The flame of Moltres was lit without issue, which was always a relief to the President of the League competition committee.

If there was one thing that could mess up an opening ceremony in Charles Goodshow's opinion, it was someone trying to steal sacred flames.

He found himself standing before the gathered Trainers, and he could only smile down at them.

Old and familiar faces, fresh newcomers, those who had something to prove, and those who knew what they had to do.

It was a magic you could only see at a Pokémon League.

"Welcome, valiant Trainers, to this year's Indigo Conference. Being here means you have proven yourself to the Kanto Gym Leaders and overcome your own struggles and challenges to get here. Though I assure you that there are still more challenges to come. This is a truth not only of life, but also of this very tournament.

"Now, I am sure that you have noticed that there are many of you here. In fact, there are many more participants this year than usual."

Depending on who you asked, there were different explanations for this.

Electra believed it was just part of how things went, as participant numbers were never static.

He believed it was older competitors being inspired to come out in force due to the rise of new and impressive rookies, while said super rookies were inspiring their fellows to push themselves harder.

There were other theories beyond that, but they were neither here nor there.

"As such the tournament rules will be as follows: there will be ten rounds in total. There are one thousand and twenty-four of you present here today, which the first round will reduce to five hundred and twelve of you, and the next round after that will leave only two hundred and fifty-six. After that one hundred and twenty-eight, then sixty-four, then thirty-two, then sixteen, then eight, then four, then two, and after that one. That one, as you can probably guess, will be the winner.

"The first four rounds will take place in the side stadiums on themed battlefields chosen randomly each time. The only thing that is guaranteed is that you will not fight in the same field twice, and that each battle will be a three on three match. Upon reaching the top thirty-two, battles will take place in the main stadium. The first two rounds in the main stadium will also be three on three, but the top sixteen, top eight, top four, and final rounds will be full battles."

There were other details he could mention here, like a bit of talk about data or the fact that the food was free to all active Trainers and for those who lost for a twenty-four-hour grace period, but that was what side details and the village pamphlets were for.

"Fight with all of the spirit and skill you acquired in your careers, and when we come back here to crown the winner you will know what you have mastered and what you need to improve regardless. Win or lose, you will all learn something in this tournament. Now, I would wish you all luck but this is something you and your Pokémon must do on your won. Good battling and remember, be the very best. "

The cheering began at the end of his speech, and he smiled.

He loved his job.

Later

"I have no idea what that chocolate thing was or how you pronounce it, but more!"

Thankfully they got free food while he was competing, and Misty was taking full advantage of that by asking for seconds on some Kalosian desert she had only just discovered.

The waiter nodded pleasantly and hurried to get more, and Ash couldn't help but wonder how they got paid for the tournament. Did the League take care of that?

Such thoughts didn't really come to mind as he demolished the sandwich in front of him.

It was missing something his mom's cooking had, but it was still a fine sandwich.

"So, what happens if you win?"

Iris's question led him to putting down said fine sandwich.

"Well, I'd probably jump into the air and whoop in joy I guess. Probably throw Pikachu in the air as far as I can throw him before I realize that was stupid, but I don't think he'd be too angry at me for it."

"Pikapi." 'I wouldn't be at the moment, but I would electrocute you the moment you are done celebrating in public.'

"After that?"

At Iris's continued question he thought he might have an idea of what she was really asking about.

"I still have so much in the world I want to see. You've all stuck with me through kidnappings, family madness, and completely logical surfing choices…"

He was sure that Misty just gave him a crass remark about 'logical surfing choices' with her mouth full for that one. Anabel just rolled her eyes at him and Iris gave him a disapproving glare.

"…I'd be a jerk to just leave you guys after that. I'll stick with you guys as long as you want me to."

"So forever then."

"If you want."

It was only after the words left his mouth that he realized exactly what Iris was saying, and he felt his face heat up.

If his face was as red as Misty and Anabel's, then his face was doing a very good Darumaka.

Iris's face was only lightly tinged.

"Oh dear, I knew there was a reason I felt the need to bring an ice pitcher with me."

The waiter put Misty's seconds down before filling all of their glasses with a refill of icy water, before leaving the pitcher on the table.

