To improve his odds in the next two battles, he needed to adjust.
However, seeing his so-called perfect tactics being dismantled and facing Nathan's "looking down from above" gaze, it was unclear whether Nathan's mentality broke — but Winston's certainly was on the verge of collapse!
"Green, use Thunder! Then hit it with Mega Kick!"
Grinding his teeth, Winston forced himself to issue the command calmly.
"Zoar!"
Without hesitation, Green's body erupted with electricity as he launched a lightning-fast kick toward Nathan's Zeraora!
The sheer power behind this kick lived up to the muscles on Green's body.
"What a shame. Although your training method is quite good, you picked the wrong target!"
One hand casually shoved into his pocket, Nathan said with a blank expression.
He genuinely preferred direct combat and didn't bother with elaborate tactics or strategies.
He didn't even like gathering intel much.
While he wouldn't stop others from doing so, whenever he encountered such opponents, Nathan never held back!
"Zeraora, show them our power!"
At the same time Nathan's voice sounded both in Zeraora's mind and ears, a sharp gleam flashed in Zeraora's eyes.
The blue-white lightning surrounding Zeraora's body suddenly extended into two tails, binding Green's leg!
Facing such overwhelming strength, there was no need for head-on confrontation.
Even with the thunder-enhanced Mega Kick, Green couldn't break free from the lightning tails.
"Zoar!"
With a low growl, Zeraora directly flung Green through the air like a cannonball, smashing into the wall at the edge of the grassy battlefield, leaving a deep crater!
"I said it — the my Zeraora is perfect!"
"This is the power we built together!"
…
"Impossible! You've got to be kidding!"
"Green, stand up!"
With an extremely dark expression, Winston barked at the battlefield.
Responding to his trainer's call, Green slowly struggled to its feet.
"Zoar…"
Although Green's training emphasized physical toughness, Zeraora wasn't a pure fighting tank.
Even after holding back slightly, the hit from Nathan's Zeraora left Green barely standing, swaying as if it would collapse at any moment.
"It's useless. Do you really want your Pokémon to suffer serious injuries?"
Seeing Green's struggling figure, Nathan's face turned slightly cold.
He and Zeraora had already held back earlier.
Otherwise, one more strike would have knocked Green out completely — or worse, severely injured it.
"Heh, Green, keep fighting!"
A cold gleam flashed in Winston's eyes as he gave the command with a sneer.
To many spectators, this might look like unyielding spirit.
But to Nathan, he saw no responsibility or duty as a trainer in Winston's actions.
"Hmph..."
Taking a deep breath, Nathan's gaze cooled.
He gave Zeraora a telepathic command: "End it with one final blow!"
"Zoar!"
Almost the instant Nathan's order came, Zeraora vanished from its spot.
Shave!
Originally, Zeraora couldn't perform this move, as it would damage the electric storage sacs in its body.
However, with the new Lightning Release Mode and Nathan's synchronized support, Zeraora could now easily manipulate its power to multitask flawlessly.
"Green, dodge!"
Seeing Zeraora disappear, Winston immediately shouted.
Unfortunately, human reaction time had its limits.
Before Winston even finished speaking, Zeraora reappeared right in front of Green.
The blue-white lightning around its body condensed into a solid-looking spear!
"Wait, I surrender!"
Seeing this scene, Winston's eyes flashed with unwillingness, but he could only concede defeat.
Forcing the fight would have changed nothing.
"Hmph, come back, Zeraora."
Nathan snorted lightly and recalled Zeraora into its Pokéball.
If there was a flaw in Zeraora's current Lightning Release Mode, it would be its lack of endurance.
But that was due to Zeraora's current level.
Once it broke through to Elite Four level, this problem would improve dramatically.
…
"Come out, Raichu!"
Seeing Nathan recall Zeraora, Winston's face remained dark as he released his next Pokémon: Raichu!
Level 51!
"Tch, looks like I'll need your help, Pangoro."
Clicking his tongue, Nathan switched from Metagross's Pokéball to Pangoro's.
As expected of a quarterfinalist!
Even if it was just from a regional division, having multiple Elite-level Pokémon was not surprising.
Of course, Nathan mainly attributed it to Winston's age advantage.
He was practically pressing against the age limit for entering the national Championship.
Otherwise, normal contestants would hardly be so loaded, carrying not just a rising Elite-level Zeraora but also an Elite-level Raichu!
Nathan even began to suspect that Winston's last Pokémon might also be in the Elite tier.
But that wasn't important.
What mattered now was Pangoro vs. Raichu.
"Roar!"
Clenching a bamboo leaf in its mouth like a cigarette, Pangoro's presence alone overwhelmed Raichu!
"Hmph, Raichu, Thunderbolt!"
Seeing Pangoro's arrogant stance, Winston dared not show any carelessness.
After all, everyone knew Nathan's starter Pokémon was a Volcarona!
And even during the Trial Tournament, it had already broken into the Elite level!
Adding to that, the earlier defeat of his Zeraora made Winston extremely cautious.
The elite trainer's aura, shaped by years of experience, fully erupted at this moment!
"Rai!"
With a shout, Raichu — bulkier than Pikachu — unleashed a massive surge of golden electricity!
"Golden lightning, just like Pikachu? Too bad it's useless."
Nathan shook his head at the sight.
Many Electric-types, after intense training, could wield golden-colored electricity.
But this didn't signify any special strength — it was merely a change in appearance, much like Shiny Pokémon.
Fundamentally, there was no qualitative difference.
"Pangoro, dodge!"
Without even needing telepathy, Nathan simply gave a direct command.
"Roar!"
With a mighty Zoar, Pangoro stomped the ground, creating a cracked pit and disappearing in an instant!
"Hmph, although Raichu loses some agility compared to Pikachu after evolution…"
"Its physical strength greatly increases!"
"Raichu, Iron Tail behind you!"
Seeing Pangoro vanish to evade Thunderbolt, Winston smirked coldly.
Raichu's tail glowed white and whipped backward sharply!
"Roar!"
Caught slightly off-guard, Pangoro crossed its arms defensively.
"Now! Raichu, use Thunder-Fire Combo!"
Seeing Raichu strike Pangoro, Winston's eyes lit up.
Indeed, it was the Thunder-Fire Combo again!
Raichu's tiny fists each held different powers — one shimmering gold with electricity, the other burning with flames.
It looked like a miniature Thunder-Fire battle god!
"You're finally showing some combination moves again. In that case… Pangoro, let's open Second Gear!"
Seeing Thunder-Fire appear once more, Nathan showed no panic — just calmness.
"Roar!"
Pangoro roared, condensing an energy ball by its mouth and swallowing it!
Unlike before, where Pangoro aimed for a full "Sage Mode" transformation, Nathan had altered the method:
Now the energy ball boosted Pangoro's blood circulation, allowing it to enter a "Second Gear" state — similar to Luffy's in One Piece — without needing to become rubber!