Greninja darted sideways, casually pulling a top hat out of nowhere and placing it atop his head. A split second later, the ground where he had stood erupted as a torrent of water crashed down, sending droplets flying.
But instead of blasting Greninja away, the water was simply... absorbed. It vanished into his body as if it had never existed.
John finally let out a breath. Just as he had suspected, Gym Leader Hank's Poliwrath had Water Absorb.
Water Absorb: A Pokemon with this ability takes no damage from Water-type moves. Instead, when hit by a Water-type attack, it recovers 25% of its maximum HP.
In the gas, the effect was instant. In reality, it was continuous, every drop of water that touched Poliwrath slowly restored its strength.
Even if Water Pledge couldn't fully recharge Greninja's stamina, it was enough to get him back into fighting shape. That explained why Poliwrath could endure Surf,a move packing a power level of 140 while still counterattacking from inside Whirlpool.
John had suspected this from the start. To confirm, he had Greninja use Water Shuriken. If Poliwrath absorbed it, he'd have his answer.
But Gym Leader Hank wasn't about to give away his secrets that easily. He ordered Poliwrath to slap the incoming Water Shuriken aside with Double Slap, keeping its ability under wraps. If John had been careless, he might have second-guessed himself and played right into Hank's hands.
Fortunately, hesitation wasn't John's style. When the mont ca, he took the risk and it paid off.
"Role Play? Now that's an unexpected move!" Hank chuckled, clearly impressed. "You've got good instincts, kid. If you'd fallen for my trick, I would've been disappointed. Looks like Bai Wenru's recomndation was worth listening to."
Without missing a beat, he gave his next command. "Poliwrath, Mach Punch!"
"Sucker Punch!" John shouted at the sa ti, eyes locked on Hank's lips, reading his command before he even finished speaking.
The instant Hank spoke, John countered. It all ca down to speed.
Poliwrath exploded forward, tearing across the battlefield with blinding agility. Mach Punch was all about striking first.
But Greninja was faster. The mont his feet touched the ground, he launched himself forward like a bullet. The two Pokemon clashed in the center of the battlefield in the blink of an eye.
A dark aura wrapped around Greninja just as he struck. His speed spiked, and before Poliwrath could react, a long black blade materialized in his grip, slashing toward Poliwrath's chest.
Poliwrath saw the attack coming but had no ti to stop. It had to take the hit.
Boom!
Poliwrath was sent flying.
Greninja's Sucker Punch had connected. anwhile, Poliwrath's Mach Punch failed to land. Unlike in the gas, Sucker Punch wasn't guaranteed to go first—but John's perfect timing let him land the hit before Poliwrath could attack.
However, there was a catch—Dark-type moves dealt only half damage to Fighting-types. On top of that, Sucker Punch was physical, and Greninja's Attack had already been weakened earlier by Arcanine's Intimidate.
As a result, the attack barely made a dent.
Poliwrath tumbled back three ters, then dug its feet into the ground, stopping itself. It shook off the hit like it was nothing.
Before Hank could call another attack, John recalled Greninja.
"Co back! Go, Red Gyarados!"
A deafening roar echoed through the stadium as Gyarados erged from its Pokeball, towering over the battlefield. Its blood-red scales glead under the arena lights, radiating sheer power.
The mont it appeared, the stadium erupted. Reporters scrambled to snap pictures, so pulling out caras reserved for catching rare Pokemon in action.
"It's a Shiny Gyarados!" soone gasped.
The excitent in the air was electric.
"That's one badass Gyarados," Hank admitted. But instead of panicking, he glanced at the sky as raindrops began to fall.
Dark clouds lood overhead, and a light drizzle had started.
"Rain Dance?" Hank muttered.
John didn't hesitate. "Thunder!"
"ROOOAAAR!"
Thunder cracked across the battlefield, perfectly synchronized with Gyarados' roar.
A lightning bolt as thick as a tree trunk ca crashing down, striking Poliwrath dead-on.
BOOM!
The impact sent shockwaves through the stadium. The ground beneath Poliwrath shattered, and the battlefield vanished behind a blinding flash of light.
Poliwrath had sensed the attack at the last second, but there was no ti to dodge. No way out.
"So it's Thunder, huh?" Hank muttered as realization hit him. "Using a Water/Flying-type to drop an Electric attack... smart."
At first, it seed ridiculous. Gyarados was four tis weak to Electric moves—yet here it was, using one of the strongest Electric-type attacks in existence.
But now, it made sense.
John had known about Water Absorb from the beginning. He had Greninja's Role Play confirm it, aning Poliwrath would just heal from any Water moves thrown at it.
So why set up Rain Dance?
Now, the answer was clear, it was to ensure Thunder hit without fail.
In rainy weather, Thunder had perfect accuracy. Against an opponent of equal level, it was practically guaranteed.
As the dust cleared, Poliwrath stood frozen, barely clinging on. Its blue skin was charred black, the scent of burnt ozone thick in the air.
Then, with a soft thud, it collapsed.
"Poliwrath is unable to battle! Gyarados wins!" the referee declared.
The crowd exploded into cheers as reporters snapped their final shots.
Most people had expected this match to be a one-sided lesson, Gym Leader Hank showing John who was boss.
But even though John had been struggling against Poliwrath with Greninja, he had turned the tables.
And now, he was the one with the first victory.
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