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he knowes pokemon more than i know _Chapter_1007_en
Chapter 107
Chapter 997: Time to Go Fishing
On the stage, the battle raged on.
"So the key to this battle is to launch two consecutive high-speed attacks!"
Ash secretly made up his mind. Other Pokémon might not be able to do it, but for a Pokémon as incredibly agile as Grovyle, it was definitely possible!
"Grovyle, use Bullet Seed!"
"Marshtomp, let's block it with Mud Shot!"
Both trainers chose ranged moves.
Soon, countless green energy pellets and brown mud clumps spewed from the mouths of Grovyle and Marshtomp, colliding violently in the center of the stage.
Boom!!
The collision kicked up a fierce explosion, filling the air with smoke and dust.
But before the smoke could clear, a figure had already charged into it.
Swoosh!
Even faster than the figure was a blade of green light, flashing with a menacing glint within the smoke.
Grovyle's phantom-like form appeared beneath Marshtomp's body, slashing upwards with a fierce Leaf Blade.
"Protect!"
Faced with an assault under the cover of smoke, Yuki didn't dare to be careless, quickly using the broken move to block it.
Clang!!
With a crisp crack, Grovyle was once again sent flying into mid-air by the protective barrier.
"It's not over yet! Use Leaf Blade!"
But at that moment, Ash suddenly roared, and his fervor stunned even Yuki.
"Grovy...!"
Sent flying, Grovyle quickly spun in mid-air to right itself.
The Leaf Blade on the back of its hand hadn't dissipated; instead, the green light flared intensely.
Swoosh!!
Following the pull of gravity, the instant its opponent's protective barrier faded, it brought the blade crashing down.
Leaf Blade!!
With the defense of Protect gone, this Leaf Blade struck its target squarely!
"Shtomp..."
The strike sent Marshtomp half-kneeling to the ground as it let out a low, muffled groan.
A massively super effective hit!
Yet, despite taking such a heavy blow, Marshtomp maintained its dazed expression and did not fall, leaving Ash unable to get a read on its exact condition.
But it didn't matter. With a quadruple weakness, a second Leaf Blade would surely decide the outcome.
"Grovyle!"
After all, Grovyle has two hands.
As the power from the first Leaf Blade was fully spent, Grovyle pressed its advantage, poising the Leaf Blade on its other hand to strike down hard!
"Dee!!"
But just at this most critical moment, an urgent sound echoed from above the stage.
"The battle is over!!!"
The host, Vivian, also made the announcement, declaring the end of the battle.
This forced Grovyle to halt its attack at the last second, rolling forward a short distance without fully bringing down its Leaf Blade.
It stopped just short of the mark, a perfect display of control.
Across the stage, Yuki let out a small sigh of relief, a smile finally returning to his face.
"Contestant Yuki from Littleroot Town advances to the Semifinals~!"
Soon, Vivian delivered the final verdict.
"How can this be...?"
This sudden, drastic turn of events left Ash with a pained look on his face, completely baffled.
Had time run out?
No, that couldn't be right. He had been keeping track of the time; there should have been about a minute left...
However, Yuki simply walked over and patted his Marshtomp on the head, explaining:
"Ash, you forgot the rules of this battle."
Ash looked up at the electronic screen beside them. The clock was frozen at 57 seconds; there was still time remaining.
However, below their avatars... at some point, Ash's HP bar had completely emptied.
Meanwhile, his opponent, Yuki, still had more than half of his HP remaining.
Throughout the entire battle, although it looked like Grovyle was on a high-intensity offensive, its attacks had all been deflected by Marshtomp.
Skillful defense could cause the opponent to lose HP.
As a result, it was Ash's HP bar that had been steadily decreasing.
As for that final Leaf Blade, besides causing the opposing Marshtomp to lose nearly half its HP bar...
The fact that the dazed-looking Marshtomp could take a move that it had a quadruple weakness to and still not collapse was, in itself, a defensive feat worthy of bonus points.
The trade-off, naturally, was that Ash's HP bar had hit rock bottom.
"Uh, is that really a thing?"
Realizing what had happened, Ash and Grovyle looked at each other, dumbfounded.
He had gotten completely caught up in the heat of the battle and hadn't paid any attention to his HP bar.
"Grovy."
Grovyle simply turned its head, picked up a twig, and clearly had no intention of commenting on the matter.
It just follows its trainer's commands; it wasn't taking the blame.
"Beep-beep. Grovyle has mastered a new move, False Swipe."
The Pokédex also chose that moment to make its presence known...
Ash: "..."
In the lounge, Blue and May were also watching the battle.
"Aww, that's such a shame, Ash!!"
Seeing the battle end, Blue immediately clenched her fists, full of regret.
If that final Leaf Blade had landed, regardless of Ash's health, Marshtomp would have been incapacitated, securing the win.
"If this were a normal battle, Ash would have won today!"
Blue said, feeling it was an injustice to Ash.
