One good move does not mean everything. Eevee played well and Blaziken followed up with a good move, but the battle was still difficult.
The battle had only just begun. Swellow and Alakazam still had a type advantage over Blaziken. Ryohei did not worry much about the first part of the fight, even though he lost a little.
He only worried because Eevee was near Alakazam. This is very bad for most Psychic-type Pokémon. It means they do not have a safe space to attack. They need to stay away from the opponent.
Most Psychic-type Pokémon cannot fight at close range. They do not have many moves for close combat. They feel helpless when an opponent is too close.
But they can move away easily by using Teleport.
Ryohei gave a signal. Alakazam used Teleport and appeared on the other side of the field.
As soon as Alakazam appeared, a large fire moved fast and covered it!
"What!?"
Everyone was very shocked to see this.
The announcer shouted, "Natsui actually predicted Alakazam's next move? He had Blaziken attack ahead of time! But how did he predict where Alakazam would appear?"
It was hard to believe.
The field was a large, open rectangle. In a place like this, it was very hard to guess where Alakazam would appear. Most people would not attack with such confidence.
If the guess was wrong and the fire hit nothing, it would be very embarrassing!
The announcer and the audience were surprised. The trainers watching also thought it was unbelievable. They thought about what they would do if they were Ryohei.
It was clear that Natsui was much better than the other trainer.
Actually, predicting is not like magic. Since they had been trainers for a long time, everyone had tried to predict a move once or twice.
But this was special. Natsui did not trap Alakazam in a corner. He did not use a feeling to guess in a small space. This was a wide-open area. He guessed the move and the exact spot perfectly. He did not hesitate at all.
That strong determination is rare among trainers.
Ryohei was the person who found it most unbelievable.
He wanted Alakazam to use Teleport to get away. He gave the command quickly, and the spot was random. But Natsui guessed his decision perfectly!
This was not just good. It was too good!
There was no time to think. Alakazam cried out in pain from the fire. Ryohei woke up from his shock. He quickly told Swellow to use Gust to blow the fire away.
However, at that moment, Eevee came near again. It used Swift against Alakazam.
Now everyone could see that Natsui was only attacking Alakazam. This was easy to understand. Swellow was high in the sky. It could dodge attacks easily. It was the right choice to defeat the Pokémon on the ground first.
Alakazam just escaped the fire when Swift hit it.
The worst part was that it got a burn. Its body was covered in dark red burn marks. It looked very painful.
Ryohei felt sorry that he chose Swellow for this match.
If he chose a Pokémon that stayed on the ground, it could have helped Alakazam. It could have protected Alakazam from the attacks.
But it was too late to think about that now.
He had to change the situation now. If Alakazam got hit again, it would faint!
So, he did not let Swellow fly too high or too far. He kept Swellow near Alakazam to protect it.
This made Swellow move slowly. It protected Alakazam, but it gave the control of the match to Natsui.
But there was no other way. Because of the burn, Alakazam could not use its psychic powers well. It had to wait.
Luckily, the man across from him did not tell his Pokémon to attack hard. This gave Ryohei some time to rest.
Ash and the others in the stands were very confused because Natsui did not attack.
"Why isn't he attacking?" Ash asked. He thought it was very strange. "That was clearly a great chance. If he waits until Alakazam's burn goes away, won't all that effort be wasted?"
The others did not understand why Natsui was doing this either.
"He missed the best timing," Tyson agreed. He nodded. "If it were me, I would definitely keep attacking and take Alakazam down in one go!"
Morrison asked, "Is it because he couldn't grasp the moment? Or did he not react in time?"
Misty trusted Natsui completely and knew he had a good reason. But only Brock had an idea of why.
Brock looked at Eevee and Blaziken. Their movements became better as the battle went on. Then he looked at the cheering crowd. He realized Natsui was waiting so his Pokémon could get used to the match.
Natsui is a Champion of two regions. He thinks more than other people.
Brock waited for a moment. He did not tell the others what he discovered. They needed to learn this themselves. If Ash and the others understood, they would do the same in their matches. If they did not understand, they were not ready yet.
Ash and the other two watched for a long time but did not see Natsui's plan.
Brock shook his head. It was okay. Some Pokémon do well even without adjusting.
But Natsui showed he was a deep thinker. This does not make him the Champion instantly, but it helps his Pokémon do their best. His skill level was very high.
