Chapter 346: Distinct Personal Flair
Serperior's Leaf Storm into Leaf Blade combo is normally a very threatening self-created combo.
And Serena had only recently developed this system; it had never been revealed in an official match before.
When the leaves that should have dissipated began to rise again, emanating a sharp, sword-like intent, even the commentators were so shocked their voices changed, jumping up an entire octave!
"My heavens! Is Serena's Serperior—"
But just as his voice peaked, it immediately plummeted back down, a roller coaster of excitement.
Because this imaginative, original combo had—completely missed!
Arthur had once again read Serena's move, giving Specter the command in advance.
The Ghost-type move: Phantom Force. The moment it's activated, the user vanishes into a void, disappearing from its spot. After a slight delay of a few seconds, it launches a surprise attack, capable of phasing through a Protect shield to directly hit the enemy!
Judged purely as a damage-dealing move, it's a bit slow, taking several seconds to connect.
But at this moment, it was the perfect counter!
Because after Specter had vanished into the void, it had also completely dodged the "thousand swords" of Leaf Blade!
"Nice!"
On the sidelines, the Starlight and Frost teammates let out excited shouts.
Facing a veteran captain who had been an All-Star for several years, Arthur's reads in this match had, up to this point, completely outclassed his opponent!
A masterful display of command!
The Otter fans in the stadium grew more and more anxious.
But Serena remained composed. She was frustrated, but not flustered.
A truly mature professional player doesn't get tilted so easily.
After a delay of about four seconds, Specter emerged from the void, instantly appearing beside Serperior and swiping down with a claw!
But just then—
"Use Coil!" Serena commanded!
At the same time, the commentators got excited again.
The roller coaster was climbing to another peak.
"There it is! It's Serena's signature variant of Coil!"
In a flash, Serperior shot up from the ground. While taking Specter's claw strike, it coiled tightly around Specter like a python capturing its prey!
This was another one of Serena's exclusive secret techniques!
Using Coil in a way similar to Wrap!
Normally, Coil is just an unremarkable Poison-type buffing move. By coiling up and chanting for a period of time, the user gains a boost to its attack, speed, and accuracy.
But Serena had found a different path, developing a brand-new use for this move—
Who says a snake can only coil on the ground to stack buffs?
Coiling around an enemy works just as well!
And you can even get a control and suppression effect out of it!
Rich imagination and creativity had always been Serena's distinct personal flair.
A captain, especially an All-Star captain, in the era Arthur had been active in, was at the very least a peak-level trainer in the first tier below a Champion!
They were undoubtedly geniuses, geniuses with their own unique ideas!
And Serena was one of the best among them.
Her Pokémon often had this kind of unconventional use of their skills:
For example, in the first round, having her Blastoise use Withdraw to replace the charging phase of Skull Bash.
For example, just now, having her Serperior combine Leaf Storm and Leaf Blade to unleash a combo of a thousand swords.
And for example, now, turning a buffing move that should be used while avoiding the enemy into a powerful crowd-control skill!
Her thought process was always unconventional, uniquely creative.
This was the very charm of this player!
Back in the day, she too was a maverick, a thorny player who didn't listen to her club's arrangements, just like Arthur.
At least ninety percent of the Serperior on the competitive scene use the Contrary ability.
This ability, like Greninja's Protean, is a highly strategic one. Its effect is to reverse any changes to the user's base stats.
For example, the side effect of Leaf Storm causes a drop in special attack. With this ability, Serperior would instead get stronger the more it fights, though in reality, there's a limit.
Although this ability doesn't directly boost combat power, its tactical importance is extremely high. Back then, the entire club had urged Serena to choose a Snivy with Contrary.
But in the end, she had stubbornly gone her own way, choosing a Snivy with the Overgrow ability that she found more appealing.
She was just that kind of player who did things her own way.
Strong, independent, innovative, spirited—these were all shining labels attached to Serena.
She was currently recognized as the strongest female singles player in the Kubfu Alliance!
She would not give up so easily!
"Squeeze it! Suppress him, Serperior!"
Serperior coiled tightly around Specter!
At the moment of attack, Specter couldn't dematerialize.
Ghosts cannot maintain their intangible state while attacking.
And after being coiled by Serperior, the opponent used its energy to continuously corrode him, preventing him from dematerializing and escaping!
This wasn't Serena's Serperior's first time coiling a ghost.
She was very experienced!
Seeing this, one of the commentators felt he was back in the game.
"Serperior is continuously suppressing Gengar! And after the buff is complete, Serperior's strength will increase even further! Arthur is in danger!"
One commentator was getting hyped, while the other wanted to lunge forward and cover his partner's mouth.
Why won't you ever learn?!
Sure enough, before the hyped-up commentator had even finished his sentence, Arthur calmly gave a command.
"Grab its neck! Counterattack!"
Specter grabbed Serperior's neck, and they immediately began to roll and grapple.
At first, the audience didn't pay much attention.
Many Pokémon struggle like this when caught in a coil. But in the past, very few had ever been able to break free from Serena's variant of Coil.
But after a few seconds, everyone quickly began to notice something was wrong.
Why did it feel like… it was Serperior that was screaming more miserably?!
Was it an illusion?!
And on the field, Serena, who had a mental link with her Serperior, couldn't help but frown.
Because she knew: it was not an illusion!
It wasn't until a few more seconds had passed, and Specter's cooldown had ended, that everyone finally confirmed their feelings!
"Specter, use Shadow Claw!"
This one claw was like a strike from a demon god. Specter slammed Serperior's head into the ground, creating a giant, three-fingered crater!
Who knows if it was the camera angle, but to the audience watching the live stream, it looked as if Serperior's head had been flattened by half…
"Gya gya gya!"
Specter's unsettling, maniacal laughter once again echoed through the arena. It was clear he had broken free from Serperior's coil.
The snake's tail, still wrapped around his waist, was now limp and powerless.
At this moment, Serena's face was grim.
She already knew what the problem was—
This Gengar was another damn Pokémon that was extremely skilled in close combat. She had been misled by the light-show spectacle of its opening Sludge Bomb.
But you really couldn't blame her.
Normally, the Gengar species does indeed use energy-based moves as their primary means of attack. Gengar's energy affinity is generally far stronger than their physical strength.
Her misjudgment was actually a common human error!
But the problem was—this was Arthur's Pokémon!
If every famous player has their own distinct personal flair, then just as Serena's flair was creativity, Arthur's personal flair was, without a doubt, ridiculously absurd close-combat lethality!
That one Shadow Claw from Specter just now made Serena's liver ache…
Why was a Gengar so skilled with a close-combat move like Shadow Claw?!
This completely subverted the common Pokémon knowledge she had accepted for so many years!
But considering this was Arthur's Gengar, she somehow found it reasonable…
In the end, she could only come to one helpless conclusion: this guy is toxic!
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