In the blink of an eye, it was the next day.
Before heading to the Dragonspiral Tower, Aiden had another matter to attend to.
Yesterday when giving pointers to Lacey, Aiden had promised to show her some battle tactics better suited for doubles battles.
There was a proper order to things, after all, and the Pokémon he had previously asked Principal Cyrano to prepare were also ready. Teaching them would just be a convenient addition.
So, early in the morning, Aiden arrived at Blueberry Academy's main athletic field to serve as the instructor for this "Summer Exchange" program.
"Wow, it's really Teacher Azure!"
"I heard before that the school was going to do an exchange with Paldea, but I never thought the teacher who came would actually be Teacher Azure—"
"I'm going to forward this to my other classmates to make them die of jealousy. Who told them to choose to go home for vacation? Summer break really is the perfect opportunity to get ahead~"
Besides the Blueberry Elite Four that Aiden had already met, several other students staying on campus had also come.
When they saw Aiden appear with Nemona and the other two, the students all showed extremely excited expressions.
Aiden even vaguely heard the clicking sound of camera shutters several times.
'Are they treating me like a zoo monkey—'
Aiden complained internally.
"As expected of 'Teacher Azure'—your reputation is far too attractive to these children."
Principal Cyrano walked over, greeted him, and continued teasing.
"I only notified them that Teacher Azure would be giving a lecture today. I didn't expect all these students to show up on time."
"Why don't I see them this enthusiastic during regular classes?"
Cyrano found this puzzling, but Aiden completely understood the students' mindset.
After all, the things he taught were quite novel in this world, and—
Although everyone claimed to hate "scummy" tactics, if they really had the chance to learn similar strategies that they could use to surprise their friends, how many would actually refuse? (smile)
Aiden walked straight to the front of the field, and the originally somewhat noisy students immediately quieted down.
"Hello everyone—"
"Oh, forgot to start a livestream, one moment—"
Halfway through his opening, he suddenly felt something was off. Aiden immediately remembered something very important to him, so he quickly took out his Rotom Phone and switched it to streaming mode.
[??? Teacher Azure, you're streaming at this hour?]
[What an ungodly time, but Teacher Azure, did you think we'd be asleep this early!]
[It's been so long since the last stream! What are you teaching today—wait, why does it look like Teacher Azure is actually teaching at a school?!]
"OK, now it feels right."
Glancing at the chat, Aiden nodded in satisfaction.
"Teacher Azure will be at Blueberry Academy for a while, serving as the lead instructor for the summer exchange to give students some practical battle lessons."
"So, the streaming format will probably change a bit recently. Anyway, enough chatter—today Teacher Azure is going to talk about a tactic you should all be very familiar with. It's the Minimize strategy I introduced a long time ago!"
After speaking, Aiden paused again.
"At this point, viewers might be asking—"
"'Oh come on, Teacher Azure, didn't you already cover the Minimize strategy? Are you trying to recycle old content!'"
"Actually, no. Because Blueberry Academy's main focus is doubles battles, many tactics have new variations under doubles rules."
"For example, the Minimize strategy we're discussing today is a typical case."
After finishing, Aiden waved his hand, and soon Principal Cyrano happily cameoed as his "little assistant," handing him the prepared Poké Balls.
This top educator of the Unova region showed absolutely no airs of being a principal—in fact, he seemed quite happy to be on camera?
In a sense, this could be considered a dream collaboration—
After receiving the Poké Balls, Aiden immediately pressed the release button.
Soon, two Pokémon of not particularly large size appeared simultaneously.
"Ugh, why is it Muk?!"
"Teacher Azure, is your tactic to stink the opponent to death?!"
"Wait, this Muk doesn't seem to smell, and why is its color so weird—"
"Dude, pinch me, did I eat some bad mushrooms?"
After Smeargle and its partner Muk appeared, countless students' faces instantly turned pale as they subconsciously covered their noses.
But soon, they discovered this Muk's special characteristics.
"This isn't an ordinary Muk, but a regional variant from the Alola region. Influenced by the local environment, its body underwent changes." Aiden smiled and explained simply to the students.
"Alolan Muk are more calm and friendly, and because they manufacture and store toxins within their bodies, they don't emit unpleasant odors."
Although he said this, many students still didn't look too good.
