"Get up!" Paul screamed at his Pokémon, but the poor Chimchar no longer had any strength left after a long battle with Vulpix. "You are useless as ever," he spat.
Hearing his words, the little monkey tried to get up again but failed, and Misty raised her hand after throwing the boy a cold glare.
"Chimchar is unable to battle. Xena wins!"
The fox, who was a little tired as well, happily yipped and leapt into the Princess's arms, licking her lovingly all over the face and then laughed as she received tickles on her belly in return.
Their interaction made the boy furrow his brow, and then his eyes landed on the fallen Chimchar.
"See. Caring for your Pokémon is important," The Williams gently said to him.
"Vulpix only won because it was more talented than this useless piece of trash," Paul coldly said, words that stunned everyone.
Misty was in disbelief when she heard the boy's words, and before anyone could react, they watched Paul grab Chimchar's Pokéball and, instead of recalling it, he released it.
"I don't need someone as useless as you on my team," he spat those words at the fallen Pokémon, who was panting and now on the verge of breaking into tears.
Anira was half-tempted to slap the boy away with her Psychic power, but she kept her cool.
"You bastard..." Ash was ready to hurl a dozen abuses at Paul but stopped when he noticed the girls and young Pokémon around.
Paul did not spare their group another glance and silently walked away.
"They have emotions. Just like you have emotions."
He stopped in his tracks when he heard Aizen's words, but then continued walking.
Chimchar painfully called out to its Trainer, and though it managed to get up, it fell again.
The Pokémon was clearly heartbroken.
Anira slowly walked up to the little Pokémon and then sat down in front of it.
She lovingly patted its head and then picked it up in her arms.
"You are not useless. He is an idiot who does not know how precious you are," she sweetly said to Chimchar, who tearfully looked at her.
"Chiarrr..." It let out a soft cry, and Anira planted a kiss on its head.
"He's wrong, and you are mine now," she told the Pokémon, who looked at her in surprise. "I would love to have someone as talented and resilient as you on my future team, and if we ever come across him on our journey, we will prove to him that he was an idiot not to cherish you."
"Chiaarr?"
"Yes. You are mine," she brightly told the Pokémon, whose eyes brimmed with more tears.
Aizen silently handed an empty Pokéball to his sister after activating it, and Anira playfully tossed it into the air.
Chimchar saw it, and somehow, it found the strength to leap from her arms and slap the Pokéball in a high-five, which triggered the catching mechanism.
"Hehe..." His little sister cutely giggled when she caught the Pokéball and then planted a kiss on it.
"You are awesome, Anira!" Risa, who had watched everything, excitedly rushed up to the Orayen Princess with Leaf and May, and the three girls squeezed her in a group hug.
"Yip!" Vulpix wanted to hear some praise as well and laughed as the girls started rubbing its belly.
When Aizen called out Chimchar, he allowed the Pokémon to stay out with his sister.
A while later, everyone sat down to have their lunch, but Gary, Ritchie, Leaf, and Ash's attention was on the screens, where several matches were being broadcast.
May, Risa, Anira, and Misty were focused on the little Chimchar, who was enjoying his meal with Togepi and Vulpix.
Brock had created special meals for the three, and ever since he had met Professor Grisha, he had been trying his hardest to impress her in hopes that she might take him in as her Second Assistant or even Lab Assistant.
Half an hour before 4 p.m., Gary and Ash left for their matches, and so did Ritchie, even though his match was not for another two hours.
The rest of them stayed at the Centre to watch the matches on the screens.
As they had expected, Gary had no issues since the very first round.
He opted to go into battle with his Blastoise, who secured the round against a Pinsir.
Ash also performed brilliantly with his Pikachu in the first round but was taken off-guard by a Lucario in the second, who not only defeated his Pikachu but also his Primeape.
However, when he sent out his Charizard, things changed.
Lucario was already tired and could not withstand the very first Flamethrower.
In the last round, Charizard was up against a Blastoise.
Everyone was on the edge of their seats, and the proud Fire-type gave them a show they would never forget.
He ignored many of Ash's commands but still managed to secure the win against a powerful Pokémon who had a type advantage over him.
After the match, even though he had made it to the Top 32, Ash's ratings plummeted.
