"Slugma is unable to battle, Corphish wins!" Grandpa Moore sighed. Flannery is still too inexperienced in battle.
"Meg, you did great! It's your turn, Torkoal!" Flannery sent out her last Pokémon.
[Torkoal]
[Strength: Gym Leader - Early Stage]
Torkoal was clearly a trump card Grandpa Moore left for Flannery to use!
"Come back and rest, Mudkip!" Ash recalled Mudkip, then took out another Poké Ball. "Alright, Corphish, I choose you!"
"Hehehe~" Corphish waved its pincers, shouting excitedly.
"Begin!"
"Corphish, use Bubble Beam!" Corphish waved its large pincers, shooting out a large amount of bubbles.
Flannery also got serious. "Torkoal, use Flamethrower!"
The five fiery red indentations on Torkoal's shell glowed red, and it shot out a thick stream of orange flames. Relying on its type advantage, it overpowered Corphish's Bubble Beam!
"Corphish, use Harden!" Corphish's defense was strengthened, and it managed to endure the flames! "Hehehe~"
"Alright, Corphish, Crabhammer!" Corphish's large pincer glowed with white light and it charged at Torkoal!
"Torkoal, use Withdraw!" Flannery responded calmly. Torkoal retreated into its shell, bang! It blocked the Crabhammer!
Flannery seized the opportunity. "Now, use Sludge Bomb!" Torkoal spat out a few balls of highly toxic sludge, which hit Corphish head-on!
"Oh no, Corphish!" Ash asked anxiously. He had no idea Torkoal could use a Poison-type move!
"Hehehe~" Corphish stood back up. Luckily, it wasn't poisoned!
"Great! Corphish! Counterattack with a continuous Double-Edge Shell!" "Hehehe~" Corphish's large pincers glowed with a water blade and it attacked, but just as before, Torkoal's shell defended against it!
"This is so tough! It's hard for Corphish's strength to break through Torkoal's defense!" Ash frowned, thinking of a strategy.
"Perfect chance! Go, Torkoal! Flamethrower!" Flannery launched a counterattack while Ash was distracted. "Corphish, Harden, quick!" Corphish's body first shone with a light, then it was enveloped in flames!
"Go, Corphish!" Ash said nervously. "Hehehe~" Corphish let out a cry, and a light of evolution surrounded it within the flames!
"It's evolving! It's evolving in the middle of a battle again!" Max exclaimed.
Corphish's body grew larger, and a five-pointed star appeared on its head. It was no longer the cute Pokémon it was before; it had successfully evolved into the underwater bully—Crawdaunt!
[Crawdaunt]
[Strength: Elite - Peak Stage]
[Moves: Swift, Crunch, Hydro Pump, Knock Off...]
"Great! Crawdaunt, use Swords Dance and then Crabhammer!" Crawdaunt's Swords Dance shredded the flame attack and boosted its attack, and its large pincer sent Torkoal flying! It caused Torkoal's shell to flip over and spin uncontrollably, making Torkoal dizzy!
"Final blow! Hydro Pump!" "Torkoal!" The situation turned so fast. Torkoal was defeated by Crawdaunt's Hydro Pump!
"Torkoal is unable to battle! Crawdaunt wins! The winner is Ash from Pallet Town!" Grandpa Moore announced.
"Crawdaunt, you were amazing! Come back and rest!" Ash said, recalling Crawdaunt.
Grandpa Moore came up to Flannery and encouraged her. "Your battle performance was very good! Ash's strength is very high, so I can rest easy on my journey now!"
Flannery was thrilled to receive her grandfather's approval. "Really?! Thank you, Grandpa!"
Flannery walked up to Ash and handed him the Heat Badge. "Ash, thank you for a wonderful battle. I'll give you this Heat Badge!"
