Behind the Oak Research Lab, at the designated battle arena, a crowd of researchers had gathered to spectate.
On the field stood Bruno and Silas.
Silas suddenly felt a wave of nervousness.
Many of these spectators were familiar faces. Losing was inevitable—but if he lost too badly, he'd never live down the teasing.
"Alright then! Bruno versus Silas—Guidance Battle, begin! Bruno, send out your Pokémon first!"
Professor Oak cheerfully stood in the referee's spot, smiling ear to ear.
"Charge forward, Machamp!" Bruno hurled out a Poké Ball.
Silas's forehead twitched with black lines. "Senior… is that really necessary?"
"Heh-heh-heh. It's a Guidance Battle. The stronger my Machamp is, the more clearly you'll see Blaziken's weaknesses."
Bruno struck a pose identical to his Machamp, his hand resting on his belt.
The reason Silas complained was simple: Machamp was Bruno's ace—his ultimate partner, no question.
"Don't worry," Bruno reassured, "Machamp has restricted itself. Hurry up and send out Blaziken."
Silas noticed the belt around Machamp's waist—it wasn't its own Focus Sash, but instead the one usually worn by its pre-evolution, Machoke. That ant its power was heavily restricted.
"Burn it all down—Blaziken!"
Silas rubbed his face, then hurled the Poké Ball with dramatic flair.
Don't mistake him for being overly chuunibyou. Bruno had explained that shouting out spirited commands actually helped strengthen the bond and synergy between Trainer and Pokémon.
Professor Oak had agreed wholeheartedly at the ti.
Silas remained skeptical, but he was willing to give it a try.
From the crowd, Gary tugged Ash along, both boys wide-eyed with excitent. Their "cheap uncle" was about to get crushed by their Master Bruno—this was a sight they couldn't miss.
"You attack first," Bruno said, his stance unchanged, perfectly in sync with Machamp. "Otherwise, I won't be able to see your flaws."
Silas nodded, not bothering with false modesty.
"Blaziken—Swords Dance, Bulk Up, Focus Energy, Hone Claws!"
No holding back. He ordered all four stat-boosting moves Blaziken knew, one after the other.
If not for Blaziken's current limitations—unable to stack the sa move twice—Silas would've gone for a second round of buffs.
Hmm. Speed of execution is good now, he thought. The next step will be working on stacking. Without speed, stacking is useless. Swords Dance alone takes 7–8 seconds—double that and it's 15. That's even longer than the recharge lag of Hyper Beam. Any half-decent opponent would punish that window instantly.
Bruno and Machamp watched calmly.
Sotis, the gap in raw strength couldn't simply be bridged with buff moves.
Otherwise, the League's classifications of power would be aningless.
"Whew…"
After Blaziken finished its buffs, both Trainer and Pokémon exhaled deeply in sync.
"Quick Attack—then Blaze Kick!"
Silas's order was short and sharp.
Thunk!
Blaziken stomped the ground with force, launching forward like a fiery blur. As it moved, the heat in its leg grew red-hot.
Whoosh!
Flas erupted outward, heatwaves rolling across the field. Even the spectators felt it from the sidelines.
"Not bad," a monocle-wearing researcher remarked. "Fla intensity at A-. That's near Elite Four level. Impressive Blaziken."
He had his own unique thod of judging fire intensity—and his assessnts were famously accurate.
"Mm, looks like a Champion-level potential. That boy's luck is remarkable," another researcher comnted.
This was the Oak Research Lab.
If normal breeders were considered "top students," these people were "gods of study."
Ard with imnse data sets and analytical models, they could perceive details few others could.
Of course, most were theoreticians—put them in an actual battle, and results might not be so dazzling.
Very few were like Professor Oak, who had reached the peak of two—sotis even three—fields.
On the field, Blaziken's leg whipped up like a fiery lash, forming a sharp 90-degree angle as it struck down at Machamp.
"Ice Punch."
Bruno finally gave a command.
Ice crystals blood instantly over two of Machamp's hands, chilling the air.
The timing of the move felt as if it had been executed before Bruno even spoke—that was the depth of their bond.
Silas knew it was an illusion. Trainer and Pokémon synergy was simply that flawless.
Bam! Bam!
Machamp casually deflected Blaziken's flaming kick, knocking it back.
Even with STAB (Sa-Type Attack Bonus), boosted stats, a Charcoal held item, and multiple buffs stacked, Blaziken's strike barely scratched Machamp.
And Machamp wasn't even using STAB—Fighting-types didn't gain the bonus on Ice Punch. Ice was also resisted by Fire-types like Blaziken, halving the damage.
"…Wait a second," Bruno muttered.
He rubbed his head, looking at his receding hairline with a sigh. "Better let Machamp put its real belt back on."
"Huh?" Silas blinked, confused.
"Ni-kaah!"
Machamp nimbly caught its original belt from Bruno's hand.
