BOOM!!
Naganadel crashed into the ground with a thunderous impact!
Dust blasted outward.
The battlefield shook.
A huge crater appeared where it landed, Naganadel struggling inside it, wings twitching as it tried to take off again.
All those hits Lucario had landed earlier—
Even that super-effective Dragon Pulse—
None of them had hit as brutally as this one, Dazzling Gleam from Tapu Koko!
Even among legendary Pokémon, there was a power gap.
Kukui stood at the side, staring at Tapu Koko's displayed strength, momentarily stunned.
It wasn't that he'd never seen Tapu Koko's power before—
He'd just never compared it directly like this.
No comparison, no damage.
A Pokémon on par with an Ultra Beast, like Naganadel,
Had been smashed into critical condition with a single, non-super-effective blow.
The guardian deity's power was on a different level.
"Naganadel, are you still with us?!"
"Ayoh!"
Naganadel shook its head hard, then slowly rose back into the air again!
Even for a divine guardian,
One neutral Dazzling Gleam was still a bit short of taking it down outright.
"You did great, Naganadel! Again—Sludge Bomb!"
"Dazzling Gleam!"
Seeing Ash insist on using Sludge Bomb, Kukui didn't hesitate—
He wanted to recreate that exact scene from before!
Dozens of gobs of black sludge fired like missiles—
Tapu Koko rushed in like a guided warhead,
smashing through every single one of them head-on!
"Now! Poison Jab!"
"Ayoh!"
Naganadel's large stinger glowed a venomous purple.
It lunged right at the charging Tapu Koko,
meeting it in a full-frontal clash!
BOOM!!
Their collision erupted in a huge shockwave.
Wind roared across the field in expanding rings.
The atmosphere felt like gods themselves were fighting.
To be fair… they kind of were.
The earlier Sludge Bomb had taken just enough power off Tapu Koko's charge—
Naganadel managed to withstand Dazzling Gleam with Poison Jab.
"Perfect timing! Naganadel, Sludge Bomb again!"
The two Pokémon were locked in a power struggle,
just like when Lucario had used Force Palm to block Naganadel earlier.
But Naganadel had one big advantage—
It had two more stingers still free to attack.
The two smaller stingers aimed at Tapu Koko—
Then fired black "bullets" like a rapid-fire machine gun!
Kukui's face tightened.
At this distance—how was Tapu Koko supposed to defend?
"Shff!"
The yellow shells on Tapu Koko's arms suddenly gained a metallic sheen—
Then swung down to shield the incoming Sludge Bombs.
BANG! BANG! BANG!!
The sludge bullets slammed against the shells,
all of them blocked cleanly by Tapu Koko's arm guards.
Tapu Koko used a single action to tell Kukui—
I'm not Lucario.
"Steel Wing, huh? As expected of a guardian deity—there's nothing you can't do."
"Our turn to counterattack, Ash! Tapu Koko—Discharge!"
"Naganadel, get away from there!!"
Ash tried to have Naganadel pull back—
But there was no way it could flee from such close range.
"Zzzzzzz!!"
A massive surge of golden electricity burst out from Tapu Koko's body—
And ran straight into Naganadel!
Viewers could tell this Discharge wasn't as terrifying as the one shown during the recap earlier.
Tapu Koko had clearly held back a little.
Otherwise, Naganadel would've been roasted on the spot.
Even so, under that overwhelming current, Naganadel's body convulsed uncontrollably—
And then it crashed to the ground.
"Ai… ayoh!!"
Even after such a powerful attack, Naganadel still hadn't fainted!
Its body was covered in wounds, but it stubbornly pushed itself up again.
It had double resistance to Electric-type,
and it was an Ultra Beast—almost in the realm of legends.
Taking it down this easily just wasn't happening.
"Naganadel…"
Watching it shakily rise again, Ash straightened his cap and shouted:
"Naganadel—your opponent is Tapu Koko. You don't need to hold back anymore!
Use your full power!"
The live chat: ???
What was that supposed to mean?
That earlier… Naganadel was still holding back?
Seriously?!
[Lance: Ultra Beasts… are they really that strong?]
[Cynthia: So all that wasn't full power? Even Regice and Latios didn't look this strong.]
[Steven: Yeah. I'd say Naganadel is even stronger than Melmetal.
Professor Kukui, are Ultra Beasts all this terrifying?]
[Kukui: Not exactly. Naganadel was at full strength when it fought Venusaur earlier.
But Ultra Beasts share a common Ability—Beast Boost.]
[Professor Oak: Beast Boost? Never heard of that Ability.]
[Kukui: It's an Ability exclusive to Ultra Beasts.
Every time they knock out an opponent,
their highest stat is boosted by one stage.
They literally get stronger the longer they fight.]
