Gastly was only one thought away from evolving into Haunter.
It doesn't really matter if he reacts to that thought or if someone else reminds him of it.
So it really doesn't matter if Rope reminds here in theory.
It's that this scene is said to be theoretically feasible. But in practice...this is something that really hasn't been seen before...
You know, this evolution... is this something that people do?
We've all been preparing and anticipating evolution, but in the end you've come up with this?
Evolution in one sentence?
Everyone just thought Rope was joking.
But... sadly, Rope didn't.
And the moment Gastly's body flooded with white light... the audience erupted.
"You say evolve you'll evolve?"
"What the hell kind of thing is this???"
A certain unknown man looked at Eevee in his arms and said with a serious look on his face, "Change for me!"
Eevee: boo-ee????
Cynthia looked at Rope with a proud smile on her face.
Her favorite person was that good!
Ash watched his heart pounding, trainers are just so handsome !!!!
Wallace on the other side had a complicated look on his face...
So good at this one...
That said, wouldn't this kind of scene also be gorgeous if it was placed in the venue of Pokémon Contests?
Thinking about it, he nodded, it did seem quite nice...
But then there was a bitter smile... how could this situation be good for maneuvering?
A Pokémon that had enough energy level, but didn't think it could evolve yet, and had to have the immense trust of you, the trainer...stop it, it's hard to handle...
And Irido on the other side of the room, needless to say...
People are stupid...
We've all seen the evolution scene before... what scene have I not seen before (scratch that), but I really haven't seen this one before...
When evolving, you can't attack each other's Pokémon, which is also an unspoken rule among trainers. After all, if you really interrupt someone's Pokémon's evolution by force, it's not easy to damage the foundation, but it can be fatal...
This wasn't a Pokémon enduring the desire to evolve on its own, but rather being interrupted by an outside party, the nature of which was completely different.
"You..."
Irido looked at Rope with a complicated face, not knowing what he should say instead.
Rope was no longer cold-faced after seeing what he wanted to see from Irido. He had a smile on his face, and his face was filled with an expression of 'give you kid a long look'.
Irido felt a real toothache.
Full of blood and blue after evolution... although he hadn't knocked out much blood originally, so how much blue is that…
But this feeling of wasting a lot of effort, and then the opponent directly returning to full blood is really hard to bear...
Rope looked at Irido's suffocating face and snorted in dismay.
Amidst Rope's loud laughter, Gastly's evolution also ended.
"Hiss!"
Haunter spat out his large, bright red tongue and then used both of his newborn hands and proceeded to vigorously jerk his large tongue.
Like he had found some novelty toy.
The corners of Rope's mouth twitched slightly as he looked at the not-so-reliable Haunter not knowing what to say.
A moment later he shouted, "Stop fooling around! Hurry up and do it Shadow Punch!"
This was a skill that Haunter would have acquired by evolving, it was indeed normal, after all, wouldn't it be a loss if it didn't work after growing a strike?
After receiving Rope's order, Haunter looked at the Gallade in front of him, and his eyes flashed with a rare battle intent.
Then he fiercely swung out his fist, the fist burning with black flames separated from his body and struck towards Gallade with an eerie feeling.
"Gallade, Protect!",
Irido also commanded with great caution.
After all, Gastly's black flames had really left an impression on everyone present. If it wasn't necessary, they probably wouldn't take the initiative to take any of his flames...
It hurt to think about it.
Protect's green light shield rose up and blocked the fist wrapped in black flames.
The force of the fist wasn't small, and Gallade had a strained look on his face before struggling to hold on.
The black flames were attached to Protect's light shield, burning the green light shield as if it was eroding.
However, it seemed that this attack would only remain futile.
Apparently Haunter sensed this as well, his body descended full and his fist slowly retracted.
Then it shrunk back into the shadow...
Rope: ...
Too stable...you're as stable as a defense tower...