He had a Pokémon on his team that did not listen to his commands, and people did not have high hopes for him anymore.
Ash, however, was not depressed about his ratings.
He was depressed because he was going to face Ritchie in the Round of 32. He was sure that his buddy would win his Top 64 match, and indeed he did.
In the evening, Ritchie entered the battlefield against a girl who was twenty years old, a seasoned Trainer.
Her name was Trinity, and she had quite a few capable Pokémon on her roster.
In the first round, having studied her carefully, Ritchie sent out his Poliwrath, and his gamble paid off.
Trinity was expecting him to use some Electric or Grass-type Pokémon to counter her beloved Water-types, so she sent out her Flareon.
However, despite being at a type advantage, the win was not easy.
Poliwrath barely survived the round, and when Trinity sent out her Starmie, it made quick work of the Fighting Pokémon.
Ritchie remained calm and sent out his Magneton, and to his surprise, Trinity chose to recall her Pokémon.
She sent out a very cute-looking Pokémon, one that did not look too strong, and the boy had never seen it before.
"Round Three: Magneton versus Pawmot. Begin!"
"Referee!" Ritchie quickly called out, and the man raised his flag.
"Yes?"
"What type of Pokémon is Pawmot?"
Since they were in the knock-out phase, Ritchie could not use his Pokédex, but he could ask the referee this very question.
"Pawmot is an Electric and Fighting-type Pokémon."
"Thanks!" The boy from Pallet Town gratefully said, and as soon as the round resumed, he ordered Magneton to use Gravity and then Supersonic.
He did manage to slow Pawmot down, but the Pokémon did not fall into confusion, and his heart pounded in his chest when he watched the cute Pokémon easily deal with his Magneton.
Ritchie recalled his Pokémon and quickly started thinking, sweating heavily.
He had to come up with a Pokémon who could handle both Starmie and Pawmot, and it was easier said than done.
With only five seconds left in the countdown, he sent out his Farigiraf.
Everyone was confident that he would win against Pawmot; there was no doubt in their minds. But Trinity recalled her Pokémon and sent out Starmie again, which unnerved Ritchie greatly.
Against the Water-type's superior speed and powerful attacks, Farigiraf suffered heavily but managed to win due to its resilience.
When Pawmot re-entered the battle for the final round, the spectators were on the edge of their seats, and Farigiraf finally resorted to its Psychic moves, which Ritchie had not used in the previous round.
They quickly set up a Future Sight, and then Ritchie ordered it to prepare Psychic to slap away Pawmot if it came close. After the Electric Pokémon used Discharge, which paralysed Farigiraf, the boy from Pallet Town nearly lost all hope.
The powerful Wild Charge landed on his Pokémon, making it groan in pain, and then Pawmot initiated Close Combat.
However, at that crucial moment, Future Sight came into effect, and Pawmot was blasted away.
Ritchie wanted to call another move, but when he sensed his Pokémon's rage and saw its body blink, he quickly decided to follow his instinct.
"Giga Impact!"
And his gamble paid off.
Before Pawmot could recover from the powerful Future Sight, it was struck squarely by the Giga Impact.
The Pokémon was unconscious before it even hit the ground, but the referee did not immediately announce the result.
He intently stared at Farigiraf, who was struggling to stay conscious and on its feet, and ten seconds later, he raised his flag.
"Farigiraf wins the fifth round. Ritchie wins the match!"
As soon as he announced the result, the Psychic Pokémon collapsed to the ground and lost consciousness.
The boy from Pallet Town quickly recalled his Pokémon and then walked over to his opponent, who was also approaching him.
He furiously blushed when Trinity leaned in and planted a kiss on his cheek, and then she whispered something in his ear before straightening her back and shaking his hand.
When the boy came out of the arena, he received praise from everyone and then shook hands with Ash as both of them grinned at each other.
"I won't go easy on you."
"Doesn't matter. I will win."
They both declared challengingly, and then shared a laugh.
Later in the evening, whilst Ash was busy fretting over tomorrow's match, Ritchie was in Trinity's room, where he lost both his innocence and his heart to her.
Unbeknownst to him, except for Ash, everyone knew where he was, but they decided not to tease him the next day because his mind needed to stay focused on the match.
However, Gary swore he would tease the life out of his friend after the tournament.