Seeing Sceptile take the advantage, Ash was ecstatic—
But behind him,
the Champions' faces turned grim instead of joyful.
Brock immediately noticed.
"Um… Champions?
Is something wrong with Ash's Sceptile?"
Cynthia shook her head slowly.
"No.
Sceptile is incredible—
Among all the Sceptile I've ever seen,
His training is easily the best."
"But…"
Her voice lowered.
"That doesn't mean he can defeat Darkrai."
Ash stiffened.
"W–Wait, Cynthia?
But Sceptile is totally dominating right now!"
"Ahem…"
Agatha cleared her throat,
then spoke with a calm, heavy voice.
"He's dominating only on the surface.
True, Sceptile's speed is outstanding."
"But he can't maintain that speed forever.
He's not a Legendary Pokémon—
His stamina has limits."
"And Sceptile isn't just dodging,
He needs to attack, too.
You cannot win by evasion alone."
"Here's the real problem—
Darkrai's offensive power is monstrous,
and as a Mythical Pokémon,
Its HP is leagues above normal Pokémon."
"Add to that its combo of Dark Void and Dream Eater…
and Darkrai can afford dozens of mistakes."
"But Sceptile…
only gets one.
The moment Dark Void hits—
Everything is over."
Ash finally understood—
Even though the battle looked good,
the situation was treacherous beyond belief.
Darkrai had many chances.
Sceptile only had one.
"Sceptile…
Please hang in there!"
In the Battle
After several rounds of intense exchanges,
Sceptile finally pushed Darkrai back with overwhelming speed.
Darkrai's HP dipped little by little.
But Tobias was completely calm.
Until—
"Sceptile— Leaf Storm!!"
"Cha!!"
A violent cyclone of green energy exploded from Sceptile's tail.
Countless blade-like leaves swirled into a raging vortex.
Leaf Storm—
incredibly powerful,
but slow to charge
and harsh in recoil.
This was Sceptile's opening.
Tobias' eyes gleamed.
"Now—
Darkrai, Ice Beam!!"
A freezing blue blast pierced the air.
The light refracted sharply as the beam streaked forward—
And before Sceptile could unleash Leaf Storm—
Ice Beam struck cleanly.
"Cha!!"
A brutally super-effective hit.
Leaf Storm shattered mid-cast, leaves scattering like dying sparks.
Sceptile was blasted backward,
scraping across the ground for several meters.
"Sceptile!!"
Ash's heart clenched.
The first three Pokémon were OHKO'd—
Would Sceptile fall the same way?
But—
"Cha…!"
Incredibly—
Sceptile staggered to his feet.
The pride of Hoenn starters indeed.
He survived a clean, super-effective Ice Beam
from Darkrai.
But Tobias was not done.
"Darkrai— Dark Void!"
A black sphere formed instantly.
"Move, Sceptile!!"
But it was too late.
Sceptile was still recovering from Ice Beam—
The Dark Void struck him dead-on.
Sceptile collapsed…
The moment every viewer dreaded.
Defeat.
[Cynthia: It seems… this is the end.]
[Steven: After so many victories against gods—
Is this where Ash finally falls?]
[Leon: A shame.
If only he had waited to wear Darkrai down a bit more
before attempting Leaf Storm…]
[Alder: Don't be too harsh.
Ash is still a kid—
What, maybe thirteen?
He's already doing unbelievably well.]
[Grimsley: Darkrai is truly incredible.
Even Sceptile fell to Dark Void…
I wish I could catch one someday!]
[Malva: Same!
Darkrai as ace, Incineroar as second—
Perfect lineup!]
Umbreon & Absol:
HELLO? WE EXIST.
The Champions' chatter faded.
Everyone knew:
Unconscious Skeptical
Dream Eater incoming
= guaranteed defeat.
Unless Sceptile woke instantly—
which was virtually impossible.
Tobias would KO Sceptile,
recall Darkrai,
and send out Latios
to flaunt his double-Legendary team…
Ash never stood a chance.
Twinleaf Town — Dawn's Home
A young girl with long blue hair and a pink skirt
clutched a pillow nervously.
Dawn.
She hadn't even set out on her journey yet—
But she already knew her future self,
seen during the third countdown.
She admired her future outfit so much
She started dressing like it.
And Ash—
This boy she had never met
but watched nonstop—
felt like a shining figure of hope.
Now seeing him pushed to the brink…
"Ash…
please… don't lose…"
Indigo Plateau — Outside the Stadium
Gary clenched his fist.
Facing a competitor with Mythicals?
Rigged.
Totally unfair.
But still—
"Come on, Ash.
Come on, Sceptile.
Show them what you're made of—
crush that Legendary show-off!!"
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