The faculty moved a large machine onto the battlefield. At first glance, it looked like a lottery machine, but inside were Poké Balls containing Pokémon used in the academy's training.
Each instructor would receive twelve random Pokémon. This randomness was considered the fairest method, as each Pokémon had subtle differences even if they shared the same moves and abilities.
"Ka-kah, ka-kah~~"
"Oowu, oowu~~"
"Chu~ chu~"
In the stands, Haunter, Vulpix, and Tinkatink cheered for Johan, each waving a little pom-pom. They were a bit disappointed they couldn't join the battle, but if Johan won this round and made it to the semifinals, he'd earn the top-four prize—a rare Evolution Stone!
And if he made it to the semifinals, there would be no more rental matches, meaning they'd be up for battle again soon enough. Just the thought got them excited.
Out on the field, Johan received a tray with twelve Poké Balls and a sheet listing each Pokémon's name, ability, and moves. He was given ten minutes to review and select items for them, up to a maximum of six.
But as Johan read through the list of twelve Pokémon he'd received, he felt a headache coming on.
Raticate, Arbok, Feraligatr, Beautifly, Drifloon, Frosmoth…
One Pokémon, however, did catch his eye.
Dolliv!
A Grass/Normal Pokémon from Paldea, Dolliv was gentle-natured and excelled in special attack and special defense.
His ten minutes went by quickly.
Johan's opponent was Carl, the senior instructor for the second-year Battle Department Class 3. He was renowned for his impressive skills and experience.
The battlefield's main screen displayed both instructors' portraits along with three Poké Balls representing each chosen Pokémon.
At the referee's signal, the two stepped onto the field.
Carl, tall and slender with glasses, wore a confident smile that seemed to say he was very sure of his choice of Pokémon and strategy.
But out loud, he said, "Professor Johan, please go easy on me."
Seeing Carl's smug attempt at humility, Johan thought of a perfect word to describe his opponent's attitude:
"Pretentious."
Johan's reputation was established, especially for his tactical prowess. But Carl saw him as someone with a "hobby" challenging his own profession.
Johan might have tactical skill, but the 12-choose-3 rental mode required exceptional expertise. And Carl had gotten quite lucky, drawing Pokémon that played well to his strengths.
When Carl's "humble" appeal met with Johan's smile, Johan simply replied, "Alright."
Hm?
Carl was taken aback and narrowed his eyes.
As the referee announced the start, both trainers threw their Poké Balls.
"Go, Rapidash!"
"Go, Dolliv!"
Both Pokémon appeared on the field at the same time.
"Grass against Fire? Johan might be in for a rough start."
"Where did Dolliv even come from?"
"Professor Carl is a specialist in Fire and Flying types, so this is a great start for him."
"Luck is part of skill, after all."
Watching the two Pokémon appear, the spectators began discussing the match. For this high-stakes top-eight battle, professional commentators had also been provided.
"Dolliv is a Pokémon from the distant Paldea region! It seems Johan is well-versed in Pokémon even from far-off regions. Unfortunately, he's right up against Carl's specialty."
"Some of you might not realize just how big an advantage Rapidash has here, so let me break it down…"
Rapidash was fast and had high attack power, while Dolliv specialized in special attack and defense but was extremely slow—not to mention the type disadvantage.
After hearing the analysis, the crowd collectively sighed.
There was no way Johan could win this round.
"Rapidash, Flare Blitz!" Carl said confidently, sweeping his hand forward.
In an instant, Rapidash's body was completely engulfed in flames, and it charged at Dolliv like a blazing comet. With Dolliv's low speed, there was no chance of dodging.
But Johan's command surprised everyone.
"Dolliv, use Leech Seed beneath you."
Dolliv dropped a few tiny seeds at its feet, but before it could do anything else, Rapidash crashed into it with full force.
Boom!!
Dolliv was sent flying.
The referee raised his flag.
"Dolliv is unable to battle! It was taken down in one hit, as Carl's Rapidash was holding a Charcoal item!"
[Charcoal: Increases the power of Fire-type moves by 20%.]
The crowd erupted in surprise.
A one-hit knockout right at the start?
Johan was done for.
Or was he?
While being knocked back, Dolliv had shaken loose several seeds, which quickly sprouted and spread across the field.
"Dolliv's ability is Seed Sower, so the field has become Grassy Terrain!"
"And because Rapidash used Flare Blitz, it took recoil damage from the collision… wait! Dolliv was holding a Rocky Helmet, so the damage to Rapidash is even worse!"
On the field, Rapidash neighed in pain.
[Rocky Helmet: Inflicts damage on attackers who use contact moves.]
"Wow, holding Rocky Helmet? Only Johan could think of something so devious!"
"Does that mean Johan planned to sacrifice Dolliv from the start?"
"And don't forget, Rapidash is entangled in Leech Seed too."
Keen-eyed viewers noticed that while Rapidash had defeated Dolliv, it had taken substantial recoil damage from Flare Blitz, the Rocky Helmet, and the Leech Seed.
