What… what is that?!
Tobias was genuinely horrified!
The energy, which had originally been a pale blue, suddenly transformed into something deep and vast like the stars themselves.
At the same time, crimson-red patterns slowly spread across its surface.
This is—
Aura Sphere?!
That's right!
What was gathering between Infernape's hands was none other than Aura Sphere!
An Aura Sphere formed by the combined Aura of both Ash and Infernape.
The instant it took shape, a massive vortex erupted around it.
Visible to the naked eye, the surrounding flames were pulled toward the Aura Sphere's center.
Even the thick smoke ahead was violently disturbed.
At that very moment—
Ash and Infernape pushed their hands forward at the same time.
"Take it! This is the power of me and Infernape together!"
As he spoke—
The Aura Sphere, wrapped in red markings, shot straight into the black smoke ahead!
The instant it touched the smoke, the enormous vortex shredded it to pieces!
In the blink of an eye, the flames hidden within the smoke were ignited!
A deafening explosion rang out!
The entire battlefield transformed into a sea of fire!
And within this ocean of flames—
The Aura Sphere spun forward relentlessly, devouring every trace of black smoke in its path!
From beginning to end, it had only one target!
Heatran, the one spewing out the smoke!
Seeing this utterly bizarre scene—
Tobias's pupils shrank sharply.
What is going on?!
Since when did Aura Sphere have this kind of power?!
This isn't right!
This is very wrong!
He had encountered plenty of Trainers in the wild who used Lucario.
But he had never seen anything like this!
Since when could an Aura Sphere erase battlefield effects?!
What do you think you are—Rayquaza?!
Delta Stream or something?!
Tobias's mind went completely blank!
That mysterious Aura Sphere had already blown away all the smoke!
Just a step—no, a hair's breadth—away from slamming directly into Heatran!
Tobias didn't dare gamble.
What if this thing had some additional effect?!
That would be disastrous!
Troublesome—
Unprecedentedly troublesome!
For the first time in countless battles, sweat formed on Tobias's forehead!
At this distance, with Heatran's speed, dodging was impossible!
The only option left—
Was to meet it head-on!
If that was the case, then he wouldn't hesitate any longer!
"Heatran! Use Stone Edge—charge straight through it!"
This was the only viable option Tobias could think of.
Heatran was already weak to Fighting-type moves.
Tobias genuinely didn't dare take risks.
And among Heatran's move pool—
The only thing that could even function as a defensive barrier was Stone Edge!
A forest of rocks could at least serve as stepping stones and buffers!
Even though Rock-type moves were also weak to Fighting—
So what?!
As long as it bought Heatran even a moment, that was enough!
The battlefield situation changed in an instant.
Upon receiving Tobias's command, the battle-hardened Heatran reacted immediately.
It raised its forelimbs high—
Then slammed them violently into the ground!
A massive crack tore through the flame-covered battlefield!
From that裂缝, pillar after pillar of magma-scorched stone erupted upward, standing between Heatran and the incoming Aura Sphere!
The crimson lava pillars looked like the wrath of a god of the earth itself.
A destructive aura ran rampant.
This sight alone—
Made Trainers from the Hoenn region shudder in fear.
Since childhood, they had grown up hearing stories from their parents about Groudon, the legendary god who expanded the land.
There were even picture books in Hoenn depicting those legends.
This scene—
Was almost identical to the illustrations in those books!
Stone Edge?!
This was clearly Precipice Blades!
[Steven: Wallace, don't you think this scene looks familiar? Feels like we've seen it somewhere before.]
[Wallace: That's not even a question! That's totally the signature move of that red short-stack—Precipice Blades!]
[Cynthia: It does look similar, but Groudon's Precipice Blades are Ground-type, while Heatran's Stone Edge is Rock-type. Same shape, different essence.]
[Flint: So it's all just for show. In that case, it probably won't stop Infernape's Aura Sphere.]
[Professor Kukui: I actually find this fascinating. Heatran has lived in volcanoes for so long—so its Stone Edge manifests like this?
It suggests that Pokémon living in different regions can produce different forms of the same move.
If this Stone Edge has additional effects, that would be an incredible discovery.]
[Drake: But can something like this really stop Infernape's Aura Sphere? I doubt it.]
[Wikstrom: Not just doubtful—it can't. Even a normal Aura Sphere would hit at this range. Stone Edge can only slow it down at best.]
