Alex quickly healed Crobat before gently recalling him to his Poké Ball.
The referee looked toward Alex and announced, "Participant Alex, you have thirty seconds to send out your next Pokémon."
Winona glanced at Alex and said casually, "I've always thought this thirty-second rule is pretty unfair. It gives strategies built around moves like Toxic too much of an advantage."
Alex immediately realized she wasn't actually complaining about the match itself. She was simply voicing her opinion on the topic itself.
He gave a slight smile before replying, "I understand what you mean, but I don't think thirty seconds is really too long or too short."
Winona looked at him with a questioning expression, waiting for him to elaborate.
Alex continued calmly, "Thirty seconds isn't enough for Poison to knock out a Pokémon that started with full HP, even if Toxic was used by a Poison-type Pokémon with Master Rank mastery, provided both Pokémon are around the same level."
He shrugged slightly before adding, "Those thirty seconds certainly benefit status conditions, but I wouldn't call the advantage particularly unfair."
Winona shook her head and replied, "That doesn't really change my point. Whether the advantage is small or large, it's still an advantage. Besides, 30 seconds isn't a small advantage."
Alex looked at her for a brief moment before answering, "The problem is that you can't completely eliminate that kind of advantage, no matter how you write the rules. Every rule will inevitably benefit certain moves or strategies more than others."
Winona fell silent for a moment as she considered his words.
Although she still felt that thirty seconds was a little too generous, she couldn't deny that Alex's reasoning made sense.
If the rule were reduced to only five seconds or less, it might solve one problem, but it would inevitably create several new ones in its place.
The poison steadily drained Pelipper's remaining health, and in the end, it could no longer hold out. It collapsed unconscious onto the battlefield.
Winona immediately ran over to her Pokémon, treating the poisoning with an Antidote before healing the remaining injuries with a Hyper Potion.
Alex already knew what came next. He paused for a brief moment, mentally reviewing the Pokémon each of them still had available.
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Winona:
besiegte Pokemon: Noctowl LV 56, Pelipper LV 58, Skarmory LV 60, Altaria LV 61
Pokémon: Tropius LV 58, Dragonite LV 59,
VS:
Alex:
besiegte Pokemon: Ditto LV 56, Gardevoir LV 58, Crobat LV 58
Pokémon: Umbreon LV 57, Blaziken LV 57, Scizor LV 58,
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Although the situation appeared very favorable for Alex, he knew he didn't actually hold a significant advantage.
Dragonite was an exceptionally dangerous Pokémon, and none of his three remaining Pokémon could truly be considered a reliable counter.
Scizor would be a respectable answer—provided Dragonite didn't possess an Expert- or Master Rank Fire-type move—but Alex considered that possibility rather unlikely. so, none of his remaining Pokémon had a particularly favorable matchup against Dragonite.
After weighing his options for a few more seconds, Alex finally made his decision. He threw his Poké Ball into the arena.
A flash of light erupted.
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Pokémon: Umbreon
LV: 57
Type: Dark
Ability: Synchronize
Gender: Female
Potential: Shallow Diamond (2%)
Moves:
- Growl, Tackle, Tail Whip, Quick Attack, Double Kick, Sand Attack, Bite, Swift, Take Down, Double-Edge [E], Helping Hand, Charm, Baton Pass [E], Work Up [M], Pursuit, Moonlight, Mean Look, Last Resort, Guard Swap
- (Perfect Talent) Rest [M], (Perfect Talent) Sleep Talk [M],
-(TM) Toxic [M], (TM) Shadow Ball [E], (TM) Facade [E], (TM) Protect [E], (TM) Attract [E], (TM) Psychic [E], (TM) Substitute, (TM) Snarl, (TM) Payback [M], (TM) Psych Up ,(TM) Return, (TM) Taunt [E], (TM) Hyper Beam
-------------
Winona looked at Umbreon for only a brief moment before immediately making her own decision.
She threw her Poké Ball without any hesitation. A large Pokémon materialized in a flash of light.
------------
Pokémon: Tropius
LV: 58
Type: Grass / Flying
Ability: Chlorophyll
Gender: Male
Potential: Deep Gold (61%)
Moves:
- Growth [M], Razor Leaf, Sweet Scent, Stomp, Magical Leaf, Whirlwind, Natural Gift, Air Slash [M], Body Slam, Bestow, Synthesis [M], Leaf Storm
- -(innate talent) Leech Seed [M], (innate talent) Gust, (innate talent) Earthquake [M]
- (TM) Protect [E], (TM) Toxic [E], (TM) Sunny Day [M], (TM) Hidden Power, (TM) Hyper Beam, (TM) Light Screen, (TM) Solar Beam [M], (TM) Return, (TM) Double Team [E], (TM) Aerial Ace, (TM) Facade,
------------
Seeing Tropius instead of Dragonite, Alex was genuinely surprised.
Against Umbreon, Dragonite should have had a relatively easy opportunity to repeatedly boost itself with Dragon Dance before launching an overwhelming offensive.
However, the reason for Winona's decision quickly became clear to him.
Umbreon had already revealed Master Rank Toxic earlier in the tournament.
If Dragonite were poisoned, it would be forced to fight on a timer, making repeated setup far less effective.
Tropius, on the other hand, possessed Master Rank Leech Seed, Growth and Synthesis, making it much better suited against Umbreon.
The referee raised his hand and shouted, "Three... two... one... Go!"
Alex and Winona immediately issued commands to their Pokémon.
Umbreon began preparing her move while sprinting directly toward Tropius, who immediately took flight and attempted to create some distance.
Neither Pokémon was particularly fast, and although Umbreon held a slight speed advantage.
It didn't take long before both Pokémon finished preparing their moves.
Since they were well within range, they attacked immediately.
Umbreon used Toxic. The poisonous attack struck Tropius without fail, leaving the Grass-type Pokémon badly poisoned.
At nearly the same moment, Tropius unleashed Leech Seed.
The seeds landed on Umbreon and immediately sprouted, wrapping thin vines around her body that steadily drained her energy while restoring Tropius's vitality.
Neither Alex nor Winona looked surprised. Both trainers had expected exactly this exchange, and each believed the situation favored them.
Without waiting for another command, both Pokémon immediately began preparing their next moves.
A few moments later, both moves were ready.
Umbreon used Work Up.
Tropius responded with Growth.
Both Pokémon strengthened themselves simultaneously.
Alex understood that continuing to boost Umbreon would certainly make her stronger, but allowing Tropius to stack the same number of buffs was far too dangerous.
He would much rather trade 1 for 1 than gamble on a strategy that could easily cost him the entire championship.
Alex spoke telepathically. "Umbreon, prepare one more Work Up. After that, we'll switch to plan..."
Winona had been carefully observing Alex the entire battle.
The faint purple glow around his head appeared once again.
She immediately recognized what it meant. Although she couldn't hear his telepathic instructions, she knew he was giving them.
After thinking for only a moment, she calmly said, "Tropius, after this move... use Plan D."
Umbreon and Tropius each completed one final round of buffs.
Then, without hesitation, both Pokémon immediately began preparing their next moves.
*******
if the story total of 100 powerstones in 24 hours, I will upload 1 bonus chapter tomorrow.
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