"Roar!"
The sound of roaring flames erupted. Under the impact of the Fire Blast, the Tangela didn't even have a chance to resist.
"Skeledirge, Heat Wave!"
Before the flames could dissipate, Gu Yuan ordered Skeledirge to attack again. The wind fanned the fire, causing the fading embers to surge and trap the Tangela within a swirling inferno that it couldn't escape. Finally, a finishing Torch Song settled the matter.
As the flames died down, Gu Yuan administered some medicine to the Tangela and continued his sweep. The forest was vast, but fortunately, Alakazam's Teleport allowed him to quickly locate the next Ace Rank Pokémon.
"Gengar, Shadow Ball!"
At the sight of a three-headed Dodrio, Gengar greeted it with a Shadow Ball. Sensing danger, the Dodrio exploded with incredible speed, dodging the projectile effortlessly before charging forward.
Furious at the ambush, the three heads began a coordinated assault. They launched a Tri Attack, flanking Gengar from multiple sides. However, Gengar vanished into a Phantom Force, easily evading the strike.
"Night Shade, Dark Pulse!"
Taking advantage of the Dodrio's momentary confusion, Gu Yuan immediately issued the command. Gengar lunged out of the rift, shrouded in dark shadows, as two bursts of Dark Pulse were fired in quick succession.
With its staggering agility, the Dodrio managed to dodge the first wave, but the experienced duo of Gu Yuan and Gengar wouldn't give it a second chance. The follow-up Dark Pulse slammed directly into its body.
"Clear the way with Shadow Ball, then find an opening for Hypnosis!"
As the Dodrio was knocked back, a flurry of Shadow Ball attacks sped toward it. It scrambled to its feet and countered with Drill Peck, narrowly managing to intercept the incoming spheres.
Seizing this opening, Gengar closed the distance. Under the influence of Hypnosis, the Dodrio's nimble movements became sluggish. Gengar began condensing dark energy into two spheres of Dark Pulse. Sensing the mortal threat from the long-charged attack, the Dodrio snapped awake, but it was too late.
The blast sent the Dodrio flying. Gengar followed up with a rapid-fire barrage of Shadow Ball that submerged the bird in explosions. Though it had shown impressive flexibility at the start, the Dodrio was unable to mount any further effective resistance and collapsed into unconsciousness.
With their overwhelming power, Ceruledge and the others began a streak of victories. Unfortunately, compared to Senior Rank Pokémon, Ace Rank wild Pokémon were relatively scarce. This was even with Ditto having broken through to the Leader Rank, meaning it wasn't competing with them for targets.
To satisfy the battle lust of the others, Gu Yuan decided to have his team take turns for the upcoming Leader Rank encounters. He wondered which wild Leader Rank Pokémon would be the first victim. At that exact moment, the Leader Rank Pokémon throughout the forest felt a collective shiver run down their spines.
"Go, Ditto! This is your first battle since reaching the Leader Rank. Give us a good show."
Ditto nodded and stepped forward excitedly. Ahead, a Leader Rank Poliwrath stood ready for battle. It had heard rumors of the disturbances in the lower-rank territories but had dismissed them as a mere trainer passing through. It never expected this human to target it—let alone send out such a small, weak-looking Pokémon, even if they were at the same level.
"Ditto, go! Alakazam, Teleport! Raichu, Thunderbolt!"
A series of commands echoed in Ditto's mind. While the Poliwrath was still posturing, Ditto transformed into Alakazam and vanished. The Poliwrath froze, but Teleport was simply too fast. Thunder rained down from above. By the time the Poliwrath reacted, it was too late.
Unable to use Water-type moves effectively, it swung a glowing white fist to block the electricity with Dynamic Punch. The heavy blow met the current, but it couldn't fully dissipate the charge, leaving the Poliwrath singed.
Before the electricity had even faded, Ditto appeared behind the Poliwrath, now transformed into Venusaur. It landed a Leech Seed perfectly, followed immediately by Frenzy Plant. Massive, thick roots erupted from the earth, lashing out at the Poliwrath.
Recovering from the shock of the lightning, the Poliwrath showed off its Fighting-type agility, weaving between the vines and countering with Dynamic Punch. However, the combined damage from the earlier Thunder and the drain of the Leech Seed began to take its toll.
Seizing the moment, three massive roots slammed into the Poliwrath. The sheer impact, combined with the elemental disadvantage, sent the Fighting-type spiraling backward. As it hit the ground, it saw a yellow silhouette appearing in its vision.
Before it could catch its breath, a pillar of lightning descended, swallowing it whole. The Leech Seed continued to drain its vitality, forcing the Poliwrath into a desperate situation. Straining to its feet, the Poliwrath locked onto Ditto—now a Pikachu—and prepared to strike, but suddenly its body went numb. Under the impact of two Thunder attacks, it had fallen into a state of paralysis.
Seeing that the Poliwrath could no longer take the initiative, Gu Yuan prepared to end the fight directly. Ditto transformed into Alakazam to close the distance, then shifted into Raichu to unleash Thunder.
Enduring the effects of paralysis, the Poliwrath tried one last Dynamic Punch. Using this opening, Ditto followed Gu Yuan's command and shifted back into Venusaur. It landed firmly on the ground as Frenzy Plant activated once more, sending roots from all directions to crush the Poliwrath while it was busy struggling against the lightning.