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Despite its name suggesting otherwise, Drapion is not actually a Dragon-type Pokemon, much like Charizard and Gyarados. Instead, it possesses a unique Poison and Dark-type combination. This dual typing grants it exceptional defensive capabilities, with only a single weakness to Ground-type moves, making it an ideal choice for defensive strategies.
Drapion's appearance commanded immediate respect on the battlefield. Its massive body exuded an intimidating presence, while its personality radiated fierce brutality. Thick, hardened armor plates covered every inch of its form, and the razor-sharp fangs protruding from its mouth promised devastating attacks.
Jacob studied this impressively developed Drapion with growing concern, his brow furrowing as he realized this battle would prove far more challenging than he had initially anticipated.
A wave of regret washed over him as he wished he could deploy Iron Valiant in this situation. With that powerful Pokemon at his disposal, he could have easily overwhelmed these young trainers, using just one Iron Valiant to defeat two of his opponent's Pokemon without breaking a sweat.
The High School Cup's outcome had gradually lost its original importance for Jacob. His initial motivation for participating centered around earning extra points for his ideal university application and claiming the system's valuable rewards.
However, circumstances had changed dramatically since then. His groundbreaking scientific research achievements had already secured him a university recommendation, eliminating that particular concern. Apart from the system's enticing rewards, nothing else in this competition held significant appeal for him anymore.
Now participating in the High School Cup, Jacob felt completely relaxed and free from pressure. His only remaining goals were simple: play each match to the best of his ability, secure victory in every battle, and ensure that his six months of dedicated preparation wouldn't go to waste.
Of course, another compelling reason drove his continued participation - he desperately wanted to reach the National Finals to finally meet Nina, a meeting he had long anticipated.
...…
"Drapion, use Roar!"
"Charizard, Heat Wave!"
When Wylder issued the Roar command, Jacob's eyebrows knitted together in surprise. He had initially expected this Drapion to employ an aggressive Swords Dance strategy, but this tactical choice caught him completely off guard.
The classic Stealth Rock combined with Roar strategy had emerged.
This particular battle approach could be considered absolutely legendary in competitive Pokemon circles. Jacob's most vivid memory involved the infamous Gliscor team, which utilized Stealth Rock paired with endless Roar combinations to frustrate opponents into submission. The Gliscor team represented one of the most classic strategies in Pokemon battle history, serving as an excellent demonstration of player ingenuity and requiring exceptional skill coordination across the entire team roster.
Unfortunately, tournament officials eventually intervened to counter this controversial strategy by reducing the priority of moves like Roar to the absolute lowest level, ensuring they would always execute last in battle. This single rule change caused the infinite Roar strategy to vanish completely from competitive play.
Following Wylder's command, Drapion drew a deep breath before Normal-type energy surged throughout its armored body. It released a thunderous Roar that echoed across the entire battlefield.
"Roar!" Drapion's voice continued resonating with ear-splitting intensity, forcing Jacob to instinctively cover his ears for protection. The most frustrating aspect of this move was its ability to directly interfere with the opposing trainer's concentration and decision-making process.
Jacob's mind suddenly wandered to thoughts of Noivern's devastating Boomburst technique. If someone could direct that move at the opposing trainer, it would be virtually impossible to defend against. He mused quietly to himself, "If I knocked out the opposing trainer directly, that should count as a victory, right?"
Wait - why was he starting to think like Charizard, with his head filled with such underhanded tactics?
While Jacob's attention wavered momentarily, Charizard executed the Heat Wave attack with practiced precision. It gathered intense flames within its throat before suddenly releasing them in a massive torrent, unleashing the Heat Wave just before being forced to leave the battlefield.
Rolling waves of scorching heat surged forward, completely engulfing Drapion and dealing continuous fire damage. The attack left Drapion's shell glowing faintly red from the intense heat, though it was immediately apparent that Wylder's Drapion had received exceptional special defensive training.
Despite facing Charizard's powerful Heat Wave attack and sustaining heavy damage, Drapion demonstrated remarkable endurance and remained standing firm.
"Roar!"
At that precise moment, Drapion's Roar move reached its full effect. For an Overlord Class Pokemon like Drapion to use Roar against a Lord-level Pokemon such as Charizard, success was virtually guaranteed due to the significant power gap between their respective strength levels.
Normal-type energy rushed toward Charizard with irresistible force, compelling the Fire-type to transform into a beam of red light and return involuntarily to its Poke Ball.
Jacob felt his pulse quicken with nervous anticipation, knowing that this random switch could potentially determine the entire battle's ultimate direction and outcome.
Would it be Sceptile or Noibat that emerged next?
A brilliant flash of red light illuminated the battlefield, and Noibat materialized in Charizard's place. The moment Jacob saw his small companion appear, his face brightened with genuine satisfaction. With Noibat now in play, Jacob knew he possessed a tremendous advantage in this crucial battle!
