A violet meteor streaked down from the sky.
The violent impact sent sand and shattered stone spiraling into the air.
BOOM!!
Like a cataclysmic explosion, the meteor slammed into the ruins, collapsing the entire structure.
Fortunately, Ash and the others had retreated far enough to avoid the shockwave.
[Lance: Even against a Legendary, he still uses Seismic Toss as his finisher?!
As expected of Ash's Charizard!]
[Leon: Looks like I'll need to be careful of Seismic Toss myself when I battle Ash's Charizard someday. This power doesn't look like a normal Seismic Toss at all.]
[Alder: Forget the move—Ash and Pikachu's bond is unbelievable. Even a Legendary couldn't break the control device, but those two shattered it with nothing but their connection!]
[Professor Oak: That's Ash and Pikachu for you! They're the perfect partners. Otherwise, how could they have created a one-of-a-kind Z-Crystal?]
[Cynthia: But Ash was way too reckless! He took TWO Thunderbolts head-on! That's Elite-level power!]
[Bea: If possible, I want to fight Ash one-on-one! It's been a long time since I've seen a human body that sturdy…
The last person I knew with physical power close to mine was Master Bruno!]
Galar's Fighting-type Gym Leader, Bea, looked fired up.
In terms of physical conditioning, she believed she stood at the peak among humans.
And yet even she wasn't confident she could withstand two Thunderbolts of that strength and still get up shouting.
Ash's endurance exceeded hers.
Just what kind of training did he go through to achieve this physique?
She absolutely had to spar with Ash someday.
In the video—
After the successful Dragon-type Seismic Toss, dust filled the air.
Ash immediately hugged Pikachu tightly to shield him from the shockwave.
Super Rookie stamina, truly unmatched.
Dozens of seconds later, the storm settled.
Ash opened his eyes to see Ghetsis and Colress lying unconscious—
struck down by Pikachu's Thunderbolt.
The control machine was half-destroyed, although not completely.
That was why Reshiram had gone berserk earlier—
It had been resisting the machine to its limits.
But the destruction it caused was too dangerous,
so Ash had Charizard force it down with Seismic Toss.
Iris, Cilan, and N, who were caught by the shockwave, were groaning awake nearby.
A cracking sound echoed from within the crater.
A white figure burst out.
"Wooooh——"
Reshiram reappeared before Ash—
But this time, it was different.
Its eyes were no longer blood-red.
They were a deep gemstone blue.
Its expression was calm, no trace of earlier rage.
Its body bore many fresh wounds—
Seismic Toss had severely hurt it.
Another roar followed.
The orange dragon shot out of the rubble as well.
Charizard unfurled his wings, hovering before Reshiram.
He was also injured—
The Seismic Toss had been a blow-for-a-blow technique,
both damaging the opponent and wounding himself.
Judging by injuries alone, Reshiram was hit harder.
But everyone knew—
Legendary Pokémon stamina is on another level.
In a continued fight,
with no systems or boosts,
Ash's Charizard would eventually lose.
However—
"Wooooh——"
Reshiram cried toward Charizard.
Charizard's eyes widened.
His fighting spirit slowly faded.
Reshiram was declaring a ceasefire.
Charizard still wanted to clash more,
But since Reshiram had regained sanity and was no longer an enemy…
He could only back down.
"RRAOH!"
We'll battle again someday!
"Wooooh—…"
There will be a time…
Champion of truth.
Reshiram then turned its gaze toward Ash,
who was holding Pikachu and staring back at it.
Human and dragon locked eyes.
End.
(Note: There were originally scenes involving Team Rocket here, but they have been cut.
This segment is adapted from the OP and the anime.
Back to the present—
The video ended abruptly.
Everyone froze—
Then the entire world collectively exploded.
Why end NOW?!
What happened to Reshiram afterward?!
Were Ghetsis and Colress arrested?!
Did Charizard and Reshiram continue fighting later?!
WHY DID IT END?!
"Come on!! Show the rest!!"
"How do you judge the winner?! They didn't even finish!!"
"Wait… does this mean the winner is decided because Reshiram broke free from Ghetsis and refused to fight?
So Ghetsis loses by default?!"
"That's allowed?!"
The Heavenly Tally displayed:
[Since Reshiram broke free from Ghetsis's control and lost the will to battle, the victory is awarded to Ash's side.]
[However—Charizard did NOT truly defeat Reshiram.
Therefore, the reward has been reduced.]
[Rewards being tallied. Please wait.
