Chapter 363: Hold Fast to Belief

Clearly, Clay was quite well known at the Battle Club. The moment he appeared, he stirred up lively discussion from the crowd.

On one side stood Sato, who had already won four consecutive battles and was just one win away from earning the challenge defense honor.

On the other stood Clay, a powerful and long-renowned Trainer.

Given the circumstances, hardly anyone placed their bets on the suddenly emerging Sato; especially since Zoroark had already consumed a good portion of its stamina and was no longer in peak condition.

Soon, Clay took the stage. Perhaps due to his specialty in Ground-type Pokémon, his entire presence exuded a solid aura.

"I may despise unfair matches, but it was your choice to initiate the challenge defense. I respect a Trainer who dares take on this route, so I will go all out!"

"Please." Sato nodded, offering no extra words and simply signaling for his opponent to send out his Pokémon.

"Go, my old partner… KROOKODILE!"

"KROOO!"

The roar echoed out even before the light had fully faded. A red-and-black striped Krookodile appeared on the battlefield.

Sato looked at Krookodile with interest. This was the only Ground/Dark dual-type Pokémon he knew. If given the chance, he'd like to raise one himself.

But if it was an opponent… Sato wasn't worried. When it came to understanding Dark-type Pokémon, he lacked nothing.

Then, Don George promptly announced the start of the match. And with Sato's very first move, nearly half of Krookodile's utility was sealed.

"Zoroark, use Imprison."

A strange red light flashed briefly over Krookodile's body. It vaguely felt like it had lost something, but couldn't quite tell what.

Clay furrowed his brow and then shouted, "Battles should be head-on… KROOKODILE, USE DRAGON CLAW!"

"Zoroark, Agility."

If Zoroark had been at full strength, Sato wouldn't have backed down. But after four intense battles, every remaining bit of Zoroark's stamina was precious.

Clay's combat style was also very direct: always going straight for the offense, never taking a detour.

But that, ironically, gave Sato a chance at victory. If his opponent had been a flexible tactician skilled at stalling and wearing down foes, winning would've been much harder.

"Krookodile, use Stone Edge!"

"Zoroark, Aerial Ace!"

Massive sharp stones crashed toward them, but Zoroark, cloaked in white light, evaded the attack, yet didn't follow through with a strike.

Krookodile's physical Attack was too high. Sato decided to continue the strategy he used against Eelektross; Zoroark began circling the battlefield, fully committing to a kiting strategy.

"Krookodile, use Bulk Up!"

"KROOO!"

Suddenly, Krookodile stopped attacking and began using stat-boosting moves instead, completely ignoring Zoroark hopping around nearby.

"One more time, Bulk Up!"

"KROO!" Krookodile roared excitedly, full of energy.

And Sato began to understand Clay's strategy: yielding initiative and using offense as defense. He wanted to be the passive responder, which gave him an unexpected advantage.

Sato pursed his lips. Krookodile had ample stamina and didn't fear drawn-out fights, but Zoroark wasn't in the same shape.

Seeing that Krookodile was about to complete its second boost, Sato had no choice but to force Zoroark to use Dark Pulse to interrupt it.

Clearly, Krookodile had trained in counter-moves. Dark Pulse didn't do much damage to the Krookodile that had just used Sand Attack.

At the same time, the initiative of the battle had shifted to Zoroark. Every time it stopped attacking, Krookodile would posture as if preparing to Bulk Up again.

Who said battles had to be fought head-on? Clay, who seemed uncompromising, had rationally reversed the offensive and defensive roles.

But a kiting strategy didn't need initiative in the first place. It relied entirely on reacting move by move.

This play by Clay caught Sato a bit off guard… but also got him fired up.

"…You really think I've got nothing left?" Sato muttered softly, then gave his command. "Zoroark, Nasty Plot."

Zoroark leapt away from Krookodile. Its eyes darkened, and its aura surged dramatically.

Nasty Plot's stat boost was far stronger than Bulk Up. For the first time, the "ever-composed" Clay frowned slightly. He clearly hadn't expected Sato to respond so shamelessly.

There was no more time to wait!

"KROOKODILE, USE EARTHQUAKE!"

"Zoroark, Protect, then use Focus Blast!"

The battlefield began to tremble violently, but it was obviously reinforced; Earthquake's effect didn't spread beyond the platform.

Meanwhile, Sato, playing it safe, had Zoroark raise a green Protect shield to block the quake with ease.

In return, he launched a pure white Focus Blast.

"Krookodile, Dragon Claw!"

A rushed Dragon Claw met the charging Focus Blast. With both Pokémon powered up, the move clash was far more intense.

But ultimately, Focus Blast under Nasty Plot was stronger, and it blasted Krookodile backward.

The key point: in all five matches so far, Zoroark had never used this Fighting-type long-range move, which directly countered Dark-types. It completely caught Clay off guard.

Unless you had overwhelming strength, blindly charging into every opponent was just being hard-headed.

'And now, I'll let you charge all you want…' "Zoroark, keep firing Focus Blast."

Focus Blast was hard to control. Its attack style naturally meant low accuracy, so it required precise direction from the Trainer.

But against Clay, Sato allowed Zoroark to fire it freely. Unless Clay abandoned his lifelong belief in aggressive offense and chose defense or evasion…

But he didn't. He stayed true to his style: unwavering even as he fell!

"Krookodile is unable to battle! Zoroark wins! Challenge defense complete!"

Sato nodded toward Clay. Sticking to a belief wasn't easy, and perhaps that was exactly why Clay could become a Gym Leader.

Clay might not have been the strongest, but he was someone worthy of some respect.

Applause rang out. It wasn't just for Sato, the victor of the challenge defense, it was for Clay as well.

"Now then, Defender Sato, do you wish to continue the challenge?" Don George's voice cut through the applause, and everyone in the crowd looked toward Sato.

"KEEP GOING! KEEP GOING!" Fanna shouted, pumping her fist… only to realize everyone around was staring at her.

'Ah… so embarrassing (★＞U＜★)!'

Sato noticed the commotion below and smiled knowingly, then looked back at Zoroark.

"Zooow~" Zoroark let out a long howl, telling Sato its answer.

"Alright then, of course, we continue the challenge!"

"OHHHH!" Cheers erupted. The crowd seemed even more excited than Sato himself, shouting and celebrating wildly.

They had just witnessed the birth of a new Defender.

…And this young Defender was about to keep breaking records.

.

.

.

150 PW= Extra chap

p@treon/Romeloff