<h4>Chapter 784: Double Battle</h4>


    Yuga looked at the Poké Ball holding the Whimsicott in his hand and then looked up at Harrison.


    "How about webine the next two battles into one double battle?" he proposed.


    Seeing that the Whimsicott, which had a slightly stronger overall strength, almost got into trouble, Yuga thought about having a double battle to test the synergy between Harrison''s Pokémon.


    Upon hearing Yuga''s suggestion, Harrison hesitated for a moment. He remembered that there were no double battles in the rules of the Verdanturf Gym, but he still agreed.


    "Sure, I''m fine with that," he said.


    "Great, then I''ll send out my Pokémon first," Yuga said with approval.


    Yuga handed the Poké Ball containing the Whimsicott to Anmu, who was nearby, to receive treatment and then released two Grass-type Pokémon.


    One was the offensive Lurantis, and the other was the disruptive Amoonguss.


    Seeing the two Grass-type Pokémon that Yuga sent out, Harrison couldn''t help but marvel at the diversity of Grass-type Pokémon in the Verdanturf Gym.


    Before challenging the gym in Verdanturf Town, Harrison had investigated the challenges of other trainers and knew that the types of Pokémon used by the gym had been quite variable recently, with the only fixed attribute being Grass-type.


    This made it challenging for challengers to counter the gym''s Pokémon, as the type of Grass Pokémon used was constantly changing.


    There were official league websites designed for trainers to exchange experiences challenging gyms, and each region had one. These websites ensured that information about various gyms was updated promptly, providing convenience to challengers.


    So, it wasn''t difficult for trainers who wanted to investigate a gym''s Pokémon lineup.


    After some thought, Harrison took out two Poké Balls and released his own Pokémon. One was ziken as expected by Yuga, and the other was the adorable Milktank.


    Compared to the rtively slow Pokémon on Yuga''s side, both ziken and Milktank were quite agile.


    As themand "Begin the match" was issued by Beidou, Harrison''s ziken immediately rushed towards Yuga''s Lurantis and Amoonguss.


    "ziken, use ze Kick! Milktank, start with Rollout."


    With its high speed, ziken swiftly approached Lurantis and aimed a kick at it.


    "Lurantis, brace yourself," Yuga said. Faced with ziken''s attack, Lurantis had no intention of dodging, nor could it due to its slow speed. Lurantis raised its arms, and itsrge scythes suddenly opened, emitting a bright and sharp green light. It used Leaf de to repel ziken''s powerful legs.


    Despite itsck of speed, Lurantis matched ziken in terms of strength.


    While Lurantis and ziken shed, Amoonguss quietly moved behind Lurantis and used Sunny Day.


    Sunny Day was a move that could benefit ziken, but under these circumstances, it was crucial for Lurantis.


    Almost immediately after Amoonguss used Sunny Day, Milktank, which had transformed into a rolling shape, charged towards Lurantis.


    The tactic used by Milktank was amon but effective strategy often found in many trainers'' teams, especially those who used Pokémon from the Geodude family.


    However, before Milktank could get close to Lurantis, Lurantis swung itsrge scythes,unching two giant golden des—one targeting Milktank and the other headed for ziken.


    Thanks to Amoonguss''s Sunny Day, Lurantis''s Sr de was virtually instant and extremely fast.


    ziken, with its nimble movements, managed to evade Lurantis''s Sr de, but Milktank, in the midst of its rolling, couldn''t escape and was sent flying by Sr de, causing considerable damage.


    ziken quickly moved away from Lurantis, its gaze filled with caution after the previous encounter with Lurantis''s Sr de. The attack had sent chills down its spine, making it aware of the imminent danger. Fortunately, it had reacted quickly, or it would have ended up like Milktank.


    Harrison''s Milktank had themon ability Thick Fat, not the hidden ability Sap Sipper, which would bring headache for Yuga.


    After being hit by Lurantis''s Leaf de, Milktank, under Harrison''smand, used Milk Drink to recover from its injuries.


    "Lurantis, continue using Sr de."


    As Milktank recovered, Yuga issued anothermand, and two giant des of light struck towards ziken and Milktank once again.


    The Miltank whovunable to move while using Drink Milk move, found itself in a tricky situation. Meanwhile, ziken leaped into action, carrying Miltank, sessfully evading the Sr de attack from Lurantis.


    Avoiding the Sr de, Miltank''s Drink Milk move came to an end, and allowing it to recover from its injuries.


    "Quick reflexes, well done, but it''s not over yet. Amoonguss, protect Lurantis. Lurantis, release your Sweet Scent."


    Yuga praised Harrison''s ziken and then gave orders to Amoonguss and Lurantis.


