"Sonic Fist, dodge it!" Natsuhiko immediately said.
Kukui furrowed his brows.
He recalled how, while watching the battle between Lance and Hilona, Natsuhiko's judgment had almost never been wrong.
Is this the basis of his pre-read ability?
"Snorlax, Hundred Thousand Horsepower!" Kukui responded.
Then, Snorlax and Infernape engaged in close combat, clashing fiercely.
With agile movements and a robust physique, the fighting technique of Infernape, trained under Bewear, boasted extensive experience in battles against Snorlax.
There's an opportunity.
Infernape crouched low and grasped Snorlax's palm, pressing its back against Snorlax's stomach. Its legs suddenly exerted force, cracking the ground, giving Snorlax a perfectly arched over-the-shoulder throw.
The audience was stunned.
Snorlax's weight, thrown just like that?
Boom—!!
The ground was directly struck into a depression, layers cracking.
"Snorlax, Earthquake!"
Feeling the tremors of the ground, Kukui marveled at Infernape's fighting techniques; as a professional wrestler, he knew how much pre-training Infernape's move required, yet he still calmly commanded.
Centered around the fallen Snorlax, waves of Ground Energy rippled out towards Infernape.
"Jump onto its belly!"
Natsuhiko alerted Infernape.
It also instantly reacted.
Before the Earthquake waves could reach it, Infernape accelerated, flipping and rolling in the air, heading towards Snorlax.
"Grab it, Mount Tai's Pressure!"
Just as Infernape's feet were about to touch Snorlax, Snorlax swiftly raised its hand, firmly gripping Infernape's tail.
Then, in a turn, Snorlax pressed Infernape beneath itself.
With Snorlax's weight, even without using a technique, being pinned down isn't easily endured, much less accompanied by a move.
"Infernape, Earthquake!" Natsuhiko's face changed slightly.
Rumble—
This time.
Centered around Infernape, was the Earthquake.
Although Snorlax was on Infernape, evidently Infernape's size was insufficient for Snorlax to avoid the damage.
Yet Snorlax persisted.
"Finish it, Snorlax! We'll use Earthquake too!"
The repeated Earthquakes left the venue ruinous after just the first round.
"Close Combat! Hit it upwards!" Natsuhiko quickly commanded.
Bam bam bam bam—
Frenzied punches mixed with dark red flames.
Amidst Snorlax's body shaking violently, faced with the remaining Infernape, its eyes red, flames scorched Snorlax's belly fur to a charred black, but couldn't penetrate its fat for substantial impact.
Yet persistent punching lifted Snorlax off the ground, breaking off its Earthquake, though taking significant damage.
"Hundred Thousand Horsepower!" Kukui was shocked by Infernape's strength, immediately switching moves.
One attacking upward, the other downward, they struggled against each other.
Standing in a pit, Infernape was instantly enveloped by rocks, continuously sinking.
Type advantage took the upper hand.
Bang—!!
Snorlax once again heavily fell to the ground.
It somehow found a Wenyou Fruit and started eating it.
While Infernape lay in the pit.
"In-Infernape has lost its ability to battle, the victory goes to—Snorlax!!" The host seemed somewhat astonished.
This was the first time he had seen Natsuhiko lose a match upfront in this tournament.
Unexpected indeed.
Snorlax, chewing on the Wenyou Fruit, barely caught a breath, almost fainting alongside Infernape.
However.
Unexpectedly, a flame suddenly rose from Snorlax's body.
Draining its slightly recovered physical strength entirely.
"Uh... Snorlax fell into a Scorching state, losing ability to battle right after Infernape had!"
Even the audience didn't foresee this result.
Including Kukui.
He looked shocked, not understanding when Snorlax fell into the Scorching state.
Natsuhiko withdrew Infernape with the Pokeball.
The outcome surprised him too.
Kukui's Snorlax, its Defense Power was definitely enhanced through special training.
Otherwise, it wouldn't withstand such repeated attacks without losing its battle ability.
He took a deep breath.
Adjusting his mindset.
Kukui also withdrew Snorlax.
Initially, he intended, taking advantage of Natsuhiko switching Pokémon, to let Snorlax, now free from Taunt, "sleep" to regain state, but guessed the start and not the result.
Both needed to switch Pokémon simultaneously.
"Natsuhiko's second Pokémon is—Beedrill!! He's already choosing his ace Pokémon as the second one?!"
"While Royal Masked Man's second Pokémon is—Lycanroc!"
Night Form Lycanroc.
——————
PS: Thanks to the esteemed "FNephilim," "Dark Star Emperor," and "Teacher Pang" for their grand rewards!
This counts as eight chapters! (17k words) It's not too much to ask for a wave of monthly tickets, is it?!