"Gengar, Trick Room!"
"Gengengen~"
Accompanied by a ghostly call with a touch of serenity, Gengar appeared on the battlefield, and the field was immediately covered by a multicolored cube-shaped veil that flashed and then vanished.
Trick Room had successfully activated. Gorebyss, whose Speed doubled in the rain, would now be forced to move last.
"Gengar, Shadow Ball, repeatedly."
"Gaaa~"
Gengar brought its hands together and dozens of dark-glowing Shadow Balls suddenly materialized around it, all launching toward Gorebyss.
Just as the Shadow Balls were about to hit, Wallace's command finally came in.
"Gorebyss, use Amnesia."
Amnesia: empties its mind to forget its concerns to sharply raise Special Defense!
Bang! Bang! Bang…
Shadow Balls landed one after another on Gorebyss, and Sato saw it very clearly, Gorebyss began using Amnesia immediately after taking the first Shadow Ball hit.
Such sharp battle instinct, and such terrifying execution speed!
With its Special Defense sharply boosted, Gorebyss easily withstood Gengar's Shadow Ball barrage.
Seeing the calm Gorebyss and the ever-collected Wallace, Sato felt a vague sense of unease rising in his chest.
To play it safe, Sato issued his next command.
"Toxic."
Fshhh~
Gengar waved its hand and released a cloud of toxic gas, hitting Gorebyss again without fail.
This time, Gorebyss used Coil, raising its Attack, Defense, and Accuracy all at once.
"Gengar, Mean Look!"
The calmer Wallace remained, the more unsettled Sato felt. So once again, he refrained from ordering a direct attack, and instead chose to prevent Gorebyss from escaping.
Because if he remembered correctly, Gorebyss knew how to use Baton Pass!
Wallace smiled at Sato and issued his command without haste, "Gorebyss, use Aqua Ring."
"Gooo~"
Gorebyss resisted the toxic damage corroding its body and began to emit a deep blue glow.
It was just a support move, but it bathed the entire battlefield in brilliant blue light.
Utterly beautiful and dazzling!
At that moment, the overcast sky began to clear, and the rain set by Pelipper's Drizzle faded away.
Watching Gorebyss still floating gracefully in mid-air, Sato wished he could slap himself.
He'd been far too cautious. After gaining a tactical advantage over Wallace, he instinctively kept relying on tactics to win.
But he hadn't realized… Gorebyss wasn't even that powerful to begin with. If Gengar had attacked full force from the start, it might have already been defeated.
And now?
Amnesia + Coil + Aqua Ring!
Gorebyss had enhanced itself across the board. Aqua Ring kept it suspended in the air and partially counteracted the ongoing damage from Toxic.
Even more critical: Trick Room was still active, and with the rain now gone, Gorebyss's Swift Swim was no longer in effect, meaning its Speed returned to normal.
Gengar was now the faster one!
"Gengar, Trick Room!" Sato commanded urgently; one more Trick Room would neutralize the Speed reversal.
But just then, Wallace also smiled and gave a command: "Gorebyss, unleash a dazzling Aqua Tail~"
"Gooo~"
Aqua Tail whipped forward. Each surge of water seemed meticulously calculated; no chaos, only elegance. Under the sunlight, it gleamed brilliantly, radiant and mesmerizing.
With Trick Room still in effect, Gengar could only watch helplessly as it was struck, and only after enduring the pain did it manage to activate Trick Room again.
"Gorebyss, Refresh!"
"Gooo~"
Taking advantage of the moment while Gengar was still recovering from the hit, Wallace issued another command.
Gorebyss let out a high-pitched cry, and its entire body suddenly burst into a pink glow. Under its light, the effects of Toxic vanished completely.
Refresh: heals the user's status conditions, including Toxic!
Seeing this, Sato's heart sank with a jolt, suddenly feeling that everything he'd done so far had been completely laughable.
"Gen~gar…"
But just then, Gengar let out a sigh that reached Sato's ears.
A moment later, Trainer and Pokémon locked eyes. Gengar's golden pupils suddenly flashed with light, causing Sato to instinctively squint.
Crack!
A shattering sound echoed through Sato's mind like glass breaking. In that instant, all the unease, anxiety, fear, and frustration that had been weighing on him vanished.
It was Supersonic!
Sato snapped his gaze toward Gorebyss, still floating leisurely in midair.
From the moment it entered the field, Gorebyss had been using Supersonic, not only to break through Zoroark's Illusion tactic, but also to amplify Sato's cautious mindset toward Wallace.
That's why he hadn't issued aggressive commands, instead relying on Toxic, Mean Look, and a second Trick Room.
But Trick Room was already nearing expiration, and using it again just to cancel it out was practically worthless…
Meanwhile, Wallace had noticed the interaction between Sato and Gengar and realized that Sato had finally "snapped out of it."
'What a shame. I already hold absolute advantage!' Wallace thought, and once again gave a cheerful command: "Gorebyss, Surf!"
"Gooo~"
Gorebyss swayed its body gracefully, and as it moved, a towering wave began to rise, soon sweeping across the entire battlefield.
Sato patted his face lightly and exchanged a calm glance with Gengar. "Gengar, use Substitute."
"Gen!"
Gengar brought its hands together. Without even turning around, its body swelled, and a blank-eyed "Gengar" appeared in its place.
The next moment, Surf roared through the field!
Swooooshhhhh~
The audience stretched their necks forward, eager to see what happened to Gengar; was it defeated by Gorebyss or not?
But the "Gengar" stood there like it was rooted to the ground, completely unmoved by the crashing wave.
Only after the tide receded did the enlarged "Gengar" disappear with a soft pop into light particles, and the real Gengar remained in place, hands folded, still refusing to turn around.
"Sato-kun, how many Substitutes can you really use~? Gorebyss, Hydro Pump!"
"Gengar, Substitute," Sato replied with a soft smile, still calm and unhurried.
Gengar swelled again, and in the next second, Gorebyss's powerful Hydro Pump pierced straight through it.
Pop!
The Substitute vanished. Gengar stood, hands still folded, it still didn't turn around!
"Gengar, Pain Split."
Gengar still didn't turn, but its body suddenly pulsed with red light, which then enveloped Gorebyss as well. In that instant, Gorebyss felt like all its strength had been drained.