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"Isn't this bad?"
Aaron said.
"Electivire's Ability is Motor Drive. When hit by an Electric-type move, it doesn't take damage; instead, its Speed is boosted."
Brock, sitting in the spectator stands, explained to Dawn and another friend the trio had met during their journey.
"Plus, Electric-type against Electric-type is naturally resisted, so they would only use non-Electric-type moves from the start."
"No wonder Paul used Thunder to blow away the rocks at the beginning, and then used Brick Break."
"Doesn't that mean Pikachu can only use Iron Tail?"
Hearing Dawn and the other boy's words, Brock nodded.
"So Pikachu's Wild Charge won't do any damage to Electivire; instead, it will only boost Electivire's Speed."
"Ah?"
On the field, Electivire reached out with both hands and blocked Pikachu.
"Now, Iron Tail!"
Ash watched Pikachu get close to Electivire and quickly issued his command.
Pikachu's tail turned into the shape of steel, and then it leaped high into the air, slamming down toward Electivire.
"Thunder Punch."
Electivire's fist was covered in electric light, clashing with Pikachu's Iron Tail.
"That dummy Ash doesn't seem so dumb after all."
Lucas leaned against the railing and said.
"A bold idea."
Steven smiled faintly, expressing his thoughts.
"Without using this method, he probably wouldn't have even noticed Paul's vigilance, right?"
Cynthia held Shauna, a gleam flashing in her beautiful eyes. "He must have realized that Paul wanted to use Electivire to wear down Pikachu's stamina. For Ash to defeat Electivire with Pikachu, he could only rely on Iron Tail. However, Electivire's tails can restrict Pikachu's movements, so he had to have Pikachu use Wild Charge to lower Paul's guard."
"It's a very bold and unexpected idea, but it also puts a lot of pressure on Pikachu."
Cynthia praised generously.
"Even so, Pikachu is probably still a bit lacking in raw power compared to Electivire."
Flint scratched his afro and said.
"Right now they seem evenly matched, but Pikachu is airborne with no leverage, while Electivire is standing firmly on the ground. In the long run, Electivire is bound to win."
Lucian was spot on.
Pikachu gritted its teeth and pressed down hard with its tail, while Electivire refused to back down.
"Go for it, Pikachu! I know you can do it!"
Ash panted, continuously cheering Pikachu on.
Inspired by Ash, Pikachu put more strength into its tail, faintly showing signs of overpowering Electivire.
For Pikachu to overpower Electivire in sheer strength, the title of "Pika-God" truly lived up to its name.
"Do you remember our first battle?"
Paul looked at Ash and suddenly spoke.
Ash was stunned for a moment.
"That time, you also had Pikachu use Iron Tail, wanting to settle things with Elekid."
Paul said calmly, "Back then, it was a draw."
"Yeah, but this time, Pikachu and I will definitely win."
Ash was full of confidence.
"When Pikachu uses Iron Tail, its body is airborne, meaning it can only use its tail. But Electivire is using Thunder Punch, which only takes one hand."
As soon as Paul finished speaking, Ash realized what he meant.
"Which means... there's still the other hand... Breeding House, Dash?"
Paul nodded.
"Exactly. This is the technique we learned from Lucas's Dash."
"Electivire, Brick Break!"
Electivire raised its left hand and chopped down hard toward Pikachu.
With no way to defend, Pikachu was hit squarely in the face by the Brick Break, sent flying, and crashed in front of Ash.
Pikachu struggled to stand, swaying unsteadily, before its limbs gave out and it collapsed, unable to battle.
"Pikachu!"
Ash hurriedly picked Pikachu up.
While everyone was still in shock that Electivire could use two moves simultaneously, Lucas's expression suddenly changed.
"Gothitelle!"
The sudden cry pulled everyone's thoughts back as they looked at Lucas.
Gothitelle reacted instantly, moving in front of Dash as her powerful psychic power swept out, condensing into a psychic barrier.
Just as the barrier formed, four powerful fists slammed into the protective shield.
Boom!
The shield cracked all over, on the verge of shattering.
The powerful shockwave made everyone present gasp.
"Dash!"
Hearing Lucas's voice, Dash snapped out of it and pulled its fists back.
Gothitelle let out a sigh of relief and withdrew the barrier.
Seeing that nothing around was damaged, Lucas also breathed a sigh of relief.
Fortunately, he understood Dash well enough to have Gothitelle take precautions in time.
Otherwise, he'd be finished and have to pay for damages again.
Dash scratched the back of its head sheepishly. Since it was wearing a safety helmet, it could only pat the helmet.
"Ma Machamp."
