Chapter 286: The Read
The match officially began!
As expected, Derek started by calling for a repositioning.
"Amoonguss, hop forward. Have your Pidgeot fall back."
Amoonguss doesn't have legs; it can only move by hopping, so its speed wasn't very fast.
But Pidgeot, following the command, retreated quite quickly.
The purpose of this maneuver was obvious—
"Use Rage Powder!"
Sure enough, Derek opened with his signature move, Rage Powder.
At the same time, Justin coordinated with him.
"Pidgeot, use Gust!"
Pidgeot flapped its wings, stirring up a current of air that blew the powder further across to the opponent's side of the field.
After being coated in the bright red powder, even the normally gentle-tempered Indeedee's eyes sharpened.
It can't be helped. My fists are clenched. I want to punch a mushroom!
"Indeedee, Psybeam."
Before giving the command, Monica stole a glance at her side. Seeing no instructions from Arthur, she had Indeedee use the Psychic-type attack, Psybeam.
The Psychic-type move was super-effective against Amoonguss's Poison type, which made Indeedee's attack less futile.
But in contrast, Arthur chose a command that went against the type matchup.
"Lapras, use Water Gun first. Attack while retreating."
A Water-type move against a Grass-type Pokémon was bound to be ineffective, but Arthur's real goal wasn't damage; it was to preserve his ability to counter.
Water Gun has a very short cooldown, and Little Lapras's was especially fast.
This allowed it to vent its rage while retaining the maximum capacity to react.
Sure enough, just a few seconds later, the opponent couldn't wait any longer and prepared to make a move.
And it was Justin who acted first.
"Pidgeot, fly over them! Pursue Lapras!"
Pidgeot took off, flying in a high arc to bypass the powder-spreading Amoonguss and chase after the constantly retreating Little Lapras.
If Lapras kept retreating like this, the Rage Powder would no longer be able to reach it.
Pidgeot dove down ferociously, swooping straight for Little Lapras!
At first glance, the charge seemed unstoppable, as if it was determined to settle things once and for all!
But Arthur's instincts told him it was a trap!
Pidgeot's Flying type is weak to Ice, and his Little Lapras had already demonstrated both Icy Wind and Ice Beam in the regular season.
Where did a Flying-type Pokémon get the confidence to charge an Ice-type Lapras on its own?
Who gave you that kind of courage?
"Continue using Water Gun! Intercept it!"
Playing it safe, Arthur held back, not wanting to commit a major move just yet. He had Little Lapras continue firing water arrows to intercept.
However, with its agile movements, Pidgeot weaved left and right, dodging every single water arrow as it continued its charge!
Come to think of it, Pidgeot's evasive maneuvers were something Arthur himself had pushed it to practice.
He wondered if it was now trying to get revenge for that past training.
This resolute action once again put Arthur on high alert.
Finally, the instant before Pidgeot was about to make contact with Lapras, Arthur abandoned what should have been a favorable one-on-one for him.
"Use Follow Me!" he said to Monica.
Monica, trusting him completely, didn't hesitate.
"Indeedee, use Follow Me!"
And now, Justin finally showed his hand!
"Pidgeot, use U-turn!"
It really was a trap!
In that moment, the commentator cried out, the audience roared, and Justin's initial excitement turned to shock.
And standing next to him, Derek clenched his fists, wanting to punch a wall.
To fall short at the final moment!
Damn it!
As the architect of the plan, Derek was furious!
Pidgeot was so close to succeeding!
Originally, after completing the attack, Pidgeot was supposed to use U-turn to switch places with the Amoonguss in the rear, helping the slow-moving mushroom cross most of the field and get right in Lapras's face!
Then, Amoonguss would use its ready-and-waiting Rage Powder to taunt and lock down the powerful Lapras.
Meanwhile, Pidgeot, now in the back, would be responsible for quickly eliminating the weaker Indeedee!
Use their shield to control and stall the enemy's strongest piece, then use their sword to quickly eliminate the enemy's weakest link!
In Derek's eyes, the plan had been flawless, completely foolproof!
Justin's Pidgeot had never once revealed its U-turn in the previous two rounds.
What a perfect plan!
But alas, it fell apart the moment it was set in motion…
They had wanted to use a taunt, but they never expected the opposing Indeedee to have a taunt of its own.
A single Follow Me forcibly diverted Pidgeot's attention, forcing its flight path into a sharp, L-shaped turn towards Indeedee.
As a result, its U-turn was forced to hit Indeedee instead.
"Maa!"
Indeedee, whose strength was still a fair bit away from the professional level, cried out in pain from even the moderately damaging U-turn.
But its pain was worth it.
The switch was activated, and Amoonguss was teleported to where Indeedee had been standing.
It couldn't cancel the Rage Powder it had prepared, which erupted and instantly made Indeedee see red, its fists clenching.
But the powder barely affected Little Lapras, who had already retreated far away.
And just like that, Derek's plan was rendered mostly useless.
What was the point of controlling an Indeedee?!
Its damage output was insignificant…
The key was Lapras!
Arthur immediately commanded with rapid-fire speed, "Get around Amoonguss! Glide to the side and hit Pidgeot with Ice Beam!"
Arthur had chosen to use Little Lapras in this match precisely because its Ice-type was super-effective against Pidgeot!
Of course, it was also super-effective against Amoonguss, but that thing was too tanky and had a bunch of recovery and draining moves. It wasn't a good primary target.
The opponent had wanted Pidgeot to take out Indeedee quickly.
But in the end, it was Arthur's Little Lapras that had caught Pidgeot first!
After using U-turn, Pidgeot's speed had dropped, and it had landed. By the time it tried to take off and evade, it was too late.
The Ice Beam shot across the distance, grazing half of its body. The terrifying frost instantly condensed into a thick layer of white on half of its wing!
"Pidgeoooot!!"
Pidgeot let out a pained cry.
Even though birds of prey have offensive skills that surpass their on-paper stats, Pidgeot had fully inherited the common avian weakness of poor defenses.
It had impressive speed and attack, but its special defense was only average.
This one Ice Beam was exceptionally effective!
Now, Derek's expression grew even uglier.
His strategy had been completely seen through, his actions perfectly read.
His planned taunt tactic had been countered by the opponent's own taunt move.
This feeling… was just the worst.
At this moment, all Amoonguss could do was channel its frustration into bullying the Indeedee in front of it.
Unfortunately, this Amoonguss had been raised from the start as a defensive support. It was great at self-preservation but lacked offensive power.
Even against an Indeedee that wasn't yet at a professional level, it couldn't take it down quickly.
And for the short-legged Amoonguss to try and support the other side of the battlefield was nearly impossible.
From the moment Arthur had seen through their opening gambit, Derek had a premonition that he was about to be at a disadvantage.
Arthur, another first-year rookie. This guy was his nemesis
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