Haunter's flowing, seamless counterattack left all three Pokémon briefly dumbfounded. They had agreed to be each other's little fools, yet it had secretly raised its IQ?
"Kuso!"
Zoroark got serious—not because of how much food it would get that night, but because of its dignity as the leader. It refused to be tricked!
Taunt!
"Jiejiejie!"
Affected by Taunt, the usually carefree Haunter was so angry its teeth itched. When it wanted to use Protect again to block the incoming Poison Sting and Rock Slide, it discovered that something invisible was interfering with its movements!
Psychic Interference!
Haunter changed moves on the fly, using its unpracticed Psychic-type move to halt the Poison Sting and Rock Slide, successfully evading them!
Smack!
"Jie?"
Just as Haunter was about to gloat, Zoroark's Dark Pulse struck it directly, making it sheepishly shut up.
Sato watched with great interest from the side. Carvanha, which had been training hard, was also drawn over, its eyes showing a trace of excitement and longing.
"Train properly, and soon you can join in too."
"Shark~"
Five minutes later, Haunter lay on the ground with its tongue hanging out, looking thoroughly played out. The three Pokémon had been shown off by its moves at the beginning, so once Zoroark and the others got serious, they naturally had to show off in return.
The result... well, it went without saying.
"A bet is a bet. Haunter's dinner will be cut in half."
"Chichichi!"
Spinarak specifically ran over to Haunter's side and mocked it as loudly as it could.
Larvitar rubbed its belly. Its dinner had been saved, but it had not landed the most hits either. It really wanted an extra serving.
"Zoroark made the most attacks, so it gets an extra serving for dinner!" Sato immediately announced the final, unsurprising result.