As the ground turned thicker and wetter, Milotic only looked more comfortable.
Its slick scales gave it a clear edge in the slush. It glided faster and cleaner with every exchange, twisting smoothly to avoid Swellow's follow-up dives.
And the worse the mud got, the more careful Swellow became. It didn't want to fly too low, and it hesitated to commit to close-range strikes. One bad pass and mud would cling to its feathers, costing it speed.
It left Swellow in a frustrating spot, plenty of power, but fewer safe ways to use it.
Winona's respect for Natsui climbed another notch.
He wasn't playing by the usual script. That kind of improvisation mid-battle was rare. It reminded her of a challenger from not long ago, Ash, the kind who could turn a messy situation into an advantage.
She couldn't help wondering if Natsui was cut from the same cloth.
Still, Swellow wasn't helpless. Even if it didn't want to dive into the mud, it was strong at mid-to-long range.
An Air Slash carved toward Milotic. Milotic answered with Water Gun, refusing to give ground, but Air Slash hit harder. It punched through the stream and kept coming.
Milotic stayed calm. Using the slick terrain, it slipped aside and avoided the hit cleanly. Attacks traded back and forth, defenses held, and neither side found a clean finish. The battle settled into a stalemate.
Winona called out, "Swellow, use Aerial Ace!"
She was the first to break the rhythm.
Natsui's expression sharpened as Swellow began circling higher, building speed.
Aerial Ace was all about movement and timing. The user accelerated, blurred the opponent's tracking, then cut in with a strike that was almost impossible to avoid in a normal exchange.
So Natsui made sure it wouldn't be normal.
"Milotic, use Twister."
Milotic unleashed Twister. A tight funnel of wind spun up across the field, whipping mud and water into the air and splattering the ground in every direction.
The arena instantly became chaos.
For a moment, Swellow lost Milotic in the spray and shifting air. The turbulence tugged at its wings, and the flying mud didn't help either.
But Winona hadn't chosen Swellow for the final round by accident. It was experienced, disciplined, and patient. Instead of forcing its way through the mess, Swellow simply held position and waited for the wind to die down.
It could afford to wait.
And it was the right call.
About ten seconds later, as Twister started to weaken, Swellow snapped into motion. It dove at extreme speed and struck cleanly with Aerial Ace, cutting in on a sharp line and hitting Milotic directly.
Milotic staggered and fell back into the mud. By the time it pushed itself up to counter, Swellow was already back in the sky.
Natsui saw the fresh marks on Milotic and knew this Swellow was no joke, but he didn't panic.
"Milotic, use Recover."
Milotic let out a soft cry. A pale white glow wrapped around it, and most of the damage mended in an instant.
It looked like the fight had reset to the same position as before.
But Natsui could feel the cost. Twister and Recover drained more stamina than Swellow had spent on that one Aerial Ace. From Winona's side, it finally looked like there was an opening.
Since it worked once, Winona didn't hesitate.
"Great! Swellow, again!"
Natsui had already decided Swellow was tougher than the last two opponents. Seeing Winona repeat the same approach, his thoughts clicked into place.
"Milotic, Twister again."
Another Twister formed, almost identical to the first.
In the stands, Misty frowned. Winona frowned too.
Winona couldn't help thinking: It worked against him the first time. Why repeat it?
Did he run out of options?
Was he stubbornly trying to force it?
Then Natsui answered without saying a word.
The moment the Twister took shape, Milotic surged straight into it.
The wind wrapped around Milotic and carried it upward. A few seconds later, it was lifted high above the battlefield.
And as it started to fall, Milotic twisted in midair, adjusting its angle and posture, dropping toward Swellow instead of the ground.
Winona understood immediately.
He realized Swellow didn't want close-range contact, so he forced the approach himself.
The idea was clever, but to her it still looked too straightforward.
The sky was Swellow's territory. Once Milotic was airborne, it couldn't use the muddy field to maneuver. If Swellow played it right, Milotic would be a sitting target.
Winona snapped, "You asked for it! Swellow, take it head-on!"
Swellow spread its wings and shot forward.
Natsui's mouth curved into a small smile.
"Now. Milotic, use Surf."
Winona froze. Misty froze. Even the referee blinked.
Milotic didn't hesitate.
In an instant, a massive wave surged up beneath it. Along with Milotic, it crashed down from above with overwhelming force, straight toward Swellow.
The wave hit like a net that swallowed the airspace.
At that distance, Swellow only had time to look up before the water slammed into it, ripping it out of the sky and smashing it into the ground.
Milotic, Swellow, and the crashing wave struck the field together.
When the water pulled back, Swellow was a drenched mess. Its feathers clung together, heavy and soaked, making it look completely miserable.
