Tocix Grass

At two o'clock in the afternoon, the match officially began, with cheers and shouts from the audience as both Yuga and Christine stepped onto opposite sides of the arena.

The upper half of the finals was the championship match, while the lower half featured the third-place match between Sora and Roxie. This arrangement took into account the heightened emotions of the audience.

"Hey, Little Brother, be gentle later," Christine playfully said to Yuga.

Yuga replied, "Giving your best is the greatest respect for your opponent."

Christine pouted, "You're no fun!"

"Competitors, get ready, the match is about to begin," announced the electronic referee's cold voice from above.

Both participants quickly entered their battle stances. Christine's smiling expression vanished instantly, replaced by a serious demeanor.

Following the electronic referee's command, Yuga and Christine simultaneously released their Pokémon.

Yuga's lead Pokémon was still a Grass-type, but this time it was Roserade, not Bellossom.

Christine released a Leafeon, a Pokémon she had used in previous matches but hadn't used since the quarter-finals. It was a surprise move to bring it back for the finals.

In previous matches, this Leafeon had performed rather conventionally, not as aggressively dominant as Abomasnow or Tsareena. However, Yuga, with his Insight ability, could tell that this Leafeon was at least on par with Abomasnow and Tsareena in terms of level and abilities.

"Leafeon, use Leaf Blade!" Immediately upon entering the battle, Christine swiftly issued a command to Leafeon.

This Leafeon, unlike in previous battles, now displayed a different side. It dashed forward with lightning speed, leaving a trail behind, and transformed into a sharp arrow heading straight for Roserade.

Clearly, this Leafeon had been hiding its true speed.

The level of a Pokémon can only reflect its approximate strength. Trainers often conduct various targeted training sessions based on their Pokémon's unique talents, and these efforts contribute to their hidden strength.

Obviously this Leafeon is far faster than its peers.

Roserade had no idea that Leafeon was this fast. Yuga quickly commanded Roserade to use Grass Knot, attempting to stop Leafeon from approaching further.

However, Leafeon's speed was truly astonishing. It easily evaded all the vines created by Grass Knot, leaving them futile.

With its long tail turned into a sharp blade, Leafeon struck Roserade's abdomen forcefully. Roserade was sent flying by this Leaf Blade.

Fortunately, Roserade was a Grass and Poison type Pokémon, so Grass-type moves only dealt a quarter of their usual damage to it. Otherwise, given Roserade's weak defenses, it might have already been defeated.

Seeing her Leafeon landing a direct hit, Christine couldn't help but curl her lips into a slight smile.

"Leafeon, keep up the pressure, continue with Leaf Blade!"

"Roserade, Toxic Spikes!"

Roserade couldn't engage in close combat with Leafeon, who excelled in physical attacks. Yuga had to find a way to prevent Leafeon from getting closer.

Seeing Leafeon charging toward him again, Roserade endured the dull pain in its abdomen and quickly got back on its feet. It waved its arms around, spreading large amounts of toxic liquid all around its position.

The purple poison began to seep into the soil, creating a hazardous area around Roserade.

Leafeon, in its high-speed sprint, stepped on the hidden Toxic Spikes needles scattered by Roserade. Suddenly, its body was covered in small purple poison spots, and it became poisoned.

Roserade's poison had been specially cultivated by Yuga, and its toxicity was incredibly potent. Leafeon, in pain, retreated and dared not approach Roserade any further.

Christine said, "Leafeon, use Sunny Day."

However, Yuga had already prepared for Christine's move. Following Yuga's instructions, Roserade used Sludge Bomb. Clumps of toxic purple sludge swiftly shot toward Leafeon, who was attempting to use Sunny Day.

Leafeon's ability was Leaf Guard, which made it immune to status conditions in Sunny or Sunny Day. Yuga, with his Insight ability, he had naturally taken this into consideration.

Leafeon, in the midst of using Sunny Day, was hit directly by Roserade's Sludge Bomb. Not only was Sunny Day disrupted, but Leafeon was also sent flying.

This Leafeon clearly couldn't perform like Yuga's Bellossom, using Sunny Day while doing other move.

Using a move like Sunny Day required precise timing, as its effects had a limited duration. Using it too early would waste the effects, while using it too late wouldn't be advantageous.

However, Grass-type Pokémon with the Chlorophyll ability didn't need to worry much about timing when using Sunny Day. Since they began with Sunny Day to boost their speed, the speed increase also applied to the speed of using their skills. When Sunny Day's effects faded, they could quickly start another round.

Unfortunately, this Leafeon's ability was Leaf Guard. Otherwise, in Sunny Day, combined with its already impressive speed, it would have been even more formidable.

Leafeon didn't have strong Special Defense, and with Grass being weak to Poison, it suffered quite a bit from the Sludge Bomb's impact.

Christine clearly hadn't expected the battle's situation to change so rapidly. The Leafeon, which had an advantage just moments ago, was now heavily injured.

"Leafeon, use Wish, then follow up with Bullet Seed."

The battered Leafeon got up from the ground, quickly moved away from Roserade, and used Wish. Afterward, it launched Bullet Seeds rapidly toward Roserade.

Bullet Seed was a move that almost all physical Grass-type Pokémon learned because there weren't many long-range physical Grass-type moves beyond intermediate levels. It was the most commonly learned move of this type.

However, these Bullet Seeds were intercepted halfway by Roserade's Sludge Bomb. Roserade, with its high Special Attack, wasn't afraid of exchanging long-range moves with others.

Once both Pokémon entered this long-range exchange state, the battle would turn into a tug of war. Both Yuga and Christine felt anxious, wanting to find a way to break the stalemate quickly, and the audience and referees outside the arena were getting impatient.

Despite being poisoned, Leafeon used Wish to prolong the battle, dragging it into a battle of attrition.

In the end, Yuga took advantage of the moment when Leafeon was using Wish and had Roserade use Toxic on it, causing Leafeon to be badly poisoned.

Under badly poisoned, Leafeon's health would decline rapidly over time. Eventually, its Wish ability couldn't keep up, and the battle of attrition became a burden for it, leading to its downfall.

¤

Toxic Spikes is a move that affects Pokémon switched in, and here, it was adapted to work like a trap, similar to but distinct from Venom Drench..