The following day, everyone was once again gathered at the Tokyo Dome to see the tournament lineup. Sure, it was not a big event and would be over with quickly, but this was still important to everyone anyway. They did not even care if they were to come all this way just for a two minute speech regarding the lineup just as long as they knew who was facing who.

However, some people were wondering about this big thing that was covered up by a cloth in the middle of the field. Why was that there? Whatever the reason, people would soon find out.

Beedrill and Weedle once again took their seats, but this time Nori had actually joined them. As it just so happened, since the tournament was taking place in Tokyo, she had been chosen to be the main announcer for the event. They simply could not think of anyone else for the task.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Beedrill exclaimed, "boys and girls, it's time for us to decide what order the tournament matches will take place in! But what you're probably wondering is how we're going to decide on this order!"

The audience shrugged as Reika said, "I just figured they were going to make a random draw out of a hat," Keiko shaking her head and replying, "When you've actually been to a couple of these, you don't expect something so simple," Reika and her friends now even more curious as Aipom nodded, saying, "I remember Mommy telling me how everything in the Olympics is a grand-scale event, even the drawing of the names."

"Allow me to direct your attention to this big object covered by a cloth!" Beedrill exclaimed, everyone now even more curious as to what it was, the wasp adding, "This was another genius idea pitched by my dad! Now, remove the curtain!"

At that moment, a man piloting a helicopter nodded and used a hook attachment to grab the cloth and pull it off, revealing a big board with targets on it. Everyone was curious as to what this meant, but of course an explanation was not far away.

"This will decide on the order the matches will take place in," Weedle explained, "Our heroes will be launched from a giant crossbow that will randomly select a spot," everyone now in panic as Beedrill added, "Oh, but they won't actually be in any harm."

At that moment, he revealed giant arrows with clear plastic balls instead of points on the ends of them. Inside these balls were the heroes themselves, each containing one of course. However, Machoke's friends were rather worried when they noticed his ball had dents in it.

"Hey, why's mine practically broken!?" the boy spat as Weedle replied, "Oh, sorry, there must have a problem when transporting it," Machoke really hoping his ball would stay intact as the middle portion that held the top and bottom halves together was caving in.

Lucario took a deep breath as everyone felt tense. And soon enough, the first hero was set up on a giant crossbow, this hero being Scyther. The arrow was fired as it hit the fifth target to the left, the stick detaching from the ball so as not to cover the insect from view.

And this kept up with everyone else as Roserade was sent into the second target from the right, Garchomp fired into the forth. Golduck had hit the second from the left with Houndoom being shot right next to her. Hippowdon had landed next to Scyther while Lucario had been shot into the sixth target to the right.

More and more were fired until finally, it was Machoke's turn, the boy now grumbling about how he was last. However, his cursing came to an end when he was fired into the last spot, namely the forth spot to the left, his eyes widening when the two halves of his ball separated while flying, the boy crushed against the target by the end of the arrow's stick.

The others winced at the sight of this, Aipom groaning, "Weedle just can't let that grudge go, can he?" Reika and her friends turning to the monkey as she asked, "Isn't it obvious he's setting these things up?"

"And the order has been decided!" Beedrill exclaimed as Machoke groaned, sitting in his spot on the target board.

In the first match, Lopunny was set to take on Ninetales, the rabbit simply stoked to be first. Hippowdon would face Scyther in the second followed by Machoke and Barbaracle facing off in the third. Golduck was scheduled to fight Houndoom in the forth match with Gardevoir and Roserade in the fifth. Lairon and Garchomp were set to have the sixth match with Primeape and Lucario being the seventh to go up while Metang and Starmie would take the final match.

"And that's it for today!" Beedrill exclaimed, "Remember, only six more days until the tournament actually starts up, so I strongly recommend our fighters start preparing for the matches to come!" the crowd clapping before everyone left the area.

And needless to say, this was a big deal. This was the event everyone had been waiting for, the true highlight of the Hero Olympics. And because of this, people from around the world were booking flights to Tokyo so they could attend the matches in person with each group planning to root for their country's representative.

