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On the field, Wartortle was currently lying on its side, the bottom of its shell scorched black.
Pikachu stood calmly on the field, as if the previous attack was something he had casually unleashed.
Gary's eyes were wide, his mind perplexed. What exactly had Pikachu done just now? What was with that speed?
Even an Elite Level Pikachu couldn't possibly achieve that kind of speed, could he?
What exactly was that move called Electric Terrain? Why had he, with all his knowledge, never heard of it? Was it a move Pikachu could even learn?
Countless questions appeared in Gary's mind, but it was battle time. Even if he asked Ash, Ash wouldn't be foolish enough to reveal the special properties of the move to him, so he could only find a way to counter it himself.
"Wartortle, can you still fight?"
"Wartortle!" Wartortle emerged from its shell. From the expression on its face, it was clearly a bit listless, but not yet at the point of being unable to battle.
"Very good, Wartortle, use Aqua Jet!!"
"Wartortle!"
Wartortle's body was covered in a flowing stream of water, and then its entire body shot out like a rocket!
The stream of water trailed a beautiful curve in the air, and a whistling sound emanated, indicating that this move was extremely powerful!
However, Gary wasn't just having Wartortle use Aqua Jet!
"Now, combine it with Zen Headbutt!!"
A pink glow suddenly appeared on Wartortle's forehead!
The impact and power of Aqua Jet, combined with the inherent pulling ability of Zen Headbutt, made Wartortle's attack not only incredibly fast but also far exceeded its original level in terms of power!
Various combination moves were one of Gary's assets in defeating various Gym Leaders.
"Pikachu, Electric Terrain."
At Ash's command, Pikachu once again vanished from its spot, and Wartortle instantly lost its target.
A single trick, used everywhere. As long as the opponent couldn't keep up with Electric Terrain, then no matter how strong Wartortle's attack was, it would be useless.
Gary's eyes widened as he carefully searched the field for Pikachu's figure, but there was only the whistling wind and a faint, fleeting flash of electricity.
By the time he caught sight of Pikachu, Pikachu had already vanished from its spot.
"Oh no, Wartortle, be careful!" Gary suddenly realized that no matter how Pikachu moved, to win, he would definitely have to attack Wartortle.
So, the opponent's landing spot must be on Wartortle!
If Wartortle could block this move and catch the opponent, then there would be a turning point for victory!
However, even though Gary warned Wartortle, Wartortle simply couldn't defend against Electric Terrain.
In the blink of an eye, Pikachu appeared beneath the rapidly moving Wartortle on the field. Then, his small head slammed into Wartortle's shell!
"Bang!"
Wartortle immediately exited its Aqua Jet state. Its entire body once again rolled uncontrollably on the ground, just like before, finally stopping after rolling over a dozen times.
"Wartortle!!" Gary shouted Wartortle's name, but Wartortle could no longer respond to him.
The difference in levels, coupled with two successful Electric-type moves, meant Wartortle could no longer hold on.
Although Wartortle had used Withdraw to boost its defense, Electric Terrain was a move that always hit a vital spot. When hitting a vital spot, it could, to a certain extent, ignore the opponent's increased stats. (In the game, it completely ignores increased stats.)
So, even if Wartortle had used a defense-boosting move, it was useless against Pikachu.
Furthermore, Pikachu not only suppressed Wartortle in terms of level, but also in terms of stats, which Wartortle couldn't compare to. With all these advantages combined, if two Electric Terrains couldn't defeat the opponent, Pikachu might as well find a place to bury himself.
Looking at the fainted Wartortle, Gary's eyes were somewhat unfocused.
He actually… lost?
And he lost even after bringing out his ace, Wartortle… It should be noted that his Wartortle had defeated Erika's Elite Level Grass-type Pokémon in a type-disadvantage situation, yet today he was beaten by Ash with no ability to fight back.
This was not a figure of speech, but truly no ability to fight back at all. Whether it was stats, level, or moves, he was completely crushed in every aspect!
