Chapter 56: Flying Sand and Stones
Chapter 56: Flying Sand and Stones
"Sandstorm!"
Just as Scyther's Fury Cutter was about to hit, it suddenly realized that the Sandstorm was disintegrating even before Scyther's attack landed.
Boom!
In the next moment, a terrifying energy erupted in the arena, with the nearby Scyther bearing the brunt and being violently blasted away by the raging Sandstorm!
Energy swept across the arena, and in an instant, a storm of flying sand and stones was unleashed, scattering in all directions and striking the protective walls with a violent clattering sound!
Gradually, the dust in the arena settled, revealing that the Scyther hit by the failed Sandstorm lay defeated, covered with a thick layer of sand and stones.
"Is this... a failure?"
Ryoma, who had been waiting for the Sandstorm weather to form, blinked in surprise. But judging by the results, it seemed to have worked out quite well!
One Scyther, struck directly by the failed Sandstorm, had lost its battle capability after enduring the storm and flying sand and stones!
Looking at the remaining Scyther, it too was standing on the ground, gasping for breath. Although it blocked the flying sand and stones with its scythes, its wings hung limply, clearly injured and unable to fly!
"I have something to say, but I'm not sure if I should say it!"
Professor Sato, who had initially stood up to observe more closely, couldn't help but turn a shade darker seeing the outcome.
Of all times to fail, why now?
In contrast to Professor Sato's dark expression, the entire gymnasium erupted in astonishment.
Everyone was left gaping at the standing Sandshrew, shocked by the power of this failed version of the Sandstorm move.
"This is unbelievable!"
"Can a move like Sandstorm be used like that?"
"Terrifying, absolutely terrifying."
In the arena, Scyther's trainer looked as grim as a stormy sky.
Having taken down Charmeleon, they thought they had a surefire victory with a two-on-one advantage. But who would have guessed? With just one move, they ended up with one Pokémon defeated and another injured!
"Why does it feel like this failed version of Sandstorm is even more powerful than the real thing?"
"Perhaps it could be developed to increase the power of Sandshrew's Sand Attack moves."
"Flying Sand and Stones moves? That sounds quite interesting."
Watching the situation unfold, Ryoma rested his chin on his hand and began to think.
"Scyther, there's no way that big move from the opponent came without cost!"
"Go in for the attack, use Quick Attack!"
While Ryoma was contemplating the feasibility of the Flying Sand and Stones moves, the opposing trainer seized the opportunity to attack.
Scyther was already fast, but after being boosted by Quick Attack, its speed reached an astonishing level, almost appearing before Sandshrew in the blink of an eye.
However, Sandshrew reacted quickly; as Scyther attacked, it spun in place, enveloped in Steel-type energy, executing a Gyro Ball version of Champion's Rebuttal!
Crackle! Crackle!
Scyther's scythe came down swiftly, striking the spinning Gyro Ball, producing a loud grinding noise. Then, under a sudden force, it was sent flying back faster than it had charged in, crashing hard into the protective wall and embedding itself deep within!
"It seems my previous assumption was correct; this is the true determination of Gyro Ball's power!"
Seeing Scyther get blasted away by Gyro Ball, Ryoma's eyes narrowed slightly.
In the game, Gyro Ball is described as having the user spin rapidly and tackle the opponent, with greater power if the user's speed is slower than the opponent's.
However, in reality, the determination rules are not the same.
If Ryoma guessed correctly, the real determination method for Gyro Ball should be that when tackling, the faster the opponent moves, the greater the resulting power. And this speed is the speed at which the opponent charges towards you!
Just like now, Scyther came charging in after being boosted by Quick Attack, and Gyro Ball leveraged this speed to generate such terrifying power!
It seems that the principle of rebound is also involved here.
"Perhaps I can explore this with Yuto. If this hypothesis holds, it might lead to a meaningful paper," Ryoma thought to himself.
"What a terrifying Gyro Ball! Not only can it be used for defense, but its attack power is astonishing as well!"
The people present were not thinking as deeply as Ryoma; after seeing Scyther get blasted away by Gyro Ball, they all quietly marveled at its terrifying power, without connecting it to the determination method of Gyro Ball.
"It must be that Sandshrew's power is just too incredible, right?"
"To take down both Scyther so effortlessly on its own, this Sandshrew is really something extraordinary!"
"Who would disagree? Rollout, Rapid Spin, Gyro Ball—this Sandshrew must be a ball type! Every move involving a ball is incredibly frightening!"
Amid all the heated discussions, the referee announced the final results of the match, and without surprise, Ryoma and Yuto's team advanced to the finals!
---
"Ahhh! Ryoma, you've accumulated so many fans already!"
"Why do I have no fans? No fans at all! I'm so jealous!!!"
After the match ended in the afternoon, the two returned to the dormitory to rest. Yuto was scrolling through the school 2channel when he found that all the posts were about Ryoma!
There wasn't even a single post about him, and if there was one, it looked like he was just a sidekick!
"Charmeleon, we are struggling."
"Our strength is considerable too! Why is all the spotlight stolen by Ryoma and Sandshrew?!"
Yuto exploded with frustration, venting his grievances to Charmeleon.
Seeing this, Charmeleon immediately turned its head away, clearly annoyed.
To be honest, it was not satisfied with its performance in these two matches, leaving the always proud Charmeleon feeling quite upset!
"Alright, enough whining. If all goes well, the next round will really depend on you!"
At that moment, Ryoma put down his pen with a serious expression and sighed slightly.
Facing the combination of Metang and Shelgon, he felt he had no clear way to deal with them.
Right now, Sandshrew's primary offensive moves wouldn't have much effect on these two Pokémon with extremely high defenses.
Even if it successfully deployed Flying Sand and Stones or Sandstorm, it likely wouldn't be able to pose a significant threat to these Pokémon. Moreover, since Metang was a Steel-type Pokémon, it could potentially turn the tables and make the situation even more difficult for them.
So the only strategy he could come up with was relying on Charmeleon's Fire-type moves to target the Steel-type Metang.
If Charmeleon could quickly take down Metang, they might still stand a chance!