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Chapter 8: A Clash of Main Teams
🕑 Added 2025-01-25 14:13:57 +0000 UTCChapter 8: A Clash of Main Teams
“Return, Dragonair!” Lance retrieved his fainted Dragonair into its Poké Ball.
To be honest, the situation was beyond what he had expected.
Originally, Lance had planned to launch a probing Aqua Tail attack on Gardevoir and adjust his strategy based on Asahi’s response.
But he hadn’t anticipated Asahi’s counter to be so sharp—the seamless transition between Psychic and Dazzling Gleam left no openings, taking out his Dragonair in just one combo.
Keen and decisive, Asahi’s battle style was a perfect match for the traits needed in the International Police.
“It seems transferring you to the International Police was absolutely the right decision!” Lance said, having completely dropped his initial evaluative mindset. “I was overconfident earlier. With your strength, you’re more than capable of investigating Team Rocket!”
Lance was quick to admit his misjudgment of Asahi’s abilities.
It wasn’t embarrassing—Elite Four members were human too; they made mistakes.
Asahi, however, wasn’t concerned with Lance’s acknowledgment.
What he cared about was whether the system had awarded him a new title!
Ever since Gardevoir defeated Dragonair, Asahi had been staring at the system interface. But no matter how long he waited, he didn’t hear the notification for unlocking a title from defeating Lance.
[Does beating his second team not count? Do I have to defeat Lance’s main team to earn a title?]
Asahi pondered this possibility.
It wasn’t out of the question. After all, a second team didn’t represent an Elite Four member’s true strength. Beating it might be seen as taking the easy way out.
With this thought in mind, Asahi made a decision and looked up. “Lance, shall we have a battle between our main teams?”
Hearing this, Lance, who was just placing the Poké Ball back on his belt, paused mid-motion.
He looked at Asahi with a peculiar expression. “I admit your Gardevoir is strong, but… are you sure you want to challenge my main team?”
Lance felt Asahi was getting a bit overconfident. His main team consisted of Pokémon that had been with him for years, ones that had accompanied him through countless battles. They were in a completely different league compared to the Dragonair from earlier.
Of course, Asahi was fully aware of this. However, opportunities to earn a title from Lance were rare. Since he’d soon be dispatched on fieldwork, who knew when they’d meet again?
It was just a friendly match—there was nothing to lose, even if he didn’t win.
And besides, Asahi still had a trump card...
With this in mind, Asahi nodded. “I’m sure!”
“Well, since you insist… as you wish!”
Truth be told, after Dragonair was defeated so decisively, Lance couldn’t help feeling a slight urge to reclaim some pride.
Of course, as an Elite Four member, he couldn’t openly admit this.
Now that Asahi had taken the initiative, there was no reason for him to refuse.
---
The battlefield hadn’t sustained much damage from the previous fight, so there was no need to clean it up.
Once again, Asahi and Lance stood at opposite ends of the field.
This time, however, the casual demeanor on Lance’s face was gone, replaced by a more serious expression. Asahi, too, adopted a more solemn attitude.
“My Pokémon is still Gardevoir!”
Asahi sent out Gardevoir again—it was the only capable Pokémon he had, so he didn’t really have a choice.
As Asahi and Gardevoir focused their gaze on Lance, the latter deliberated briefly before unhooking a Poké Ball from his belt.
“Then I’ll use this one!”
Bang!
The Poké Ball soared into the air and opened with a flash of light.
Roar!
A deafening roar shook the battlefield.
A savage, ferocious presence appeared in front of Lance, its aura sweeping across the field toward Asahi and Gardevoir.
As the light dispersed, a crimson figure hovered in midair.
“Red Gyarados!”
Seeing Lance’s choice, Asahi’s expression turned subtle.
So, I showed off my shiny Gardevoir, and now you’re flexing your shiny Gyarados in return?
What an odd sense of rivalry.
Of course, that was just a passing thought.
From a tactical standpoint, Lance’s decision to send out a Pokémon with no direct type disadvantage against Gardevoir was a sound move.
As Asahi and Gardevoir examined the Red Gyarados, the Pokémon also locked its gaze on its opponent.
Roar!
It let out another fierce roar, fixing its savage eyes on Gardevoir.
In game terms, this was Gyarados activating its Intimidate ability.
For weaker Pokémon, this glare alone might have left them paralyzed with fear, trembling and helpless.
But… Gardevoir was clearly not in that category.
Faced with Gyarados’ intimidation, Gardevoir initially flinched but quickly glared right back without backing down!
From a young age, Gardevoir had never known fear!
What’s a Gyarados? Back in the nature reserve, she used to chase down entire schools of them!
Standing behind Gardevoir, Asahi chuckled at her reaction. While her fearless attitude sometimes gave him headaches, it was undeniably a strength during battles.
Gyarados, meanwhile, hadn’t expected Gardevoir to return its glare. It froze momentarily before growing even angrier.
It felt insulted!
Noticing the shift in Gyarados’ emotions, Lance smirked.
For a Pokémon like Gyarados, which draws power from its rage, controlled anger wasn’t a bad thing. Seizing the opportunity, Lance issued his command:
“Gyarados, use Hurricane!”
At Lance’s command, Gyarados twisted its massive body.
The air in the training ground began to churn as violent winds gathered around Gyarados. With a powerful swing, the winds converged into a massive cyclone that surged toward Gardevoir’s position!
As the hurricane approached, Asahi remained calm. “Gardevoir, use Double Team!”
Gardevoir’s form flickered and split, multiplying into two, then four, then eight. Within seconds, duplicates filled half the battlefield, making it impossible to distinguish the real one from the illusions.
At that moment, the hurricane arrived.
The cyclone tore through the battlefield, shredding the duplicates one by one, but when it finally dissipated, Gardevoir’s true form was nowhere to be found.
“She dodged it?” Lance wasn’t surprised Gardevoir evaded the attack.
After all, this was a Pokémon that had taken down his Dragonair in two moves. It would’ve been odd if she hadn’t avoided the attack.
But Lance was prepared for this.
If you want to keep dodging, then I’ll make sure there’s nowhere left to hide!
“Gyarados, use Surf!”
Roar!
At Lance’s command, Gyarados let loose a powerful jet of water, and the sound of crashing waves filled the air as a massive wall of water materialized out of nowhere.
The wave, over three meters high, surged across the entire battlefield, bearing down on Gardevoir with overwhelming force.
“First a hurricane, now a tidal wave…” Asahi smirked and waved a hand. “Gardevoir, scatter it!”
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PS: In the original storyline, Lance captures the Red Gyarados later, but using a regular Gyarados here feels underwhelming. So I’ve made a slight adjustment.