Before this, though, Machoke and the others had taken Beedrill's advice and were training really hard for the event. Even Machoke was actually putting some effort into this, though this was mostly due to his fight with Barbaracle. He looked absolutely terrifying and this made Machoke want to try extra hard to make sure he could win.

All of Machoke's friends had come over to spar in his back yard, Scyther and Blaziken going at it as Scyther said, "We may not be able to fight in an official match, but this will do for now," the chicken replying, "Yeah, but maybe someday, we can fight in a real match."

Gardevoir sparred with Gallade as usual, the brother smiling and saying, "This is great! I may not have made it, but it's awesome one of us did!" Gardevoir blocking a few strikes from him and replying, "I'll make sure to do the best I can for both of us," Gallade replying, "I wouldn't expect anything less."

Machoke was sparring with Lopunny, the rabbit saying, "Hey, if we both win our first two matches, we'll get to fight each-other!" Machoke nodding and replying, "We'd better make sure that happens, eh?" the two shaking hands and nodding.

Aipom was rather happy to see this. Machoke was taking this very seriously and that made the monkey proud. Still, both getting through the first two rounds to face each-other would be a difficult task.

Reika had stopped by to watch with her friends, Tsuya turning to the girl and asking, "Hey, Reika, do you think Gallade and that Hitmonchan lady have something going on?" Reika and Cici turning to her before pretending not to know what she was talking about when in truth, they had detected that as well.

Of course Machoke and the others were not the only ones getting ready. Everyone was preparing extra hard for the matches yet to come. After all, this was a really big deal.

Scyther and Lopunny were both training very hard with Heracross helping them out. He figured he may as well be useful if he was not going to compete in the fighting tournament.

Lucario, meanwhile, had gone off to train on his own. By this point, Amanda was a lot more understanding and as such, she was okay with him being away from her for a longer period of time. She just hoped whatever training he was doing would help him greatly.

And the six days passed by quickly as it was finally time for the fighting tournament to begin. People were all gathered at the designated location, though surprisingly, this location was not the Tokyo Dome again but rather the roof of a local shopping mall. Sure, this was a strange location, but people still came to see the event unfold nonetheless.

Beedrill and Weedle were of course standing by to judge with Nori behind the announcer's booth. The woman was beyond excited to take part in such a major event.

All the while, Lopunny was getting ready for the match when Machoke and Aipom were headed toward the roof. The rabbit spotted them and waved with a big smile on her face, Machoke noticing this and waving back.

Lopunny then ran over and exclaimed, "Thank God I ran into you!" Aipom blinking and asking, "Are you getting cold feet?" Lopunny laughing and remarking, "How could I get cold feet? They're covered in fur!"

All went silent until Machoke slapped his knee, laughing hysterically and replying, "Good one!" Aipom face-palming while thinking, 'He's a bad influence,' Lopunny then saying, "Machoke, I was hoping you could help me with my entrance," the boy grinning and replying, "You can count on me!"

Soon enough, everyone was ready as Machoke joined his friends in the bleachers, Reika saving him a seat. However, just as he was approaching, she noticed Scyther wanting to sit next to her. She was unsure why, but she actually allowed Scyther to do so.

Machoke noticed this and groaned, thinking, 'She didn't save me a seat?' before shrugging and sitting next to Scyther, the insect saying, "Hey, Machoke, here to study the competition?" the boy replying, "Well, I already know how Lopunny fights and I have no doubt she's going to win this match. I just wanna show my support for as long as I'm not fighting her."

Aipom blinked, rather relieved to see him being a good sport when Beedrill took hold of a microphone and exclaimed, "Welcome, everyone, to the first round of the Hero Olympics fighting tournament!" the crowd going wild as the fans had been divided based off of which hero they supported.

Nori then added, "Today, we are going to be showing you eight matches that are sure to be exciting! Though it is worth note that the location will change for every couple of matches, so expect to move around a lot," Machoke groaning, "And we have to get this all done in one day? Are you serious?"

Aipom shrugged and replied, "Well, according to Mommy, the location of the matches never changed before. Guess they decided to spice things up a bit."

