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Misty responded to Ash's gaze with an eye-roll.
"This item is generally only used in Professional Level battles or higher, because for Professional Level, even a huge arena can still affect the surrounding environment and even harm the Trainer giving commands."
"But our Cerulean Gym's strongest Pokémon are only Elite Level right now. Do you think we need to activate this thing?" Misty's rhetorical question made Ash's face show an embarrassed expression.
What she said seemed to make sense. What would an Elite Level battle need this barrier for?
Brock also replied, "Our Gym has this, but you were just a novice Trainer back then, and my Pokémon were only Advanced Level. There was no need to use this item, right?"
Hearing this, Ash quietly turned his head back. So it wasn't that they didn't have it, but that he was too weak back then.
"Although this barrier is usually only used for Professional Level battles, Celadon Gym is a bit different. Besides being the Gym Leader of Celadon Gym, I'm also the owner of a perfume shop. All the surrounding flowers and trees are raw materials for making perfume, so for even slightly intense battles, I have to activate this machine."
Erika also explained why she had to use this machine for an Elite Level battle.
Her Gym was different from ordinary Gyms; it had many rare flowers and plants that needed protection. If a battle got too intense, it might damage the surrounding flora.
Therefore, even for Elite Level battles, she had to turn on this machine.
"Can we start, Leader Erika?" Ash said, eager to try.
This thing was very similar to his Aura barrier. He didn't expect the League to be able to create such a machine, but he wondered how it would actually perform in battle.
"Anytime... Just call me Erika. Adding 'Leader' sounds a bit strange."
"Okay."
"Then I'll send out my Pokémon first~" Erika walked to her position, turned around, her kimono fluttering in the wind, and a Poké Ball silently appeared in Erika's fair hand.
"The battle rules are three-on-three. The Gym Leader is not allowed to switch Pokémon. The first side to have all three Pokémon lose their ability to battle loses."
The girl who welcomed Ash and the others also stood at the referee's table and read out the Gym rules.
As soon as her voice fell, Erika threw the Poké Ball in her hand.
"Go, Vileplume!"
A Pokémon with a huge red flower on its head and a blue body appeared on the field.
Vileplume, Oddish's final evolution. Ash had wanted to catch an Oddish with the goal of evolving it into a Vileplume. According to the experts in the group, if played well, this Pokémon could be quite annoying.
"Vileplume, huh... I choose you, Kirlia!"
This Vileplume shouldn't be Erika's absolute ace. Its strength seemed to be at the Elite Middle Level, but it was still higher than all of Ash's Pokémon except Pikachu. Facing a Pokémon with a level advantage, Ash's first choice was naturally a Pokémon with a type advantage, so Ash chose to send out his Advanced Peak Kirlia!
If Charmeleon were to go head-to-head with a tricky Pokémon like Vileplume, it might be a very difficult fight.
After all, the opponent was already a higher level than Charmeleon, plus the endless stream of annoying moves. Charmeleon might not be able to overcome the level difference.
But if the Psychic-type Kirlia went, it would be different. In terms of trickiness, Psychic-types have never been afraid of anyone!
And, although Psychic-type doesn't have an advantage against Grass-type, it does have an advantage against Vileplume's Poison-type!
As Ash threw the Poké Ball, a flash of light appeared, and a blue-haired Kirlia, resembling a human girl, appeared on the field.
"Kirlia... a Shinny one?" With Erika's experience, she naturally recognized Kirlia, but it was her first time seeing a Shinny Kirlia.
This Pokémon was already rare, and with it being Shinny, its rarity was completely maximized!
Erika hadn't forgotten what Ash said earlier about encountering and catching an Elite Four level Gastly on the road.
Add to that this Shinny Kirlia... Good heavens, you must have maxed out your luck stat before leaving home, right?
To encounter such rare Pokémon in just two months? No, it should be less than two months!
"What's wrong, Erika? Aren't you going to attack? Then I'm going to attack first! Kirlia, Confusion!"
Ash saw Erika still in a daze, and didn't bother with politeness, letting Kirlia launch the first attack.
"Kir-lia!" Kirlia raised her small hand, blue light flickering in her eyes, and a strange energy directly acted on Vileplume.
