"Okay...let's get match two underway. We've randomized the battles. And next is...Cheetah and Jexi vs Richard and Kaguya!" Leon said.
"Well, looks like it's a match against the founder of the Hero Alliance, eh…?" Richard remarked, as the two pairs faced each other on the centre of the field. "I'd be fairly honoured to have a Pokémon battle with you."
"Same here. But don't go too hard. This is my first Pokémon battle after all." Jexi said.
"Trust in your Pokémon, that's the best advice I got." Richard responded back. "That's how I fight my Pokémon battles."
"What Richard said about being honoured to have a match with you, I feel the same." Kaguya responded back. "I suppose that this is the first meeting with you heroes, and I got to say, I've seen quite a lot that impressed me. No wonder Richard speaks quite highly of you all."
"Thanks. Let's do this, Cheetah." Jexi said.
"Of course. I'll give this the best I've got." Cheetah said.
"Trainers...let out your first Pokémon!" the ref called out.
"Let's go, Leafeon!" Jexi called out, sending out Leafeon.
"I'll start this simple. Go, Zoey!" Richard shouted, as he cast out his Pokéball, calling out his Zorua.
"Alright, here goes… Max!" Kaguya remarked, as she tossed her Pokéball out, as the Charizard showed himself, before letting out a determined roar, ready for battle.
"I'll start this off with Walrein!" Cheetah said, sending out Walrein.
"Let the battle begin!" the ref called out.
"Okay Leafeon! Use Sunny Day!" Jexi said as the sunlight grew more intense.
"That sounds like a bad move. But just to be on the safe side… Start with Rollout!" Cheetah said as Walrein started rolling towards Max.
"Max, try to block that attack!" Kaguya ordered, as the Charizard immediately stood his ground, before the attack made full contact with him, although it only pushed him back a little, slightly winding him. "Good job!"
"Alright, so this calls for some quick work." Richard remarked. "Zoey, go for Night Daze on Walrein, rough it up a little!"
Zoey immediately readied herself, as a dark halo emanated from her, as it made contact with Walrein, dealing some damage.
"Right, if I remember clearly, Max should have a good move to take out the Leafeon, sorry, but I have to do some damage here! Max, Flamethrower on Leafeon!" Kaguya declared, as Max sucked his breath, before unleashing a large stream of flame towards Leafeon.
"Dodge and then use Copycat." Jexi smiled as Leafeon jumped before using a Flamethrower of its own on Zoey, as Zoey was taken by surprise long enough for the attack to connect, although not to its fullest extent.
Walrein, however, kept going at Max.
"Wait, why does Walrein keep going at Max?" Arctozolt asked.
"Because Rollout is a continuous move. It'll keep going until it misses, and Rollout doubles in power with each subsequent hit." David said.
"And that means that things aren't going to get better if Walrein racks up hits on Max…" Sanae remarked, seeing Richard's worried expression.
"Looks like this is not going to end well if I don't switch up the play here…" Richard remarked. "Alright, Zoey, Hone Claws!"
Zoey immediately flexed her paws, as she seemed to be powering up herself, with her attacks about to hurt more.
"If you're going to go rough with Max, then let him have his turn with you!" Kaguya declared. "Max, Submission on Walrein, make him feel the force!"
Max smirked on his snout, before he then rushed forward and slammed Walrein onto the ground with great force, before he then retreated back, as the Fighting-type move managed to deal considerable damage.
"Now is the time. Use Leaf Blade!" Jexi called out as Leafeon moved on Zoey, striking a quick critical hit, as the Zorua was knocked back.
"Allow me to finish it up. As Ishihara would say… Surf's Up!" Cheetah said.
"Oh, you got to be-" Kaguya started, before Walrein used Surf, as the massive waves surged towards Zoey and Max. "Max, quick! Take to the air, you don't want to get hit by that!"
"Zoey, on Max, now!" Richard ordered as well, as the two Pokémon immediately took to the air, Zoey on Max. However, they couldn't seem to get high enough to dodge the attack, although Zoey managed to dodge by leaping off Max, and riding down the back of the wave, while the Charizard was sent tumbling across the water, hitting the wall of the arena, and falling back onto the ground, fairly exhausted, although he was still able to stand fighting.
