A flash of white light swept across the battlefield.
Pawmot—its gaze blazing—looked directly at Archaludon, the aluminum-bridge dragon. All the stat boosts granted by the "Quiver Dance" performed earlier by Ribombee were now transmitted to Pawmot via "Baton Pass."
At that instant, not only did Pawmot's already impressive physical strength receive a boost, but its body became lighter, and even its internal energy reached an unimaginable peak.
Right then, it felt better than ever!
On the other side, Archaludon was staring at Pawmot as if facing a formidable enemy, intense fighting spirit reflected in its eyes.
A few months ago, this Pokémon, who had defeated both Scizor and Archaludon—left a deep impression on Archaludon and became its motivation in training.
Now, the time for revenge had come!
Drayton, in sync with Archaludon's mindset, thought the same.
He had already set his expectations lower.
At the very least, he wanted to beat Pawmot!
"Rain Dance!" Drayton gave his first command, his mood somber.
"Ria-dong!"
Archaludon howled to the sky, instigating thick gray rain clouds that blocked out the afternoon sun and brought a moist atmosphere to the arena.
The next moment—
A torrential downpour followed, with heavy drops instantly pooling into a puddle on the battlefield.
"It's raining!!!"
"Argh! I just did my hair!"
Many panicked voices erupted from the audience, but Lucas, well prepared for Drayton's appearance, showed no trace of panic. He gracefully pulled a collapsible umbrella from inside his jacket and opened it.
Hassel, with his hands empty, shamelessly squeezed under Lucas's umbrella.
Unlike the audience's commotion, the rain did nothing to douse the fighting spirit between Nemona and Drayton—if anything, it put them in an even more focused state.
"Discharge!"
With rain amplifying the power, blinding thunder light filled everyone's field of vision. Even when Iono used Terastalized Electric attacks, their might was slightly inferior to this.
Amidst the rain, wild serpents of lightning twisted and lashed as if seeking victims, roaring towards Archaludon.
Such ferocity for a Pokémon known for close combat was almost unnatural.
Off to the side, while Hassel covered his eyes and shouted that he'd go blind, Lucas—now in sunglasses—smirked.
That's right. "Quiver Dance" into "Baton Pass" is just that strong and simple.
Facing such a strike, with Drayton's expression changing, Archaludon swung its body as a weapon, using "Earthquake" in a wide sweep to try intercepting "Discharge's" advance.
Moments later—
The blinding light faded. Drayton looked gravely at Archaludon, whose alloy body now bore char marks. He couldn't help but click his tongue in disbelief.
What power.
If "Discharge" was already like this, what about Pawmot's signature physical attacks...?
Unwilling to contemplate it further, Drayton suppressed his thoughts and called out, "Iron Defense!"
Rainy conditions benefited both Archaludon and Pawmot. Now, his strategy was to quickly double down on the "Stamina" ability's defense boosts, stalling as long as possible.
Victory would soon tilt in his favor!
"Ria-dong!"
Archaludon let out a low growl, his body coated in shimmering silver light.
In just an instant, its already tough frame became even more impenetrable.
At Naranja Academy's side, the Fighting-type Pokémon expert Dendra's expression changed. "Even with a type advantage, if you let Archaludon keep boosting, this will get troublesome fast!"
She knew well that bashing hard objects with your fists without breaking through the defense was sheer frustration.
On Nemona's side, however, she was relaxed—almost as if playing with a new toy—letting Pawmot exchange volleys with the giant fortress that was Archaludon.
Then, she shifted tactics to Pawmot's specialty: close combat.
"Mach Punch!"
Even as Nemona finished her command, another "Iron Defense" had just landed. With "Stamina" proccing for every hit, Archaludon's eyes snapped open.
Pawmot, who'd just been at the battlefield's edge exchanging attacks, flickered like a mirage—instantaneously closing the gap.
Whoosh!
A fierce wind howled.
A fist wreathed in white light zoomed straight towards Archaludon's chest like a radiant halo, the iron dragon helpless to defend.
Pawmot's fist landed solidly!
Boom!
Fist met metal with a heavy thud. The weighty Archaludon was knocked several meters back before barely regaining its footing.
". . ."
Looking at the obvious dent in Archaludon's chest, Drayton was momentarily speechless.
Even at defense's near limit, and with mere type advantage, a regular Mach Punch causing such devastation was shocking.
Or was this the work of the "Iron Fist" ability?
Just what kind of monster is this Pawmot!?
But Nemona gave Drayton no time to breathe. In her world, going all out was a form of respect toward the opponent.
"Spark!"
Pawmot became enveloped in golden currents, wild lightning-snakes writhing about it. Rather than using "Spark," it looked like it was about to unleash "Wild Charge."
The radiant bolt pierced the rain like a shooting star, smashing toward Archaludon.
By this point, Archaludon had already shifted into its "bridge form," the usually curved body drawn completely taut, sacrificing mobility for total balance—looking just like an iron bridge.
In this form, both energy projection and power were at their peak, further bolstered by "Stamina." Archaludon was a terrifying howitzer.
In an instant, a mighty burst of silver cannon-light tore through the air, barely halting Pawmot's charge head-on.
Drayton dared not relax, squinting and shouting, "It's about to attack again! Charge up quickly!"
"It's too late!"
Nemona cheerfully called out from across the field.
Drayton froze.
"This—"
From Blueberry Academy's side, Alder stood up abruptly. With a battle veteran's eye, he caught the shadow—at the instant of impact—a flash of lightning dashing like thunder by Archaludon's side.
