Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Countless leaves floated in the air, swiftly cutting Marshtomp's body.
Marshtomp roared loudly, enduring the damage from the Magical Leaf move, and with its fist covered in a cold glow, it charged directly at Cacnea on the battlefield.
"That's it! Marshtomp's Ice Punch has a type advantage against Cacnea! With its natural strength, just one good hit could knock it out or seriously injure it," exclaimed Hailey Blake, clenching her fists with excitement as she watched Marshtomp break through the attack and quickly close in on its opponent.
"That's it! Use the layered Magical Leaf tactic!" ordered Ethan Black, his eyes sparkling as he saw Marshtomp charging like a bull.
Immediately, Cacnea began to create a continuous barrage of Magical Leaf, layering the leaves at different angles and levels. Soon, a true rain of leaves covered the sky, completely surrounding Marshtomp.
Facing such a dense attack, Marshtomp showed no fear. Relying on its powerful physical resistance, it broke through the curtain of leaves with brute force, advancing directly toward Cacnea with Ice Punch ready.
But just when Marshtomp thought it had landed the final blow, it suddenly felt its fist strike nothing. That strange feeling of hitting thin air caused it to stumble. Regaining its balance, it realized that Cacnea was no longer in front of it!
"Marshtomp, watch out behind you!" shouted Hailey Blake, and Marshtomp quickly turned on its heels.
In front of it, a new wave of Magical Leaf came rushing toward it, and through the layers of leaves, Marshtomp could make out the silhouette of Cacnea.
"Marshhh!"
Marshtomp launched another Ice Punch, smashing through the leaf barrage. The powerful cold from its fist froze the incoming attack, blocking it completely.
Crack, crack, crack!
Marshtomp lunged forward again, shattering the frozen leaves in its path, leaving a shower of sparkling crystalline fragments in the air.
Boom!
Marshtomp wasn't fast, but its strength was immense. As it advanced, it clenched its fist even tighter, and one could hear the whistle of the air being cut by its blow.
But once again, its fist struck empty space!
That feeling of missing the punch caused an intense discomfort, almost like it was going to spit blood; its whole body felt wrong.
"So this is the layered Magical Leaf tactic..." thought Rachel Blake, observing the battle.
"Using a dense curtain of leaves to block Marshtomp's vision, and then, taking advantage of the fact that Cacnea's body has a very similar color to the leaves, it makes Marshtomp think it's still there."
"Moreover, the silhouette Marshtomp saw was likely intentionally left by Cacnea while it had already withdrawn. Taking advantage of the cover of the leaves, Cacnea forced its opponent into making a wrong decision."
Rachel Blake immediately understood what was happening in the field and couldn't help but sigh.
Her sister Hailey Blake was undoubtedly very talented as a Pokémon breeder. With the guidance of their family and her dedication, her Marshtomp had been very well trained.
But in contrast to her breeding ability, her strategic talent in battle was still limited. This became evident in this fight.
Against Cacnea's long-range strategy, Marshtomp could have easily responded with a long-range move like Water Gun.
However, by focusing on Ice Punch's type advantage, Hailey Blake insisted on a close-quarters battle.
That ended up being exactly what Ethan Black had anticipated, and now Marshtomp was being completely overwhelmed, taking unnecessary hits.
In reality, Marshtomp was stronger than Cacnea in terms of raw power, but due to a poor tactical decision, it was now completely at a disadvantage.
(End of chapter)