How could he win?
Lolo looked at the Mega Charizard Y struggling to fly in the Sandstorm, and a wave of despair rose in his heart.
Just then, Sato's command reached his ears…
Another Stone Edge!
Why was it that, even though the opponent only used a few basic moves, they always managed to beat him?
And yet the moves he wanted his Pokémon to use… never even got the chance to activate!
Looking at the Sunny Day above the Sandstorm, and then at the battered Charizard dodging Stone Edge, Lolo hardened his resolve and gave the same command again.
"Charizard, accelerate and ascend! RETURN TO THE SKIES WHERE YOU BELONG!"
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Sato: …CRINGE!
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"CHAAAAAR!"
Mega Charizard Y let out a roar. Using its incredible flying skills, it dodged every Stone Edge and suddenly shot upward into the sky.
"Tyranitar, prepare Rock Slide."
Just like he had with Yanmega earlier, Sato had Tyranitar plant a field of rocks at the edge of the storm, waiting for Charizard to fly into it.
"Charizard, use Steel Wing to clear a path!"
This time, Lolo had learned. Fortunately, Charizard happened to know Steel Wing; a powerful move for both offense and defense.
Sato watched as Charizard used Steel Wing to slice through the incoming rocks while continuing its ascent. For the first time, he sensed a bit of trouble…
For a moment there, he had really thought he was facing a fake Ace level Trainer.
Blazing fast, with exceptional flying control, if Charizard got a full boost from Sunny Day and began firing Solar Beams from long range, even Tyranitar would be under serious threat.
After all, this was Mega Charizard Y, far superior to Staraptor or Yanmega.
'In that case, let's try this…' Sato quickly formulated a plan and called out loudly, "Tyranitar, use Swagger!"
Swagger enrages the opponent, causing Confusion, but also sharply raising their Attack stat due to anger.
"Tyyy… Tyra~ Tar~tar!"
Suddenly, Tyranitar abandoned its usual fierce and imposing demeanor. First, it gave a mocking thumbs-down gesture toward Charizard in the sky.
Then, it turned around and pointed its rear toward Charizard, shaking it with insulting flair… accompanied by a string of taunts only Pokémon could understand.
Fire-type Pokémon are already hot-headed by nature, and with Charizard's blend of "Dragon" pride, it was absolutely not going to tolerate such provocation.
Just as it was about to break through the Sandstorm's perimeter, Charizard abruptly turned midair and unleashed a devastating blast of Inferno!
Inferno burns at extremely high temperatures and almost guarantees a Burn. Within the Sandstorm, the eruption instantly vaporized a large volume of fine sand, creating an explosive visual.
But while the flames burst forth powerfully, they lacked sustained force, and Charizard was still far from Tyranitar.
So although the power of Inferno was terrifying, it ultimately couldn't overcome the Sandstorm's suppression and reach Tyranitar.
The next moment, a barrage of boulders rained down from above, slamming into the unprepared Charizard and sending it crashing toward the ground!
"Charizard, use Flamethrower!"
Seeing it about to hit the ground, Lolo panicked and gave the command without hesitation.
Unfortunately, while Swagger increased its Attack, the enraged and Confused Charizard wasn't about to snap out of it so easily.
With a loud crash, Charizard was slammed hard into the ground. The dust it kicked up was quickly swept away by the Sandstorm, leaving behind only the battered Charizard sprawled on the ground, struggling to get up.
"Tyranitar, use Rock Tomb."
Sato gave the command with a blank expression, showing not a hint of sympathy for Charizard's miserable state.
"Charizard… anything! JUST COUNTERATTACK ALREADY!"
Perhaps it was the word "counterattack" that caught Charizard's attention. Suddenly, it spread its wings and shot back into the air, miraculously dodging the rising Rock Tomb.
Just as Lolo was about to celebrate, Charizard flew straight toward Tyranitar, looking like it wanted to engage in close combat.
"Heh~ Tyranitar, get ready." Sato chuckled. He hadn't expected Charizard to turn into an iron-headed suicide dragon at the end… but then again, like Trainer, like Pokémon.
"CHARIZARD!"
Charizard's eyes were bloodshot, its wings stretched to full span. It was using Wing Attack, clearly still Confused and not thinking straight.
"Tyranitar, brace for it." Since it was just Wing Attack, there was nothing to worry about, Sato let Tyranitar meet it head-on.
"CHARIZARD, STOOOOP!" Lolo shouted again. This time, Charizard seemed to hear him, it hesitated slightly, but then sped up and struck anyway.
Tyranitar leaned forward slightly, and at the moment Charizard closed in, it grabbed both of its wings firmly.
The powerful impact pushed Tyranitar back, but it only slid one meters before stopping completely.
Suddenly, Charizard pulled its head back, flames swirling in its mouth. It was trying to unleash a close-range attack.
But Tyranitar wouldn't let that happen. With a burst of force, it slammed Charizard hard into the ground.
The impact disrupted its entire body, causing the flames in its mouth to vanish before they could be released.
Finally, Charizard's eyes regained clarity. But after so many moves, it had nearly exhausted all its stamina.
Tyranitar didn't care about its condition. As far as it was concerned, if the opponent wasn't down, the fight wasn't over.
In the next moment, Tyranitar kept its left hand tightly gripping Charizard's wing to prevent escape. Then it drew back its right hand and clenched a fist. Yellow electric light crackled around it… and under Charizard's terrified gaze, Tyranitar slammed it down!
BOOOOOM…
A heavy thud rang out. Charizard's head jerked to the side and its Mega Evolution form quickly faded. Even if it still had stamina left, that punch had knocked it out cold.
"…Charizard has lost the ability to battle. Tyranitar wins. The winner is Gym Inspector Sato."
The referee's voice rang out; not loud, but everyone could tell the result just by his gestures.
After Sato had previously defeated Oreburgh Gym Leader Forge in a 1v3 battle, he had now done it again, defeating Jubilife Gym Leader Lolo in the same fashion.
Sato had responded to Lolo's previous taunts with overwhelming strength: one Pokémon taking down all three of his opponent's. The gap was so massive that no one could question it.
Though Lolo's three Pokémon had been incredibly stubborn, they were still undeniably Ace level Pokémon.
Many couldn't help but think: Sato was already this terrifying at his age. And back then, what had they accomplished? No… what about even now? They still felt like garbage.
It was painful!
And Sato's brilliant performance drew the attention of many. Flint, Volkner, and others were itching to step up, unable to stop imagining how it would feel to be the one battling on stage.
In the crowd… a blonde woman also looked at Sato, her eyes filled with curiosity.