The battle was truly full of shifts. Earlier, Medicham held the advantage, but now it lay prone on the ground.
Down in the stands, Tetsu laughed, "Eichi is as impressive as ever. He managed to overturn such a dangerous situation."
Kosei chimed in, "Eichi really is the better trainer."
Meanwhile, Sato and Konan watched the match with intense focus, especially the moment Scizor suddenly flipped the script and sent Medicham flying. Sato's expression flickered slightly. He put himself in Eichi's shoes; if he were the one on that field, what would he have done? Could he have performed as well as Eichi? Sato didn't have an answer; he wasn't sure if he could have reached that level.
Not far from them, a first-year male student said to his companion, "This Keita isn't all that much! He's so weak! Earlier, I thought that Medicham looked powerful, but it turns out it's just a flashy, useless thing. I thought he might win, but he's about to lose so quickly. All three are nearly defeated, and he hasn't even taken down one of the opponent's Pokémon. What's the point of fighting? He should just surrender. He's a second-year student, too—doesn't he feel embarrassed?"
Though he didn't speak loudly, the quiet environment allowed Keita to hear him clearly. Keita knew that for a student to say such a thing meant they were truly ignorant. However, the words still affected him. He momentarily dazed, and a memory suddenly surfaced in his mind.
It was the architecture of Lily of the Valley Academy; those were his days spent there.
"Keita, why do you love fighting against Scizor, Heracross, and Beedrill so much?" asked a young boy with blue hair and a delicate appearance, wearing a black uniform.
Keita looked at the three Pokémon sparring against Medicham and said firmly, "Because there is someone I must defeat."
The young boy asked again, "Is that person very strong?"
Keita shook his head. "I don't know if he is currently strong or weak, but I must defeat him."
The blue-haired boy encouraged him, "With this Medicham given by the teacher, if you bond with it well, you will definitely be able to defeat them."
As it turned out, Keita's Medicham was not raised by him from birth. It was the offspring of an Elite Four-level trainer's Medicham. It had trained alongside that Elite Four trainer since it was young and was gifted to Keita once it reached the mid-Experienced rank.
The scene shifted to a classroom where several teenagers were gathered. A plump boy said to Keita, "Keita, you're leaving in a few days. With your current strength, defeating that opponent should be effortless. Don't you dare lose; you're someone who stayed at our Lily of the Valley Academy."
Keita replied, "When I return this time, I will show those who mocked me exactly what I'm capable of. Especially that Eichi—I will definitely wash away my past humiliation."
The plump boy said dismissively, "Fine, fine. From how you talk, this Eichi sounds pretty good. Maybe one day I'll go to Silver Academy and crush him myself. How strong can a poor kid really be?"
"Medicham!"
Medicham's voice snapped Keita back to reality. Watching Medicham scramble back up, Keita roared internally, I haven't lost yet! It's impossible for me to lose! I must win! I must defeat you, Eichi!!
In an instant, Keita was once again filled with fighting spirit.
"Medicham, Double Team!"
Medicham resumed its signature pose. Its feet seemed to catch the wind as it retreated rapidly, splitting into countless clones at high speed to surround Scizor.
"Medicham, Recover!"
Not good. I absolutely cannot let Medicham use Recover, or all my previous efforts will be wasted. This thought flashed through Eichi's mind the moment Keita gave the order.
He was about to command Scizor to disrupt the move when he caught sight of Scizor's determined face. Scizor had been feeling quite frustrated since the start of the match. Eichi suddenly changed his mind and shouted to Scizor, "Scizor, Cross Slash!"
As soon as this command was issued, many first-year students in the stands erupted. The students who had seen Scizor unleash Cross Slash before were exceptionally excited.
Tetsu was also visibly moved. "Finally, I get to see Scizor's Cross Slash again! It's too cool!"
The second-year students found this strange. It's just an attacking move, is there really a need to be that excited?
On the field, Scizor ignored the surrounding Medicham. It closed its eyes, sensing the location of the true Medicham. Not in front, not to the left or right... so it was behind.
Found you. You're definitely behind me.
Scizor began to accumulate energy within its body, guiding it through specific channels to gather in its dual pincers. It crossed its pincers, hunched its body, and tensed every muscle. The energy fluctuations around its body grew stronger and stronger. A heavy, oppressive atmosphere settled over the field, and a whirlwind began to stir from nowhere.
Meanwhile, the Medicham surrounding Scizor sat cross-legged in mid-air, enveloped in an orange glow. The air was thick with the essence of Psychic-type energy. Suddenly, a light began to shine from the top of Medicham's head, gradually spreading downward. Its wounds began to heal at a pace visible to the naked eye. Soon, Medicham's injuries were almost entirely recovered.
Medicham opened its eyes to see Scizor still standing motionless, charging its power. Although Keita didn't know what move Scizor was going to use, he knew it was preparing an ultimate technique, so he didn't intend to let Scizor finish.
"Medicham, High Jump Kick!"
High Jump Kick was the most powerful move in Medicham's arsenal. Combined with its currently massive attack power, the move's potency was off the charts. All the clones vanished. Facing Scizor's back, Medicham kicked off the ground. It rushed toward Scizor with blistering speed, jumped, and aimed a knee directly at Scizor.
Scizor seemed to have no reaction. Just as Keita thought Scizor was about to lose, Scizor snapped its eyes open. It kicked off the ground with both feet, exerted its core strength, and performed a direct backflip.
In the middle of the backflip, Scizor looked at the incoming Medicham from an inverted position. It slashed its pincers forward with all its might. Two cyan wind blades appeared out of thin air, emitting a buzzing sound.
A whirlwind whipped across the field. Medicham was too close to the wind blades to dodge. The air was filled with violent energy as Medicham collided head-on with the blades.
Bang! Bang!
A loud explosion rang out, followed by Medicham's agonizing scream echoing through the air.