Hehe, sorry, I got too excited.
"Ma Machamp."
That move was our...
Lucas nodded. "It seems your teaching has been very effective."
Lucas gave a thumbs-up.
"Lucas actually reacted in time this time?"
Lucian was even more shocked.
In the past, every time Dash made a move, Lucas failed to react.
But this time, he actually reacted.
Lucian looked at Gothitelle.
As a Psychic-type Elite, he really admired how Lucas had raised Gothitelle to be like this—elegant yet powerful.
"This is the final battle. Infernape, let's go!"
Ash's voice drew everyone's attention. Looking over, the injured and poisoned Infernape stood in front of Ash, the flames on its body still burning fiercely.
"Infernape—"
Sitting in the VIP booth, the Team Rocket Trio—Jessie squeezed James and Meowth's hands tightly, her face full of worry, though James and Meowth were grimacing in pain from her grip.
"Electivire, Thunder!"
Electivire once again thrust its palms and tails into the ground, and the powerful electric current sent chunks of earth flying toward Infernape.
"Mach Punch."
Having cleared the rocks, Infernape cried out in pain, its body swaying unsteadily.
The poison effect triggered.
"Damn it."
Ash gritted his teeth.
"Thunder Punch."
"We can do this, Infernape! Let's defeat it quickly, Mach Punch!"
Electivire and Infernape clashed repeatedly.
Lucas tapped his fingers on the railing in front of him, watching the battle on the field with rapt attention.
Ash and Paul were like two sides of the same coin; even though they shared the same goal, their paths were completely different. But looking at them now, they seemed to have acknowledged each other.
Although Ash and Paul had faced each other several times before, this time they stood on the exact same stage. Thus, both were fighting with everything they had, wanting to defeat the other, to prove themselves, and to respond to the other's feelings.
This is probably the charm of Pokémon battles...
Lucas's mind was filled with thoughts.
"Thunder!"
"Dig!"
Infernape used Dig to dodge Electivire's Thunder, then dug right beneath Electivire, bursting from the ground to deliver a punch to its chin, sending Electivire flying.
It's super effective!
Electivire cracked its neck, stood up, and roared at Infernape.
"Flamethrower!"
"Protect."
A green barrier blocked the Flamethrower.
"Mach Punch!"
"Catch it!"
Paul seized the opening when Infernape's speed dropped, having Electivire grab Infernape's arm with its strong, powerful tails.
The Mach Punch was forced to a halt, and Infernape lacked the strength to break free from Electivire's grasp.
"It's over. Thunder."
The Thunder traveled along the tail and surged into Infernape. Both Infernape and Electivire were enveloped in electricity, and within the lightning, Infernape let out an agonizing cry of pain.
Electivire let go of its tail, and Infernape, with its eyes rolled back and devoid of focus, stood motionless on the field.
So... so...
Infernape's vision went pitch black; its only thought at this moment was how much it wanted to lie down and rest.
"Infernape—"
"Infernape—"
So noisy...
Whose voice is that?
Infernape forced its eyes open and saw Electivire beckoning to it from across the field.
"Roar."
"Keep going, come on. This shouldn't be all you've got."
"Infernape!"
It heard it—it was Ash's voice.
It looked back and saw Ash watching it with a worried face, but his eyes held an unprecedented determination.
"Did you forget? I believe we can definitely do it!"
Ash shouted.
"Pika pika!"
"Keep fighting!"
In the spectator stands, Dawn, Brock, and the others were also cheering for it.
In the VIP booth, Jessie threw down her boxed lunch and stood up. "Go for it, Infernape!"
James and Meowth followed suit.
"Wobbuffet~"
Wobbuffet, with a boxed lunch balanced on its head, was also cheering.
Announcer: Where did you guys even get those boxed lunches from?
In the stands, Shauna and Tomoyo waved the props in their hands.
"Go, Infernape! Beat up that bad Electivire!"
Shauna was small, but her voice was surprisingly loud.
Electivire: —I'm the bad guy again?!
And my name is Electivire
"Go for it! Send it flying with one punch!"
Tomoyo made a punching motion and accidentally punched Lucas right in the stomach.
Pfft—
The muscles on Lucas's face twitched uncontrollably. He coughed twice, practically swallowing his own organs back down.
Thank goodness it wasn't Shauna's fist...
"Lilli~"
Go for it~
"Mine mine~"
Hearing the cheers coming from all directions, Infernape looked at Paul across from it.
Paul still had his dead-fish eyes. "He has pushed your potential to its absolute limit. But what about you? What about yourself? Have you ever thought about going a step further? Or are you, just like when you were a Chimchar, still a piece of trash?"
