Chapter 211: Crescent's Admiration
The halftime break ended, and the second half began. With the spinning wheel, the second arena was the Water Arena.
The iron plate opened, revealing a pool with ten floating platforms for Pokémon that couldn't swim.
Crescent sent out her Slowking, while Ryan, not intending to give her any chance to turn the tide, sent out Togekiss.
After entering the arena, Togekiss circled Ryan once, then steadily stopped in mid-air, looking at the opponent's Slowking, smiling slightly, and giving a very elegant bow. Although named Slowking, it wasn't slow; its eyes were full of wisdom.
"Slowking, Power Gem!" Crescent called out.
Slowking swung one arm, creating many sharp crystalline stones that flew towards Togekiss. Togekiss didn't rush to dodge, but instead flapped its wings, unleashing Air Slash, sending numerous disc-shaped, serrated air blades crashing towards Power Gem.
The air blades spun rapidly, and upon colliding with the Power Gems, they strangely deflected them. The deflected Power Gems then crashed into a nearby Power Gem, before knocking another one away. With this series of deflections and impacts, not a single Power Gem hit Togekiss; instead, several were reflected back!
As several Power Gems struck Slowking, not only was Slowking stunned, but Crescent was also stunned, and the audience was completely dumbfounded. Togekiss wouldn't waste such a precious opportunity, unleashing another Air Slash, sending a barrage of disc-shaped, serrated air blades hurtling towards Slowking.
Just as Slowking was about to retaliate, it seemed as if water splashed from the earlier rocks had landed on the platform, causing it to slip and fall directly onto it. The Air Slash hit Slowking squarely, triggering its flinching, rendering it unable to react!
"The final Brave Bird!" Ryan exclaimed.
Togekiss swooped down, slamming Slowking into the water. By the time Slowking surfaced, it was already unable to battle.
"Slowking is unable to battle! Please switch Pokémon, Crescent!" The referee was also quite bewildered. Slowking had been defeated so easily after only a few rounds?
Crescent recalled Slowking. She had a better understanding of Ryan's abilities and said, "It seems your strength far surpasses mine, Ryan. After this match, I need to seriously consider whether I should join the Guild. Please, Blaziken!"
Ryan smiled slightly upon hearing Crescent's words, recalled Togekiss, and said, "Then let's have a good fight. Go, Metagross."
Ryan knew from Crescent's words that she was already considering joining the Mercenary Guild, so he wouldn't overwhelm her anymore and would give her a fair match.
"Blaziken, Blaze Kick!" Crescent said.
Blaziken burst into flames from its feet, launched itself towards Metagross, and then swung its right leg in a circle, delivering a powerful downward kick. Metagross simply raised its forelimb and grabbed Blaziken's foot, simultaneously unleashing Meteor Mash, slamming it into Blaziken's body and sending it flying.
"Don't give up, Blaziken, use Flamethrower!" Crescent shouted.
"Bullet Punch to finish it off," Ryan said.
Blaziken stabilized itself in mid-air, landing on a floating platform, but before it could use Flamethrower, Metagross's Bullet Punch, as fast as a bullet, struck Blaziken directly, knocking it onto the shore, rendering it unable to battle.
"Blaziken is unable to battle! Crescent, please switch Pokémon!" the referee announced.
Crescent silently recalled Blaziken. She now had a clearer understanding of Ryan's strength and had made up her mind.
"Latios, please!"
"Come back, Metagross. Please, Aerodactyl!"
Both sent out their last Pokémon, but Crescent's Latios was indeed her last Pokémon available for battle, while Ryan's was his last Pokémon that hadn't yet appeared.
"Latios, Luster Purge!" Crescent shouted.
Latios opened its mouth, creating many white flashes that gathered in front of it until they formed a pink energy sphere. Then, it fired a pink energy beam from the sphere at Aerodactyl.
"Aerodactyl, ignore it. Charge through and use Crunch!" Ryan said.
This Latios was far too weak compared to Deoxys; it had only grasped a tiny bit of Aura and was still a long way from mastering it. This kind of attack was far too easy for Aerodactyl, which had already mastered the essence of Tough Claws!
Aerodactyl flapped its wings, charging headlong into the Luster Purge, shattering it instantly. Then, it opened its gaping maw and bit down hard on Latios's wing, its Dark-type energy flooding Latios's body, causing significant damage.
"Recover, Icy Wind!" Crescent shouted.
Latios glowed white, rapidly healing itself while simultaneously unleashing a freezing wind at Aerodactyl, instantly freezing it. However, Aerodactyl, possessing the Tough Claws ability, completely ignored the frozen status, easily breaking free of the ice. Latios used the opportunity to create distance.
"Ice Beam!" Crescent shouted.
"Ignore it, Giga Impact!"
Latios unleashed an Ice Beam at Aerodactyl, successfully freezing it. However, Aerodactyl considered it a minor problem, easily breaking free of the ice and slamming into Latios with immense force.
"Aerodactyl, don't give it a chance to breathe! Unleash a barrage of Hyper Beams!" Ryan shouted immediately, seeing Latios, which had been knocked away, glowing white again.
Aerodactyl understood that this war of attrition might actually allow Latios to turn the tide, so it didn't hold back, unleashing a barrage of Hyper Beams at Latios.
Although the Hyper Beams were weakened by rapid fire, their sheer number and continuous attacks gave its opponent no chance to retaliate.
Latios struggled desperately amidst the explosions of the Hyper Beams. Although it could recover some health with its Recover ability, it couldn't withstand such a relentless bombardment. After enduring for a while, Latios finally succumbed and collapsed, losing its ability to battle.
"Latios is unable to battle! Aerodactyl wins! Therefore, the winner is Ryan from Pallet Town!"
With the referee's announcement, the first round of the Round of 32 concluded, and Ryan successfully advanced to the top 16!
(End of Chapter)
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