[Lt. Surge: So that means Ash wins, right?]
[Sabrina: Of course. This is Ash's Pokémon.]
...
On screen—
The magma pillars rising from the cracks in the ground blocked the Aura Sphere's path.
But just as everyone had predicted—
The lava pillars formed by Stone Edge couldn't stop it at all.
The instant they made contact with the Aura Sphere—
They were shattered completely.
They couldn't even slow it down.
Seeing this—
Tobias's eyes contracted violently.
Infernape's Aura Sphere was even stronger than he had imagined!
And of course it was.
After all, that Aura Sphere contained Ash's Aura as well.
To some extent—
Heatran wasn't just facing Infernape.
It was facing Infernape and a Pokémon-version of Ash at the same time.
One plus one didn't necessarily equal two—
Especially when it was Ash + Infernape!
Stone Edge, which had looked so imposing, was effortlessly dispersed.
Witnessing the entire process, Tobias shouted immediately:
"Heatran! Abandon all attacks—dodge now!"
Upon receiving its Trainer's command—
The well-trained Heatran instantly tried to sidestep.
But—
It was already too late.
The moment Stone Edge ceased—
Infernape's Aura Sphere arrived right on schedule.
The Aura Sphere, carrying the combined Aura of two beings, slammed brutally into Heatran's face!
The tremendous impact forced Heatran's massive body backward again and again!
But that wasn't the most critical part!
The instant the Aura Sphere hit—
Flames from all directions were pulled in by the vortex it generated!
In an instant, a gigantic fire tornado formed around Heatran!
Although Heatran possessed the Flash Fire ability—
None of the flames actually touched its body!
The fire tornado spun violently, driving the surrounding temperature higher and higher!
If Heatran weren't a Pokémon that lived in volcanoes—
The heat alone might have been enough to knock it out!
Within the fire tornado—
Heatran's body sank partially into the ground.
Only after the temperature rose further did it manage to free itself!
The scorched ground had become brittle.
Using its sharp hook-like claws, Heatran finally climbed back onto the surface.
But—
When it looked at its surroundings, it froze in confusion.
What is this raging fire vortex?!
Wasn't it battling just now?!
Did it teleport?!
The howling wind made the flames roar wildly!
And at that moment—
A voice rang out from beyond the flames.
A voice Heatran found painfully familiar.
"Infernape, let's do it again!"
"Use Aura Sphere!"
Heatran: "..."
Damn it!
It remembered everything now!
Run—now!
Otherwise it would be too late!
That last Aura Sphere from Infernape was burned into its memory.
If not for its absurdly high defense—
That hit alone would've ended the battle!
This wasn't an Aura Sphere at all!
This was a damn Aura nuke!
"Wake up!"
Tobias shouted anxiously, staring at the raging fire tornado.
At the opposite side of the field—
Infernape once again assumed the exact same stance as before!
Aura Sphere—
A move that should have been ordinary.
Yet in the hands of Infernape and Ash—
It was like a nuclear weapon!
Since when could Aura Sphere do something like this?!
What do you think you are—Palkia?!
Because Heatran was completely surrounded by flames—
Tobias couldn't clearly sense its condition.
But a Trainer knows their own Pokémon best.
That previous attack had been devastating—
But not enough to knock Heatran out outright!
However—
If it got hit by another Aura Sphere like that—
The result would be impossible to predict.
That was Ash's custom, extra-strength Aura nuke!
Even though he couldn't tell what state Heatran was in—
Tobias still issued his command toward the fire tornado.
"Heatran! Follow my command—coat your entire body in magma!
Use this fire tornado to unleash the strongest possible Magma Storm!"
As Tobias spoke, a golden gleam flashed in his eyes.
The fire tornado you created is impressive—
But if I turn it into my weapon…
How will you respond then?!
Heatran's signature move was Magma Storm.
It activated its internal Fire-type power and used magma from the ground to form a fire vortex that trapped the opponent!
It sounded similar to Fire Spin—
But it wasn't.
Magma Storm relied on Heatran's contact with the ground, channeling fire through it to strike the enemy!
"ROAR!"
Heatran's roar was its answer to Tobias.
Immediately—
Its entire body glowed red inside the fire tornado.
The tornado surrounding it gradually weakened.
The flames were being absorbed into its body.
