With Quick Attack boosting them, both Pokémon sped up dramatically, nearly becoming blurs. After briefly crossing paths, they separated again.
Since they had used the same move, neither gained an advantage this time. Both came away empty-handed, wasting their stamina.
Still, Quick Attack had also changed their positions, bringing the two Pokémon a little closer together.
That finally gave Riolu a chance to fight back.
Taking long strides, he charged up to Froakie, swinging his canine paws again and again. But thanks to Froakie's outstanding jumping ability, he never managed to land a hit.
Of course, Froakie's attacks failed to hit Riolu as well.
For a time, they seemed locked in a stalemate.
In terms of strength, one was a wild Pokémon, while the other had only been caught a few days ago. Froakie and Riolu were essentially evenly matched, with neither much stronger than the other.
But again, a Pokémon commanded by a Trainer was fighting two against one when facing a wild Pokémon like this. Unless they made a major mistake or there was an obvious gap in strength, they would almost never lose.
After the two Pokémon exchanged several rounds of attacks, Xia You seized a perfect opportunity and ordered Froakie to use Lick. His long tongue struck Riolu's back, staggering him like a punch and paralyzing him outright, securing victory.
It was not that Riolu did not want to resist. The moves he knew simply looked slow and predictable to Xia You, presenting no difficulty whatsoever!
It really was a crushing mismatch.
Under such circumstances, how could he possibly have a chance?
With his speed greatly reduced, Riolu was knocked down by Froakie's Pound. Before he could get up, Froakie followed with a close-range Water Gun, leaving him completely unable to battle.
Although he had been