"Punching the Old Folks' Home in the South Mountain? Coach Xia, isn't that name a bit too… scummy?"
Xia Hunao looked at the Feraligatr. "Let me tell you, this is just because Feraligatr has only learned to use its fists so far. If Feraligatr could kick, I'd also plan to train it in what it means to kick the North Sea Kindergarten."
Everyone was speechless. If you put these two together, "scummy" wouldn't even begin to describe it. You should be struck down by heavenly justice, you know?
However, Xia Hunao was completely oblivious. He was currently discussing Z-Moves with the system.
"System, what are the Z-Moves for Normal and Fighting types?"
The system was lounging lazily in Xia Hunao's mind, on a lounge chair. "Here you go, this is a table of all Z-Moves. Look for yourself. I'm sunbathing. The simulated sunlight in your brain feels very comfortable."
"Well, System, as long as you're happy."
Xia Hunao unfurled the table. The top two skills listed were the Normal-type 'Ultimate Unrivaled Big Ram' and the Fighting-type 'Full Power Unparalleled Fierce Fist'.
"Hey System, do you think the names of these Z-Moves sound as good as mine?"
The System climbed out of the lounge chair. "Which two? 'Punching the Old Folks' Home in the South Mountain' and 'Kicking the North Sea Kindergarten'? Which of your two skills do you plan to use as the Normal-type Z-Move and which as the Fighting-type Z-Move? I don't think either is great."
Xia Hunao shook his head. "Forget it, I'm not too fond of the Z-Moves for these two types. We'll talk about it later. I haven't even seen a Z-Crystal yet."
After a brief discussion with the system about the somewhat nebulous Z-Moves, Xia Hunao looked at the school team members present and suddenly remembered, "I just recalled, we still have a six-on-six battle to fight."
Upon hearing Xia Hunao say this, the school team members all turned to look at him. "Coach Xia, you actually remember this?"
Xia Hunao gave Tan Yue a half-hearted kick. "What do you guys take me for? A promise is a promise."
Tan Yue looked aggrievedly at Xia Hunao. "I know you're angry, Coach Xia, but Lu Bingming said that. What good will kicking me do?"
Xia Hunao looked at Tan Yue, then at Lu Bingming beside him. "Can't help it. You're closer, so if you have any dissatisfaction or any pent-up anger, go take it out on Lu Bingming."
Xia Hunao was egging Tan Yue and Lu Bingming on to fight, while Wei Chiting came over to ask about the battle. "Coach Xia, when will our battle begin?"
Xia Hunao took out his phone. "How about we set it for the 19th, this Saturday? I still need to discuss tactics with my teammate."
"Teammate? Coach Xia has a teammate?"
Xia Hunao pressed his phone. "Isn't that obvious? What do you take me for, a genius? I can't even command six Pokémon by myself right now, let alone five that don't belong to me. So I need a teammate to share some of the pressure."
Wei Chiting thought Xia Hunao had a point. Although the Pokémon count in this battle was six-on-six, in terms of brainpower, it was one-on-six. If the battle got intense, the mental strain on Xia Hunao would be immense, and his current physical condition might not be able to handle it.
However, Wei Chiting was still curious. "So, Coach Xia, who is your teammate?"
Xia Hunao waved his phone. "I just asked. He doesn't have class and is on his way. You'll see him shortly."
After hearing this, Wei Chiting went straight to the training room door to wait. From a distance, he saw a figure approaching. He turned to ask Xia Hunao, "Coach Xia, is that your teammate?"
Xia Hunao turned to look. "What are you talking about? The person is still dozens of meters away, can I even see them?"
As the person gradually got closer, Wei Chiting finally saw clearly. "This, isn't this Guo Shuang'er? Why is she here?"
As soon as he said it, Wei Chiting realized and exclaimed, "Coach Xia, your teammate is her?"
Xia Hunao waved at Guo Shuang'er and guided her over. "Yes, what's wrong? Are you guys feeling wronged that Guo Shuang'er is accompanying me in a six-on-six battle?"
Wei Chiting was already thinking rapidly, pulling out his Pokedex and frantically searching. Xia Hunao watched Wei Chiting's actions. "I understand what you're thinking, and what you're thinking is mostly correct."
Wei Chiting stopped his actions and turned to look at Xia Hunao. "Coach Xia, are you serious?"
"Of course, I'm serious. Why else would I have asked Guo Shuang'er to come?"
Wei Chiting took a deep breath and then shouted, "School team, assemble!"
Once the school team had gathered, Wei Chiting said, "I need to discuss something with everyone. I plan to postpone this weekend's six-on-six with Assistant Coach Xia."
The school team members were all shocked. "Why?"
