The next day, Rei once again brought four Pokémon along with a chubby Trainer with a big head and large ears, who seemed to be a staff member of Battle Park responsible for "battle training".
This time the four Pokémon were Torterra, Luxray, Bronzong, and Magcargo.
Kawakami Rei said, "Um, Tetsuya? I went back to check and the current Sinnoh Elite Four, indeed, specialize in Ground-, Electric-, Psychic-, and Fire-type!
However… our Battle Park does not have Fire-type Pokémon from the Sinnoh Region, so we can only use Magcargo as a substitute, sigh."
Tetsuya glanced at the four Pokémon. They looked no different from yesterday, still appearing dispirited. It seemed they could at most serve as opponents to help Piloswine practice its moves.
"…Let's just do it like this. Today we will begin battle training," Tetsuya said.
Rei continued, "Tetsuya, you should still choose an order. After all, Battle Park still needs to operate. We cannot keep all four Pokémon tied up here!"
"Let's go with Torterra, Luxray, Bronzong, and Magcargo in that order," Tetsuya said.
Naturally, Tetsuya followed the order from "easiest" to "hardest". Torterra was most heavily restrained by Ice-type, and combined with the strong Ice energy within Piloswine it would naturally be easier to deal with.
Although Luxray was strong, Piloswine also had the Ground-type, making Electric-type moves completely ineffective against it.
Bronzong and Magcargo would not be so easy to fight. Bronzong had astonishing defenses, and Steel-type Pokémon possessed extremely hard bodies, making close-range damage very terrifying.
Although Magcargo was not a Pokémon from the Sinnoh Region, as a Fire-type with the Ability Magma Armor it would not fall into Frozen status, so it could be considered the most valuable sparring partner.
"Alright, alright~!" After speaking, Kawakami Rei recalled the other three Pokémon, temporarily leaving only Torterra and the Trainer giving commands.
---◓---
In the battles against Torterra, over two consecutive days, on the Normal field, Ice field, and Rock field, Tetsuya's Piloswine easily won each time thanks to the huge advantage of its type.
The chubby Trainer on the other side was said to have once "entered" the main rounds of the League competition. However, he had probably lived too comfortably here, and his command ability had likely dropped to the level of an ordinary Trainer.
On the third day it was still Torterra, but this time it was changed to the Grass field. Both Pokémon had their movements restricted by the grass.
It had rained for the previous two days and the roof had not been opened. Today the sun was finally shining brightly. The staff also opened the roof, and warm sunlight shone onto the field.
Torterra raised its head and let out a long roar toward the sun. Its body was immediately enveloped in a harmonious white light, and its previously dispirited appearance instantly became full of vitality.
Seeing Torterra use Synthesis, Tetsuya did not stop it.
Right now, if Piloswine merely shook its body it could create Hail weather. Not only would it "overwrite" the Sunny weather, it would also cause continuous damage to Torterra. However, what he needed now was Torterra as a sparring partner.
In the first three battles Torterra had looked half-dead. Aside from firing a few Grass-type moves, it had not produced any special training effect for Piloswine at all.
"Right now Piloswine cannot come over. Torterra, use Curse!" The chubby Trainer ordered.
Torterra could naturally learn the move Curse on its own. In the following years, before the trend of Snorlax learning Curse through TM became popular, the Curse Torterra strategy had been widely used in Leagues everywhere, and many people were unable to deal with it.
Torterra was originally a Pokémon suited for standing its ground rather than charging into battle. Therefore, using Curse to increase its Attack and Defense was the wisest choice.
Even if it sacrificed its own Speed there was no real loss. At the very least, when facing most Pokémon that specialized in physical attacks it would not be at a disadvantage. Many Trainers who used Torterra adopted a defensive counterattack tactic.
Torterra let out a low roar, and then its entire body began to twitch. It was obvious that the muscles throughout its body were swelling.
"Piloswine, you can attack now. Use Freeze-Dry."
After Tetsuya spoke, Piloswine sprayed two streams of cold air toward the grass. Instantly the grass blades were covered by a thin layer of ice, and the moisture within them had completely frozen.
"Torterra, use Earthquake!"
With its Attack and Defense increased, Torterra suddenly stamped its forelegs onto the ground. The entire training room began to shake, and Piloswine, being the closest, naturally suffered the greatest damage.
This move -Earthquake- had indeed been used cleverly. If Torterra wanted to win now, the only thing it could rely on was its boosted Attack and Defense.
Piloswine endured the damage from Earthquake and launched five Icicle Spear attacks. The frozen grass that had been covered by Freeze-Dry was immediately shattered by the Icicle Spear.
Now there was no longer any obstruction from the weeds between Piloswine and Torterra, and Piloswine's attacks would become much more direct.
"Torterra, use Leech Seed!"
It seemed that this Trainer intended to carry out Torterra's tactic of standing its ground and wearing the opponent down with counterattacks. A move like Leech Seed was truly disgusting and irritating, just like a parasite attaching to one's body and continuously draining energy.
"Icy Wind, Powder Snow." Tetsuya spoke two moves in succession, creating something like a small Blizzard.
Piloswine shook its body, and instantly a cold current mixed with Powder Snow and Ice Shard swept toward Torterra. The Leech Seed that had just been launched from its back was immediately blown back by Icy Wind.
The freezing wind pierced to the bone, and the Ice Shard became even more powerful with the help of the wind. Even with the enhancement from Curse, Torterra found it difficult to endure such severe cold.
The extreme discomfort made Torterra unable to wait for its Trainer's command. It directly retracted its head into its shell and lay on the ground. In this way, Icy Wind could only strike the tree growing on the turtle shell.
Pokémon like Torterra and Venusaur, where "fauna" and "flora" coexist and support each other, would be completely unbelievable on Earth. Even in this world, researchers had only fiercely debated whether Bulbasaur was an "animal" or a "plant".
In the end it was still classified as Grass-type. Because the plant on its back was part of its body, Bulbasaur feared Fire-type moves.
However, Bulbasaur possessed its own consciousness and thoughts. The plant did not take control of its body but only played a mutually supportive role. The plant's photosynthesis could also provide recovery to Bulbasaur's body.
Meanwhile there existed another Pokémon, Parasect, whose brain had been taken over by the plant, causing it to lose consciousness.
Torterra and the Venusaur family shared the same nature. The plant on their backs was also part of their body, so even if Torterra retracted its body into its shell, the damage still existed.