Chapter 274: A Faint Smile, A Matter of Life and Death
In reality, abilities and moves often can't actively distinguish between friend and foe.
The link between Plus and Minus abilities can be selective when there are multiple targets. For example, when both Minun and Greninja had the Minus ability, Ampharos could choose to link only with its own teammate.
But once there was only one target left within range, the activation of the ability was no longer up to the user.
A Pokémon's ability is like a passive skill—one that can't be turned off.
So, even as Ampharos and Greninja's battle intent boiled over, their gazes clashing in the air with visible sparks, the energy from their abilities continued to flow freely between them, a bizarre, intertwined dance.
It gave off a strange feeling of two fated rivals locked in a dance of death.
"Use Thunderbolt!"
"Haze!"
But no amount of strange feelings could stop the inevitable slaughter!
Ampharos attacked first!
Greninja, for the time being, focused on stalling and creating distance.
The duration of Entrainment was almost up!
With Minun gone, the status couldn't be reapplied. He definitely had to wait it out first.
However, Derek also knew what Arthur was thinking.
"Ampharos, chase!"
The last time he faced Haze, he had retreated, not daring to go deep into the fog for fear of being caught in close combat.
But this time, he was brave!
With Cotton Guard active, he felt like there was nothing to fear!
And then, he was quickly taught a lesson by Greninja…
From within the black fog, a sudden grunt was heard, followed by a loud "thud" of something hitting the ground.
Then, Derek received a frantic call for help from Ampharos through their mental link—
"It hurts, it hurts, it hurts!! Master, help me!!"
Derek was completely bewildered.
Separated by a thick wall of black fog, he had no idea what had just happened on the field.
In reality, deep within the fog, the moment Ampharos took a few steps, Greninja had used its tongue to sweep its legs out from under it, sending it to the ground.
Then, instead of blindly attacking the fluffy, sturdy cushion, Greninja nimbly flipped over and mounted Ampharos.
Then it began to viciously bend its short arms and legs!
Arthur had taught him this. It was called ground grappling, or submission wrestling.
Faced with such joint locks and stretches, the defense provided by Cotton Guard suddenly seemed not so reliable…
Before long, Ampharos was being twisted into submission by Greninja, yelping in pain as it struggled and rolled on the ground, unable to break free.
On the sidelines, Derek's face was as black as the bottom of a pot.
Although he didn't know exactly what had happened, there was no doubt that after this battle, the fearsome reputation of Arthur's Greninja in close combat would reach a new level!
If even Cotton Guard, which massively boosts physical defense, couldn't stop it, what could?
This thing was on a rampage!
A complete rampage!
Helpless, the moment the cooldown ended, Derek immediately gave the command.
"Use Discharge!"
But by then, Greninja had already moved away from Ampharos's body.
"Greninja, Substitute!"
Using Substitute again, it successfully evaded the wave of damage.
In reality, the self-damage from Substitute isn't as severe as in the games (because overall durability is higher). Using Substitute was, at the very least, better than taking a super-effective, ability-boosted Discharge head-on.
This was the umpteenth time Ampharos had missed this match. Derek's composure was truly on the verge of shattering.
The commentators were also getting more and more excited—
"After both partners have fainted and the match has entered a 1v1, Arthur once again showcases his miraculous dominance in his rookie year! As a fellow rookie, Derek seems to be struggling to keep up!"
That commentary was like a sharp slap across Derek's face.
It was just short of saying outright: Even among rookies, there's a world of difference.
This was painful!
Another cooldown period passed. This time, he really couldn't take it anymore.
"Use Thunder Wave!"
Arthur frowned.
This… he didn't quite understand.
Haven't I already used Rest?
"Take it down, then fall back and use Rest."
Greninja didn't say much. After expertly tripping Ampharos again, it quickly retreated, created some distance, then sat down cross-legged, entering a meditative sleep.
With the move Rest, just the instant of falling asleep is enough to cure status conditions. The rest of the time is just for accelerated healing; it doesn't matter if it gets interrupted.
Besides, self-induced sleep is much lighter than sleep caused by hypnosis. It wasn't realistic for Ampharos to try and throw Greninja out of the ring.
It's not like your Ampharos can learn Submission, right?
And indeed, Derek didn't have Submission.
He just waited for several seconds, forcing himself to wait out the cooldown.
"Thunderbolt!"
Finally, for the first time in this match, Ampharos landed a solid, super-effective hit on Greninja!
"..."
Arthur was speechless.
Did you really have to force it like that?
For a moment, he even began to wonder: Did I push him too hard?
Look at what this kid's commands have devolved into…
Derek had no choice either.
He was, of course, well aware of how foolish this was.
Rest had already healed a good portion of Greninja's damage. Hitting it now was clearly not as effective.
But it was better than constantly missing!
A small gain was better than a complete loss!
So what if it's stupid? At least I'm dealing some damage.
He then repeated this process two more times.
And Arthur played along with his performance.
Stalling for time at such a low cost was something Arthur could also accept.
One side felt it was a small win, the other felt it was acceptable.
The match proceeded in this stable manner for a little while longer.
Until—
Suddenly, in a certain moment, the flow of energy that had been circulating between Ampharos and Greninja disappeared.
The duration of Entrainment had ended.
When Greninja's ability was no longer Minus, the link naturally broke.
At this moment, Greninja felt a long-lost sense of ease—its Protean was back!
"Attack!!"
Instantly, Arthur no longer needed Haze or Substitute.
This was why, even knowing the opponent was using the most brutish method to deal damage, he had insisted on using Rest every time Greninja was hit with Thunder Wave!
He needed Greninja to always be in optimal condition.
So that the moment its ability returned, it could immediately counterattack, unhindered by paralysis!
But the opponent wasn't a fool either.
"Ampharos, use Iron Tail!"
Derek had, after all, held onto his last move slot!
He knew very well that once Protean returned, he couldn't beat the Spikes-wielding Greninja with just Thunderbolt and Discharge.
That's why he hadn't rushed to use his big moves while Greninja was sleeping.
He had saved his last move slot, holding onto one final hope.
But unfortunately, it was all for naught.
The first Iron Tail that Ampharos swung out was caught directly by Greninja, who sank its stance and extended its arms.
It took the damage head-on, sliding back several meters, but it held on firmly. It didn't fall, and it didn't let go.
Now, with its tail caught in Greninja's grasp, Ampharos had no escape!
Greninja gave a faint smile, and in that instant, Ampharos's fate hung in the balance…
Seeing this, Derek could only sigh silently in his heart.
He knew this match was beyond saving.
A little over a minute later, the referee raised his flag—
"Ampharos is unable to battle! Will the trainer please recall their Pokémon."
With both partners gone, and both teammates having given their all, in the final 1v1 between rookies, Arthur had once again maintained his dominance!
As a quality check for their new lineup, he was as strict as ever.
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