Pokémon: Above the Top-Chapter 293: Jealousy

So Tentacruel didn't hesitate to block the path Sharpedo would have to take to reach Gorebyss.

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At the same time, Tentacruel quickly formed a Barrier in front of itself to greatly increase its defense, ready to take Sharpedo's attack head-on.

Unfortunately for it, if Sharpedo could adjust its trajectory so easily in the air, doing so underwater was even easier.

In Tentacruel's eyes, Sharpedo suddenly vanished from view. As it turned to search for it, all it heard was yet another pained scream from Gorebyss!

As it happened, during the half-hour break before the finals began, the organizers had temporarily upgraded all the underwater camera equipment.

So during the final match, Sharpedo was no longer just a "dark blue blur". Other Trainers could now partially track and direct their own Pokémon based on what they saw.

After Sharpedo hit Gorebyss again, the big screen immediately replayed its entire movement sequence.

At the exact moment Tentacruel raised its Barrier, Sharpedo grinned wide; its gleaming white teeth seemed to mock Tentacruel's naivety.

A vortex-like current rapidly formed behind Sharpedo, then burst forth, propelling it diagonally upward.

Then, right above Tentacruel, Sharpedo rotated its body 270° and crashed viciously into Gorebyss, who couldn't even see it coming.

Sharpedo's entire maneuver was shown clearly in slow motion at 0.5x speed, instantly drawing gasps and exclamations from the crowd.

First, they marveled at Sharpedo's impressive physical ability to change direction at such high speed.

Second, they were amazed at its mobility; by spinning its body, Sharpedo minimized the impact on its speed while maintaining a powerful, clean strike!

Either feat would be difficult for an average Sharpedo. Clearly, this level of performance could only come from thousands of intense training sessions and countless battles.

With that, Gorebyss was eliminated.

Tentacruel looked at Sharpedo with trembling dread, while high above, Lapras came splashing back down into the water.

After its brief tour of the sky, Lapras quickly realized there was one less opponent. It looked at Sharpedo again, eyes full of admiration and awe.

Sharpedo gave a slight nod, keeping a "serious" expression, as if to say this was just routine.

Lapras and Sharpedo's affectionate interaction once again struck a nerve with many in the audience, who shrieked with excitement and instantly turned into green-eyed monsters.

"Sato, leave Tentacruel to me and Lapras!" Mark shouted loudly from the poolside.

"You sure?" Sato glanced at Mark, quickly grasping what he meant.

There was no doubt about Sharpedo's strength, winning was practically guaranteed.

In contrast, Lapras had barely made it to the final three thanks to Sharpedo's help multiple times, and even then, it had escaped danger on more than one occasion by sheer luck.

So Mark wanted to repay the favor, clear the path for Sharpedo, and also prove that Lapras was not weak.

Even if Sharpedo didn't necessarily need Lapras's help, Sato understood Mark's intention and was willing to let him give it a shot.

"Yeah, leave it to me. I'll deal with Tentacruel first, then I'll take care of you!" Mark shouted excitedly, punching the air.

"Heh, Sharpedo, let's step aside and enjoy the show."

Sharpedo glanced at Lapras, gave a small nod, and then slowly retreated to the edge of the pool, leaving the battlefield to Lapras and Tentacruel.

No one expected that, in the very end, Sharpedo would step back while Lapras volunteered to take on Tentacruel.

Tentacruel's Trainer had also heard Mark's words and, though angry, secretly resolved that if they couldn't beat Sharpedo, then they would at least defeat Lapras.

The battle resumed. Thanks to its immunity to Water-type moves, Lapras was able to neutralize most of Tentacruel's moves.

But Tentacruel's defense was nothing to scoff at, and it also had Poison-type moves as finishing attacks, posing a serious threat to Lapras's offense.

Still, Thunderbolt remained super effective against Tentacruel. Every hit dealt tremendous damage.

What's more, just like with Vaporeon earlier, one hit from Thunderbolt triggered its secondary effect: Paralysis. Even though the chance was only 10%.

That Paralysis became the final straw that broke Tentacruel. Once it lost its Speed advantage, Lapras was able to take it down.

-----

By now, the sun had set. At some point, the plaza's lights had come on, illuminating the area as if it were daytime.

Only Sharpedo and Lapras remained in the pool. Many spectators wore expressions of reluctance, as if they didn't want to see the two of them fight.

Yet plenty of others had stars in their eyes. 'Wasn't this kind of story the most exciting?'

After commanding Lapras to defeat Tentacruel, Mark was already satisfied. Lapras was now completely exhausted, with only a sliver of energy left.

Just as Mark was about to recall Lapras and forfeit the match, Sharpedo swam over to Lapras and fired a Water Pulse into the sky.

The Water Pulse exploded overhead, and the splashing rain fell softly on Lapras.

"Praaas~"

Exhausted, Lapras couldn't help but close its eyes in comfort, enjoying the soothing rain.

Then Sharpedo nodded at Sato, who smiled, pulled out its Poké Ball, and returned Sharpedo before Mark could react.

"Gym Leader Juan, I forfeit."

"You're sure?" Juan's face didn't change at all. He simply repeated the question gently.

"Boss, what are you doing?!"

"Yeah, I'm sure," Sato replied with a nod.

It was Sharpedo's own decision. Sato didn't care about some informal "civilian" tournament; as long as Sharpedo was happy, that was enough.

As for why Sharpedo handed the honor to Lapras, maybe it genuinely recognized Lapras's effort.

Or maybe it simply didn't see the match as a challenge and had no interest in claiming a prize.

"Very well. Then I now announce the winner of the Water-Type Pokémon Free Battle: Trainer Mark and his partner, Lapras!"

In the plaza, most of the screams came from excited, envious girls.

'Well... let the misunderstanding continue.'