This was a huge blow to the arrogant Gary's heart. Before he set out on his journey, he could always surpass Ash in everything, especially regarding Pokémon.
How did things change so drastically after just one month of traveling?
"We won, Pikachu!"
"Pika Pika!!!" Pikachu jumped directly into Ash's arms, celebrating the victory with Ash. Ralts, on Ash's shoulder, also clapped his small hands happily, pleased with Ash's victory.
The surrounding audience, seeing the battle end, also began to discuss amongst themselves.
"Didn't they say that Gary guy was really strong? How did he get beaten like this?"
"That just means that Ash guy is even stronger, alright!"
"Who is Ash? Has anyone here heard his name?"
"He seems to have also gotten the Gym Badges from both Pewter City and Cerulean City."
"More than that, I'm from Vermilion City. Vermilion City's Gym was also cleared by Ash, and he even defeated the Gym Leader's ace Pokémon, Raichu, to pass the Gym challenge!"
"Raichu? That should be Pikachu's evolution, right? Is that Gym Leader so weak that he could lose even with an evolved form?"
"Is there a possibility that that young man is just too strong? Vermilion City's Gym Leader's Raichu is a Professional Level Pokémon!"
"Professional Level!!!"
"…"
News about Ash slowly spread among the crowd, and occasional gasps of astonishment could be heard. For a moment, the scorching heat brought by the blazing sun seemed to lessen considerably.
They had thought it was already absurd enough for a new Trainer like Gary to appear, but they never expected there to be another equally monstrous new Trainer.
Where did these two come from?
Being able to clear three Gyms in a month was already monstrous enough, not to mention one of them even defeated a Gym Leader's Professional Level Pokémon. How insane is that talent?!
Even Leon back in the day might not have been able to achieve such a feat, right?
…On the field, Gary recalled Wartortle, his expression looking somewhat displeased. He had rarely lost to Ash in his life, but he never expected to be hit with such a blow after starting his journey!
He couldn't figure out where the problem lay. His starter Pokémon was Squirtle, resources were basically all in place, and although he traveled in a sports car, he didn't miss any necessary training, and even saved walking time for training.
He should be stronger than Ash, no matter how he thought about it!
Yet Ash's Pikachu was already Elite Level, while his Wartortle, even with the boost from evolution, was only at the peak of its advanced stage.
What kind of logic was this?
"Gary, you lost this time. Did you see how powerful my Pikachu is? Do you still look down on him?" Ash walked up to Gary with a triumphant expression, radiating haughtiness.
Usually, Gary would get in his face, but now it was finally his turn!
What goes around comes around, today it's my turn!
"Hmph, just temporary luck. Don't mistake temporary for permanent. I lost this time, but I'll naturally win it back next time. Just you wait." Gary gritted his teeth, trying to maintain a calm expression.
But from his tone, it was clear his molars were about to shatter.
"Tsk tsk, don't talk about later, just tell me if I won this time! This battle today needs to be recorded: Ash, after starting his journey, battled Gary, one battle, undefeated~~"
Gary: …You seriously need some shame. What the hell is "one battle, undefeated"? There was only one battle in total. Someone who didn't know would think you've always beaten me.
Who did he learn these tricky words from? Bring back the honest, simple-minded, naive Ash, hey!
"Tsk, I'll let you lead for now. Next time it'll be my turn. I'll also find a way to seal that strange move of your Pikachu's." Gary pouted.
Actually, if it weren't for his big mouth, Ash would have only planned to have regular Pikachu battle him. Without Electric Terrain, that speed-boosting move, facing that combination-move-using Wartortle would have been a bit tricky.
But once Pikachu entered his Partner Form, the two were simply not in the same league.
The Electric Terrain move was simply too overpowered. Not only was it fast to activate, and fast in speed, its power was also not weak, and it could, to a certain extent, ignore the opponent's defense boosts. It was hard to imagine why such an abnormal move would appear on Pikachu.
