Wallace recalled Swampert, hesitating over his next move. Milotic's physical defense wasn't great—if it took two hits from this absurdly strong Slaking, it probably wouldn't last.
No, that wouldn't work.
His gaze settled on the lazy, slouched Slaking, currently resting.
"Tentacruel!"
Wallace threw out his fifth Poké Ball, his final Pokémon for this Gym battle.
With a flash of white light, a blue jellyfish Pokémon appeared, its long tentacles supporting its weight.
A Water/Poison-type—Tentacruel.
As a Water-type specialist, Wallace's team performed best in aquatic arenas, and some of his strongest Pokémon needed water surfaces just to function properly.
For instance, Wailord and Luvdisc—without water, they could barely fight at all.
Compared to them, Tentacruel was at least usable on land, though far from ideal.
Honestly, reaching Champion-level using Pokémon like these was an achievement in itself.
Dylan watched, immediately guessing Wallace's plan.
"Tentacruel, use Toxic!"
Wallace wasted no time.
Tentacruel raised two tentacles, summoning a dark purple toxin before launching it at Slaking.
Still resting, Slaking didn't even try to dodge.
The poison seeped in instantly, dark energy pulsing across its fur. Purple blotches spread, and Slaking let out a pained roar.
It was badly poisoned!
"Not bad, Champion Wallace." Dylan gave an approving nod.
Yes, Slaking's Truant ability was a fatal weakness. Instead of brute force, Wallace had chosen the smarter route—status conditions like burn or poison.
Now, Slaking's clock was ticking.
"But how will you handle its next attack?"
Dylan's voice barely fell when Slaking suddenly stood, wild ferocity returning to its eyes.
"Charge in!"
Letting out a guttural snarl, Slaking lunged at Tentacruel with terrifying speed!
"Surf!" Wallace countered immediately.
With Slaking poisoned and held back by Truant, all he had to do was stall it out.
Sure, this wasn't the most "honorable" strategy, but as long as he could take down one of Dylan's Pokémon, it was worth it!
Tentacruel lifted its tentacles, gathering water energy.
Just as the tides began to surge—
"Sucker Punch!"
Slaking's eyes flashed with darkness as it vanished.
A shadow streaked behind Tentacruel.
"Tentacruel, watch out!" Wallace's eyes widened.
Too late.
A massive black-glowing fist swung down.
BOOM!
Tentacruel slammed into the floor, the rising water collapsing with it.
Even the battlefield trembled.
Though Sucker Punch wasn't super effective, Tentacruel's weak physical defense made the damage brutal—especially against Slaking's raw power.
"Protect!" Wallace reacted instantly.
Dylan, however, was quicker.
"Thunder Punch!"
Electricity crackled around Slaking's raised fist.
A violent wind surged, the punch barreling toward Tentacruel.
But just in time, a translucent shield formed around the jellyfish.
BOOM!
Thunder Punch crashed into the Protect barrier, failing to break through.
At that moment, purple energy pulsed from Slaking's body.
The second wave of Toxic damage.
As Slaking winced, its wild aura faded.
Truant kicked in again.
Yawning, Slaking flopped onto the ground once more.
"Ugh, what a waste," Lillie pouted. "If not for Truant, Slaking would've won already!"
"That's just how it is," Cynthia replied. "If Truant could be removed, Slaking wouldn't be such a rare pick."
After all, if Truant could be bred out, Slaking would be a top-tier powerhouse.
"Tentacruel, use Venoshock!"
Wallace seized the opening, giving his command.
Tentacruel raised its tentacles, unleashing a blast of toxic purple liquid straight at Slaking.
Slaking let out a pained snarl—
Because Venoshock's power doubled against poisoned targets, the attack landed hard.
Wallace's eyes sharpened.
"One more!"
This was it. He could take down Slaking!
Tentacruel fired another blast, but—
Slaking's aura changed.
Truant was over.
"Sucker Punch!"
Slaking vanished.
Tentacruel's attack missed entirely.
"Tentacruel, dodge—!" Wallace shouted, but it was useless.
A shadowy fist appeared behind Tentacruel, slamming into its head with crushing force.
BOOM!
The jellyfish's body dented inward before collapsing onto the ground.
"Protect!" Wallace called.
"Grab it!" Dylan countered.
Tentacruel struggled to lift its tentacles, attempting to shield itself—
But Slaking moved first.
Thick, powerful arms gripped several tentacles, squeezing tightly.
Then—
BOOM!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Slaking smashed Tentacruel against the ground, again and again.
The brutality of the scene left spectators in shock.
Just then, a deep purple glow flared—
The third wave of Toxic damage.
Slaking gritted its teeth, visibly wincing from the pain.
But it didn't let go.
With one final, devastating throw, Tentacruel was sent flying.
When the dust settled, Tentacruel lay motionless.
It had been beaten unconscious—just by being slammed around!
"Tentacruel is unable to battle! Slaking wins!"
Cynthia's voice rang through the battlefield.
The crowd fell into stunned silence.
Everyone stared at Slaking, breathing heavily like a war-hardened beast, their eyes filled with awe.