Also—deducting points from all who bet on Reshiram's victory.]
The world: …
Be human, please?!
Taking the points FIRST is crazy!!
[Lance: A shame… I wonder if those two villains got arrested. They should've—Reshiram's free now, they're unconscious, easy capture.]
[Diantha: Lance, if you hadn't SAID that, they probably WOULD get arrested.]
[Lance: ...]
The curse of the toxic prophecy continued.
[Leon: To be fair, the Tally is quite reasonable.
Unless Charizard powered up mid-battle, he really couldn't beat full-strength Reshiram.]
[Alder: True… but everyone knows Ash's explosive power.
The gap wasn't impossible.
There WAS a tiny chance.]
[Drasna: Champion Alder, please refrain from comparing the Unova Dragon of Truth to… a Charizard.
A Legendary is not something mortals can touch.]
Drasna, the Kalos Dragon-type Elite Four, was visibly annoyed.
Alder scratched his cheek awkwardly.
He didn't expect such a big reaction.
Ash, afraid Charizard might feel discouraged, patted him softly.
"Charizard, I believe in you!
One day you'll match Reshiram—no, surpass it!"
But Charizard wasn't discouraged at all.
He looked smug.
After all, the Charizard shown in the video
had no Rainbow Wing,
no Z-Moves,
and his foundation was still damaged—
Yet he was already THIS strong.
Once his flaws were fixed,
and with a Z-Move on top of it—
What Reshiram?
Bring one, beat one.
Blastoise (Squirtle), Froakie, and Pikachu chimed in—
Squirtle asked him how to become strong.
Charizard answered:
"RRAH!!"
Just cheat.
"Squirtle: ...?"
Froakie wondered what his evolution would be like someday.
Pikachu proudly declared that not evolving was the superior path.
After all, if he evolved into Raichu,
he wouldn't be able to sit on Ash's shoulder anymore.
Absolutely unacceptable.
At Steven's temporary residence—
A beam of light descended.
Ash's entire body glowed before the light receded.
His appearance didn't change—
But his gloves did.
His green gloves had turned black,
and on the back of his right glove—
A brilliant stone shimmered with rainbow hues,
lined with gene-like patterns.
A Keystone.
Every Champion and Elite recognized it instantly.
Ash slowly extended his hand
and revealed the second item:
A round stone
with black and blue swirling lines—
Charizard's Mega Stone.
Charizardite X.
"Ash: The Tally said… this is my Keystone.
And this is Charizard's Mega Stone!"
Ash's voice trembled with excitement.
Ever since seeing Mega Gardevoir
and experiencing Greninja's Bond Phenomenon,
he'd longed for a Mega Evolution of his own.
He once planned to exchange points to get one…
But he didn't even get the chance.
The Heavenly Tally delivered it straight into his hands.
Leon's eyes sparkled instantly.
"As expected of Charizard's Mega Stone!
It looks totally different from Gardevoir's!"
Diantha stepped forward gracefully.
"Every Mega Stone has a unique pattern.
Yesterday, after I disciplined—
ahem… educated Wikstrom,
I visited Professor Sycamore and traded information."
She'd allowed Sycamore to analyze Mega Gardevoir in exchange for data.
"Did you find Charizard's Mega form?" Lance asked.
Diantha shook her head.
"No. At present, Mega Evolution exists only in theory.
Aside from my Gardevoir,
no known Pokémon in the world has successfully Mega Evolved."
"Professor Sycamore has only identified which species might be capable—
but hasn't achieved a single successful evolution.
If he had, the entire world would know by now."
Everyone nodded.
If Mega Evolution had truly been unlocked,
it would've shaken the world already.
"Can Ash and Charizard Mega Evolve now?" Steven asked.
Ash and Charizard exchanged glances.
After a moment, Ash shook his head.
"No… not yet."
"Rraaoh…"
They could feel it.
Their bond was strong,
but their battle time together was too short.
Their synergy wasn't enough to reach Mega Evolution.
But—
They also knew the day wasn't far.
"Being able to sense your own shortcomings…
Ash, you've grown into a real Trainer."
"A—haha… not really, I still have a long way to go."
Misty raised her eyebrow.
"That's right! You STILL have a long way to go!
Don't get cocky!
When you become as strong as your Alola self,
THEN you can feel proud!"
Ash's brief pride deflated instantly.
Compared to his future Alola Champion self…
He really was nowhere close.
Nothing highlights one's weaknesses like comparing oneself.
And Misty knew exactly how to keep him humble.
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