Thud!
On the big screen, the Poké Ball next to Piers' portrait dimmed—it was Malamar's. He had just lost his first Pokémon.
Originally, many spectators thought Piers held the advantage thanks to Malamar's Contrary boosting its stats. But once Johan sent out Gengar, the whole battle flipped 180 degrees.
Malamar's hard-earned buffs were handed to Gengar like a gift, letting Gengar put on a show of its physical strength. In one fell swoop, it was Piers who lost the upper hand.
What would he do now?
Send Scrafty back out?
But Scrafty had already tried once and failed to land a proper hit on Gengar.
Or perhaps...
Piers flipped his hair and tossed another Poké Ball.
"Rock it out—Obstagoon!"
A fierce-looking black-and-white humanoid badger stood on its two legs, blood-red eyes glaring as it hit the field.
"Gaaaaar!!"
Obstagoon let out a taunting roar in Gengar's direction, but didn't rush in. Instead, it crossed its arms across its chest, wearing a smug "come at me" grin.
"Obstagoon, the Blocking Pokémon. Dark/Normal type. A ferocious Pokémon that loves to provoke its opponent and wait for them to strike first—Roto!"
It still resembled Linoone, but only the Galarian form could evolve into Obstagoon. The harsher environment of the Galar region forced it to adapt through evolution.
Dark/Normal typing? That means immunity to Ghost-type moves!
Thanks to Grimsley's commentary, the audience was quick to catch on.
Of course! Piers still had a Ghost-immune Obstagoon! No matter if Gengar used physical or special Ghost-type attacks, they were now completely—Blocked!
Facing the red-tongued Gengar, Obstagoon crossed its arms.
Gengar puffed out its cheeks and stuck out an even redder tongue in response.
Then it turned, stuck its rear out, and gave it a taunting shake.
Obstagoon's red eyes went even redder, blood vessels almost popping.
Lalala~ Can't hit me~ Can't touch this~
When it comes to taunts, Gengar is the OG.
After finishing its antics, Gengar zipped back into Johan's Poké Ball.
Gone!
Leaving a confused and furious Obstagoon with no target to vent its rage on.
Johan couldn't help but chuckle.
He'd intended to switch out Gengar anyway, but he hadn't expected Gengar to throw in some sass on the way out.
"Let's go, Urshifu!"
Johan brought Urshifu back out, discarding Gengar's +3 Attack and Defense buffs without hesitation.
"Knew it! Urshifu returns!" Grimsley announced.
Obstagoon, being Dark/Normal, is 4x weak to Fighting!
Even though both Obstagoon and Piers were thrown off by Gengar's antics, Piers still seized the moment.
Before Urshifu even fully materialized, he gave his command:
"Obstagoon, Wild Charge!"
Ssss!
Obstagoon suddenly ignited in flame—a Burn Orb! It had been holding a Flame Orb and was now burned.
But the burn didn't weaken it—it fired it up.
Guts!
"Obstagoon's ability is Guts. The burn from the Flame Orb significantly boosted its Attack stat," Grimsley explained promptly, helping the crowd understand the setup.
With a roar, Obstagoon lunged at the red glow of the incoming Urshifu.
"Garruu!!"
Urshifu landed just in time to see the attack coming—its muscles tensed instantly.
"Counter!" Johan's voice rang out in Urshifu's mind.
Urshifu shifted its stance—one foot forward, one foot back, arms in position. The textbook pose of a martial arts counter.
While moves may be shared, how Pokémon execute them based on their martial discipline makes all the difference.
Wrapped in white light, Obstagoon collided with Urshifu.
BOOM!!
A massive impact roared out, amplified by Guts, crashing into Urshifu like a freight train.
And yet—it was stopped.
Stonewalled.
Dead in its tracks.
"What?!"
Piers' eyes widened in shock.
Even Obstagoon wore an expression of disbelief.
That attack had everything—momentum, power, no holding back.
And it got blocked?
Almost like Urshifu had energy left to spare…
And now comes the payback.