"Jeez, for a first timer, you're doing well." Richard remarked with an impressed expression.
"Thanks. We've been working hard for this." Jexi said.
"And it helps that we watched a lot of other matches for reference." Cheetah said.
"Still, we're not going down without a good fight." Richard remarked. "Zoey, Fury Swipes on Leafeon! Let it know your power!"
The Zorua immediately rushed towards Leafeon, before launching a series of attacks, as it managed to score a critical hit, striking 4 times in total, enough to deal considerable damage to Leafeon.
"Max, go for a Mega Punch, and see if it'll take out Walrein!" Kaguya declared, as the Charizard rushed forward again, intent to hitting Walrein, as he was able to close the distance quickly, slamming a clawed first on the centre of Walrein's body, knocking it back a few feet from the force.
"Is it at that threshold? Hmm… I'm going to have to take a gamble on this. Brine!" Cheetah said.
Max took the attack head-on, as the full extent of it connected with him. After a while, he finally collapsed on the ground, defeated.
"You did well…" Kaguya stated, before withdrawing Max. "Alright, you're next, Shelly!"
Kaguya then sent out Shelly the Blastoise, as she was already ready for battle.
"But first, it wouldn't be fair if it wasn't a knockout for a knockout, ain't it?" Richard smirked. "Zoey, Knock Off on Leafeon!"
Zoey then immediately charged right into Leafeon, as the force was enough to knock it prone on the ground.
"Good...just what I was hoping you'd do. Use Solar Blade!" Jexi called out as Leafeon took its tail and gathered lots of solar energy before slamming it against Zoey, sending her right into the wall. As soon as Leafeon landed though, its legs felt shaky before it fell to the ground. "Nice work." he said recalling Leafeon. "Now let's give you a good work out. Go, Sylveon!" he said switching out to Sylveon.
As for Zoey, the trade of blows managed to damage her quite severely, as she was a bit wobbly on her feet, although she was still determined to fight.
"Wow...someone knows how to keep going. Let's give her a little rest. Moonblast!" Jexi said as Sylveon struck a powerful attack on Zoey, taking her down, as she was sent skidding across the ground.
"Well played." Richard admitted, returning Zoey. "You did well, Zoey. Leave the rest to us. Now then, time for some fresh blood on the battlefield! Go Zeraora!"
Richard then threw his Pokéball, as the Zeraora that Titanica helped him catch appeared, letting out a ferocious roar.
"Alright, time to give you speed! Zeraora, use Agility!" Richard ordered, as Zeraora quickly complied, as its speed increased quickly, to the point that its movements had a light blur following them.
"Alright, Shelly, time to finish off Walrein! Use Mega Kick!" Kaguya declared, as Shelly immediately hurtled towards Walrein, before smacking it back with a powerful double-kick.
"We'll have to settle on Powder Snow." Cheetah said.
"Now let's do a little set up. Use Misty Terrain!" Jexi said as a shroud of pink mist began to spread across the battlefield.
"Misty Terrain? But that's just a move that protects from status conditions and halves Dragon type moves. But, none of the Pokémon there are dragon types." Tails said.
"Hmm...this is Jexi we're talking about. He always does the unexpected. Meaning he's got something planned." Rainbow said.
"If you're thinking that I'm going to rely on status conditions to win this fight, you're dead wrong." Richard remarked. "Still, I doubt that you would do something like that, if you did so well so far…"
"Let's just say this...when things are set up right...I'll show all of you some real magic!" Jexi said smiling devilishly.
"Well then, it wouldn't be fair if I didn't try to end that play of yours then." Richard remarked back with a smirk of his own. "Zeraora, use Close Combat on Walrein!"
Zeraora immediately surged towards Walrein, before hitting it with a series of furious blows. It didn't take too long before Walrein fell to the ground.
"Cheetah...could you hold off on sending in your next Pokémon...least for a few seconds?" Jexi asked.
"I suppose." Cheetah said.
