Venomoth and Lucario were roughly equal in strength.
As for typing, Venomoth did not seem especially impressive.
But Venomoth's Ability was Tinted Lens, which boosted the power of moves that would normally be not very effective.
The problem was that Lucario's Steel typing made it immune to Poison-type moves.
That made things a little troublesome for Koga.
But only a little troublesome.
Since they were both operating at an Elite Four level, there was no way Koga would not have some tricks up his sleeve.
"Then the third Gym challenge match officially begins now!"
The instant the referee finished speaking—
Lucario turned into a white afterimage and tore through the air!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
A string of sonic booms exploded across the battlefield. Venomoth had not even figured out what was happening before a violent impact burst across its abdomen!
The Normal-type move Extreme Speed!
From the very start of the battle, Grey had already activated his aura power and was even issuing silent commands!
"Leader Grey truly is a born ninja. Such patience is something I greatly admire."
Watching Venomoth get knocked backward, Koga's fighting spirit was completely ignited!
"Venomoth, use Bug Buzz!"
"Venooomoth—"
Venomoth's antennae rubbed against the air as the vibrations from its mouth released sound waves that stirred cyan ripples of energy through the battlefield.
Bug-type energy erupted all at once, and that high-frequency buzzing was like tens of thousands of fine needles stabbing indiscriminately across the entire field.
"Luca…"
Lucario's ears shot upright, then flattened painfully against its head.
Its body had only just finished its Extreme Speed charge when it suddenly staggered. Its extraordinary hearing had become a fatal weakness at that moment.
The sound waves resonated and amplified inside its ears, warping even its aura sensing into sharp, grating noise…
Lucario tried to steady itself, but the dizziness brought on by Bug Buzz made it difficult even to remain standing.
That sound-based attack had struck its greatest physical weakness with perfect accuracy.
"Tch."
Grey frowned slightly.
He had not expected Lucario's weakness to be exploited by Venomoth at a moment like this.
As expected of a Gym Leader at the Elite Four level. His theoretical knowledge was rock solid.
"Lucario, Dragon Pulse!"
Grey's command followed immediately.
Enduring the dizziness, Lucario crossed its paws in front of its chest to form a triangle.
Dark violet Dragon-type energy gathered in its palms and gradually condensed into the roaring phantom of a dragon's head!
"Roooar!"
With a deafening dragon cry, that savage dragon head blasted forward!
The shockwave formed by Dragon Pulse collided with Bug Buzz in midair, erupting into a massive cloud of energy and smoke!
Whoooosh…
Both sides had their vision obstructed.
And yet, not really.
After all, for Pokémon of their caliber, eyesight did not matter all that much.
"Lucario, use Extreme Speed!"
Once again, Grey ordered Lucario to close in on Venomoth.
There was a clear gap between the two sides in close combat, so naturally it was better to steer the battle toward what Lucario excelled at.
Lucario shook its head, the fur at the tips of its ears still trembling faintly.
The next second, white light flared around its body again, and it vanished from where it stood like pencil marks being erased.
Venomoth's large eyes darted frantically, but it still could not catch even the slightest trace of an afterimage.
Koga instinctively formed a hand seal and shouted, "Stun Spore!"
At that command, Venomoth's wings scattered golden Stun Spore that shrouded everything within a ten-meter radius like a sandstorm.
As for why he was not using Sleep Powder…
Koga knew that Grey's Pokémon usually carried Sleep Talk, and Lucario in particular was especially skilled at fighting while asleep.
Stun Spore was simply the better choice.
Not only did it have a chance to leave Lucario unable to act, it could also reduce Lucario's speed.
That made Koga feel that using Stun Spore was far better than Sleep Powder in this situation.
"What do we do?"
Lucario's voice rang out in Grey's mind.
It was still maintaining its Extreme Speed state, avoiding the Stun Spore so it would not inhale it and become paralyzed.
But it also could not keep using Extreme Speed forever. Sooner or later, it had to make a move.
Otherwise, Venomoth would definitely take the opportunity to keep scattering powder.
And by that point, even if Grey came up with a solution, it would be too late.
"Don't rush. Let me think…"
Grey was also thinking about how to deal with the Stun Spore.
That made him unconsciously place himself in Breloom's shoes.
Normally, Breloom would often think about what kinds of moves could deal with its Spore, and it would even have all sorts of Pokémon in the dojo help it practice different situations.
Back then, Grey had watched from the side for quite a while.
Now he mentally put himself into the same scenario.
Trying to see exactly how this situation should be handled…
In less than three seconds, Grey came up with the answer.
"Use Vacuum Wave continuously!"
Compared to moves like Rock Slide or Dragon Pulse, Lucario had even greater mastery over Vacuum Wave.
"Luca!"
Lucario understood at once. Its body, still moving like a streak of silver light under Extreme Speed, drove both palms forward again and again, each one wrapped in Fighting-type energy.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
With every thrust, it released a Vacuum Wave, blasting clear tunnels through the cloud of Stun Spore!
The instant the gusts exploded outward, Lucario accelerated sharply and slammed straight into Venomoth's abdomen!
Bang!
Lucario sent Venomoth flying backward with a direct body blow.
"Now, Psychic!"
Koga's command arrived at an unhurried pace.
Venomoth's retreating body suddenly froze in midair in a bizarre stop, its eyes bursting with dazzling blue light.
Materialized psychic waves seized the battlefield. Lucario's raised forepaw was forced back down against the ground.
The psychic pressure weighed down so heavily that its knee joints let out strained creaks, forcing it to drop to one knee.
Venomoth took the chance to beat its wings and steady itself. The scattered Stun Spore drifting through the air was actually pulled back together under Psychic's control, becoming countless yellow motes circling around Lucario!
"They're both so strong! So Leader Koga is actually this strong?"
Watching from outside the field, Ash could not help but look at Koga in a whole new light.
He had originally thought that since Charizard had been able to instantly crush Koga's Golbat, Koga probably was not all that impressive.
But it turned out that Koga's Pokémon were incredibly powerful!
"Well, of course. Leader Koga is a candidate for the Johto Elite Four. Being able to fight back and forth against Leader Grey's Lucario is what you'd normally expect."
Brock, meanwhile, looked completely unsurprised.
He understood both Koga's and Grey's strength fairly well.
These two were both Elite Four-level trainers, standing on the same tier.
And besides—
Koga was not some watered-down Elite Four-level fraud like one of Team Rocket's Four Generals. He was the real deal, a battle-hardened trainer at that level.
At that moment, on the battlefield—
Neither side gave any further commands.
What was being tested now was the trainers' battle instincts and psychological composure.
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