"So without further ado," the announcer added, "it's time to introduce the fighters for the first match!" the woman then pointing toward the left entrance and saying, "In the red corner, representing India and possessing a very strong fighting spirit, having been the first one to defeat Gardevoir, Lopunny!" Gardevoir looking rather calm as Machoke asked, "That statement didn't upset you?" the girl shaking her head as she replied, "Lopunny's a friend, so I'm okay with losing to her."

With that, Lopunny entered the area sporting a fancy Indian dress, a look of sophistication on her face. Aipom's jaw dropped, her eyes wide open as she turned to Machoke. Was this the entrance he had chosen for her? Judging by the happy look on his face, it had to have been, but why now had he decided to actually give a serious entrance for a change?

All became clear soon enough when the rabbit proceeded to leap high into the air, spinning while throwing off her dress to unveil a revealing dancer's outfit, the rabbit performing of all things a snake dance. Machoke figured it would be a clever way of showing she was fearless enough to mimic a rabbit's natural predator. However, this still looked dignified enough until she threw her arms in the air, streamers shooting from a pair of golden bracelets on her wrists.

However, even for an idea of Machoke's, this was shockingly appropriate and not too far off from what someone else wanting to give the audience a show would have tried. As such, the Indian fans were absolutely thrilled by what they had seen and showered Lopunny in heavy applause.

"I gotta say, that's quite the entrance!" Nori exclaimed, Beedrill nodding and replying, "Yeah, that was really cool," Lopunny all the while thinking, 'Thanks, Machoke. I never would have come up with this.'

Soon, the applause died down as Nori exclaimed, "And in the blue corner, representing North Korea, a fox with a fiery passion for what she does. Descended from a long line of kitsunes, I would like to introduce Ninetales!" the Korean fans going wild as the nine-tailed fox ran toward the ring, leaping high into the air. She then spun vertically to form a beautiful wheel in the air, landing gracefully against the mat and striking two peace signs, a serious look on her face.

She was quite a beautiful creature to say the least. Her fur was golden white and her eyes were ruby red with no pupils. The tips of her long, elegant tails were covered in pale orange fur and the fur atop her head resembled a long ponytail blowing in the wind.

After that, Ninetales smiled at Lopunny and bowed her head before saying, "It is an honour to meet you, Miss Lopunny," the rabbit grinning and replying, "Same here!" the fox then holding out her hand as the two shared a friendly handshake, Nori stating, "It's always nice to see fighters show respect before a match."

The two then headed to their own separate sides of the ring as Beedrill rose his arm, ramming his stinger against the bell to signal the start of the match. Despite her looking rather calm after her entrance, Ninetales wasted no time rushing toward Lopunny.

The rabbit threw her ears out like fists in an attempt to stop the fox only for Ninetales to duck under them, running into the rabbit for a tackle. However, Lopunny refused to let this get her down as she held her ground, wrapping her ears around the fox.

Ninetales' eyes widened as Lopunny bounced high above the ring, flipping her downward so the fox's head was facing the mat, the rabbit binding her ankles with her ears and spinning toward the canvas, shouting, "BUNNY TORNADO!" Ninetales hitting the mat hard.

The crowd went wild as Machoke exclaimed, "YEAH, YOU GO, GIRL!" Nori exclaiming, "And already Lopunny has managed to hit Ninetales with her strongest move! Sure, it's a little early in the match, but could it already be over?"

It seemed not as Ninetales rolled around, clutching her head before getting up and taking a deep breath. As Nori had stated, it was very early in the match and Ninetales had not taken in a whole lot of pain prior to its use, so it made sense that the kitsune was still able to get up. Even so, she would need to be more careful now.

With that in mind, she once again rushed toward Lopunny, as the rabbit got on the defensive, sending her ears toward her. When she noticed Ninetales dodge once again, she reeled her ears back and stood on them, preparing to kick the fox when she got close. However, Ninetales saw this coming as she swerved to the right, sending a karate chop into Lopunny's cheek.

However, Lopunny ignored the pain and placed her feet back on the canvas before wrapping her ear around Ninetales' wrist. The kitsune's eyes widened as she tried to escape only for Lopunny to take full advantage of this, once again propelling her feet off the mat and sending them into the fox's gut.