That was the third one.
Slaking had defeated three of Wallace's Champion-level Pokémon—back-to-back!
"This is insane! I think I'm in love with Gym Leader Dylan!"
"Oh my god, I want a Slaking now!"
"You say that, but trust me—if you actually train one, you'll lose your mind."
"Honestly, if not for Truant, I feel like this Slaking could sweep Wallace's entire team."
"When is Wallace stepping down? I think Dylan would make a great Champion for Hoenn."
The crowd buzzed with discussions. This wasn't just any battle—it was against the Champion of Hoenn, yet Wallace had already lost three Pokémon in a row.
"Milotic!"
Wallace's usually flawless face was now filled with tension as he sent out his ace once again.
He never imagined that battling a Normal-type team would push him this far. Sweat dripped down his forehead—at this point, he wasn't even thinking about winning. He just wanted to take down that Slaking and maybe defeat one more Pokémon if he was lucky.
Milotic landed gracefully, its elegant tail flicking through the air.
"Milotic, use Hydro Pump!" Wallace ordered immediately.
A brilliant column of water blasted forward, striking Slaking dead on. The sheer force sent water droplets spraying in every direction.
As the mist cleared, Slaking struggled to lift itself, but its body gave out, collapsing back onto the ground.
Fainted.
"Slaking is unable to battle! Milotic wins!" Cynthia announced.
Hah—!
In perfect sync, Wallace and half the spectators let out a collective sigh of relief.
Finally.
Wallace felt like a weight had been lifted—if he had let himself get swept by a single Slaking, who the hell would believe it?!
"Impressive, Champion Wallace. You actually managed to defeat my Slaking."
Dylan smiled as he recalled Slaking.
Wallace: "…"
Was that a compliment or an insult? He wasn't sure, but either way, he didn't want it.
He was the Champion of Hoenn, damn it!
"Well then, let's see how you handle this."
Dylan tossed out his next Poké Ball.
Wallace's expression turned serious. He had learned his lesson—none of Dylan's Pokémon were simple.
"Eevee, let's battle!"
With a flick of his wrist, Dylan released his third Pokémon.
"Bui!"
A small, fluffy Eevee landed gracefully in front of Dylan, its big round eyes brimming with determination.
"Eevee?"
Wallace frowned slightly, analyzing it.
It looked no different from a regular Eevee.
Except…
Dylan had put a baseball cap on it.
A cap-wearing Eevee?
"It doesn't seem all that special," Wallace muttered to himself.
He had seen plenty of Eevee before—while its evolved forms were powerful, Eevee itself was nothing remarkable.
It was cute, sure, but battles weren't won on appearance.
"Milotic, Hydro Pump!"
Wallace decided to test the waters.
Milotic's mouth glowed blue, charging up another massive jet of water before firing it straight at Eevee.
"Quick Attack."
Dylan's voice was calm.
Eevee's small body blurred, white streaks of light appearing behind it as it dodged the attack with ease, closing in on Milotic in an instant.
The Hydro Pump veered off-course, blasting past Eevee.
"Eevee, Bullet Seed!"
Eevee let out a sharp cry, green energy gathering around it. Suddenly, a vine sprouted from the ground, launching multiple glowing green seeds toward Milotic.
A Grass-type move?!
Wallace's eyes widened in shock.
"What the hell?!"
The seeds hit their mark, each one exploding on impact. Milotic cried out in pain, the Grass-type attack dealing heavy super-effective damage.
As the dust settled, thin green vines wrapped around Milotic's body, burrowing into its skin.
Parasitic roots.
"Leech Seed?!"
Wallace was stunned. That move wasn't part of Bullet Seed—how did this work?!
The vines began siphoning Milotic's energy, green light floating toward Eevee, restoring its health.
"Milotic, use Recover!"
Wallace forced himself to focus—Leech Seed was annoying, but it could be removed later. For now, he just had to restore Milotic's HP.
Milotic let out a soft, melodic cry, its body glowing with a healing light.
"Zippy Zap."
Wallace's brain short-circuited.
"WHAT."
Eevee leapt into the air, its body crackling with golden electricity before shooting a lightning bolt straight at Milotic.
BOOM!
The electric attack exploded on contact, forcing another agonized cry from Milotic.
Wallace felt his soul leave his body.
An Electric move too?!
Milotic wasn't heavily damaged, thanks to its high Special Defense, but—
As the sparks danced along its scales, its body suddenly froze.
Paralyzed.
Wallace's eye twitched violently.
Of course.
Of course it had a high paralysis rate.
He stood there, completely silent.
At first, he had assumed that Dylan's Smeargle was just a one-time gimmick.
Smeargle could copy any move, so it made sense that its moveset was ridiculous.
But this Eevee?
What the hell was up with this Eevee?!
Wallace had never seen these moves in his life.
Where the hell did Dylan get this thing?!
"Dylan."
Wallace took a deep breath, forcing himself to speak.
"Where. Did you get this Eevee?"
"Oh, this?"
Dylan smiled innocently.
"A friend gave it to me."