After waiting for the ice field to fully rise into place, the referee raised his flag and called out:
Gary and Brendan both nodded firmly, each taking a Poké Ball from their belts.
"Next, Gary and Brendan will proceed with the second half of the match. This battle will continue until all Pokémon on one side are unable to battle! Both trainers are free to switch Pokémon at will."
The referee's voice echoed across the stadium.
"Now—please release your Pokémon at the same time!"
The words had barely left his mouth before the trainers acted.
"Milotic, let's go!" Brendan shouted, throwing his Poké Ball forward.
"Slaking, I choose you!" Gary called out.
Two bursts of light erupted.
"Miiilooo~!" Milotic cried, her elegant body glistening under the arena lights.
"Slaaa…king!" The enormous, hulking Slaking yawned lazily, but his eyes glinted with alertness.
[LV 46 Milotic — Elite]
[LV 50 Slaking — Champion]
"The Pokémon sent out by Gary is Slaking, while Brendan has chosen Milotic!" the announcer called.
Milotic, a Water-type Pokémon, was a surprise choice. Brendan hadn't used her in any of his earlier matches during the Ever Grande Conference. This was her debut, and the crowd was buzzing with excitement.
Despite the icy terrain, Milotic seemed completely at ease. In fact, the slippery ice could actually enhance her graceful, serpentine movements.
"Oh wow, Milotic! Brendan's luck is something else—being able to capture a Pokémon like her!" a spectator exclaimed.
Another fan frowned. "But Gary… shouldn't he play it safe and send out Gardevoir instead?"
"Can Slaking even handle this?" someone else muttered.
Many of Gary's supporters were puzzled by his choice. Slaking was rarely seen in his battles—he had only used it once during the preliminaries. Most of the audience didn't know the special traits of Gary's Slaking.
Even Brendan was taken aback, narrowing his eyes at the enormous Normal-type. Something about its demeanor reminded him of Norman's own famous Slaking from the Petalburg Gym.
"Begin!" the referee declared.
"Milotic, Water Pulse!" Brendan ordered, deciding to test Slaking right away.
"Mii~lo!" Milotic gathered a sphere of shimmering water between her coils before launching it swiftly toward Slaking.
"Power-Up Punch!" Gary countered immediately.
Slaking's eyes sharpened. He waited until the Water Pulse was just about to hit, then swung a massive fist—SMASH!—bursting the water attack into harmless spray.
Brendan's eyes narrowed. "Milotic, Hydro Pump—now!"
Milotic reared back and fired a powerful jet of water. Check latest chapters at 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭⟡𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘦⟡𝘯𝘦𝘵
"Thunderbolt!" Gary responded sharply.
"Slaa!" Slaking's body crackled with electricity before he hurled a surge of lightning forward.
"What?!" Brendan's eyes widened. His worst fear was confirmed—this Slaking could ignore the Truant ability that normally restricted its movements, just like Norman's did.
The Hydro Pump and Thunderbolt collided, but the electricity surged through the stream, racing toward Milotic.
"Miiiii—!" Milotic cried out as the shock paralyzed her muscles, forcing her to stop her attack.
"Thunder Punch!" Gary pressed on.
Slaking roared and suddenly burst into motion, gliding across the ice with surprising speed. Lightning danced around his massive fist.
"Milotic, Aqua Tail!" Brendan countered quickly.
"Miiilo!" Milotic swung her water-cloaked tail toward Slaking—
CRACK! The two attacks collided, but Milotic's tail was knocked aside. Slaking's second punch slammed into her body, delivering a jolt of electricity that left her even more numb.
"Dynamic Punch!" Gary shouted.
Slaking's fist glowed with raw power before it slammed directly into Milotic's midsection. The blow not only dealt heavy damage but also left her reeling in confusion.
"Finish it—Power-Up Punch, now!" Gary began—
But Brendan had already reacted. "Return!"
A beam of red light pulled Milotic back into her Poké Ball just as Slaking's fist swung down.
"That was close—Milotic was nearly finished!" the announcer said, his voice tense. "Not a good start for Brendan in the second half. How will he recover?"
The audience erupted into chatter.
"Am I seeing this right? Slaking's acting every turn!"
"No way… is that even allowed?"
"It's not drugs or anything—this Slaking is special."
A few knowledgeable trainers in the crowd nodded knowingly. "Yeah, Norman's Slaking at Petalburg Gym could do the same thing… looks like Gary's got one with similar training."
Brendan took a deep breath and looked over the now fully exposed ice field—Slaking had shattered most of the terrain's natural cover.
He reached for another Poké Ball. "Sceptile, I'm counting on you!"
"Scep-tile!" The green reptilian Pokémon emerged, blades on his forearms gleaming under the stadium lights.
[LV 47 Sceptile — Elite]
Gary's eyes narrowed. He respected the strength it took to raise a Pokémon like that to such a high level in under a year. Brendan was strong—possibly even beyond what Gary had expected.
"Sceptile, Double Team, then close in!" Brendan commanded.
"Scep!" In a blur of motion, more than a dozen copies of Sceptile appeared, fanning out to surround Slaking. The ice field's rocks provided extra cover, making it nearly impossible to tell which one was real.
"Bullet Seed!" Brendan followed up immediately.
"Tile! Tile! Tile!" Green seeds shot from all directions like rapid-fire bullets, bombarding Slaking.
"Spin—Flamethrower!" Gary ordered without hesitation.
Slaking planted his massive hands on the ice and flipped into a handstand. With his back braced against the ground, he spun rapidly, spewing a stream of fire from his mouth. The rotation turned the Flamethrower into a blazing barrier that burned away every incoming Bullet Seed.
"Whoa—what is that?!" Brendan exclaimed, clearly shocked.
The announcer's voice was full of excitement. "Incredible! Slaking is spinning on its hands and using Flamethrower to deflect Bullet Seed! What a creative defensive technique!"
The crowd roared with approval.
"Gary's amazing!" Max cheered from the stands.
Brock nodded. "Gary's versatility in commanding his Pokémon is impressive."
May's eyes sparkled. "That's actually a brilliant move—could even be used in a Contest performance."
Ash remained silent, watching intently, his eyes narrowing slightly.
Back on the field, the spinning wall of fire melted the ice rocks, leaving no more cover. Every single Sceptile clone was burned away, and the real Sceptile was forced to leap back to avoid the flames.
Brendan clenched his jaw. Without cover, Sceptile's usual speed-based hit-and-run tactics would be harder to execute. Going head-to-head with Slaking was risky—one clean hit could end the match for Sceptile.