"Take it!"
Seeing that, Garchomp quickly turned its body and crossed the gusts of air in front of itself, forming an X.
Wrapped in Flying-type air currents, Dragonite violently charged into it.
Boom!
A deafening roar!
Garchomp's figure fell directly from the sky.
Planting both feet on the ground, Garchomp managed to stabilize itself.
"Dragon Rush!"
In the air, Dragonite rose again and, after reaching a certain height, plunged downward.
After using that Dragon-type move, Dragonite's body was wrapped in the silhouette of a dragon, giving off a terrifying presence.
"Garchomp, Outrage!"
When Dragonite used its great Dragon-type move, Garchomp also activated the move Outrage.
Its eyes turned completely red, and a violent surge of energy emerged from its body.
Immediately afterward, Garchomp used the move Outrage to awaken the power of the Mega Stone inside it.
Boom!
A blood-red surge of energy rose into the sky.
The air blades between Garchomp's elbows quickly lengthened and were completely dyed blood-red.
Just then, Dragonite had already arrived in front of Garchomp.
Garchomp responded by swinging its two red blades upward against the current, making that terrifying energy explode all at once!
Boom!
A tremendous explosion rumbled throughout the entire field.
Fuuu, fuuu...
A gale immediately swept across the entire arena, making people instinctively cover themselves with their arms.
When the spectators reacted, they all looked nervously toward the field, awaiting the final result.
Little by little, the smoke began to disperse.
The first thing that appeared before everyone was a red glow piercing through the cloud of dust.
Within that red light, Garchomp's figure emerged.
That red glow came precisely from the blood-colored air blade between its wings!
"Garchomp... won!"
Seeing Dragonite lying on the other side of the field, all the spectators' gazes contracted.
Dragonite, which had used the move Extreme Speed and the move Dragon Rush, had been defeated by Garchomp with a single slash!
That blood-red cut that had torn through the sky made a chill run down everyone's backs.
"That Garchomp has also found its own path."
"That blood-red air blade is incredibly powerful!"
Looking at Garchomp, which was still wielding that red blade, Harvey opened his mouth, and a sense of helplessness suddenly rose inside him.
"Participant Harvey is requested to send out his next Pokémon."
Seeing that Harvey had fallen silent, the referee made a gesture with his hand.
Only then did Harvey come back to his senses, nod, and send out his next Pokémon.
This time, the Pokémon Harvey brought out was also a Garchomp.
Compared with Ethan's Garchomp, his seemed to be better developed physically.
"Let's continue. Slash!"
When the opposing Garchomp finished preparing for battle, Ethan's Garchomp moved.
With a simple low roar, Ethan's Garchomp launched itself into the attack.
That red air blade could once again be seen cutting through the air. The silhouettes of both Pokémon crossed.
In the next instant, Harvey's Garchomp slowly fell to the ground.
Facing Ethan's Garchomp, Harvey's seemed to have been completely intimidated!
Until the red air blade struck its body, Harvey's Garchomp did not even react, and was defeated in a single blow!
"What the hell is this?"
"It can directly intimidate another of its own species?!"
"This can no longer be simply a normal development of Air Slash!"
Harvey took out his Poké Ball and recalled his Garchomp, looking at Ethan in disbelief.
That Garchomp, despite having left Dragon Valley not long ago, had already found a path that belonged only to it in such a short time!
"It seems that, in the end, I lost again..."
Looking at Garchomp, which still had strength left to keep fighting, Harvey let out a sigh.
Just as he himself had said, the power of that Garchomp wielding blood-red air blades was too strong!
The feeling it gave was as if it had entered another level, exerting terrifying pressure over any other Pokémon.
"Good work, Garchomp."
Seeing that Garchomp was already able to control the energy of Mega Evolution fairly well, Ethan showed a smile.
With that breakthrough, Garchomp's current power had completely reached the level of the main members of Ethan's team.
Facing a Garchomp of such a level, Harvey was completely discouraged.
Why, when both were Garchomp from Dragon Valley, did yours have to be so absurdly outstanding?
...
The battle ended very soon.
Thanks to Kommo-o, Garchomp, and Lucario, Ethan managed to break through to the final.
After the match, Ethan did not stay in the place for too long.
Now he was eager to check how far Lucario's understanding of life energy had reached.
"How is it, Lucario?"
When he returned to the resting area, Ethan released Lucario.
"Luucaarr!"
Lucario nodded. It raised one hand, and life energy began to condense in its palm.
"It seems the first phase of understanding the Life Orb can already be considered complete. Next, we can attempt the second phase of the research."
After exchanging a few words with Lucario, Ethan smiled and began taking notes in his notebook.
...
The next day, the final arrived.
Ethan and Stefan once again stood on opposite sides of the battlefield.
The two were silent. Only the indicator lights on the big screen flickered nonstop, creating a tense atmosphere.
After all, they could already be considered old rivals. Now that they were meeting again in a final, there was nothing more to say.
Only battle remained!
Outside the field, the spectators also looked toward the stage with enormous expectation.
In the previous Junior World Championship, although Stefan lost in the final, his identity as a divine envoy still spread throughout the entire Federal League.
And now, seeing him enter the field again, the name of Darkrai resounded throughout the stadium!
Just then, the lights on the big screen stopped moving and fixed on Stefan's side, indicating that he had the first turn.
"The first move is mine?"
"Then, my first Pokémon will be this!"
Stefan took a deep breath and took out a special Poké Ball.
The instant that Poké Ball appeared, the entire stadium first fell silent and, a moment later, erupted into the most deafening shouts of all.
Because that Poké Ball belonged to that legendary Pokémon: the God of Nightmares, Darkrai!
On the first turn of the final, Stefan had directly taken out Darkrai's Poké Ball!
As the Poké Ball opened, Darkrai's figure appeared on the field.
Then, Stefan directed an expectant gaze toward Ethan.
At the same time, Darkrai's deep eyes also locked onto Ethan, waiting for the appearance of its rival.
In the battle last time, his Darkrai had lost against Lucario.
But now, his Darkrai was no longer the same as back then!
And today would be the day Darkrai erased that humiliation!
(End of chapter)