Now that Reiji knew Lucario was trapped by Magnet Pull, there was no reason to waste time looking for a way to switch.
"Lucario, Dig!"
"Don't let it get away! Track it with Magnet Pull, then use Zap Cannon!"
Lucario disappeared underground, but Magnezone did not lose track of it. Its magnetic field stayed locked onto the Steel type beneath the ground while electricity gathered around its body.
"Lucario, come up! Bone Rush!"
The ground burst open directly beneath Magnezone.
Lucario came out swinging, driving an energy bone into the spinning Magnezone. Metal screamed against energy as the two attacks ground against each other, and the recoil traveled straight up Lucario's arms. Trying to hold that clash for long would numb them completely.
"Magnezone, Thunder!"
"Hold on, Lucario!"
Electricity crashed down while Magnezone was still spinning. Lucario took the current through its body and into the ground beneath its feet, reducing the damage enough to stay in the exchange.
Bone Rush was getting nowhere, though. Magnezone's rotation knocked the weapon aside every time Lucario tried to force it through.
Running would not help either. Magnet Pull was already dragging against Lucario's Steel body, making every movement feel as though several Lucario were hanging from its back. Trying to sprint away would only waste energy while pulling Magnezone along behind it.
Reiji changed tactics.
"Lucario, use your psychic power. Pin it down!"
Lucario let the energy bone disappear and pressed both paws against the spinning Magnezone. Blue light gathered around its hands as psychic force spread over the Steel type, slowly forcing it toward the ground.
The moment Magnezone touched down, the sound changed.
Its body kept spinning against the earth like a tire with no traction, spraying dirt while Lucario leaned harder into the psychic hold. Inch by inch, Magnezone was pushed deeper.
Taro could not tell what Reiji was trying to accomplish, but Magnezone still had the advantage. Lucario was trapped, Magnezone was already attacking, and changing tactics now would only give Reiji room to breathe.
Under normal circumstances, the matchup would have been much less comfortable. Lucario resisted both of Magnezone's own types and had plenty of ways to hit it back. Magnet Pull was the only reason Taro could force this kind of exchange.
"What is Reiji planning?" the commentator wondered aloud. "Magnezone is still spinning, but Lucario is forcing it farther into the ground! Neither side is giving in!"
The audience gradually fell quiet as the struggle dragged on.
Lucario's arms were beginning to shake. Holding Magnezone down while its metal body spun beneath its paws was tearing at its hands, and eventually its concentration slipped for just a moment.
That was enough.
Magnezone threw Lucario away and continued spinning inside the shallow crater.
Lucario hit the ground hard and rolled clear.
For a moment, it looked as though Magnezone had won the contest.
Then everyone noticed something strange.
It was still spinning.
"Magnezone, stop!" Taro shouted. "Magnezone!"
There was no response. Its body continued rotating in the crater at full speed as though it had never heard him.
The referee gave Taro a warning. "If you cannot get Magnezone to respond, it will be removed from the match."
"Come on! Stop spinning!"
Nothing changed.
When the time limit expired, the referee called in an Elite Four-tier Pokémon to force Magnezone to a halt.
Only then did everyone see what had happened.
Magnezone was already unconscious.
Reiji had never been trying to overpower its spin. He had wanted Lucario to keep it pressed against the ground long enough for the friction to build heat. Magnezone had continued spinning long after it lost consciousness, cooking itself inside the crater without even realizing what was happening.
"Magnezone is unable to battle! Taro has now lost three Pokémon. The match will enter a five-minute intermission!"
Both Trainers recalled their Pokémon as the center of the battlefield opened.
A large pool rose into place, followed by the Cerulean sisters for a water ballet performance. The reaction from the stands was immediate. A large part of the audience forgot about the battle the moment three pairs of long legs appeared beside the pool.
Not everyone was distracted.
The big screen still showed the state of the match.
Reiji — Taro
Poliwrath — Electivire
Ludicolo — Blastoise [OUT]
Lucario — Gyarados [OUT]
————— Magnezone [OUT]
Reiji sat alone beneath his side's shelter and went over the first half of the match.
He had used three Pokémon so far.
Poliwrath was finished for today, but at least it had come through the clash with Electivire without a serious injury. Reiji would need it again later in the tournament, so that was already a good result.
Ludicolo was fine. It had spent some energy against Blastoise, but nothing that a little rest under the sunlight could not fix.
Lucario had taken the worst of it. Between the earlier fighting and the long struggle against Magnezone, its injuries were starting to pile up. Reiji could still send it back out if necessary, but from here on it would be better used to wear an opponent down than to carry another full fight.
Even so, Lucario had already done more than enough.
It had taken out both Gyarados and Magnezone.
Across the field, Taro had a much uglier problem.
Three of his Pokémon were gone, and Reiji had not officially lost a single one.
Ejiro stood nearby with a bottle of water and a towel, wisely keeping his mouth shut while his brother cooled off.
Taro drank some of the water, then dumped the rest over his head.
"How the hell is he this strong?"
He needed to calm down. Getting angry while three Pokémon behind would only make the situation worse.
Ejiro stepped away and kept his thoughts to himself.
So even his brother was probably going to lose.
Ejiro had lost to Reiji twice already, and nothing about this match made him believe Taro would do any better. Reiji always walked into battle looking as though he already knew how he planned to win. Even Reiji's own brother had said he rarely took a fight he was not confident about.
Ejiro was mostly curious to see how Taro would lose.
...
Up on the waiting-room balcony, Shun had stopped worrying.
Poliwrath really had reached Elite Four tier.
Reiji had hidden that surprise well.
Shun was already wondering how far Reiji could go now. If he reached the top eight, the two of them might even end up entering the Elite Four preliminaries together.
