"Good, let's take out the opponent's main force first."
Seeing that Plusle's Discharge nearly resulted in a triple KO, Lacey couldn't help but flash a delighted smile.
As a fan of Teacher Azure, if she could beat him in this match and achieve her "idol success," she felt like her whole vacation would be filled with happiness!
She could tell that Teacher Azure's lineup was designed to let Togekiss unleash endless attacks.
Unfortunately for him, luck seemed to be on her side today!
Just as Lacey was confidently preparing to finish off her opponent, Aiden quickly sent out his substitute Pokémon.
"Dedenne?"
Upon seeing this cute electric mouse from Kalos, Lacey couldn't help but feel a bit puzzled.
She was quite familiar with these soft and adorable-looking Pokémon, so she knew that Dedenne also had the hidden ability "Plus," similar to Plusle.
However, Plus and Minus abilities only worked when both teammates possessed them. Even if Dedenne came onto the field, it wouldn't benefit from the electricity generated by her two Plusle and Minun.
She couldn't figure out what Teacher Azure was thinking.
"But that's fine too. As long as I stick to my plan, I should win, right?"
Lacey focused intently on the screen and immediately issued commands:
"Plusle, Quick Attack!"
"Minun, Protect!"
To prepare for another fully charged Discharge, she decided to delay one more turn, letting Plusle finish off the already low-health Talonflame.
"Talonflame, Brave Bird!"
"Dedenne, Agility!"
Aiden once again commanded simultaneously.
At that moment, the four Pokémon on the field began their respective actions.
First, a Protect barrier formed in front of Minun, intending to block Talonflame's final desperate attack.
However, Talonflame's Brave Bird target wasn't Minun, but instead charged toward the other side, aiming to finish off the low-health Plusle.
The bird and the mouse instantly collided.
Even against a type disadvantage, Talonflame still dealt heavy damage to its opponent, then let out a mournful cry before collapsing.
Meanwhile, Dedenne remained calm and quietly completed a boost, reaching an extremely terrifying speed under the influence of Tailwind.
[Teacher Azure is getting 2:0'd, could it be?]
[Sure enough, even Teacher Azure can have bad games, this is awkward now!]
[What can this Dedenne do? The Ambipom in the back seems useless too; maybe they should just give up...]
The barrage quickly started to stir things up, but Aiden ignored them and instead smiled confidently:
"Since Togekiss's Air Slash isn't reliable, let's use a move that guarantees flinching 100% of the time!"
"Just wait, the battle has only just begun!"
Aiden quickly switched in Ambipom, and Lacey immediately gave her commands, sticking to the same Helping Hand + Discharge strategy as before.
At the same time, Aiden quickly spoke:
"Dedenne, Ambipom, Fling!"
Due to the effect of Tailwind, the two Pokémon on the field immediately pulled out their held items and threw them at the two Plusle and Minun before they could react.
Dedenne flung Razor Fang, while Ambipom tossed King's Rock.
The two items flew at high speed and hit their targets, slightly shaking the HP bars of the two Pokémon.
[What… what kind of power is this? I'm laughing just watching!]
[Are you not eating? It feels like even a Kricketune could deal more damage than this!]
[Has Teacher Azure given up?]
[Wait? … Whoa, look at that Plusle!]
It wasn't until one viewer noticed something unusual that everyone's attention returned to the battlefield.
The Plusle that had just suffered almost negligible damage now looked completely terrified, stopping its charging action outright.
The Discharge move was thus left incomplete.
Clearly, it had fallen into a flinching state!
With Togekiss's earlier example, many viewers instantly understood, but at the same time, a new question arose—
How did it get scared?
"The move Fling changes its power and effects based on the item being thrown."
At this moment, Aiden provided a timely explanation.
"For example, throwing a Flame Orb will burn the opponent, and throwing a Toxic Spike will poison them."
"The items carried by Ambipom and Dedenne—King's Rock and Razor Fang—although their Fling power is very low, around 30 points, they have an outrageous effect—"
"As long as they hit, they will always make the opponent flinch!"
After speaking, Aiden couldn't help but smile.
The regal aura of the King's Rock made the opponents who touched it panic, and the Razor Fang had the same effect.
This made perfect sense.
Indeed, compared to relying on luck with Serene Grace Air Slash, this move was much more effective!
[POG as expected of Azure, bro has a whole encyclopedia in his brain]
[But since you've thrown away your items, how are you going to win now?]
[Wait? … Whoa, I get it now! Teacher Azure's choice of these two Pokémon makes total sense!!!]
As the barrage caught on, Aiden quickly continued:
"Don't worry, both Dedenne and Ambipom have the Pickup ability."
"Therefore, they'll pick up the items they threw!"
No sooner had he finished speaking, the two Pokémon on Aiden's side sprang into action on-screen.
Taking advantage of the fact that the two Plusle and Minun were still flinching and unable to react, Dedenne and Ambipom quietly scurried over and picked up the items they had thrown.
At the same time, Aiden issued another command:
"Fling!"
The exact same scene played out again.
And this time, unlike before, Aiden timed his command perfectly, issuing it just as the opponent's flinch ended and they were about to act. This ensured that his Pokémon's actions were always slightly faster.
Moreover, Dedenne had already boosted its speed, and Ambipom was known for its speed.
Thus, even as Tailwind was about to fade, their speed still firmly outpaced the opponent's.
Throw, pick up, throw again.
This simple, unadorned operation left the audience utterly dumbfounded...
[This… the opponent can't even issue commands! It feels like the Plusle and Minun are getting pummeled!]
[Though the damage isn't high, they can't handle being repeatedly worn down. Minun can't take it anymore, how can they possibly fight back?]
[Teacher Azure, it seems singles battles really limited your creativity in 'quality' tactics, doesn't it?]
The barrage was flooded with praise, while Aiden kept repeating the same operation, silently waiting for Lacey's rotation.
Soon, Lacey's two Plusle and Minun could no longer endure the humiliation, collapsing either from actual exhaustion or sheer frustration.
And Lacey's backline was finally revealed—
Primarina + Granbull!
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