Kukui might not know this specific Ultra Beast personally,
But all Ultra Beasts shared that Ability—Beast Boost.
However, Ash's Naganadel…
[Leon: So right now, Naganadel actually has two stat boosts stacked.
But from start to finish, it hasn't visibly shown any change in power at all.]
[Hala: That's why Ash told it to use its full strength now!]
[Wallace: Uh… and you are?]
[Hala: First time appearing—
I am Hala, Kahuna of Melemele Island!
Chosen by Tapu Koko itself to guard this island!]
[Steven: Alola really does have its own unique charm.
I have to visit someday.]
As Kukui explained, the audience finally understood what Ash meant by "full power."
To be honest, for many Trainers,
this was the first time they'd ever seen someone hide their stat boosts on purpose.
No flashy aura, no roar, no posture—
Just quietly stacking power.
On the screen—
Under Ash's command, Naganadel let out a piercing cry.
Red light surged around its body, rising like flames.
"Oh? Beast Boost… I almost forgot," Kukui muttered.
"Tapu Koko, be careful—your opponent's powered up."
"Kpu!"
Tapu Koko could feel it too—
Naganadel, after boosting, felt completely different.
"Naganadel—Dragon Pulse!"
"Ayoh!"
Kukui: …?
What are you doing?
First, you use Poison on a Steel-type,
Now Dragon against a Fairy?
Did you eat the type chart or something?
Viewers worldwide were equally confused.
Is this what they call: 'sometimes a god, sometimes a gremlin'?
Facing the incoming Dragon Pulse—
Tapu Koko didn't dodge.
It simply prepared its next move.
But—
Just before the purple-blue dragon head hit Tapu Koko,
it swerved—
And slammed into the ground instead!
BOOM!!
The explosion kicked up a thick wall of smoke,
blanketing the entire battlefield in dust.
Tapu Koko's attention had been glued to that twisting Dragon Pulse—
By the time it turned back—
Naganadel had vanished from the sky.
Ash held his cap down against the raging wind—
a sly smile curling his lips.
"—shff!"
Behind Tapu Koko, a streak of purple flashed—
Poison Jab bathed in violet light slammed straight into its back!
The immense force sent Tapu Koko flying!
This was Tapu Koko's first hit taken since entering the field.
But after being blasted back only a dozen meters,
Tapu Koko has already stabilized itself.
Even a double-super-effective hit—
Barely counted as a scratch against a divine guardian.
"Got me good there," Kukui chuckled.
"Using Dragon Pulse to throw up a smokescreen and block vision…
That's so like you, Ash."
The Dragon Pulse hadn't been aimed at Tapu Koko at all—
It had been aimed at the battlefield.
Classic Ash: chaotic on the surface,
shockingly sharp underneath.
"Heheh—thanks for going easy on us, Professor!
Naganadel, Poison Jab again!"
"Tapu Koko, Steel Wing!"
Golden and purple streams of light tangled over the field—
crashing, separating, and clashing again at speeds
Most people couldn't even track.
Sand flew. Wind roared.
Shockwaves carved lines into sky and stone,
Leaving gashes in the ground wherever the two collided.
[Leon: Naganadel's speed caught up to Tapu Koko's!]
[Lance: That should be Beast Boost at work—
It's already a high Speed stat that got boosted twice,
letting it close the gap with Tapu Koko.]
Lance's analysis was spot on.
Ash's Naganadel had already been fast before.
Add in a double Beast Boost—
Its speed now rivaled Tapu Koko's.
After exchanging dozens of lightning-fast passes—
Naganadel finally forced an opening—
and slammed a Poison Jab straight into Tapu Koko's face!
But at that exact moment—
One of Tapu Koko's metallic arms suddenly crackled with dazzling golden lightning—
And it punched out at point-blank range!
BOOM!!
Both Pokémon were sent flying!
Tapu Koko flipped in mid-air and stopped after barely a dozen meters.
Naganadel, however, plummeted straight down,
skidding across the ground and slamming into the arena wall.
Stone shattered.
Rubble poured down, burying its body completely—
only its head poking out.
Naganadel tried to move again.
But no matter how it struggled—
It couldn't rise.
Its head finally drooped,
and it fainted completely.
In this clash of gods—
Tapu Koko was victorious.
Even boosted by Beast Boost,
Naganadel still couldn't overcome a guardian deity with a divine mantle.
Ash rushed to its side,
frantically pulling away broken stone,
once again showing the world what it meant to be the ultimate pure-hearted rookie.
[Hala: In the end, Tapu Koko still wins.
Even a powered-up Ultra Beast can't defeat it.
I think Ash is in serious trouble now.]
[Lance: Hah! See that? This is what I mean—
How could a divine guardian lose?
Especially a guardian like Tapu Koko!]