The Psychic energy eroded Vileplume's body and bound it tightly.
"Ingrain!"
"Wah-hoo~~"
Several vine-like things appeared from Vileplume's body and directly rooted themselves into the ground!
Ingrain allows the user to recover some health over time, and under the effect of Ingrain, Kirlia couldn't even lift Vileplume directly with Confusion.
The roots in the ground firmly locked Vileplume in place, and the power of Confusion was not enough to pull it up.
And Confusion's primary effect was control, with damage as a secondary effect. Even with the type advantage, the damage still seemed negligible. In a moment, Vileplume recovered using Ingrain.
"Very good, Vileplume, use Razor Leaf!"
"Wah-hoo!!"
Vileplume flicked the huge flower on its head, and several sharp leaves spun out at an extremely fast speed!
A series of whooshing sounds came from the air, as if the leaves were tearing the air apart at this moment.
"Psychic!"
"Kir-lia!" Kirlia extended both hands this time. At the same time, the Confusion control on Vileplume was released, replaced by all the power being concentrated on the leaves flying midway.
"Throw them back!"
The fixed leaves were directly flung back by the powerful Psychic force. Although they didn't have the same cutting power as when they flew over, their power was not weak.
"Trying to hit us with our own moves, isn't that a bit too naive!"
Erika saw Ash's response and a sarcastic smile appeared on her face. Then, she waved her small hand and commanded, "Ignore it, use Sunny Day!"
Sunny Day?
Ash was stunned for a moment when he heard this command, then he remembered Vileplume's ability that he had just perceived, and his expression instantly changed.
"Stop her!" Hearing this, the blue light in Kirlia's eyes shone even brighter. The Razor Leaf flew back to Vileplume at an even faster speed than before, hitting it!
However, Grass-type Razor Leaf couldn't do much damage to Vileplume, in fact, it caused almost no damage. This was also why Erika told Vileplume to ignore Razor Leaf.
But the moment Razor Leaf hit Vileplume, Kirlia also disappeared from her original spot, instantly reappearing behind Vileplume.
At this time, a cluster of hot fire had already emerged from Vileplume's pistil, ready to be launched.
Kirlia clenched her small fist, and scorching flames fiercely burned on her fist!
Fire Punch!
"Bang!!"
A cloud of smoke burst open where Vileplume was, and the dark mist obscured everything.
Erika's expression was a little displeased. She was prepared for Vileplume to take the Razor Leaf, but she wasn't prepared for Vileplume to take that Fire Punch!
What was going on with this Kirlia? How did she manage to immediately follow up Psychic with Teleport and use Fire Punch at the same time?
This skill combination was simply too fluid and swift.
Under the thick smoke, a ball of light rose, finally flying to the very top of the Gym, transforming into a suspended blazing sun!
Sunny Day was finally used.
The smoke slowly dissipated, revealing Vileplume's figure inside.
Vileplume, hit by Fire Punch, had some scorch marks on its petals, but on one hand, Fire-type was not Kirlia's main type, and on the other hand, Ingrain was still restoring Vileplume's stamina, so Vileplume could still withstand this damage.
"Vileplume, create distance!"
Close combat was not Vileplume's strong suit, so after the smoke cleared, Erika immediately had Vileplume create distance from Kirlia.
Actually, close combat shouldn't be Kirlia's strong suit either, but that Fire Punch just now startled Erika. She was even afraid that this Kirlia was a physical attacker, even though a physical attacking Kirlia was somewhat abstract... After receiving Erika's command, Vileplume tapped its toes, and its agile figure directly opened up the distance between the two. From its speed, Vileplume seemed to be very fast, which was slightly inconsistent with its large size.
The roots connecting its body to the ground were also severed. After it landed, several more roots emerged from its body and rooted into the ground, restoring its stamina.
"You're so determined to stop my Sunny Day, it seems you must have guessed my Vileplume's ability."
After seeing Vileplume create distance, Erika finally had the mind to chat with Ash.
"Chlorophyll, under Sunny Day conditions, speed becomes twice the original," Ash directly revealed the truth behind Vileplume's incredible speed.
