"As expected, Tyranitar."
Adrian also threw his Poké Ball.
A humanoid Pokémon appeared, with a white lower half and a green upper body, with arms shaped like retractable blades.
It was Gallade, a Psychic/Fighting-type.
"Gallade?"
Ethan's expression changed.
"Fighting-type... and Teleport..."
"I see... I'm completely countered."
He quickly tried to withdraw Tyranitar.
But Gallade was even faster: it appeared behind Tyranitar and blocked the red beam of the Poké Ball with its own body.
Then its green blade cut through the air with a roar, striking Tyranitar with force.
Unable to react in time, Tyranitar was pushed backward, leaving a white mark on its body.
"Just as I thought... Tyranitar, Sandstorm!"
Tyranitar roared and released the full power of the sandstorm.
A violent sand gale lashed toward Gallade across the field. But in the middle of the gale, Gallade used the move Teleport again, disappearing.
When it reappeared, it concentrated Fighting-type energy on its blade and launched another slash toward Tyranitar.
BOOM!
Before the attack could land, Tyranitar had already used the move Rock Tomb.
Four stone walls rose around it, firmly enclosing it in a fortress of rock.
During Gallade's slashes, all the attacks were blocked by the stone walls.
At the same time, the sandstorm on the field grew even more violent. The fierce wind dragged sand and dust with it, even lifting the sand that had been prepared earlier, transforming it into a terrifying gale that devoured everything in its path.
At that moment, the power of Tyranitar's sandstorm had been pushed to the extreme, turning it into the absolute tyrant of the desert!
Seeing this, the spectators showed astonishment. A sandstorm of this level... it truly was something never seen before!
"What a terrifying storm! Is this the true strength of Tyranitar?"
"It seems that in the previous battle against that Kommo-o it was defeated by surprise."
While the crowd discussed excitedly, the image before their eyes became increasingly blurry. Only sand and wind could be seen; the silhouettes of Tyranitar and Gallade were no longer visible.
However, the intense sounds of combat continued, forcing everyone to sharpen their hearing to try to guess the situation.
Suddenly, a figure flashed in the air: Gallade appeared abruptly. The visible wounds on its body showed how fierce the battle inside the storm had been.
"Didn't it manage to defeat Tyranitar?"
"What a powerful Tyranitar! How was it trained to control the sandstorm like this?"
The coordination between Adrian and Gallade was extraordinary. The instant Gallade used Teleport to escape the range of the storm, Adrian recalled it into its Poké Ball.
And just as it was withdrawn, the gale swept across the place where it had been moments before.
"Did it manage to escape?"
"Then... what Pokémon will he send now?"
Ethan stared intently at Adrian while thinking about his next plan.
So far, Adrian had revealed Gastrodon and Gallade. Among them, Gastrodon was a major problem if not handled properly.
While Ethan was reflecting, Adrian sent out his next Pokémon. It was not Gastrodon, as he had assumed, but... a Golem!
"Is that... Golem?"
"My god! Why is it so enormous?"
The spectators exclaimed in unison.
A normal Golem measures around 1.4 meters, but this one reached nearly 3 meters in height—twice the usual size!
"Is it a Totem Pokémon?"
"It doesn't seem so. It doesn't have the Totem aura. A Totem Pokémon isn't just large; its aura is the true source of its power."
Ethan reflected. Although it didn't possess the Totem aura, size in a heavy combat Pokémon that depended on its weight represented an enormous advantage.
The sandstorm swept toward the gigantic Golem.
But being a Rock/Ground-type, the storm did not deal effective damage to it.
"Tyranitar, disperse the storm."
With Ethan's command, the weather slowly began to fade.
Tyranitar's figure emerged from the sand.
"Ah... I see. No wonder Gallade's Fighting-type moves didn't deal that much damage."
Adrian narrowed his eyes as he understood.
Tyranitar's body was covered by a thick armor of rock.
Although it was now full of cracks, showing the previous damage from Gallade.
"What terrifying control over Rock-type energy!"
The audience was amazed once again.
The strength of the storm and this Tyranitar's mastery of Rock-type energy were truly impressive.
"It seems it worked well... this Rock Armor."
Ethan smiled. Ever since Tyranitar had previously been defeated in a single blow, it had left a thorn in his side. Under that pressure, he had managed to perfect this technique.
The principle was simple: use the power of the storm and Rock-type energy.
In a sandstorm, the Special Defense of Rock-type Pokémon increases by 1.5 times. That meant the energy of the weather strengthened its special resistance.
Tyranitar had grown up eating Smooth Rocks. Its affinity with sandstorms and Rock-type energy was innate.
By controlling that special defensive energy and combining it with his mastery of the weather, he created this Rock Armor.
Now, with the storm dissipating, the armor began to fall away, revealing its green body.
"Protecting the weather summoner is fundamental. If it suddenly falls, the entire strategy collapses."
The commentators praised the play.
However, everyone wondered why Ethan had canceled the storm when it benefited Tyranitar more than Golem.
The answer came immediately.
Ethan withdrew Tyranitar and released Charizard, which appeared floating in the air.
"Charizard?"
"But Ethan is using a sandstorm team!"
"Why bring out the core of a sunny weather team now?"
The audience was confused.
Moreover, Charizard's Fire/Flying typing was four times weak to Golem's Rock-type. And its Fire and Flying moves were resisted by Golem.
It seemed like a complete disadvantage.
And Golem acted immediately, launching the move Stone Edge, creating countless sharp rocks that it fired toward the sky.
If they hit, the damage would be devastating.
"Charizard, Flamethrower!"
Charizard responded by spewing scorching flames.
Thanks to its temperature control, it raised the heat to the maximum.
The rocks melted in the air.
"I see... he's taking advantage of the aerial advantage."
Among the top eight competitors, several watched attentively.
Even though there had only been one exchange, the tension was enormous.
Every Pokémon switch was a hidden strategic duel.
Like this confrontation between Charizard and Golem: choosing between type disadvantage and aerial advantage.
"Type disadvantage?"
Ethan narrowed his eyes.
In the air, Charizard activated its technique, Sunny Day Fire, enveloping itself in intense flames.
"It's time... Charizard, go."
Suddenly, it opened its mouth.
In an instant, a beam of energy shot out.
The beam devoured the rocks launched by Golem.
Then it descended with devastating force, completely engulfing Golem.
"The attack is terrifying... but fire shouldn't affect Golem that much, right?"
A spectator commented.
But a nearby Pokémon Researcher had a serious expression.
"That... should be... Solar Beam?"
(End of chapter)