The Indian fans were loving every second of this as Lopunny finally managed to punch Ninetales with one of her ears. However, Ninetales simply grabbed hold of the ear after it hit, attempting to pull on the rabbit. Fortunately, Lopunny managed to overcome this by sending her other ear into the kitsune's midsection, Ninetales now looking too weak to counter anything.

The Indian fans along with Lopunny's friends were beyond happy to see her perform so well. It looked like there was nothing Ninetales could possibly do to her as Nori exclaimed, "Lopunny's on fire today! She's only taken in one hit so far and it didn't seem to have done much!"

However, while the Indian fans along with Machoke and his friends continued to cheer, the Korean fans looked strangely calm. It was as if they knew something that the others did not. Did Ninetales have something planned for Lopunny?

Whatever the case, Lopunny saw this as a perfect opportunity to end the match super quick as she said, "I was hoping for more of a challenge, but I intend to win and face Machoke at some point, so I can't let this chance go!" the rabbit tucking her ears in before sending them toward Ninetales' face, shouting, "DIZZY PUNCH!"

But just as the attack was about to hit, Ninetales suddenly recovered as if all that pain dealt earlier meant nothing. It certainly did not stop there as she easily leapt over the ears, landing delicately against them, standing perfectly atop them.

"Hey, how's she doing that!?" Machoke spat, "When I tried that, I ended up being too heavy!" Aipom rubbing her chin with her tail hand and replying, "While I can tell from looking at Ninetales that she's much lighter than you, I get the impression there's more to it."

Either way, Lopunny was absolutely shocked as Ninetales sprinted across the ears, leaping up and flipping toward the rabbit, planting her feet hard into Lopunny's face. The rabbit groaned in pain before falling hard on her back, Ninetales proceeding to lift her up, turning both Lopunny and herself around so their backs were facing each-other. After that, the kitsune wrapped two of her tails around Lopunny's wrists, two more against her ankles. Two were then used to hold onto her torso, two more trapping her ears in place while the top one was wrapped around her neck.

"KITSUNE BACKBREAKER!" Ninetales exclaimed before pressing Lopunny hard against her back, applying extreme pressure to the rabbit's.

Lopunny cried out in pain as her friends stared in shock, Reika uttering, "Where did that come from?"

Scyther simply gritted her teeth, barking, "COME ON, LOPUNNY, YOU'VE DEALT WITH WORSE!" Heracross getting up from his own seat and adding, "AYE, I KNOW YOU CAN GET OUTTA THIS!"

However, neither of the two knew exactly how tough this hold was. The truth was that this was the worst submission hold Lopunny had ever dealt with. Whatever the reason for this was, Ninetales' tails had an incredible amount of strength, more so than the rest of her body.

"Did you honestly believe that you could defeat me so easily?" Ninetales asked, "That I was really just a simple opponent for you to show off your abilities on? Trust me, all that damage you dealt to me earlier was not you."

The Korean fans were smiling. They were not cheering, just smiling. It was as if they knew this was coming. All the while, everyone else was wondering what Ninetales meant.

"Wait, are you saying you let me hit you?" Lopunny grunted as Ninetales nodded, replying, "Yes, I was merely studying your technique. You definitely possess a strong spirit, but your abilities are nothing special. Once they're seen in action, it's very easy to figure them out. In other words, you lack variety."

Lopunny's eyes widened as tears rolled down her cheeks. All this time, she truly believed that she was worthy to fight alongside Heracross and Scyther, but now she was unsure of this. After all, she had taken the longest to find her fighting spirit and ultimately needed Scyther's help to shape her into a descent fighter. Sure, she had won the first match, but after that, Machoke had found ways to exploit quite a few of her abilities. The only time she came close to beating him was when the rabbits weakened him.

But just as she was about to give up, Scyther gritted her teeth and spat, "NEIN!" everyone turning to stare at her including the Korean fans, the insect adding, "DON'T LISTEN TO ANOTHER WORD, LOPUNNY!"

The rabbit was not even sure what to think about this. Was Scyther just being nice?

"She's right, lassie!" Heracross barked, "Look, Lopunny, if you weren't fit to be a member of our team, you wouldn't have passed your final exam at the same time we did! You wouldn't have advanced to the second round of The Next Gen Battle! I lost the first round but you advanced! I failed to make it to the fighting tournament and yet you succeeded!"

