In the end, Auron chose Corphish. Carrying Elekid with Corphish following behind, the trio headed downstairs.
Shortly after Auron came down, Jace arrived.
The two didn't exchange much in the way of greetings. Auron handed over the Pokémon egg to Jace, and after Jace transferred the payment to Auron's mother, who had already left for work, they headed to Jace's house.
After placing the egg safely in its incubator, the two greeted Jace's grandmother and then headed together to the Pokémon Battle Center.
When they arrived, the chubby Peter was already pacing anxiously at the entrance.
"Oh man, Master, you're finally here! Quick, quick, quick—I can't wait any longer!"
Peter grabbed Auron's arm and practically dragged him inside.
"Hello, we'd like to reserve a battle arena."
"Certainly, just one moment... Arena Four is available. You can head in right now."
"Great, thank you!"
After getting the information from the receptionist, Peter couldn't wait and pulled Auron inside.
Auron sighed helplessly. "You really don't need to be in such a rush. It's not like I'm going to run away."
"I've been excited about this battle since last night! Look at these dark circles under my eyes."
Peter finally slowed his pace and pointed to the bags under his eyes.
Auron looked carefully and shook his head.
"Mm, you're too chubby. Can't see them."
"Master..."
Under the chubby boy's resentful gaze, Auron felt a bit uncomfortable and quickly picked up his pace.
"Right, right, let's go. I can't wait for a battle either."
The two walked briskly ahead while Jace followed behind, chuckling to himself. Soon, all three arrived at Battle Arena Four.
Since no one else was using it, the staff member led them directly onto the platform.
"Trainers, please send out your Pokémon!"
"Go, Drilbur!"
"Go, Corphish!"
"Whoa, so this is one of Master's main Pokémon? He looks really fierce!"
Seeing Corphish, the chubby Peter became even more excited.
"Swish!"
The flag dropped. The battle began.
"Drilbur, Sandstorm!"
"Corphish, Dragon Dance!"
Auron knew Peter would have Drilbur set up Sandstorm, but he had no way to stop it. After all, Jace's Arcanine from yesterday had been a prime example.
If even Extreme Speed with its +2 priority couldn't interrupt the move, there was no way Aqua Jet with its +1 priority could.
"Drilbur, Drill Run!"
Seeing Drilbur successfully set up Sandstorm, Peter's face lit up with joy. He quickly commanded Drilbur to launch an attack on Corphish.
"Master, since you didn't interrupt my Sandstorm, I won't hold back!"
Peter looked down with a smile, watching Drilbur drill toward Corphish.
"Corphish, Razor Shell."
Auron smiled slightly and spoke softly.
"Oh no! Drilbur, Protect!"
Seeing the smile on his master's face through the sandstorm, Peter's heart jumped. He hurriedly commanded Drilbur to use Protect to shield itself.
The rapidly spinning Drilbur trusted Peter completely and didn't hesitate to cancel Drill Run mid-execution. With an abrupt stop, he ended up face-to-face with Corphish.
"BONG!"
Facing Drilbur at point-blank range, Corphish didn't panic at all. His right pincer charged up power, and a Razor Shell struck down from above.
Although Protect blocked the damage, the force from the pincer still caused the ground beneath Drilbur to crack slightly.
"Oh, quick reflexes."
Auron thought to himself while continuing to command Corphish aloud.
"Aqua Jet!"
Water enveloped Corphish's body, and he instinctively shot forward, ramming into Drilbur, who had only managed to retreat two steps.
"Drilbur, Seismic Toss!"
Now Peter was getting desperate. In an instant, the situation on the field had completely reversed. The momentum had taken a sharp downturn—if Drilbur took one more hit, he probably wouldn't be able to hold on.
Drilbur endured the impact from the collision and reached out with both claws to grab Corphish.
The two Pokémon rolled together on the ground for one rotation, then Drilbur borrowed the momentum to flip through the air for another half-rotation before slamming Corphish down hard.
"Corphish, Aqua Jet!"
Auron wasn't panicked at all. Right now, even a single Water Gun could take down Drilbur.
But in the Sandstorm weather, Drilbur's speed was too fast—Water Gun would likely miss. So Auron chose to have Corphish get in close.
"Drilbur, Protect!"
Protect once again blocked Corphish's Aqua Jet.
But there was no way left to block the Razor Shell that Corphish had already raised high.
"BOOM!"
Razor Shell came down, striking Drilbur hard and sending him flying.
Drilbur's stamina was depleted. His eyes were already spinning while he was still airborne, and after landing, he had no chance of getting back up.
"Drilbur is unable to battle! Corphish wins!"
With the referee's announcement, Peter dejectedly recalled his swirl-eyed Drilbur into his Poké Ball.
"Master..."
Seeing Auron walking toward him, Peter called out somewhat wearily.
"Don't take one battle loss to heart. You and I are on different paths. A weather team's true strength shows in full-team battles."
Auron patted Peter's shoulder consolingly.
"Yeah, Master, I understand now."
"Good, as long as you understand."
Auron smiled and headed down from the arena first. Corphish had also taken a hit and needed treatment.
Peter followed excitedly behind Auron. He'd figured it out—that's right, the advantage of a weather team really did lie in full-team battles.
The mind games of switching, predictions, and counter-predictions—that was where the fun of strategic team building truly lay!
The two had just left the battle arena when they saw Jace crouching down, having a staring contest with Elekid.
"Uh, what are you two doing?"
Seeing this scene, Auron asked with some amusement.
"Kya ha ya!"
The moment Elekid saw Auron come out, he stopped his standoff with Jace. Pointing at Jace while muttering incomprehensible sounds, he quickly ran toward Auron.
Auron crouched down and scooped Elekid into his arms, asking, "Haha, what's wrong? Why are you so upset?"
"What else? He wouldn't let me hold him, and he kept trying to run onto the field."
Jace also stood up, made a face at the Elekid in Auron's arms, then explained to Auron.
Elekid huffily turned his head away and buried it in Auron's chest.
"Haha, alright, don't be angry. Let's go get something good to eat."
Laughing, Auron carried Elekid with Jace and Peter following behind. The three of them arrived at the medical room.
The two handed their Poké Balls to Chansey, then sat down on the benches outside to wait.
Auron didn't go back on his word. He immediately pulled a treat from his backpack and placed it in Elekid's hand.
Elekid: ??? That's it?