The distance shrank.
Machamp surged forward confidently, believing it had cornered its opponent.
Then Ash smiled.
"Now!"
"Use Splash and jump behind Machamp!"
"ROARRR!"
With a powerful slam of its tail against the ground, Gyarados launched its massive body into the air.
Despite its enormous size, it moved with astonishing agility.
The giant golden serpent completed a full rotation in midair before landing gracefully behind Machamp.
And directly in front of the rapidly spinning Blastoise.
BOOM!
As it descended, Ash didn't even need to issue another command.
Gyarados instantly understood.
Its battle instincts kicked in.
"Aqua Tail!"
Its tail gathered the force of crashing tides and smashed downward.
CRAAASH!
The spinning Blastoise was hammered directly into the battlefield.
Only its hind legs remained sticking out of the crater.
They twitched twice.
The sight was simultaneously pitiful and hilarious.
"Machamp!"
"Forget Gyarados!"
"Use Low Kick on Chansey!"
Seeing his carefully planned offensive dismantled, Hideo immediately changed targets.
If Machamp couldn't attack Gyarados, then Chansey was the next best option.
After all, Chansey was a Normal-type Pokémon and naturally weak against Fighting-type attacks.
This wasn't a bad decision.
Originally, their plan had been simple:
Blastoise would create openings while Machamp eliminated Gyarados first.
But battles changed every second.
A good trainer had to adapt.
"ROAR!"
Machamp lunged toward Chansey.
A powerful kick shot forward.
However, Clarissa merely smiled.
"I may not be a professional trainer…"
"But don't underestimate me."
"Chansey, jump and use Minimize!"
WHOOSH!
Chansey's body instantly shrank.
Machamp's kick sliced through empty air.
BANG!
The attack missed completely and smashed into the ground instead.
"A perfect opportunity."
Ash's eyes flashed.
After burying Blastoise into the battlefield, Gyarados had already repositioned itself.
Now another opening had appeared.
"Valor!"
"Use Whirlpool on Machamp!"
In official battles, avoiding attacks was important.
Finding opportunities to launch your own attacks was equally important.
And Ash excelled at both.
His battlefield awareness, timing, and tactical creativity were on full display.
The brothers had presented Gyarados with a difficult question.
But instead of choosing between two bad answers, Ash had found a third one entirely.
And that answer was about to drag Machamp into a raging whirlpool.