Ash took the Badge. "Awesome, I got the Heat Badge!" "Pi Pikachu" "Eevee~"
[Ding~ You have obtained the Heat Badge. Reward: 1000 points]
Then, Ash turned to Grandpa Moore. "Grandpa Moore, as far as I know, you were once the Fire-type Elite Four member of the Hoenn region, right? I want to have a battle with you!"
"Oh?! No problem!" Grandpa Moore readily accepted the challenge!
"What?! Grandpa Moore was an Elite Four member!" Max and the others were surprised. Who knew the Lavaridge Gym was so impressive!
Flannery acted as the referee, and the number of Pokémon used was limited to one!
"Go, Typhlosion!" "Boka~" An aura of an Elite Four member filled the battlefield!
[Typhlosion]
[Strength: Elite Four - Early Stage (Originally Elite Four - Late Stage, but its power has declined with age)]
"I choose you, Pikachu!" "Pikapika~" Pikachu looked at the Typhlosion in front of it with a burning desire to battle!
"Pikachu, huh?! Typhlosion, use Eruption!" Eruption's power is higher the more stamina it has. It seems the old man isn't going to hold back at all!
"Pikachu, Quick Attack! Dodge it and get close to Typhlosion!" "Pika~" Pikachu turned into a streak of lightning, dodged the giant pillar of fire, and then slammed into Typhlosion, knocking it back!
Grandpa Moore's eyes became serious as he looked at Pikachu. It's so fast! "Now, Surf!" A giant wave surged from beneath Pikachu, sending Typhlosion flying!
"What?!" Grandpa Moore and Flannery were shocked. It's incredible that Pikachu can learn Surf!
Grandpa Moore looked at Pikachu with a deep gaze. "Interesting. Typhlosion! It seems we need to get serious. Earthquake!"
A slight smile appeared on Ash's face, which surprised Grandpa Moore. Could it be...?
"Pikachu, Fly!" "Pika~" Pikachu soared into the sky, making it impossible for the Earthquake to hit it!
Grandpa Moore and Flannery's eyes widened. If Pikachu knowing Surf was a little surprising, Pikachu knowing Fly was completely out of this world! If anyone else had told them that Pikachu could fly, they would have slapped them to wake them up!
"Pikachu, Surf!" "Pika Chu" Pikachu rode a surfing wave and flew down toward Typhlosion!
"Typhlosion, Overheat!" Bang! Boom!!
"Pika" "Boka" Pikachu and Typhlosion both stood panting heavily.
"Pi... Pikachu and Typhlosion are both unable to battle! It's a draw!" Flannery said, regaining her composure. To think her grandpa's Typhlosion, an Elite Four-level Pokémon, was taken down by a Provisional Elite Four-level Pikachu!
"The younger generation is truly something! I'm getting old, I'm getting old! This world is a stage for you young people!" Grandpa Moore sighed, then took out a notebook and handed it to Ash. "Ash, this is my experience in raising Typhlosion. If you don't mind, please take it!"
"Experience in training Typhlosion?! This is too valuable, Grandpa Moore!" Ash quickly waved his hands, refusing.
"Take it! Not taking it is an insult to this old man!" Grandpa Moore's face became stern as he stuffed the notebook into Ash's hands.
"Alright! Thank you, Grandpa Moore!" Ash bowed respectfully to Moore. This is an Elite Four's notebook! With this, Ash's Quilava can quickly grow!
[Ding~ First victory against an Elite Four. Reward: Jade Orb]
Ash's eyes widened. The Jade Orb!! Hiss~ Is the system preparing for me to catch Rayquaza now?
"Ash, you're amazing! You actually managed to defeat an Elite Four!" May and Max looked at Ash with admiring eyes. They knew that in his battle with Steven Stone, Ash was only a Provisional Elite Four-level trainer, which showed his great potential. But now, he had truly defeated an Elite Four member, even if it was a draw, which proved that Ash had officially entered the Elite Four level!
And so, Ash and his friends said their goodbyes to Grandpa Moore and Flannery and left the Lavaridge Gym!