Though the second challenge ended in failure, it was still a significant improvement over the first.
This proved that Tetsuya's strategy was viable. Now, the priority was to strengthen himself.
After leaving Brass Tower, Tetsuya and Raine went their separate ways for special training.
They never exchanged ideas when it came to training. As for their joint challenges at Brass Tower, they simply assigned their respective roles in advance. Whether they performed well depended entirely on their individual skill.
Gastly's most recent battle had inspired Tetsuya. It was clear that special training was now urgent.
The location, of course, was Bell Tower, a perfect training ground filled with wild Ghost-type Pokémon.
"Ditto, your training task remains the same."
Tetsuya gave the order, and Ditto transformed into Haunter before going off to look for a target to provoke.
With a Pokémon like Ditto, training was repetitive, focused on developing basic capabilities. Its own limitations meant it could never reach the highest level of competition.
Constantly transforming to adapt to different battles, Ditto had to rely entirely on its Trainer's commands and its own ability to improvise with unfamiliar moves. Against truly skilled Pokémon, who had perfected their Moves and possessed endless Move combinations, Ditto stood no chance.
After all, in just a single battle, Ditto might not even fully grasp the moves of the Pokémon it had transformed into, let alone execute coordinated strategies. Against a true "Expert-type" Trainer, Ditto was nothing more than a sacrificial pawn.
Of course, Tetsuya never intended to make Ditto his main combat force. It had a unique value, one that no other Pokémon could replace…
Right now, his primary combat prospect was Gastly.
"Use every move you've learned so far."
Tetsuya addressed Gastly, who looked a little lost.
Under Tetsuya's watchful gaze, Gastly demonstrated all five moves it had learned: Hypnosis, Lick, Mean Look, Curse, and Night Shade.
"Hypnosis takes too long to charge up, and the illusion range on Night Shade is too small."
After giving his critique, Tetsuya proceeded to the next phase of his plan.
"In the battle at Brass Tower, you used Night Shade as a defensive shield and then drained vitality. That was a good idea. But vitality drain is limited, you can't depend on it completely. We need to dig deeper."
Gastly didn't really understand what Tetsuya was saying. Naturally, strategy wasn't something explained with words; it had to be forged through battle and relentless training.
Understanding wasn't required.
"Gastly, use Lick on those five Shuppet over there."
Tetsuya's preferred method of training: provoke a fight and force out hidden potential.
Gastly lashed out with its long tongue, wildly whipping the five Shuppet that had been playing in the corner.
Shuppet, embodiments of grudges, became even more enraged after being attacked without reason.
Black energy coiled around the tips of their pointed heads as they charged at Gastly.
Knock Off, a Dark-type move, now infused with grudge-fueled power, more devastating than ever!
The Shuppet line was one of the rare Ghost-types known for physical offense. Dark-type attacks were especially effective against Gastly. Just one hit could knock it out.
Faced with the furious Shuppet, now radiating terrifying Dark-type energy, Gastly's first instinct was to run!
…But Speed wasn't what Tetsuya aimed to train today.
"No running. Use Night Shade to shield yourself."
Tetsuya's shout stopped Gastly in its tracks. Gritting its teeth, it unleashed Night Shade, a dark cloud enveloped its body.
Shuppet's grudge wasn't dispelled just because Gastly hid inside Night Shade. Infused with Dark-type energy, their pointed heads stabbed furiously into the "shadowy veil".
The illusory black cloud formed by Night Shade was steadily eroded by the repeated Knock Off attacks.
"Use Hypnosis!"
Tetsuya shouted toward Gastly, still hiding within Night Shade.
He was inspired by the tactic Gastly had used earlier, draining the vitality of three Gastly during the battle at Brass Tower while shielded by Night Shade.
That gave Tetsuya an idea. Using the cover of Night Shade's illusion could make Hypnosis more effective and harder to predict.
If Hypnosis spread out from within Night Shade while the opponent was preoccupied with breaking through the defense, it would likely catch them off guard.
If Hypnosis succeeded, they would gain full control of the battle.
Night Shade plus Hypnosis… he'd call it [Shadow Hypnosis].
Tetsuya was full of confidence!
But the results were disappointing…
Even some time after he gave the command, Gastly still hadn't used Hypnosis.
Faced with Shuppet's assault, Gastly was already pouring everything it had into maintaining Night Shade. There was no energy left to channel into Hypnosis.
"Still not strong enough, huh?" Tetsuya sighed.
After that, he stopped giving commands and let Gastly maintain Night Shade as best it could.
Right now, the failure of [Shadow Hypnosis] came down to Gastly's lack of ability.
First, the Night Shade needed to last long enough for Hypnosis to be cast successfully. And Hypnosis itself needed to be faster. A one-second delay could cost them everything.
Most importantly, it required dual concentration -multitasking-, to keep Night Shade active while successfully casting Hypnosis.
It sounded simple, but combining two moves like that wasn't something achieved overnight.
It was perfectly normal that Gastly couldn't pull it off yet. Every powerful Pokémon took years to grow.
Tetsuya quietly observed Gastly…
Just holding Night Shade was a test of endurance. Continuously channeling energy would also enhance Gastly's sensitivity to that energy.
The five Shuppet, just about to break through the shadow veil, suddenly paused. Their prolonged assault had drained their stamina. They were preparing to rest before launching one last attack.
In its current state, Gastly definitely wouldn't "survive" the next round.
But Tetsuya had no intention of recalling it. Without facing situations like this, how could one ever shine?
Suddenly, from the last wisp of Night Shade, red waves began to pulse outward…
It was Hypnosis!
Tetsuya was overjoyed. Gastly hadn't given up. It had waited for Shuppet to drop their guard and then launched its counterattack.
Caught unprepared, the Shuppet were quickly affected by the hypnotic waves. Their minds dulled, and one by one, they collapsed.
The five Shuppet lay on the ground, fast asleep.
Gastly had reached its limit, and Night Shade dissipated with it.
"Not bad… Not bad at all!"
Tetsuya took out a Poké Ball and recalled Gastly.
This time, Gastly had only used Hypnosis as a sneak attack while barely holding Night Shade. It was still far from a true [Shadow Hypnosis]."
But it was clear that Gastly had begun to grasp the essence of this combo. From here, their training had a clear direction.