    Upon hearing themand, Amoonguss immediately jumped in front of Lurantis, while Lurantis, behind Amoonguss, unfurled its elegant gesture, spreading waves of romantic and charming pink aroma.


    "Not good, ziken, stop Lurantis."


    Seeing the bewitching pink aroma, Harrison realized the danger and quickly warned ziken.


    In response, ziken opened its mouth and breathed out a methrower, directed at Amoonguss and the Lurantis behind it.


    "Amoonguss, Bide."


    Amoonguss excels more at disruption than direct attacks. Therefore, with Amoonguss''s abilities, it couldn''t counter ziken''s methrower with an attacking move. Moreover, with Lurantis behind it, it couldn''t evade the attack either. So, it had to resort to using the move "Bide."


    Thanks to Amoonguss''s sturdy constitution, ziken''s methrower didn''t manage to knock it down. At this point, Lurantis''s Sweet Scent had already permeated the battlefield.


    Wild Lurantis rely on their gorgeous appearance and enchanting fragrance to hunt.


    So, once ziken and Miltank caught a whiff of the Sweet Scent, they immediately experienced symptoms of confusion and disorientation.


    Different Grass-type Pokémon have varying levels of potency with their Sweet Scents, and it''s clear that Lurantis''s falls into the highly confusing category.


    "Lurantis, use Sr de."


    As Yuga''smand was issued, two massive Sr des struck ziken and Miltank.


    Both Sr des sessfully hit ziken and Miltank.


    Though Leaf de was a powerful Grass-type move, its effectiveness was reduced against Fire-type Pokémon like ziken. So, it still couldn''t take ziken down in one hit.


    Milktank, on the other hand, with its high HP and Thick Fat, managed to withstand Lurantis''s Sr de, although it still took some damage.


    "ziken, Milktank, are you okay?" Harrison asked nervously as he looked at his two Pokémon.


    Under the intense attacks and after being hit by Lurantis''s Sr de earlier, ziken and Milktank were temporarily shaken. However, they shook their heads, indicating that they were not seriously injured.


    "Don''t panic. This is the moment when you need to stay calm the most. Otherwise, getting the Verdant Badge from me won''t be easy," Yuga reminded Harrison.


    Harrison finally calmed down and expressed his gratitude. "Thank you."


    "Now, let the match continue," Yuga said.


    Awakened from their temporary confusion by the Sweet Scent of Lurantis, ziken and Milktank were now difficult to be confused by it again. At most, it would distract their attention and slow down their movements.


    However, that was enough for Yuga, who was troubled by their rapid speed.


    Watching Lurantis and Amoonguss on the opposite side, Harrison''s mind raced as he tried to find an effective way to attack.


    Seeing Harrison hesitating, Yugamanded Amoonguss, "Amoonguss, use Stun Spore."


    Upon Yuga''smand, countless pale yellow spores sprayed out from Amoonguss''s mushroom cap, scattering towards Harrison''s Milktank and ziken.


    "Milktank, use Heal Bell."


    As the paralyzing spores approached, Milktank grabbed its own tail and began to shake it gently, emitting a series of clear bell-like chimes.


    While ziken still felt numbness in their bodies due to the intense battle, they quickly recovered after hearing Milktank''s Heal Bell.


    With its two long legs, ziken rapidly charged toward Lurantis and Amoonguss once more.


    It needs to resolve the battle quickly; otherwise, once the Heal Bell of Miltank stops, it will be paralyzed due to the field''s full of Stun Spore.


    Getting close to Lurantis, ziken''s two legs quickly alternate, and it continuously uses ze Kick, engaging in an intense battle with Lurantis.


    Lurantis''s most powerful attack is the two giant sickle arms it contracts, and ziken''s every ze Kick is blocked by these leaf de arms.


    Theplex body structure of Lurantis destined it to have more offense than agility, so facing ziken''s frequent attacks, it will eventually struggle to keep up.


    However, at this point, Amoonguss will seize the opportunity to assist, sometimes even acting as a meat shield for Lurantis, blocking ziken''s attacks.


    While acting as a meat shield, Amoonguss uses the move "Bide." Unfortunately, the damage reflected by Bide was dodged by ziken.


    Yuga''s Amoonguss has the ability "Effect Spore." If it weren''t for the Heal Bell of Miltank continuously shaking, ziken would have already been paralyzed after so many contacts with Amoonguss.


    Thanks to Amoonguss''s assistance, the weather on the field remained sunny throughout, and the temperature kept rising with time.


    Lurantis swung its arms,unching colorful petals like des, forming a flurry of fallen blossoms, forcing ziken to retreat.


    At this point, both Lurantis and ziken were heavily damaged.


    "Amoonguss, use Synthesis," Yugamanded.


