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"Eddie, don't lose focus during battle! Otherwise, it becomes far too easy for your opponent to exploit your weaknesses!"
"Like right now! Arcanine, use Flare Blitz!"
Blaine's irritation showed when he saw Eddie still bantering with his Pokémon.
He was an elderly man who had been dragged out by Eddie for an early morning gym battle. It hadn't been easy for him to begin with, and now Eddie—the one who had insisted on this match—wasn't even taking it seriously. How could he not be upset?
His frustration mounting, he seized the opportunity to launch an attack.
"Aroooo!!!"
As if sensing Blaine's anger, Arcanine roared in response. Then, wreathing itself in intense flames, it charged toward Pikachu, who was still exchanging taunts with Eevee.
"Haha, Pikachu, use that move to counter it."
Pikachu was thoroughly enjoying its verbal sparring with Eevee, but neither it nor Eddie had dropped their guard against Arcanine.
The moment Arcanine attacked, Eddie immediately issued his command. Pikachu whirled around and glared at the Pokémon responsible for Eevee's mockery. It was more than ready to teach Arcanine a lesson.
"Pika!!"
Pikachu let out an adorable battle cry, and before the shocked eyes of both Blaine and Arcanine, it conjured a massive wave out of thin air.
Then, Pikachu pulled out a surfboard from seemingly nowhere, hopped onto it, and rode the enormous wave directly toward the charging Arcanine, letting the water crash down upon it.
"That Pikachu can actually use Surf! This is bad! Arcanine, stop your charge!"
Blaine felt as though his eyes were deceiving him. He immediately removed his sunglasses to get a clearer look at Pikachu, only to confirm that it was indeed surfing. He couldn't help but cry out in astonishment.
However, Flare Blitz was a charging move already in progress. While stopping wasn't impossible, it would require precious time.
But neither Eddie nor Pikachu would grant even that brief respite. Pikachu simply rode the Surf forward and completely engulfed the charging Arcanine in water.
"Aroooo~~~"
Arcanine howled in agony once more, and this Water-type attack dealt damage comparable to the earlier Thunderbolt.
However, because Blaine had reacted quickly enough earlier, Arcanine had managed to partially avoid Pikachu's previous assault, preventing it from taking the full brunt of that attack. The damage hadn't been too severe. But this time, the attack landed squarely, forcing Arcanine to endure the entire wave of damage.
After crying out several times, Arcanine finally used its superior speed to escape the attack's range, but it was now covered in injuries.
"This is troublesome. If it takes one or two more hits like that, Arcanine will go down. We can't let it get close to that unusual Electric-type anymore."
Blaine's expression grew increasingly grave. Although Arcanine could still continue fighting, he no longer wanted it anywhere near Pikachu.
Eddie's Pokémon were simply too bizarre—not only were they exceptionally powerful, but they constantly produced unexpected surprises.
The same had been true for that Eevee that could somehow evolve and devolve at will, and now this Pikachu that could inexplicably use Surf. Blaine realized he needed to approach this battle with far greater caution.
"Arcanine! Be careful not to let Pikachu close the distance again. Now use Flamethrower while keeping your distance!"
Standing still and trading blows was clearly a poor strategy—Pikachu would definitely rush in and overwhelm Arcanine. A hit-and-run kiting strategy would work much better!
Upon hearing this, Arcanine thought it was an excellent idea. It excelled at running while simultaneously attacking opponents. It roared enthusiastically and began executing the kiting maneuver.
"Hehe~~~ Eddie, even when Arcanine runs without using any speed-boosting moves, it's still incredibly fast. Can your Pikachu possibly keep up with Arcanine's pace?"
Blaine displayed a confident smile. As a Pokémon researcher, he knew that while Pikachu were quite fast, they still couldn't match Arcanine's speed. He felt certain that this tactic would secure his victory!
"Haha, Pikachu, he's seriously underestimating your speed~~~"
"Show Blaine what you're really capable of—use Volt Tackle!!"
Seeing Blaine employ such tactics, Eddie couldn't help but reveal a delighted expression as he called out to Pikachu.
He had anticipated all along that Blaine would have Arcanine use this exact strategy—why else would he have switched out Eevee? It was precisely to counter this situation.
Blaine's reasoning wasn't actually flawed—a regular Pikachu's speed truly couldn't match Arcanine's. But what Blaine didn't know was that Eddie's Pikachu was rather special. It was a Partner Pokémon, and while Partner Pikachu might not see dramatic improvements in other areas, when it came to speed... well, that was a different story entirely.
"Pika Pika Pika Pika!!"
When Pikachu saw Arcanine implementing this tactic and heard Eddie's command, it couldn't help but display the same gleeful smile as its trainer.
Assuming its battle stance, Pikachu allowed the tremendous electrical current within its body to surge outward, covering its entire form in crackling energy until it shone brilliantly.
Facing the Arcanine that was running while attacking simultaneously, Pikachu suddenly charged forward. It effortlessly dodged the incoming Flamethrower while closing the distance to Arcanine with each passing moment.
Its speed rivaled Arcanine's own Extreme Speed!
"What?!! That Pikachu! It can actually run that fast!!"
Blaine stood frozen in shock as he watched Pikachu weave through attacks while approaching Arcanine at a blistering pace.
What in the world—was this Pikachu some kind of genetic anomaly? How could such a Pikachu possibly exist?
Blaine was a Pokémon researcher, and if they weren't in the middle of a battle right now, he would have desperately wanted to study this particular Pikachu.
However, regardless of his thoughts or his astonishment, the battle's outcome had already been determined.
Faced with the rapidly approaching Pikachu, Arcanine found itself at a complete loss. With Blaine still paralyzed by surprise and unable to issue commands, it could only watch helplessly as Pikachu's body, wreathed in terrifying electrical currents, slammed into it with devastating force.
"Arooooo!!!"
Arcanine released such a mournful cry for the third time. But this time, struck by the ultimate Electric-type move Volt Tackle while already covered in wounds, it collapsed directly to the ground.
Eddie watched Arcanine fall and waited for the system's level-up notification, but even after waiting for quite some time, no game prompt appeared whatsoever.
"Seriously? After defeating this level 65 Arcanine, I couldn't even get enough experience to level up Dragonair?"
"Good grief, I really hope Blaine's next three Pokémon are stronger and higher-leveled. Otherwise, I might not achieve my goal of raising my Pokémon to level 65."