"Close Combat!"
As Nemona announced the move, all light from the energy clash vanished.
Thanks to this, Drayton finally saw Pawmot's outline—a streak of afterimages along its trajectory.
Archaludon, slowed by its new form, never realized Pawmot had moved, its head swinging side to side in confusion.
"Protect!!"
Drayton's strained, hoarse command was half a beat too slow.
A chorus of whooshes split the air.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! —!!
Pawmot launched a barrage of thunderous punches at lightning speed, a chain of detonations ringing out across Archaludon's body. Energy explosions chained across the metallic dragon.
"Ria-dong—!!"
Archaludon let out a howl of agony, its metallic bridge-like body collapsing like a toppled skyscraper onto the square, sending up sprays of water.
That attack had done massive damage!
Spectators—especially locals—couldn't hold back their cheers in the rain.
All the frustrations from two consecutive defeats evaporated. Crushing power at this level left their blood boiling.
Even the usually composed Lacey from Blueberry Academy looked grim. The mood shifted.
Was Nemona's progress in just a few months too much?
Archaludon barely managed to climb to its feet. Drayton, suddenly realizing something as he eyed the unmoved Pawmot and Nemona, forced a bitter grin.
"Archaludon, full-power Electro Beam!"
He and Archaludon had trained so long for this revenge match—only for their opponent to wait for them to stand up.
What a joke!
He had to at least wipe that calm look off Nemona's face!
Archaludon formed the bridge shape again. Since the battle began, it had been steadily siphoning static at its limbs, especially when Pawmot released Electric moves.
After all, it couldn't generate its own electricity.
Now, it would unleash everything it had accumulated!
Electric arcs surged over its bridge-body, their screeches high-pitched and shrill—a concentrated ball of terrifying plasma condensed at the center.
Constrained by its alloy body, the energy became a cannonball to fire at will.
But containing this power came at great strain.
Seeing this, Nemona, ever oblivious to the mood, actually praised Archaludon.
"That's some impressive willpower—you guys really excite me!"
Drayton was perplexed. Did Nemona's brain just run on a different wavelength...?
But in that moment, she only had eyes for Archaludon, energetically calling out: "Let's show them our fighting spirit, too!"
"Pawmot, full-power Double Shock!"
Lucas narrowed his eyes in the stands, slightly awed.
Nemona and Pawmot had mastered Double Shock—it made sense at this stage.
It was the second move on Lucas's list of signature moves he wished his own Luxray could learn.
(Incidentally, number three was Wild Charge. Both have drawbacks, but Double Shock was preferable for him.)
A 120-power physical Electric STAB—what's not to like over Wild Charge or Spark?
The only downside—that it could make a Luxray lose its Electric type after Terastalizing—was resolved with the Tera Orb.
But, alas, Double Shock was Pawmot's exclusive move.
All Lucas could do was watch the intense showdown on the field.
Pawmot now shone like a blazing ball of lightning, both fists loaded with devastating electric energy.
A moment later, the savage thunder light blasted through the rain, launching ever forward at Archaludon.
Archaludon had completed its final charge as well. With a shrill whine, a blinding white beam split the entire arena, its fearsome plasma projectile piercing the rain, colliding directly with Pawmot's Double Shock.
For Archaludon: this was its most powerful, all-in strike, all stored-up energy released without concern for cost.
As for Pawmot...it poured every ounce of its electricity into the punch—even losing its Electric type temporarily—powered by "Iron Fist."
With such a disparity in strength, the outcome was preordained.
If it were just the two Pokémon, Archaludon might have held out for a brief moment.
But just earlier, Ribombee had Baton-Passed all of her "Quiver Dance" boosts to Pawmot.
That meant Pawmot's internal energy was at maximum.
Under everyone's shocked gaze—
Pawmot's first punch shattered Archaludon's Electro Beam, dissipating the attack.
The second punch landed directly on Archaludon, who couldn't even activate "Protect" in time.
The blow detonated the field, the ocean of thunder entirely engulfing Archaludon.
Before long, the light faded.
Suppressing his excitement, Director Clavell announced: "Archaludon is unable to battle. Contestant Drayton, please send out your next Pokémon!"
That Double Shock seemed to have crushed Drayton's spirit.
Even as he sent out his Haxorus, his fighting style lost all its former ferocity.
Soon, with Pawmot temporarily out of electricity and relying solely on Fighting-type attacks, even the mighty Haxorus was felled by its relentless assault.
"Haxorus is unable to battle! Since all three of Blueberry Academy contestant Drayton's Pokémon have been defeated, contestant Nemona from Naranja Academy wins this round!"
Around them, a tidal wave of cheers erupted.
Compared to their two previous defeats, Nemona's 3–0 sweep brought morale roaring back!
Drayton, on the other hand, nearly staggered from exhaustion.
At that moment, a broad shoulder supported him.
Turning around in confusion, he saw Alder's smiling face.
Seeing this, Lucas shook his head with a smile.
Just like himself, when Drayton suffers such a blow, Alder would be the one to console him. If not, there was always his grandfather, Drayden.
For most Pokémon trainers, defeat is a common occurrence.
How you turn defeat into motivation is what decides if you can keep moving forward.
After this heavy loss, Drayton's resilience should grow. As long as he pulls through, he will be all the stronger for it.
Next time he meets that genius girl Iris—who is just as "ridiculous" as Nemona—his spirit won't collapse so easily, right?
…
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