"Squirtle—keep it up! Skull Bash!"
The easy win in the first round made the already-arrogant Gary assume the rest of the match would be just as simple. His commands grew noticeably sloppy.
"Squirtle—Squirtle!"
Squirtle nodded eagerly. Its smooth, rounded turtle head snapped back into its shell, and in the next instant it shot out of the water like a launched missile, ramming straight toward the floating platform where Sneasel stood.
"Sneasel—block it!"
Sneasel wasn't a pure power-type Pokémon, but at its current level, stopping a low-level Squirtle was effortless. It crossed both arms in front of its body just as Squirtle's Skull Bash slammed into them. A dull impact followed, and Sneasel felt only a slight dip in its arms as the force transferred through Squirtle's head.
It shifted its right leg back slightly, then looped its left arm upward, locking Squirtle firmly by the neck. Just like that, the momentum was neutralized.
As mentioned before, Kael's Sneasel was left-handed—its left arm was far stronger than its right. Once Squirtle's neck was caught, it couldn't move an inch.
The scene looked almost absurd: Squirtle dangling helplessly in Sneasel's grip. Gary, who moments ago had been full of disdain, now stared wide-eyed in shock.
"Crush its head—Metal Claw!"
Kael gave the order without leaving his opponent any time to react.
Sneasel slowly raised its right claw. A silvery metallic sheen wrapped around the sharp talons. The claw came down with a heavy thud, smashing squarely into Squirtle's head. With its neck locked, Squirtle couldn't even retreat into its shell to defend.
"Squirtle—!"
A pained cry rang out. Sneasel casually tossed Squirtle back into the pool, where it sank while blowing bubbles—completely knocked out.
"Damn it!" Gary clenched his fist and hurriedly pulled out Squirtle's Poké Ball, recalling the unconscious Pokémon.
That sudden defeat wiped the arrogance from his face. No longer daring to underestimate his opponent, Gary quickly took out the Pokédex his grandfather had given him and aimed its camera at the unfamiliar Pokémon.
[Sneasel — the Sharp Claw Pokémon.
Dark- and Ice-type.
Known for its nasty temperament and love of mischief.
Primarily inhabits the vicinity of Mt. Silver in the Johto region, living in packs.
Excels at attacking enemies with its razor-sharp claws.]
The Pokédex's mechanical male voice rattled off Sneasel's data. Although Sneasel was native to Johto, the two regions were connected, and sightings in Kanto weren't uncommon. Kael wasn't surprised that Gary's Pokédex could identify it.
"Dark and Ice types, huh…"
Gary began rapidly reviewing his remaining Pokémon, searching for one with a type advantage. In Pokémon battles, countering an opponent's typing was the most basic—and most crucial—strategy. Unless there was an overwhelming gap in strength, type advantage often decided victory.
"Graveler? No."
He shook his head. Rock-type moves counter Ice, but sending Graveler into a pool battlefield would be practically throwing the match.
"Nidorino—also no. Too slow, and no real type advantage."
...
"Got it!"
Gary's eyes lit up. He remembered a powerful Pokémon he'd caught not long ago in Viridian Forest—and Bug-type moves just happened to counter Dark-types.
"One win, one loss. The match is still wide open."
His confidence returned as he carefully pulled out a strange Poké Ball covered in a mesh-like pattern.
A Net Ball—designed to be especially effective for catching Water- and Bug-type Pokémon. Naturally, a specialty ball like this wasn't cheap; most ordinary Trainers couldn't afford to use them casually.
"Your time to shine, my warrior!"
"Scy—ther!"
Wings buzzing, a vivid green, mantis-like Pokémon appeared on the floating platform. Two massive scythe-shaped forearms gleamed coldly, four insect wings spread at forty-five-degree angles behind its back. Its body leaned forward slightly, like a samurai poised to strike.
Scyther.
Kael's lips curved into a faint smile. It really was an excellent Pokémon—one of the top-tier choices among Bug-types. Back when he'd been considering a high-speed attacker for his own team, Scyther had been on his shortlist.
Scyther was incredibly fast and capable of short bursts of gliding flight. A water-based arena didn't give it any particular advantage, but it didn't hinder it either.
"Scyther—Quick Attack!"
Gary opened with a rapid assault, clearly intending to test Sneasel's speed head-on.
"Scy—ther!"
A sharp insect cry rang out. Scyther leaned forward as its blade-like wings began vibrating at high speed. In the blink of an eye, its body vanished from the platform. The recoil from the sudden burst sent the floating board drifting backward.
"Sneasel—watch your left!"
From the command platform, Kael had a clear view of the entire battlefield. He saw a streak of green tearing in from Sneasel's left side.
After more than a month of honing their coordination, Kael and Sneasel moved in perfect sync. The moment the order was given, Sneasel leapt high off the platform.
The next instant—
Shhkk!
A sharp slicing sound ripped through the air.
Crack!
The floating platform Sneasel had just stood on was split cleanly in two by Scyther's strike. Scyther came to a halt atop one half of the severed board, while Sneasel twisted through the air with a series of flips before landing steadily on the other half.
The real fight had just begun.
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