Bruno was seriously pondering a very important question: just what Pokémon did he have left that could beat this Hatterene?
Three against one, and every single one of his Pokémon had been injured and forced to retreat. Bruno honestly felt like this thing was cursed.
Even Lucario, who had a type advantage, couldn't beat it—how was he supposed to keep fighting?
With both Psychic Terrain and Trick Room on the field, and Hatterene using cursed moves like Pain Split... it was a nightmare.
He worked so hard to deal heavy damage, only for one Pain Split to reset everything back to square one.
If he weren't so mentally strong, Bruno felt like he'd have lost his cool already.
"Hitmonlee!"
After some hesitation, he sent out his fourth Poké Ball.
With a flash of white light, a nimble Hitmonlee landed lightly on the field with a quick bounce—but the next moment, his motion noticeably slowed.
Trick Room had taken effect.
"The Kicking Fiend, huh."
Asha stared at the humanoid, headless Hitmonlee. Among the public, this was probably one of Bruno's most iconic Fighting-types.
In Kanto, Hitmonlee was known as the "Kicking Fiend," thanks to its extendable legs capable of delivering any kind of kick.
'Beep~ Hitmonlee, Fighting-type, Kicking Pokémon
Ability: Reckless
Moves: Low Sweep, High Jump Kick, Reversal, Blaze Kick, Mega Kick, Feint, Brick Break…
Description: Possesses incredible balance, able to deliver continuous kicks from any position.'
So many kicking moves!
"Hitmonlee, huh. Looks like he's going for an all-kick strategy," Dylan assessed with a glance.
"Hatterene, Expanding Force."
His tone was calm and serene.
Hitmonlee was nothing like Steelix or Lucario—it had no resistance to Psychic at all.
Hatterene instantly dashed toward Hitmonlee. Under Trick Room, she was lightning fast.
"Blaze Kick!"
Hitmonlee flicked his right leg twice to loosen up, then suddenly spun around.
Whoosh!!
His blazing leg shot out like a spring, tearing through the air—fast as lightning—straight toward Hatterene.
A Fire-type Blaze Kick!
Hatterene was quadruple-resistant to Fighting moves, so of course Bruno wouldn't use those.
The flames reflected in Hatterene's eyes as she narrowed her gaze and raised her claw.
Colorful ripples shimmered—the Psychic-type move Expanding Force!
Boom~!
The Blaze Kick smashed into the expanding psychic waves. Flames exploded violently, scorching everything in front of Hatterene.
But as Expanding Force erupted outward, Hitmonlee retracted his leg and twisted lightly on the ground—his foot stung.
As the energy dispersed, Hatterene narrowed her eyes at him.
There had been at least seven or eight meters between them, and yet he'd managed to stretch his leg that far, that fast?
"Such fast legs!"
The tall girl was visibly surprised.
"No doubt. Hitmonlee's legs can extend and retract, but I've never seen one faster or more powerful than Bruno's."
The birdkeeper agreed.
"Good thing Dylan's Hatterene reacted fast. That sudden Blaze Kick—most Pokémon wouldn't have dodged it."
"I have a feeling this Hitmonlee might be more dangerous than the last three combined," the psychic trainer muttered, brows furrowed.
With his spring-loaded legs, Hitmonlee didn't even need to approach to land attacks.
And because of the spring mechanism, his kicks weren't slowed down by Trick Room at all.
"Hatterene, Psychic!"
Dylan gave it some thought. Even with Trick Room active, it wouldn't be easy for Hatterene to get close.
Hatterene's eyes lit up with deep blue energy. A powerful psychic force enveloped Hitmonlee, lifting him off the ground.
Such a strong Psychic?
Bruno frowned. His Hitmonlee was no slouch—if even he couldn't shake off the control, that said a lot.
"Mega Kick!"
If you can't break free, then attack!
Hitmonlee stopped struggling. His right foot glowed white as it shot toward Hatterene.
A powerful Normal-type Mega Kick!
Hatterene dodged—not backward, but forward—sending out more psychic ripples.
Psychic-type Expanding Force!
Boom!
The Mega Kick slammed into where Hatterene had just stood, shaking the ground.
Psychic was lifted, but Hitmonlee didn't fall—instead, using the recoil from Mega Kick, he spun mid-air.
"Poison Jab!"
His left foot glowed a sinister purple like a blade, stretching out at high speed.
A Poison-type Poison Jab!
At the same time, Hatterene's Expanding Force launched at him. The two attacks crossed paths midair.
