Johan in the Stratosphere?

I think I've fixed the recent mistakes. LMK if you find any I missed. BTW, there's a competition going on between this fic and my naruto fic. The one with the most powerstones at the end of the week, get's 10 chapters. Right now, you guys have a lot of catching up to do.

EDIT: I've checked this morning and you guys are now ahead of the naruto fic. If you keep it up you get 10 chapters when the powerstones reset.

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"Johan, please guide me!"

Candice stepped onto the battlefield, and her demeanor instantly shifted.

Both Snowpoint Gym and Candice herself were all about momentum.

Whether it was Pokémon battles, teaching, romance, or fashion—Candice believed in never losing in spirit.

"Hah! Great energy, I like it." Sitting in the spectator stands, Gardenia puffed up her chest in approval.

She, too, was someone who valued momentum.

Candice shot her a glance, pursed her lips, and then threw out her Poké Ball.

"Go, Abomasnow!"

The massive Abomasnow had a humanoid shape and was the inspiration behind some ancient "Yeti" legends. But its Grass/Ice typing made it one of the most fragile Pokémon defensively.

However, Abomasnow had one excellent trait—Snow Warning.

"Summon the blizzard, Abomasnow!" Candice shouted with force.

Whooosh—

The battle arena was quickly engulfed in whirling snow, and a fresh layer of frost began accumulating on the ground.

At the same time, Johan also threw out his own Poké Ball.

"Ku!!"

A burst of red light revealed Kubfu, who leapt into the arena, tightened its headband, and clenched its fists.

Its serious expression and towering aura were in no way inferior to Abomasnow's.

When it came to spirit, Kubfu—the self-proclaimed "chosen warrior"—was one of Johan's top-ranked Pokémon.

"Ku?"

Who are you? I do not battle nameless foes!

Kubfu pointed dramatically at Abomasnow.

"Ka?"

Abomasnow, who had just been fully revved up, visibly froze for a second. Its momentum instantly dropped by half.

Meanwhile, Gardenia suddenly looked enlightened. She grabbed Lucian's sleeve and whispered,

"When I battled Johan, was this how he broke my momentum?"

Lucian blinked, slowly processing it.

"…Was it?"

"Yes!"

Gardenia's eyes lit up.

She understood!

Back on the battlefield, Abomasnow scratched its head, at a loss for words.

After thinking for a moment, it asked back,

"Ka?"

Who… are you?

Kubfu raised its chin, snorted proudly, and declared with absolute confidence,

"Ku~ ku~!!"

Hear my name and tremble! I am the great General Kubfu!

Johan almost lost his composure.

Maybe he shouldn't have hyped up Three Kingdoms characters so much…

"Kubfu, focus on the battle."

"Ku!!"

Kubfu spread its arms, its aura growing even stronger.

Candice, who had been watching this interaction unfold, now wore a thoughtful expression.

So battles could be approached like this too…?

With the referee's signal, the match officially began!

"Abomasnow, use Ice Shard!"

"Ka—!"

Abomasnow shuddered, sending frigid ice crystals slicing through the air toward Kubfu.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

Almost instantly, frost began forming on Kubfu's fur, growing thicker by the second. It looked like it was about to be completely frozen over.

[Ice Shard: Ice-type move, always moves first!]

"Hah! Even Johan gets frozen sometimes!" Gardenia laughed.

But Johan remained completely unfazed.

"Kubfu."

"Ku!!"

In an instant, the ice encasing Kubfu shattered into pieces.

Candice's eyes widened.

"…How?"

Kubfu grinned, shaking off the frost from its fur.

Honestly—

Abomasnow's cold doesn't even compare to my beautiful Alolan Ninetales'!

After all, Ninetales hadn't just increased Johan's resistance to the cold—

It had also made all of his Pokémon more cold-resistant.

"Close Combat!"

Boom!!

Kubfu's eyes sharpened, and with a powerful stomp, it launched itself forward, kicking up a wave of snow behind it.

"Abomasnow, Aurora Veil!" Candice called out quickly.

Bzzzt—

Abomasnow rapidly swung its arms, summoning a shimmering veil of light.

"Ku!"

Kubfu smirked.

Not enough.

Bam! Bam! Bam!—

Kubfu threw punch after punch, breaking through the Aurora Veil like shattering glass.

After just a few strikes, the entire protective barrier had been destroyed.

But even so, Abomasnow had barely managed to stall Kubfu's attack.

Boom!!

Kubfu's final punch landed, sending Abomasnow skidding backward, carving deep trenches into the ice-covered ground.

Candice wasn't done yet. She saw an opening and immediately countered.

"Now, Ice Punch!"

Close Combat might be strong, but it also lowers the user's defense. This was the perfect time to counterattack.

And—Abomasnow was balanced in both Attack and Special Attack!

However…

"Counter!"

Before Candice's command even fully registered, Johan's counterattack had already been set in motion.

Crack!!

Abomasnow's freezing punch struck Kubfu's body—but instead of sending it flying, Kubfu stood firm.

Its whole body glowed with a crimson energy—

"Ku!!"

A devastating counterpunch erupted forward!

Boom!!

The massive Abomasnow was sent soaring in an arc before slamming hard into the battlefield.

Kubfu calmly pulled back its fist, adjusted its headband, and gave a respectful nod.

Not bad.

Johan smirked.

"Having momentum is great. But you need to distinguish between a real opening and a trap."

Candice blinked.

Lucian, surprisingly quick-witted for once, suddenly had a realization.

"Using Close Combat was a deliberate bait, right?" he muttered.

"If Candice's Pokémon took the bait and physically attacked, Johan could Counter. And since Abomasnow is a balanced Pokémon, it was bound to use physical moves at close range…"

This battle wasn't just about tactics.

Johan was controlling Candice's Pokémon's decisions.

It wasn't just about setting up a strategy—he was influencing the opponent's entire battle flow.

Lucian turned to Gardenia, who looked a bit shaken.

She had just fully realized something.

Johan wasn't just fighting in the battle.

He was playing at a level where he was predicting every move before it happened.

…He was in the stratosphere.

Lucian turned back to Candice.

With a serious nod, she retrieved Abomasnow's Poké Ball.

But instead of giving up, she pulled out another.

"We won't go down that easily! Go, Froslass!"

The snowstorm still raged on, and as Froslass emerged, it vanished into the blizzard.

[Snow Cloak Activated!]

Johan recalled Kubfu.

Ghost-type Froslass was too much of a counter for Fighting-types.

But Johan knew—Candice had prepared well for Snow teams.

Even so…

The Ice-type had too many weaknesses.

So, Johan sent out—

Charcadet!

Charcadet carefully handed the Pokémon Egg to Kubfu, then stepped forward into the battlefield.

"Ku!!"

Take care of it!

Johan smiled.

"Sunny Day!"

Charcadet blew a tiny flame into the air—

And in an instant, the blizzard broke apart—

Sunlight flooded the arena.

Lucian smirked.

"…That's checkmate."

Candice bit her lip.

She was completely out of options.

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Powerstones?

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