Psyduck was still trapped in its "headache" state!
Out in the stands—
In Misty's support section,
Ash was the first to notice something was off about Psyduck.
He recalled the terrifying psychic power Psyduck had shown back at the Fuchsia Gym.
It really might be able to defeat Grey's Metagross!
Thinking of that, Ash shot to his feet so fast his cap tilted sideways.
"Brock, look at Misty's Psyduck!"
He grabbed Brock's shoulder, practically vibrating with excitement.
Brock, squinting as usual, followed Ash's gaze.
On the field, Psyduck was twitching at a strange rhythm.
This wasn't a normal reaction to being shocked—this looked more like the tremor that came right before a power-up.
"Huh?"
"That dopey Psyduck…"
"It has that kind of strength?"
Misty's three sisters didn't know how terrifying Psyduck could be.
Seeing Ash react like that, they were a little shocked.
It had just tanked Metagross's Thunderbolt, sure.
That was impressive.
But Misty's Psyduck was only ever that strong, wasn't it?
At that moment—
Psyduck slowly lowered the hands it had been clutching to its head.
In that instant, it felt like time froze.
In its wide, round eyes, the usual blankness was replaced by something like "world-shaking intelligence," and deep-blue psychic power overflowed from its sockets like a visible substance.
A psychic field exploded outward with Psyduck at the center, distorting even the air itself!
Metagross also released its own psychic field to stabilize its body.
"???"
Seeing that,
everyone's expressions changed in different ways.
"As expected—this Psyduck isn't a normal Psyduck."
Koga clicked his tongue in amazement.
Before, he'd actually wanted to trade one of his Pokémon for Misty's Psyduck.
But she had refused.
Now that he thought about it… it really was a shame.
"You've gotta be kidding me. If that Psyduck is this strong, why didn't she bring it out earlier?"
Lt. Surge frowned.
He'd thought Misty was an easy opponent.
But the battle power Psyduck was showing was seriously absurd.
It was even stronger than a Golduck of the same level.
At this rate, Grey's Metagross might actually be facing a major crisis.
"Gym Leader Giovanni, do you think that Psyduck can beat Grey's Metagross?"
Someone had already moved to Giovanni's side, asking for his opinion on the match.
The surrounding noise dropped several notches.
Among the Trainers present, Giovanni's strength was the highest.
His judgment mattered.
You could even say it was the most authoritative voice in the Kanto Trainer circle.
Hearing the question, Giovanni lifted his eyes and looked calmly toward the battlefield.
"The answer is obvious, isn't it?"
People glanced at one another, confusion flickering in their eyes.
But no one pressed further.
Prying at a Champion-level figure wasn't exactly polite.
Still—
The Trainers present who were at Elite Four level could all see where this battle was headed.
…
"Metagross, fight at full strength. Psyduck still isn't enough to threaten you."
After gauging Psyduck's limits, Grey decided to keep Metagross on the field.
Metagross nodded heavily.
This was the first time it had encountered psychic power capable of threatening it.
It began calculating as well—
figuring out how to defeat Psyduck at the lowest possible cost.
"Psyduck, use Confusion!"
Misty knew time was tight and didn't dare waste Psyduck's window.
"Psyaa!"
Psyduck locked onto Metagross instantly, and a previously unseen flood of psychic power surged out to engulf it!
"Break it with Zen Headbutt."
Grey responded calmly.
The golden X on Metagross's face burst with blue light, and psychic power constructed a prism-like force barrier in front of it.
BOOM!!!
The moment the two psychic forces collided, the resulting mental turbulence shook every puddle on the field into mist.
After that clash, Metagross didn't gain any advantage at all.
"Nice, Psyduck! I knew you could do it!"
Seeing Metagross fail to take the upper hand, Misty's confidence in Psyduck surged again.
Keep riding this momentum—flip the whole match on Grey!
The idea was beautiful.
Reality was cruel.
After trading moves with Metagross, Psyduck was already panting.
It didn't know how to hold back—when it erupted, it burned stamina recklessly.
That was the only reason it could barely suppress Metagross at all.
At this rate…
Psyduck probably couldn't unleash many more moves.
A few more rounds and it might collapse before Metagross did.
"It's strong, but it's only burst power."
Out in the stands, Koga sounded regretful.
"Dad, what do you mean?"
Koga's daughter, Janine, looked genuinely confused.
"Koga, could you explain it for us?"
Koga's sister, Aya, also didn't understand.
"This Psyduck's baseline is too weak. The Trainer hasn't properly developed it—she's relying entirely on raw talent and explosive output."
"The longer it goes on, the more of a burden it becomes for Psyduck."
"And if you want to truly master that kind of power, you have two choices."
Koga let out a quiet sigh, his gaze complicated as he watched the Psyduck bathed in blue light.
As a Poison specialist, he understood the contradiction between talent and control better than most.
"What a talent to envy…"
He murmured under his breath, the words tinged with that instinctive Trainer jealousy.
If that massive psychic power could be controlled freely, then forget the Elite Four—Lt. Surge alone would have to treat it with real caution.
But years of ninja training made him understand something even more clearly:
The stronger the power, the more it demanded a matching will to wield it.
Just like his lethal, blood-stopping Poison Pokémon—without daily, relentless discipline, the first person to get hurt would be the Trainer.
Over on the other side—
"Such a waste."
A trace of regret flashed through Giovanni's eyes.
This Psyduck was like an unrefined meteor iron—material that could forge a divine weapon, yet it had never met a qualified smith.
Misty's talent as a Trainer was undeniable, but when faced with a freak gift like this, her orthodox Water-type training approach became a shackle that restrained Psyduck's potential instead.
…
…
"Psy…"
Psyduck panted hard.
After a few more exchanges, Metagross still hadn't gained an advantage, but Psyduck's stamina had been drained even faster.
"Klang."
Metagross stared at the little yellow duck in front of it, respect flashing through its eyes.
It felt that if Psyduck were at the same level as itself, it wouldn't stand a chance.
Psyduck's talent was frightening.
But that frightening talent hadn't been properly guided into full form.
"Psyduck, use Psychic this time!"
Misty could see Psyduck was struggling, so she tried to counter with a big finisher.
At the very least…
she needed to take down one Pokémon first!
"PsyAA!"
Psyduck's body trembled violently, and its deep-blue psychic glow turned into a blinding white!
Metagross braced itself— it could feel just how terrifying the energy Psyduck was building truly was.
But in the very next moment—
"Psy…"
The light in Psyduck's eyes abruptly went out, like a lamp with its power yanked.
It toppled straight forward and face-planted into the ground.
"?"
The entire venue went dead silent—so silent even the referee forgot to call it.
A clash that should've been earth-shattering…
ended in the most absurd way imaginable.
"Misty… your Psyduck… you're not throwing the match, are you?"
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