After being affected by Sticky Web, Matt and Shelly's two Swampert also chose the most effective move, Waterfall.
With the pouring rain, Waterfall became even more powerful. Towering waves rose from the deck, with the two Swampert riding atop their crests.
One of the Swampert opened its mouth and fired a Hydro Pump at the mast.
The mast snapped on impact, immediately depriving Ariados of its foothold. It had no choice but to use String Shot once again and prepare to move toward the canopy above.
This was something it had no choice but to do.
If Ariados went down to the deck now, it would become the primary target of the two Swampert and would undoubtedly be incapacitated before it could make it back. Using String Shot to reach the canopy also meant moving directly against the direction of Waterfall.
It certainly would not be harmed, but it had also been separated from the main battlefield. The wall of water created by Waterfall left Ariados unable to provide any further support.
Matt gave a sinister smile and waved his hand. "I'll leave that Ariados to you!"
More than twenty grunts under his command sent out their Pokémon one after another. However, more than half of them had Carvanha and Sharpedo, which could not jump onto the deck to deal with Ariados. That left around ten Crawdaunt and Corphish.
"Ariados, take this wave of experience bags for yourself."
A single stage of difference in strength between Pokémon was overwhelming. With Ariados's current strength, it had nothing to fear from these grunts, and it had plenty of time to set up its own territory.
Toxic Spikes and Sticky Web were spread out around Ariados as it waited for these grunts to surround and attack it.
Tetsuya's attention naturally remained focused on Matt and Shelly. He was under tremendous pressure now, with three Pokémon having to face their four.
Seeing the Swampert riding atop the overwhelming Waterfall as they surged toward him, Zangoose charged forward and stepped onto the Toxic Spikes. Its Toxic Boost Ability activated, its eyes turning red as heat rose from its entire body and both claws became unusually dark. A slaughter was about to begin…
Matt and Shelly also took advantage of Tetsuya focusing on the Swampert to give their two Crawdaunt Team Aqua's "special" Antidote.
However, Tetsuya paid it no mind. He had understood the poison's toxins of his own Pokémon perfectly well since his previous life.
What's more… the toxicity of these Pokémon in this life was even greater than those from his previous life!
Although the poison inflicted by his Pokémon could be cured, it was not something that could be resolved overnight. Depending on the severity of the poisoning, it could take as long as a month or as little as three to five days, and the afflicted condition would not recover at all during that period.
Therefore, even though Matt and Shelly gave the Crawdaunt Antidote, it could not restore their condition at all. There was not even the slightest improvement!
Even Steven, riding on Metagross, found this situation difficult to believe. It completely overturned his previous knowledge of Poison-type Pokémon!
Moreover, Tetsuya was directing the battle in a perfectly organized manner and was not at the slightest disadvantage even against Team Aqua's high-ranking Admins. Such situation made Steven look at him with approval.
The reason Steven could afford to watch so leisurely now was that Skarmory and Claydol had just taken down the two Pelipper. With Aggron and Mawile keeping watch, the two Sharpedo were met with a barrage of attacks the moment they surfaced, leaving them completely unable to affect the battle on the deck.
Skarmory and Claydol tried to go help, but Tetsuya stopped them. A battle like this was not something that came along casually. The experience gained from this one fight might be more than they could gain in an entire year.
Moreover, this was the first time since "completing" his Poison-type team that he had encountered opponents this strong, so he certainly would not let anyone else interfere casually.
Steven nodded. By now, he no longer had the slightest doubt about Tetsuya's capacities and was more interested in seeing how he battled.
Matt and Shelly, on the other hand, already had beads of sweat rolling down their faces. Tetsuya being this strong had been completely beyond their expectations, resulting in their current disadvantageous situation.
Two of Steven's Pokémon were already free to act, and the moment they joined the battle, Team Aqua would completely collapse!
Most infuriating of all, the Pokémon belonging to more than a dozen Team Aqua grunts could not even take down a single Ariados!
They had all been poisoned, and half of them had already fallen without even getting close to Ariados.
The two half-incapacitated Crawdaunt had practically become helpless prey before Drapion. Drapion's pincers clamped onto their lower jaws and swung them around, causing poison to seep into their bodies once again.
By now, the Crawdaunt had already lost all ability to battle.
Now, it seemed that only the two Swampert remained, and they were also the core of the entire team…
"Go, Swampert! Kill that kusogaki[1]¹!" Matt placed all his hopes on the Swampert, which also showed that they had the capacity.
The power of Waterfall was not something ordinary Pokémon could withstand, especially since it had just received a boost from the pouring rain. The abundance of Water-type energy by the sea had also invisibly increased Waterfall's power.
Among all of Tetsuya's Pokémon, aside from Mamoswine and Golurk striking with all its might, none could withstand a Waterfall like this head-on.
But the current Zangoose was practically a Cheat-type, with its Attack power suddenly increased by fifty percent.
However, Tetsuya's targets were two Swampert, so he needed the ridiculously powerful [Fume Cataclysm] to resist them first.
"Weezing!"
Tetsuya called out. The four-headed Weezing looked as though it would fall asleep if it still was not allowed to make a move, but as a Pokémon experienced in countless battles, one glance at the situation was enough for it to know what to do.
Without waiting for Tetsuya to say more, Weezing saw the surging Waterfall and had already begun releasing gas.
Weezing could now use this move without the slightest delay. Icy Wind immediately swept the Poison Gas toward the incoming Waterfall, with Fire Blast and Flamethrower following closely behind.
Boooooom!
…Bang!
Two deafening explosions rang out in succession. The blasts nearly overturned the huge ship, while towering waves once again surged across the surface of the sea.
Steven on Metagross and Tetsuya on Golurk both had no choice but to temporarily ascend to avoid the residual shock waves from the explosions.
"That's incredibly powerful… I didn't expect you to be this strong." Steven could not suppress his praise.
"I'm still behind you," Tetsuya said objectively.
By now, more than half the power of the two Swampert's Waterfall had been stripped away. Zangoose charged straight in, easily tearing through the water with Slash and knocking both Swampert out of it.
Although they no longer had the power of Waterfall behind them, the strength of the two Swampert still could not be underestimated…
---◓---
Could not be underestimated!?
That was merely wishful thinking on Matt and Shelly's part.
The current Zangoose was practically cheating… cheating!
Close Combat left the two Swampert completely unable to fight back, and in no time at all, they were brutally sent flying, covered in injuries and completely unconscious.
Ariados now returned safely to the deck. Although those grunts's Pokémon were not weak, nearly all of them had been poisoned and were completely incapable of continuing to battle.
"This…"
•.
•.
¹. Damn brat
[1] damn brat