Even after evolving and then facing an opponent with similar strength as before, he still chose his past fighting style, as steady as ever.
Being wary of every opponent, I don't know how in the world this is a good habit to develop. It was really too careful.
Didn't want to fight head on at all.
Rope couldn't help it. Haunter was a bit too stable compared to the other players in front of him.
The one who wants to curse more is Irido on the other side.
You say, you've hooked people's emotions. I thought of blocking the dignity of the trainer and you to fight, and then you first came to a move evolution to interrupt the mood. And then you follow it up with this kind of fight...
Is this how you fight head-on?
No. Where's the mutual respect between trainers? Show some respect for me, will you!
Looking at Irido's grudging gaze, Rope inclined his head away from him... Rope was quite hot-blooded when he gave orders, but unfortunately it was Haunter who had his own ideas...
Not to mention, Gallade was really relieved...that punch he had just blocked was a real struggle...just from that point of view, the strength of this Haunter he had to deal with was definitely far beyond his own.
"Gallade, be careful and alert!"
Since he couldn't choose his opponent, Kuu could only be careful and vigilant himself.
Gallade and Irido were both vigilantly looking at those shadows, ready to take the Haunter's attack hard.
And a moment later, in Gallade's visual blind spot, Haunter, whose body was burning with black flames, suddenly leapt out from the shadows and crashed towards Gallade.
Sudden attack!
Protect used it, can't use it again.
"Teleport, pick up Psycho Cut!"
Irido opened his mouth and ordered.
Gallade had basically a similar mindset to him and used Teleport at the first opportunity, against opponents who couldn't hit like think Haunter, the best way to deal with them was to take an aoe shot at the shadow and then force him out.
Gallade is able to learn Dazzling Gleam.
Too bad you have to have a skill machine...
Irido can't afford it...
Still quite realistic...skill machines like Dazzling Gleam are really expensive.
Even the average trainer can't afford it all the same.
Not everyone wants to have a set of skill machines ready like Rope.
So he could only choose the second dangerous, but equally effective method.
Countering when the opponent attacked.
But unfortunately, this move can't be countered hard.
Just look at that Shadow Punch move from earlier...Protect barely even Protect.
To resist it is to seek death.
Watching his fighting method Rope nodded, honestly, no problem with the judgment...unfortunately...still too careless...
"Gastly, Shadow Ball."
Rope said faintly.
Irido froze at Rope's command, then immediately shouted, "Avoid!"
Unfortunately...Psycho Cut had worked.
Psycho Cut slashed at Haunter's body.
"With a poof, the Haunter in front of Gallade's horrified eyes turned into a cloud of air, and then dispersed...
"One move is good for everything..."
Rope was also quite helpless...in fact, he really didn't want to fight against each other like this. But Haunter's fighting habits were so, and the results were not bad, so Rope did not intend to forcefully change his fighting habits.
"Damn it!"
Looking at Gallade, who had been blasted out of the field by Shadow Ball, Irido shouted angrily, then clenched his teeth, his fists clenched to the point where his bones turned white.
He looked at the Haunter, then at Rope... suddenly feeling like there was nothing to say...
Losing twice in the same move...what could he possibly have to crow about?
His pride would not allow him to prove his discontent by barking at others like a downtrodden coyote dog.
If you are unwilling and dissatisfied, go back to cultivate, if you are upset and despise, go and do better than others. This is what should be done.
Of course, there were a little more people barking wildly.
He silently retrieved Gallade, who had lost his ability to fight.
"Gallade loses his ability to fight! Winner, Rope of Pallet Town!"
With the referee's order, the battle finally came to an end.
Rope and Irido both walked out into the arena to shake hands as per protocol.
"You won, very impressive, your Haunter's mastery and understanding of Substitute is indeed too strong."
Irido said with a serious look on his face. It wasn't a case of elevating his opponent to justify his defeat.
Haunter's Substitute was truly strong. It was so vivid that it was hard to recognize the real thing.