He took a sip of said refreshed cold water immediately, as did Misty and Anabel.

"Good. So, seeing as you will be busy I will not have you do as much as usual. However, we will still be doing morning runs."

Iris did not need to cool off, even if she was still blushing a bit.

The next day

From a thousand and twenty-four to the top.

Red had ten rounds to win, and he was ready to go the distance.

That of course meant beating every Trainer in his way, and that included the opponent he was facing first on the Ice Field.

Said opponent looked to be a year or so older than him: a lankier figure who looked at him like he could already see his triumph.

"Well, lucky me. A rookie is the one I'm up against, and on the Ice Field no less. The odds couldn't be any more in my favor."

He stared at his cocky opponent, who scoffed at him.

"Oh what, you doubt me? Trust me kid, unlike you this is not my first rodeo!"

With that taunt the battle was declared, and both of them sent out their first Pokémon.

His opponent sent out a Jumpluff, who hovered above the field, while his own choice landed on the field with audible cracking.

The sight of which made his opponent burst out laughing.

"I was actually being a bit over the top there, but you really just proved my point. That is a Snorlax you just sent out!"

Yeah, and the Snorlax wasn't asleep. It wasn't fully standing up, but a Snorlax sitting upright was a pretty good show of alertness.

"Powerhouses like that are supposed to be secret weapons, not wasted on the first match! It's not even suited for the terrain here! How did you even get to the League without knowing this?"

"Amnesia."

Snorlax yawned as his opponent laughed.

"Forgetting won't get you a do-over rookie! Jumpluff, use Grass Knot!"

Jumpluff flashed green as it floated over Snorlax, and from some of the ice Snorlax had cracked emerged several grass blades that promptly squeezed at Snorlax's feet.

The squeeze was not particularly tight, and it didn't do much.

His opponent and his Jumpluff both stared at Snorlax in mutual, mouth gaping shock, as he shook his head.

When he said Amnesia, he meant the move that boosted a Pokémon's resistance to special moves. He just didn't shout it loudly like he was giving it a command. Not his fault if his opponent assumed it was a reply.

He was also not ignorant about using a Snorlax this early, however there were many issues with his take on how this battle was going to go. First of all, Snorlax was far from his strongest Pokémon.

The second was that he didn't think about showing it off. He had thought of it, which was why he was doing it. Snorlax may not have been of his strongest Pokémon, but it was certainly good enough to defeat him.

He did in fact plan to win with just Snorlax, and hide the rest of his Pokémon for later rounds. It was why Yellow had Pikachu with her on the bench and not his shoulder.

He was prepared if he had to use a second or third Pokémon that day, but Pikachu's strength among others would be kept as later surprises.

The third was that the Ice Field was definitely a terrible place to use Snorlax, but he had done some thinking about it.

He had talked it over with Yellow, and even used Victory Sight. Both agreed he had a pretty good point: Snorlax wasn't really the nimblest fighter, and whichever Pokémon would be used against Snorlax wouldn't be suited to face it.

In that regard, the fact that a Snorlax on ice couldn't really move well would not be a problem.

"Rock Slide!"

He ordered it more clearly than Amnesia, and Snorlax stretched its arms wide to form a blue ring over Jumpluff.

"Protect yourself!"

His opponent's shout was followed by Jumpluff surrounding itself in a blue sphere, which took the rock attack head on and shielded Jumpluff from any harm.

"Well you're seeing it here on the Ice Field folks! What seemed like an unusual decision by the new Trainer Red had actually proven to be more effective than one would think at first glance, and the immobile behemoth and the mobile little plant are at a stalemate! It is anyone's guess who will win this battle, or this match!"

The answer was obvious; it was going to be him.

"Well I'm not going to lose here, so I'm obviously going to win! Jumpluff, fly in close to that lummox and use Dazzling Gleam constantly! Wear it down too close for it to use Rock Slide!"

As Jumpluff flung itself at Snorlax with all the speed it could muster, already spewing out bright sparkles, Red grinned.

It was coming right into range.

Victory odds were quite certain now, and he wasn't even checking with his powers.

