Elf: I have a secret realm of emerald green.

Those are all formidable figures who can stop a child from crying just by looking at their faces.

Just like now, the opponent's starting lineup, Orangutan and Gengar, were startled by the two fierce-looking faces.

Incidentally, the [Intimidate] effect of the Blazing Roaring Tiger seemed to be more pronounced.

Although, for those two Pokémon that basically don't use physical attack moves, it doesn't matter if Intimidate lowers their physical attack by two stages.

……

On the field, the two sides began their first round of combat.

Almost the instant Incineroar activated its Intimidate ability, the opponent began to make a move.

Orangutan gently waved its feather fan at Togekiss, and a Dark-type energy wave flew at an extremely fast speed, hitting Togekiss.

It is one of the most annoying change-type moves that can seal the opponent's change-type moves, Taunt.

Whether it's the speed at which moves are released or the speed at which energy waves travel, Gorilla's Taunt is almost at the pinnacle of its class.

Even though Xia Shen warned Pokkis to avoid the provocation the moment he passed the ball, and Pokkis did so, he still couldn't escape.

Xia Shen's expression hardened slightly. Watching from below was one thing, but only after actually fighting it did he realize that the training level of this intelligent ape was already at its peak.

Meanwhile, Incineroar wasn't idle either. Since the Ghost-type Gengar is immune to the Normal-type move [Fake Out], it chose to ambush Oranguru.

Clearly, judging from the successful use of the provocative tactic, the high-five surprise attack failed.

Unsurprisingly, this gorilla's special ability is [Mental Strength], which grants immunity to the effect of flinching.

Xia Shen was speechless. Now, even Togekiss's ultimate move, "100% Cowardly Air Slash," would be defeated in front of this intelligent gorilla.

…………

However, it cannot be said that the high-five surprise attack was a complete failure, although the most crucial additional effect was not applied and the damage was negligible.

But it successfully brought the Blazing Roaring Tiger close to the Smart Gorilla.

It's not a good thing for a weak Dark-type Oranguru to be caught in close combat by Incineroar.

At the same time, Gengar and Togekiss also began their actions one after the other.

The quickest way to judge a Pokémon's strength is to look at how well it has mastered its best moves.

Without a doubt, this Gengar lives up to its position as the main offensive force in the Tokyo University doubles team, as its Shadow Ball is generated at an extremely fast speed.

Less than a second later, the deep purple sphere, condensed with the energy of the Explosive Ghost type, flew towards Togekiss.

That's right, after seeing the opponent's starting Pokémon, they decided to focus their attacks on Xia Shen's Togekiss.

As everyone knows, among Xia Shen's Pokémon, Togekiss ranks last in strength.

Moreover, Gengar and Oranguru really don't have many moves to exploit Incineroar's weaknesses.

With these two factors combined, they chose Pokekis, an easy target.

Meanwhile, Togekiss seemed completely oblivious to the impending threat, standing there blankly, gathering strength for some attack.

Just as the highly damaging Shadow Ball was about to hit, Fujiwara Kaoru and Hayakawa Itsuki's expressions were completely different.

The former's expression grew increasingly solemn, while the other sneered repeatedly.

The next instant, both of them were stunned when the explosive energy of the Shadow Sphere vanished from Togekiss's body.

They realized one after the other that Xia Shen's starting lineup wasn't Tokis, but Zoroark!

…………

Xia Shen's Zoroark, a Pokémon with the Ghost attribute, has been thoroughly studied by people, which is why the two of them were able to react so quickly.

However, during their first battle against Xia Shen, everyone forgot about the existence of this [illusion] trait.

First, Zoroark's appearance rate is not high.

Secondly, if they defend against Zoroark from the start, it would play right into Xia Shen's hands.

As soon as you start thinking, you'll fall into Xia Shen's game trap and find yourself at a disadvantage from the very beginning.

Moreover, Zoroark's illusions are of little use in doubles matches.

Xia Shen can only send out two Pokémon in total. They can only fool people once they first appear. After that, they can't fool anyone anymore.

Therefore, both of them, whether intentionally or unintentionally, ruled out the possibility of Zoroark appearing.

Surprisingly, Xia Shen actually started Soroark this time.

The key point is that they also got off to a good start.

Taunt and Shadow Ball are both easy targets for Zoroark.

Needless to say, Shadow Ball is immune to Ghost-type moves, and Taunt, which seals status moves, is not very effective against her.

Because Zoroark only has one thing to do in this battle: use the "revenge against vengeful spirits" technique on Gengar.

