The first pair up was a boy and a girl, both around ten years old.
The boy was named Naoto, and the girl was named Matsuri. Kaixin said they were both local kids who liked playing together. She hadn't expected them to face each other in the first round.
Zongping stood between them, microphone in hand, and said:
"For the first match, Naoto will face Matsuri! Both contestants, please send out your Pokémon!"
Naoto threw his Poké Ball first.
"Go, Spearow!"
Pop!
Naoto sent out a reddish-brown bird. It wasn't very big, but the tuft of feathers on its head stood tall. At first glance, it certainly looked imposing.
Baby Ho-Oh, also known as Spearow!
Not to be outdone, Matsuri threw her own Poké Ball.
"Go, Caterpie!"
Pop!
A round, bright green Bug-type Pokémon appeared on the field, its round eyes timidly surveying its surroundings.
Baby Rayquaza, also known as Caterpie!
"Hahahahaha!"
"Caterpie! It's actually a Caterpie!"
"Was she worried Spearow might be hungry?"
The spectators burst out laughing.
"That Matsuri... even if she wanted a battle, this wasn't the way to go about it."
Kaixin shook her head.
Yushu could only call her a true expert.
Caterpie versus Spearow...
This wasn't even a question of type disadvantage anymore. This was species suppression.
It was practically on par with a certain game's absurd matchmaking system.
On the field, Spearow tilted its head at the Caterpie before it, its eyes full of confusion.
What's this? An extra snack for me?
Caterpie seemed to sense Spearow's ill-intentioned gaze. Its body stiffened slightly, and then it began wriggling backward.
Trainer, are you sure you want me to fight this? Have you misunderstood something about me?
I'm just a bug!!
Matsuri clearly hadn't understood the look in Caterpie's eyes. Waving her little fists, she shouted energetically:
"Caterpie! Go! Use String Shot!"
Caterpie: "..."
It closed its eyes in despair, then spat a thin strand of silk from its mouth.
Emperor Spearow looked at that strand of silk, a trace of impatience flashing through its eyes.
With one flap of its wings, it scattered the String Shot outright.
Caterpie was terrified.
Impossible... the gap is this huge!
Like a streak of red lightning, Spearow shot up to Caterpie in an instant.
Scared out of its wits, Caterpie shuddered all over and instinctively wriggled backward like mad.
It had never wriggled so fast in its life, retreating more than a meter in just two seconds.
Spearow's peck missed, its beak plunging into the ground and kicking up a little clump of dirt.
Huh? Pretty quick, aren't you? This little bug has some moves. It must taste amazing.
Then it gave chase again.
What followed could be called the most unbearable sight in Pokémon battle history.
A Spearow chased like mad while a Caterpie wriggled like mad, terrified of becoming an extra snack.
All Yushu could say was that baby Ho-Oh was still far too dominant in the early game.
In the end, Matsuri noticed the problem and put an end to it by recalling Caterpie into its Poké Ball.
The instant Caterpie was recalled, its whole body collapsed into a puddle.
Trainer, you finally remembered to recall me. I thought you were going to watch me die in that bird's beak.
"Caterpie is unable to battle! The winner is Naoto!"
Zongping held back his laughter as he announced the result.
At his age, he'd weathered every kind of storm. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't laugh.
Well, unless he couldn't help it.
The second match soon began.
A traveling Trainer took the field against a local middle-aged man.
The traveling Trainer sent out Beedrill, while the middle-aged man sent out Raticate.
The two Pokémon were close in strength, trading blows back and forth.
In the end, Beedrill used its speed advantage to defeat Raticate with a string of consecutive attacks.
The Trainer advanced.
Finally, it was Ritchie's turn.
Ritchie's opponent was a middle-aged man in a plaid shirt. He sent out a Mothim that looked well cared for.
[Pokémon: Mothim] [Type: Bug + Flying] [Level: early intermediate stage] [Condition: slight fatigue at the wing roots, with minor strain caused by prolonged flight training]
Yushu glanced at the data and knew where things stood.
Ritchie's Murkrow was at the mid advanced stage, and he clearly had more battle experience than this middle-aged man.
Ritchie had this one in the bag.
"Begin!"
At Zongping's command, the battle officially began.
"Mothim, use Silver Wind!"
Mothim flapped its wings, sending a silvery-white whirlwind sweeping toward Murkrow.
"Murkrow, dodge, then use Night Slash!"
Murkrow darted sideways, avoiding Silver Wind's head-on attack, then its wings lit up with black light.
"Mothim, stop it with Bug Buzz!"
Mothim emitted a burst of high-frequency sound waves. Visible rings rippled outward, heading straight toward Murkrow.
The Bug-type move's sound waves briefly slowed Murkrow's movements, interrupting the momentum of its Night Slash.
"Murkrow, fall back and use Haze!"
Murkrow opened its beak and released a thick black mist that quickly enveloped the field.
"Mothim, use Silver Wind to disperse the Haze!"
Mothim flapped its wings, and Silver Wind blew the black mist away.
But by the time the mist cleared, Murkrow was nowhere to be seen.
"What?!"
The gentleman froze for a moment.
Just then, Murkrow dove down from above Mothim.
"Night Slash!"
Black energy wreathed Murkrow's wings as they slashed hard into Mothim's back.
"Ugh!"
Mothim let out a pained cry and fell from the air.
"Mothim, pull yourself together! Use Bug Buzz!"
Mothim struggled back up, mustering its strength to release another burst of high-frequency sound waves.
"Murkrow, use Night Slash again!"
Murkrow dove again, and Night Slash struck its target precisely.
Mothim couldn't hold on any longer. Its wings went limp, and its eyes turned into spirals.
"Mothim is unable to battle! The winner is Ritchie!"
The spectators cheered.
At last, there had been a normal match.
Yushu applauded from below the stage. Ritchie was quite practiced at that sneak-attack combo.
His fighting hadn't dragged in the slightest, either. He pulled back when he needed to, without getting greedy for damage.
Next, it was his turn.
When Zongping read out Yushu's name, he paused in surprise.
He looked down at the registration form, then up at Yushu as he walked onto the stage, confirming that this was indeed the Yushu he knew.
Hadn't this kid decided not to be a Trainer?
Zongping thought that youngsters really were youngsters, unable to keep their cool and changing their minds as easily as drinking water.
Still, he said nothing. He merely smiled at Yushu and announced the start of the match.
Yushu's opponent was named Tiedou, a burly young man wearing a black leather jacket, his hair dyed a flashy red.
He looked as though he had stepped straight out of some delinquent manga.