"Good...cause it's time to detonate a Fairy Bomb!" Jexi said. "Now...Misty Explosion!" he said as Sylveon surged with Fairy Type energy as it rushed across the battlefield and rammed and battered both Zeraora and Shelly. "This move normally doesn't do much damage. But when Misty Terrain is active, its attack power skyrockets."
"Huh, clever synergy there." Richard responded back with a sign of respect across his face.
"Jeez, that hit hard…" Kaguya remarked, seeing that Shelly took a while to recover herself. "Looks like we didn't check the situation thoroughly enough."
"Most people would overlook such a thing. I told Cheetah to hold back cause Sylveon would attack everything, including a battling partner. But...I don't escape scot free either." Jexi said as Sylveon fainted. "Cause it uses up all its energy in exchange for all that power. But that's all right. She did the best she could." he said calling her back. "Cause now...its time for us to fight side by side, my buddy!" Jexi said as running down his arm was Eevee as it took to the battlefield.
"I guess it's time to send in some backup." Cheetah said as she sent out Espeon.
"Now...let's show you what we're made of." Jexi said as Eevee ran at Shelly. "Use Buzzy Buzz!" he said as it became enveloped in electricity before ramming onto Shelly, taking her down.
"Urk, this isn't good…" Kaguya winced, as she withdrew Shelly.
"Let's wind them up with Psybeam." Cheetah said, as Espeon fired a large beam at Zeraora, the sole enemy combatant, although it managed to dodge out of the way of the beam, prolonging its presence on the field.
"Alright, let's do some damage, Zeraora!" Richard declared. "Use Plasma Fists on Espeon!"
Zeraora immediately darted forward, before then launching a barrage of electrified fists onto Espeon, as it retreated back with a final blow, its paws still sparking with electricity.
"Let's provide some backup of our own. Use Dig!" Jexi said as Eevee dug underground.
"I've only got one Pokémon left… Better make this count." Kaguya said. "Go, Vincent!"
The Venusaur arrived onto the battlefield, as he slowly readied himself, with flower and vine tentacles at the ready.
"Vincent, use Sword Dance to bolster your offence!" Kaguya ordered, as the Venusaur slowly prepped itself, as his attack grew higher than before.
"Eevee, now!" Jexi called out as Eevee stuck up from under the ground at Zeraora, dealing it the final blow, as Zeraora was hit in the gut, causing it to keel over. "So...seeing as how we've taken down Zoey and Zeraora and your three starters are with Kaguya, it's got me wondering...who's lucky number six?"
"Well, you're about to find out." Richard answered back, withdrawing Zeraora. "I'll give you a little hint, you've met him a while ago. That's big enough of a hint already. Want to take your guess?"
"A while ago?" Jexi pondered.
"Wait...is he going to…" Titanica said.
"Well, aren't you going to finish? I promise you, it's a pleasant surprise, since you'll be seeing something quite interesting." Richard answered back.
"No sense beating around the bush. It's him, isn't it?" Cheetah asked.
"I'm actually quite wounded that you wouldn't put a name to it, but I can understand your intent." Richard responded back, before picking out his last Pokéball from his waist. "That's right, it's the Kubfu that Mustard entrusted me, but like I said, here's a neat surprise."
Richard then released the Pokémon inside, as it had evolved into Urshifu, except it took a pose that seemed neither like the one that Titanica or Mustard had, as its stance seemed to be agile and precise.
"What kind of style is that? Neither Single Strike nor Rapid Strike. Wait...he left it with Meiling didn't he? Isn't she a martial artist?!" Titanica said.
"I see...you left it with your friend...and created a third style, right?" Jexi asked.
"Bingo. You see, it may have been a coincidence… But I learned that there is one thing that evolves Kubfu into Urshifu… And that's knowledge and mastery of the martial arts." Richard answered back with a nod. "When I thought back to the scrolls that granted Kubfu the ability to evolve, I racked my head around what was in them that could turn Kubfu into Urshifu. And the answer came when I saw how Meiling imparted her very arts into Kubfu herself. Mustard's scrolls served as a shortcut to power, one well-earned, I won't lie, but these are only two templates out of the possible evolutions. So Kubfu, who has spent so long learning Meiling's very style of martial arts, it evolved into a new form, one I would dub… The Precise Strike Style."