Just like what she is doing right now.

Ghosts have double the advantage against Ghosts, plus the [Freeze] effect that can be triggered, which halves special attack damage.

The move "an eye for an eye" can be considered Gengar's natural enemy.

…………

By the time Fujiwara Kaoru realized this and wanted to switch locations to save Gengar, it was already too late.

Zoroark's attack speed is also quite fast.

The reason she released Gengar later was not because her energy flow and gathering speed was actually slower than her opponent's.

Rather, it's because what she released was a vicious cycle of revenge fueled by [fierce] energy.

In an instant, a dense, chilling resentment, so intense that even Gengar, a ghost, was terrified, crawled out from the shadow beneath his feet.

Carrying a terrifying aura of resentment, it slowly seeped into Gengar's incorporeal body.

Gengar couldn't help but shiver. This bone-chilling cold, which wasn't physical, pierced to the marrow and made it extremely uncomfortable.

Its scarlet eyes trembled uncontrollably.

Clearly, this long-awaited, fierce act of revenge caused considerable damage to Gengar.

The only good news for Hayakawa Itsuki was that he didn't see the frostbite effect appear on Gengar.

I breathed a slight sigh of relief. If that was the case, then the situation wasn't so bad after all.

He was about to command Gengar to retaliate with Dark Pulse when he heard the girl beside him speak, which was quite unusual.

"Come save me."

Hayakawa Itsuki was surprised. "So, in that case, we can focus fire on Togekiss..."

No, the plan to focus fire on Zoroark is about to change.

But he still chose to go back to provide reinforcements without hesitation.

Hayakawa Itsuki knows perfectly well who the leader and core of this doubles pair is.

Although he occasionally has a seizure, he is quite excellent at following instructions.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have remained Fujiwara Kaoru's constant partner without change.

…………

"Gengar, use Sludge Bomb on Incineroar!"

"Gerger!"

Gengar cackled, its energy condensing slightly. In front of its massive body, a swirling mass of sludge, darker than its own color and almost black, formed a circle and flew toward Incineroar, which was about to unleash its DD Hook Arm.

Sludge Bomb is also a move that Hayakawa Itsuki's Gengar has a relatively high level of skill with, and it accurately hit Incineroar, which was about to do something indecent to Oranguru.

This is already the best way for Gengar to quickly support Oranguru.

For the Blazing Roaring Tiger, which primarily deals physical damage, Will-o'-the-Wisp is a good way to limit its damage output.

Unfortunately, the Tiger, with its dual fire and evil attributes, is immune to burns.

The only option is to throw a sludge bomb as a form of offense, and maybe try to inflict the poison status effect.

After the sludge bomb hit, the muscular Tiger began to spin like a top engulfed in crimson flames.

The Dark-type move DD Hook Arm struck the Gorilla.

With the power of Ye Rou's Incineroar, and the double-superior STAB attack, even the target, a very durable Oranguru, still suffered considerable damage.

However, soon, a deep purple hue appeared on the fierce face of the Blazing Roaring Tiger.

The additional effects of the sludge bomb have taken effect!

However, Gengar paid a price for rushing to help Orangutan.

Beneath its feet, a chilling resentment silently crept out of the shadows once more, coiling around its body.

This time, however, Gengar wasn't so lucky.

Deep blue frostbite marks appeared on Gengar's purple skin.

It wasn't conspicuous, but Hayakawa Itsuki, who was extremely familiar with his spirit, spotted it immediately.

His heart skipped a beat. He didn't have many moves to fight those two Pokémon to begin with, and his Special Attack was halved.

Even the fragile Zoroark isn't as afraid of me now.

"Switch to a different Pokémon, and you can confidently use Swords Dance."

Hayakawa Itsuki was in a state of panic when a calm voice, as always, came from beside him, which calmed him down.

After glancing at the Reflect Wall that Oranguru had just set up on the field, he recalled Gengar without hesitation and switched to his second Pokémon, Mimikyu.

Mimikyu, Swords Dance!

Hayakawa Itsuki's long-standing cooperation and experience have given him complete trust in Fujiwara Kaoru's judgment.

So he immediately commanded Mimikyu, who had just entered the arena, to activate Swords Dance, which seemed extremely greedy.

However, Mimikyu's greed has its own merits; the [Painted Skin] ability allows it to withstand damage from any attack.

Unless the opponent's ability is [Mold Breaker], which allows them to attack regardless of their ability.

None of the two opponents' Pokémon possess this characteristic.