    Under Yuga''smand, Amoonguss''s body emitted a white light, and its injuries began to slowly heal.


    "ziken, stop it," Harrison maintained hisposure on the surface, but he was getting anxious inside. How could he continue like this? His Miltank was restricted by the scattered Stun Spore on the field and couldn''t help ziken.


    This was supposed to be a double battle, but it had been turned into a double-one by Amoonguss. Whether it was its Stun Spore or its "Effect Spore" ability, it was tricky.


    Harrison had focused on training ziken in closebat, and it wasn''t good at long-range attacks. Otherwise, it might have been better equipped to deal with thebined assault of Lurantis and Amoonguss.


    Actually, Yuga was already surprised by ziken''s strength. It had held on for so long against coorporation Lurantis and Amoonguss. Although the type advantage yed a role, it was still quite impressive.


    To stop Amoonguss''s Synthesis, ziken was once again forced back by Lurantis''s Sr de. If ziken took another Sr de now, it wouldn''t be able to get back up.


    "ziken, use methrower, burn the whole field!" Suddenly, Harrison thought of a way to deal with the scattered Stun Spore on the field. He had to make Miltank free up its hands, or there was no chance of turning the tide.


    As ziken''s methrower swept across the entire field, the scattered Stun Spore turned into ashes, and Miltank finally freed up its hands.


    Lurantis guarding Amoonguss didn''t stop ziken''s actions.


    However, at this moment, Amoonguss''s Synthesis ended, and it was back to full health.


    "Lurantis, it''s your turn. Use Synthesis too."


    Lurantis opened its arms to better receive the sunlight''s rays, just like Amoonguss, using a healing move, Synthesis.


    Seeing this scene, Harrison knew that he couldn''t let Lurantis recover, or he would be defeated for sure.


    "ziken, Miltank, attack!"


    Harrison didn''t even bother to let Miltank help the injured ziken recover. He directly ordered both Pokémon tounch an attack on Lurantis, which was using Synthesis.


    ziken, heavily injured, used its Fire-type ultimate move, re Blitz, while Miltank didn''t use Rollout this time. There was no time for abo; it used Fire Punch instead.


    Facing the simultaneous charge of two Pokémon, Amoonguss used Sludge Bomb to try and stop their attacks.


    Although it didn''t use Bide this time, it knew that even if it had thick HP, it couldn''t withstand the simultaneous attacks of two Pokémon.


    However, ziken and Miltank were much faster than the sluggish Amoonguss. They easily dodged Amoonguss''s Sludge Bomb.


    Amoonguss knew it couldn''t evade anymore, so it directly took ziken and Miltank''s moves.


    ziken''s re Blitz and Miltank''s Fire Punch both hit Amoonguss. Amoonguss was sent flying and lost the ability to battle.


    As Amoonguss fell, Lurantis''s Synthesis also ended, and two Sr des swung from its arms,nding on the now-close ziken and Miltank.


    The already-injured ziken immediately fell, and the slightly less injured Miltank rolled a few times on the ground before also losing the ability to battle.


    Looking at the unconscious ziken and Miltank, Harrison shook his head in disappointment.


    The intensity of this battle had exceeded Yuga''s expectations. He had to admit that Harrison, who had been on a journey for just over a year, was already quite strong.


    Once Yuga regained hisposure, he saw Audinoe and she still held the Whimsicott''s Poké Ball in her hand, indicating that the Whimsicott was fine.


    "I''ll leave Amoonguss to you," Yuga pointed to the unconscious Amoonguss and said to Audino.


    "Audino."


    Leave it to me.


    Audino quickly approached Amoonguss and took care of it with a cheerful expression.


    "If you don''t mind, let Audino help heal your three Pokémon too," Yuga approached Harrison and said.


    "Thank you."


    Harrison thanked him, but his mood didn''t seem high.


    After all the Pokémon were healed, Yuga took out the Verdant Badge and handed it to Harrison.


    "But... but... I lost the match," Harrison stammered, feeling like he shouldn''t take the badge just because he knew Yuga.


    Seeing his conflicted expression, Yuga stuffed the badge into his hand and said, "Take it, you deserve it. I didn''t give you any special treatment."


    "Why?" Harrison widened his eyes.


    "We Gym Leaders ept challenges from Trainers not to beat you but to test your strength. Winning against you doesn''t mean much to us. I think you''ve passed the test, so I''m giving you this badge, regardless of whether we know each other or not. Besides, am I the kind of person who easily gives people special treatment?"


    "Oh..." Harrison nodded, somewhat dazed, and it was unclear if he truly understood.


    After the Gym challenge, Yuga wanted Harrison to stay at the Gym for a while, but he was declined, and he set off on his journey again.