Lapras, Sing Your Song

"It's Johan-sensei!"

"And there's also the Royal Masked Man!"

"Wow—are these two really giving us a tactics class?"

The students buzzed with excitement as Johan and Kukui stepped onto the stage, introduced by Duf. Both of them were well-known figures, and their presence caused quite a stir among the first-year battle students who had gathered for a routine tactics class. Many students whipped out their phones to record the lesson, while others eagerly messaged friends or posted updates on the campus forums.

Before long, students from the second, third, and even fourth years began pouring into the lecture hall, ditching games, dates, and even skipping classes to attend.

"Johan-sensei?"

Down in the audience, Steven, Roxanne, and Flannery looked surprised to see him, but they quickly focused up, knowing that Johan's tactics were not to be missed, even if not directly adopted.

"Alright, you two, prepare your Pokémon," Duf announced, acting as the referee.

"Go!"

Kukui tossed a red-and-white Poké Ball, and an orange, hefty Pokémon appeared on the field.

"Oowu~~"

It was none other than a Dragonite, the pseudo-legendary Pokémon from the Kanto region!

In reality, Dragonite looked even rounder than one might imagine, especially with that chubby belly, which practically begged to be patted.

"A Dragonite?!"

"Come on, that's not fair, Royal Masked Man!"

"But Dragonite is so adorable~~"

Seeing Kukui's choice of Pokémon, Johan's expression turned a bit odd, but he released his own carefully chosen Pokémon.

"Woooo~~"

Appearing in front of Johan was a Lapras, with a tough shell on its back and a serene blue color.

Is this a preview of Lance versus Lorelei?

Or maybe a lesson for Lorelei on how to handle Lance? Johan thought to himself.

"It's not the Protect-Toxic strategy?"

"Lapras! Ice-type attacks are four times effective against Dragonite. This is in the bag for Johan-sensei!"

"Even I could do this!"

With Dragonite's four-time Ice weakness, strategy seemed almost unnecessary—just brute force with Ice-type moves would do.

Despite this, Kukui looked confident, and his confidence seemed to inspire Dragonite, who sharpened its gaze despite its plump appearance.

"Oowu! |ω)"

"Begin the battle!"

"Dragonite, Safeguard!" Kukui took the initiative.

Clearly, Kukui was worried about Johan's Protect-Toxic strategy, so he chose Dragonite, who could use Safeguard to avoid many potential problems. Even though Johan was using Lapras this time, Kukui opted for caution. After all, "Frozen" status could also be troublesome.

Seeing this, Johan smiled and gave a simple command:

"Lapras, Ice Beam."

The students were not wrong. When you have a four-time effectiveness, what else is there to do but charge ahead?

"Woooo—"

Lapras launched a pale blue, chilling beam from its mouth. But Kukui had anticipated this and grinned. He made a broad, sweeping motion with his hand.

"Dragonite, use Extreme Speed to dodge!"

In an instant, Dragonite's body was enveloped in a radiant white glow as it flapped its wings hard, dramatically increasing its speed.

Dragonite narrowly dodged the Ice Beam, only allowing its tail to graze the edge. The move Extreme Speed has a high priority, granting Dragonite a massive speed boost.

There are stories of Dragonite being able to circle the globe in 16 hours, most likely with Extreme Speed at its disposal.

If Dragonite and Kukui had the same level of synergy as Lance's Dragonite, perhaps it truly could dodge Ice Beam perfectly.

Plus, with Safeguard in effect, the frost that had grazed Dragonite's tail quickly melted away.

More importantly, Dragonite suddenly pulled out an apple with a bite taken out of it, rubbed it on itself, and took a hearty chomp.

It was holding the item Leftovers!

Dragonite regained a small amount of health.

Johan had always wondered, Whose leftovers are those? Why are they so effective?

"He really dodged it?!"

"Dragonite's way faster than Lapras!"

"Where's that guy who said 'even I could do this?'"

Students in the audience couldn't help but find the match increasingly interesting.

"Johan-sensei, type advantages don't determine everything," Kukui laughed confidently, his eyes sharpening.

"Now it's our turn!"

"Dragonite, use Thunder Punch!"

