Pokemon: I am Gary

The Master Challenge Tournament is in full swing.

Lorelei, having lost one round, has become increasingly cold in demeanor.

In contrast, Bruno's Hitmonchan grows more courageous with each battle, having already knocked out Lapras, Cloyster, and Jinx!

These three can be considered the top three attackers in Lorelei's team.

During the halftime break, Bruno even started humming a tune. It's easy to imagine how pleased he must feel right now.

Lorelei sits quietly in the resting area, looking up at the VIP section.

Gary nods; it's time, Lorelei!

Lorelei takes a deep breath. She does not want to lose this match, so—

"Bruno, I'm sorry—"

"The second half begins!" The referee waves a flag, signaling both sides to return to their battle positions.

The audience cheers even louder. Bruno raises his right hand and waves to his fans in the stands.

"Bruno really intends to sweep the team! Kid, your judgment is off," says Lt. Surge casually next to Gary.

"Is that so~" Gary rests his chin on his hand and yawns lazily. "It's time to show true skills, isn't it?"

"Hmph, just bluffing," Lt. Surge retorts angrily, turning away from Gary.

Gary smiles slightly and refocuses on the match.

Both trainers' Pokémon are ready; Bruno sends out Hitmonchan again, who performed valiantly in the first half.

Lorelei counters with her Slowbro.

"The match begins!" The referee calls out as the second half officially starts!

"Slowbro, use Trick Room!" Kona initiates with a strategy to create space!

"Hitmonchan, use Focus Punch!" Shiba's expression changes as he immediately launches a fast attack.

Hitmonchan quickly darts towards Slowbro with small steps. His fist, glowing with white energy, strikes Slowbro's chest!

Boom! Slowbro takes the punch head-on, bringing its hands together—

Smack! A square energy wall unfolds in the arena. Slowbro tilts its head and exclaims, "Yah~"

"Impossible! How could Hitmonchan's full-power punch have no effect?" Bruno exclaims incredulously.

"Yah~ Yah~" Just after Bruno complains, Slowbro suddenly cries out in pain. Not only that, but its normally heavy tail also swings up fiercely.

Boom! Hitmonchan attempts to block but finds its movements slowed as if in slow motion.

Crash! Slowbro sends Hitmonchan flying with a tail whip, leaving Hitmonchan looking dazed as it gets back on its feet.

"I'm sorry; my Slowbro has a slower reflex arc~" Lorelei adjusts her glasses and smiles sweetly.

Bruno frowns tightly; Lorelei's sudden change in strategy catches him off guard.

Moreover, Bruno feels that this woman's smile is somewhat... sinister—

"You don't think having an advantage means you can do whatever you want, do you? As long as Hitmonchan's attacks hit, Slowbro won't last long!" Brunp scoffs coldly.

"Oh, that's true. Slowbro—snack time," Kona replies cheerfully.

"Slowbro~" This time Daitenshi moves swiftly and pulls out an Oran Berry, swallowing it whole right before everyone's eyes.

Immediately, a green light shines around Slowbro. Its stamina is restored!

Bruno looks dumbfounded. "Hey! Everyone saw that; she's cheating! She's using Berries mid-match! I want to report this; I want to protest!"

Lorelei looks at Bruno with a concerned expression and then shrugs at the referee. "You explain it."

The referee rolls his eyes at Bruno. "Pokémon carrying their own berries is allowed during matches; this is clearly stated in the league tournament rules. Your protest is invalid."

"Eh?" Bruno looks dissatisfied at Lorelei. "Can you not play such tricks?"

"Oh, it's not over yet." Lorelei claps her hands playfully. "Slowbro, feeling full? Use Belch!"

Burp~! Slowbro opens its mouth and spews out a series of purple bubbles that explode right on Hitmonchan's face.

"Hit..." Hitmonchan suddenly changes expression as purple toxins envelop its body.

"This is poisoning!" Bruno completely loses his composure. "Come back, Hitmonchan"

This marks the first time Bruno has swapped Pokémon since the match began. "Macho-ke" he calls out!

The second Pokémon up is Machoke…

"This isn't very smart..." Gary shakes his head involuntarily. With Trick Room still active, Slowbro—a slow Pokémon—is practically invincible right now; using Machoke seems like asking for trouble...

Sure enough, in the next moment, Machoke is lifted into the air by Slowbro's Psychic move. It gets tossed around ten times before Slowbro charges forward with an Ice Punch!

