"Tyranitar, see that red pattern? Aim for it and attack! Use Dark Pulse!"
Hearing Natsui's command, Tyranitar opened its mouth. A wave of dark energy formed within and shot towards the spot where Kecleon had disappeared.
Tyranitar's immediate reaction shocked Harrison again.
Now even Kecleon's weakness is known! He was now completely certain that Natsui must have been to the Hoenn region before; otherwise, he couldn't possibly understand it so thoroughly!
"Kecleon, get out of there, quick!"
Just as Harrison finished speaking, the invisible Kecleon swiftly dodged aside. Harrison's training methods had to be commended here. Normally, Kecleon, due to its nature, wasn't the slowest Pokémon, but it definitely wasn't fast.
Yet, Harrison's Kecleon displayed astonishing speed. In just a flash, it disappeared from Tyranitar's attack range.
BOOM!
The Dark Pulse struck the thick ice surface, blasting a large crater and sending countless ice shards scattering in all directions.
Kecleon, however, reappeared unharmed on the other side.
It can fight!
Seeing this, Harrison let out a long breath, his tension slowly easing.
He had been intimidated by Natsui earlier, causing some panic. Thinking back now, even if Natsui could see through Kecleon's invisibility, it wasn't a huge deal. At least it could still rely on its speed advantage to maneuver around Tyranitar!
With this thought, he shouted loudly, "Kecleon, find its opening!"
Kecleon began running circles around Tyranitar. It was so fast it was nearly invisible, and combined with its camouflage, it was practically impossible to track with the naked eye.
At such speed, the pattern on its body became a blur, somewhat mitigating its weakness.
After circling Tyranitar a dozen times, during which Tyranitar turned its body but couldn't keep up with Kecleon's speed—often losing sight of it the moment it spotted it—Tyranitar was unable to launch an attack.
Amidst this maneuvering, Kecleon suddenly paused, then shot out its long tongue, striking at Tyranitar!
Harrison was confident that Tyranitar hadn't reacted in time to Kecleon's attack!
Under his watchful eyes, the soft tongue stretched several meters. Its tip, like a fist, carried immense force and reached Tyranitar in an instant.
But to his surprise, the moment the tongue made contact, a dull 'thwack' sounded as it was repelled by Tyranitar's armor!
Damn it, is it too hard!?
Fortunately, before Tyranitar could counterattack, Kecleon disengaged again, giving its opponent no opportunity.
This was a battle between speed and defense.
From his position, Natsui contemplated how to defeat such an opponent. Glancing around at the smooth ice surface, an idea struck him.
"Tyranitar, use Earthquake!"
Tyranitar lifted its right foot and stomped down hard. Instantly, countless cracks radiated outwards from Tyranitar!
A series of alarming 'crack-crack' sounds filled the air as the solid ice surface fractured into numerous fissures, becoming uneven. With just one blow, the environment of the Ice Field was permanently altered!
Caught in the tremor, Kecleon lost its footing, its small body wobbling uncontrollably. As it regained its senses, another Dark Pulse came rushing towards it!
"Dodge it, quick!"
Kecleon leaped aside, narrowly avoiding the attack.
Afterward, it tried to run again, but the shattered ice surface, full of cracks and uneven chunks, greatly restricted its movement speed. It could no longer run freely as before!
This is bad!
Harrison realized this was extremely disadvantageous for Kecleon. He yelled, "Use Psybeam, quick!"
It seemed he wanted to attack from a distance with Psybeam, hoping to inflict confusion. However, preparing the move inevitably required Kecleon to stop moving, which also gave Tyranitar an opening.
Just as Kecleon fired the Psybeam, sharp, pointed rocks burst through the ice layer, thrusting towards it!
The two moves met in the center of the field. The Psybeam hit the rocks, failing to reach Tyranitar. Kecleon, however, was struck by the rocks and sent flying high into the air.
The impact forced it out of its camouflage. As it fell, it saw a massive shadow loom over it.
Looking up, it saw Tyranitar towering above, staring down coldly!
"Got you," Natsui said with a smile. "Finish it! Use Hyper Beam!"
As Tyranitar opened its mouth, a powerful beam of energy formed within it in the next second!
"Dodge it quickly!" Harrison yelled.
Just as Kecleon struggled to its feet and tried to move away, the Hyper Beam erupted. The thick beam instantly engulfed Kecleon completely...
BOOM!
A blinding light flashed. When the energy slowly dissipated, the audience looked closely and saw a large hole melted into the ice field by the Hyper Beam. Kecleon lay motionless within it.
The referee promptly raised his flag. "Kecleon is unable to battle! Tyranitar wins the first round!"
"Alright!" In the stands, seeing Natsui win the first battle, Misty waved her flag and cheered, her attitude completely different from when Natsui battled Ash.
Back then, both sides were friends, so it was awkward to cheer. But now? Hmph, she doesn't know Harrison!
Recalling Kecleon, Harrison took out his second Poké Ball with a heavy expression.
As he threw it far out, the audience saw his second Pokémon. It was entirely black, resembling a slender dog, with two large curved horns on its head and a long, devil-like tail. It looked very familiar—the Dark/Fire Pokémon commonly seen in the Johto region, Houndoom!
Finally sending out a familiar Pokémon brought a mixture of disappointment and relief to the audience.
Although the element of surprise was gone, seeing Pokémon not native to Johto constantly made it feel less like the Silver Conference.
Natsui had battled Houndoom many times before; he was very familiar with it.