After all, humans had lived alongside Pokémon for thousands of years, and many stereotypes had become deeply ingrained.
Aiden didn't pay it much mind and quickly guided the topic back to today's tactical lesson.
"Has anyone noticed?"
"This time, Teacher Azure isn't using 'Pokémon Champions' as the teaching method. Instead, I directly borrowed the needed Pokémon from Blueberry Academy."
[Oh right, why isn't Teacher Azure playing ranked today?]
[Probably because this lineup is too scummy—if you match against it, you'd know to forfeit immediately—]
[True, Muk + Smeargle—does this look like a combination a decent person would pick? Just thinking about it gives off shady vibes.]
This was a rare opportunity, so Aiden tried out a new teaching method, no longer sticking to his usual online battle format, but switching to a "live demonstration."
He had to say, Blueberry Academy's financial resources truly exceeded his imagination. They had even obtained quite a few Alolan regional variants, which was convenient for his teaching.
"Speaking of which, students from the Kanto region should have deep feelings about the relationship between Muk and Minimize, right?"
Before introducing the tactic, Aiden suddenly recalled Koga from the Fuchsia Gym.
And as soon as he spoke, countless Kanto students collectively shuddered.
[Blue: ——*&@!]
[How did Teacher Azure know? Challenging the Fuchsia Gym back then absolutely disgusted me, it was ridiculous!]
[A whole team of Minimize Muk, just standing there was enough to cause mental pollution, and it looked like there were way more than six of them!]
[Besides Muk, there were also those Weezing—]
There was no helping it—the impression was simply too deep.
This unc with ninja-like methods frequently used Muk or Weezing when accepting challenges from newcomers.
One was a Minimize specialist, the other employed the "chain Self-Destruct" tactic, giving first-time challengers a little taste of Kanto shock.
Of course, Aiden didn't intentionally provoke these lovely students.
"Since the impression is so deep, you should understand this tactic even better."
Aiden nodded, looking at the students sitting obediently in a circle nearby, casually gesturing.
"Now, I need a volunteer to demonstrate for the other students."
"Anyone willing to give it a try?"
As soon as these words came out, the other students immediately scrambled backward, leaving one dazed student in place in no time.
'Are you kidding!'
If Teacher Azure was teaching some proper tactics, that would be fine—they'd definitely be willing to support him.
But this tactic looked shady at first glance. Going up would mean becoming a negative example and very likely ending up frustrated.
So, this precious opportunity should be left to someone else!
Even Nemona, who was already accustomed to battling Aiden, wasn't willing to go up and embarrass herself this time.
Only Drayton, who habitually zoned out during class, didn't react in time. When he snapped back to attention, he suddenly realized he hadn't moved at all—how did he suddenly become the one at the very front?
"Excellent, Drayton!"
Seeing Drayton's confused expression, Aiden immediately pointed at him.
"I choose you!"
'Me?'
'Can I refuse—'
Drayton was on the verge of tears, but in the end, he stood up and walked over with a mournful face.
There was no helping it—Teacher Azure was an important guest of Blueberry Academy. He couldn't let the man be embarrassed!
'I can only sacrifice—my partners.'
"Go, Haxorus, and Dragonite!"
After walking to face Aiden, Drayton quickly threw out two Poké Balls.
As a successor of the Dragon-type trainers in the Unova region, the young Drayton already had a very powerful Dragonite in his team.
As for Haxorus, it was even more of a signature Pokémon for their family.
Aiden examined them briefly—their training level was indeed quite good.
Compared to the Elite Four, they might still be lacking, probably at the level of an average Gym Leader?
But considering his age, one could only say Drayton had a bright future ahead.
Of course, that might not be the case now.
"Teacher Azure, what should I do?"
Drayton asked listlessly on his own initiative.
"Just battle normally. Using actual combat for teaching has more meaning. Just leave me a little time to explain each round."
"Alright."
Hearing that he would be having a proper battle with Aiden, Drayton finally perked up slightly.
Both sides' Pokémon were already on the field. The battle's beginning was just a matter of a glance or a single command.
"Dragonite, use Extreme Speed to attack Smeargle first!"
"Haxorus, use Dragon Dance to power up!"
The instant Aiden raised his hand, Drayton launched a surprise attack, seemingly wanting to gain the initiative in the battle.
A Dragon-type trainer's battle is always decided in mere moments!
