Read advance chapters for both of my work, exclusively on Patreon at - www.patreon.com/Sniperwoof
-----------------
Overall, the battle arena maintained a fair setup—after all, the audience wouldn't accept anything else. What they truly enjoyed were matches between evenly matched opponents.
One-sided fights might look impressive at first, but they quickly lost their appeal. Only close, unpredictable battles could keep the audience on edge and entertained.
Given that "Baku" now only had one main Pokémon—Swampert—and that his two newly obtained Pokémon were still untrained, pitting him directly against an Aqua Team elite in a 3-on-3 battle would clearly be unfair.
Therefore, Sato's opponent this time was an ordinary Aqua Team member named Kirk, not Baku's personal rival, but a low-ranking "star gladiator" personally groomed by the arena's organizers.
According to the organizers, Kirk's overall strength was about equal to Baku's, and they even provided "precise" data for spectators to use when placing bets.
However, most of the audience still didn't have much faith in Baku.
In their eyes, Baku only had one usable Pokémon—Swampert—while Kirk was a specially trained gladiator with strategies tailored to counter him. The odds were naturally stacked in Kirk's favor.
As a result, the betting odds were noticeably lopsided: Sato's side stood at 1:2, while Kirk's side was 1:0.5. Clearly, most people had bet on Kirk to win.
Sato, however, welcomed this development. After confirming with the organizers that contestants could bet on themselves, he didn't hesitate to wager 50,000 contribution points on his own victory.
Once betting closed, the battle soon began. The roulette revealed the battlefield type: a Water Field. Sato had the first move.
"Let's go, Staryu—you're up first!"
The moment Sato saw the stage switch to a Water Field, he threw out Staryu's PokeBall. The Pokémon emerged in a flash, landing on the field's shallow water surface between four floating platforms.
"Tch. So you're sending out that freshly caught trash to wear down my Pokémon's stamina? Not a bad idea—but you're bound to be disappointed."
"Go, Jumpluff! Start off with Poison Powder!"
Kirk sneered at Sato's choice and, with a smug grin, released his level 32 Jumpluff to face the much weaker Staryu.
He had already reviewed the data on Sato's current team before the match and knew that aside from Swampert, neither Staryu nor Pikachu posed much of a threat.
To make things foolproof, the organizers had even provided him with a Grass-type lineup specifically designed to counter all of Baku's known Pokémon—so he was full of confidence.
At his command, Jumpluff fluttered high above the arena and released a thick cloud of poisonous spores. The purple-tinged particles fell onto the water, quickly turning it an ominous violet.
Simultaneously, Jumpluff split its focus—spreading poisonous spores with one breath while using Bullet Seed to prevent Staryu from leaping onto the platforms.
"Don't panic—use Camouflage!"
Seeing the enemy's strategy to poison the water, Sato's brow furrowed briefly before relaxing again. He calmly issued his counter-command.
At his voice, Staryu's central gem flashed brightly. Its body shifted to a deep purple hue, temporarily changing its type from Water to Poison.
Though Camouflage wasn't an offensive move, it was extremely useful—it allowed a Pokémon to alter its type based on its surroundings to adapt to the battlefield.
In this case, had Staryu not changed type, it would've been poisoned almost immediately. But now, as a Poison-type, Staryu was completely immune to the tainted water, rendering Kirk's plan ineffective.
Moreover, with its new typing, Staryu now resisted Jumpluff's Grass-type attacks as well.
Sato's quick-thinking command impressed the audience—many spectators cheered and applauded his sharp tactical play.
Once its type had shifted, Staryu counterattacked with Swift. Brilliant golden stars shot from its core, homing in on the airborne Jumpluff like guided missiles.
Unfortunately, the level gap between the level 25 Staryu and the level 32 Jumpluff was too wide. The stars were easily shredded by Jumpluff's Bullet Seed, and Staryu took damage as it briefly surfaced.
Thankfully, with its new Poison typing and the move Recover at its disposal, Staryu managed to endure without being taken down.
Then Sato switched tactics—he ordered Staryu to fight defensively: attack with Swift and immediately dive underwater to avoid retaliation, using a hit-and-run strategy to gradually wear Jumpluff down.
While Jumpluff could use Synthesis to heal itself, the underground arena lighting made the move's effect minimal. In contrast, Staryu's Recover kept it going strong.
Soon enough, Jumpluff found itself at a disadvantage.
"Heh, as expected of a former member of the Blood Axe Squad—you've got battle experience, I'll give you that. But your Staryu is doomed anyway. Let's see how you handle this! Jumpluff, use Leech Seed!"
Frustrated that his initial tactics had failed and annoyed by Staryu's hit-and-run fighting, Kirk decided to go all in.
Jumpluff, equally furious, unleashed a massive burst of cotton-like spores laced with Leech Seed.
The seeds fell into the water and rapidly sprouted—so vigorous that even the poison in the water couldn't halt their growth.
Although Staryu tried to surface upon Sato's command, it was a moment too late—tangles of roots wrapped tightly around its limbs, trapping it in place.
The Leech Seed began draining its energy, while green healing light shimmered around Jumpluff, restoring its stamina.
"Now's my chance! Jumpluff, finish it with Bullet Seed!"
Kirk grinned as victory seemed certain. To end the fight quickly, he ordered Jumpluff to attack from above.
Hovering right over Staryu, Jumpluff opened fire with a barrage of glowing seeds.
"Perfect. You've taken the bait—now, Gravity! Pull it down from the sky!"
Sato's eyes narrowed as Jumpluff hovered directly above Staryu. It was the perfect moment.
Admittedly, Staryu's Gravity had a limited range—barely one meter around itself—and only increased gravity by about 1.2 times, so it was rarely practical in battle.
But this time, the positioning was perfect.
At Sato's command, Staryu's red core flashed once more. Instantly, the space within a one-meter radius grew heavy as the force of gravity intensified.
In the next moment—under Kirk's horrified gaze and the crowd's astonished cries—the supposedly invincible Jumpluff was yanked from the sky and crashed straight into the water below.