Seeing this Pokémon, he recalled Tyranitar and sent out his Jolteon again.
Since it's a canine Pokémon, I'll fight it with a fellow canine!
Although Jolteon didn't look much like a common dog, its design was based on sheepdogs, fennec foxes, or coyotes—definitely a canine!
When the battle began, the two Pokémon immediately started running around the field.
Compared to Jolteon, Houndoom wasn't as fast, but it was still among the quicker Pokémon. Although the terrain had become more complex after the previous battle, it didn't hinder these two agile Pokémon.
With nimble steps, they treated the protruding rocks and deep cracks as nothing.
However, for some reason, Jolteon chose hit-and-run tactics, not engaging Houndoom head-on, but constantly retreating and darting around the battlefield!
Harrison, though confused, still commanded Houndoom to pursue.
During the chase, flames repeatedly shot across the field. The energy and heat raised the temperature of the Ice Field, and some shattered ice chunks even began to melt!
At first, Harrison didn't realize anything, until Houndoom stepped through a puddle, splashing water. Only then did it strike him why Natsui had sent out Jolteon!
This is bad!
Before he could give any instructions, Natsui suddenly yelled loudly, "Now! Use Discharge!"
Jolteon's spiky fur bristled sharply. A dazzling electric discharge erupted from its body, instantly conducting through the water towards Houndoom!
Normally, Houndoom could easily dodge such an attack. But now, with water as a conductor, the electricity traveled faster and in unpredictable paths, making it impossible to defend against!
ZZZZT!!!
The current surged through Houndoom's body. It barely endured until the discharge subsided, puffing out black smoke. Before it could recover, Jolteon was already upon it, raising its two front legs!
Double Kick, activated!
Thump, thump!
Two consecutive kicks struck Houndoom squarely on the head, knocking it to the ground, unable to get back up.
Another victory!
In the stands, Misty looked puzzledly at Brock beside her. "Why... does Natsui's battle seem even easier than Ash's? So effortless..."
"You can't really say that," Brock said, shaking his head. "Look, Harrison's true ace, that Blaziken, hasn't appeared yet. Maybe he hasn't used his real strength."
"Hey, you two!" Ash, sitting between them, heard their conversation and proudly puffed out his chest. "Don't you know how amazing Natsui is? Just look at the Indigo Conference! Even in the finals, no one could defeat even one of his Pokémon! Isn't this normal? Hehe, only my Charizard and Pikachu could actually give him trouble!"
"You little..." Misty rolled her eyes at him, finding it amusing. "Don't tell me you got cocky just because you beat two of Natsui's Pokémon? You're easily satisfied!"
At that moment, the match entered the third round of the first half. This time, Harrison still didn't send out his Blaziken. Instead, he sent out a Miltank!
Many might not understand why he wouldn't send out his ace Pokémon to stop the losing streak. Only Natsui, seeing the lineup, instantly understood. Harrison was betting everything on the second half!
He wanted to go all out against Natsui after the break!
Although Natsui knew his plan, he still gave the Miltank on the field due respect, sending out Crystal Steelix again to battle it.
Crystal Steelix's appearance once again drew loud cheers from the crowd. Its appearance was both beautiful and majestically imposing, much like Ash's Charizard, winning the affection of many spectators—perhaps even more popular than Charizard!
As an excellent defender and agile close-combat 'little cow', Harrison's Miltank had a slightly different fighting style from Whitney's in Goldenrod City.
Although both knew Rollout, Harrison's Miltank didn't rely on it as its primary attack. Instead, it frequently engaged in close-quarters combat, clashing head-on with Crystal Steelix!
Tackle, Stomp, Zen Headbutt, Body Slam...
Despite Miltank's fierce attacks and valiant efforts, it ultimately couldn't break through Crystal Steelix's defense. Instead, it was caught in Steelix's Bind, bitten, and finally finished off with a Take Down, slammed against a larger ice rock, losing consciousness.
All three matches in the first half ended with Natsui's victory.
When the halftime break began, Harrison sat on his chair with a grave expression, beads of nervous sweat on his forehead.
He had already made it to the Top 4. Just a little more effort, and he could reach the finals!
No one wanted to be eliminated at this stage!
But...
He glanced across at Natsui, who was sitting calmly with his eyes closed, showing no signs of panic. Harrison felt immensely pressured.
...His opponent is just too strong!
It feels like they're not even in the same league!
Sigh, I really don't know how Ash managed to defeat two of his Pokémon...
On the other side, in Natsui's rest area, he waited calmly for the break to end.
For him, the first half battles were indeed not difficult. If any of Harrison's Pokémon deserved caution, it could only be his ace Pokémon—Blaziken!
Just then, the shadow beneath his feet suddenly stirred. His Gengar floated out and appeared beside him.
"Let me join the next match too!"
Hearing its words, Natsui opened his eyes in surprise. "You?"
"Yeah!" Gengar nodded. "Watching them battle these past few days... honestly, I'm getting restless too!"
Natsui said, shaking his head with a wry smile. "You can, but... wouldn't that be a bit too cruel to Harrison?"
Gengar said with a laugh, slapping its chest, which made a 'thump-thump' sound. "Just pick the weakest one for me, let me stretch my legs a bit. And don't worry, I'll go easy on him!"
In the stands, Ash and his friends had been keeping an eye on Natsui.
At first, during the break, everything seemed normal. But when Gengar emerged and whispered something to Natsui, they sensed something was wrong!
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