The Finals (Part 3)

"Beautifly, Silver Wind!"

Soku wouldn't miss the chance to attack Murkrow while it was paralyzed. He immediately issued an offensive command to his Beautifly.

"Murkrow, dodge quickly!"

Watching the incoming Silver Wind once again, Murkrow tried to avoid it, but its paralyzed body prevented any movement. It was forcefully blown away by the Silver Wind.

Silver Wind was a Bug-type move that had a natural advantage against Dark-types. If it weren't for Murkrow Flying-type attribute, the level 24 Murkrow might have been left with only half of its HP due to the Bug-type move.

"Murkrow, use Wing Attack."

Upon Yuga command, Murkrow, even though paralyzed, managed to move.

Murkrow knew very few moves—only Peck, Wing Attack, and Haze. All of these were basic attacking moves with limited power, so Yuga had to tough it out.

In fact, if Yuga Houndour were at a higher level, it would be the most suitable for dealing with Beautifly. It could use its Fire-type Ember move to counter Beautifly type advantage and its Dark-type Roar against Beautifly Silver Wind and Stun Spore.

But Houndour level was an issue; it would likely be taken down immediately upon entering the battle.

Upon hearing Yuga command, Murkrow accelerated like a bullet and rushed towards Beautifly.

"Beautifly, Silver Wind."

Evidently, Soku wouldn't allow his Beautifly to be attacked without retaliating. Upon Yuga command, Soku also instructed his Beautifly.

Murkrow flew directly into the Silver Wind created by Beautifly. Despite the sharp wind blades, Murkrow continued to charge forward with unwavering momentum.

In the midst of the Silver Wind, Murkrow was soon covered in cuts from the wind blades, its expression growing increasingly pained.

Finally, Murkrow reached Beautifly and fiercely struck it with its sturdy wings. Beautifly was knocked down to the ground.

However, after enduring the onslaught of Silver Wind, Murkrow fell to the ground and lost its battling capability.

Watching the unsteady Beautifly take flight once more, Yuga recalled his beaten-up Murkrow with a Poké Ball. He then softly said, "Thank you, Murkrow."

What is a trainer? What is the bond between a trainer and their Pokémon? Questions that Yuga had never thought about before now swirled in his mind.

Seeing how hard Murkrow had tried to win the match for him, Yuga suddenly felt a swelling sensation in his heart, as if something wanted to burst forth.

Yuga next Pokémon was Floette, a Fairy-type that had good resistance against Bug-types.

"Floette, use Vine Whip."

As soon as Floette appeared, it quickly unleashed two Vine Whips that tightly bound Beautifly wings.

Actually, Floette didn't have much advantage over Beautifly. Although it had a type advantage, Floette primary attacking moves were Grass-type, which wouldn't be very effective against the Flying and Bug-type Beautifly.

However, at this moment, Beautifly was ensnared by the Vine Whips. Despite Soku encouragement to break free, the relatively weak Beautifly couldn't escape.

Floette used the Vine Whips to swing Beautifly in the air before slamming it to the ground. After lifting it up again, Floette harshly threw it into the air.

"Floette, Fairy Wind."

As Yuga voice fell, a pink gust of wind carried the airborne Beautifly towards the wall not far from the arena. Already disoriented from being thrown around, Beautifly lost its battling capability due to the Fairy Wind.

In reality, Beautifly level was a few levels higher than Floette level 26. The reason Floette managed to defeat Beautifly so easily was because it took Beautifly by surprise.

Soku silently recalled his Beautifly and gave Yuga a sharp glance, seemingly implying that Yuga victory was dishonorable. However, Yuga just smiled at him, not feeling like he had done anything unfair. After all, he didn't use any underhanded tactics.

Soku second Pokémon was the uncommon Kecleon, which used its camouflage ability to disappear as soon as it entered the field.

However, Kecleon ability to camouflage wasn't very effective on the bare arena. Its dark-red stripes contrasted starkly against the gray-white arena.

"Floette, Vine Whip."

At Yuga command, Floette two Vine Whips swiftly moved towards the red stripes that were constantly shifting on the arena.

However, this Kecleon was extremely fast and responsive. Before Floette Vine Whips could reach it, it moved like lightning to another spot.

Floette repeated attempts to catch Kecleon elusive form left it panting and exhausted. This caused Yuga idea of using the same strategy that worked against Beautifly to fail.

"Kecleon, use Fury Swipes."

Finally, when Floette was panting and her reactions slowed down, Kecleon launched its surprise attack. Floette was caught off guard and pushed back quite a distance.

At this moment, Yuga realized how foolish he had been. The best way to deal with the fast and elusive Kecleon was to use moves like Magical Leaf, which had tracking effects, instead of rigidly applying the strategy that worked against Beautifly.

After being pushed back, Floette adjusted herself and quickly fired four leaf blades at the constantly moving Kecleon.

Although Kecleon was fast, the tracking effect of Magical Leaf still accurately hit it.

It was only now that Yuga realized that the Magical Leaf, with its tracking effect, was the best way to deal with the fast and elusive Kecleon, unlike the straightforward strategy he had used against Beautifly.

Hit by the Magical Leaf, Kecleon was forced to drop its camouflage. It tumbled several times on the arena before finally stopping. However, it quickly entered camouflage mode again, leaving only a fast-moving red stripe on the arena.

"Kecleon, Shadow Sneak."

With a command from Soku, the camouflaged Kecleon suddenly appeared below Floette. It leaped high in the air, its claws emitting a dark light as it struck Floette fiercely. Floette was knocked from mid-air to the ground.

Soku hadn't expected Kecleon to use Shadow Sneak. Combined with its incredible speed and elusive nature, this took Floette completely by surprise.

"Kecleon, use Shadow Sneak again."

Seeing Floette lying on the ground, Soku immediately ordered Kecleon to launch a second attack.

"Floette, quickly dodge."

Shaking its head, Floette, who was about to take flight, saw the small claws coming at it once again. Instinctively, it used its Vine Whip to catch the approaching claws and then flung them away.

Kecleon, which was thrown away, was also bewildered at this point. It never expected Floette to counterattack under these circumstances.

If it had known that Floette counterattack was merely an instinctive action due to fear, it might have been frustrated.

After Floette tossed Kecleon aside, it slowly and leisurely took flight. At the moment, its mind was still a bit muddled.

However, Yuga didn't give it much time to figure things out. He immediately commanded, "Floette, Magical Leaf."

Without thinking too much, Floette obediently followed the trainer instruction and launched an attack towards Kecleon.