After Houndoom's [Blazing Howl], the dark clouds in the sky completely dispersed, and the sunlight shone directly down, becoming exceptionally scorching.
"Fire Blast toward the ocean." Tetsuya gave the command. He had already planned out exactly what to do. It was completely impossible to create a shocking spectacle across such a vast ocean using Fire-type moves alone.
Even causing a few ripples would already be quite an achievement, so he could only rely on the explosion from Fire Blast to create some "special effects".
Fire Blast was an explosive move. When it struck the surface of the water, it produced an explosion and sent a large spray of water into the air.
"Now, use Overheat."
Houndoom's strongest move. Water vapor instantly rose before dissipating into nothingness.
Having finished his demonstration, Tetsuya stepped back, and even Blaine could not help giving him another look.
The demonstrations on the beach all came to an end on the first day.
For a Trainer as experienced as Blaine, especially with his unparalleled knowledge of Fire-type Pokémon, merely observing their moves was enough for him to discern the basic strengths of these Pokémon. He also selected sixteen Trainers to participate in the battles on the second day.
The battles on the second day would determine four winners. Blaine had also made a general ranking of these sixteen Trainers, so naturally he would not let the two strongest, Tetsuya and Flint, encounter each other so early.
The beach field was still quite a test for Trainers.
Unlike the four standard fields used in official League battles, the beach was soft, and one's feet would sink into the sand. Speed-oriented Pokémon had difficulty making use of their advantage, nor could they exert too much force, as they could easily sink into the sand. Therefore, how to battle on a field like this was a question worth considering.
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On the second day, the beach remained closed off. Tourists could only watch from outside, while only sixteen Trainers were allowed inside this time.
Although the competition was very small, it concerned Houndoom's growth, so in Tetsuya's eyes, it was something well worth taking seriously.
Blaine had already arranged the order of the matches, and the referees were also staff from Cinnabar Gym.
Blaine watched every single battle.
The Pokémon used by Tetsuya's first opponent was Ninetales.
As soon as Ninetales step into the field, the sunlight became even more intense, shining down on its body and making it sparkle brilliantly. Its Ability was Drought, one of the core Abilities used by Sunny teams.
However, against Houndoom, which was also a Fire-type, it was not nearly as useful, especially since Houndoom's Ability was Flash Fire.
The two Fire-types stared at each other, and for a moment, there was actually a feeling that neither knew where to begin.
"Ninetales, use Quick Attack!"
The opponent did not dare rashly use a Fire-type move either and wanted to use a move like Quick Attack to break the stalemate, but what he had failed to consider was that this was a beach…
"Houndoom, don't worry. Just approach Ninetales directly and watch the sand beneath your paws."
After Tetsuya finished speaking, Houndoom began striding forward without a care, but it did not run, carefully making sure the sand did not trap its paws.
Ninetales, on the other hand, was in trouble. Quick Attack's charging speed was extremely fast, but after rushing forward only two steps, its feet became trapped in the sand. The momentum of its body sent it tumbling forward, and it had already completely lost its balance.
Houndoom happened to step forward and used Crunch to bite directly into a Ninetales's vital area, further immobilizing it.
Even more terrifyingly, the toxin contained within Houndoom's gums seeped into Ninetales's body along with Crunch!
With Houndoom restraining it like this, Ninetales had no opportunity to fight back at all. If they had been in the forest, this would have been Houndoom's way of hunting, a fight that would not end until one of them was dead.
Although the "competition" was supposed to stop before things went too far, a battle was still a battle, and accidents could happen far too easily.
That was why Tetsuya's Pokémon were all like this. Once they had restrained an opponent, they would never let the opportunity slip away!
In a battle in the wilderness, they would simply kill the opponent, while in a competition, they would make absolutely sure the opponent forfeited.
Under Houndoom's Crunch, coupled with the increasing accumulation of toxins, Ninetales was already struggling to breathe.
No matter how hoarsely its Trainer shouted, it was no use. In the end, he finally stopped shouting and forfeited the battle.
Flint's Infernape also secured a win with ease.
Most importantly, Infernape was extremely agile. It could move swiftly even across tree branches, and although this was a beach, its light-footed movements barely placed any burden on the sand beneath its feet. As a result, its speed was hardly affected at all, leaving its opponent completely overwhelmed.
Tetsuya could only secretly consider himself lucky. On a field like this, Houndoom was simply no match for Infernape. Fortunately, he would not encounter Flint this early.
The second battle was nowhere near as easy as the previous one. His opponent came from Hoenn and used Camerupt, a Pokémon adept at traveling through deserts.
"Let's do this, kid." The opponent did not even give his name. His expression was gloomy, and he did not take Tetsuya seriously at all.
Camerupt's advantage was indeed obvious. It was also a Ground-type and was highly adept at traveling across problematic terrains.
Although Ground-type moves were highly effective against Fire-types, they were also almost useless on a field like this.
Moves like Earthquake could hardly spread through the sand at all. Instead, Camerupt might even sink its big feet into the sand from exerting too much force, so those moves definitely would not be used, and Tetsuya had no reason to fear them.
Tetsuya sent out Houndoom. Houndoom looked somewhat small in front of Camerupt. On an ordinary field, Tetsuya would not have been particularly worried, but on a beach…
"Camerupt, use Rock Slide."
His opponent was no fool. A Rock-type move really was an excellent choice on a field like this, especially in a battle between Fire-type Pokémon.
"Roll aside and dodge!"
Tetsuya had no other choice. Although it did not look particularly impressive, it allowed Houndoom to perfectly avoid being struck by Rock Slide.
"Damn it… Camerupt, use Take Down!"
Although Camerupt was not fast, the beach truly was its home field. It charged across the sand with tremendous force, heading straight for Houndoom. Houndoom's movements were restricted, after all, making it very difficult to dodge.
"Use the rocks to retreat!" Tetsuya gave the command. It had been a long time since he had fought such a frustrating battle.
Houndoom could not confront Camerupt head-on. Fortunately, the rocks left behind by Rock Slide could help cushion some of the force from Camerupt's charge.
Bang!
It was the sound of Camerupt smashing through a rock…
Camerupt was heavy and cumbersome, and after smashing through one rock, it could not stop itself in time. Before charging again, it had to readjust its posture, which also greatly consumed Camerupt's stamina.
Houndoom was relatively safer. After all, there were still plenty of rocks scattered across the field. Waiting for Camerupt to smash through them one by one could delay it for quite a long time.