…

"And in a stunning upset, newcomer Red Tajiri of Viridian City takes a stunning first round victory with only his Snorlax!"

…

"Use Electric Terrain!"

Alexander's command was followed by Raichu shooting a bolt of electricity into the waters of Water Battlefield, which spread out into an entire field-covering yellow coating of energy.

Raichu flew over the field with ease, while within the pool the trapped Kingdra was being fizzled and stunned by sheer physics alone.

"With a single move the greatest advantage a Water-type Pokémon has on this battlefield has been turned on its head! That is League experience folks!"

And it was something he had to come up with on the fly, as he didn't really have data on his opponent.

Good job him.

"Kingdra, try to hold on! This Terrain can't last forever!"

"True, but neither will this battle. Raichu, Thunder!"

With that command Raichu slammed down a massive bolt of lightning from above, further electrifying the pool with sheer electrical might.

The intense light briefly blinded him, but he grinned nonetheless.

This was only a warm up. The true opponents awaited him further in the tournament.

…

"League favorite Alexander Silph takes down his opponent with only two Pokémon, and none of his Pokémon were defeated! Also that Golisopod of his still scares me…"

…

Ritchie could only wince as he watched his early lead get clobbered on the Rock Battlefield.

He managed to gain the upper hand using his Eevee, Chase, who had used his agility to jump around the rocks and outmaneuver his opponent's Golem while striking with Iron Tail.

That move, along with Quick Attack and Work Up, had let him take the win with little cost to Chase but a bit of pure exhaustion.

The second Pokémon his opponent had sent out was Haunter, and he soon got a good idea of why his opponent didn't give out one of the lines you normally heard when you used an Eevee at a Pokémon League.

The Haunter was, like his Eevee, not fully evolved, and like Chase quite good at kicking butt.

Chase's butt to be specific, who was currently being slammed around by phantom palms the source of which couldn't be tracked.

It was only the icy glow of Ice Punch that gave them any sign of being there as Haunter vanished in and out of sight and solid form, and Chase was getting hammered by them.

"Chase use Mud Slap on everything! Try to coat Haunter in mud!"

Chase jumped into the air, only to get struck in the stomach by a fiery punch and fall right back to the ground, defeated as Haunter materialized in full view.

"Eevee is unable to battle!"

He returned Chase with a thank you for how hard he had fought, staring at the grinning Haunter as he tried to consider his options.

He needed a Pokémon who could hit Haunter: perhaps someone who could hit a wider area like Sparky? He had read the pamphlets; he knew that Sparky was already known.

He was on his shoulder after all. Plain to see.

No, still, that wasn't what he should do. Sparky's strength might be obvious to some after seeing Chase's strength, but it would probably still do to keep the exacts to himself.

He took a different Pokémon instead. A bit less tested sure: he still wasn't entirely sure how he had even gotten her.

But this would be a good match for her, perhaps even more than Sparky.

He pulled the odd ball from his belt: a mostly pink ball with a single reddish spot on top and a wavy bottom pattern, and threw it into play.

"Rose, go!"

His opponent seemed a bit amused at seeing his choice.

"A Taillow: haven't seen many of those. A few wonder trading fools tried those when I was still earning badges, but not sure what you hope to achieve there. You had speed with that Eevee, and that didn't help you! Show them what I mean Haunter!"

Haunter vanished from sight once again, not that it would help this time.

"Rose, use Boomburst on the entire battlefield!"

Rose flew up into the air, fluttering her wings faster and faster as his opponent shook his head at him.

"Rookie, I get what you are going for. Break the rocks, hit Haunter, and probably use Aerial Ace or something. However, it isn't going to…"

He wasn't wrong: the battlefield's rocks didn't shatter, only crack heavily. However, that wasn't what he was aiming at.

What he was aiming at was Haunter, who manifested itself into visibility once again while clenching its head and shaking from the sonic force.

"Impossible! The move type is all wrong! All…"

"Double Edge!"

Rose stopped her sonic assault, retracted her wings into herself, and descended into Haunter from above at breakneck speed.