Beside her, May was quietly sizing up the round-faced girl before her. It seemed this girl had some unspoken feelings for the youth on the stage, didn't she?
"If it were a normal battle, the outcome between the two would still be hard to say~"
With this thought, May couldn't help but speak up.
"After all, Yuki intended from the start to use the Pokémon Contest rules to defeat Ash, rather than choosing to fight a standard battle~"
In that case, the primary objective becomes skillfully evading and scoring points, not knocking out the opponent until they're unable to battle.
Yes, she was just giving an objective observer's analysis, not favoring anyone.
However, this analysis prompted Blue to start sizing her up in return.
The last time they met, she was a completely green novice trainer...
Now, after not seeing her for just over ten days, she had already reached such a realm?
As if a certain possibility came to mind, Blue coughed lightly, her expression turning a bit more serious.
"Hey, May-chan, did you know that a very strange story happened in my hometown a few years ago?"
She decided to probe her first.
May: "?"
She tilted her head, completely baffled by this line of thought.
But she might as well listen.
Seeing this, Blue continued, putting on an expression as if she were sharing a fun piece of local news.
"There was this crazy trainer who appeared in our area. That part isn't too surprising, but he told a reporter that he had transmigrated from the video game world and had a whole different set of memories about Pokémon in his head..."
May: "?!"
This turn in the story left her frozen on the spot.
For no reason at all, a cold sweat broke out on her back.
What the hell? There were people like her in other regions, too?
Wait, was this woman testing her?!
"..."
But looking at Blue's harmless, dorky face, she looked like a completely pure and gentle girl.
Subconsciously, May still felt that the other girl probably wasn't implying anything.
"Hmph~!"
Inside, however, Blue was sneering coldly.
Trying to play-act against her, someone who had learned from Big Sis Blue, was an absolute joke!
As if she couldn't pretend to be a sweet, ditzy girl too!
And now, the fishing expedition begins!
Seeing that Blue had stopped after her opening line and was just staring at the screen, as if she had truly just shared a random, boring anecdote...
After holding it in for a long time, May was the one who couldn't help but break the silence.
"Um, so? What happened to that crazy guy later?"
Hearing this, Blue smiled inwardly before turning back to look at May.
The fish has taken the bait.
Thank you to Mo Ran Qinghua for the 5000-coin donation!
Thank you to Si Yuyan for the 1000-coin donation!
Thank you to Reader 2017020* for the 500-coin donation!
Thank you to Qiming Ai Hao Mingzi for the 100-coin donation!
(end of chapter)
On the stage, the battle raged on.
"So the key to this battle is to launch two consecutive high-speed attacks!"
Ash secretly made up his mind. Other Pokémon might not be able to do it, but for a Pokémon as incredibly agile as Grovyle, it was definitely possible!
"Grovyle, use Bullet Seed!"
"Marshtomp, let's block it with Mud Shot!"
Both trainers chose ranged moves.
Soon, countless green energy pellets and brown mud clumps spewed from the mouths of Grovyle and Marshtomp, colliding violently in the center of the stage.
Boom!!
The collision kicked up a fierce explosion, filling the air with smoke and dust.
But before the smoke could clear, a figure had already charged into it.
Swoosh!
Even faster than the figure was a blade of green light, flashing with a menacing glint within the smoke.
Grovyle's phantom-like form appeared beneath Marshtomp's body, slashing upwards with a fierce Leaf Blade.
"Protect!"
Faced with an assault under the cover of smoke, Yuki didn't dare to be careless, quickly using the broken move to block it.
Clang!!
With a crisp crack, Grovyle was once again sent flying into mid-air by the protective barrier.
"It's not over yet! Use Leaf Blade!"
But at that moment, Ash suddenly roared, and his fervor stunned even Yuki.
"Grovy...!"
Sent flying, Grovyle quickly spun in mid-air to right itself.
The Leaf Blade on the back of its hand hadn't dissipated; instead, the green light flared intensely.
Swoosh!!
Following the pull of gravity, the instant its opponent's protective barrier faded, it brought the blade crashing down.
Leaf Blade!!
With the defense of Protect gone, this Leaf Blade struck its target squarely!
"Shtomp..."
The strike sent Marshtomp half-kneeling to the ground as it let out a low, muffled groan.
A massively super effective hit!
Yet, despite taking such a heavy blow, Marshtomp maintained its dazed expression and did not fall, leaving Ash unable to get a read on its exact condition.
But it didn't matter. With a quadruple weakness, a second Leaf Blade would surely decide the outcome.
"Grovyle!"
After all, Grovyle has two hands.
As the power from the first Leaf Blade was fully spent, Grovyle pressed its advantage, poising the Leaf Blade on its other hand to strike down hard!
"Dee!!"
But just at this most critical moment, an urgent sound echoed from above the stage.
"The battle is over!!!"
The host, Vivian, also made the announcement, declaring the end of the battle.
