Chapter 43: Swords Dance Stacking., Finishing Punch
Was Too Hasty.
Although he had given the four little ones a small-scale boost to their support skills before the battle,
it was clearly far from enough.
Luckily, he had a backup plan; otherwise, Lucario would probably have been defeated by Blastoise without that Substitute move.
At this moment, Xia Mu had an urge to Mega Evolve Lucario.
However, he quickly suppressed the thought.
Not for any other reason than that now was not the time to reveal it.
Especially in such a public setting, if Mega Evolution were exposed, it would inevitably cause a huge uproar, and he would definitely attract the attention of many forces.
Even though Lucario's Mega Evolution already existed in the Kalos region, this was in the Kanto region.
Once targeted by local evil forces, future troubles would be endless.
Team Rocket was troublesome enough; according to Xia Mu's understanding, there was also a Pokémon poaching gang in the Kanto region.
These people didn't care who you were; they would steal even a trainer's Pokémon if it had enough value.
With his current strength, he would find it difficult to contend with higher-level beings.
[This is just a simple battle; even without Mega Evolution, I have a chance to win.] Xia Mu thought to himself.
He had many tricks up his sleeve when it came to fighting.
Those years of gaming hadn't been for nothing.
"Swords Dance!" With a command, Xia Mu seized the opportunity, having Lucario perform an Attack Boost.
A support move that increases Attack by 2 stages.
Most people might have a superficial understanding of this move, since there aren't many Pokémon that can learn Swords Dance simply by leveling up, and even fewer in the Kanto region, only Farfetch'd, Scyther, and Pinsir.
While TMs can teach many Pokémon skills, most trainers don't have the foresight to do so.
Even many elite trainers tend to choose an aggressive, offensive approach.
This is similar to the majority of early game players, including Xia Mu.
They looked down on support moves, believing they were useless and that it was better to just KO them outright.
Even if they couldn't KO, they figured they'd still have to fight a couple of times, so why not just go for it?
Early players mostly opted for brute force.
Like in last night's battles, Xia Mu encountered few trainers who effectively used support moves.
Only under his guidance did some trainers begin to understand the uses of certain moves and start imitating them, such as Agility and Protect.
Of course, Xiao Tian isn't an ordinary trainer; she definitely knows about the boost from Swords Dance, so generalizations are inappropriate.
However, knowing this doesn't change the fact that Xiao Tian's battle habits confirm that she's an offensive type.
"You have no chance to attack me again! Interrupt its Swords Dance! Blastoise, use Flash Cannon!" a sweet shout rang out. Under Xiao Tian's command, Blastoise's two anti-aircraft guns swung, gathering dazzling light. The Beam
Cannon fired, like a laser cannon, terrifying to behold.
Xia Mu gasped at the sight. He silently issued the command through Aura: 'Dodge!'
for Lucario, worried that Lucario wouldn't be able to dodge.
Fortunately, Swords Dance had already taken effect, and Lucario narrowly avoided the Flash Cannon attack.
After creating enough distance to reach a safe area, Xia Mu commanded Lucario again: "Again! Swords Dance!"
'Lucario~~!'
Lucario crossed its arms and unleashed Sword Dance once more.
Energy swords appeared out of thin air around its body, swirling and converging above its head before merging into it.
Double Sword Dance! Activated!
Seeing this, Xiao Tian, realizing Lucario's attack power had increased significantly, shouted decisively, "I won't waste any more time with you, Blastoise, use Giga Impact!"
'Kame~!' Blastoise roared, its entire body enveloped in a semi-transparent energy glow, propelling it forward like a meteorite impact, its power terrifying.
This attack made Xia Mu uneasy.
It had come after all.
There was no way to dodge it; there was no chance to stack a third Swords Dance..
"Endure!" With a shout, Xia Mu and Lucario were of one mind; they could sense each other's emotional shifts.
Lucario gritted its teeth and crossed its arms, an invisible force erupting from its body to protect itself.
Endure.
This was a move Xia Mu would absolutely not allow Lucario to use unless absolutely necessary.
Now it all comes down to the limit of this move, whether it can withstand the ultimate impact.
If it can withstand it, Blastoise will undoubtedly lose.
'BOOM!!!'
A terrifying explosion occurred on the arena.
Blastoise's massive body struck Lucario squarely.
The terrifying impact shattered the battlefield and kicked up a cloud of dust, obscuring the situation.
Although invisible to the naked eye, Xia Mu had already covered the entire arena with his Aura, so he could sense it.
"Now, Lucario, Thunder Punch!" A fierce shout rang out.
Only after confirming that Lucario had withstood the attack did Xia Mu give this command.
At this moment, Lucario was severely injured, but it still had the ability to fight.
From the dust, Lucario leaped up.
This action stunned everyone.
The two Swords Dances boosted the Attack by 4 levels. While the Thunder Punch's power was only 75 points, not particularly high, the type advantage and the two Swords Dances amplified its power, making it incredibly formidable.
"Oh no! Blastoise, quickly retreat into your shell..." Xiao Tian clearly hadn't expected Lucario to withstand this powerful attack.
Although she couldn't see it, her command was correct.
However, she overlooked one crucial point: the side effects of using Giga Impact, rendering Blastoise unable to move for a short time.
'Bang!!!'
The Thunder Punch, exceeding its limit, struck Blastoise's head.
The terrifying force shattered the ground beneath Blastoise's feet, and lightning swept over its entire body, inside and out.
'Camel~~' A painful howl escaped.
By the time Lucario used the momentum to retreat, landing with several backflips, Blastoise had already fallen backward, its eyes spiraling.
"Blastoise is unable to battle, Lucario wins!" Referee Ali declared decisively.
As a powerful Pokémon Trainer with a very good relationship with Xiao Tian, he knew perfectly well how strong Xiao Tian's Blastoise was.
Unexpectedly, it still couldn't defeat Xia Mu's Lucario.
It seemed Xia Mu had anticipated all the possibilities from the beginning, allowing him to make the most accurate judgments and commands at crucial moments, winning even without using high-level special moves, relying on ordinary skills.
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(End of Chapter)