She smashed into the ghost, sending him crashing into the floor while avoiding the earth herself. As she flew off she left a defeated Haunter in her wake, and a very confused and stunned Trainer.

"Haunter is out of the match!"

…

"Huh, haven't seen Ritchie yet. Glad he's still around, and with a Taillow too? That's neat."

"Pikapi." 'A bottle of ketchup he's related to you now.'

Ash was not going to take the bet, even as he watched Ritchie manage to win his own fight with just an Eevee and Taillow.

Taillow was basically wiped out by the end of it, but a victory was a victory, and Ritchie was on to the next round.

"You know, I still have an hour to think on what Pokémon I should bring. Grass Field right?"

"Correct human. Your first round match is on the Grass Field, and your opponent's name is Pava Gilbane. I don't have any information on hand, and while I could get more information on her you have stated you don't want to break the rules."

He nodded, and the Pokédex continued speaking.

"Seeing as you are quite familiar with the idea of keeping your trump cards to yourself, I will repeat what you know to ensure that you do not forget. It is imperative that you hide Pikachu's strength as long as possible, along with your Z-Moves, Charizard, Serperior, Lucario, Goodra, and Gigalith."

"Pretty sure you are thinking too much about evolution. Goodra and Gigalith are strong, but I wouldn't call them the strongest I have. Plus, I am pretty sure Lucario has no interest in battling in this tournament."

When he had been doing his last minute 'pep rally' for the Pokémon who he had any thoughts to using here (which had included some of the bats he had caught at Seafoam, Raichu, and some of the other Vivillon), Lucario had been the least enthused about it.

Raichu had gotten more into it, which was a statement in itself.

"Well, you are surprisingly good at affecting people, be they Pokémon or otherwise. Perhaps you could change his mind. It would be a good idea, as I am sure you can understand. Now, about your team lineup for this upcoming battle…"

He grinned at the Pokédex.

"I've already got a plan. Pikachu's going to be with Anabel for this one, and I'm going to bring six Pokémon to choose from. I'm thinking two Pokémon you'd call trump cards, and four Pokémon that you think I should show off in the early rounds. I'm thinking…."

He gave his team plan, which led to mutual disbelief from both his mouse and his machine.

"PiPiPi!?"

"I would not call those trump cards by any stretch of the imagination!"

…

Their disagreement with his choice of terminology and battle possibilities aside, Ash found himself on the Grass Field just before lunch.

He was on the red platform, facing down his first round opponent on the green platform.

Pava Gilbane, who was a shortish girl whose arms looked nonetheless fairly fit. With short cropped blonde hair and her choice of a purple overcoat and jeans for most stand out clothing, she was giving off a lot of nervousness.

He could see it from here, which was odd.

Normally opponents at Leagues were either confident or overconfident, depending on how you looked at it. The only person he could remember not being that way was Morrison, and that had only been for their match.

It made no sense for Pava to be nervous for that reason, and she was neither a Pallet native or anyway similar in appearance to him enough to be added to the family tree of his that kept getting bigger.

"Hey!"

He shouted over to Pava, who flinched and looked at him with nervous eyes.

"Just do your best! Fight as hard as you can, and you'll do fine!"

Her eyes widened, before rapidly nodding.

She seemed a bit less nervous now, which was good.

A battle against someone utterly terrified would be off in a way he couldn't quite describe.

"And with that show of good spirit by the red Trainer, this first round match of the Indigo Conference is about to begin on the Grass Field! This battle will be a three on three battle between Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town and Pava Gilbane of Vermillion City! The battle will be over when three Pokémon on one side are no longer able to battle! Trainers ready?!"

"Go!"

They both shouted, his shout being louder, as they sent out their first Pokémon.

His first Pokémon being a Tauros, who landed on the field with a loud snort from a Safari Ball.

Her first Pokémon being a Beedrill, who fluttered over the field from a Park Ball.

A battle on the Grass Field being against a Beedrill, that was nostalgic.

"Begin!"

"We need this if we are going to want to win! Beedrill, use Toxic Spikes!"

Beedrill fluttered higher into the air at Pava's command, stingers glowing purple as purple spheres began glowing at the end.

"Shoot them down with Incinerate!"