Then—
Heatran raised its forelimbs high—
And smashed them violently into the ground!
At the instant the attack was triggered—
Every flame on the battlefield flared even more violently!
At the same time—
The fire vortex around Heatran completely dissipated.
In its place—
Pillars of flame erupted forward toward Infernape!
At that very moment!
Ash and Infernape's Aura Sphere finished charging!
Pushing through the surging flames—
Infernape thrust the Aura Sphere forward!
"Take it! This is all my Aura!"
[Mustard: I'm fired up! Even these old bones of mine can feel the passion of youth!]
[Alder: Indeed! Seeing Ash now reminds me of my younger self. What a splendid boy!]
[Blue: Heh, so you antiques finally admit you're old? Not easy, not easy.
This era belongs to the young—just sit back and watch.]
[Professor Oak: You're still as rude as ever. Didn't you say you wanted to be a 'mature enthusiast'? Why are you so active lately?]
[Delia: Isn't it obvious? Blue's probably about to fall in love.]
[Diantha: I get it. Like a peacock spreading its feathers to attract a mate—Blue's being active to catch someone's eye.]
Having his thoughts exposed, Blue scratched his head awkwardly.
What the heck?!
Aunt Delia knows him that well?!
Blue was planning to talk more with Queen Irene—
But she instructed her attendant to receive him instead.
Helpless, Blue left the palace again.
After he departed—
Queen Irene turned her gaze to the portrait of Sir Aaron hanging on the wall.
But that hero belonged to a thousand years ago.
What she truly looked at—
Was the Ash standing behind him.
"Hero Ash… I truly look forward to your arrival."
What Blue didn't know—
Was that his love had already ended before it even began.
[Ash: Brother Blue, are you going to fall in love? My mom said she wants you to help Brother Red find a girlfriend. She doesn't want to wait until she's fifty to hold a grandchild.]
[Red: !]
[Blue: That wooden block is hopeless. No one can save him. I can't help with that, Aunt Delia!]
Not just Blue—
Leaf was about to lose it too!
Who just abandons cute Yellow to visit some hero's ruins?!
Pushing open the park gate—
Leaf angrily stormed back to Yellow.
Seeing Yellow asleep in Red's Charizard's arms—
Leaf's anger spiked instantly!
Useless girl!
"Yellow, wake up! Red's been stolen—he doesn't want you anymore!"
Yellow snapped awake in shock!
Which witch dared steal her Red?!
Seeing this, Leaf shook her head helplessly.
"Yellow… if you had even half this spirit in front of Red, you wouldn't still be single.
Tell me—do you want to capture Red's heart?"
Like a devil, Leaf began tempting her bit by bit.
And Yellow, completely unaware, nodded furiously, waiting for Leaf to continue.
...
Back on the battlefield—
Infernape was struck at the same time by Heatran's Magma Storm!
Towering flames exploded skyward!
A gigantic fire vortex completely engulfed Infernape!
At this moment—
Past and present overlapped perfectly!
In an instant—
The battlefield flipped completely.
The one trapped in the fire vortex—
Was now Infernape.
Meanwhile—
Facing the Aura Sphere flying toward it—
Heatran finally had enough time to dodge.
Even with its slow speed—
It was enough.
The massive Heatran slowly shifted a step to the side.
Perhaps because Heatran's attack disrupted Infernape's aim—
This Aura Sphere looked almost powerless.
So much so that Heatran didn't even bother guarding against it.
After all—
It had already dodged it.
Why bother defending?
But—
Why did Ash's expression look so strange?
Tobias stared suspiciously at the slowly moving Aura Sphere.
Something felt… off.
And indeed—
Tobias's instincts, honed by three years in the wild, were spot-on.
Just as Heatran lined up with the Aura Sphere—
Ash pointed excitedly and shouted:
"Infernape! Show them what a real Aura Sphere is!"
"Explode—Aura Sphere!"
As Ash's voice fell—
Tobias froze.
Explode?
What was he talking about?
Since when could Aura Sphere do that?!
He'd never heard of such a thing!
But as Ash's words echoed—
The fire vortex surrounding Infernape began to change.
The crimson, magma-like flames—
Instantly turned orange-red!
As if some terrifying beast were about to break free from within!
And that was exactly the case!
Flames scorched Infernape's body—
But they could not crush its spirit!
Because this—
Was Infernape!
To be continued…
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