."
Giovanni seemed to feel that he no longer had anything to fear.
From the fear he had felt when first facing Reshiram directly, to now feeling endless fighting spirit surge from contact with Reshiram, Giovanni felt as though the fearless heart of his youth had returned.
A man remained a boy until the day he died.
Giovanni's mentality had returned to when he was young.
"Gym Leader Giovanni, you're welcome."
Grey waved and exhaled a breath of stale air.
"To express my gratitude, I will also truly bring out my full strength!"
The fifth Pokémon Giovanni sent out was Rhyperior.
Its base strength was not as powerful as Blue's.
But as green light appeared in Giovanni's palm, Rhyperior's strength was forcibly raised to the battle-legend tier!
Pokémon: Rhyperior
Type: Rock, Ground
Level: 77 → 81
Ability: Solid Rock
Moves: omitted
"Hm? Gym Leader Giovanni's Viridian Force can actually increase its strength by that much?"
Outside the field, Lance watched this scene thoughtfully.
//Check out my P@tre0n for 30 extra chapters on all my fanfics //[email protected]/Razeil0810.