Aside from Electric Terrain, Partner Form would also increase all of Pikachu's stats by one level, and his actual level would increase by a small increment. The boosted Pikachu was simply not on the same level as his original form.
So, the reason Gary was so badly beaten in this battle was entirely due to his provocative words towards Pikachu. Otherwise, the outcome would have been more like a six-four split.
"Talk about it when you battle me next time… By the way, I should be the defender now, right? What's the prize for ten consecutive wins?" Ash looked at the lively scene around him, then belatedly realized.
He had now changed from a challenger to a defender. After achieving ten consecutive wins, he could get a prize.
He had been so focused on battling Gary earlier that Ash hadn't paid any attention to what the prize was.
"It's a golden orb. I haven't seen it either, but it looks like an item related to Electric-type Pokémon. Look, it's over there." Gary pointed into the distance.
At a higher point beyond the crowd, surrounded by spectators, sat several people. These were the officials of Lampuruge Resort, who had organized this competition.
On a display stand next to them was a golden orb covered by a glass dome. In the center of the golden orb was a four-leaf clover-like symbol, and inside it was a strange rune.
It was no wonder Gary said that item might be for Electric-type Pokémon, after all, that color really resembled lightning. Moreover, with Ash's Aura, he could sense the powerful Electric-type energy contained within that orb.
However, when Ash clearly saw the appearance of that orb, his expression instantly began to change.
"That thing is…"
"Ash, you know what that is?" Gary asked with a strange look on his face.
Ash looked like he recognized the orb, but how could Ash know about an orb that even he didn't know about?
How much had Ash learned in this past month of traveling?
"I should. If I'm not mistaken, that should be… a Light Ball."
"Light Ball? What's that?" Gary frowned, searching his mind but finding no relevant information.
Although he knew a lot, he didn't know everything. Perhaps his grandfather would know what it was.
But what Gary couldn't accept was, why did Ash know about an item that he didn't?
Damn it, had Ash unknowingly pulled so far ahead of him?
"A Light Ball is Pikachu's exclusive item! It truly came without any effort! I never expected to find it here!" Ash's words and expression were filled with excitement. If it weren't for being in public, he would have jumped for joy!
The Light Ball, an item that the big shots in the group told him to look out for, had appeared before him in such an unexpected way.
This item had no effect on other Pokémon, but if given to Pikachu, it would cause a qualitative change in Pikachu's strength!
The item's effect was simple: it doubled Pikachu's offensive stats!
Simple but brutal!
What did doubling offensive stats mean? It was equivalent to inherently using Swords Dance or Nasty Plot once.
And this doubling was applied to the base stats. If Nasty Plot were used on these boosted stats, then Pikachu's special attack base would be four times its original!
A full four times!!!
When Ash heard the big shots in the group say that Pikachu had such an item, he was completely stunned.
Should such a held item really exist in this world?
Putting everything else aside, if his Pikachu held a Light Ball, entered Partner Form, performed an Aura fusion, and then used Nasty Plot once… even a Professional Level peak would be wiped out!!
He could even beat opponents two major levels above him!
This was the boost the Light Ball provided to Pikachu.
Flames burned in Ash's eyes. Originally, after beating Gary, Ash had only intended to casually defend his title, not necessarily to keep winning.
But since the prize was a Light Ball, he had no choice but to go all out!
No one could stop him from getting ten consecutive wins. Anyone who came would die!!
Gary, standing nearby, looked at the fiercely determined Ash and couldn't help but shrink his neck. He had seen Ash in this state before; it was his 'mad dog' state. He had many questions he wanted to ask Ash, but now it seemed better to put them aside for now.
That item called the Light Ball was clearly very important to Ash. He would wait until Ash got it before asking.
"You do your best. After defeating me, you already have one win. You just need to win nine more battles to get that item. I'm leaving first." Gary said, waving his hand as he walked into the crowd…