“So this battle is a personal match, is that right? Interesting. I accept.”
Yu Feng pondered Brock’s words for a moment and understood his meaning: the upcoming battle was a personal one, not a Gym challenge.
Regardless of the outcome, the Boulder badge would be given, so why refuse? Yu Feng loved watching giant creatures battle.
“gardevoir!!! (So it’s not you getting hit, and you just casually accept for others, is that right?)”
Gardevoir shared the same consciousness as Yu Feng, so Shiny Gardevoir could also know what Yu Feng was thinking. This was even more unbelievable than so-called telepathy.
Pokémon with telepathy can know what you’re thinking without communication, and they quickly understand their Trainer’s intentions, saving a lot of meaningless communication and command time.
However, Yu Feng and Shiny Gardevoir were slightly different from this; essentially, they were the same person. This meant that with just a thought, or even just a fleeting idea, Yu Feng could convey what Shiny Gardevoir needed to do.
Of course, you might say that humans eventually can’t keep up with a Pokémon’s battle rhythm and must condense commands to avoid missing opportunities.
This statement isn’t wrong, but the problem is that humans don’t fail to keep up with the battle rhythm. On the contrary, humans are very good at grasping the rhythm of Pokémon battles, but in the end, they always simplify commands to just a few words.
By the time you’ve thought it through and spoken, the situation on the field will have changed, and others will react to your commands with countermeasures.
Psychics can bypass verbal communication, so in battles, some pre-read techniques and command transmission speeds cannot keep up with Psychics.
Of course, there aren’t many Psychics. Throughout the entire series, only four Psychics appeared, and this specifically refers to Psychic-types.
Caitlin, one of the Unova Elite Four; Olympia, the Gym Leader of Anistar City in Kalos; and Natsume, the Gym Leader of Saffron Gym in the Kanto Region, and her father.
Even the weakest was a former Gym Leader. Psychic abilities in battle are practically cheating.
“Then let’s begin, Onix, use Tackle!”
Watching Yu Feng accept his challenge, Brock regained the feeling he had when he first received his Pokémon.
Since this was a personal battle, not bound by the League’s Gym challenge rules, Brock didn’t hesitate to make the first move.
Onix twisted its massive body and charged towards Shiny Gardevoir. Shiny Gardevoir, not to be outdone, waved her hand, and a dense shower of Magical Leaf like bullets bombarded Onix and its path, while a faint greyish-blue light occasionally flashed around her.
“Roar!”
Onix endured the Magical Leaf and reached Shiny Gardevoir, ramming into her. Even though Shiny Gardevoir was prepared for the impact, her large body was knocked back a few steps.
However, the quick-reacting Shiny Gardevoir immediately grabbed Onix’s horn and began a test of strength with it.
“Onix, use Bind just like that!”
Hearing Brock’s command, Onix coiled around Shiny Gardevoir, binding her lower body. Onix didn’t try to Bind Shiny Gardevoir completely because its head was already held by Shiny Gardevoir, making it impossible to wrap around her upper body.
“Is this what a real Pokémon battle is like?”
“Pikachu~”
Watching the two giant beasts battle in the arena made Ash envious. When would he be able to have such a battle?
Pikachu, on the other hand, sighed. His Trainer thought too much. Pikachu, he was really having a tough time.
On the field, Onix slammed a Rock Slide onto Shiny Gardevoir’s head. The pained Shiny Gardevoir retaliated with a Mega Punch to Onix’s horn, breaking it clean off.
“gardevoir!!!”
Without its horn to hold onto, Onix broke free from Shiny Gardevoir’s grip and instantly coiled tightly around Shiny Gardevoir.
Shiny Gardevoir pulled Onix’s body with both hands to create a small breathing space for herself. However, for some reason, Onix didn’t coil around her chest but instead went directly for her neck, possibly… because it felt that way wouldn’t Bind her completely?
In any case, the current situation on the field looked very unfavorable for Shiny Gardevoir.
“If you don’t have any trump cards, then it looks like you’re going to lose.”
Brock looked at the situation on the field with some Confusion. It was going too smoothly. He had never had such an easy time fighting Psychic Pokémon before.
And judging by this Gardevoir’s size, she was clearly not weak, but he had forgotten something about the current situation.
“Alright, stop playing. If you want to play, we can go to a less crowded place to play.”
Yu Feng glanced at Shiny Gardevoir, who appeared to be helplessly bound on the field, and shook his head. It was just that she couldn’t come out often, so why play here?
“gardevoir! (You promised!)”
Hearing Yu Feng promise to let her out more often, Gardevoir instantly perked up. Although she was a Gardevoir, she shared the same consciousness as Yu Feng. Yu Feng hated confined spaces, and so did she.
Although the love ball her mother made was very spacious inside, there was nothing in it, so she could only sleep. Staying inside for several days without coming out made her feel like her body was rusting.
Under the temptation of being able to come out and move around frequently, Shiny Gardevoir finally prepared to get serious, all for the sake of being able to play in the future!
Shiny Gardevoir, who had been looking listless, instantly became spirited, and her eyes grew very serious.
A massive Psychic power caused the entire field to tremble. Even Onix, wrapped around her, was removed from her body as if shedding clothes. Looking closely, Gardevoir even had a slight blush on her face.
“Onix, quickly break free from Confusion!”
Watching the scene unfold, Brock finally realized what he had overlooked. Although the Shiny Gardevoir in front of him was battling fiercely with Onix, upon closer inspection, she hadn’t used any Psychic abilities against Onix at all, instead constantly using other moves. As a Psychic-type Pokémon, she hadn’t been serious at all.
On the field, Onix was experiencing something else entirely. Wrapped in Psychic power, the intense feeling of obstruction was like its tail being bitten by a Sandshrew, and then, just as it broke free, a Lairon ate all its hoarded ore. What was this uncomfortable feeling? Brock? Why are you just watching? Have even you betrayed me?
Help me, give a command, Brock!
Onix looked at Brock with hopeful eyes, only to receive the command to break free from Confusion.
“Gardevoir, gardevoir! (Ha♦Ha♦Ha♦Ha♦Ha→! I shall, reverse all phenomena!)”
Ignoring Onix’s every move, Shiny Gardevoir’s hand manifested a transparent Confusion orb reflecting Onix’s image. In Onix’s almost despairing gaze, Shiny Gardevoir, with a wild laugh, crushed the Confusion orb. The distant Onix seemed to suffer a heavy blow and instantly lost its ability to battle.
Yu Feng barely kept a straight face, almost breaking character. Thankfully, he was the only one who currently understood what Shiny Gardevoir was saying; otherwise, he’d be considering digging a hole and crawling into it right now.
Was he really that chuunibyou? Why, despite being the same person, did Shiny Gardevoir do something like this, while he was so proper?
“You worked hard, Onix.”
“In this vast world, there must be many powerful Trainers, so Yu Feng, you must become stronger and stronger!”
“This Boulder badge is well-deserved.”
Brock took out a Poké Ball to recall the incapacitated Onix, walked over to Yu Feng, pulled out the Boulder badge, and handed it to him.
Yu Feng resisted the urge to do Ash’s signature pose and placed the badge into his badge case.
“Alright, then it’s your turn, Ash.”
After handing the Boulder badge to Yu Feng, Brock looked at Ash, who was eagerly awaiting his turn in the stands. It was time to tell Ash that Gym battles were not just small street fights.
PS:
I can’t reply to everyone, I really can’t reply to everyone.