Chapter 344:
"What kind of joke is this?"
Someone looked down at the battlefield below, incredulous.
How could this lush green grass be so fire-resistant?
"What kind of Grassy Terrain is this? Fire can't even burn it all away?"
"Damn, is this Little Kaede's Serperior? This Grassy Terrain... did it practice by using Grassy Terrain every day in the plantation?"
"This Blaziken is done for, running into Little Kaede... As expected, every one of Little Kaede's Pokémon has something unique about it!"
Others recorded videos and posted them in the group chats.
Several 500-member fan groups immediately erupted into a frenzy.
Fans of Kaede started chatting enthusiastically in the groups.
But soon, someone understood the mechanics of this Grassy Terrain and explained the reason.
"No, no, it's not fire resistance. If it were fire-resistant, it wouldn't burn at all. This is vitality, a manifestation of overly dense Grass-type energy. That's why it's like this; the grass immediately regrows after being burned.
"There's a Grass-type Elite Four member's gym near my house. He once explained the Grassy Terrain move. He said this move tests two things: first, the Grass-type Pokémon's mastery over its own energy; second, the Pokémon's inherent energy strength!
"The third point is crucial, but he was a bit vague. He said that when the Pokémon's energy mastery and level are similar, it comes down to something more abstract: affinity with nature."
"The greater a Pokémon's affinity with nature, the more powerful the boost from Grassy Terrain will be!"
"It's a bit like Energy Ball. Yes, the Energy Ball Little Kaede had Serperior use. It's an energy sphere that gathers life energy from nature. The greater the affinity with nature, the faster it gathers, and the greater the attack power becomes."
After this series of explanations, other group members exclaimed, "The person above really knows their stuff..."
The group chat was buzzing.
In the spectator stands, it was also a scene of astonishment. Everyone was amazed by Serperior's Grassy Terrain.
At the same time, some people turned their attention to Hayashi Kaede.
"See, I told you! Little Kaede is fierce!" The spectator who had earlier boasted that Hayashi Kaede could win the championship now spoke triumphantly.
Seeing Hayashi Kaede's Serperior perform so formidably gave him a sense of shared glory.
But soon, a spectator sitting above him voiced disagreement.
"It's just a slightly stronger Serperior! So what if Blaziken can't break through Serperior's Grassy Terrain? The type advantage still exists!
"And this kid is so young. No matter how good he is, he probably only has Serperior as his ace, right? Our Miss Sally has been traveling for years! Her Pokémon team is well-balanced, and their strength is comparable!"
"Talking so big, acting like he's already the champion or something."
Clearly, this spectator had heard his earlier complaint about their idol and was now being sarcastic.
The Hayashi Kaede fan felt provoked and was about to retort, "Hey, who says Little Kaede..."
But he stopped mid-sentence, simply smiling quietly. "Just watch. You'll see who's truly strong when the time comes!"
Words alone could never convince others; facts were needed.
So he didn't want to argue over empty boasts.
He unconditionally believed Little Kaede could win the championship!
"Serperior used Energy Ball! Heavens! This dense, forest-like Grassy Terrain actually makes Blaziken seem helpless!
"It's unbelievable that Serperior can unleash such a powerful Grassy Terrain!"
Up above, Satoshi, sitting on his Aegislash, watched this scene, his eyes wide. His commentary was genuinely passionate and shocked.
This time, he was truly astonished.
The bespectacled young man opposite, upon hearing Hayashi Kaede's command, immediately reacted, "Blaziken, use Quick Attack to zigzag rapidly!!"
As a trainer who had reached the Pokemon League Conference, he naturally had a good understanding of Pokémon moves.
He knew Energy Ball was a gathering-type energy move. As long as his speed was fast enough, it should be easy to dodge!
Blaziken's fiery body immediately began flickering within the grass.
"Serperior...."
Serperior, hidden within the grass without a trace, sensed the blazing figure darting through it and couldn't help but smirk slightly.
Actually, for it, this Blaziken's speed couldn't even compare to that gluttonous chicken back home.
That gluttonous chicken, without weather boosts, still couldn't dodge its pursuing Energy Balls, let alone now, when it had some mastery over Aura!
A naturally gathered verdant Energy Ball shimmered in its mouth, tinged with hints of aqua-blue ripples.
It closed its eyes, sensing the moving presence within the terrain. The Energy Ball grew larger and larger.
For a moment, the entire battlefield fell silent.
But this silence didn't reassure Blaziken's trainer; instead, it made him more uneasy.
Blaziken was in a Quick Attack state. Logically, gathering-type moves should be hard to hit in this state.
But the opponent's trainer had clearly given the "Energy Ball" command.
And hadn't issued a new command since?
He refused to believe that Serperior maintaining such a vast Grassy Terrain consumed *less* stamina than Blaziken merely using Quick Attack!
*'As long as we outlast the Grassy Terrain! We can rely on Blaziken's high mobility and type advantage to defeat this Serperior!'*
This thought flashed through his mind, and he felt slightly settled.
But the next second...
*Boom!*
A loud collision sound, accompanied by Blaziken's cry of pain, made his pupils contract. "Blaziken!"
He saw, on the grass-covered field, a violent explosion suddenly occur, and then Blaziken's body was sent flying into the air.
But Hayashi Kaede at this moment shook his head amusedly. "Serperior, Slam!"
Serperior was here at the Pokemon League Conference to practice its Aura power as well.
Otherwise, Hayashi Kaede's initial thought was to use Leaf Storm directly to boost its Special Attack.
But before the battle, Serperior had communicated via Aura that it wanted to use Energy Ball, so he switched to using Grassy Terrain, which could also prepare the field for the next match!
Two thick vines extended from the verdant grass, then swiftly bound the airborne Blaziken and slammed it viciously onto the ground.
After the slamming ended, Blaziken fell outside the Grassy Terrain, eyes closed, completely unconscious....
Witnessing this, Satoshi above was stunned. "Instant killed? A Grass-type Serperior took down... Blaziken in two moves??"