<h4>Chapter 517: Pursuit</h4>


    After getting ready, Yuga, apanied by Mayor Ishida and Liliana, headed to thepetition venue, which was the Battle Company Building.


    Upon arriving at the Battle Company Building, Yuga went to the contestants'' rest area, while Mayor Ishida and Liliana took their seats in the audience, ready to watch today''s matches in person.


    Unlike the previous rounds where they watched battles on screens using cameras, today''s matches allowed the audience to witness the battles face to face.


    The rules for today''s matches were simr to regr league battles, with random pairings for one-on-one battles.


    Although the top 16 contestants had already been determined, the ultimate goal was to decide the champion and runner-up, making this an important showcase of talent from various regions.


    Soon, therge screen above thepetition venue disyed the results of the random pairings for all the spectators to see. Yuga was surprised to find himself ced in the first group topete, and his opponent was a girl from the Kalos region who appeared to be older than him.


    As their names were called over the stadium''s loudspeakers, Yuga and the girl made their way to opposite ends of the battlefield, ready to face off.


    The rules of the match were three-on-three battles, consistent throughout the tournament. There were no full-team six-on-six battles, as most gym battles were conducted as three-on-three matches.


    The on-field referees at the Battle Company Building were highly advanced electronic referees, not humans. They hovered in the sky above the battlefield, able to observe both Pokémon and trainers from all angles.


    As Yuga and the girl took the stage, thementators introduced their backgrounds, including their performances in the previous rounds.


    The girl''s name was Tomoka, and she hailed from a ce called Clearfield Town in the Kalos region.


    "Little brother, I never expected you to be my opponent. It seems like my journey ends here today," Tomoka said, looking at Yuga with a cheerful smile. It was evident that she knew Yuga and understood the significance of facing the Pre-League Champion.


    Contestants participating in the Pre-League were generally not too old, with most being under thirty years old, as per the league''s explicit age requirements.


    Tomoka was one of the older contestants in this group, making it quite normal for her to refer to Yuga as "little brother" since he was indeed younger.


    Yuga responded with a smile but didn''t say much. As the electronic referee above announced the start of the match, both Yuga and Tomoka released their Pokémon.


    Yuga sent out his recently evolved Venusaur, while Tomoka''s choice was a Kalos-native Fire and Flying-type, Talonme.


    Talonme held a type advantage against Grass-type Venusaur, but as Venusaur stepped onto the battlefield, it firmly stamped its right front foot on the ground, letting out a resounding cry, disying unwavering confidence, and showing no signs of fear.


    "Talonme, gather me Charge!"


    Tomoka took the initiative and ordered her Talonme to attack. Talonme enveloped itself in mes, turning into a fiery projectile heading straight for Venusaur.


    "Venusaur, use Sludge Bomb!"


    Yuga, not concerned about the type disadvantage, believed that his specially selected Pokémon would not lose to this Talonme. Hemanded Venusaur to counter with Sludge Bomb.


    "Venusaur!"


    As Yuga gave themand, Venusaur opened its enormous mouth andunched clusters of deep purple mud bombs towards the charging Talonme.


    Venusaur''s Sludge Bomb precisely hit the approaching Talonme, forcing it to halt in mid-air and covering its eyes with the mud, causing it to panic and flutter in the air.


    "Venusaur, now''s your chance, bring out Sunny Day!"


    Taking advantage of Talonme''s disarray, Yuga ordered Venusaur to use the weather move Sunny Day. In an instant, the temperature on the battlefield rose significantly.


    Tomoka said, "Talonme, calm down and shake off the mud from your head."


    Hearing her trainer''s voice, Talonme finally regained itsposure and vigorously shook its head to clear its vision.


    "Venusaur, Power Whip."


    Just as Talonme was preparing to charge at Venusaur, dozens of green tendrils formed from Grass-type energy extended from Venusaur and rapidly entwined around the airborne Talonme.


    Under the influence of Sunny Day, Venusaur''s Chlorophyll ability activated sessfully. The Power Whip was incredibly fast and flexible, resembling Venusaur''s own arms. Talonme panicked as it tried to evade the energetic tendrils pursuing it.


    The match continued with Venusaur''s Power Whip and Talonme''s evasive maneuvers. As Tomoka saw her Talonme being suppressed, her anxiety grew.


    As time passed, Tomoka believed that maintaining a high-level move like Power Whip for an extended period would quickly drain Venusaur''s energy. However, she was surprised to find that Venusaur remained lively and showed no signs of exhaustion.


    Unknown to Tomoka, while using Power Whip, Venusaur simultaneously employed photosynthesis, using it to recover the energy expended by using the powerful move.


    This ability to perform photosynthesis while using other techniques was gained by Venusaur during a unique evolution process.


    Talonme was a remarkably fast Pokémon, and catching it with Venusaur''s Power Whip wasn''t easy, but in the end, Talonme sumbed to exhaustion.


    It had been entirely worn out, and when it lost its battling capabilities, it was still panting with its mouth wide open.


    While being closely pursued by the tendrils, Talonme couldn''t find a moment to counterattack against Venusaur. Even when it asionally tried to retaliate, it was quickly subdued by the Power Whip, eventually sumbing to exhaustion, and Venusaur''s Sludge Bomb ended the battle.


    Talonme''s most frequently used move was me Charge. It didn''t intend to use this move to attack Venusaur; instead, it aimed to use the speed-boosting property of me Charge to evade the pursuing tendrils of energy.


    However, this strategy only elerated its energy consumption, pushing it further into a dire situation.


    Realizing that her Talonme had lost its fighting capability, Tomoka''s face turned pale, and she reluctantly recalled her Pokémon.


    Not just Tomoka, but the spectators in the audience were also at a loss for words as they watched Yuga and Venusaur. Even thementators forgot to providementary on the match.


    In the end, Yuga managed to achieve a 1v3 victory with only Venusaur, sessfully defeating all three of Tomoka''s Pokémon.


    Tomoka''s second and third Pokémon, Pelipper and Yanmega, met the same fate as their "predecessor," Talonme. Tomoka couldn''te up with a way to break through Venusaur''s Power Whip.


    Based on the Pokémon Tomoka used, it was clear she specialized in Flying-type Pokémon training. However, her Flying-type Pokémon couldn''t counter Venusaur''s tactics effectively. Losing was somewhat expected in this scenario.


    As Tomoka exited the battlefield, her face was grim, a far cry from the smile she had when she first entered.


    She knew her chances of winning were slim, but being defeated by a Venusaur that wasn''t significantly stronger than her own Pokémon was beyond her expectations.


    Even though Yuga won, the apuse from the audience was sparse. The way he won was... unconventional, leaving the spectators unsure whether to apud or not.