"A-Alright! If both sides are prepared, let the battle between Ren and Mienfoo begin...!" shouted Lillie, raising her right hand with an anxious look on her face.
"Ren! Keep using Howl and ready Detect to evade its attacks...!" ordered Jason, prompting Ren to respond with a lengthy, high-pitched howl that enveloped her body with a pale orange, flame-like haze.
"Oh? Trying to boost her attack for a decisive blow, are we~?" hummed Korrina, her blue eyes flashing and the smile on her face broadening as she struck a pose and shouted, "Mienfoo, use Fake Out! Then follow that with a Fury Swipes...!"
"Mien...!"
Reacting to Korrina's commands, Mienfoo accelerated forward with nearly untraceable speed. Ren immediately used Detect, but just as her red eyes began to blaze cerulean, the Mienfoo gave her a fast, crisp-sounding slap across the face, knocking her off balance.
"Ren! Quick Attack...!" shouted Jason, prompting Ren to feel confused until she landed on all fours in her attempt to catch herself. That was the exact position she used Quick Attack in, so without further confusion, she dodged Mienfoo's follow-up Fury Swipes, leaving a cerulean blue trail in her wake.
'He's making good use of her Ability...' noted Korrina, her eyes glistening with expectation. Ren's Ability, Steadfast, increased her speed each time she flinched. Fake Out was an extremely swift move, but it placed a great strain on the using Pokémon's body and was often too fast for even their brains to process. As such, there was a delay between the execution of the movement and the resultant blow, reducing its power but causing the attacked Pokémon to flinch.
"Ride the momentum into Bullet Punch...!" shouted Jason, causing Ren's eyes to flash as she doubled back toward Mienfoo and shot out her right paw, coated in silvery-white energy.
Frowning deeply, Mienfoo promptly demonstrated why it was called the Martial Arts Pokémon by spinning swiftly on its left heel and launching a back kick that traveled in a wide arc to redirect Ren's highly telegraphed blow toward the ground. As a result, there was an explosion of sand, but the weasel-like Pokémon avoided taking direct damage.
'Its eyes...it can also use Detect...' noted Jason, his brows furrowing as he noticed the Mienfoo's previously pink eyes glowing blue. Fortunately, Ren hadn't taken damage from her attack being redirected. And even without him needing to tell her to, she used Quick Attack to flee through the pillar of sand and skid backward on all fours, her eyes focused on Mienfoo and her ears perked for his next command.
"Alright, Mienfoo!" shouted Korrina, waving her arms and striking a pose that gave Jason the chills. Fortunately, she was just being performative, her Z-Ring remaining inactive as she chimed, "Let's turn up the heat and pressure! Use Force Palm...!"
"Mien...!" responded Mienfoo, its eyes flashing with determination as it performed a short leap forward and posed like it was about to blast off a Kamehameha. To Jason's surprise, it really did shoot out an energy blast, but instead of a concentrated blue vortex, the unleashed energy was the burnt-orange associated with Fighting-type moves.
Having never encountered such an attack before, Ren's glowing eyes widened as she found herself unsure of how to react. At that moment, Jason's voice cut through the muffled static in her mind, shouting, "Ren, Endure!" in a curt, commanding tone.
Reacting to Jason's command, Ren's body briefly became veiled in hazy white energy, allowing her to remain largely unaffected as the unleashed energy of Mienfoo's attack washed over her like a crushing wave. Endure didn't make her impervious to damage. Instead, it spread damage across her body, causing her to feel as though she was being compacted into a tiny ball but ensuring she didn't take sustained damage to any single part of her body.
"Ren! Use Metal Claw...!"
Hearing Jason's shout the moment the wave of energy finished washing over her, Ren accelerated forward nearly as fast as when she used Quick Attack. Her speed had been increased by two stages at that point, so she was twice as fast for a brief window. And since Metal Claw concentrated her Steel-type energy into her claws, causing them to appear larger and sharper, she was able to graze Mienfoo's chest, leaving behind a trio of glowing red laceration marks as the latter failed to redirect her attack and dodge out of the way completely.
"Miennnn..." growled Mienfoo, meeting Ren's gaze as the latter flew past in slow motion, beaming excitedly.
"Alright, Mienfoo! Let's turn things around with a combination of Reversal and Fury Swipes...!" shouted Korrina, striking a pose and punching her fist at the air. As soon as Mienfoo heard that, it began pursuing the startled Ren like a Pokémon possessed, chaining together a series of punches and kicks that tore at the air and swept up the surrounding sands like a living tempest.
"Ren! You need to create some distance! Let it tire itself out...!" shouted Jason, seeing no other options. Endure was great at withstanding single or sustained blows, but it was terrible at dealing with combo attacks, as it forced the Pokémon using it to remain immobilized. Fortunately, Ren and Mienfoo appeared to have similar speeds, and by habitually using Detect without needing to be told, the spirited Riolu was able to take advantage of her smaller stature and proximity to the ground to continuously evade on all fours.
'These two are really something else. If I had known that the Riolu in that egg would hatch into such an incredible Pokémon, I might have kept it for myself...' mused Korrina, sporting a proud, bright-eyed, expectant smile as she imagined how powerful Ren would be once she evolved into a Lucario and was capable of Mega Evolution. And then there was Jason. He hadn't even received his Trainer's license, but she would liken his ability to focus and give orders to a Trainer midway through their Gym Challenge. He still had a long way to go, but he was improving rapidly to be the best Trainer he could be for Ren and his future Pokémon.
