"I choose you—Blaziken!"
In this battle, both sides were allowed to switch Pokémon voluntarily.
After recalling Lucario, Grey's second pick was Blaziken, which hadn't appeared in a long time.
The last time Blaziken fought a serious match was against Karen—so it had basically been doing nothing but high-end games.
Of course, that was also because the challengers who came before just weren't strong enough.
Most of the time, forcing Grey to use his three main aces was already impressive.
If they were weaker than that, they might not even get past Farfetch'd.
But now, facing a trainer like Lt. Surge, it was only right for Blaziken—one of Grey's main team—to come out and spar.
[Wooo! Blaziken is a beast!]
[Chicken bro again—think we can use this chance to take out Lt. Surge's Raichu?]
[Electrode isn't even down yet and you're thinking about Raichu?]
[That's normal. Lt. Surge's Electrode is totally just a tool Pokémon, right? Bet the last move is Explosion.]
[I believe it. Anyone who uses Electrode and doesn't run Explosion is this. 👍.jpg]
"Oh? Blaziken…"
When Lt. Surge saw Grey's second Pokémon was Blaziken, he tapped his chin and started thinking through his responses.
Electrode was fast, sure—but Grey's Blaziken had the ability Speed Boost.
He'd watched the battle against Karen before.
Back then, its strength didn't look too crazy—like it had only barely reached that "strong Gym-Leader tier."
If Grey dared to bring it out now, there were usually only two possibilities.
One: this Blaziken had reached Elite Four level, or was close.
Two: Blaziken was purely a utility piece—stack buffs, then use Baton Pass to swap back into Lucario.
Focus Energy and Swords Dance, then Baton Pass—Lucario's power would spike hard.
"Grey's Blaziken… there's no way it jumped from strong Gym-Leader tier to Elite Four gatekeeper in less than a week…"
Thinking about the Pokémon Grey had, Lt. Surge couldn't help swallowing.
Even with Speed Boost, reality doesn't Speed Boost your strength that fast!
"Flamethrower!"
Grey's opener was the same as a lot of Fire-type trainers—use Flamethrower as a ranged probe.
"Blazi!"
Blaziken opened its beak, Fire-type energy becoming a surging pillar of flame that blasted out!
This Flamethrower wasn't particularly fast. For Electrode, flipping over was enough to dodge it.
Without Lt. Surge even needing to command it, Electrode casually rolled aside. The Flamethrower scraped past its body and slammed into the wall behind, leaving a scorched mark.
And after firing the move, a layer of red light flashed over Blaziken's body, making it feel lighter.
Ability: Speed Boost!
"So it already triggered Speed Boost…"
Lt. Surge wiped the cold sweat off his forehead.
The power behind that Flamethrower was absolutely not something a normal Gym-level Pokémon could output.
Meaning—the worst-case scenario had arrived!
Grey was dead set on not letting him fight Zapdos at all!
Blaziken could both deal damage and support. When it got worn down, it could just Baton Pass out—swap Lucario back in and keep pouring on the pressure.
That was way more miserable than Annihilape.
"Fine—Plan B!"
Lt. Surge's tone jumped as he instantly switched tactics. "Electrode—use Rollout!"
"Electrode~"
Heavy gray-brown energy coated Electrode, and with Rollout boosting it, its already round body became even more terrifying!
Whoosh!
The moment Lt. Surge gave the order, it became a blur, rolling like madness across the field.
The Fighting Dojo's smooth floor was the perfect stage. Electrode skimmed the edges at high speed, then snapped into Z-shaped feints and rushes!
Each slam into the ground produced a dull boom, and the gusts it kicked up crushed loose stones into powder!
And its rolling path was closing in on Blaziken at a frightening pace!
Rollout—a move that grows stronger with each consecutive hit.
But before it lands the first time, the power is honestly not that high.
It looked terrifying right now, but the first hit wasn't actually that scary.
Pure intimidation.
"Blazi!" (Perfect—bring it on!)
Blaziken wasn't the type to run. What it liked was a head-on clash.
It had been wondering how to close the distance—
And now Electrode was rolling right into its lap.
"Use Bulk Up and tank it."
Grey barked the command.
"Blazi!"
Blaziken lifted its head and squared its chest. Its muscles swelled slightly across its body.
Even with Electrode rolling straight at it, it had no intention of taking even half a step back.
Boom!!!
A heavy impact rang out.
Electrode crashed into Blaziken's chest, its spherical body still spinning wildly.
But as expected, the first hit didn't do much.
Blaziken took it cleanly. A flash of red light burst from its body, almost blinding Electrode.
After that exchange, Blaziken's Attack, Defense, and Speed all rose.
It had that "budget Victory Dance" vibe.
Electrode began its second Rollout.
This time the power was much higher—about double the first.
Blaziken could still block it.
But the third hit? That was another story.
"Blazi!" (Hit me—keep going!)
Blaziken seemed to sense Grey's situation. It let out a low roar, pushing its intent to him.
Keep fighting. Don't dodge.
"Alright—then this time, use Swords Dance!"
Grey admitted he was going to get greedy.
"Hm?"
Hearing Grey's command, Lt. Surge frowned hard. If Grey kept getting greedier, then later his Raichu really might not be able to beat him.
Rumble, rumble!
With the second Rollout, Electrode was already shaking the ground.
But even so, Blaziken stood firm. Phantom blades of cutting aura spun around it, and its momentum surged higher and higher!
Attack—sharply raised!
Electrode rolled in again, but it didn't slam into Blaziken head-on.
Instead, it scraped past Blaziken's body.
"Discharge!" Lt. Surge suddenly shouted.
"Electrode!"
Electrode stopped instantly. The moment the gray-brown glow faded, lightning spread across its whole body!
Bzzz!
Another point-blank Discharge—Blaziken didn't feel great taking that.
"Use Fire Punch and knock it away!"
Seeing Blaziken bathed in electric light, Grey could only have it force its energy up and drive Electrode back.
Lt. Surge's next command was hard to read. "Block it!"
"Blazi!"
Flames burst from Blaziken's wrist, solid fire roaring as its talons clenched into a fist. It smashed the punch into Electrode!
But then—
BOOM!!!
//Check out my P@tre0n for 20 extra chapters on all my fanfics //[email protected]/Razeil0810.