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"Great job, Scyther! Keep up the momentum and use Quick Attack combined with Aerial Ace to take him down!" Fujita cheered, his earlier gloom replaced with delight as he watched Scyther suppress Nidoran.
In contrast, Sato's face remained calm, betraying no emotion. He thought to himself, "So he's underestimating me… looks like my chances of winning aren't too bad after all."
Observant as ever, Sato noticed a tiny puncture on Scyther's right scythe, a faint purple tinge around it, and occasional slight tremors in that hand.
Clearly, Scyther's block against Nidoran's Poison Jab had not been as effortless as it seemed, and he likely hadn't expected Nidoran's Poison Jab to have such power.
It made sense: Poison Jab has a base power of 90, and with Nidoran's Hustle ability, it was boosted to a whopping 135. Combined with Nidoran's Double Kick to accelerate his charge, the impact force was even higher.
Scyther, confident that his higher level gave him an advantage, probably thought he could handle a direct clash with ease.
But the underestimation had backfired; although Poison Jab seemed to leave little visible damage, Scyther's entire right arm might not move as smoothly in the rest of the battle. Plus, he hadn't noticed that he was now poisoned.
Nidoran, however, wasn't unscathed either. The impact of Scyther's X-Scissor had inflicted considerable damage, adding to the injuries he'd sustained in his earlier fight against Nidorino.
Now, he stood panting, feeling the intense pain from the deep slash on his body.
This wound was Nidoran's first real experience of pain, a scar from Scyther that taught him a true lesson in suffering. For the first time, he also deeply understood the trials Sato, Golbat, and Bellossom had faced daily in Viridian Forest.
Without their protection, he might never have survived in such a harsh environment.
Now, seeing Scyther coming at him again, leaving an afterimage in his wake, Nidoran's eyes held no fear. His ears twitched slightly, then, with a flash of determination, he launched himself several meters to the left with a powerful kick from his right hind leg.
The next instant, a sharp "clang!" sounded. Scyther, surrounded by faint streams of white energy, had descended from above, his scythes slashing down hard on Nidoran's former position and leaving two deep gashes in the ground.
"Well done, Nidoran! His close-range attacks are strong—keep your distance from him. Remember that feeling just now and trust in your hearing and instincts. Use Water Pulse to counterattack," Sato instructed.
He was impressed. Scyther's speed with Quick Attack followed by Aerial Ace was incredibly fast; Sato had thought Nidoran would be hit for sure, given that Aerial Ace usually never misses.
But as he'd just seen, battle had no absolute certainties; it was all about whether the Pokémon could react in time and find a way to dodge.
Upon hearing Sato, Nidoran's mind went unusually calm. He closed his eyes and focused, his ears twitching as he concentrated fully on using his hearing to track Scyther's movements.
To the surprise of everyone watching, Nidoran, relying on quick bursts from Double Kick and slight interference from Confusion, miraculously dodged Scyther's flurry of attacks.
Unfortunately, Nidoran had pushed himself to the limit to avoid Scyther's hits, leaving him no chance to counterattack.
At this rate, a loss seemed inevitable, as Nidoran was clearly struggling to hold on due to his severe injuries.
"Hmph, don't let him escape!" Fujita commanded. "Beat your wings to disrupt his hearing, then finish him with Aerial Ace."
Nidoran deftly dodged Scyther's fierce attacks using his keen sense of hearing, and Fujita's expression soured once again.
However, with his extensive battle experience, Fujita quickly found a solution and issued new instructions to Scyther.
As Nidorino's Trainer, Fujita was well aware of the physiological traits of Pokémon like Nidoran, particularly their exceptional hearing. However, seeing Sato's Nidoran anticipate and evade attacks in this way was a first.
But no matter—knowing the mechanism behind Nidoran's evasion gave him a way to counter it.
"Not good! Nidoran, use Double Kick combined with Poison Jab to counter Scyther and stop him!" Sato called out, realizing Fujita's plan.
Unfortunately, there was a downside.
While Nidoran's sharp hearing allowed him to sense Scyther's approach, when Scyther began flapping his wings intensely on Fujita's command, generating a high-frequency noise, Nidoran's sensitive ears became a liability.
As soon as the high-pitched noise hit, Nidoran, who had been focusing hard and had heightened his hearing to its maximum, could no longer bear the overwhelming sound. Reflexively, he lowered his large ears to shield himself from the noise.
The loud distraction and the act of blocking his ears also prevented him from hearing Sato's commands.
Seizing this perfect opportunity, Scyther struck with a powerful Aerial Ace, sending Nidoran flying.
When Nidoran hit the ground, he was already unconscious, no longer able to battle.
"Nidoran is unable to battle. The winner is Scyther," the referee announced. After silently counting to ten and confirming Nidoran could not get up, he declared the outcome.
"You did exceptionally well, Nidoran. Your efforts won't be in vain; leave the rest to your teammates." Sato immediately rushed onto the field, carefully picking up Nidoran with a slightly pained expression.
He comforted him as he applied a mid-level Pokémon healing spray before returning him to his PokeBall.
"Hurry up and send out your next Pokémon! Don't waste time." Fujita, feeling triumphant after Scyther's victory over Nidoran, was visibly smug. Seeing Sato's slower pace, he taunted him arrogantly.
"My apologies for keeping you waiting. Come on out, Growlithe! Show your opponent what you're made of, and make sure Nidoran's efforts weren't in vain," Sato responded coolly. He swiftly took a PokeBall from his belt, releasing Growlithe onto the battlefield.
A flash of light shot from Sato's hand, and as it faded, a sturdy and vibrant-furred Growlithe appeared on the field.
A soft "whoosh" followed, and in the next instant, an orange-red flame burst forth from Growlithe's body, enveloping him like a protective shield. Growlithe slowly opened his determined, blazing eyes, brimming with fierce spirit.
Instantly, the temperature on the battlefield rose dramatically.
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