Owen was, of course, confident.
Even against Leo's Munchlax or Lynnea's Growlithe, the current Eevee had the certainty of a quick resolution. Anyone else was simply not an issue.
Only a month had passed since the Young Ho-Oh Cup, and Eevee's strength still maintained a natural, overwhelming advantage.
Faced with Owen's absolute self-assurance, his four teammates were left speechless. Fine... you're the boss, we'll do it your way.
And so, Owen's team chose to follow his lead. They adopted the simplest, most violent tactic: use cover, burst in, and suppress the opposition immediately!
As they exchanged information, Owen's mind raced.
Eevee's leg strength has undergone three "overload" training sessions. Her explosive power has at least doubled, and her speed is leagues beyond what it was at the tournament.
Because of this, her Double Team can now produce eight afterimages. As long as we seize the right moment tomorrow, the battle will be over in a flash.
In the end, it's just that the rookie trainers around me are too weak! Owen sighed inwardly. This kind of assessment wasn't really suited for him anymore.
The Matchup
The next day.
To witness this Team Battle assessment, almost all the training instructors had gathered. Once the bracket was set, Owen discovered that his team was the very first to compete... and he immediately identified their first opponents.
Sarah's team.
Of the five members in that group, Sarah from Class 7 was the captain. Owen remembered that her starter Pokémon was a Bulbasaur. Back at the tournament, Eevee had even handled an Ivysaur; she naturally wouldn't fear this "Garlic Turtle." Serena's teammates were even weaker, meaning their overall level was quite low.
"Sarah, if they launch a full-scale assault, can we hold them back?" a petite girl on Serena's team asked nervously. According to their research, Owen's strength was on a completely different level.
"We can't hold them, but we can struggle a bit." Serena's brows were slightly knit, her face clouded with worry. Facing Owen in the first round was the definition of bad luck.
Meanwhile, Lynnea and Leo were breathing sighs of relief. They were incredibly lucky not to face Owen in the first match, and they hoped the same would hold true for the second.
Inside the battle hall, on the newly painted decagonal field, Owen's team and Serena's team took their positions under an instructor's direction.
Being a school facility, the field was standard dirt. Special environments like Grass, Rock, or Water fields were usually reserved for large-scale tournaments. However, for rookies at this stage, a standard field was more than enough.
The decagonal field was significantly larger and wider than a 1v1 arena. Once the ten trainers stood in their designated zones, Owen looked at the trainer directly across from him.
For tactical reasons, he had chosen a position on the edge of the formation rather than the center. Only from the wings could he initiate the fastest possible strike to eliminate an opponent early.
Remembering the boy's Pokémon, Owen smiled. A Flying-type that isn't good at flying. This makes it even easier.
"What are you smiling at?" Before the match began, the boy felt a knot in his stomach seeing Owen's sudden grin. Being assigned to the edge had already put him under a lot of pressure; now, it was even worse.
"I just remembered something happy," Owen said.
"What happy thing?" the boy asked.
"My Pokémon isn't good at flying either," Owen replied. The boy frowned, feeling slightly annoyed.
The Blitz
"Generally, the core Pokémon of a team is placed in the center. It seems Owen doesn't plan on following the standard route," one of the instructors remarked from the sidelines.
In most tournaments, a team's five trainers stand side-by-side along one edge. Some rules shuffle the order, but this assessment used the most common "cluster" rule.
On Owen's side, the order was: Owen, Maya, Lint, Arth, and Lily. Based on positioning, Lint was the safest, while Owen and Lily were the most likely to be swept into the fray first.
However, the teachers saw Owen's intent immediately.
"The gap in strength is too large. Owen wants to take out one opponent instantly to snowball the advantage. It's quite brutal," Sarah's homeroom teacher noted, shaking her head.
"It's a shame Sarah didn't predict his placement... but even if she had, with her limited roster, there isn't much she could do to counter it."
"Let's just observe each student's team awareness. We can't expect too much at this stage," another teacher added.
At the same time, Ms. Nina from Class 12 watched Owen, deep in thought.
Just then, the referee gave the first signal.
Almost the instant the command was given, both teams released their Pokémon. Upon the second command, Eevee—without waiting for Owen's instruction—erupted with her maximum speed, bolting toward the nearest opponent: Doduo. Owen and Eevee had clearly discussed this beforehand.
Eevee's movement drew the entire focus of Serena's team. Seeing her blur across the field, their eyes widened in realization. Serena's team tried to provide backup, but Owen's teammates—anticipating the move—used long-range attacks to zone them out.
Two Water Guns, a Thundershock, and a Vine Whip swept across the field, effectively splitting the battlefield. The other four Pokémon were forced to dodge or counter-attack.
"Nice aim!" Owen praised his teammates' zoning.
By then, Eevee, now a literal afterimage, had appeared beside Doduo.
Flash!
Doduo tried to use Quick Attack, but compared to Eevee's speed, it was night and day. Within moments, Eevee found the opening and took Doduo out in a single hit.
With Doduo defeated, the fate of Serena's team was sealed. Though the other eight Pokémon were still trading blows, as soon as Eevee entered the main fray, the situation became a total landslide.
"That Eevee's speed... how did it get so much faster since the start of the term?" Ms. Nina was stunned. As Owen's teacher, she thought she had a handle on his growth, but this performance was beyond her expectations.
"Her leg strength is much higher. The improvement is explosive. Was there some special training from the Rising Star Project?" she wondered.
The Genius Exemption
A short while later, after the match concluded, Ms. Nina walked over to Director Wu.
"Director Wu, what do you think?"
"Your previous suggestion was right..." Wu shook his head. "We won't have Owen participate in the group training from now on. Let him join for synergy only after the official members are finalized. Otherwise, it's just a waste of time—for him and for the others."
"I hope his individual advantage holds up. That way, when we go to the actual competition, we'll have so many more tactical options available to us," the Director added.
"Maybe that's just what a genius looks like," Ms. Nina agreed.
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