"Smeargle, use Fake Out to interrupt Dragonite."
"Muk, Minimize."
Aiden immediately countered, speaking lightly yet very quickly.
In a flash, Dragonite had already flapped its wings, just about to rush forward in one breath, when it suddenly discovered that Smeargle had vanished.
Slap—!
A crisp slap rang out. Smeargle, appearing before Dragonite with ghostly speed, reached out and heavily smacked Dragonite's soft belly.
No one knew how Smeargle could explode with speed more terrifying than Extreme Speed, but the fact was right before their eyes.
The damage wasn't high, but the insult was extreme, directly leaving the simple-minded Dragonite somewhat stunned.
And because of Smeargle's attack, the scales protecting its chest also began to vibrate and shed slightly on their own.
"As expected, it's the Multiscale ability. After all, most of the time, this ability has higher practical value."
Aiden said with a casual smile.
"But if it really were the Inner Focus ability, it would actually be quite troublesome for my side."
"Fortunately, the result is good?"
To others, these words sounded modest, but Aiden spoke from the heart.
After all, unconventional approaches sometimes really could produce miraculous effects—
For example, this Smeargle he had borrowed.
He didn't know where Principal Cyrano had gotten it from, but it had actually learned many incredibly scummy tactics.
Fake Out, Spore, even Trick Room.
It was already pretty close to the doubles configuration he had imagined. Whoever raised it was truly a godly person.
From what Cyrano said, it seemed to be left at the school by a student who went home for summer vacation?
Could it be another one of his "good students"?
"Haxorus has successfully activated with Dragon Dance. It looks like your tactic is planning to go for a power assault?"
Aiden shook his head.
"However, Haxorus can't learn Dragon Rush, can it?"
"How do you plan to break this already revealed Minimize strategy?"
"Is that even a question?"
Once in battle mode, Drayton seemed like a completely different person—not only more imposing, but his previously listless expression also became more serious.
"Believe in our bond, and finish this in one go before the Minimize stacks pile up!"
"Haxorus, use Earthquake!"
"Dragonite! Use Dragon Rush on Muk!"
After receiving the expected response, Aiden sighed.
Believing in bonds was indeed a good thing, but one couldn't be too naive.
"Smeargle, use Follow Me."
"Muk, continue using Minimize."
Because Follow Me had extremely fast priority, even though Aiden's command was slightly slower, Smeargle still managed to successfully draw attention before Dragonite executed its move.
Plus, it had already caught Dragonite off guard earlier, so its agro was already high enough—
So as soon as Smeargle made its taunting gesture, Dragonite immediately glared at it with red eyes and charged straight at it.
Meanwhile, Haxorus had also stomped heavily on the ground, sending shockwaves deep underground surging toward Aiden's side of the field.
For Dragonite flying in the air, Earthquake naturally had no effect, creating pretty good synergy instead.
"Not a bad idea."
Aiden also nodded in approval.
Dark + Poison type Alolan Muk's only weakness was Ground type.
If a Dragon Dance-boosted Earthquake could actually hit, it would probably be able to take it out in one shot.
As for whether he'd lose—
He'd leave that to fate's arrangement!
Even if he lost, Aiden could attribute it to the Minimize strategy itself requiring some luck, so it was normal for an unlucky person like him to not be able to pull it off. As a teacher, the right of interpretation was always his!
Fortunately, his luck was decent this time.
After using Minimize, Muk nimbly dodged and weaved on the ground, its movements incredibly agile, and actually managed to dodge the opponent's invisible offensive.
But Smeargle had it worse.
After taking Dragonite's move, it had just activated its Focus Sash, struggling to climb up from the ground, when it was hit by the aftershocks of Earthquake and directly fainted.
"It's fine, you've already done very well, Smeargle!"
After comforting it, Aiden recalled Smeargle to its ball to rest.
"In doubles, the Minimize strategy can use teammates employing moves like Follow Me or Rage Powder to interfere with opponents, allowing for a relatively safe transition."
"And Smeargle is special—it can also learn other disruption moves like Fake Out and Spore, so it can serve as a universal partner in many 'interesting' tactics."
Aiden explained briefly while taking out a third Poké Ball.
"However, Smeargle isn't our main character today."
"Rather—"
"I choose you, Flamigo!"
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