Tauros's Speed should be on par with my Raichu.
If that's the case, I'll use Froakie to create an opening—give Raichu a chance to win.
Satoshi stared at the Tauros across the battlefield, thoughts whirling.
He didn't care about the dozens of students watching from the sidelines. Truth be told, he still didn't fully understand how Pokémon battles worked in this real-world setting. His only frame of reference was blending experience from the games and the anime, doing his best to make sound decisions.
Beyond that, he had to trust in his partners—to believe they'd carry him to victory.
He took in the battlefield conditions. Froakie had already been sent out, and the distance between the two Pokémon was quite large.
That played to his advantage. Froakie was a special attacker.
If it's a special attacker, then keep your distance. Strike from afar!
Satoshi rolled his neck slightly, gauging Tauros's movements—then gave his command.
"Use [Icy Wind]!"
Froakie leapt forward, breathing out a stream of frigid air. Chilling mist swept over the field, cloaking Tauros's vision in a white haze.
"[Shadow Ball]."
The moment the teacher spoke, Tauros began charging dark energy in its mouth and launched the attack.
Huh?
A special attacker Tauros? Are you kidding me?!
Satoshi bit his tongue to suppress the retort.
Apparently, the Pokémon battle rules in this world were even more chaotic than he'd thought.
[Icy Wind] and [Shadow Ball] collided mid-air. The biting cold and swirling shadow merged for an instant—only for [Icy Wind] to be completely torn apart like paper.
The level difference was too big. There was no contest.
Still, Satoshi noticed something—thanks to [Icy Wind], [Shadow Ball]'s speed had been disrupted. It moved slower, heavier.
Of course, [Icy Wind] had a Speed-lowering effect. That part made sense.
"Dodge it."
Froakie's eyes narrowed. It sensed the incoming danger and launched itself upward, barely avoiding the attack.
Froakie was clearly weaker than Tauros. But if this one was trained for special attacks, Satoshi just might have a chance to win.
The teacher, meanwhile, wasn't letting up. As Froakie landed, he called out another command.
"Tauros, [Hyper Beam]!"
With a thunderous charge, Tauros gathered energy and fired a brilliant beam of destruction—turning the once calm battlefield into scorched terrain in seconds.
You're really something else…
A STAB 150-power nuke, combined with a massive level gap—that would definitely one-shot Froakie.
Satoshi wasn't surprised. What caught him off guard was that the teacher's Tauros was built for special attacks.
"[Protect]!"
Faced with disaster, Satoshi didn't hesitate. He gave the call, and Froakie immediately summoned a green barrier around itself.
A glowing shield shimmered to life. Hyper Beam smashed into it, screeching against the barrier, powerful enough to rattle the whole stadium.
But it held.
[Hyper Beam] eventually dissipated, unable to break through Froakie's [Protect].
And now Tauros was in its post-attack cooldown—unable to move.
This… this was the brilliance of [Protect]!
"Whoa, no way… Asama-kun's holding his own against Professor Fanta?"
"This has to be a cheat or something. The power gap is insane, but he still blocked it? Is [Protect] really that good?!"
"Yeah, but it only works against stuff with recoil or a recharge penalty, right?"
The murmuring classmates around him made Satoshi feel like his entire body was going numb.
What is with you Class 1-A weirdos?
How could a move this clutch ever be useless?
He desperately wanted to ignore them.
"[Icy Wind], again!"
Froakie bounded forward, mouth spraying out another gust of freezing wind. A fog of frost burst forth, covering Tauros and chilling the earth beneath it.
The field turned slick. Ice crystals clung to Tauros's hooves, making movement more difficult.
But because of [Icy Wind]'s short range, Froakie had to get in close.
The teacher, watching calmly, gave a slight smirk.
"Asama-kun, allow me to teach you a fundamental of Pokémon battling—type matchups."
His tone grew serious, like a professor offering a final lesson.
He was fully in teacher mode, and Satoshi was now sweating nervously.
Type matchups… oh no.
Wait… was he about to—
A sudden realization struck Satoshi. He immediately pulled out two Poké Balls—Froakie's and Raichu's.
The teacher swept his hand dramatically.
"Bow before the awesome might of a Practical Class Instructor!"
…Okay, that was a little cringe.
But his energy was undeniable.
"Tauros, use [Wild Charge]—wait, what?!"
"Return, Froakie! Raichu, let's go!"
Before the teacher could finish, Satoshi had already recalled Froakie and sent out Raichu.
"Rai-rai~!"
Raichu appeared on the field, crackling with energy.
Tauros, already charging forward with golden lightning wrapped around its body, collided straight into Raichu—only to have its attack absorbed entirely.
Raichu's Lightning Rod activated, drawing in the electricity and converting it into power.
Special Attack +1.
"…"
The teacher was stunned. He gasped quietly, all but whispering, This kid… he's terrifying.
The air around them buzzed with electricity. Raichu's body glowed with golden light as currents danced across its fur. The teacher had been completely caught off guard. He hadn't expected Raichu to deflect the attack so easily.
Honestly, he wanted to slap himself for giving that monologue about type advantage.
So that's what all the special attacks were for—to force Tauros into close range. Makes sense. Being kited sucks.
This time, Satoshi smiled confidently.
Froakie was the newbie. His true ace… was Raichu, who'd been by his side for years.
It felt great to finally let loose with his ace—and even better to dominate the battle. His experience from the other world did have value here.
This world didn't run on numbers or stats… but it did reward strategy.
As that thought crossed his mind, he gave the final command.
"Raichu, [Thunderbolt]!"
"Rai—RAI!!"
Raichu, boosted by [Lightning Rod], unleashed a devastating [Thunderbolt]. A blast of golden lightning surged forward from point-blank range.
"Dodge it—!"
The teacher tried to order Tauros to move, but the lingering effects of [Icy Wind] had slowed its reactions. Its footing was shaky, its speed impaired.
"Ken—tai!"
The [Thunderbolt] struck true. Tauros's body crackled with electricity as the full force of the attack surged through it. Unable to withstand the blow, it finally collapsed.
"I lost…"
The teacher's expression was complicated. He'd thought he could teach this arrogant freshman a lesson—give him a bit of humble pie.
But instead, he'd been thoroughly defeated.
Even Raichu had been raised to near-equal footing with his own Tauros.
"Incredible… That's Asama-kun…"
Chihaya Anon and the rest of the class stood at the edge of the battlefield, eyes wide and shining, unable to look away from the victorious boy and his Pokémon.
They could hardly believe what they'd just seen.