Chapter Fifty-Three: The Second Piece

On Field 103 of the official gym in Jiantian City...

Scyther’s forearms, sharp as paired broadswords, swept toward Exeggutor in a relentless barrage. Yet Exeggutor, tiptoeing nimbly backward, used telekinesis to hold Scyther at bay, retreating step by step until it was forced to the arena’s edge.

At that moment, the young trainer seized his chance. “Scyther, use Fury Cutter!”

“Exeggutor, don’t let it chain the attacks!” Amu called out directly.

Fury Cutter, a Bug-type physical move, began with modest power—only forty points. But with each successive hit, its might doubled: the second strike leapt to eighty, the third to a staggering one hundred sixty! If even one blow missed, however, the sequence reset to its weakest form.

Of course, evasion wasn’t simply a matter of desire. Some trainers were said to possess special abilities—calling out “Dodge quickly!” would somehow resonate with their Pokémon, granting them a sudden burst of speed. Amu, however, clearly lacked such a gift.

As Scyther’s blade slashed down, Exeggutor, cornered, took a vivid green wound across its side. If Fury Cutter connected again, the injury would compound, dealing even greater damage!

All three of Exeggutor’s dopey faces contorted in pain—though the first blow was only forty in power, Exeggutor’s Grass/Psychic typing made it doubly weak to Bug moves, and Fury Cutter was a move of Scyther’s own type, further amplifying the harm.

Thankfully, Exeggutor’s base stats outstripped Scyther’s, and it was seven or eight levels higher, so it could still withstand the assault.

“That’s it! Keep going!” the young gym trainer encouraged excitedly.

Scyther’s attack preparation was far swifter than Exeggutor’s. In this world, the importance of Speed was magnified—far more than in the games, where it determined only who moved first. Here, battles more closely resembled those in the animated series; speed allowed for continuous action.

Had their roles been reversed, Amu would never have chosen to chain Fury Cutter attacks. Instead, he’d have used the tactics from his battle between Mischief Bolt and Cofagrigus—minimizing risk and reducing any chance of counterattack. Besides, Fury Cutter wasn’t easy to control.

Still, Amu understood the opponent’s choice—Fury Cutter was probably the only Bug-type offensive move this Scyther knew.

“Scyther, second Fury Cutter! Finish it!” The trainer was now shouting with fervor.

Exeggutor had a move ready as well, but held back, waiting for greed to overtake his foe.

As Scyther surged forward, both blades glowing with dark green Bug-type energy, Exeggutor’s three seemingly dim faces twisted into mischievous grins.

The first Fury Cutter had landed, and Exeggutor hadn’t dodged—nor was it easy to dodge given the circumstances. Yet Amu’s command had been “Don’t let it chain,” and Exeggutor, often attuned to Amu’s intentions, understood perfectly.

The previous evasion attempt had been half-hearted; Exeggutor hadn’t put its full effort into dodging or disrupting with telekinesis. All along, the plan was to break the chain. Now, unexpectedly, Exeggutor unleashed its full telekinetic power, catching the unguarded, charging Scyther off balance. Scyther’s body twisted, missing its mark entirely, and it tumbled forward in a graceless heap.

In the instant Scyther lost its balance, a dark gray energy orb formed before Exeggutor’s trio of wickedly smiling faces.

A single Ancient Power, brimming with primal Rock-type force, slammed into the Bug/Flying Scyther with devastating might.

“Look out!” the young trainer cried.

But Scyther, already off balance, had no hope of evasion. It crashed to the ground, skidded out of bounds, and slammed into the wall.

Normally, leaving the arena during battle didn’t mean an automatic loss—so long as the Pokémon returned within the count, the match would continue. This time, however, Scyther lost consciousness instantly.

Both had double weaknesses exploited, but Scyther was never as sturdy as Exeggutor to begin with—and this one was lower-leveled. It was decisively defeated.

“Scyther is unable to battle. Gym side, please send out your next Pokémon,” the referee prompted.

The young trainee, still inexperienced, was now flustered. He hurriedly recalled Scyther and, with trembling hands, sent out a Noctowl—a Hoothoot’s evolved form.

With a base stat total of 452 and a level lower than Scyther’s, it must have only recently evolved.

Only one thing gave Amu pause: Noctowl sometimes possessed the Insomnia ability, making Sleep Powder ineffective.

Despite this, Noctowl had mastered Air Slash, a move threatening to Exeggutor. But the gap in raw strength was too great, and it too was swiftly defeated.

Amu completed a clean sweep.

Under the young trainer’s resentful gaze, Amu received the Jiantian City Badge—his second badge to date. He also politely declined the offer to purchase a special badge case.

When Amu emerged, Misty had already moved on to another battle arena.

Before long, she returned, and together they strode out of Jiantian City’s official gym, the two of them carrying themselves with the air of seasoned trainers, as though they already wore all eight badges.

They returned to the Pokémon Center to heal their partners after the battle.

“Let’s head over to the uptown district later,” Misty suggested. “I found a dessert shop online. Before we visit Sonoko, we can buy a cake as a gift.”

“Pick one up for me, too. I need to call Grandma Reishi and Sister Kiyomi first. Let’s visit Sonoko together at four,” Amu replied.

Once Misty agreed, Amu returned to his room. Though it was only his second badge, he wanted to share the good news.

Grandma Reishi grumbled as usual—“Only your second badge after all this time? Clearly no talent!”—but Amu, long used to her ways, brushed it off and slipped in two questions about being an apothecary.

Sure enough, when Grandma Reishi realized Amu hadn’t neglected his studies, her tone softened. After answering his queries, she limited her teasing to a mere fifteen minutes, then handed the call to Sister Kiyomi.

With Kiyomi, Amu had much more to share—he told her stories about Ditto’s antics.

Kiyomi was amazed at how lively things were outside; you’d never encounter such excitement in a small town. Of course, unless you ran into Conan, you wouldn’t likely see such things anywhere else either!