[Clair: Wow~ Liza, you're really going too far! Bringing someone else's Charizard to my Gym to battle!]
[Liza: Well, don't say that. I don't think it's my fault.~]
[Clair: Is it my fault?]
[Liza: Is there a possibility… that I was just walking Black Ash's Charizard in the Black World, and you saw it, wanted a fight, and ended up getting completely thrashed?]
[Liza: It's not like you haven't done something like that in this world~ It's just that the Charizard on White Ash's side is weaker and hasn't reached its full strength yet, so you just played around a bit. Don't tell me you forgot.]
[Clair: Um… well...]
Could she say she really had forgotten…?
After all, Ash's Charizard in this world wasn't very powerful at first.
She originally thought that since it was a Charizard accompanying Liza, it must be strong.
So she had used her Gyarados to spar with it for a bit… with somewhat unsatisfactory results.
She'd forgotten about it later.
It seems… the her in that image must have brought it upon herself and gotten a brutal beating…
For instance, upon seeing the Charizard, she was delighted and challenged it to a battle, using her standard Gym team. Of course, she couldn't beat it that way, but as for using her main team…
Since the opponent didn't have a trainer, she didn't have the nerve to go that far, so she had to swallow her pride.
[Liza: Wow~ You really forgot! You deserved to get beaten up by Ash's Charizard!]
[Clair: I… how could I forget that! I just happened to not recall it at the moment!]
It was such a lame excuse that even Ash could see through it.
...
In the Black World —
After Ash and Clair's brief meeting, Clair said she would wait here for her Dratini to evolve.
Her Dratini had been raised for a long time and had shed its skin countless times. Logically, it should have evolved long ago, but it remained a Dratini. However, Clair had an intuition… its evolution would happen during this period.
So, she set aside her Gym duties and took Dratini out to relax and walk around. As a result, she happened to meet Ash and his group here.
Since Clair wouldn't be returning to the Gym for a while, Ash and the others simply stayed to keep her company. After all, if the Gym Leader wasn't there, challenging the Gym was pointless…
The group sat by the river, sharing their experiences and exchanging Pokémon training methods.
As a Dragon-type Gym Leader, Clair naturally had her own training regimens for Dragon Pokémon. Aside from some unique secret techniques, she explained the other methods to Ash and the others in detail.
Ash had a Dragonair, a pure Dragon-type, so Clair's methods were very beneficial to him.
Thus, the group spent a pleasant day on the beautiful grassy plain.
At night, the Dratini playing in the water with the nearly-recovered red Gyarados suddenly emitted an extremely dazzling light!
"It's evolving!"
Clair, who had been sitting in a portable chair, shot to her feet, her eyes glowing as she watched the slowly transforming Dratini.
In an instant, the petite figure expanded several times over! As the white light dissipated, a new form appeared before Clair's eyes.
"Dratini, you… no, I should call you Dragonair now! My great Dragonair, you evolved!"
Clair happily hugged Dragonair, her joy overflowing.
Ash observed the opponent's Aura… Peak Gym-level. Once it evolves, it becomes peak Gym-level straight away. That's the pseudo-legendary scam for you. It takes forever to evolve, but once it does, it's a complete transformation!
However, Ash's own Dragonair hadn't improved that dramatically upon evolution. It could only be said that Clair's Dratini had been accumulating power for an exceptionally long time before evolving… several years. Reaching peak Gym-level strength upon evolution wasn't surprising.
"Miss Clair, can you return for our Gym challenge now?"
"Don't get me wrong, I don't mean today. I mean tomorrow."
Clair released Dragonair, the joy still on her face, and replied to Ash with a smile.
"Of course, you can come challenge me tomorrow morning… But tell me in advance, do you want to challenge me at full strength, or at a standard Gym level?"
"No need to ask—full strength, of course!"
He had already beaten a full-strength Pryce. Why would he be afraid of a full-strength Clair?
However, against Clair, Ash did not plan to use Pikachu or Charizard.
The one who would take the stage… was someone else.
Later, Clair went to a nearby lake and performed a "Dragon's Blessing" ceremony, using the Dragon Fang passed down through generations in the Blackthorn Gym. The one who brought the Dragon Fang was naturally the Blackthorn Gym's steward, Kogane.
The so-called ceremony was to use the heirloom Dragon Fang to pray for the prosperity of all Dragon Pokémon in Blackthorn City, wishing them smooth sailing. Whether such blessings were effective was a matter of belief. If you believed, they existed; if you didn't, they didn't.
