Beedrill asked about the situation, so Scizor explained the morning's trial to it. Having another Pokémon to vent to made Scizor's mood significantly better.
Nearby, Eichi was eavesdropping. He had stayed at the starting point all morning and knew nothing about the trial's process. It was only after listening to the conversation between Scizor and Beedrill that he understood what had happened.
After hearing Scizor's story, Beedrill began to offer guidance. Through Beedrill's enlightenment, Scizor finally saw reason. Its mood improved, and it returned to eat its lunch. Eichi looked at Beedrill with a sense of relief.
In the afternoon, Muramasa brought Eichi and Scizor back to the Scizor territory. Just like the morning, Eichi stayed at the starting point while Muramasa waited at the finish line.
The fourth trial officially began. Having calmed down, Scizor finally realized it couldn't simply charge through recklessly like it did in the morning. It felt that its morning self had been quite foolish; acting like a blatant target was practically begging to be discovered.
This time, Scizor clearly avoided the main path. Within the Scizor territory, there was a primary route—a "main road" similar to how city trees are planted along a boulevard. However, this was relative to the Scizor tribe; to Eichi, it hardly qualified as a road.
Towering trees still crowded the surroundings. Scizor vibrated its wings quietly, striving to remain silent. It flew at a low altitude, using the head-high weeds to mask its presence and avoid detection by the Scyther.
This approach was indeed much more effective than before. In just a short time, its perception allowed it to bypass several Scyther. However, its joy was short-lived. Scizor was discovered after all, as there were Scyther lying in wait within the tall grass. Scizor's luck ran out as it blundered directly into an ambush.
Not wanting to alert the others, Scizor tried to shake off this single Scyther. But the Scyther would not let it go. It let out a long, loud cry. With no other choice, Scizor could only do its best to keep rushing forward.
As expected, it wasn't long before several more Scyther spotted Scizor. Scizor had to use its maximum speed to deal with them. Just as it finished off two Scyther, another five or six appeared. Among them were the three Scyther brothers, and the ones it had previously bypassed were now catching up from behind.
However, Scizor knew it couldn't engage in a direct head-on struggle like it had in the morning, or it would never pass. Scizor suddenly charged toward the Scyther brothers. In their eyes, it looked like Scizor was going to use brute force again.
They were wrong. Just as Scizor reached them, it suddenly use Double Team, creating a dozen clones. Then, bypassing the Scyther in front of it, each clone flew off in a different direction. This maneuver completely dazed all the Scyther present.
They reacted quickly, however, exchanging glances before each choosing a different direction to give chase. This was exactly what Scizor wanted. After a while, the Scyther realized the Scizor they were chasing had suddenly vanished. They knew they were following a fake and tried to turn back, but it was too late. Scizor had already disappeared.
Through its perception, Scizor saw the Scyther chasing fakes and allowed itself a knowing smile. Ignoring them, it continued to press forward. Compared to the morning, it had already covered a significant distance.
It was nearly halfway to the goal. However, as it continued to fly, something suddenly lunged from the side. Scizor's perception failed to detect it in time; it only realized the danger when the opponent was right on top of it.
Scizor knew the true test had begun. The early section was guarded by Scyther, but the latter half was the domain of Scizor. During the first trial, heaven knows why a Scizor had appeared so early on the path.
Within the tribe, Eichi noticed that almost all Scizor were at the Elite rank, except for the one from the first trial which was at the Experienced rank. The Scyther were all at the Experienced rank because once they reached the Elite level, they evolved into Scizor.
This Scizor moved incredibly fast. In Scizor's perception, it felt very powerful, with a level several tiers higher than its own. But Scizor wasn't afraid. Facing the opponent's incoming pincers, it raised its own to block the strike.
Then came another attack. Scizor didn't want to waste time on them; it only wanted to reach the finish line quickly. But its desires didn't matter. The other Scizor wouldn't allow it. Another Scizor appeared, and the two began to swarm it.
Scizor's speed and attack power were incomparable to the Scyther. It didn't fear a one-on-one fight, nor even a two-on-one. However, they completely blocked its path. Furthermore, being in a state of sensory perception was not the same as having its eyes uncovered. It was always a beat slow, and its situation began to turn dire again.
Moreover, the Scizor were much more ruthless than the Scyther, showing no signs of holding back. Their Ability was Technician, and they used low-power moves against it. These moves were executed extremely fast—several times per second—which, combined with the Technician Ability, left Scizor no room to breathe. It was forced back repeatedly.
Scizor hoped to use the momentum of its retreat to use Double Team again. But the moment it moved backward, another Scizor lunged from behind. The timing was perfect. Scizor had been so occupied with the front that it couldn't guard its back, and it was blindsided.
This hit was clearly premeditated and possessed incredible power. Scizor felt a surge of sharp pain as it was slammed into the dirt. With a heavy thud, Scizor smashed a deep pit into the ground.
Scizor lay there in such pain that it nearly lost all sensation. It was too painful. It took quite a while in the pit before it regained feeling. The moment it did, Scizor knew it had failed again. It stopped struggling. In its perception, it was surrounded by over a dozen dense mists of grey fog. Judging by the energy within them, every single one was at the Elite rank, and they were all gathered around watching it.
Muramasa pressed the stopwatch. Time was up. As expected, Scizor had failed once more.