"Blaziken is unable to battle. Contestant No. 38, please send out your next Pokémon!" the referee declared formally. With so many eyes on him, there was no way he could show bias.
Sato glanced at the heavily panting Sharpedo and knew its stamina had dropped rapidly from the high-paced battle.
It was time to switch Pokémon. But there was no rush, better to see what the opponent sent out first. That was the advantage he'd earned by taking the first win.
"You're strong, but I have to win this battle." The No. 38 female contestant, who hadn't said a word to Sato until now, suddenly spoke up, as if she had resolved herself.
As she spoke, she threw a black Poké Ball. A deep black flash lit up, and a blue dragon roared toward the sky, announcing its arrival.
Salamence!
Because of its blood-red dual wings, some also called it the Blood-Winged Dragon, one of the iconic Dragon-type pseudo-legendaries of the Hoenn Region.
But how could Salamence possibly appear in an Elite-level competition?
The reason pseudo-legendaries were given that title wasn't just due to their immense battle power. Any pseudo-legendary that achieved final evolution was at least at the Pseudo-Elite Four threshold.
Yet right now, the Elite Peak aura emanating from Salamence was unmistakable. So how did it manage to evolve?
'Forget it… facts were facts,' And Sato didn't have time to dwell on it.
He gave a direct command: "Sharpedo, Ice Fang."
"Salamence, Flamethrower!"
Sharpedo still moved incredibly fast. Ice Fang surged forth instantly; two twisting beams of ice burst from Sharpedo's fangs, forming sharp icy energy that bit down hard toward Salamence.
Bite-type moves didn't necessarily require physical contact. Sharpedo's Ice Fang was like that: slightly lower in power, but far safer and more adaptable.
On the other side, Salamence might not have matched Sharpedo's speed, but being fresh to the field, its reflexes were sharp.
It twisted its head, and a roaring Flamethrower shot out, blasting through the icy energy of Ice Fang with brute force.
But it didn't stop there. The raging flames followed the Ice Fang's trajectory and surged forward.
Sharpedo saw the attack, but after expending so much stamina earlier, its body didn't respond in time to dodge.
Boom…
The searing flames struck Sharpedo hard. Without hesitation, Sato recalled it back.
Sharpedo hadn't lost the ability to battle, but it was in no condition to continue.
Sato frowned as he stared at the roaring Salamence. In terms of level, Salamence was indeed still at Elite Peak.
But that Flamethrower just now… its power had clearly surpassed the Elite tier. Luckily, Sharpedo had resistance to Fire-type moves, so the damage wasn't too severe.
Without wasting time, Sato sent out his most advantageous option: Weavile.
After all, Ice-type attacks were x4 effective against Salamence.
"Salamence, Flamethrower!"
"Weavile, Fake Out!"
A faint pop echoed through the air, Weavile had already vanished from its original spot. With its explosive speed, it instantly reappeared right in Salamence's face.
Weavile raised both hands and, less than three centimeters from Salamence's snout, clapped softly.
Pa!
Even a mighty pseudo-legendary like Salamence had its momentum shattered by that gentle clap.
Fake Out didn't deal much damage, but for the proud Salamence, it felt utterly humiliating…
'How could a noble pseudo-legendary be…'
It was scared!
The Flamethrower had already reached Salamence's throat but it couldn't come out. It was stuck, like a bone in the throat.
Utterly unbearable!
"Ice Punch."
Sato's command rang out again. Still suspended in midair, Weavile didn't need to push off anything. Its right fist pulled back, charging with energy, while its left hand traced a wide arc to maintain balance.
Bang!
Ice Punch struck upward with full force, smashing into Salamence's chin. The pseudo-legendary was sent flying, sparks erupting from its mouth, the remnants of the Flamethrower it had failed to release.
External injuries collided with internal trauma. From throat to jaw, the freezing outside clashed with the fiery inside. Salamence felt like it was about to explode.
Weavile specialized in extreme physical offense. Its move variety was limited, but its power far exceeded that of dual-attackers like Sharpedo or Cacturne.
A single Ice Punch with quadruple effectiveness didn't need any buffs, Weavile could blow Salamence apart just on its own.
Weavile dropped from the air. It couldn't hover like Sharpedo, which gave Salamence a brief chance to catch its breath.
"Weavile, close combat!"
Sato didn't give a specific command; Weavile had the ability to fight independently and would make the best decision on its own.
Quick Attack!
Weavile's body gleamed white as it darted toward Salamence. Its bone-pale claws once again glowed with icy blue energy.
There was no arrogance left in Salamence. Sensing the freezing energy in Weavile's claws, it frantically flapped its wings, fleeing upward as if its life depended on it.
"Wea~"
Weavile sneered. Its blood-red eyes filled with mockery and contempt. 'So what if you're a pseudo-legendary? In front of me, you're just a flailing oversized bug.'
Ice Shard!
Countless sharp ice blades formed around Weavile. The gleaming blades sliced through the arena, heading straight for Salamence.
"SALAMENCE, USE FLAMETHROWER TO DEFEND!" Contestant No. 38 shouted in panic. She never expected Salamence to be so fragile against Weavile.
The regional gap was real… Weavile, active mostly in the Johto Region, wasn't well known among Hoenn natives.
And in the previous match, Weavile had only used Swords Dance and Ice Punch. Its full strength had been completely overshadowed by Sharpedo and Ariados.
But they didn't stop to think: if a Low Elite Sharpedo and a Mid Elite Ariados were already that strong, how could Sato's Peak Elite Weavile not be a monster?
Starting today, Sato was going to make sure the title "Dragon-Slayer Weavile" was forever etched into everyone's memory.
Ice blades swirled through the air, targeting only the trickiest angles, cutting through Salamence in a savage flurry.
Salamence desperately fired its "nerfed" Flamethrower to melt the incoming blades; but with Flamethrower being a linear attack, how many could it really destroy?
Why "nerfed" Flamethrower? Because Salamence's throat had already been seriously injured. Every time it used the move, it came with excruciating pain.
In truth, ever since that first Fake Out, Weavile had completely seized control. Salamence never once looked like the powerful pseudo-legendary it was supposed to be.
But that's what battle is. Strength means nothing if you can't use it.
"Salamence is unable to battle. Weavile wins. Therefore, the winner of this match is Contestant No. 66!"
"Sixty-six! 666! Sixty-six! 666..."