BOOM!
Poison Jab crashed into Hatterene's chest—she let out a piercing shriek, body flung across the ground.
The impact shattered the floor beneath her, showing just how strong that kick had been.
Being Fairy-type, Hatterene was weak to Poison—this hit was brutal!
But her Expanding Force had also landed, sending Hitmonlee flying as his legs retracted.
He crashed down, eyes full of pain. Under Psychic Terrain, Expanding Force hit like a truck.
At that moment, the spatial distortion faded—Trick Room had ended.
Which also meant—Psychic Terrain was nearly up.
"Hatterene, Expanding Force."
Dylan wanted to finish it off.
The last Expanding Force had done a lot, but not quite enough.
Hatterene lifted herself out of the crater with psychic energy, her blue eyes locking onto Hitmonlee.
Ripples of light surged—psychic waves surged toward him.
"Hitmonlee!"
Bruno roared like a beast.
Hitmonlee clenched through the pain, trying to dodge—but the Expanding Force was too fast.
BOOM!
It struck him squarely, unleashing massive psychic shockwaves and a cloud of dust.
"Too bad. If the terrain had ended first, Hitmonlee might've had a chance."
Yellow tilted her head thoughtfully.
There was no way he could tank a Psychic Terrain-boosted Expanding Force in that state—Hitmonlee was definitely done.
A shame. If he'd waited it out, Hitmonlee could've used Sucker Punch—and maybe taken Hatterene down.
"Yeah—wait!"
Leaf nodded, ready to declare the result—when a foot cloaked in purple poison shot out from the smoke.
Hatterene, already turning her back to return to Dylan's side, hadn't even noticed.
Only when the tearing wind reached her ears did she react.
She turned—
WHAM!
Hatterene's body was launched by the surprise Poison Jab, tumbling across the ground.
The smoke cleared—revealing a gasping, battered Hitmonlee still standing.
"What the—?!"
"No way! Not even Protect would've been fast enough there!"
"How the hell did he survive that last hit!?"
The trio was stunned, as were the other spectators.
"Hm?" Dylan raised an eyebrow.
"Endure?"
Then he realized—of course. Judging by Hitmonlee's state, he'd used Endure.
Normal-type move: Endure. Even if you take damage, you survive with 1 HP.
"Not bad."
Dylan raised a brow and looked at Hatterene.
Sure enough, she lay unconscious on the ground—that sneak attack had hit clean, and it had clearly been Hitmonlee's final move.
"Hatterene is unable to battle. Hitmonlee wins."
Leaf stepped onto the field and declared the result. She hadn't expected that ending at all.
Bruno let out a long breath. He'd finally defeated Hatterene!!
Finally! That thing had been a nightmare!
"Well done. Get some rest."
Dylan recalled Hatterene with praise. She'd performed beautifully—he was satisfied.
"Impressive, Mr. Bruno. You actually managed to defeat my Hatterene."
"You flatter me, Champion Dylan," Bruno said, a bit embarrassed.
Yes, technically he'd won—but Hatterene had taken on four of his Pokémon, and most of them were in bad shape.
If not for that final Endure into surprise attack, she could've kept going.
"Very few can defeat my ace. No need for modesty."
Dylan smiled.
Sure, it was a bit self-aggrandizing—but no one thought he was wrong.
Because Dylan had earned the right to boast.
"Indeedee."
Dylan threw out another Poké Ball.
The support Pokémon landed and immediately activated Psychic Terrain again.
Bruno's eyes narrowed at the soft, doll-like creature.
Psychic Terrain was too impactful on Dylan's team.
From what he'd seen so far, the real problem wasn't just boosting Psychic moves—it was shutting down priority moves.
Most Psychic-types were frail up close. But with Psychic Terrain, you couldn't close the gap.
"Will he use Trick Room again?" Bruno wondered, hoping a strong Poison Jab could take this lead mon out.
After all, Hitmonchan had landed a clean hit on her before.
"Baton Pass."
But Dylan didn't give him that chance. His next Pokémon didn't need Trick Room.
Bruno decided not to have Hitmonlee boost itself. He wanted to see what Dylan's next Pokémon would be before switching.
"Gardevoir, take the field!"
Dylan tossed out his third Poké Ball.
White light flashed—an elegant, humanoid Pokémon floated gently to the ground, calm and serene as she gazed at Hitmonlee.
The audience immediately stirred.
What a beautiful Pokémon!