This forced Grovyle to halt its attack at the last second, rolling forward a short distance without fully bringing down its Leaf Blade.
It stopped just short of the mark, a perfect display of control.
Across the stage, Yuki let out a small sigh of relief, a smile finally returning to his face.
"Contestant Yuki from Littleroot Town advances to the Semifinals~!"
Soon, Vivian delivered the final verdict.
"How can this be...?"
This sudden, drastic turn of events left Ash with a pained look on his face, completely baffled.
Had time run out?
No, that couldn't be right. He had been keeping track of the time; there should have been about a minute left...
However, Yuki simply walked over and patted his Marshtomp on the head, explaining:
"Ash, you forgot the rules of this battle."
Ash looked up at the electronic screen beside them. The clock was frozen at 57 seconds; there was still time remaining.
However, below their avatars... at some point, Ash's HP bar had completely emptied.
Meanwhile, his opponent, Yuki, still had more than half of his HP remaining.
Throughout the entire battle, although it looked like Grovyle was on a high-intensity offensive, its attacks had all been deflected by Marshtomp.
Skillful defense could cause the opponent to lose HP.
As a result, it was Ash's HP bar that had been steadily decreasing.
As for that final Leaf Blade, besides causing the opposing Marshtomp to lose nearly half its HP bar...
The fact that the dazed-looking Marshtomp could take a move that it had a quadruple weakness to and still not collapse was, in itself, a defensive feat worthy of bonus points.
The trade-off, naturally, was that Ash's HP bar had hit rock bottom.
"Uh, is that really a thing?"
Realizing what had happened, Ash and Grovyle looked at each other, dumbfounded.
He had gotten completely caught up in the heat of the battle and hadn't paid any attention to his HP bar.
"Grovy."
Grovyle simply turned its head, picked up a twig, and clearly had no intention of commenting on the matter.
It just follows its trainer's commands; it wasn't taking the blame.
"Beep-beep. Grovyle has mastered a new move, False Swipe."
The Pokédex also chose that moment to make its presence known...
Ash: "..."
In the lounge, Blue and May were also watching the battle.
"Aww, that's such a shame, Ash!!"
Seeing the battle end, Blue immediately clenched her fists, full of regret.
If that final Leaf Blade had landed, regardless of Ash's health, Marshtomp would have been incapacitated, securing the win.
"If this were a normal battle, Ash would have won today!"
Blue said, feeling it was an injustice to Ash.
Beside her, May was quietly sizing up the round-faced girl before her. It seemed this girl had some unspoken feelings for the youth on the stage, didn't she?
"If it were a normal battle, the outcome between the two would still be hard to say~"
With this thought, May couldn't help but speak up.
"After all, Yuki intended from the start to use the Pokémon Contest rules to defeat Ash, rather than choosing to fight a standard battle~"
In that case, the primary objective becomes skillfully evading and scoring points, not knocking out the opponent until they're unable to battle.
Yes, she was just giving an objective observer's analysis, not favoring anyone.
However, this analysis prompted Blue to start sizing her up in return.
The last time they met, she was a completely green novice trainer...
Now, after not seeing her for just over ten days, she had already reached such a realm?
As if a certain possibility came to mind, Blue coughed lightly, her expression turning a bit more serious.
"Hey, May-chan, did you know that a very strange story happened in my hometown a few years ago?"
She decided to probe her first.
May: "?"
She tilted her head, completely baffled by this line of thought.
But she might as well listen.
Seeing this, Blue continued, putting on an expression as if she were sharing a fun piece of local news.
"There was this crazy trainer who appeared in our area. That part isn't too surprising, but he told a reporter that he had transmigrated from the video game world and had a whole different set of memories about Pokémon in his head..."
May: "?!"
This turn in the story left her frozen on the spot.
For no reason at all, a cold sweat broke out on her back.
What the hell? There were people like her in other regions, too?
Wait, was this woman testing her?!
"..."
But looking at Blue's harmless, dorky face, she looked like a completely pure and gentle girl.
Subconsciously, May still felt that the other girl probably wasn't implying anything.
"Hmph~!"
Inside, however, Blue was sneering coldly.
Trying to play-act against her, someone who had learned from Big Sis Blue, was an absolute joke!
As if she couldn't pretend to be a sweet, ditzy girl too!
And now, the fishing expedition begins!
Seeing that Blue had stopped after her opening line and was just staring at the screen, as if she had truly just shared a random, boring anecdote...
After holding it in for a long time, May was the one who couldn't help but break the silence.
"Um, so? What happened to that crazy guy later?"
Hearing this, Blue smiled inwardly before turning back to look at May.
The fish has taken the bait.
Thank you to Mo Ran Qinghua for the 5000-coin donation!
Thank you to Si Yuyan for the 1000-coin donation!
Thank you to Reader 2017020* for the 500-coin donation!
Thank you to Qiming Ai Hao Mingzi for the 100-coin donation!
(end of chapter)