And now the field was Grassy Terrain, enhancing Grass-type moves and restoring a little HP each turn.
"So… will Johan's next Pokémon be another Grass type?"
"Grass types still get roasted by Rapidash."
Recalling Dolliv, Johan smiled down at its Poké Ball and said, "You did great. Leave the rest to the others."
He threw out his next Poké Ball, surprising everyone again.
It was Drifloon, the Ghost/Flying-type balloon Pokémon!
"Wow, Johan has some bad luck. None of his Pokémon seem to form any kind of strong lineup."
"So what's the Grassy Terrain for? Passive healing?"
Most of the crowd knew Drifloon was a high-HP but defensively weak Pokémon.
In other words, a "punching bag."
But Drifloon immediately revealed the purpose of Grassy Terrain.
A small seed dropped from Drifloon's body—a Grassy Seed!
[Grassy Seed: Boosts defense when Grassy Terrain is active.]
But… is that it?
"Drifloon's ability is Unburden, so after using its item, its speed has doubled!"
This answer from the commentators somewhat satisfied the crowd.
Carl frowned.
If Rapidash used Flare Blitz again, it would knock itself out. But Drifloon's Unburden had made it faster than Rapidash, so it could easily dodge now.
"Rapidash, Flame Charge!"
Rapidash's fiery hooves flared up as it sprinted around the field.
But Johan was unfazed. "Drifloon, Minimize."
Drifloon's size shrank significantly, increasing its evasiveness. Rapidash's Flame Charge sailed past without hitting.
However, Rapidash's speed increased.
"Drifloon, Minimize again."
"Rapidash, another Flame Charge!"
Rapidash circled the field as Drifloon continued to shrink, its evasiveness growing each time. Rapidash's second Flame Charge also missed.
This back-and-forth continued until finally, Rapidash connected.
Yet Johan only gave one command.
"Minimize again."
On the third use, Drifloon was now only the size of a fist.
"A Minimize strategy?"
"Doesn't that fail if it gets hit by something like Body Slam?"
"True, but Rapidash doesn't seem to know that move."
With Rapidash sustaining itself on Grassy Terrain's healing, Carl changed tactics.
"Rapidash, Flamethrower! Cover the area!"
While Rapidash had high attack, most Fire Pokémon could use both attack and special moves. Its Flamethrower covered half the field, blanketing Drifloon in flames.
Yet Johan's instructions took a new turn.
"Drifloon, Calm Mind."
[Calm Mind: Raises a Pokémon's Special Attack and Special Defense.]
With Calm Mind enhancing its defenses and Grassy Terrain's healing, Drifloon seemed unscathed.
Thanks to Leech Seed, recoil from Rapidash's moves, and Grassy Terrain's passive healing, Drifloon soon maxed out its Calm Mind stacks without losing much HP.
Eventually, Rapidash fainted from Leech Seed damage.
Carl's second Pokémon was Typhlosion!
While Typhlosion knew moves like Body Slam and Smokescreen, Drifloon's Calm Mind, Substitute, and speed advantage rendered them ineffective.
Even when Typhlosion's Body Slam connected, Drifloon's durability and Grassy Terrain meant it survived without much trouble.
Once Drifloon maxed out its stats, Johan's strategy reached its true potential.
"Drifloon, Baton Pass!"
The crowd gasped.
"I thought he was going for a Minimize strategy, but it's a Baton Pass strategy!"
"A fully maxed Special Attack and Special Defense? Even if he Baton Passed to a [Little Growlithe], it'd still have ridiculous Special Attack!"
"Frosmoth? But it's four times weak to Fire!"
Indeed, the recipient of the boosted stats was Frosmoth, an Ice/Bug type!
Yet
as a result of Baton Pass, this Frosmoth now had full Special Attack and Special Defense!
More importantly…
"Frosmoth, use Light Screen!"
Johan smiled.
"Oh no!"
"The students need to know that Johan's Frosmoth has Ice Scales!"
[Ice Scales: Halves damage from special moves.]
Now fully boosted with maxed Special Defense, Ice Scales halving Special Attack damage, and Light Screen halving it again, Typhlosion's Fire-type moves were effectively nullified!
"Even with Typhlosion's type advantage, it's like scratching an itch!"
Finally, someone in the crowd realized Frosmoth's 125 Special Attack stat, enhanced by six Calm Mind boosts, translated to a 400% increase in power!
"Now it's a sweep! Even if Carl had twelve Pokémon, they'd all be defeated at this point!"
This was the allure of the Baton Pass strategy: once the Baton Pass succeeded, the rest was smooth sailing.
Frosmoth's item? Leftovers.
Its survivability was maxed out.
Desperately, Carl tried his third Pokémon, Torkoal, with Clear Smog to remove Frosmoth's boosts. Yet the slow Torkoal was easily outspeeded, and even Clear Smog couldn't keep up with Frosmoth's Substitute.
In the end, Johan won the battle with an overwhelmingly "tactical" victory!
And the entire match had been recorded and livestreamed.
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Powerstones?
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