Pokémon: Above the Top

Cacturne was a rare Shiny Pokémon, but among Sato's "elite" team, it didn't really stand out. It was a bit quiet and didn't get sent out to battle very often, but that didn't mean it was weak.

On the contrary, Cacturne was usually the one Zoroark and the others least wanted to face, even in friendly training matches.

…Because Cacturne might not always win, but it definitely wouldn't lose!

"Cac!"

Hydro Pump burst forth, and the surging water crashed violently into Cacturne, but it seemed completely unaffected.

Cacturne continued striding forward steadily, rapidly closing the gap toward Gyarados.

Wake stared in disbelief at the scene, unable to understand how a seemingly unimposing body like Cacturne's could manage this.

After all, with Gyarados's massive body, even if its Hydro Pump wasn't especially powerful, the sheer volume should've been more than enough to knock someone back.

But if Wake had looked more carefully, he would've noticed that with every step Cacturne took, countless barbs instantly grew beneath its feet, hooking into the platform to prevent itself from being pushed back.

While it didn't have the healing benefits of Ingrain, it was far more flexible and didn't interfere with its next actions.

Hydro Pump could only last so long. Meanwhile, Cacturne looked energized in the waves. Thanks to Water Absorb, the Hydro Pump didn't hurt it at all.

At that moment, Gyarados was caught in that brief window between expending power and regaining new momentum. It could only watch helplessly as Cacturne raised its sandbag-sized fist and slammed it down hard.

Electric sparks flew, Thunder Punch's current quickly surged through Gyarados's body. Being a Flying/Water type, it could only scream in pain.

"Gyarados, hang in there! Use Flamethrower!"

Gyarados barely endured the Thunder Punch; mainly because Cacturne's attack had been weakened earlier by Intimidate.

And now, Wake seemed to suspect that Cacturne wasn't weak to Water, so he had Gyarados use its hidden ace move: Flamethrower.

A cactus that's immune to water and fire too?

"Cacturne, charge in, Thunder Punch."

"Huh?"

Wake's eyes widened again, unable to believe what he'd just heard.

But the truth was, Cacturne was already close to Gyarados. The Flamethrower landed, but within a second, Thunder Punch struck again.

"Gyarados has lost the ability to battle. Cacturne wins! Gym Leader, please send out your next Pokémon!" the referee announced with great enthusiasm, thrilled he finally got to say his line.

'Wait no… this is supposed to be my line! Why am I so excited?!'

Wake took a deep breath. Although he'd long heard of Sato the Dark King's reputation, actually facing him now filled him with a crushing sense of defeat.

'I can't win…'

"Gym Leader, please send out your next Pokémon!" the referee seized the opportunity to remind him again. He didn't care if Wake had lost his fighting spirit, he was going to reclaim his screen time.

"Huuh… Floatzel, go! You've gotta win this one!"

Wake exhaled heavily and shot a glare at the referee who kept siding with the opponent. 'Someday, I'm replacing this guy.'

A Floatzel much larger than normal appeared on the field. Judging from the calmness in its eyes, it was clearly a battle-hardened veteran.

"Battle start!" The referee didn't miss a single line that belonged to him.

"Floatzel, Aqua Jet!"

"Cacturne, Swords Dance."

Both sides gave commands at the same time. Floatzel reacted with lightning speed and in the blink of an eye crashed into Cacturne.

Cacturne crossed its arms and began spinning in place, not only blocking its weakness but also absorbing a large amount of water from the Aqua Jet, converting it into stamina.

'Still haven't learned, huh? My Cacturne's not afraid of Water-type moves.'

Sato shook his head helplessly as he waited for Cacturne to finish using Swords Dance and raise its attack power.

"Floatzel, NOOOOW! Use Ice Fang!"

The moment Swords Dance completed, Wake gave another command, trying to strike right at the timing gap to defeat Cacturne.

Unfortunately for him, Cacturne was no rookie either. Without needing a command from Sato, it instinctively used its core move, Drain Punch.

Drain Punch and Ice Fang clashed. But after using Swords Dance, Cacturne clearly had the advantage. It shattered the Ice Fang attack with overwhelming force, and its Drain Punch slammed hard into Floatzel's right cheek.

In that instant, Floatzel felt its energy drain away entirely, it couldn't use even a bit of strength.

With Water Absorb and Drain Punch, Cacturne directly stole nearly half of Floatzel's stamina/energy, fully recovering from the Flamethrower hit it had taken earlier.

And more importantly… Drain Punch hurt. Combined with the damage, Floatzel was nearly taken out in one move, just like Gyarados before it.

"AAAAH! Floatzel, into the water!" Wake was unwilling, but could only have it retreat for now.

Otherwise, one more hit from Cacturne and Floatzel would follow Gyarados's fate.

Splash~

Floatzel dove into the water. With its target gone, Cacturne had nothing to strike and could only stand quietly on the platform, staying alert.

Seeing this, Sato didn't even worry about the opponent pulling off some comeback. He simply commanded Cacturne to use Swords Dance again.

…Clearly taunting Wake.

Cacturne could already one-shot Floatzel, yet it was still boosting its attack now. It obviously didn't even see Floatzel as a threat anymore and was preparing to crush the next Pokémon.

"Zel!"

A sudden Ice Beam shot up from the water and hit Cacturne squarely in the back. Floatzel clearly hadn't given up and was launching another surprise attack.

"Nice! Keep it up, Ice Beam again! FREEZE CACTURNE SOLID!" Seeing Floatzel find a path to counterattack, Wake was fired up and shouted another order.

"Cacturne, Thunder Punch the water surface."

"Turne!"

Taking two Ice Beams in quick succession, Floatzel's speed underwater really was incredible.

Following Sato's command without hesitation, Cacturne's hands surged with electricity as it smashed both Thunder Punches down into the water.

Electricity exploded in every direction. Underwater, Floatzel had no chance to dodge. Even though it avoided the fists themselves, it couldn't escape the electricity, which was the real threat.

As Cacturne was preparing to unleash more Thunder Punches, Floatzel -already barely holding on- floated to the surface, eyes swirling and completely out.

"Floatzel has lost the ability to battle. Cacturne wins! Gym Leader, please send out your next Pokémon!"

0:2!

Cacturne had taken down both Wake's Gyarados and Floatzel in a row. With Water Absorb and Drain Punch's healing effects, it still had plenty of stamina left!