Without realizing it, Korrina's cheeks had become slightly ruddy. At the same time, her Mienfoo landed a sharp kick across Ren's face that sent the younger and more inexperienced Pokémon spinning through the air. Those were really the only things holding Ren back at the moment—her age and inexperience. Her fighting style was still primarily instinct-driven, so against a Pokémon with similar strength and speed but more skill, she would gradually find herself overwhelmed as her opponent observed and adapted to her movements.
"Renaaaaaa..." growled Ren, landing on all fours and skidding backward across the sand after Mienfoo's kick to her snout. Her nose pulsed with pain, but her expression remained determined as her claws dug into the sand and she suppressed the urge to pounce.
"Ren, that's enough! Let's bottle that aggression and channel it into your training...!" shouted Jason, causing Ren to clench her teeth and Mienfoo to glare at him as if he had just said the stupidest thing it had ever heard. Despite this, Ren ultimately shifted her posture and sat down, her brows furrowed, but her tail wagging behind her as Jason approached to pick up and give her a comforting hug, asserting, "You did great today. I couldn't be more proud..."
"Rena..." muttered Ren, closing her eyes and burying her face in the gap between her body and Jason's neck. She hated losing, and withdrawing from a match halfway left her feeling frustrated. But, more than anything else, she trusted that Jason had her best interests at heart. And since she could sense his relief and that he was genuinely proud of her, her irritation melted like ice against his warmth.
"You also performed amazingly, Mienfoo~" expressed Korrina, kneeling next to the frustrated-looking Pokémon, placing her hand on its shoulder, and leaning in to whisper, "Thanks for holding back and providing Ren an opportunity to grow and learn..."
Though it initially tilted its head in confusion, Mienfoo's split, pink-tipped tail began to wag as Korrina caressed its head and beamed at it from ear to ear. In truth, it had been giving its all to defeat Ren, but before Korrina's warm and radiant smile, it couldn't help but wonder if it had been holding back without realizing it. Then, glancing at Ren, the disapproval that it felt at seeing her wearing human clothes began to abate as it saw how Jason cared for her like a human child rather than a Pokémon...
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With tensions cooling down after their battle, Jason, seated around a cafe table with Lillie and Korrina, observed with a faint smile as Ren did its best to emulate Mienfoo's forms as the latter demonstrated various techniques atop the wooden posts.
"I have to say, Jason. I'm honestly a little shocked by how much both you and Ren have improved in the ten days I was away," remarked Korrina, her blue eyes glistening with intrigue as she asked, "Have you been aiding her growth using your System?"
Shaking his head, Jason smiled and explained, "My plan is still the same as we discussed before you left. Before I invest more AP into either of our stats, I want to see how strong we can become through our efforts. Mine haven't risen despite my speed improving and the amount of weight I'm able to lift increasing. So, until I reach my limits and plateau, investing AP into my stats is just a shortcut to power and more difficult training I'm not physically or mentally prepared for..."
Nodding approvingly, Korrina remarked, "That's an excellent mentality to have. Just don't forget about me when you finally start investing your AP. I haven't given up on growing stronger, but it feels like I've been stuck at the same level for years."
"That's because your Physique has reached the limit of your current Star Level~" chimed Lillie, garnering Korrina's attention as she beamed with a hint of smugness and confidently explained, "You see, as a 1-Star entity, your combined Strength, Vitality, and Dexterity stats cannot exceed two-hundred. To reach the next Star Level, you must first raise your Cognition and Spirituality totals to the same level. Only when body, mind, and spirit exist in harmony are people able to break through their limits to ascend to the next level."
"Oh? Is that how it was...?" asked Korrina, finding Lillie's attempt to show off more humorous than annoying.
With Korrina directing her question at him, Jason nodded and affirmed, "At the very least, that's what the Constellations have informed us. I can't say with absolute certainty that their words can be trusted, but since each of them says the same thing, it's reasonable to assume they're speaking the truth on this particular matter."
"In other words, if I want to get stronger, I need to hit the books and study my butt off..." groaned Korrina, exhaling a protracted sigh and deflating in her chair to the point it seemed she might slip out of it and sprawl on the ground. She didn't hate reading or studying, but she much preferred training, roller blading, and generally having fun.
"That isn't necessarily the case," stated Lillie, garnering Korrina's interest as she merrily explained, "Two parts of the Cognition stat are Perception and Guts. If you train your ability to sense your surroundings or routinely engage in activities that require great courage or involve overcoming your fears, your Cognition will increase accordingly."
"Oh? That's great, then...!" exclaimed Korrina, her eyes flashing as she stood up with her hands on the table, shouting, "That explains why my Guts stat is so high! There isn't much I'm afraid of, but I love, love, love doing things that frighten others! And that's the perfect theme for my PR videos! I'll call the series Thrillseeking in Alola and kick things off with me base jumping over Wela Volcano!"
"T-That would certainly catch people's interest..." affirmed Lillie, shrinking back in the face of Korrina's intensity. She really just wanted to remain the most intelligent girl at Jason's side. Had she known that the conversation would pivot toward them leaping from helicopters to descend the slopes of Mt. Lanakila or paragliding from the backs of Flying Ride Pokémon, she would have kept her advice to herself...
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