Finally, Eevee and Blaziken were ready. Their minds were focused and their bodies were warm. Natsui knew it was time to end the battle.
He gave a command. Eevee and Blaziken started attacking much faster. This surprised Ryohei.
In the match, Ryohei felt differently than the people in the stands.
Others thought Natsui missed his chances. But Ryohei felt that Eevee and Blaziken were very difficult to stop.
You only understand how strong they are when you fight them.
Their speed, reactions, and power were the best he had ever seen!
He was already using all his strength to stop them. Then the two Pokémon moved even faster. The pressure became twice as hard!
Alakazam recovered from the burn, but it was the first to lose. Eevee hit it with Quick Attack and knocked it to the ground.
Swellow was in the air, so it was in a better position than Alakazam. But then Blaziken jumped high. It used Double Kick to hit Swellow. Swellow fell to the ground. Eevee was waiting there and finished the fight. Swellow lost just like Alakazam.
The referee raised the flags. Natsui had won.
Only then did the audience realize that Natsui won.
In the first part of the match, Eevee played well and people cheered. But the middle of the match was steady and not very exciting. People thought it would be a boring fight. Then, the match ended very suddenly in the last ten seconds!
The match was over for a short time before the people started to clap. Then there was loud applause.
Morrison and Tyson thought differently about Natsui now.
At first, they thought he was a very strong opponent. But now they thought he was not quick enough to finish a fight.
They felt more relaxed. They thought he would be easier to beat. They were confident they could win against him later!
Natsui won his second match. He only needed one more win to enter the Victory Tournament.
If he defeated one more opponent, he would move to the next round!
Natsui was polite because Morrison and Tyson watched his match. He went to watch one of Tyson's battles.
Tyson did not show all his power in that match. He won easily using his Meowth in a hat and his Sceptile.
The audience liked Tyson more after that match.
He looked good and was very strong. Also, he was a local trainer from the Hoenn region. This made the local people like him very much.
Many people in the audience hoped a local person would win the championship.
Ash and Morrison had matches at the same time. Natsui did not watch Morrison's battle. He watched Ash's battle instead.
Ash played very well this time. He won his match easily.
Because the others played very well, people did not notice Natsui as much.
This gave Mary a chance.
The matches for the day finished. At eight o'clock in the evening, she went to the athlete's dorm alone.
She found the room earlier. No one was around. She walked fast to Natsui's door and knocked.
Natsui was still awake. He was thinking about his day and how he could improve. He heard the knock. He thought it was Misty. But he saw Mary when he opened the door. He became very alert.
He did not want to deal with famous reporters!
Mary saw that he was alone. She smiled a little. She said to Natsui, "Mr. Natsui, I'm sorry to bother you. I wonder if it's convenient for you to do an interview now?"
She wanted her plan to work. Even though it was night, she wore a lot of makeup and perfume. She smelled very strong when she moved.
Natsui looked beside Mary. Her photographer was not there. He became even more worried.
"Didn't I say before that the interview would have to wait until after I enter the Victory Tournament? There's still one more match to play tomorrow before I get there. You're early."
Mary smiled more. "I might be a bit early, but I think it's worth it. Well? Aren't you going to invite me in to sit for a bit?"
She was being very clear about what she wanted!
Natsui finally understood her. He looked down. Mary's clothes showed a lot of skin. She wore a short skirt. She was trying to look attractive.
This was her plan!
She wanted to seduce him!
Mary tried to enter the room. Natsui stood in the way and did not let her move forward.
He liked attention, but he was very careful with reporters.
He did not think this was a good thing that happened by chance.
No, he thought it was a trap!
He was sure Mary wanted an interview for her job. But she might have a small camera. She probably wanted to record everything!
If that happened, his reputation would be ruined. People would think he was a bad person. And he would have to do what Mary wanted so she would not tell his secret!
Maybe he was wrong, but he did not want to take a risk.
These powerful reporters are best at using these things. They even use their own bodies if they have to. Even if there was a very small chance of a trap, he would not do it!
Of course, the main reason was... the temptation was not enough.
Natsui knew he was not always strong against women. He had been with Maya and Erika. He was easily attracted to women.
But she had to be more beautiful first!
He thought about the women he knew.
Sabrina, Erika, and Maya were all very beautiful.
They were famous, strong, and important. And every one of them loved him very much.
Compared to them, Mary was not attractive to him.
Normal people might think she was a beauty. But he was not interested at all!
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