"How did you know my Kingdra's trait is 'Sniper'?"
After the battle ended, even though Xiaochun was a bit put off, she still chased after Natsuhiko to ask.
"I guessed."
"Guessed?" Xiaochun was a bit taken aback.
Natsuhiko shrugged, "Kingdra's usual traits are nothing more than 'Free-roaming' and 'Sniper,' and if your Kingdra's trait was 'Free-roaming,' you would have definitely used 'Rain Dance' right off the bat to take advantage of the weather. But your choice was 'Dragon Dance,' maximizing your offensive capability, making the possibility of a 'Sniper' trait the highest."
When he said he guessed, it wasn't entirely just a guess.
Kingdra also has a hidden trait called 'Dampness,' but unfortunately, 'Dampness' isn't very useful in real combat, and is more functional, so the likelihood of Xiaochun's Kingdra having the 'Sniper' trait was highest.
Besides, Togetic used 'Trick' and 'Lucky Spell' mainly for the special attack boost from 'Trick.'
After listening to Natsuhiko, Xiaochun fell into deep thought.
"You really don't need to be too fixated on 'Dragon Dance,' even though it's a good technique, it requires a high level of proficiency with Pokémon techniques. If your proficiency isn't high enough, you easily become a target, especially since your Kingdra hasn't been evolved for long, right?" Natsuhiko added.
The fact that Xiaochun's Kingdra had just evolved seemed no secret to them.
"Hmm..." Xiaochun instinctively responded.
Then quickly reacted, "Then I..."
"Lance, what would you do?" Just as Lance, who was acting as referee, came over, Natsuhiko asked with a smile.
Upon hearing, Lance was slightly taken aback but quickly gave an answer.
"Qi Gathering."
His answer coincided with Natsuhiko's, who told Xiaochun, "You see."
"Qi Gathering?"
Qi Gathering is a technique that increases a Pokémon's focus, making it easier to hit the enemy's weak points, which fits perfectly with a Kingdra with the 'Sniper' trait.
"Because using 'Qi Gathering' is undoubtedly much faster than 'Dragon Dance,' and mastering 'Qi Gathering' is much easier than 'Dragon Dance.' You could even add a 'Sharpening' move if you want."
Since it's an offensive-type Pokémon, hiding too much isn't realistic, so it's better to make the most of the 'Sniper' trait.
Of course, no matter what choice she makes, she won't be able to beat Togetic.
"Natsuhiko's initial Pokémon, Beedrill, also has the 'Sniper' trait." Lance helpfully pointed out, indicating that Natsuhiko's advice was well-founded.
After hearing this, Xiaochun fell into contemplation.
She was gradually starting to understand why her cousin so highly praised Natsuhiko.
Is Kingdra a common Pokémon?
Clearly not.
In fact, due to the 'Dragon Scale' requirement and the lack of deliberate publicity, many people don't know that Seadra can evolve into Kingdra using a 'Dragon Scale.'
However, Natsuhiko knew so much about Kingdra; his knowledge alone was beyond Xiaochun's own self-assessment.
Besides, could this be called having no battle experience?
The fact is, just because someone is good in battle doesn't mean they're great in the wild, but a Trainer strong in the wild is bound to be strong in battle.
After Xiaochun sank into contemplation, Lance looked at Natsuhiko.
Natsuhiko shut him up with one sentence.
"What you promised, half a year."
Lance's mouth twitched.
He thought he was getting a good deal at the time, but now...
Did he agree to Xiaochun's challenge just to show off to me?
Is Natsuhiko that boring?
Obviously not.
He also gained something from his battle with Xiaochun.
At least he realized one thing: if the opponent doesn't know him well, he can still crush them with some information advantage.
Xiaochun represented medium to high-level combat power in this match, and Natsuhiko had no difficulties handling it.
But if Xiaochun had a thorough understanding of his abilities and strength, the battle probably wouldn't be so easy.
This made Natsuhiko more certain about one thing.
Keep the 'tactics' hidden until the end.
"Senior Natsuhiko, shall we have a match?" Kona seemed interested.
Watching this battle made her realize that a Pokémon's power doesn't necessarily decide everything; reasonable strategies and technique combinations can often yield better results.
In terms of pure destructive power, Natsuhiko's Togetic was no match for Xiaochun's Kingdra, but it firmly had the upper hand.
"No, I realized some things and need time to reflect."
After finishing, Natsuhiko quickly ran off.
Hilona, who arrived late, watched Natsuhiko's quickly departing figure, opened her mouth, but couldn't say anything.
They all looked at each other, but this situation wasn't very surprising to them.
Only Xiaochun was somewhat puzzled.
Could Natsuhiko have learned something from the battle with her just now?
"By the way, Hilona, why did you come?" Kona asked.
It seemed that among those present, Kona could only have a chat with Hilona.
"Oh, I've encountered some issues with Pokémon training and wanted to ask Natsuhiko for advice." Hilona casually replied while gently adjusting her hair.
"Pokémon training?"
Kona nodded thoughtfully, since she also wanted to ask Natsuhiko about Cloyster.
"What kind of Pokémon?"
At this point, Lance, who hadn't had a chance to speak, found his opening.