"Precise Strike style huh? With a name like that, I can pretty much tell what kind of power it has." Jexi said.
"Why don't you get a taste of it then yourself?" Richard asked back. "Urshifu, use Unerring Strike on Espeon!"
Urshifu immediately grunted in affirmation, before it then drew back its fist, as a green aura surrounded it, before it then hurtled towards Espeon, as Urshifu seemed to be moving at agile steps that prevented Espeon from dodging the attack, as it hit the smaller Pokémon, knocking it back.
"Did… Did Urshifu just move so quickly that Espeon had no chance of dodging it?" Kaguya remarked, seeing the move.
"Meaning...this Urshifu is either part Electric, or part Psychic." Jexi said. "This just got so much more exciting."
"Actually, if I were to refer to my own observations…" Richard answered back. "Considering how Meiling is draconic, he does have a Dragon sub-type. Shame that Sylveon is gone, because it would have been useful against this Urshifu. That attack that just hit, it was also of Dragon typing. It doesn't miss, short of you being literally out of his range. Every strike got to count with this Urshifu."
"A Dragon type. Now that's one heck of an exciting match." Jexi said. "However...you aren't the only one who's been changing. I was training on the Isle of Armor. Plus...I managed to score me a little souvenir from the caves there." he said, pulling back his sleeve to show a Dynamax Band.
"Looks like it's finally time, isn't it?" Cheetah asked.
"Oh yeah." Jexi said, recalling Eevee to its Pokéball as it grew larger. "Let's do it! But this isn't a Dynamax...its...a Gigantamax!" he called out tossing the ball as Eevee grew gigantic but had its fur fluffed out, making it look large and fluffy.
"Oh my, that is a lot of fluff…" Kaguya remarked with an impressed expression.
"A Gigantamax...Eevee?" David asked.
"Woot-woot! The info update train is leaving the station!" Rotomphone said. "Gigantamax energy upped the fluffiness of the fur around Eevee's neck. The fur will envelop a foe, capturing its body and captivating its mind."
"OMG! It's so cute!" Aya gushed, causing some of Spirit Force to spit-take.
"Jexi really knows how to keep himself up to date on training doesn't he?" Zephyr asked.
"So...shall we get on with a real battle?" Jexi asked.
"Let's. Let's start off with Confusion!" Cheetah said as Espeon targeted Vincent.
Vincent took the psychic attack on the chin, as he fought to keep his mind straight, managing to almost succeed, before his mind finally gave away, causing him to be confused on who's ally or enemy.
"Ack, this isn't good…" Kaguya winced. "Going to have to hope that this sticks in the right direction… Vincent, use Razor Leaf… ahead of yourself if you can…!"
Vincent managed to hear the order, as he tried to determine which side he was supposed to attack, and managed to attack in the right direction, as the razor leaves buffeted both the Gigantamaxed Eevee and Espeon, much to Kaguya's relief.
"Alright, this calls for some Gigantamaxing of my own…" Richard remarked, exposing the Power Band he acquired for himself.
"So I'm not the only one who went hunting for wishing stars." Jexi said.
"Well, let's just say that I found this off someone who was selling this kind of thing." Richard responded back. "But don't worry, this is the genuine article, I've tried it before with the others. Now then, Urshifu, time for you to Gigantamax as well!"
Richard then withdrew Urshifu, before then letting the Dynamax energy surge into the Pokéball, expanding it, before he then threw it behind him, as Urshifu grew to its Gigantamax form, as its secondary colours were a deep green, instead of blue or red.
"Rotomphone, got anything for this?" Agito asked.
"As a matter of fact, I do." Rotomphone said. "While Gigantamaxed, its attacks are so precise and strong, that a single pinpoint strike could theoretically freeze the planet on its axis."
"Damn, seriously? It could stop a planet from spinning if it really wanted to?" Akane asked.
"Heh... now that is some power." Jexi said. "Let's do this then! Eevee! G-MAX Cuddle!" he called out as Eevee jumped onto Urshifu and started cuddling it with its huge body.