The moment the small purple Noibat appeared on the field, floating Stealth Rock fragments immediately struck its delicate form, dealing noticeable damage and causing it to wince with visible pain.
Wylder's expression darkened considerably as he watched Noibat enter the battle. His luck had taken a devastating turn - he had encountered the unfavorable outcome in what should have been a fifty-fifty chance.
Before this battle began, he had thoroughly researched Jacob's Pokemon team and their respective capabilities. Among them all, Noibat's Taunt technique posed the most significant threat to his carefully planned strategy. Originally, if Sceptile had been randomly switched in, the two layers of Toxic Spikes covering the battlefield would have immediately inflicted the Poison status condition. Although Sceptile possessed impressive strength, once poisoned, he could have gradually worn it down through attrition until achieving victory.
Meanwhile, Charizard remained completely neutralized by Stealth Rock's presence, meaning no Pokemon in Jacob's arsenal would pose a serious threat to his defensive setup.
However, with Noibat's unexpected appearance, the entire battle situation had completely reversed in an instant.
The Toxic Spikes scattered across the ground posed no threat whatsoever to Noibat, which remained safely airborne throughout the battle. Additionally, Noibat's signature Taunt move could directly seal away Drapion's Roar strategy, creating an extremely unfavorable situation that put him at a severe tactical disadvantage.
Given these new circumstances, victory would now depend entirely on speed and execution!
"Drapion, use Taunt!" Wylder commanded urgently.
Jacob immediately established telepathic communication with his trusted partner! As his bond and connection with Noibat had steadily grown stronger over time, Jacob had developed the remarkable ability to communicate with his Pokemon through pure thought alone.
"Noibat, Taunt!" Jacob commanded silently through their mental link.
Noibat instantly received Jacob's telepathic instruction and began preparing to execute the Taunt technique with perfect precision.
Observing that Noibat had initiated a move without Jacob issuing any audible command, Layne, the experienced professional commentator, immediately recognized what was happening.
"Is this what I think it is? A Noibat with genuine Telepathy ability! Jacob and his Noibat share an incredibly close bond, enabling them to communicate through pure thought. Wylder's chances of victory have just decreased dramatically, and judging by the move Noibat is currently preparing, I suspect it's most likely the Dark-type Taunt technique."
Both Noibat and Drapion executed their respective Taunt moves almost simultaneously. Although Drapion possessed superior raw power and channeled Dark-type energy more efficiently, Noibat had mastered a unique telepathy-enhanced sound wave technique that gave it a crucial advantage.
Noibat emitted precise ultrasonic frequencies from its oversized ears, with Dark-type energy seamlessly coating the sound waves as they spread outward in perfect concentric circles. By utilizing sound wave transmission mechanics, Noibat's Taunt struck Drapion first, directly disrupting and blocking the Dark-type energy building within its opponent's body.
"There it is! Jacob's Noibat's signature technique - using sound waves to carry Dark-type energy and deliver the Taunt move with guaranteed priority. This approach ensures it virtually always strikes first."
Layne shouted enthusiastically while providing detailed explanation for the captivated audience. "When it comes to priority-based control moves, Noibat will always outperform Drapion in head-to-head competition. Within the same strength tier, except for Pokemon possessing the Prankster ability or complete Soundproof immunity, nothing can match Noibat's speed. Every time I witness Noibat execute this Taunt technique, I'm absolutely amazed. Jacob isn't just a scientific research prodigy - he also demonstrates incredible creative innovation in battle strategy."
"As far as my knowledge extends, currently only Jacob's Noibat has mastered this particular technique. No other Noibat in competitive circles has successfully learned this advanced application yet."
Accompanying Layne's excited commentary, Noibat's Taunt move achieved complete success. Exactly as the commentator had predicted, the technique activated flawlessly, directly interrupting and canceling Drapion's attempted Taunt before it could take effect.
While Noibat might not match Drapion's raw offensive capabilities in direct confrontation, when it came to support roles and battlefield disruption, Noibat's effectiveness ranked among the absolute elite tier.
Realizing that status moves had been completely sealed away, Wylder now faced only two viable options: either switch to a different Pokemon immediately, or rely entirely on Drapion's superior combat strength to overpower Noibat through brute force alone.
After just a brief moment of tactical consideration, Wylder reached his decision. He would leverage Drapion's overwhelming power advantage to crush his smaller opponent. "Drapion, Rock Slide!"
Rock-type energy surged powerfully around Drapion's massive frame as countless stone projectiles materialized in the air above, preparing to rain down destruction upon Noibat's position.
"Noibat, just like we practiced countless times - dodge with maximum speed, then counter with Clear Smog!" Jacob communicated silently through their established mental connection.