"But you lost at Rock, Paper, Scissors," the rabbit uttered in response as Machoke spat, "HEY, LOPUNNY!"

Lopunny then turned to face him as he added, "Where's that spirited firebrand who almost defeated me, huh!? I must be looking at her twin sister, because the Lopunny I know is no quitter! You only gave up against me because the conditions were unfair! But right now, the conditions are perfectly fair, so you have no excuse to back out!"

"He's right!" Reika exclaimed, Gardevoir nodding and squealing, "YOU CAN DO IT, LOPUNNY! YOU BEAT ME WHEN I HAD MY POWER ACTIVATED! NO ONE ELSE HAS MANAGED TO PULL THAT OFF!" and this would have been a lie if not for the fact that Hitmonchan defeated her before she could use her power.

With that, Lopunny's friends rose their arms in the air, chanting, "Lopunny! Lopunny!" many others joining in as soon enough, all of the Indian fans were cheering her on. A tear rolled down the rabbit's cheek as she bit her lower lip, a cute smile forming as she sniffed, "Thank you! You're all wonderful!"

Ninetales smiled and said, "Well, at the very least, you certainly have a lot of loving fans," Lopunny nodding and gritting her teeth before growling, "YEAH, AND I'M NOT GONNA LET THEM DOWN!" the rabbit applying three times as much muscle as usual before breaking free from the hold, Ninetales' eyes widening, the kitsune legitimately surprised by this.

However, this had taken a lot out of Lopunny as she took a deep breath, thinking, 'I only have enough strength for one more move, so I'd better make this count,' the rabbit smacking the kitsune's face to have her spin around and face her, Lopunny wrapping her ears around her and bouncing high above the ring.

However, while everyone was cheering wildly, Ninetales had other plans in mind as she smiled, saying, "Perfect," before shouting, "KITSUNE CANDLE!" everyone gasping as small flames formed on the tips of her tails.

The heat from the fire caused Lopunny to release her hold, crying out in pain as Ninetales then proceeded to turn her body around, wrapping tails around the rabbit again, this time using them to flip her upside-down. All went silent, the Korean fans once again smiling without making any noise as the kitsune descended toward the mat, shouting, "KITSUNE DRIVER!"

With that, Lopunny's head was slammed hard into the canvas, her eyes wide open from both pain and shock as Ninetales released her, the rabbit's body collapsing. All went silent as Nori counted to ten before ringing the bell, the Korean fans finally making sound as their side of the bleachers erupted in wild cheers, the Indian fans looking absolutely mortified.

"Just as it looked like Lopunny was going to turn everything around, it seems the victory still goes to Ninetales!" Nori exclaimed as Beedrill took a deep breath, saying, "Man, that was an intense first match! I hope the others are this good if not better!"

Machoke was now trembling as his teeth chattered, the boy uttering, "Oh god, I don't wanna face that monster in combat!" Scyther taking a deep breath before remarking, "Worry not, my friend. I fully intend to win my first match and then avenge my comrade."

"Geez, you make it sound like she's dead or something," Heracross remarked with a disturbed look as Aipom sighed, "Well, we certainly can't take Ninetales lightly, that's for sure."

However, just as it seemed Ninetales would be a scary opponent for anyone to face, the kitsune knelt down with a smile on her face and took Lopunny's hand, helping her up and carrying her over to a stretcher that had been brought into the area just in case someone had been hospitalized. The Korean fans applauded her as Blaziken said, "Well, at least she's nice," Gardevoir and Cici both biting their lips.

For some reason, they did not buy this. It was very rare for these two especially to get a feeling like that about someone, let alone a hero, so one could only guess if Ninetales was hiding something or not.

Even so, Scyther knew her match was next and as such, she got up and exited the area to ready herself. She knew she only had a small amount of time to prepare as Beedrill stated, "Scyther there certainly has the right idea. I should have mentioned this earlier, but after a match, the next contestants are only given five minutes to get themselves ready for theirs."

"Five minutes!?" Hippowdon spat before getting up and quickly running to the other exit to get ready himself. Would Scyther be able to win and get her chance to face the one who defeated her partner?