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Even though Medicham was under siege from countless tiny white blades of air, her psychic barrier absorbed most of the damage, leaving her with some fight left in her.
But the Air Cutter from Sato's Shiny Beautifly, timed with exquisite precision, struck her with lethal force, robbing her of the strength to keep struggling.
After three Quiver Dance boosts, Shiny Beautifly's special attack was overwhelming. On top of that, Air Cutter was a STAB move and four times super effective. Even if Medicham had been unhurt beforehand, taking such a strike meant only one outcome: defeat.
"Stand up, Medicham!"
Brawly shouted in panic, his face paling as he watched Medicham take the attack head-on, blown back again and collapsing motionless on the ground. His heart nearly leapt from his chest.
But Medicham could not stand again. She was frail by nature, less durable than most of her kind. After taking two Air Cutters from a thrice-boosted Shiny Beautifly, it was impossible for her to recover.
"Medicham is unable to battle! The winner is Beautifly!"
The referee counted silently for a few seconds, and when Medicham still did not rise, he raised his flag and loudly announced the result.
"My god, I thought that shiny Beautifly was going to lose, but she won again!"
"Yeah! Just one look at that Medicham and I felt dizzy. Who would've thought she'd lose like that? She only got hit twice by Beautifly!"
"I remember Beautifly being such a common Pokémon in Hoenn with really low base stats. When did it become so strong? Is this cheating?"
"Bullshit. There are no garbage Pokémon, only garbage Trainers. Beautifly was clearly raised exceptionally by Master Kira Hayashi. That's why she has the terrifying strength to beat both Poliwrath and Medicham in a row. No wonder he's the Trainer who defeated Clair. He's amazing!"
"That brother's right. Under Master Kira Hayashi's care, Beautifly's level must be very high, and her potential top-tier. Her beating Poliwrath and Medicham, even with the type disadvantage, doesn't surprise me at all."
"Exactly! Looks like Master Kira's got this match in the bag. He's already won twice without even sending out Swampert. Good thing I bet half my fortune on him winning — haha, I'll be a millionaire soon!"
As the referee's verdict echoed, the audience burst into thunderous applause and heated discussion. Especially those who had bet on Sato winning — they howled with excitement.
Yet among the more seasoned Trainers, many scoffed at the crowd's naive chatter. They could see the truth: Sato's Shiny Beautifly had been trained to perfection, and her natural talent was extraordinary.
After all, Sato had never once commanded her to use Quiver Dance aloud — and yet, she had managed to strengthen herself mid-battle without issue.
What's more, after the rain ended, some sharp-eyed Trainers noticed she was even using Morning Sun continuously to recover stamina. Though her wings lacked the usual dazzling glow, they caught faint flashes of light, and her body emitted healing green radiance at intervals.
What did that mean? It meant Shiny Beautifly had internalized Quiver Dance and Morning Sun into instinctive battle habits — dancing and healing in secret while still fighting.
For a Pokémon capable of multi-tasking like that, her potential could only be described as terrifying. If she wasn't taken down immediately, the enemy had to accept the risk of being swept.
Thus, the Trainers in the stands begrudgingly admitted that Sato's Shiny Beautifly was raised to perfection and her aptitude was monstrous.
A Pokémon capable of fighting while strengthening and healing simultaneously? If that wasn't top-tier talent, then what was?
By now, it was clear to all that Brawly had almost no chance of turning the match around. Sato's Shiny Beautifly had already stacked three Quiver Dances and recovered stamina with Morning Sun.
Which meant Brawly now faced a Beautifly at peak condition with triple stat boosts. For a Fighting-type specialist like him, trying to beat her with Fighting Pokémon was an almost impossible task.
As most people expected, Brawly couldn't turn the tide. He couldn't even manage to take down Shiny Beautifly.
His final Pokémon, Machamp, resisted briefly — but once Beautifly completed a fourth Quiver Dance, she unleashed a Gust attack with power rivaling a storm. Machamp was defeated instantly.
Just as Sato had planned, Shiny Beautifly achieved an astonishing one-against-three sweep, earning a standing ovation from the entire stadium.
Yet the Bug Queen herself remained proud and aloof, unimpressed by the applause and dismissive of this "small" feat.
Back on the mysterious island, she often fought against entire swarms. Three opponents were barely a warm-up.
When the battle ended, Sato didn't immediately have Natu teleport him away. Instead, he approached Brawly, extending his hand with humility.
Indeed, the strong are always respected — especially when they show humility instead of arrogance. It was easy to earn the respect of the defeated that way.
It didn't take long. Sato obtained Brawly's contact information, exchanged words of praise for his Pokémon, and quickly gained the straightforward Trainer's friendship.
After securing this connection, Sato slipped away, shook off the rabid fans chasing him, found a deserted spot, changed clothes, and removed the Ditto-crafted human-skin mask. Then he re-entered through the audience passage and returned to the seat Whitney and Daisy had saved for him.
There, he relaxed, eating popcorn with the two girls and chatting casually as they waited for the next quarterfinal match.
Before long, it began. One of the competitors was none other than Tobias, and his opponent a random Trainer Sato didn't recognize.
Tobias, famed for owning Legendary Pokémon, commanded terrifying popularity. The moment he appeared, the crowd roared his name, chanting for him to release another Legendary.
He did not disappoint — once again sending Regirock as his opener.
And just like Sato, Tobias relied on a single Pokémon to defeat his opponent, securing an easy advance into the semifinals.