Sato chose Elite Four Kōmei, a Psychic-type specialist.
At the same time, each group would battle simultaneously on one of four separate fields.
Each competitor would fight two matches per day and, in just two days, the Top 8 would be decided!
The pace was intense, leaving no time to breathe.
"Whoa! Commanding eight Pokémon every day, and in Double Battles? This is insane!"
Joseph glanced at the surprised Mark and thought to himself that their mascot had finally matured, he actually understood what battle intensity meant now.
Sato would surely be pleased!
---◓---
The very "pleased" Sato had just arrived at the battle arena assigned to his group.
At the edge of the battlefield, a platform slowly rose, revealing four cards lying quietly atop it.
"Each of the four will draw one card. The two with matching letters will battle first," the referee explained calmly by the platform.
As soon as the words left his mouth, Aruta Kitamura had already stretched out his left hand and quickly grabbed the third card.
The other three looked over, and Aruta just gave an "awkward" smile, pretending he'd only been a little too eager.
"C-Come on, you guys too!"
Right then, the referee urged them again.
Sato blinked, as if something clicked in his mind, and casually took the second card.
"A…"
He murmured softly, then turned to look at the others.
Kōmei had already flipped his card… it was also an "A"!
On the other side, Aruta's "C" and Charlotte's "D" clearly meant they weren't in the opening match.
Starting off against Kōmei?
Sato furrowed his brow briefly, but quickly relaxed.
He subtly turned to look at Aruta and saw the poorly hidden glee under his overly serious expression.
At that moment, Sato fully understood his plan.
He wanted Sato and Kōmei to wear each other down, then swoop in later with "unexpected" strength and pick off the weakened winner?
'Heh… Let's see how that works out.
Naive little child…'
---◓---
"We now begin the first round of the Elite Four Tournament finals, Group B's first 4V4 Double Battle match. Would both sides please send out their opening Pokémon!"
With the referee's announcement, Sato and Kōmei, already on their command platforms, each released two Pokémon.
Four Poké Balls were tossed into the arena in no particular order. As the lights burst forth, four Pokémon appeared simultaneously on the field.
Tyranitar -◓⃙- Honchkrow!
Gallade -◓⃙- Slowbro!
From the stands, Joseph saw the two Pokémon Kōmei had sent out and couldn't help but feel a little nervous for Sato.
Tyranitar had a quadruple weakness to Fighting and a double weakness to Water… this wasn't a great start.
Talk about unlucky!
"Tch, if I'd just given Boss a boost earlier… no legend or myth could've stopped him then…"
Mark muttered, still thinking about using his ability to "enhance" Sato, but Joseph's glare immediately shut him down.
"Baaah! Fine, Boss probably doesn't need it anyway, right Joseph?"
Mark tried to recover, only to earn another eye roll…
---◓---
Meanwhile, the battle on the field had already begun in full force.
With a single flap of its wings, Honchkrow's massive body took to the skies at an impossible speed.
Tyranitar, on the other hand, stood its ground confidently. Even without moving, its aura radiated sheer dominance, showing just how much it trusted its own strength.
On the other side, Kōmei's two Pokémon exuded an aura no less imposing than Sato's.
Gallade's eyes were sharp, and the blades on the backs of its arms gleamed with such intensity that even a glance could make one's eyes sting.
Slowbro looked clumsy and harmless, but once it started battling, its tactics were as dirty as they came. That dumb, dopey expression had fooled countless opponents into underestimating it, only to end up losing everything.
Fortunately, another outstanding Slowbro had also appeared in this year's Elite Four Tournament.
That one belonged to Will.
Thanks to proximity, Sato had taken advantage of the chance to spar with Will's Slowbro many times behind the scenes. Which is why, from the very start of this match, Sato had already marked Slowbro as the first target to eliminate.
At last, Gallade launched the first charge. With a light body and explosive speed, it was in front of Tyranitar in nearly an instant.
Testing the waters with Brick Break!
Gallade struck a fighting stance, the white blade on its arm glowing with a fiery orange-red light.
Then, it slashed down!
Screeech~
The screeching noise grated on everyone's ears, but Gallade immediately sensed something was wrong.
Tyranitar's defense hadn't been broken!
"Sandstorm. Tailwind."
At that moment, Sato issued his commands, and a terrifying sandstorm swept across the field, accompanied by roaring gales.
Sand surged and wind howled!
Gallade, who didn't have particularly high defenses, felt intense pressure instantly. The omnipresent wind and sand sealed off its ability to Teleport completely.
"Close Combat! Surf!" Kōmei quickly gave his own commands.
"Galla!"
"…Broooo~"
Gallade didn't hold back anymore. Faced with Tyranitar right in front of it, it charged forward without hesitation and launched Close Combat.
Slowbro, despite its silly appearance, moved with surprising speed.
A massive wave surged from in front of it, crashing straight toward Tyranitar.
Clearly, Tyranitar had drawn too much aggro from the start. Seeing how firmly it stood, the opponents naturally wanted to take it down first.
"KROOOOW!"
Suddenly, a loud crow echoed from above, followed by a wind even fiercer than before.
In the whirlwind, yellow sand filled the air and merged into the Surf launched by Slowbro, instantly dyeing it a muddy yellow.
The wind also disrupted Gallade's attack rhythm. But because of that, Gallade suddenly noticed…
Its opponent hadn't moved!
'…Hadn't moved?'
It thought it had struck so quickly that the opponent hadn't even reacted.
But now it realized, that Tyranitar in front of it was a fake!
'Where was the real one!?'
Gallade's Psychic power surged. Without hesitation, it began scanning the field.
But the sand once again interfered, greatly slowing the spread of its mental senses.
Suddenly, an intense sense of danger rose in Gallade's heart. Without thinking, Gallade leapt hard to the left.
At that exact moment, a dirt-colored blade slashed through the spot where it had just been!
It dodged it!
"Ohh… it dodged?" Sato raised an eyebrow, thinking, 'Psychic-type Pokémon may be completely countered by Dark-types, but they definitely have their merits.'
However…
"…Dodging one is easy, but what about ten, a hundred, a thousand? Tyranitar!"
"TYRAAAAAN…!"