Tauros mooed in agreement as flame balls flickered around his head, before firing.

They moved fast, reaching the Toxic Spikes just as they were shot out of Beedrill. The fire attack detonated the spikes before they could hit the ground, exploding and sending Beedrill spinning from the resulting blow.

"Beedrill!"

"And the Pallet rookie's off to an explosive start! Without missing a beat, he stopped Beedrill's attempt to set up the battle in Pava's long term favor! Can she recover?!"

"I… I can! We can, I mean… Beedrill, Pin Missile!"

Beedrill stabilized in the air and began firing purple needles up high down at Tauros.

"Protect, then Incinerate!"

Tauros snorted as a blue sphere formed around him to deflect the barbs away, before fading and forming the fiery spheres and sending them flying at Beedrill.

Beedrill dropped down to avoid them, but wasn't fast enough to fully escape and got a few scorches on its wings. The bug was sent flying down, and Pava gasped in horror.

"Beedrill no!"

"Headbutt!"

Tauros charged in at the falling bug, leaping into the air to hit the bug as it was flying. This sent Beedrill crashing into the ground with a loud thump, which Tauros landed without issue.

"Beedrill is unable to battle!"

…

"Yeah! Go Ash! Take down that bug!"

"Pikapi!"

Misty's loud cheering from the stands was surely heard by Ash.

Anabel looked at the dejected Pava as she returned her first Pokémon with a frown.

Something about that battle felt off, and she couldn't quite figure out what.

"These earplugs are good for how loud everything is, but I still wish there were less people around. Are you sure that this is only going to get busier?"

Anabel noted the stand status for a round one match and nodded unhesitatingly to Iris.

There were some empty seats here, there would not be in the Indigo Stadium.

…

"And the second Pokémon from Pava Gilbane is Machoke, a fierce Fighting-type Pokémon! Will Ash return Tauros, or does he have a strategy for this!?"

The Machoke that had come out flexed at him and Tauros, and Ash noted that the Machoke seemed a bit more… something than the Beedrill. And it probably wasn't just muscles.

He looked at Tauros, who snorted without heavy breathing.

"Tauros, you up for another round?"

Tauros stamped his feet in a 'yes' sort of way, and he grinned.

"Awesome! Let's make this two for two!"

"Don't underestimate us! Machoke, grab the horns!"

Machoke charged at Tauros, massive hands open and ready for grasping.

"Use Double Team, then Headbutt!"

Tauros nodded and shimmered briefly. Machoke grabbed at Tauros's horns, only for Tauros to fade away.

The dupe reveal caught Machoke off guard, as did the Headbutt from behind that sent the fighting type crashing through the grass and onto the ground face down.

"Tauros evades Machoke's grab attack, and then strikes back!"

Machoke struggled back up, and Ash noted a bit of a grass stain on his chest as he turned around and glared at Tauros.

"Use Incinerate!"

"Deflect them with Karate Chop, then use Submission!"

The fireballs fired from Tauros were deflected away by Machoke, who jabbed them away with a bit of effort but otherwise took no visible damage.

Machoke then lunged for Tauros, once again aiming for a grasping attack.

"Protect, then Headbutt!"

Submission's grasping hands fell right into Protect, the deflection causing Machoke's arms to swing wide and expose the body without any guard.

Tauros took the opening and slammed his head into Machoke, sending the muscle Pokémon back with a powerful blow.

Machoke was bent over, glaring at Tauros. However, the fighting type wasn't defeated yet.

"You're still up Machoke. Thank you, we can still turn this around. Revenge!"

Machoke glowed orange, the aura spiking around him as Machoke ran at Tauros, who instinctively formed into Double Team.

Machoke turned around at the first impact, only briefly hitting the first dupe as he lunged at two other dupes.

"Headbutt!"

Machoke grinned as he slammed into two Tauros, only to lose the grin when both were dupes.

He was definitely not grinning when Tauros slammed in from the side with a Headbutt, sending him down to the ground.

"Machoke is unable to battle!"

…

"Wow, this is looking like it is going to be an entire sweep! I didn't even realize that Tauros was as strong as it is!"

"It is not."

