Seeing Natsui agree, Rudy took a deep breath and proactively sent out his Pokémon.
As the blue light faded, a Starmie appeared on the field.
It seemed that in his desperation to win back a round, he had even broken his own custom rules by sending out his Pokémon first.
Starmie is a Water/Psychic-type Pokémon. Although Natsui could have used his Blastoise against it, he thought for a moment and decided to send out Gardevoir instead.
Rudy wanted to win, but Natsui had no intention of losing either.
He wasn't going to give him the chance.
And since Rudy claimed this was his strongest Pokémon, Natsui naturally had to be careful.
On the other side, Rudy had clearly never seen a Gardevoir before. He frowned, instinctively feeling that this unknown Pokémon would be tricky to handle.
"What kind of Pokémon is that?" Rudy asked.
"It's called Gardevoir," Natsui explained casually. "Don't worry, I've been following the rules. We have a type match."
Hearing this, Rudy understood that this beautiful, humanoid Pokémon possessed, at the very least, the Psychic type.
He chose to ignore Natsui's sarcastic jab. Right now, nothing was more important than winning this match.
Having been cornered like this, he had to do everything in his power to save face, holding nothing back.
Seeing that both Pokémon were ready, Rudy didn't hesitate and decided to strike first.
"Starmie, use Water Gun!"
A jet of water shot out from one of Starmie's hard points. In response, although Natsui stood perfectly still, Gardevoir had already understood his command through telepathy.
Instantly, a barrier formed by psychic power appeared in front of it, blocking the Water Gun.
Splat, splat, splat!
The water jet hit the invisible barrier, turning into splashes that flowed onto the ground.
So it really is a Psychic-type Pokémon…
Tch, what a pain!
Seeing that he couldn't break through Gardevoir's defense, Rudy tossed his head and suddenly snapped his fingers.
"In that case, I won't hold back any longer! Alright, let's dance our hearts out to the music!"
Dance!?
Natsui was stunned. As he stood there completely baffled, one of Rudy's subordinates in the hot-air balloon flipped a switch on a sound system.
Instantly, fast-paced, upbeat music blared from the speakers, covering the entire battlefield.
In the hot-air balloon, Mahri began to sway to the music, chirping excitedly, "It's my brother's music rhythm! This is great, he's finally using this move!"
Down on the field, Rudy also became instantly immersed in the music, breaking into a modern dance. The sight was so awkward that Natsui instinctively took a step back.
No way, this guy is terrifyingly shameless! I need to stay far away from him!
What was even more terrifying was that Starmie also began to spin along with the music.
As the dance number concluded, Rudy shouted, "This is our Dance of Passion! Now, Starmie, use a passion-filled Thunderbolt!"
Hearing his command, Natsui was taken aback. He never expected this Starmie to know an Electric-type move.
In that case…
His eyes quickly darted to the puddle of water in front of Gardevoir, formed by the blocked Water Gun. A thought flashed through his mind, and he quickly had Gardevoir dodge.
At the same time, the spinning Starmie erupted with dazzling electricity, launching an indiscriminate attack in all directions!
Gardevoir used Teleport, moving itself to another location. The moment it vanished, a bolt of electricity struck the puddle of water, and with a series of harsh crackles, a cloud of white steam erupted.
That was close!
So there was a combo…
First, attack the target with Water Gun, then use an Electric-type move to follow up on the drenched opponent. It had to be said, without prior knowledge, who would have thought a Water-type Starmie could use an Electric-type move?
Caught off guard, it would be easy to suffer a major blow.
However, this move combination relied on the element of surprise. Now that it had failed once, it had lost its intended effect.
Sure enough, after that move, Starmie couldn't pull off any new tricks.
Natsui could see it clearly: the so-called dance training method, aside from making the Pokémon more agile, didn't actually grant them any additional power.
The result, naturally, was self-evident. Although Starmie's speed did increase again under the influence of the music, Gardevoir still seized an opportunity, using Magical Leaf to stun it, followed by Disarming Voice, and finally finished it with Dazzling Gleam, knocking it flat on the ground.
Thud!
Seeing Starmie fall rigidly to the ground, Rudy suddenly felt a chill run through his hands and feet.
I've completely lost…
Defeated in all three rounds. As unwilling as he was to accept it, it made Rudy clearly recognize the gap between him and Natsui.
Sighing helplessly, he recalled the unconscious Starmie, took a badge from his pocket, and, after walking closer, tossed it to Natsui.
"You win. According to the rules, this badge is now yours!"
Natsui reached out and caught the badge firmly.
He had originally intended to be polite to Rudy, but after handing over the badge, Rudy turned around and left without a word.
It seemed he didn't want to stay for even a second longer.
Presumably, he had lost face, and with the existing animosity between them, there was nothing more to say.
But this was fine too. It saved Natsui the trouble of trying to console him.
Shaking his head, Natsui paid him no more mind and looked down at the badge in his hand.
This was the Spike Shell Badge from the Pomelo Gym. It was flat, shaped like a spiky whelk shell, with a dozen sharp points. In the center of the spiral, an unknown pink stone was embedded.
In terms of design, it wasn't as appealing as the first two badges.
Just as he was placing it in his badge case, he suddenly heard cries of alarm from above.
It turned out that, with the match over, Sabrina had climbed over the railing and jumped from the sky, not waiting for the balloon to land.
"What!?"
Not only were Mahri and Rudy's subordinates shocked, but even Rudy, hearing the commotion and looking up to see Sabrina falling from such a height, couldn't help but widen his eyes.
Is she trying to get herself killed!?
Seeing this, Natsui quickly let out a whistle. Gardevoir teleported to his side, and he swiftly recalled it into its Poké Ball. He then jumped onto Charizard and flew towards Sabrina.
Sabrina had originally intended to use her psychic powers to land safely, but seeing Natsui rushing towards her on Charizard, she smiled faintly and relaxed, watching him with a gentle gaze.
Charizard swooped under Sabrina like the wind, and Natsui caught her securely in his arms.
Cradled like a princess, Sabrina looked up at Natsui and chuckled. "Now that you have the badge, shouldn't we be leaving?"
"Of course. There's nothing worth staying for here," Natsui nodded. Looking at her beautiful face, he couldn't resist planting a kiss on her lips. He then gently tapped Charizard's side with his foot and declared with high spirits, "Charizard, no need to land! Let's head straight to the next gym!"
ROAR!
Charizard let out a draconic roar, as if in response to Natsui. The next second, it powerfully flapped its wings and, under the complex gaze of Rudy and the adoring eyes of Mahri, quickly flew off into the distance until it was out of sight…
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