A fresh move, eat all the days. The move had to be 'fresh' enough to work!
"Thank you, your battle mindset is fine. But experience does leave a lot to be desired, and also, I would like to remind you of one thing."
Rope's face was serious in addition to a smile.
Irido also said with a serious expression on his face, "Go ahead."
Seriously, in the profession of a trainer, it would already be a great favor if someone could actually give you useful advice. Any bit of flaws that someone else pointed out could potentially save your life at a critical moment.
"Your moves are magnificent, but if you can't make a change, then I'd still recommend that you continue to plow through Pokémon Contests, and perhaps you can achieve no less."
"But if you want to become a trainer rather than a coordinator then you're going to have to learn some simple smooth moves. This time out it's Haunter, a guy who's cautious enough to stay out of the way when he can. You can tell. It's basically a one move solution if he strikes."
Irido recalled and nodded, it was indeed true. Not only because Haunter was far stronger than his Pokémon. If he recalled carefully, every attack Haunter made was aimed at the vitals. It was only the power that was withdrawn.
"But if it was Chimchar on the field, those breaks in your moves would have been enough for him to do it. The start is too slow, the forward and backward swings are strong...take your time practicing. If need be, we can have another match after the tournament so you can fight Chimchar and find your flaws."
Rope's words were said seriously. Seriously, he was really quite optimistic about this guy. Of course, it wasn't the kind of bullishness that favored Bai Ci. Bai Ci could be taken as a successor. But Irido could at most be a junior that could be lifted up a bit...
Even though Irido had to travel many years before Rope that is...
"I will! After the tournament, I'll definitely ask you for advice!"
Irido's face was also serious. This was completely pie in the sky for himself.
"By the way, can I ask?"
Irido asked with some embarrassment.
Rope let go of his hand and asked suspiciously, "What?"
"Which, why did Mr. Wallace and the Cynthia Champion come to see your match?"
Really, Irido especially wanted to ask, he really couldn't figure out what was so attractive about the youth in front of him who looked a little older than himself. As strong as he was, could he be any stronger than the two above him????
"Wallace's words, he should be seeking my support... after all, it's not like Steven would be able to just touch his lips up and down if he were to give up his position. With a Pokémon Professor like me to give him a voice, his life would be a little easier."
Rope thought for a moment, then said rather seriously.
Irido: ???
Champion stepping aside? Pokémon Professor? Have I heard something so mind blowing???
Irido subconsciously glanced at the referee, who was looking at him with a 'I didn't hear anything' look.
Irido felt that he might be dragged into trouble...
On the other side, Rope was still talking to himself, "As for Cynthia."
Rope had a big smile on his face, "That's my girlfriend!"
——————————
At night, somewhere on the lawn
Rope and Cynthia are both lying on the lawn looking at the stars in the sky.
"Rope, does it look like when you were lying on the lawn at my house?"
Cynthia suddenly remembered the wretched Rope at that time, a smile appeared at the corner of her mouth.
Rope also laughed bitterly and shook his head, "Not like that, at that time you would take a glass of milk to comfort me, now you just command to laugh at me."
There was a hint of feigned condescension in his tone.
Whereupon Cynthia rewarded him with a headbutt and pouted, "This is about as effective as milk."
It's not like Cynthia bounced it hard. Rope always restrained himself from going elemental when dealing with these people* (note one).
After all, what's the point of life if even this kind of hijinks are gone?
"But Rope. will you still return to the original world?"
Cynthia suddenly asked coldly.
"I will, but I can't be over there all the time. At most it'll be like going home to visit family."
Rope also answered without hiding anything.
There were no secrets between him and Cynthia...
He'd even seen Cynthia's memories as a child of being bitten by a round land shark in the hair on a swing and then having to go everywhere in pain to get help from Dr. Kale.
And then Cynthia gave him a hard elbow.
"When are you going back to visit?"
"Tonight!"