Misty turned to Iris, who was shaking her head.

"I would not call that Tauros among the strongest Ash has in his herd. That Machoke was stronger than the Beedrill, but both were not anywhere near Ash's strength. If I had to think on it, they were more like what Ash had just after Janine."

Misty stared at the girl Ash was fighting, who returned her Machoke sadly.

"Then how did she get all the way here?"

…

"I was really hoping I didn't have to do this. This always happens, and I was hoping I could avoid it just once while I was here."

At Pava's bothered words Ash smiled back at her.

"A turn around with just one Pokémon? That's hardly unheard of, and it is still a win. It is good you want to avoid doing it too much, but it is still good to have a few Pokémon you can fall back on to save yourself."

"But what if it is just one Pokémon, and only that one Pokémon?"

At Pava's words she threw out a Pokéball, which exploded on the field.

"I'm sorry it always comes to this, but I need you to provide us another miracle!"

Said miracle maker was now fully visible, and Ash had to admit it was not the sort of Pokémon he was expecting.

"Yaaa!"

"Dragonair, a Dragon Pokémon native to the bottom of lakes. They are known for weather manipulation and rarity."

The Dragonair that Pava had sent out eyed Tauros, who was breathing a bit heavy now.

"Tauros, would you like to take a break, or do you want to see how this goes?"

Tauros nodded, still breathing a bit heavy but nodding nonetheless.

"Okay then, let's see what this Pokémon does for ranged attacks! Incinerate!"

Tauros formed fiery balls around himself and fired at Dragonair, whose neck pearl glowed purple.

Said Dragonair extended its neck straight, and fired a spherical Dragon Pulse from it.

The Dragon Pulse shattered the Incinerate fireballs effortlessly and slammed into Tauros, sending the steed flying into his podium.

He had to grip the railing to avoid falling over from the impact, and he reached for the Safari Ball to return Tauros.

"Tauros is unable to battle!"

"And what do you know, Pava's last Pokémon is a real doozy!"

He thanked Tauros for the effort while staring down said Dragonair.

He had wondered about someone using a Dragon-type in the first round like this, which had been why Togepi was one of the Pokémon he had on him.

However, that attack was pretty strong, and he hadn't gotten to see Dragonair's other moves. This Pokémon might actually have more than four moves to itself, and using Togepi against it with such unknown moves wasn't something he wanted to risk.

Plus, in his head he imagined using Togepi against a Dragon-type who belonged to someone a lot more arrogant and haughty than Pava was. Using Togepi and winning against her would honestly be rather jerkish of him.

Thankfully, he did have another strategy.

"Go!"

He sent out a second Safari Ball, and a second Tauros, who bellowed at the tensing Dragonair.

"And our Pallet Town challenger brings out a second Tauros! Is keeping more to his chest going to be smart or a dumb play of his?"

"Ice Beam!"

The white ball that formed in between Tauros's horns was a smart play, at least if anyone asked him about it.

"Flamethrower!"

The Dragonair bellowed flames back into the Ice Beam, with the two attacks colliding mid field.

The two seemed equally matched, so he was going to need to get in close.

"Tauros, charge in for a close range attack!"

Tauros nodded, stamping a bit before charging towards the Dragonair, who slithered around to rearrange her body, putting the tail up.

"Aqua Tail!"

"Zen Headbutt!"

Tail and head clashed, with head winning out as Tauros pushed forward and sent Dragonair spinning.

The Pokémon took no damage, but it was now on the backfoot. So to speak, given that Dragonair did not have feet until evolution.

"Ice Beam!"

With that opening Tauros fired another Ice Beam, which struck Dragonair and send the serpentine Pokémon spinning through the grass like a runaway log.

Dragonair got back control before hitting the green podium, recovering and glaring at Tauros who snorted back.

"Pava's lucky that super effective Ice Beam didn't freeze on contact! That would have been a certain game over folks!"

Lucky was not the right word. The Tauros he was using had the ability Sheer Force. Freezing on contact with Ice Beam was not possible for him.

"Dragon Pulse!"

Dragonair's neck pearl was glowing again. However, Ash had an idea for this.

