Quietly staying in the treetops, Gu Yuan and Eevee blended in with the leaves.
Before long, someone followed the path Gu Yuan had taken and walked out of the forest.
The moment Gu Yuan saw him, he recognized the man as the Pokémon hunter Tom was tracking.
Without hesitation, Gu Yuan typed out a message and sent it to Tom.
Looking at Adam getting closer, Gu Yuan had no thought of letting him leave.
Instead, he was ready to attack.
As he walked, Adam felt something was wrong.
Along the way, he could clearly see traces of someone passing by, most likely
a Trainer. But the tracks suddenly vanished here.
There were usually only two possibilities.
First, the person left using a Flying-type or Psychic-type Pokémon.
Second, they were hiding somewhere nearby!
"Scyther, use Swift on the treetops around us!"
Seeing the only possible hiding spot, Adam quickly tested with his Scyther.
The glowing stars shot out, cutting through the leaves.
"As expected of a Pokémon hunter. He's really cautious."
"Eevee, use Yawn, then Helping Hand."
"Charmeleon, use Flamethrower on Scyther!"
Watching Adam and his two Pokémon tense up, Gu Yuan admired his sharp instincts. But he still attacked as planned.
At the same time, Gu Yuan held Abra's Poké Ball in his hand. If things went wrong, he would retreat at once.
Under the effect of Yawn, Scyther's movements slowed, and its Swift stopped.
The blazing fire burst out, striking Scyther's chest.
Even the powerful Scyther couldn't endure the flames without crying out in pain.
Charmeleon's assault didn't end there.
Facing two Intermediate Rank opponents, Gu Yuan had to go all out. He needed to take one down quickly to gain the upper hand.
"Ursaring, charge in! Use Slash, then pin Charmeleon down!"
"Scyther, endure the pain! Use Quick Attack to reach Eevee, then finish with Fury Cutter!"
Hearing Scyther's cry, Adam quickly reacted, ordering both of his Pokémon to attack.
Ursaring roared and rushed forward, its large frame radiating a terrifying aura.
But Charmeleon didn't waver. It kept using Ember to keep Scyther in check.
Under the pressure of Flamethrower and Ember, the worst happened. Scyther was burned.
A burn would weaken its physical moves and drain its stamina.
"Charmeleon, fire Dragon Breath again!"
Seeing Scyther's condition, Gu Yuan switched tactics.
Green flames of Dragon Breath surged forward toward Scyther.
Meanwhile, Ursaring, who was supposed to interrupt Charmeleon, was slowed by Eevee's Yawn.
Maybe it was Eevee's long time spent with Charmeleon, but even when facing Ursaring's Intermediate Rank aura, Eevee didn't flinch and calmly used its Move.
"Wake up, Ursaring! Push through! Use Slash!"
Adam roared, and Ursaring forced itself forward.
Adam had changed tactics. Scyther would distract Charmeleon, while Ursaring took down Eevee.
Driven by willpower, Ursaring reached Eevee, claws gleaming coldly as it swung down.
But in the next instant, Abra used Teleport, appearing in front of Eevee.
And that was only the beginning. With Ally Switch, Adam was pulled to Eevee's front instead.
"Eevee, use Swift!"
"Ursaring, stop attacking and protect me!"
Adam reacted immediately to Gu Yuan's move.
Ursaring shivered, as if it had ants crawling under its skin. Forcing itself to stop its Slash, it spun around, hugging Adam tightly as the Swift barrage struck its back.
At that moment, the extra effect of Dragon Breath appeared.
Scyther was paralyzed and froze in place, right as a Flamethrower came straight at it.
The flames overwhelmed Scyther, who could no longer keep fighting. With one last unwilling glance at Charmeleon, it collapsed.
This was likely Scyther's worst battle. From start to finish, it never managed a real counterattack. Three Moves from Charmeleon had taken it down.
With Scyther defeated, Eevee pulled away from Adam again.
Since Abra had joined the battle, Adam no longer dared let Ursaring leave his side.
Worse, Ursaring had no long-range attacks. It could only stand still like a fool, defending Adam while Scyther fainted.
Now that Charmeleon had joined in, Adam began to despair.
With Abra around, even if Adam abandoned his Pokémon, escape was nearly impossible.
As flames rushed forward, Ursaring shielded Adam again. But this time it left an opening, giving Abra the chance to use Ally Switch.
Adam's vision blurred. When it cleared, he found himself in another spot. He quickly tried to dodge, but Eevee was faster.
With the impact of Quick Attack, Adam was sent flying, falling unconscious before he even hit the ground.
Seeing its Trainer fall, Ursaring's mind was consumed by rage and it charged madly at Eevee.
"Charmeleon, keep using Flamethrower!"
Charmeleon unleashed fire again and again without pause.
"Eevee, use your speed and Quick Attack to keep Ursaring busy."
Following the order, Eevee circled Ursaring.
Burned, Ursaring's Quick Feet ability activated, and its speed spiked.
As its claws fell, it could almost see itself tearing the annoying Eevee apart.
But Slash was blocked by Charmeleon, who stepped in front of Eevee.
"Eevee, use Yawn, then Helping Hand!"
"Charmeleon, one last Flamethrower to finish it!"
Moving behind Ursaring, Eevee's Yawn hit. Even through its rage, the bear slowed down.
Glowing with Helping Hand, Charmeleon unleashed a massive pillar of fire that blasted Ursaring away.
Ursaring then crashed to the ground, fainted.
The battle was over. But another figure appeared.
Tom walked out, making Gu Yuan feel like he was watching a movie cop who only shows up once everything is already finished.