"Alakazam, let's go!"
As they left the battlefield, Gu Yuan's slightly anxious voice rang directly in Alakazam's mind.
In the next second, Alakazam used Teleport to carry Gu Yuan away from the scene, successfully avoiding being caught by the maintenance trainers. Little did he know that because of him, the maintenance leader was currently in a tight spot, desperately trying to explain that cratering the arena with two massive holes that nearly covered the entire floor didn't "technically" count as destroying it.
By evening, Gu Yuan received tomorrow's battle schedule. In today's matches, Akatsuka had fallen to Taishi Utsunomiya. Intrigued, Gu Yuan pulled up the video of that match to study it.
In the video, Taishi Utsunomiya sent out Altaria immediately. Relying on superior strength and the natural prowess of Dragon-types, Altaria easily crushed Houndoom. Afterward, Blastoise took the stage and defeated the weary Altaria, only to lose to Kingdra in the subsequent clash.
Throughout these three matches, Taishi Utsunomiya's commanding skills were on par with Akatsuka's, but his Pokémon were significantly stronger. This battle once again proved why "Dragon-type" was a synonym for power. To better prepare for Taishi Utsunomiya, the only thing Gu Yuan could do was enhance Sylveon's strength, specifically by helping it improve the mastery of certain moves.
While Gu Yuan was in the midst of his intense preparations, the fifth round of battles began. By now, both Gu Yuan and his opponent, Kurata, had already secured their spots on the Regional Battle Tournament team. To motivate the remaining four members, the organizers intentionally paired the family-affiliated trainers against those from the Elite Four's faction.
In order to ensure their side claimed the captaincy, both Kurata and Aiko would fight with everything they had, forcing their opponents to reveal more of their hidden strength.
"Go, Ditto!"
"Go, Jolteon!"
"Garchomp, Sand Tomb!"
As the battle began, Gu Yuan immediately had Ditto transform. Quicksand emerged, gradually enveloping the entire battlefield.
"Jolteon, use Agility to dodge, then strike back with Pin Missile!"
Facing a Garchomp with the Ground typing, Jolteon's Electric moves were largely ineffective. It could only rely on Pin Missile for chip damage.
"Ditto, Sandstorm!"
With Sand Tomb already active, manifesting Sandstorm became even easier. In an instant, a swirling gale of grit covered the arena. The Sand Veil ability triggered, further boosting Ditto's speed and making Jolteon's Pin Missile impossible to land.
Watching this, some of the maintenance trainers silently dialed their wives' phones. This time, there was no usual nagging—only a gentle response. But what was that heavy breathing on the other end? Was she running?
Under the erosion of the Sandstorm, Jolteon had no room to hide. Enveloped by the omnipresent sand, Jolteon couldn't locate Ditto, and even Kurata couldn't offer much help. Jolteon's instincts screamed that Ditto was lurking nearby; if it made a reckless move, a violent assault would follow. Yet, doing nothing meant Jolteon would slowly wither away until it collapsed.
"Go, Jolteon! Use Thunder to force Ditto out, then prepare Hyper Beam!"
Electricity surged. The moment the Thunder spread, Ditto burst from the quicksand. Bathed in lightning, Ditto's cold gaze locked onto Jolteon.
Under the influence of Scary Face, Jolteon was struck with fear, and its speed plummeted. A Mud Shot followed, splattering directly onto Jolteon's face. Already blinded by the sand, Jolteon could now see nothing at all.
Ditto stomped the ground, and Earth Power erupted, launching Jolteon into the air. Despite Garchomp being a Dragon and Ground-type, it was capable of flight! Ditto lunged toward Jolteon and, following Gu Yuan's order, used Dragon Claw to knock it down, leaving three deep gashes on its body. Sand immediately blew into the wounds, intensifying the pain. As Jolteon hit the ground, a Dragon Pulse descended upon it.
Once Jolteon hit the deck, Gu Yuan didn't have Ditto finish off the dying Pokémon. Instead, he had Garchomp use Spikes and then Swords Dance to buff itself.
"I forfeit. Give me back my Jolteon."
Seeing Jolteon struggling but unable to stand, Kurata decisively surrendered. He knew that if he simply tried to recall it, Gu Yuan would never let him succeed so easily.
"Fine."
The moment Gu Yuan spoke, Ditto tossed Jolteon back. Although Kurata reacted quickly, Ditto had still managed to successfully pull off one Swords Dance.
"It's your turn, Poliwrath! Use Rain Dance!"
The moment the swap was made, Kurata tried to have Poliwrath negate the Sandstorm with Rain Dance. However, as Poliwrath entered, it was first affected by the Spikes, giving Gu Yuan and Ditto an opening. Earth Power erupted, directly interrupting the Rain Dance.
"Poliwrath, use Hydro Pump to block Ditto's advance!"
Kurata shouted, but he had underestimated Garchomp's speed. In the blink of an eye, Ditto was upon Poliwrath. A Dragon Claw struck, interrupting the attack and knocking Poliwrath out of the sky. Carrying the momentum of the fall, Ditto dove down and drove a Dragon Claw through Poliwrath's abdomen.
Intense pain flared, but Poliwrath endured it, throwing a Dynamic Punch in retaliation. A green light shimmered as Protect activated, successfully blocking the strike. Ditto forcefully threw Poliwrath away—blood sprayed and sand bit into the wounds—before Ditto slammed into it with a Giga Impact.
Boosted by Swords Dance, the Giga Impact hit with peak power, instantly crushing the heavily injured Poliwrath. Simultaneously, the Sand Tomb and Sandstorm vanished. Kurata released his final Pokémon, Electabuzz, onto the field.
The effect of Spikes triggered again, granting Ditto the initiative. Using Dig, Ditto vanished beneath the surface.
"Guide the Thunder downward! Prepare Mega Punch!"
Just as Electabuzz unleashed its Thunder, Ditto burst out and hammered a fist into Electabuzz's chest. The prepared Electabuzz countered with a Mega Punch of its own. Enduring the pain, Ditto followed Gu Yuan's command and triggered an Earthquake. At such close range, Electabuzz could not dodge.
After two final Mud Shot blasts to the face, Gu Yuan recalled the exhausted Ditto and sent out Alakazam. He didn't rush the attack, instead letting Alakazam use Nasty Plot to buff itself. The rest was simple; Gu Yuan had Alakazam go on a full offensive, exhausting Electabuzz's remaining stamina with a relentless barrage to win the match.