[Ash: U-Um… Mr. Lance… you're really hurting my feelings here…]
[Jessie: Hey twerp, you can do it! We're cheering for you! Smash that Tapu Whatever!!]
[Hala: Team Rocket, huh? How dare you speak so rudely of the guardian deity!]
[James: Ahem! Sorry about Jessie—she's just talking nonsense.
Let me apologize on her behalf…]
"You're insane or what, Jessie?! That's the guardian deity!"
James grabbed her, horrified.
"If you badmouth it like that, the entire Alola region will come after us!"
Jessie looked away and shut up,
admittedly realizing she'd gotten carried away.
But that guy Lance had been badmouthing the twerp nonstop!
Where were their faces supposed to go,
as the ones who kept getting beaten by him?
Besides, they'd bet big on the twerp winning!
An uncle might tolerate this.
Jessie would not.
"James, you better keep an eye on Jessie, meow!" Meowth said.
"If a Champion starts targeting us, we're done for, meow!"
James nodded vigorously, swearing he'd keep Jessie from typing anything else crazy.
Whether he could actually stop her…
Only he knew.
After clearing all the debris,
Ash checked Naganadel carefully.
Seeing it had no serious injuries,
he finally let out a breath of relief.
"You did amazing out there, Naganadel.
Take a good rest."
"Pika-pi!"
Pikachu cheered for it too.
Naganadel let out a weak cry in response,
before Ash recalled it into the Beast Ball.
...
"Pika-pi!"
With Naganadel down, Pikachu was fired up.
He was sure it was finally his turn!
"Sorry, Pikachu. I'm letting this guy go first."
"Pi?! Pika~…"
Pikachu's ears shot straight up—
Then drooped as Ash pulled out another Poké Ball.
Right.
He'd forgotten—Lycanroc was still able to battle.
"You're not sending Pikachu?" Kukui asked.
"I want this one to take the stage.
Who knows—maybe Pikachu won't even need to battle?"
"K… Kpu!!!!"
You ungrateful brat!!
How dare you say I'll lose to your mutt?!
Both that dog and you—I raised you myself!
Now you show up to overthrow me?!
Ash chuckled.
"Just kidding, Tapu Koko."
"I just want you to see…
That little Rockruff that used to stand in front of you—
can now fight on its own."
"I choose you—Lycanroc!!"
"Awoooo!!"
With a flash of light, the orange Dusk Form Lycanroc appeared on the field!
He stared straight at Tapu Koko, eyes burning with fighting spirit.
"So this is what they call a father-son grudge match, huh? Hahaha, here we go!"
"Lycanroc, Stone Edge!"
Lycanroc stomped the ground hard—
Razor-sharp stone pillars erupted one after another,
launching straight at Tapu Koko!
"Steel Wing—break through them!"
"Kpu!"
Tapu Koko's body glowed with violet light as it charged!
The rising stone spikes meant nothing to it—
CRASH CRASH CRASH!!
It smashed through one after another,
shattering them like brittle glass.
In the blink of an eye, it was right in front of Lycanroc!
"Lycanroc—Sand Attack!"
Lycanroc whipped around,
hind legs digging fiercely into the ground.
(Dog's gonna dog. I'm not misnaming this. :P)
Dust exploded everywhere,
swallowing Tapu Koko in a dense cloud.
Tapu Koko just barreled straight into the sandstorm—
And hit nothing but air.
"Now! Accelerock!"
Lycanroc shot out from Tapu Koko's flank,
the stones on its mane sharpening into a deadly edge
as it slammed into Tapu Koko's side!
However—
Tapu Koko didn't move an inch.
It just looked at Lycanroc quietly.
The gaze of a disappointed parent.
The fearless mutt who feared neither the heavens nor the earth—
took two involuntary steps back.
Then, brilliant lightning crackled around Tapu Koko—
lashing out like golden serpents into Lycanroc's body.
Discharge!
Lycanroc howled in agony.
"Now, Steel Wing!"
BANG!!
Riding the aftershock of the Discharge,
Tapu Koko struck with Steel Wing—
Lycanroc was sent flying,
crashing to the ground and lying still, unable to rise again.
Tapu Koko… had won easily.
Lycanroc had grown a lot—
But he was still far from Champion-level,
much less able to surpass a divine guardian stronger than your average Champion.
Even with tricks and tactics,
even landing a clean Accelerock—
That was as far as he could go.
Ash knelt down and stroked Lycanroc's head,
then gently recalled him.
Now,
Ash had only one Pokémon left.
Pikachu.
Tapu Koko still looked like it had at least eighty percent of its stamina left.
As things stood—
Ash seemed utterly cornered.
When a "generic mascot Pikachu."
runs into a literal electric-type god…
Isn't that just asking to be shattered?
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