After all, the two sides' Pokémon weren't of the same type.
Type advantage was very important in battle. If the Pokémon sent out later held the type advantage, it could easily defeat its opponent.
That was why the first Pokémon sent out by both sides were all fairly strong, with almost no obvious weaknesses in any area.
Both Gengar and Dragapult were that kind of Pokémon.
Once the two Pokémon entered the field, the referee immediately announced the start of the match.
"Dragapult, Shadow Ball!"
"Gengar, Shadow Ball!"
Both Pokémon were Ghost types.
And as the signature move of Ghost-type Pokémon, opening with Shadow Ball was completely reasonable.
The two Shadow Balls collided in midair and exploded.
Black smoke spread out, covering the center of the battlefield.
Neither Pokémon remained idle.
They almost simultaneously used stat-boosting moves.
"Huh? Leon actually had his Dragapult use Dragon Dance?"
Diantha, acting as the commentator, sounded somewhat surprised. "Leon rarely had his Pokémon use status moves before."
[Indeed, Leon's previous battles always gave me the impression that he just charged straight through.]
[Charged straight through? Looks like you really don't understand Leon.]
[That's true. Leon's style is very straightforward—he used his own strength to bring out his Pokémon's combat power and win battles.]
[We really hadn't seen Leon command his Pokémon to use status moves very often before.]
[Looks like Leon changed somewhat after losing once.]
[Once? Before the Masters Eight Tournament even began, Leon had already lost to Lu Ze, okay?]
[But that wasn't an official six-on-six match. It doesn't really prove anything, does it?]
[Then by that logic, the final of the previous Pokémon World Championships Masters Eight Tournament was also a Single Battle. Doesn't that mean it proves nothing too?]
[Then wouldn't Leon defeating Lance have no value at all?]
The