...
Ash and the others were watching from the stands as well. The protective barrier kept them from feeling the full pressure of the Elite Four-tier Pokémon, but the shaking from the earlier collision had been impossible to miss.
"Poliwrath is Elite Four tier now?" Ash stared at the field. "Does that mean Reiji is an Elite Four Trainer?"
"Not yet," Brock explained. "Under the League's system, you need at least three Elite Four-tier Pokémon before you can register at a Pokémon Center as an Elite Four-tier Trainer."
Ash immediately wanted to know what came after that.
"To challenge the Elite Four properly, you need a full team of six at that level. And if you actually want to hold an Elite Four position, all six need to fit the type you specialize in. Lorelei has Ice, Bruno has Fighting, and so on."
Ash's eyes lit up at the idea.
Gary reacted very differently.
The more Reiji improved, the farther away he seemed. Gary had spent all this time trying to close the gap, yet somehow it had only gotten wider.
Professor Oak rested a hand on his grandson's head.
"Take your time. Being a Trainer isn't the only road you can follow."
The League itself had been pushing that idea for years. Pokémon Breeders, Coordinators, Pokémon Contests—there were more paths now for talented people who loved Pokémon without making every ambition revolve around fighting.
There was a practical reason for that too. A world full of powerful Trainers who solved every disagreement with their Pokémon was not an easy world to govern.
Gary understood what his grandfather meant, but he was not ready to give up on battling.
Not even close.
Having strength and choosing not to use it was very different from never having that strength at all.
...
At the Pokémon Center, Cissy and her family had finally relaxed.
Seeing Taro open with an Elite Four-tier Electivire had scared them. For a moment, it had looked as though Reiji might actually be stopped here.
Then Poliwrath appeared.
By the time the intermission began, Reiji had built such a large lead that Cissy could finally unclench her hands.
She turned to her grandfather. "Grandpa, did you recognize that ice armor?"
"Of course. It belongs to an old ice specialist from Johto—the one who always looks like he's in a bad mood."
Pryce.
Cissy's grandfather had not seen him in years and had no idea exactly how strong he was now, but Pryce had already been formidable when they were younger.
What interested him more was how many different teachings Reiji had collected.
Mikan Gym.
Cinnabar Gym.
Mahogany Gym.
And probably others Reiji had never mentioned. Poliwrath's strange bursts of power certainly had not come from nowhere.
Thinking about all those old faces pulled him back into memories he had not visited in years. The battles faded first. What remained were the stupid things they had done together when they were young, back when none of them had known where life would take them.
...
Travis was watching with his mother and could barely contain himself.
"Rai-nii's Poliwrath reached Elite Four tier!"
Gulzar knew a little more than he did. As far as he was concerned, Reiji had crossed that line already; there was still an Elite Four-tier Gengar nobody here was talking about.
Luana slowly let out the breath she had been holding.
If she could go back to the beginning, perhaps she would have made different choices.
There was no going back now.
As for the person who had saved Travis, his reaction had already told her enough. Reiji clearly had no intention of bringing it up, so neither would they. Whatever opportunity there might once have been to draw him closer had already passed.
Elsewhere in the stands, Rudy watched the screen and quietly reassessed Reiji.
"So this is what you can really do. Barely good enough."
Danny was less impressed.
Two years later, perhaps. One Elite Four-tier Pokémon was nowhere near enough yet.
Drake, meanwhile, was looking at a small note someone had left beside him.
He read it once, then glanced back toward the battlefield.
"Interesting kid. I wonder where that old maniac disappeared to. I'd love to see his face right now."
His eyes returned to the note.
Someone was scared.
Which usually meant someone else was about to have a very bad day.
Reiji had trouble coming.
...
Word of Poliwrath's breakthrough was spreading well beyond the people in the stadium.
A.J. watched from the stands and felt even better about the choice he had made. Following Reiji was looking smarter by the day.
Sou was practically bouncing in his seat. Seeing Poliwrath dominate an Elite Four-tier battle had apparently convinced him that he wanted one too. Water types were Water types, after all.
Tai watched from a bar and said nothing. He only kept his eyes on the screen.
Shingo was studying every second of the broadcast. Reiji had finally shown one of the cards he had been hiding, and Shingo intended to remember it.
Keith had other problems. He and a girl were currently running for their lives, leaving him no time whatsoever to watch the tournament.
Far away at a club on Mandarin Island North, Naoki was watching too. Reiji had reached Elite Four tier exactly as quickly as he had expected.
That did not improve Naoki's mood.
...
The bell finally rang inside Pummelo Stadium.
Five minutes were over.
Reiji and Taro returned to their platforms while the water ballet pool disappeared beneath the floor and the field-selection screen began cycling again.
"The intermission is over," the referee announced. "The battlefield for the second half is now being selected."
The cursor stopped.
Rock field.
Once the replacement finished rising into place, the referee raised his flag again.
"The second half of this full six-on-six match will take place on the rock field. Trainers, prepare your Pokémon."
Reiji sent Lucario back out because it had been his active Pokémon when the first half ended.
Taro answered with his fifth Pokémon.
"Go, Charizard!"
Charizard emerged with a roar and fired a column of flame into the air. When it lowered its head again, its attention was fixed on Lucario, fire still leaking between its teeth.
Reiji considered the matchup for all of a moment before raising Lucario's Poké Ball.
"Come back."
Lucario had only returned because the rules required the previous active Pokémon to resume the match. There was no reason to leave an injured Steel type in front of Charizard.
And against a Fire/Flying Pokémon, Reiji had a much better answer available.
"Go, Pelipper!"
[End of chapter]
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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