CHAPTER 602: FUJIKI’S COMBAT TALENT

Looking at the Pokémon holding two poisonous flowers and moving like a dancer, Terrance, who was not on the stage, turned to observe the Pokémon Fantina had sent out.

Drifblim.

“Fantina… can she win?” Terrance had never officially battled Fujiki, so he wasn’t entirely sure of her strength. But he was well aware that Fujiki’s Roserade and Ninetales were not any weaker than Albus’s Aerodactyl and Gyarados.

And Albus’s Aerodactyl was strong enough to go toe-to-toe with Terrance’s Altaria from six months ago, which didn’t know Mega Evolution.

If it weren’t for taking advantage of the information gap, Terrance might have lost to Albus at that time.

Even six months ago, Altaria was extremely powerful. As Terrance’s ace, when he faced the younger generation Trainers of the entire Hoenn, his Altaria was nearly unbeatable. Even in the Champion League, it could be considered among the elite.

“In other words, without Aura power and Lucario, Albus and Fujiki are actually about equal in strength. As Nightmare Island’s No.1 and No.2, both possess combat talent far beyond that of ordinary people.”

As he watched the battle already underway on the stage, Terrance’s gaze suddenly deepened.

On the stage, Roserade waved its blue and red flowers, and in an instant, countless poison needles shot out like a torrential rain, heading straight toward Drifblim.

The density of the poison needles had already surpassed the concentrated attacks from the first flying event. With this deliberate targeting, it seemed there was no escape left for Drifblim on the entire stage.

But Drifblim was not to be outdone. In an instant, it shrank its body, and despite the dense attacks, it still leisurely weaved through the poison needle rain.

Drifblim had shrunk down to a very small size. By predicting the poison needle’s trajectory through the air currents, it calmly and confidently prepared to break out of it.

“It’s over.” On the Trainer’s side, Albus thought to himself.

In the next instant, the countless poison needles burst into a flood of poisonous liquid under the force of Extrasensory, weaving layers of intertwined traps that filled the sky, engulfing the tiny Drifblim.

Sigh! One side was his friend, the other a Coordinator. Terrance actually sided with Fujiki, but seeing Fantina’s performance, he couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.

“Miss Fantina has probably been away from the battle scene for quite a while now…” Wallace suddenly spoke up.

When Fantina had just arrived in Sinnoh, she rose to fame as the most well-known actress in the region through the Pokémon Contests, and later even became a Gym Leader. But over the years, she had clearly been away from the battle scene for too long—so long, in fact, that she may have become rusty in giving commands.

“She thinks this is the Appeals Round?!” Raoul Contesta said helplessly. This kind of command did not resemble something a Top Coordinator would issue.

“She clearly could’ve used Ominous Wind to blow away the poison needles, which would’ve been a better option, but instead she chose to showcase her dodging technique…” Terrance understood the hidden tactical shift behind Fujiki’s command the moment the poison needles exploded into poisonous liquid.

Seeing the Venom Drench engulf Drifblim, several Top Trainers shook their heads.

In the Venom Drench move, the special poisonous liquid not only affects the opponent’s energy gathering capabilities but also interferes with their reaction. It could be said to be a very dangerous kind of poison. In this situation, Drifblim had been suppressed right from the start. Fantina’s situation was becoming perilous.

“It’s Grassy Terrain.”

Just as everyone’s attention was focused on the Drifblim trapped in the Venom Drench, vitality suddenly burst out from the stage, covered by a rich Grass-type energy.

“Nice reaction.” Glacia was slightly surprised as she observed Fujiki’s follow-up command. If it were an ordinary Trainer, they might’ve wasted a turn celebrating after landing a successful hit. Though the gap was brief, Fujiki had clearly already accounted for both possible outcomes—success or failure. That’s why she was able to make full use of every second. These kinds of skills are only seen in battle-hardened, veteran Trainers.

“Fantina has been immersed in performance-style battles for too long; habits like that aren’t so easy to change.” Terrance shook his head. He himself had been ruthlessly trained by Teacher Julian over this very issue, which is why he could now distinguish between showmanship and real battle. But Fantina, who began her career as a Coordinator and has since gained both fame and fortune, had probably forgotten what truly matters in a battle.

Grassy Terrain: over the next stretch of time, Roserade on the ground would gradually recover stamina, and the power of Grass-type moves would increase!

While weakening the opponent, Roserade was also growing stronger. At this point, Fantina’s expression had grown extremely grim. Looking at the shrunken, poisoned Drifblim, she took a deep breath and said, “Use Baton Pass.”

Baton Pass: A move that switches out the Pokémon with a backup Pokémon. The incoming Pokémon inherits the stat changes of the one leaving.

While everyone was still surprised, Fantina had already withdrawn the poisoned Drifblim with Baton Pass and brought in her Gengar.

“I remember that Gengar’s fire poison is pretty powerful. Too bad the Minimize state couldn’t be passed along.” Many who saw Fantina’s choice nodded. Drifblim’s overall condition had deteriorated significantly, making it unfit to continue.

By using Baton Pass to quickly switch Pokémon, Fantina’s command reduced unnecessary complications that could arise from directly recalling a Pokémon.

“Gengar entering the field renders the poisonous liquid ineffective…”

“So what?” Albus shrugged while looking at Fujiki. He had been concerned earlier, but now it seemed that even with just two Pokémon, Fujiki still had a real chance of defeating Fantina.

As dark-red poison spewed from Gengar, Roserade used Grass Knot. The power of Grassy Terrain was instantly mobilized, and a shield of grass shot up from the ground to protect Roserade. However, the fire poison seemed to crawl along the vines, threatening to burn through Grassy Terrain itself.

“Nicely done.” Fantina’s command impressed many Coordinators. Grassy Terrain’s advantage looked like it was about to be eroded by the fire poison on Grass Knot.

But in the next moment, the situation changed again. Before the fire poison could corrode the terrain, the energy of Grassy Terrain suddenly withered. All its vitality condensed into a single “Energy Ball” in front of Roserade, which was then launched with a loud rumble.

Nature Power!

“She used Nature Power to attack. The move changes based on the terrain. It’s shocking she created the terrain herself, then used it to unleash a finishing move… giving the opponent no openings, wasting none of her own stamina… that level of combat skill…”

Incredible.

Terrance was momentarily stunned as he watched the Energy Ball, which had absorbed all the energy of Grassy Terrain. It seemed that not only Albus but also Fujiki possessed terrifyingly high command skills.

Faced with the overwhelmingly powerful Energy Ball, Gengar panicked. Fantina quickly ordered it to dodge, but unfortunately, their coordination couldn’t outpace Fujiki’s control of the battle.

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