To be honest, this was Aoki's first time participating in this type of battle since becoming an elite four.
Normally, it was always a life-or-death battle with everyone deployed, and he hadn't engaged in such one-on-one combat for a long time.
Having experienced many life-or-death battles, sometimes seeing these kinds of matches felt like playing house.
But there was no other way; this was the combat style promoted by the Alliance when popularizing the trainer profession—more accessible, easier to accept, capable of avoiding unnecessary bloodshed, and less mentally taxing to fight.
When a trainer achieved a certain level of strength, they would naturally encounter more brutal combat methods, but these methods didn't need to be widely known by the general public.
If everyone believed that becoming a trainer was fraught with danger, wouldn't many parents prevent their children from becoming trainers?
In their view, someone else would handle it if the sky fell.
But if you don't step up, and I don't step up, where would those strong individuals come from?
Therefore, it wasn't that the Alliance didn't want to cultivate trainers' practical combat abilities from the start, like underground organizations such as Team Rocket; it was that they couldn't and didn't want to.
Getting back to the main topic, the battle between Koga and Aoki officially began under everyone's gaze.
Challenger Koga was the first to summon a Pokémon.
He threw a Great Ball, and after a flash of red light, a silver-white Venomoth appeared on the field. As it flapped its wings, white scales sprinkled from them, reflecting specks of fluorescent light under the sun, looking dreamlike and very beautiful.
Venomoth was not originally a Pokémon whose appearance perfectly matched human aesthetics, but being summoned in this setting, it had a different kind of charm.
It is said that whether a Pokémon is beautiful is not judged by human aesthetics, but by its appearance, color, spirit, and energy. Breeders are best at this, and in Aoki's opinion, Koga's Venomoth was very well-trained.
Pokémon: Venomoth (Dark Green)
Gender: Male
Level: 79
Type: Bug + Poison
Ability: Tinted Lens
Held Item: None
Moves: Baton Pass, Agility, Morning Sun, Toxic Spikes
Basic Moves: Gust, Quiver Dance, Bug Buzz, Silver Wind, Tackle, Disable, Foresight, Supersonic, Confusion, Poison Powder, Psybeam, Stun Spore, Signal Beam, Sleep Powder, Leech Life, Zen Headbutt, Poison Fang, Psychic
Learnt Moves: Snore, Tailwind, Skill Swap, Giga Drain, Defog, Zen Headbutt
TM Moves: Toxic, Venoshock, Protect, Roost, Double Team, Sludge Bomb, Aerial Ace, Energy Ball, U-turn, Substitute
Aoki knew quite a bit about Pokémon like Venomoth, because while they might be slightly lacking as main attackers, they were actually excellent choices as support Pokémon.
Aoki had once considered catching a Venomoth to be a pure support Pokémon when he encountered them, but later, considering the compatibility with his other Pokémon and his limited resources at the time, he decided against it.
If there were a suitable opportunity now, and a Venomoth or Venoat appeared before him with all the skills he desired, Aoki would definitely choose to catch it without hesitation.
Moreover, for Pokémon with a greater support role, Aoki had higher demands for their abilities and learned moves, while his requirements for their aptitude were not as high.
In his opinion, Koga's Venomoth was good enough; if it were in his hands, it would certainly play a significant role.
Putting himself in Koga's shoes, Aoki also somewhat guessed Koga's fighting style.
"In that case, you go first!" Aoki unclipped a Poké Ball from his belt and threw it onto the field.
"Blaziken!!!"
Accompanied by a powerful cry, a Blaziken standing against the wind appeared on the field amidst blazing flames.
Blaziken's dashing appearance, confident expression, and determined eyes instantly ignited the entire arena.
Just like the flames it carried when it appeared, swaying in the wind, growing fiercer and fiercer!
Blaziken's current level was also capped at the peak of quasi-Champion. It needed a suitable opportunity to break through to the Champion level.
Unlike Tyranitar, whose aptitude reached light purple, already at the purple tier, belonging to a legendary Pokémon's aptitude, breaking through to the Champion level would not encounter much hindrance. After being stimulated by Moltres, it directly entered the breakthrough phase.
Blaziken's aptitude, however, was dark blue. Compared to light purple, although it was only one small tier lower than Tyranitar, this small tier represented a qualitative difference.
Therefore, it was a bit more difficult for Blaziken to break through to the Champion level than for Tyranitar.
But no matter what, it was still dark blue, so breaking through to the Champion level was absolutely no problem.
Pokémon: Blaziken (Dark Blue)
Gender: Male
Level: 79
Type: Fire + Fighting
Ability: Speed Boost
Held Item: Blazikenite
Egg Moves: Blaze Kick, Double Kick, Flare Blitz, Fire Punch, High Jump Kick, Scratch, Growl, Ember, Sand Attack, Peck, Flame Charge, Quick Attack, Bulk Up, Focus Energy, Slash, Brave Bird, Sky Uppercut
Learnt Moves: Heat Wave, Low Kick, Hone Claws, Thunder Punch, Superpower, Snore, Low Kick, Bounce
TM Moves: Protect, Earthquake, Flamethrower, Aerial Ace, Low Sweep, Stone Edge, Swords Dance, Double Team, Rock Tomb, Will-O-Wisp
These were Blaziken's stats at the moment.
"Battle start!!" As the referee announced the beginning of the match, Aoki and Koga simultaneously issued their commands.
"Venomoth, Quiver Dance!"
"Blaziken, Swords Dance!"
Both of them issued stat-boosting moves.
Swords Dance increases a Pokémon's Attack stat, and its amplification effect is greatest when the Pokémon uses it for the first time.
Quiver Dance, on the other hand, increases its Special Attack, Special Defense, and Speed by one stage each. Its amplification effect is not as significant as Swords Dance, but it boosts many more types of stats.
Although both are a type of dance, the effects they target are completely different.
Swords Dance amplifies extreme physical attack, while Quiver Dance provides multifaceted increases, each having its own strengths.
Venomoth remained suspended in mid-air, flapping its wings and dancing, like an aerial performer.
But Blaziken's actions surprised many. Despite using Swords Dance, it strode forcefully towards Venomoth.
Only from its running strides and varying frequencies could one tell that it was currently using Swords Dance.
This was a complete integration of the Swords Dance move with its regular movement.