Winona's face changed. "What!?"
But before she could do anything else, Milotic was already up and moving toward Swellow.
"Oh no! Swellow, move! Get out of there!"
Swellow flapped hard, trying to lift off. It flapped again and again, but the soaked feathers robbed it of lift. It couldn't even get properly airborne.
Milotic reached it.
"Use Aqua Tail."
Milotic's tail wrapped in churning water and snapped forward. The hit landed with a loud crack, knocking Swellow off balance.
And it didn't stop there.
Milotic pressed in, coiling tight. Its tail wrapped around Swellow and squeezed harder and harder until Swellow's struggle weakened, then stopped.
Swellow fainted.
The referee raised the flag. "Swellow is unable to battle! The winner of this Gym battle is the challenger, Natsui!"
With that signal, the Gym battle was officially decided.
Winona let out a long breath. She'd been caught by this kind of swing in momentum more than once today.
"You win," she admitted. "That was a brilliant finish. I'm not making excuses. I had a real chance in that last round, and you still found a way around it. You were one step ahead."
Natsui answered honestly. "You pushed me. If I hadn't found that angle at the end, I'm not sure I would've won."
Since they respected each other, the post-match exchange stayed polite.
Misty, who had already come down from the stands and walked over, sighed anyway.
"The adult world is such a pain…"
Winona reached into her coat, took out a shiny badge, and placed it in Natsui's hand.
"Here. The Feather Badge. Proof you beat me."
Natsui thanked her and looked it over.
Misty leaned in too. The Feather Badge looked like a silvery-white wing, clean and simple, nothing flashy. Natsui liked it.
As he put it into his case, Winona noticed the other seven badges inside. She smiled.
"So you already had seven. Mine makes eight. I didn't expect I'd be your last Gym in Hoenn. Honestly, that's kind of an honor."
In practice, most Trainers followed travel routes, but there was still an unspoken pride among Gym Leaders. Plenty of challengers preferred to clear the "easy" ones first and save the harder matches for later. Nobody wanted to be known as the one people rushed to at the start.
So Winona was genuinely pleased to be last on the list.
Natsui had heard about that from Erika before, so he could guess what Winona was thinking.
After they said goodbye again, Natsui and Misty left the Fortree Gym.
With all eight badges collected, their Hoenn journey was getting close to the big stage, but it wasn't over. The Ever Grande Conference was still ahead, and even after that, there was the Battle Frontier.
There was still plenty to do.
Once they stepped out of the Gym area, Misty asked, "Where to next? Straight to Ever Grande City?"
Natsui shook his head. "Too early. We've still got at least half a month. But you reminded me, we should go to the Pokémon Center and get my League registration confirmed."
They followed the forest path back into Fortree City and headed to the Pokémon Center.
Nurse Joy was behind the counter. Natsui explained what he needed.
"I understand," Nurse Joy said. "Let me confirm your badges."
He handed over the badge case. After checking it, Nurse Joy worked at the computer for a moment, then returned the case.
"All set. I've registered you for the tournament. Just remember, when the League begins, you still need to check in on-site to confirm your identity."
It was standard procedure, and Natsui had already done it once at the Silver Conference.
"Thank you," he said.
They didn't stay to rest. They walked right back out the front doors.
Originally, Natsui wanted to head to a bigger, livelier city, relax a little, and do final training before the conference. But the moment they stepped outside, a call from May blew that plan apart.
Misty practically yelled into the phone. "What? It's starting that soon!?"
Even standing a step away, Natsui could make out bits of May's voice through Misty's volume.
He rubbed at his ear. From what he could hear, May had collected five Ribbons and was already heading toward the city hosting the Hoenn Grand Festival. She was calling because she wanted Misty to come too.
Misty hesitated and looked at Natsui. When he nodded, she lit up and agreed immediately.
"No problem! Natsui just finished all his badges too, so we've got time. It's decided. We'll meet you there!"
She hung up and took one excited step forward, ready to sprint.
Natsui raised a hand and stopped her.
"Why are you that excited? You're not even competing," he said. "And are you forgetting something?"
Misty blinked. "Forgetting something? My stuff's with me. I gave you the badge case back. I didn't forget anything…"
Natsui lifted the two bags hanging behind him and shook them slightly.
Misty finally got it and stuck out her tongue. "Oh. Right. I forgot we still need to return those two Orbs to Phoebe."
And right on cue, a figure dropped down from the canopy above and landed in front of them.
Misty yelped. Then she got a good look and froze.
Phoebe was standing right there.
It was pure coincidence.
Misty had barely said her name when she showed up. Speak of the devil.