Thud.
The Machoke belt it had been wearing hit the ground.
Only then did the spectators notice—hidden on its surface, near the buckle, a nearly invisible crack had ford.
"Your Blaziken's got so real bite, kid," Bruno admitted with a note of admiration.
He had raised his expectations for Silas and his Pokémon, but even so, sothing unexpected still happened.
"Now it's fine. Have your Blaziken unleash a relentless barrage on Machamp!"
Bruno shouted with vigor.
Silas's own fighting spirit ignited. "Grab, Double Kick, Brick Break, Low Kick, Fire Punch—!"
Command after command rang out without pause.
Blaziken didn't disappoint. This was the very combo it had been drilling since its days as a Combusken, now executed seamlessly.
Only one change had been made—instead of finishing with the weaker Normal-type Slash, Silas had swapped in the stronger Fire Punch.
Blaziken's claw raked across Machamp's forearm, then it vaulted upward, driving a kick into Machamp's shoulder.
The second kick of Double Kick followed instantly, snapping Machamp's head to the side.
Twisting mid-air, Blaziken brought its claw down like a glowing hand blade—Brick Break—slamming into Machamp's torso.
Still not finished, it crouched low, sweeping with a Low Kick, then followed imdiately by igniting both claws with fla, clenching them into fists, and launching an upward Fire Punch straight at Machamp's jaw.
"Finished already?" Bruno asked flatly—then broke into a grin. "Machamp-style hold technique!"
"Machamp!"
Machamp acted as though it hadn't felt the chain of strikes at all.
The very mont Blaziken's fiery uppercut tilted its head back, Machamp's four arms clamped down all at once.
In an instant, Blaziken was trapped in a contorted and awkward grapple.
"Seismic Toss—Hell Roll!"
With Bruno's command, Machamp twisted violently, hurling itself and Blaziken together toward the ground.
BOOM!
The impact shook the battlefield, dust exploding outward.
And this was Machamp holding back. Normally, the move required a spinning charge-up before slamming down, just like Earth's Seismic Toss required a full rotational arc. Machamp had skipped that entirely.
"Blaziken, Aura Sphere!"
Silas refused to give in.
"Good," Bruno said, his grin widening. "That's the spirit of battle! Machamp, Dynamic Punch!"
He praised Silas even as he ordered one of Machamp's strongest Fighting-type techniques—base power a solid 100.
Whirr—
From the smoke, a blue sphere spun violently in Blaziken's claw, whipping up a breeze that cleared the dust.
Now the two Pokémon stood revealed, glaring at one another.
Machamp's muscles swelled, its upper arms cocked back before both fists ca crashing forward.
Pu!
A strange crack of sound—a sonic boom.
Thud!
Blaziken's single claw thrust its glowing Aura Sphere forward to et Machamp's fist.
But it wasn't enough.
After only a second or two of resistance, the Aura Sphere shattered apart with an explosive burst.
Blaziken's eyes widened as Machamp's fists bore down, brimming with unstoppable force.
It felt certain the next heartbeat would bring its defeat.
"That's enough."
Instead of impact, only the rushing wind struck its face—sharp and cutting, as though it might slice open its skin.
Machamp grinned cheerfully, pulling its punches at the last mont, and even caught Blaziken as it stumbled from the force.
"Blaziken!"
Blaziken cried in protest. To it, a battle was ant to be fought until the very end.
"Machamp."
Machamp ignored the complaint, lumbering back to Bruno's side.
"A fine match," Bruno said, recalling Machamp with a satisfied smile. "Your Blaziken's what—barely half a year old? Remarkable. Truly remarkable!"
"We're not going to continue?" Silas asked, patting Blaziken's back as it returned to his side.
"No need. I've seen what I needed to. Co with ." Bruno turned and called to the crowd. "Alright, show's over, everyone scatter."
The researchers drifted away in small groups. The outco had been predictable, but still—it was a nice little spectacle to liven their day.
"Gary, you co too!" Bruno barked suddenly, glancing over his shoulder.
Gary froze, his attempt to slip away with Ash foiled. His face fell. "Coming, Master…"
"Your Blaziken doesn't have many problems," Bruno told Silas as they walked side by side. "I thought a rookie would be clumsy—but your combo chaining was surprisingly solid."
He was referring to Blaziken's cleanly executed attack string earlier.
"That sequence flowed naturally with Blaziken's movents. The only flaw was in your finish. Fire Punch has power, sure, but the recovery lag is long."
He clasped his hands together, mimicking motions as he explained.
"And you rely too much on raw move power. You saw Machamp's hold technique, didn't you? That wasn't a move—it was just pure martial skill.
Step by step: at the grab, Blaziken could've used footwork to slip in close, then—"
As they walked, the two discussed, demonstrating moves with their hands as though sparring in midair.
Behind them, Gary trudged along, head hanging in defeat.
...
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