"It looks like I'll have to get serious!"
Charlotte focused on Kuzan across from her and pulled out a 'Konoha headband' from her pocket. She whispered, "Konoha's Genin Trainer, here to fight!"
"Den-den!"
Pachirisu patted its little belly, pumping itself up!
"Mamoswine."
Without hesitation, Kuzan sent out his Ground-type Mamoswine, capable of nullifying Electric-type moves.
In typical battles, the opponent often deploys a Pokémon with a type advantage. Charlotte could recall Pachirisu and send out a different Pokémon, which would only take a brief moment.
However, switching Pokémon takes more than three seconds, which is considered a violation.
In this case, the next Pokémon would be at risk of receiving a free hit as it enters. Upon switching in, Pokémon experience a brief moment of vulnerability, and the opponent's Pokémon could launch an attack during this gap.
This vulnerability may not be a big deal in low-level battles, but in high-level ones, it can be fatal.
When one of your Pokémon faints, switching takes five seconds, avoiding such a risk.
Generally, if your other Pokémon are relatively fragile, it's best to avoid switching mid-battle to prevent taking a heavy hit or even getting one-shotted. This explains why trainers in the Pokémon anime often refrain from switching during high-stakes battles.
Charlotte now faced this exact situation. Among her remaining three Pokémon, only Charizard had decent durability. The others were frailer, and taking a direct hit could spell disaster.
In contrast, trainers in the One Piece world had fewer concerns about this. Kuzan's four remaining Pokémon, in particular, were naturally tough and had honed their physical attributes, making them even sturdier. Taking a hit wouldn't affect their performance much.
"Pachirisu, use Dazzling Gleam!"
Charlotte, without hesitation, ordered Pachirisu to attack. Although Electric moves were useless, Pachirisu's Fairy typing gave it an advantage against Mamoswine.
In the next instant, Pachirisu leaped, radiating blinding light filled with Fairy energy. Even spectators couldn't help but close their eyes; without the void barrier blocking the Fairy energy, many would be in danger.
"Mamo?"
Mamoswine stood there, unfazed, without sensing any changes on its body.
"Mamoswine's small eyes are covered by its fur, limiting its vision. It relies on smell and hearing to locate its target," Kuzan explained, unfazed by the Dazzling Gleam. He had tried all vision-based moves on Mamoswine with no effect.
"What...?" Charlotte was caught off guard by this revelation. If that were the case, even her Sharingan Genjutsu or Elder Shisui's Kotoamatsukami wouldn't work on Mamoswine.
"Ice Beam."
Kuzan went on the offensive, giving no more ground. With Pachirisu's Electric moves rendered ineffective, it soon fell to Mamoswine, landing only a small amount of Fairy-type damage, which didn't trouble Mamoswine much.
"Inteleon, I'm counting on you."
Charlotte quickly summoned the Water-type starter from the Galar region and immediately commanded, "Water Release: Water Dragon Cannon!"
As she issued the command, Charlotte excitedly formed seals. With its nimble fingers, Inteleon could perform hand seals, allowing it to use more jutsu than many other Pokémon.
The Water Dragon Cannon was a fusion of the Water-type move Hydro Cannon and the B-rank Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Jutsu, forming a high-pressure water cannon shaped like a water dragon.
"Icy Wind."
Kuzan decided to go head-to-head, knowing Mamoswine's speed made it impossible to dodge Inteleon's attack. However, regular Ice-type moves couldn't match this A-rank jutsu.
Though Kuzan's Pokémon boasted greater durability, Charlotte's team had a clear advantage in skill power. Mamoswine took a double-damage hit and was immediately weakened, allowing Inteleon to finish it off with ease.
The battle now returned to 3v3. From the state of their Pokémon, Kuzan's side had the upper hand as Inteleon had consumed considerable energy against Mamoswine.
Kuzan's next Pokémon, Abomasnow, entered with a fierce roar. It seemed Abomasnow was destined to face Inteleon, exploiting its Grass and Ice typing to gain the upper hand.
"Razor Leaf." "Substitute Jutsu!"
Inteleon, capable of performing hand-seal jutsu, proved to be one of Charlotte's trickiest Pokémon.
"Grass Knot."
This move, similar to the Fighting-type Low Kick, deals more damage based on the target's weight. With Inteleon's slender build, Kuzan wasn't aiming for heavy damage but rather to restrict its swift movements.
Grass Knot shot up from the ground, resembling vines that sprung from beneath. Without advanced Observation Haki, Inteleon struggled to predict the vines' path. And jumping was out of the question—leaping into the air would leave it fully exposed to Abomasnow's attacks, while staying on the ground might allow it to dodge.
Unfortunately, Inteleon got tangled by Grass Knot. As it instinctively rolled to the side, it was too late. Abomasnow leapt from above, striking with its body infused with Armament Haki, landing a powerful physical Grass-type move, Wood Hammer.
After taking the hit, Inteleon couldn't recover enough to turn the tide.
"As expected from one of the lower Four Emperors with over twenty years of service. This strong already…"
Charlotte muttered, nibbling on her thumb. As a girl from the future, she already knew who the first-generation Four Emperors would be.
So when she heard about Mihawk's forfeit and Brook's advance to the semifinals, she was unmoved. The current top four were already candidates for the Four Emperors in her time:
The Snake Emperor, Hancock. The Ghost Emperor, Brook. The Evil Emperor, Hannyabal.
And standing before her was the Ice Emperor, Kuzan, the longest-serving of the first-generation Four Emperors in the One Piece world, whose strength eventually reached that of a lower Champion and upper Four Emperors before his retirement.
Even as three Admirals had come and gone, this Ice Emperor remained unchallenged.
"Charizard, I'm counting on you to finish this quickly."
Charlotte took out her most cherished Poké Ball, giving it a gentle kiss before releasing her first partner.
"Roar!"
Charizard roared upon entering, proudly displaying its strength.
"Sunny Day!"
Charlotte's first command wasn't an attack but a change in environment to boost its Fire-type moves while reducing Water-type move damage—beneficial for the current and subsequent battles.
"Not good."
Kuzan looked up at the blazing sky, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. He understood the power of weather-altering moves, but not all Pokémon had the talent for them. His Ice-type Pokémon couldn't learn Hail.
"A-rank non-seal Fire Release: Roaring Blaze!"
In the shinobi world, Fire Release techniques typically lack high-level jutsu, but the power of a technique depends on the user's strength rather than the jutsu's rank.
Since Pokémon appeared in the shinobi world, numerous Fire-type trainers emerged, creating more advanced Fire Release techniques. More accurately, they're called Ninjutsu Techniques.
The Roaring Blaze is a combination of the Overheat move and the B-rank Fire Release: Dragon Flame Song Jutsu.
"This is a jutsu developed by Madara himself! Feel its power!"
Charlotte lifted her head confidently. Unsurprisingly, Abomasnow was instantly defeated by this move, and Kuzan wasted no time in sending out Cloyster.
Though Glalie was Kuzan's original partner, Cloyster later proved to be equally talented, becoming as strong as Glalie and Kuzan's right-hand Pokémon.
"Dragon Slayer."
Seeing Cloyster caused Charlotte's expression to pale. Rumor had it that thousands of Dragon-type trainers had lost to this one Pokémon. In those days, it was said that as long as this Cloyster remained, no Dragon-type trainer could become a lower Champion in the One Piece world.
(End of Chapter)
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