Paul's tongue was incredibly sharp.
"Paul, you—"
Hearing Paul's words, Infernape remembered the pain of being abandoned when it was a Chimchar, and the happy times it spent with Ash.
"Roar—"
"I am not—"
"Roar."
"Come on, stand up."
Electivire kept beckoning.
"Roar!!!"
"Trash!!!!"
Infernape felt extremely hot flames erupting from within its body.
It stood up and roared towards the sky. The flames on its body turned into a pillar of fire that shot straight into the heavens. The intense heat forced Electivire and Paul to shield themselves with their arms.
It's coming, it's coming—
Lucas was extremely excited.
Blaze Ability: Modified, Super Saiyan Infernape officially makes its debut!
"Good lord, is this really still the Blaze Ability?"
Even Flint, the Fire-type Elite, was left speechless by these scorching flames.
"Roar!!!!"
Infernape was still powering up.
The terrifying flames forcibly burned away all the toxins inside its body.
*Hiss*—nobody ever said Blaze could cure poison!
Looking at this utterly illogical Great Eldest Disciple, Lucas couldn't help but complain wildly.
Illogical, completely illogical, totally against the battle rules—
The scorching heat reached the stands.
Ninetales wrapped its tails around Lucas, absorbing the heat for him.
The pillar of fire vanished, leaving Infernape with massive flames burning on its body, staring at Electivire with surging battle intent.
"Excellent, Infernape! This is the final blow. Let's go!"
"Roar!"
"Mach Punch!"
"Electivire, use all your strength! Thunder Punch!"
Their fists clashed.
Electivire was slowly being pushed back.
"Brick Break!"
Electivire raised its other hand once more and chopped down fiercely.
"Infernape, we can do it too! Mach Punch!"
Infernape's other hand delivered a heavy Mach Punch to Electivire's face, while the Brick Break also struck the back of Infernape's neck. Infernape stumbled, on the verge of collapsing, but somehow managed to stabilize itself in a strange posture.
Struck hard, Electivire's head snapped back, and its body kept stumbling backward.
It looked at the dazzling sunlight overhead and smiled knowingly.
Infernape, you've also found a Trainer you can truly trust.
I am sincerely happy for you.
That's wonderful...
Then, its vision went dark, and it collapsed.
"Electivire is unable to battle! Infernape is the winner! The victory goes to Ash, who has defeated Paul and successfully advances!"
"Oh!!!!"
Earth-shaking cheers erupted throughout the stadium.
Everyone was cheering for Infernape.
Ash rushed to Infernape's side to check on it. Infernape smiled at Ash before completely losing consciousness.
"Infernape—"
Lucas had Gothitelle float him onto the field and began to examine Infernape's injuries.
It was severely injured and on the brink of death.
It had practically fought by overdrawing its own life force.
Lucas instructed Gothitelle to treat Infernape.
Paul recalled Electivire, staring at the Poké Ball in his hand.
The Poké Ball shook slightly.
The other Poké Balls in his pocket also began to shake.
Feeling their apologies, Paul took a deep breath and said softly, "You all did great. Thank you. And... I'm sorry."
The Poké Balls stopped shaking.
Lucas looked up at Paul.
Even though Paul still didn't use phrases like "I believe in you" or "You can do it" in his battles, the fact that he could say thank you and apologize to his Pokémon showed that he had grown a lot too, right?
Lucas smiled knowingly.
Watching Paul's departing figure, Ash looked up and shouted.
"Paul—"
Paul didn't look back.
"Go on."
Lucas patted his shoulder.
"Manager Lucas—"
Ash looked at Lucas, only to find Lucas looking back at him with a playful look.
"Don't you have a lot to say to him? Go ahead. I'll take care of things here, don't worry."
"Yeah."
Ash nodded heavily, then chased after Paul's retreating figure.
After Ash left, Lucas, Gothitelle, and Roserade treated Infernape for a bit before handing it over to Nurse Joy. Then, he looked at Gengar, who was biting a handkerchief and crying a river.
Is today emotional Gengar day?
"Alright, they won, didn't they? What are you still crying for?"
"Gen gengar—"
"You don't understand—"
"That's enough. You're already ugly, and crying makes you look even uglier."
"Gen gengar."
"None of your business."
He pinched the corners of Gengar's mouth, forcing it to smile.
"There, that's more like it. You're a cute, chubby ghost, why do you have to cry and make a mess of your face?"
Lucas let go, patted Gengar's backside, and said, "Let's go, we should catch up too."
With that, he left with Gengar and the others.