Johan sighed inwardly.

It seems we'll have to play like this after all.

"Lapras, sing your song—Perish Song!"

"Woooo~~"

A melodious, ethereal tune echoed from Lapras, like the gentle flow of a mountain stream. Dragonite's plump body visibly shuddered.

Kukui frowned.

In reality, Perish Song works by creating a special frequency of air vibrations that invoke fear deep within the target's mind. As the fear takes root and spreads, the affected Pokémon gradually loses its will to battle.

The battle had now turned into a race against time.

"Perish Song—is this a new strategy?"

"Isn't that a mutual defeat move?"

"…"

Zzzzzt—

Dragonite's Thunder Punch struck Lapras mid-song.

"Woooo!!"

Lapras let out a pained cry.

"Dragonite, one more time!" Kukui commanded.

Buzz—

But a faint green barrier enveloped Lapras.

Protect!

However, Dragonite's thunder-infused fist shattered the shield with a mighty punch.

Kukui's eyes flashed with determination.

Now's the moment!

"Outrage!"

Dragonite's eyes turned bloodshot as dark red energy swirled around it. It went berserk, slashing wildly at Lapras.

Kukui was exploiting the lowered success rate of using Protect consecutively, betting that Johan would follow the common "Protect-Don't Protect-Protect" tactic.

Although Outrage would leave Dragonite in a confused state afterward, it would also break through Lapras's Substitute, exploiting its speed advantage to land the final blow before Lapras could Protect again!

But Johan calmly instructed:

"Lapras, go to sleep."

Rest!

This Lapras had the Shell Armor ability, preventing critical hits.

And Johan equipped it with the item Focus Sash, ensuring it wouldn't be knocked out in one hit while at full health.

Using Rest, Lapras would completely restore its HP.

So even if Kukui had successfully exploited the gap between Protects, Lapras would still outlast him.

Because even with Perish Song affecting both, Dragonite's higher speed and larger, more aggressive movements would cause it to succumb first.

Moreover, Lapras also knew the move Sleep Talk, allowing it to successfully use Protect once more while asleep.

For a moment, the entire lecture hall was dead silent.

A few minutes later—

Dragonite's berserk rage from Outrage subsided, but its heart was now full of fear.

With a heavy thud, Dragonite plopped down, having lost its will to fight.

"Oowu…(ˇˇ)"

"The… the winner is Johan-sensei!"

Duf, a bit slow to react, finally announced the result.

And in an instant, the crowd erupted into cheers.

The Royal Masked Man had shown great skill, commanding Dragonite to dodge Ice Beam with Extreme Speed, shifting from a defensive to an offensive position. He had even successfully exploited the vulnerability in Protect.

But in the end, Johan's strategy was just… too resilient!

"That was so dirty! Hey, who's got a video of this? Send it to me!"

"I've got it! I need a battle partner right now—who's up for it?"

"Johan-sensei, what about in non-1v1 battles? How would this strategy work?"

After all, if a Pokémon hit by Perish Song was withdrawn, its effects would dissipate.

As Johan returned Lapras to its ball, he chuckled lightly.

"Lapras can learn Whirlpool or Block."

"Oh crap! Another counter?"

"I feel like I'm invincible now—every battle's gonna be a trade!"

"I hereby declare Johan-sensei as the Master of Tactical—no, Dirty Strategies!"

Johan stepped off the stage.

Gastly and Alolan Vulpix rushed up to him immediately.

"Oowu~~"

Alolan Vulpix's eyes were filled with admiration.

So this is what an Ice-type battle is like…

Johan picked up Alolan Vulpix and looked at Gastly. "Don't worry, this will also be one of your future strategic

reserves."

"KaKah!"

Gastly was about to cheer excitedly when its body suddenly shook.

Its tongue rolled out, bringing with it a phone covered in drool.

Johan accepted the phone with a twitch of his lips, seeing a friend request notification.

[King of the Land]: Please approve me.

He casually pressed "Reject."

"Good thing I set up a screening process. Who has the guts to call themselves the 'King of the Land?'"

While saying this, Johan subtly wiped his hand on Alolan Vulpix's fur.

Alolan Vulpix: "??"

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Powerstones?

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