Arcanine’s technique, though complex and not particularly flashy, suited its own temperament extremely well. When it used this technique, the strain on itself was far less than it would be for other Pokémon, and the success rate was not low either. There would almost never be any mishaps.
Faced with what seemed like a “mutual destruction” attack, even the experienced Elite Four Drake failed to anticipate Terrance’s boldness.
After all, the slightest mistake could cause Arcanine to destroy itself!
Light and shadow still flickered in the spectators’ eyes, making Arcanine’s movements hard to track, but Flygon still responded as quickly as possible. As Sand Tomb closed in from the front, it bought Drake a brief moment to think.
A two-word command was issued, and in that short instant Flygon understood the instruction. The moment Arcanine broke through the Sand Tomb’s confinement, Earth Power swept through the Stone Edge, thrusting upward from the ground!
Drawing on the power of the earth, this Stone Edge carried terrifying force, and Flygon and Drake had perfectly timed it so that it once again blocked Arcanine’s advance, forming a second line of defense.
At the same time, gathering immense dragon energy, Flygon charged fiercely forward, transforming into Dragon Rush and aiming straight for Arcanine’s weak point.
These two time-buying moves allowed Flygon to seize the key to victory. But at the very moment the audience held their breath, Arcanine suddenly exploded with power from head to toe, power of lightning and flames completely converted into propulsion. The price, however, was the rapid worsening of its injuries. Using the power of the explosion, Arcanine calculated its opponent’s position and surged forward, slipping past the incoming attacks. The dragon head formed by Outrage lunged directly at Flygon’s nape, and the two Pokémon became like a meteor crashing toward the field. Using Flygon as a cushion, Arcanine delivered the final blow with its weight.
In less than a minute of combat, the atmosphere in the arena reached a fever pitch. As the referee announced the result, Drake recalled Flygon and sent out his second Pokémon.
“This kind of battle style is a first for me, but aren’t you going to recall Arcanine?”
The impact of multiple powerful moves had allowed Arcanine to unleash an incredibly brilliant strike, but it had also suffered tremendous recoil. It was uncertain whether it could even continue moving normally.
“It can still fight,” Terrance said with a slight smile.
Facing the orange, dragon-like Pokémon in the air, Dragonite, Arcanine slowly dragged its body, absorbing sunlight. Like Reversal, blazing flames erupted all over its body.
“Blaze Ability?”
Seeing this, many people showed expressions of surprise.
“Doesn’t Arcanine only have three Abilities? Intimidate, Flash Fire, and Justified. Since when did it have Blaze? Is it a new Ability?”
“It’s not Blaze.”
Very few could discern the change in Arcanine.
These individuals acted as commentators for the audience, and as they explained in detail, the crowd was stunned.
“It’s not Blaze, but it’s even more powerful than Blaze. The Sunny Day set up earlier, combined with the Morning Sun move, has become the key to Arcanine’s Reversal.”
“Using Morning Sun to absorb sunlight and bathe itself, combined with Reversal, which becomes stronger the lower its stamina, the result is this terrifying flame… no… it’s even borrowing the power of the sun itself.”
“If I’m not mistaken, this Arcanine’s Ability is Intimidate. The dragon’s might displayed through the Outrage’s aura in the earlier battle is the result of applying Intimidate in real combat. It just looked awkward against a top-tier Dragon-type Pokémon, so the effect wasn’t very significant. But against other opponents, that burst of dragon’s might could truly intimidate them, perhaps even frighten them into fainting!”
“I originally thought this Arcanine’s role was just to trade for one Pokémon, but now it seems it can unleash an even more dazzling, more terrifying, and more destructive strike!!”
Absorbing the light of the sun, Arcanine in its Reversal state seemed as if it had activated the Blaze Ability, bathing in flames and being reborn.
Soon, a dragon of thunder and fire surged upward, aiming straight at the Dragonite in the sky, leaving the audience speechless. Just which one was the dragon here…?
“It is indeed an unbelievable tactic, but that’s as far as it goes. Dragonite is not Flygon!”
Facing Arcanine’s frenzied assault, surprise appeared on Dragonite’s face, and then it burst forth with a speed that rivaled Arcanine’s…!
Extreme Speed!
“A Dragonite that can use Extreme Speed? If I remember correctly, the only ones who can teach Dragonite Extreme Speed nowadays are the Dragon Tamers of Blackthorn City… could this Dragonite be…?”
With Extreme Speed, Dragonite’s speed actually caught up to Arcanine, catching Terrance off guard. However, Arcanine’s destructive power at this moment was undoubtedly even more terrifying, and with the situation not allowing them to cancel the attack, Terrance gritted his teeth as Arcanine charged forward.
Dragonite, meanwhile, sharpened its gaze and, even more calmly than Flygon, figured out how to deal with this attack.
Using the speed of Extreme Speed, Dragonite rapidly retreated, exhaling a massive Blizzard that swept forward, eroding the thunder-flame dragon. Immediately after, it formed a Water Pulse, torrents of water surging forth. Even without using Dragon-type moves, dragons remained incredibly domineering, mastering a wide variety of moves just like Normal-types.
These two highly corrosive attacks against the thunder-flame dragon left Arcanine with only a sliver of consciousness. In that state, Dragonite formed a claw with one hand and surged forward, striking with Dragon Claw!
However, the destructive power of Arcanine’s Outrage was something even Drake had not judged correctly. With its Dragon-type energy eroded by Blizzard and its Fire-type energy eroded by Water Pulse, what was Arcanine relying on to unleash such power?
As Outrage collided with Dragon Claw, Arcanine let out a furious roar. Though its consciousness was faint, its gaze was ferocious beyond measure. That overwhelming presence completely stunned Dragonite, and both Pokémon were engulfed in the explosion.
“So it still came to this… After this, even with Altaria’s Flame of Life healing, Arcanine won’t recover without lying in a Pokémon Center for at least ten days to half a month,” Terrance thought helplessly.
Laser Focus Move: concentrating the mind to greatly boost explosive power in an instant, making it easy to strike the opponent’s vital points.
Combined with Reversal, this move allowed Arcanine to fully unleash its ferocity. But the price… was mental damage. Recovering mentally was far harder than recovering physically, which was the main reason it would need to rest for so long. Terrance hadn’t even planned to let Arcanine use this forbidden technique in the first place. If mishandled, it could leave lasting harm. But Arcanine’s personality was just that stubborn!
Amid the smoke, Arcanine, utterly exhausted, fell downward, and before it could hit the ground, Terrance recalled it into its Poké Ball. The outcome was decided.
In the sky, Dragonite’s one arm had already been crippled, and it now glared at Terrance with blazing fury.
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