Crunch! Machoke is frozen solid and loses fighting capability!

Lorelei winks mischievously. "This has just begun..."

Bruno wears a pained expression now; "Lorelei, you've gone bad..."

With no other options left, Bruno sends out another Machoke. His current plan is to stall until Trick Room ends and then unleash a powerful counterattack.

Then...

Machoke began the toughest match of his life, being relentlessly pounded into the ground by Slowbro, who had no defensive skills to rely on.

At the moment Machoke fell, the blue space slowly cracked open, shattering into fragments.

Before Bruno could celebrate, he heard Lorelei's voice: "Trick Room..."

In the next second, the blue energy field reappeared, filling the entire arena.

Bruno thought to himself, "I'm going to smash you like a watermelon! Hand over your Poké Balls; I want to go home!"

Gary chuckled while resting his chin on his hand. "Come on, Master Bruno! You still have other strategies left; don't give up yet!"

Lorelei glanced at the glass of the VIP box with a sense of admiration. "Little brother Gary is indeed a natural Pokémon trainer; this strategy has completely outsmarted Bruno."

Fortunately, Bruno was not without merit; he finally discovered the weakness of the Trick Room.

He sent out Hitmonlee to take on the challenge.

"Hitmonlee, use Quick Attack and then Spin Kick!" Although Hitmonlee would move slower in the Trick Room, its long legs allowed it to stabilize the situation.

Just as the Trick Room was about to disappear, a glint of cold light appeared first!

Boom! The explosive knee strike gave Slowbro no chance and knocked it out.

"Ah~" Bruno sighed in relief, although Hitmonlee was also running low on stamina.

At least he had dealt with that troublesome Slowbro. The remaining Hitmonchan and Machamp should be able to handle things!

Lorelei noticed Bruno's predicament and couldn't help but chuckle softly. If he thought it was really over, he was too naïve.

"Starmie, come out!" Lorelei summoned her tactical core Pokémon.

"Hitmonlee, use Flying Knee Strike!" Bruno acted quickly.

"Starmie, use Hydro Pump!" Facing Hitmonlee who was barely hanging on, Lorelei struck first and secured another victory.

Bruno rubbed his hair in frustration. "Ah~ I got careless! But now it's our time to shine—Hitmonchan, come out!"

As Hitmonchan entered the battle again, after such a long rest, its condition had not improved; in fact, it looked worse!

The poisoned status left it feeling extremely weak.

"Quick battle! Hitmonchan, use Thunder Punch!" Bruno aimed to end this match swiftly.

Lorelei shook her head. Even an Elite Four member can have moments of mental breakdown... "Starmie, use Protect!"

Boom! A green light shield instantly lit up as Hitmonchan's punch hit it hard enough to make it wince in pain.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Lorelei began her strategy again: "Now use Double Team!"

After a flurry of dazzling afterimages, two identical Starmie remained on the field.

Bruno broke into a cold sweat. "Kona... you... you're being unreasonable~"

Lorelei shrugged. "This is a strategy thought up by my little brother; don't you think he's brilliant? Want to meet him?"

Bruno clenched his fists and smiled. "I do! Please let me meet him."

Meanwhile, Gary in the stands felt a twitch in his left eye. "Wow, with that expression from Bruno, is he planning to take it out on me after the match?"

Back on the battlefield, Hitmonchan—poisoned and unable to hit its opponent—bravely fell down...

Bruno's face turned pale as he sent out his trump card: Machamp!

He thought that as long as Machamp could break through Starmie's shield with Brick Break, he might still have a chance.

However, in the next second, he faced another setback.

"Starmie, use Minimize!" Lorelei continued her targeted tactics.

Not only did Machamp miss its attack but also got hit by Starmie's counterattack—a mouthful of purple sludge splattered onto its chest.

Instantly, Machamp started bubbling all over with purple...

"What is that...?" Bruno asked in despair.

"Well... as you can see, it's poison," Lorelei replied seriously with a nod.

Watching Starmie continue to evade while shrinking down almost out of sight made Bruno feel a tightness in his chest. "Puh!!"

The referee announced: "Bruno has lost the will to fight! The winner of this match is Lorelei!!"

The audience erupted in cheers and showered their respect upon Lorelei for successfully defending her title.

Gary decisively stood up, recalled his Pokémon, and turned to leave. "I'm outta here..."