"Garruu~!"
Urshifu's grin turned chilling.
Crack… crack…
Muscles across its body flexed, veins bulging, as dark red energy surged around it.
Single-Strike Style—Counter!
"GARRUU!!"
Urshifu roared and returned all the force of the previous hit—plus its own—right back at Obstagoon.
The resulting power—
"Obstagoon!" Piers gritted his teeth. "Counter it back!"
Counter the Counter?!
What is this, Ash vs. Gladion? You can't just… stack counters!
BOOM!!
Urshifu's blow, mixed with Obstagoon's own momentum, launched it like a cannonball.
It streaked through the air and smashed into the stadium barrier, shaking the shield violently.
Forget counters on counters—when your defense is overwhelmed in one hit, there's no time for gimmicks.
One Hit. KO.
"He… he got one-shotted?!"
"Urshifu is insane!"
"Why didn't Piers have Obstagoon use Obstruct?"
Grimsley explained again:
"Because Urshifu's ability is Unseen Fist—Obstruct and Protect don't work on contact moves."
Ah—so not only was Obstagoon weak to Fighting, its defenses were useless.
Piers looked strong and well-prepared, but Johan seemed to have predicted everything.
Phew…
Piers recalled his fallen Obstagoon with a tight-lipped nod.
Only Scrafty remained—and no more switching.
"Go, Scrafty! We're not done yet!"
"Scruff!!"
Scrafty returned to the battlefield.
Like Obstagoon, Scrafty was also 2x weak to Fighting, and its ability was likely Moxie...
Also, Trick Room was gone.
Scrafty had no speed advantage anymore.
"Fake Out!" Piers barked.
If Scrafty could KO Urshifu and gain a Moxie boost, there was still hope.
Smack!
The priority move struck first, causing Urshifu to flinch, giving Scrafty a breath of relief.
"Now, Dragon Dance!"
"Scruff!"
A dragon's roar echoed—it was charging up!
Wait—Johan blinked.
Scrafty can learn Dragon Dance?
Guess lizards count as dragons now…
"Urshifu, Surging Strikes!"
"What?!"
Piers was stunned—Urshifu already recovered from the flinch?
Already?
Actually, Johan could've made it recover even sooner using his Aura powers—but even without them, Urshifu's willpower and Aura affinity let it bounce back fast.
What's a flinch to a master of Pokémon psychology?
Even before Scrafty could finish its dance, Urshifu appeared before it—water surging, fists blazing.
Straight punch! Whip kick! Uppercut!
Scruff! Scrafty whimpered, blasted into the air.
"That's it." Grimsley spoke softly.
Yes.
It was over.
Without Dragon Dance's buff, Scrafty had no speed, no power, and no stamina to match Urshifu.
Even if it tried to go blow-for-blow, it would lose.
Plus, Piers wasn't even a Fighting specialist—his techniques couldn't hold a candle to Johan, who'd been recognized by Mustard as a true martial arts master.
It wasn't even close.
"GARRUU!!"
Urshifu stood tall, roaring triumphantly—wind howling around it.
Coach Bear was back in business!
Grimsley watched the whole thing, thinking to himself: If I had to face Johan… would I stand a chance?
He flipped a coin—an old habit.
He didn't even look at the result.
Just pocketed it.
Better not to know.
He honestly didn't want to face a "tactical master" like Johan, who read his opponents like an open book.
Too painful. Too frustrating.
And he was lucky. As a member of the Elite Four, he didn't have to fight in this tournament.
Piers, on the other hand… had just experienced that exact frustration.
From start to finish, it felt like Johan was in complete control.
"So this is a 'tactical master.' So this is what 'not holding back' means…"
Piers smiled wryly.
Seems like he still had a long way to go before he could elevate Spikemuth.
"The battle's over! The winner—Johan!"
Johan advanced to the Top 32!
And now, with the benefit of live commentary, the audience finally understood:
Johan's command of tactics and control of the battle's rhythm was on another level.
"Johan-sensei is OP!!"
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Powerstones?
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