The Chlorophyll ability, under Sunny Day conditions, can double the speed of the Pokémon possessing it!
That's why Vileplume's speed in creating distance just now was so fast.
"That's right, but Sunny Day has already been used, so even if you guessed it, it's useless now."
Erika wore an elegant smile on her face and continued to command Vileplume: "Vileplume, use Grassy Terrain."
"Kirlia, Light Screen, Reflect!"
The opponent was setting up a terrain, and Ash knew he couldn't stop them, so he set up walls!
Grassy Terrain's effect is that Pokémon on the ground recover a small amount of HP at intervals, and simultaneously boost Grass-type damage by thirty percent. This is definitely the best stage for Erika, as all of her Pokémon are Grass-type.
And Ash setting up both walls here could also benefit the Pokémon that come out next.
With Kirlia's extraordinary Psychic power, both walls could be activated simultaneously.
"Wah-hoo!!"
"Kir-lia!!"
On one side, a foot stomped the ground, and the entire field glowed with a vibrant green. On the other side, a small hand waved, and two transparent walls appeared in front of Kirlia, disappearing a second later.
In reality, the walls had already surrounded Kirlia. As long as an attack targeted Kirlia, it would be blocked by the double walls, reducing the damage by half.
"To be able to activate both walls simultaneously, plus that simultaneous Teleport and Fire Punch just now, it seems your Kirlia possesses the ability to multitask. Now that both sides have made their preparations, it's time to see who prevails."
"Yes, let's have a showdown, Erika!"
Although his preparations weren't as thorough as his opponent's, this state was the best Kirlia could do to set the stage.
"Vileplume, Solar Beam!" Erika waved her small hand, directly having Vileplume unleash the powerful Grass-type move, Solar Beam!
Normally, Solar Beam requires one turn to charge before it can be used, but under Sunny Day weather, Solar Beam can be fired instantly!
Countless rays of light gathered on the huge petals on Vileplume's head. Ash didn't make a move, but instead watched the opponent's actions intently.
The next moment, Solar Beam erupted, a golden pillar of destructive energy spewing forth, directly aimed at Kirlia.
Its speed was so fast that Kirlia had no way to dodge!
"Protect!"
As Ash's words fell, a green barrier instantly appeared in front of Kirlia, blocking the destructive beam, which was like a falling meteor, outside.
"Boom!"
A violent roar sounded, but the powerful beam of light could not cross the green barrier by a single step.
"Hmph, let's see how long you can hold on. Vileplume, increase output!" Erika snorted lightly, choosing to break through Kirlia's Protect by force!
There was already a level difference between the two sides, plus the boost from Grassy Terrain, and Solar Beam, a powerful Grass-type move. Kirlia's Protect simply couldn't hold on for long.
Sure enough, after about ten seconds, cracks began to appear in the barrier in front of Kirlia, and it looked like it was about to shatter!
"Now! Kirlia, Ally Switch!"
"Kir-lia!" Kirlia's expression was a little strained, but Psychic energy still surged through her. The next moment, their positions swapped, and Vileplume and Kirlia exchanged places!
Under Erika's horrified gaze, Solar Beam shattered the barrier and then directly hit Vileplume!
"This is possible?!"
To still have the energy to use Ally Switch while using Protect, this Kirlia must be a monster!
And these Psychic-type moves are truly annoying. Regardless of their strength, they are top-notch in terms of trickiness!
Whether it's Teleport, Ally Switch, or the double walls, they're all incredibly frustrating!
"Don't underestimate my Kirlia! Use Psychic!" Ash continued his offensive.
Even with the boosted Grass-type ultimate move, the damage to Vileplume was still low, after all, it had a quadruple resistance to Grass-type moves. But the power of Solar Beam could distract Vileplume, and even cause it to be briefly stunned, which already met Ash's expectations.
Kirlia's blue glow flashed, and a powerful Psychic directly immobilized Vileplume. This time, the binding force was even stronger than Confusion!
"Very good, use Hypnosis!"
The final decisive move, Hypnosis!
As long as the opponent was hit, the outcome of this battle would be decided!