Skarmory looked down and was met with Scyther's fierce face. This is bad.
"Scyther, use Hidden Power!"
From directly below Skarmory, Scyther opened its mouth and blasted a column of fire, striking Skarmory directly.
Since fire-type moves are Super Effective against Steel-types, the effect was significant. The force of the flames sent Skarmory rocketing a distance into the air.
"Scyther, fly to its head and use Brick Break for the final blow."
Scyther accelerated madly and instantly flew above Skarmory. Skarmory had not yet recovered from the pain of the attack when Scyther swung its scythe, striking it hard.
Skarmory cried out in agony and smashed violently onto the ground.
The ground was left with a shallow crater. Skarmory twitched, struggling to get up, but it soon gave out, falling to the ground again, unable to battle.
"Skarmory is unable to battle. Scyther wins. Therefore, the winner is Class 1's Eichi!"
"Skarmory!"
Matsu quickly ran over and helped Skarmory up. Seeing that Skarmory was completely unconscious, he had no choice but to take out its Poké Ball and recall it.
"Damn it, I actually lost!"
Regardless of Matsu's mood, Scyther flew down and knelt on one knee. Scyther was covered in wounds.
This was a difficult fight! The battle just now had drained a massive amount of its stamina, but it was still pleased about its victory.
Eichi took out a Poké Ball and recalled Scyther. "Good job, Scyther, now rest."
Stepping off the field, Eichi handed Scyther's Poké Ball to the medical personnel, who in this case was Miss Joylin.
Miss Joylin accepted the Poké Ball and congratulated him. "Congratulations, Eichi. You can entrust Scyther to me. I'll return it after a full recovery."
"I'll leave it to you, Miss Joylin," Eichi replied.
"It's no trouble at all. It's my job," Miss Joylin said.
When Eichi won, the students in the Class 1 section of the audience erupted in cheers. "The Class Representative won!"
"The Class Representative is amazing!"
"Yeah, the Class Representative's Scyther is too strong!"
"The Class Representative is incredible. He managed to defeat both of the opponent's Pokémon with just one Scyther."
"That Skarmory looked quite intimidating."
***
On the other side, Konan watched Eichi win and sighed. "He's strong indeed, but I'm not weak, either."
"He's strong enough," Sato said. "I wonder how strong your Beedrill is. I look forward to battling you."
In the audience, Director Yanagi asked Teacher Takemoto, "What do you think of that Scyther?"
Teacher Takemoto thought for a moment before replying. "If this Scyther was trained by him alone, then I can only say Eichi is a genius. This Scyther is very well trained. While it might still be slightly lacking compared to some Pokémon meticulously raised by established families, it's truly commendable that Eichi managed to raise this Scyther all by himself. Given enough time, this Scyther has a very bright future. It's just a pity I haven't seen his Beedrill yet."
"Don't worry," Director Yanagi said. "If you can't see it today, there's always tomorrow. You'll see it eventually."
Teacher Takemoto chuckled. "That's true, there's no need to rush."
As soon as Eichi stepped off the field, Tetsu held out his hand and Eichi slapped it hard.
"You won. That's awesome," Tetsu said.
"Class Representative, you're really amazing!" Kelly said with a smile beside them.
"Not at all. Just average," Eichi replied modestly.
Eichi then turned to Tetsu. "Alright, it's your turn now. Good luck in the next match."
"Mhm," Tetsu affirmed, and then he went up to the arena.
As Tetsu stepped onto the field, a small, chubby person on the opposing side was watching Eichi. He's a bit tricky! I need to think of a plan, the chubby boy muttered to himself.
Tetsu's opponent was also a Class Representative, but Tetsu's demeanor was different from his usual self. He seemed exceptionally calm. He used Noctowl and Ampharos. During the last half-month, Tetsu's Flaaffy had evolved into Ampharos.
In the match, Tetsu's Noctowl successfully defeated the opponent's Natu. However, the opponent's next Pokémon was a Heracross, which quickly defeated Noctowl. It was clear that Heracross had an Outstanding Talent Grade and was Experienced rank. Its strength was formidable, though it was still somewhat weaker than the Heracross Eichi had encountered in the Viridian Forest.
In the end, Tetsu relied on Ampharos, which used a single Thunder to conclude the battle. Tetsu's victory was difficult, but he won, achieving his goal of entering the top nine.
When Tetsu came down, Eichi also held out his palm, and Tetsu slapped it hard. They shared a smile. With two people in the top nine, Class 1 had cause for celebration.
Although their matches were over, others' matches were still ongoing. Eichi and his friends stayed put to watch the rest of the tournament. In the subsequent matches, Sato also took the field. Like Eichi, he swept his opponent using only one Pokémon. He was indeed Eichi's formidable rival, possessing great strength.
Then came Shinta. His victory was not as easy as Eichi's, requiring both his Houndoom and Ursaring to defeat his opponent.
***
After several matches, the tournament finally concluded late in the afternoon, just before sunset.
The remaining nine contestants, excluding the one who received a bye, needed to be grouped for the next round. The large screen began the drawing process, with the competitors' portraits spinning rapidly.
After three seconds, the person who received the bye was someone Eichi didn't recognize. The remaining eight were divided into groups, like a bracket. For example, Eichi's opponent would be the Class Representative of Class 6. The winner of that match would then battle the winner of another small group for a spot in the finals. However, there would be another lottery draw for the next round. The person who drew the bye would move straight through, and the person who received the previous round's bye would take that slot.
Tetsu's luck was poor, as his next opponent was Sato. Tetsu, however, sounded relaxed. "It's okay if I lose. I'm already satisfied with making it this far."
***
When the results were posted, Shinta, seeing his opponent and the potential opponent for the following round, made up his mind.
Later that evening, in a dormitory room, two people were plotting a confidential secret.
"Tomorrow, you're facing Eichi," Shinta instructed the other student. "If you win, fine, but if you see that you're about to lose, you need to do this..."
The other student nodded. "I understand. I'll give him a big surprise tomorrow."
"Heh heh, I've got this win secured, Eichi," Shinta sneered. "I'll teach you a lesson for helping that useless Hirota. Tomorrow, you'll see."
In the blink of an eye, the next day arrived. Today's schedule was the round of 9 into 5, followed by the round of 5 into 3. This meant Eichi and the other highly skilled contestants would have to fight two matches today. This was not good news.