Scizor's progress was incredibly fast. Every day, Muramasa led Eichi to Scizor's territory for the trials. Each run served as a form of training for Scizor, constantly battling Scyther and other Scizor to enhance its combat experience. Being surrounded and overwhelmed by a swarm of Scizor was an experience Eichi believed would leave a deep impression on his Pokémon.
Over the next few days, although Scizor did not clear the trial, it made incremental progress with every attempt. Furthermore, after casting a psychological shadow over Cai Kun on the first day, Scizor expected the weak binder to stay away the following day. To its surprise, it was proven wrong.
Cai Kun returned on the second day. Scizor showed no mercy, truly intending to traumatize it this time. After receiving another severe beating, Cai Kun finally had an epiphany. It realized that as long as it was present, it would be Scizor's primary target, and Scizor would pursue it relentlessly until one of them fell.
Having realized this, Cai Kun left the scene with its body covered in aches and pains, never to appear again. The primary obstacle Scizor now faced was the group of resident Scizor. They were fast, possessed high attack power, and always attacked in groups.
Every attempt left Scizor in a sorry state, but it was no pushover. It didn't fear their coordinated attacks in the slightest, as it was improving every single second. It constantly devised new ways to break through, using god-tier skills like Double Team and Substitute countless times.
By now, its mastery of these moves was virtually perfect. However, because it used these skills so frequently, the other Scizor became immune to them. At first, they were completely fooled by its tricks, but over time, they learned how it worked and developed counters and defensive measures.
Nevertheless, Scizor's own growth was even faster. It was certain that if it faced any of those Scizor in a one-on-one duel now, none would be its match. Thus, it was on the verge of passing. Muramasa, who had been monitoring Scizor's progress, was amazed by its incredible talent.
The speed of its improvement exceeded his expectations. Although it hadn't cleared the trial yet, Eichi believed it was only a matter of time. Currently, Scizor was resting beside Eichi. Today was the final day of the trial; failing to pass today would mean total failure for both Eichi and Scizor.
In the run just prior, Scizor had relied on its immense strength and superb techniques to successfully reach the finish line, but it had exceeded the time limit by a minute and a half. This had stunned Teacher Muramasa. Scizor had actually reached the goal; even that many Scyther and Scizor couldn't stop it.
Even the Scizor Leader took notice. It had initially thought little of the challenger, but it hadn't expected Scizor to be this strong. Muramasa sharpened his focus, sensing that Scizor might just clear the trial on the next run.
Once the rest period ended, Eichi stopped infusing Bug Force. Scizor looked at Eichi, and he immediately knew what it wanted. Scizor felt that now was the perfect opportunity to turn off the Weighted Vest.
Eichi took out the remote, deactivated the Weighted Vest, and told Scizor, "Don't reveal your full strength right away. Wait for the critical moment to unleash it and catch them off guard."
Scizor nodded in understanding. It had been thinking the same thing. Just then, Teacher Muramasa's voice came through the communicator.
"Hey, Eichi, get ready to start," Muramasa said.
"Understood," Eichi replied.
"Good, get ready... Start!" Muramasa commanded.
The moment the words left his mouth, Scizor shot out. It felt a sense of lightness throughout its body and was dying to explode with its full power, but it held back. Now was not the time. Scizor constantly weaved through trees and hid in the tall grass, moving in an S-pattern rather than a straight line.
Although some Scyther spotted it, it didn't panic. They couldn't catch it days ago, and after several days of training, they were even less likely to catch it now. Even when facing several Scyther at once, it didn't flinch and simply used Double Team.
If once wasn't enough, it use it twice, quickly shaking them off. On the stopwatch in Muramasa's hand, only three minutes had passed. With seven minutes remaining, Scizor reached the second half of the course once again.
Scizor moved silently, making sure not to produce a single sound. This time, its luck was good; it flew for over ten seconds without encountering a single Scizor. Suddenly, a noise came from above. In Scizor's perception, a gray mist-like energy signature appeared and began to approach rapidly, with several other Scizor following close behind.
The lead Scizor spotted it. Scizor instantly used Double Team, its clones flying off in all directions. Upon discovering its target, the lead Scizor let out a long howl, signaling the others to hurry over. It then picked the closest clone and gave chase.
The Scizor following behind also hurried to catch up. The clones were not as fast as the real body and were soon caught and destroyed. They continued their pursuit of the real one, but Scizor used Double Team again, this time creating even more clones.
This successfully blurred their vision, but by then, almost all the nearby Scizor had arrived, including the one that could see through its real body. Seven minutes had already passed.
Our classmate Cai Kun crawled out of its nest and looked toward the woods. It also wanted to know if Scizor could pass the trial this time. Scizor had given the one that could see through its clones a nickname: "Old Man."
The Old Man had definitely seen through the Double Team again and was charging toward the real body. However, Scizor was not without a plan. While flying, it began to use a move.
Swords Dance!
Its entire body began to spin rapidly. As it spun and charged, its speed dropped slightly. The Old Man caught up just as the other Scizor finished destroying the clones and closed in. At that moment, Scizor began to use a second move.
Hidden Power!
A burst of flames erupted from its mouth, gradually spreading across its entire body. It now looked like a pillar of fire; anyone who touched it would be burned. The other Scizor could only stay on the periphery, constantly using Air Cutter to attack it. This skill was somewhat effective; Scizor had reached the goal in the previous run using this very tactic.