"That's more like it!"
Sato remained calm and collected under the onslaught of attacks. If it had been only sneak attacks, that wouldn't have been his mentor's true style.
"Zoroark, Protect! Cover!"
Thick green vines, reinforced with blazing red energy, lashed toward Zoroark, trying to interrupt it!
But before the attack could land, Houndoom had already been sent out, its lava-infused Flamethrower colliding directly with Power Whip!
Now, both sides had four active Pokémon each.
On the assassin's side: Fearow, Arbok, Rhydon, and Tangrowth. A balanced control-heavy lineup.
On Sato's side: Zoroark, Gengar, Larvitar, and Houndoom. Equally versatile and strong.
In Pokémon battles, having more Pokémon wasn't always better, if they lacked proper coordination, it could cause interference instead.
Sometimes, a two- or three-Pokémon synergy was more effective, since they only had one trainer.
But the thing Sato remembered most about his mentor's peak, was his perfect six-Pokémon coordination.
"Let's keep going! Larvitar, Rock Slide! Gengar, Shadow Ball!"
Larvitar waved its tiny arms, summoning hundreds of gray boulders, scattering them like a rain of destruction, covering the entire enemy lineup!
Gengar, surrounded by ten floating Shadow Balls, mixed them into the Rock Slide barrage, waiting for an opening.
"Tricks like these won't work! Rhydon, Stone Edge! Tangrowth, Vine Whip!"
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Rhydon crouched low, bringing both hands together, forming a massive crimson stone between them, then hurled it forward!
The rotating red boulder smashed through the Rock Slide, blasting a hole right through the attack, then exploding on impact!
Larvitar was stunned. This was the first time its perfectly executed Rock Slide had been completely countered.
Meanwhile, Tangrowth's vine whips, writhing like dozens of green serpents, lashed at the Shadow Balls, destroying all ten before they could even reach their target!
"Houndoom, Zoroark, Flamethrower!"
The flames erupted, forcing the vines back, but at the same time, Arbok and Fearow had already moved in, aiming their attacks at Houndoom!
Poison Fang and Drill Peck struck viciously, targeting what seemed to be the easiest prey.
Houndoom snarled. Did they really think it was the easiest target?
In an instant, the Flame Orb's energy surged through its body, fueling its Molten Flamethrower!
The blazing inferno roared toward Arbok!
Meanwhile, Larvitar, regaining its composure, charged toward Fearow, summoning another Rock Slide, but this time, shaping the boulders into a shield!
"Gengar, Psychic! Zoroark, Dark Pulse!"
Psychic energy locked Tangrowth and Rhydon in place, even if only for a few seconds, that was all Zoroark needed.
Dark Pulse erupted, following Flamethrower's path, slamming into Arbok!
Arbok was knocked out instantly!
Rhydon and Tangrowth broke free, leaping into the air before slamming the ground with all their might!
The tremors surged forward, Houndoom had just finished attacking and had no time to react, the shockwaves sent it tumbling down!
Zoroark grabbed Larvitar, leaping away, while Gengar floated above the battlefield.
However, Fearow took advantage of the chaos, abandoning Larvitar to dive-bomb Houndoom.
A critical hit, Houndoom was down! Now, both sides had lost one Pokémon each, back to square one!
Two red lights flashed, both trainers recalling Arbok and Houndoom. It seemed that even the dead-fish-eyed assassin didn't intend to use cheap tricks this time.
There was no hesitation.
The assassin charged forward, entering the fight himself!
"Zoroark, Night Daze! Lock down Tangrowth! Gengar, take down Fearow! Larvitar, handle Rhydon!"
Sato rushed in as well, engaging in hand-to-hand combat against his mentor!
Houndoom was down, and now, there was no one left to restrain Tangrowth.
In this kind of chaotic battle, Tangrowth was actually the most dangerous opponent.
That meant, Sato had to rely on the most mobile Pokémon in his lineup, Zoroark, who could use both Flamethrower and Night Daze, to keep it in check!
Gengar had the best chance of taking down Fearow, with Thunderbolt at its disposal, all it needed was one good opening to secure the win!
As for Rhydon versus Larvitar... It was like a fully-grown fighter beating up a kid.
The only advantage Larvitar had was its small size, making it more agile compared to the bulky Rhydon.
But defense alone wasn't enough, victory depended on when Gengar could take down Fearow and rush to Larvitar's aid.
As for why neither trainer was calling out more Pokémon... They both needed to hold reserves in case of unexpected situations.
So, both sides maintained the current lineup. If Sato's key to victory was Gengar versus Fearow, then for his mentor...
"Rhydon, end that Larvitar as fast as possible!"
Sato gritted his teeth, barely dodging a straight punch. He was worried about Larvitar too, both were Rock/Ground-types.
Larvitar might become powerful in the future, but right now...
A small green figure was sent flying, but it quickly got back up, throwing dozens of rocks at Rhydon, blocking its path as it tried to assist Fearow!
It was a future pseudo-legendary, it couldn't be the one to drag its teammates down!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Rhydon was relentless, unleashing Stone Edge once more, the spinning crimson boulders launched forward, aiming straight at Larvitar!
Larvitar's determined cry cut off Sato's command.
Placing its tiny hands on the ground, it summoned a series of sharp stones, blocking the path of the incoming Stone Edge attack!
A new move: Stone Edge!
Stone Edges shattered one after another, but Rhydon's Stone Edge barrage also began slowing down, until it stopped completely before reaching its target!
Rhydon turned around, finally taking Larvitar seriously. At a critical moment, it had mastered an advanced Rock-type move.
But that wasn't enough!
Rhydon's heavy footsteps thudded against the ground, moving with unexpected speed, it charged at Larvitar, both hands glowing orange, a high-level Fighting-type move: Hammer Arm!
Larvitar steadied its breathing. Stone Edge had drained a lot of energy. Seeing the incoming Hammer Arm, it knew better than to take it head-on.
Agility was its true advantage!
Larvitar began a mysterious dance, narrowly dodging the first swing of Hammer Arm!
Rhydon's eyes widened in disbelief, the tiny creature at its feet had completely evaded the attack.
A piercing bird cry suddenly drew everyone's attention.
A powerful surge of electricity crackled around Fearow, sparking wildly. And as the glow faded, Fearow plummeted to the ground, unmoving!
Sato kicked his mentorbackward, sending him flying.
The counterattack... had begun!