"Once all Pokémon of either side lose their ability to battle, the match will end! During this period, neither side may switch Pokémon, nor attack the Trainer themselves, nor..."
The referee's seriousness and solemnity spread a heavy atmosphere across the arena.
The spectators all became serious, stopping their meaningless cheers and shouts.
The rules of the Master Tournament were brought out in the main tournament.
Even though it's the sixth Master Tournament, and the seventh has already finished, there's no doubt it gives spectators a fresh feeling.
It's as if the competition has reached the level of the Master Tournament.
"Natsuhiko's Pokémon haven't changed much, still Beedrill, Alakazam, Togekiss, Aegislash, Latios, and Infernape."
Lance rubbed his chin, watching as Natsuhiko summoned his Pokémon one by one.
"Natsuhiko is strong, but his foundation limits his deeper development. In contrast, Hilona's choices are much richer."
Flint crossed his arms and agreed.
"Garchomp, Lucario, Glaceon, Togekiss, Spiritomb, and the last one... huh? Gardevoir?"
Kona looked at the Pokémon on Hilona's side and showed a shocked expression when seeing the last one.
Lance's expression was similar.
No one expected Hilona to have prepared a Gardevoir as well, which they all were unaware of.
Flint thoughtfully and slowly said:
"I've heard a bit about this. I know Hilona had a Kirlia in her youth, but it seems when her grandmother, Dr. Jiezilan, was investigating ancient ruins, she was almost crushed by collapsing rocks. Since then, I haven't seen this Pokémon again."
He is the one among them earliest acquainted with Hilona.
He's often compared between the Hoenn Region and Sinnoh Region, having the most battles there, so Flint knows a bit more.
Hearing this, Lance and Kona suddenly realized.
Turns out this Gardevoir was sent by Hilona to protect her grandmother.
Now Hilona has called back Gardevoir, showing how much she values Natsuhiko.
"With Psychic Type Gardevoir present, it can indeed bring some limitations to Natsuhiko's core Alakazam."
Having confirmed Gardevoir's origin, Lance couldn't help but start analyzing their situations.
Natsuhiko's Alakazam is the core of his lineup, which was no secret to them.
Hilona was aware as well.
Though there is Spiritomb with Dark Type and Ghost Type traits, relying solely on Spiritomb to restrict Alakazam is not easy.
With Gardevoir added, the two Pokémon together might actually sever Alakazam's connection with Natsuhiko's other Pokémon.
Meanwhile, on the field.
Upon seeing Hilona's last Pokémon, Natsuhiko couldn't help but show a surprised expression.
Hilona, however, remained smiling, even with a hint of "smugness" and "satisfaction" in her eyes.
Natsuhiko was speechless.
If his lineup truly had only Alakazam as the core, Gardevoir would indeed cause him great trouble.
But the problem is.
He's not using a single-core lineup right now.
Yet Hilona truly had another late move hidden, making Natsuhiko feel slightly helpless.
Isn't this just a match, does it need to be like this?
It's turning into a "Backstab Tournament."
This is where Natsuhiko misjudged Hilona.
Gardevoir was given to Hilona by Jiezilan after seeing the news, and Dr. Jiezilan happened to complete an investigation of ancient ruins, just timely enough.
And Hilona naturally realized Gardevoir's role.
Out of respect, she put forth all her effort.
"Are both contestants ready?" The referee's voice resounded again.
Upon getting two nods of acknowledgment, the flag in his hand dropped.
"Begin the battle!"
All at once.
The six Pokémon on each side, totaling twelve Pokémon, all sprang into action.
Directing six Pokémon at once demands too much from a Trainer.
For the spectators, they barely had time to discern the players' commands, only able to watch the situation unfold on the field.
"Alakazam, Psychic Arena."
Alakazam, skilled with this trick, set up the "Psychic Arena" nearly instantly.
Following that, a formidable wave of psychic energy quickly spread outward with Alakazam at the center.
But.
It wasn't just Alakazam's psychic energy—another wave of telekinesis swept over, rapidly creating a storm from the collision of two psychic energies.
Hilona's Gardevoir's eyes glowed with an aura, directly facing Alakazam with determination.
"Gardevoir, use Trait Swap to copy Alakazam's 'Magic Defense,' then 'Trait Swap' with Glaceon and Spiritomb."
With the "Copy" trait, Gardevoir needed only a glance, locking eyes with Alakazam, it instantly copied the valuable "Magic Defense" trait from Alakazam.
"Infernape, stop it!" Natsuhiko commanded with a furrowed brow.
Infernape took the lead in attacking.
Moving like a blaze, it quickly closed in on Gardevoir, poised to strike with both palms.
Clap Attack!