Ash cast a glance over at Misty, who returned it with an eye roll.
"This device is usually only used in professional level battles because, for those at the professional level, even a large arena would still end up affecting the surrounding environment, or maybe even injure the Trainers directing the battle."
"But our Cerulean Gym's strongest is only at the Elite Level. Do you think it's necessary for us to use this?" Misty's retort left Ash with an awkward expression.
That actually made some sense. Why would an Elite-Level battle need to use this barrier?
Brock also chimed in, saying, "We have this at our gym too, but you were just a rookie Trainer back then, and the Pokemon I used were only at the Advanced Level, so there was no need to use this tool, right?"
Hearing this, Ash silently turned his head away, realizing that it wasn't because they didn't have it, but because he was just too weak back then.
"While generally, only professional level battles use this barrier, Celadon Gym is a bit different. Besides being the Gym Leader, I'm also the manager of the perfume shop, and all the surrounding flowers and plants are raw materials for making perfume. So for even slightly intense battles, I have to use this machine," Erika explained the reason why she needed to use the machine even for an Elite-Level battle.
Her gym was different from ordinary gyms, and it contained many rare plants that needed protection. A slightly intense battle might damage the surrounding flora.
Therefore, even for the Elite Level battles, she had to turn on this machine.
"Can we start now, Erika?" Ash said eagerly.
This thing really resembles his Aura Barrier. He didn't expect the league to make such a machine. He's curious how it would perform during a battle.
"Anytime... Just call me Erika, adding Gym Leader just sounds weird."
"Alright."
"Then I'll send out my Pokemon first~" Erika moved to her position, her kimono fluttering in the wind as a Pokeball silently appeared in her pale hand.
"The match rules are three-on-three. The Gym Leader can't switch Pokemon. The first side to have all three Pokemon lose the ability to battle loses," announced the girl who greeted Ash and the others as she stood at the referee's stand, reading out the gym rules.
As soon as she finished speaking, Erika tossed the Pokeball in her hand.
"Vileplume, go!"
A Pokemon with a huge red flower on its head and a blue body appeared on the field.
Vileplume, the final evolution of Oddish. Back then, Ash wanted to capture Oddish with the goal of evolving it into Vileplume. As some experts in the community said, if played well, it can be an extremely annoying Pokemon.
"Vileplume, huh... It's decided, Kirlia!"
This Vileplume shouldn't be Erika's absolute main force. Its strength is around mid-Elite Level. However, it's still higher than any of Ash's Pokemon other than Pikachu. Facing a Pokemon with a level advantage, Ash's first choice was obviously one that could counter, so he chose to send out the Advanced Peak Kirlia!
Vileplume is such a pesky thing. If Charmeleon were sent out to face it head-on, it might be very difficult.
After all, its level is naturally higher than Charmeleon's, and with its endless annoying skills, Charmeleon might not be able to overtake it at all.
But if he sends out the Psychic Type Kirlia, that's a different story. When it comes to annoying strategies, Psychic Types are second to none!
And although Psychic Types don't counter Grass Types, they do counter Vileplume's poison attribute!
With Ash tossing out the Pokeball, a flash of light revealed a blue-haired Kirlia, resembling a young human girl on the field.
"Kirlia... a shiny one?" With Erika's experience, she naturally recognized Kirlia, but this was the first time she saw a shiny Kirlia.
This Pokemon was already rare, and it being shiny made its rarity absolutely maxed out!
Erika hadn't forgotten Ash mentioning in the beginning about capturing an Elite Level Gastly on the road.
Adding this shiny Kirlia to the mix... Wow, your luck must be maxed out, huh?
Encountering such rare Pokemon in just two months? No, it hasn't even been two months!
"What's wrong, Erika? Not attacking yet? Then I'll make the first move! Kirlia, Telekinesis!"
Seeing Erika in a daze, Ash wasn't shy and instructed Kirlia to launch an attack first.
"Kirlu!" Kirlia raised its small hand, its eyes shimmering with a blue glow, and a strange energy directly targeted Vileplume.
The psychic energy invaded Vileplume's body, binding it tightly.
"Ingrain!"
"Whoa~~"
Vines emerged from Vileplume's body and plunged into the ground!
Ingrain would allow Vileplume to gradually regain a bit of physical strength. With the Ingrain effect, Kirlia couldn't lift Vileplume with Telekinesis.
The roots in the ground securely anchored Vileplume, and the strength of Telekinesis wasn't enough to uproot it.
Also, the primary effect of Telekinesis is control, with damage being secondary. Even with the countering effect, the damage remained negligible, and in no time, Vileplume recovered through Ingrain.