Chapter 533: A Furious Flurry of Moves
The opponent Arthur was facing was named Anderson, from the White Eagle Alliance. He was a somewhat famous outdoor streamer and a veteran real-combat enthusiast.
Unfortunately, real combat wasn't mainstream in this era. In peaceful times, people preferred watching competitive battles with clear rules, fairness, and higher commercial value.
Anderson was no slouch. His ace Sirfetch'd was solidly captain-level! The Tauros beneath him, though weaker on paper at the peak of main player level, could rival a captain-level Pokémon in burst power once its Anger Point was triggered!
On paper, he was definitely on par with the captains of famous teams!
But because real combat wasn't as popular as competitive battling, his fame was far below that of globally renowned competitive players. That was why he was desperately trying to seize this event to showcase himself, always acting hyperactive in front of the camera.
"Oh, my Arceus! The little cutie opposite me still wants to resist? Does he think infantry can fight cavalry?"
Anderson shouted freely while riding his Rhyhorn in the open desert, like a wild cowboy. Unfortunately, his White Eagle accent was so weird Arthur didn't understand him.
But that didn't matter. Since the opponent had charged, Arthur, who needed points, had no reason not to accept the challenge.
"Greninja, Battle Forme, then use Haze on the spot!"
The power boost from Anger Point was a temporary buff, which could be removed by Haze or Defog. This was another reason why the ability wasn't popular in stadium battles.
However, Haze didn't remove buffs instantly; it took time. So Anderson remained fearless!
"Keep charging! Tauros, use Horn Attack! Sirfetch'd, use First Impression!"
Sirfetch'd was the evolution of Farfetch'd. During evolution, the leek stalk it carried was upgraded into a sharp lance with a handguard! At the same time, it usually gained a fan-shaped shield made of leek leaves in its other hand.
One hand with a lance, one hand with a shield—classic knight equipment! Except for the legs being too short to grip a horse properly, it was probably the perfect Rider class servant.
At this moment, Sirfetch'd held its shield slightly back in its left hand while pointing its lance fearlessly forward with its right!
Bug-type move: First Impression!
It only worked when used immediately upon entering battle, but its power was considerable!
Facing a dual attack from the lance above and the horns below, Arthur calmly ordered, "Greninja, roll!"
As everyone knows, rolling grants invincibility frames (great fog).
Of course, in reality, the spreading black fog obscured the Bull Rider's vision, allowing Greninja to narrowly dodge the lance and horns at the last moment.
Arthur's follow-up command came immediately. "Greninja, get up and attack the bull's butt! Specter, appear and use Foul Play!"
Specter, who had been hiding in the shadow, suddenly appeared, aiming at Tauros with an eerie red light in his eyes.
Dark-type move: Foul Play. It uses the opponent's strength against them. The stronger the opponent's Attack boost, the more severe the backlash!
This move was a perfect counter to a Tauros with activated Anger Point!
But—
"Naive! Sirfetch'd, knock him back!"
Anderson, riding his Rhyhorn on the edge of the battlefield, shouted commands with equal flair, his momentum not losing out in the slightest.
Sirfetch'd swung its lance horizontally, unexpectedly knocking Specter away mid-cast and interrupting his move.
Arthur's eyelid twitched slightly as he quickly deduced, "Scrappy ability."
Sirfetch'd's ability: Scrappy. It makes the Pokémon fearless, immune to Intimidate, and allows its Normal and Fighting-type moves to hit Ghost-type Pokémon as if they were solid, bypassing their ghostly intangibility.
Sirfetch'd was Fighting-type, and Tauros was Normal-type. Normally, neither type could do much against Ghost-types.
Anderson had naturally prepared for this!
Scrappy was just one of his preparations!
"Pierce him, Sirfetch'd!" he roared.
Sirfetch'd thrust its lance again. This time, the normally white and green leek stalk glowed with an eerie blood-red light, as if soaked in fresh blood!
Another major difference between real combat and stadium duels: no item restrictions!
If one's own typing wasn't suited to fighting Ghost-types, then use items to cover that weakness. The blood-red light on Sirfetch'd's lance was clearly from a soul-chasing item specifically designed to target Ghost-types!
At the same time, behind Tauros's rear, the sand suddenly exploded! Another Pokémon, previously hidden under the sand, burrowed out and intercepted Greninja as it tried to attack the bull's butt!
The cobra Pokémon: Arbok!
Another of Anderson's trump cards revealed!
He smiled confidently, even blowing a kiss to the camera overhead while issuing commands.
"Arbok, Glare! Beedrill, Fell Stinger! Rhyhorn, support with Stone Edge!"
Just as Arthur hid Specter in the shadows, experienced real-combat experts knew the value of hiding their blades for a surprise attack. Hiding one or two Pokémon beforehand and unleashing them at the right moment often yielded surprising results.
Arbok was Anderson's hidden ace. He had kept it buried underground, unnoticed, waiting for the moment an enemy targeted the bull's weak point to strike! This trick had worked every time.
Anderson grinned broadly, laughing happily, already imagining his livestream chat being flooded with "666"!
In a peaceful era, real combat opponents were hard to find, and wild battles were rare. As a non-competitive trainer, he hadn't had such a thrilling fight in a long time. He had always felt his fame didn't match his strength!
Thankfully, the Ashen Desert event had finally arrived! In his eyes, this was a god-given opportunity for him to soar!
Boy from the Kubfu Alliance, lie down obediently and become a stepping stone for the great Anderson!
Unfortunately, his guess and imagination were only half right.
There was indeed a flood of "666" in his livestream chat. But sadly, the praise wasn't for him...
The next moment, just as he let out his first laugh, two sudden flashes of red light froze his expression.
Recalling beams from Poké Balls!
One beam precisely recalled Greninja just before Beedrill's Fell Stinger hit.
The other recalled Specter just as Sirfetch'd's soul-chasing lance was about to pierce him, too late to retract!
The timing of both recalls was incredibly precise, demonstrating astounding battlefield control and reaction speed!
Then, Arthur crossed his hands.
In less than half a second, he swapped Poké Balls!
Two more red lights flashed!
Little Lapras appeared beside him—"Ice Beam!"
The little dragonfly was thrown forward—"Dragon Tail, knock Sirfetch'd diagonally upwards!"
Anderson's laughter cut off abruptly.
He suddenly realized that despite his furious flurry of moves, his score was zero...
He had been completely outplayed!
Five Pokémon had used items and skills, and not a single one hit! Instead, the opponent seized the opening and landed two counter-attacks perfectly!
Tauros took an Ice Beam to the face, while Sirfetch'd was sent flying high into the air by Dragon Tail.
And then—
Arthur continued, "Old Flame, Mega Evolve, Flare Blitz!"
Anderson sucked in a breath of cold air.
Crap!
I've run into a tough one!!
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