At the very least, Ash and the others saw a brilliant light dragon emerge from the Dragon Fang, which made them somewhat believe in the legend.
In the evening, Clair and her group returned to the Gym. Ash and the others went back to stay at the Pokémon Center. Their funds had been a bit tight lately, so… they couldn't afford anything like a hotel.
After arriving at the Pokémon Center, Ash first exchanged a few Pokémon with Professor Oak for use in tomorrow's battle against the Blackthorn Gym. Then, everyone returned to their rooms and fell into a deep sleep.
...
[Lance: Good grief! I call that targeted! Is it that deliberate?!]
[Clair: No, big brother, I'm just a trainer who recently reached Elite Four–level! Do you have to be so exaggerated? I mourn for my other self in that world.]
[Liza: Tsk tsk, I told you all about the Black World. If Ash uses Pikachu or Charizard, Black Clair wouldn't even need to fight—just forfeit. Clair, you actually thought I was exaggerating.]
[Liza: Now I can take back my previous statement—even if Black Ash doesn't use Pikachu or Charizard, you're probably going to lose. I didn't expect he'd send that Pokémon onto the field.]
[Clair: Stop looking down on me! It hasn't happened yet! Why do you assume I'll lose!]
[Lorelei: Haha, to deal with Dragon Pokémon, he even brought out Articuno… It seems Ash takes this match very seriously!]
Yes, one of the Pokémon Black Ash had exchanged from Professor Oak was—Articuno!
To deal with a Dragon-type Gym, using an Ice-type Pokémon was normal, right?
[Professor Oak: Actually, Ash could clear the challenge easily using Pikachu or Charizard. Even with other Pokémon, once he adds Aura Fusion, he's practically invincible!]
[Professor Oak: It's just that when Black Ash faces a slightly stronger opponent… he chooses to use Pokémon of comparable strength.]
[Cynthia: Yes, I think… this should be Black Ash's way of training himself.]
[Cynthia: Although instantly overwhelming the opponent is an easy win, victory obtained that way is too effortless and offers no room for improvement or gain.]
Relying on sheer strength to crush offered no help to a trainer's growth. Therefore, when facing a slightly stronger trainer, Ash chose Pokémon that were closely matched! This way, Ash could also gain insights and improve his command skills. Black Ash wasn't doing this just for fun!
[Clair: So that's why he used Articuno against me?]
Clair rolled her eyes.
She did have an Elite Four–level Pokémon, but it was only low Elite Four–level, and it had a 4x weakness to Ice!
It wasn't that there was no chance of winning against Articuno, but the odds weren't much better than one in ten thousand.
Alas… my other self, I sympathize.
...
In the Black World —
The next day arrived. Ash and the four arrived at the Blackthorn Gym. Kogane enthusiastically welcomed them inside.
After learning that Clair's Dratini had evolved into Dragonair—though it had been on the verge anyway—Kogane insisted that Ash and the children had brought good luck to Clair, so he was particularly warm towards them.
Inside the Blackthorn Gym, Clair had already changed into the attire from the previous day's ceremony.
She wore a red and black windbreaker over a blue bodysuit. The bodysuit only reached the top of her thighs, revealing her flawless, pale legs beneath the long coat. At the same time, the tight fit vividly accentuated Clair's curvaceous figure—towering chest, extremely slender waist…
Judging by Brock's state under Sabrina's psychic hold, one could tell how alluring Clair looked now. But Ash had no such thoughts about Clair's seductive attire; his mind was wholly occupied by the upcoming battle!
This greatly satisfied Sabrina and Misty.
To be fair, unless a girl took the initiative, Ash usually paid no attention to such matters, or even to male-female relationships in general.
He had emotional intelligence—but not much.
Kogane stood at the referee's platform, waving his flags and explaining the rules.
"The match rules are three-on-three. The available fields are Water and Land. However, in the third round, the Air field will be unlocked."
"The Gym Leader cannot switch Pokémon. The Gym Leader has the first move. Now—let the match begin!"
"Go, Kingdra!"
Clair's first Pokémon—Kingdra!
Unlike her cousin, the Pokémon she used… were true Dragon types!
"The first is Kingdra… Then I'll choose…"
"I choose you, Snorlax!!"
Ash's first choice was Snorlax!
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