Wei Chiting dragged a whiteboard out of the training room. "I've already figured out Coach Xia's tactics, so I'm going to analyze them with everyone."
Xia Hunao was chatting with Guo Shuang'er. Upon hearing Wei Chiting, he pulled Guo Shuang'er over to the school team members. "Wei Chiting, continue. I want to see how much you've guessed. You're probably in the right ballpark."
Wei Chiting wrote on the whiteboard with a marker. "We already know that Coach Xia's chosen Pokémon are Ditto and Smeargle. And today, Coach Xia has brought his teammate."
The team members all turned to look at Guo Shuang'er. Although Guo Shuang'er had participated in Pokémon Contests, being stared at by a group of people up close made her a little nervous. "H-hello, upperclassmen."
Xia Hunao waved his hand and shooed them away. "What's with all of you? Staring at a girl like that every day, what's the meaning of this? Wei Chiting, you continue."
After being scolded by Xia Hunao, the team members continued to listen to Wei Chiting's strategy analysis session.
Wei Chiting bowed slightly to Guo Shuang'er. "Although it might be a bit unfair to you, Guo Shuang'er, Assistant Coach Xia likely invited you to utilize your lucky constitution to maximize the efficiency of Metronome."
Xia Hunao nodded. "Yes, although it is indeed a bit unfair to Guo Shuang'er. But that's precisely my intention. It's also a chance for Guo Shuang'er to experience some big scenes. After all, she was the first 'Contest Star'. She needs to see the world. Opportunities to observe up close, or even participate in a six-on-six melee, are rare."
Wei Chiting continued, "Not only that, Smeargle's move is Sketch. So Smeargle should Sketch a Metronome move. And Ditto can transform. This way, Guo Shuang'er can command three Pokémon simultaneously, and they will all be capable of using Metronome. With Guo Shuang'er's abilities, it's highly possible she can influence the battle by relying on Metronome."
Guo Shuang'er looked at Wei Chiting and asked in disbelief, "Assistant Coach Xia, do I really have such a role?"
Xia Hunao looked at Guo Shuang'er and nodded vigorously. "Of course, you have to believe in yourself, just as I believe in you."
While Xia Hunao was encouraging Guo Shuang'er to believe in herself, the school team members started to get uneasy upon hearing they would face three Pokémon that could use Metronome. Although Metronome's randomness was high, Xia Hunao and Guo Shuang'er would both be there to reduce the impact of that randomness. It might sound superstitious, but sometimes, it was just that incredible.
Lu Bingming then began to agree with Wei Chiting's statement. "Although Coach Xia has designed a playstyle that uses Metronome, given Coach Xia's personality, Metronome will definitely not be the primary attacking strategy. So, we still need to prepare for the two main attacking Pokémon."
Wei Chiting added, "Coach Xia knows us very well, so the two main attacking Pokémon will, to a considerable extent, counter our Pokémon. And we can't guarantee that Ditto will always transform into a Pokémon that uses Metronome, so the difficulty of the battle is quite high."
After listening to Wei Chiting's analysis, the school team members had decided to forfeit the battle. However, they still felt something was not quite right about this "lottery" strategy.
"Coach Xia, although this is a lottery-style play, it seems like a gambling-style play is a significant component."
Xia Hunao asked Wei Chiting, "Old Wei, what do you think?"
Wei Chiting also nodded. "Yes, Coach Xia, I think so too. Although with Guo Shuang'er here, the gambling aspect can be significantly reduced, but..."
Xia Hunao raised his hand to signal Wei Chiting to pause. "I can see that you have researched Metronome and Sketch to some extent, but your research is not thorough enough."
Wei Chiting was puzzled. "Coach Xia, what do you mean?"
Xia Hunao stood up and walked to the whiteboard. Next to the word "Sketch," he wrote a few more words. "You've overlooked one point, and that is Transform. You only know that Sketch can copy Metronome, but the truth is, Sketch can also copy Transform. So, whether my lineup is two Smeargles, or two Dittos, or one of each, it's all uncertain. As for your so-called three-Metronome strategy, although it's within my tactical reserves, I said it's a gambling style, and I'm using a lottery style. Do you understand?"
Wei Chiting nodded. "So, Coach Xia, you never intended to battle using Metronome?"
Xia Hunao nodded. "Of course. To tell you the truth, finding any teammate would have been fine for me. I found Guo Shuang'er specifically to borrow her lucky buff and lead you to guess that I would use a three-Metronome system. Wei Chiting, at least on this point, I have absolute trust in your tactical acumen."
Wei Chiting gave a wry smile. "Should I be happy, Coach Xia?"
Xia Hunao spread his hands. "That I don't know. But I can tell you, the lottery style fears trainers who overthink tactics the most, because the more you think, the further you might stray from the lottery style's approach."