"I'll handle things on the ground. Psychic Fangs!" Cheetah said.
Vincent immediately took the psychic attack, as it knocked him back slightly, although he was still able to fight.
"Vincent, Hyper Beam on Espeon!" Kaguya remarked. "Please don't back-fire… please don't back-fire…"
Vincent managed to determine where to fire fairly quickly, and before the confusion would confuse his senses more, he fired the Hyper Beam right into Espeon, with enough damage to likely take it out.
"Alright Urshifu, time for some pay-back! G-Max Dragon Strike!" Richard ordered Urshifu.
Urshifu immediately shifted its legs apart, before then drawing back its fist, as the green energy returned, before it then coalesced into an ethereal dragon head, before smashing it right into Eevee, as the blow knocked the giant Pokémon back a little.
"That was powerful...thankfully Eevee's large fluffy body acted to cushion some of that power." Jexi said.
"Not to mention that I still have one left." Cheetah said as she sent out Haxorus. "He still needs to recharge. Let's take advantage of that with Dragon Pulse."
Haxorus immediately fired its Dragon Pulse onto Vincent, as Vincent was hit by the attack, causing him to become weak, although he was still standing.
"I'll help ya finish!" Jexi said as Eevee jumped over it. "G-MAX Cuddle!" he called out as Eevee finished off Vincent with a large cuddle.
"Sorry, Richard. I'm out." Kaguya sighed, withdrawing Vincent. "I hope that you can finish this fight for the both of us."
"That's one down. But...we still have a heck of a monster ahead of us." Jexi said, looking at Urshifu.
"It's going to be tricky, but we will pull through." Cheetah said.
"2 against 1… Not going to say that I like the odds, but I'll take them on…!" Richard exclaimed. "Urshifu, Max-Knuckle on Eevee!"
Urshifu charged his power, before he launched a massive ethereal fist at Eevee, as it ruffled up the fox-like Pokémon more, while Urshifu powered up.
"Dang...not good. Won't be long before the power wears out. Then again, the same is for him. Looks like he and I can only pull off one more move before the Dynamax energy wears out." Jexi said.
"I'll try to chip off as much damage as I can." Cheetah said. "Let's go for a Dual Chop."
"Then I'll make this move count. MAX Quake!" Jexi called out as a massive column of earth erupted under Urshifu, causing moderate damage to it.
The two attacks collided with the Urshifu, as it managed to do considerable damage to it, although it was still able to stand fighting.
"One last blow, Urshifu! Take out that Eevee!" Richard shouted. "Max Knuckle!"
Urshifu immediately readied its attack, before launching a repeat attack on Eevee, as the attack seemed to be a little bit more powerful thanks to the boost of the earlier attack.
"Well, jungle cat, it's all on you now." Jexi said as an explosion came from Eevee's body as it returned to normal but fainted.
"This move is a big risk, but it's the best shot we have right now… This is it! Outrage!" Cheetah said.
The move immediately launched towards Urshifu, as it managed to tank the move, although it was at its last legs.
"Tch, down to the last move then… Fine then, give it all you got, Urshifu! Close Combat! It's all or nothing!" Richard remarked, as Urshifu immediately rushed forward before barraging Haxorus with a flurry of blows, its greatly increased attack managing to blow back Haxorus with each blow.
"Pretty impressive. But unfortunately, not good enough." Cheetah said as Haxorus went for another Outrage attack. Haxorus rushed right into Urshifu, dealing powerful blows to it before an explosion of power came from Urshifu as it collapsed.
"And that settles it! Winners of the second match are...Cheetah and Jexi!" the ref called out.
"By the skin of our teeth." Jexi sighed. "Still...he managed to get a new form of Urshifu and formulated powerful strategies to counter our moves...I think...I'd like to fight him for real some time." he smiled.
"Yes… Honestly, I didn't think we'd be able to pull it off. That new form had us on our feet the whole time." Cheetah said.
"Excellent effort Richard. Quite the show." Siege complemented. "But don't you worry, Kiana and I each have one super powered trump card in our teams. Used right, they could wipe an entire team of six. We'll show them the combined might of a universal savior and the Herrscher of the Void."