"Use Iron Tail and bat the Dragon Pulse back!"

Tauros's tails glowed white and he swung himself around, just as Dragonair fired the Dragon Pulse.

The sphere struck into the swinging tails, and was swatted right back at Dragonair.

"What!?"

She was rather surprised by it, and Dragonair only had enough time to fire a Flamethrower that barely caught the rebounded attack before exploding.

A lot of smoke shot up from the impact zone, obscuring both Dragonair and Pava.

"Dragonair…"

He could hear Pava though, concern and regret clear in her voice.

"I'm sorry it always comes down to this. We've never had enough time, and in the end you have to do so much. I don't want us to end it here. I want to get just a bit farther, and I know you want to as well. So please, still be there when the smoke clears.

The smoke continued to billow up from the impact zone without a sound, before a loud bellow came from the smoke.

Followed by a large burst of light that blew the smoke away, and revealed a morphing blob that had once been Dragonair.

He was honestly impressed he didn't let out a swear word right then and there.

Tauros snorted nervously as the light broke away, revealing a newly evolved Dragonite.

"Brooooo!"

"And I'm sure this is not what Ketchum was hoping to see after two solid hits with super effective attacks, though I'm sure Gilbane is thrilled about this exciting turn of events!"

"I… I am. I am! Dragonite!"

Dragonite bellowed once more, before forming a blue sphere in a single hand and throwing it at Tauros.

Tauros couldn't react before the attack struck him in the face.

"Oh, that was Focus Blast!"

Tauros was still standing after that attack, but shaking a bit.

"I didn't think that you had that attack, did you just learn it? Dragonite, you are awesome! Okay so Focus Blast, Dragon Pulse, Flamethrower, Aqua Tail…do you still have…"

Dragonite's tail glowed metallic white, and Pava pointed at Tauros.

"Great! Use Iron Tail!"

Dragonite flew at Tauros with the glowing tail, and he could only wince.

"It's coming in too fast and it will just cut through Ice Beam… use Zen Headbutt!"

Tauros's head glowed blue and he met the attack head on.

Once again head met tail, and this time they were matched evenly.

"Use Flamethrower!"

Dragonite broke off Iron Tail and lifted said tail, letting Tauros run by a bit before bellowing flames right into Tauros.

Tauros yelped at the blow, before collapsing in defeat.

Dragonite landed on the ground and bellowed in a victory call.

"Broooo!"

…

"That Dragonair had been able to evolve for a while: it was that girl's words that were the final trigger."

At her words Misty looked at the Dragonite with a lot of concern.

"What can Ash do to beat it? It looks really strong."

"It is. Charizard is probably his best bet. Did he bring it?"

Misty had a nervous look, as if she didn't know that herself.

She did not know either, so it was a good question.

…

Well this hadn't been how he expected the first round to go.

As Dragonite stared him down, all Ash could say as good for him was that Dragonite did still have the damage from the attacks taken.

That was it though, and he'll admit the issue was on him.

Other than the two Tauros that had been beaten by it already, he had Togepi (who was not going to go against this Pokémon), Serperior (who did not have a good type matchup nor did he have an idea of what gender it was), and Muk (who'd take hits but not really hurt back.)

He had a second Pokémon akin to Serperior on him, but he wasn't entirely sure about the match up now.

However, with what he made his bed with that day, it was his best shot. Worst came to worst he'd just use a Z-Move and blow that out in the open.

"It's all up to you!"

No pressure.

"And Ketchum has a third Tauros! Is this strategy going to pay off for him, or did his plans to play smart doom him to a come from behind victory by his opponent!?"

Tauros stared at the Dragonite, snorting in anticipation.

"Brro." 'Pummelo again huh? Well, I'll be enjoying this.'

He nodded before pointing above Dragonite.

"Use Rock Slide!"

Tauros's fifth move came with a single bellow, which was followed by a rain of stones falling down at Dragonite from above.

They struck the surprised Dragonite before it could get out of the way, pinning the dragon down with heavy stone as it struggled to get back up.

"Now Fissure!"

Tauros slammed his front hoof down, sending a surge of energy cracking through the earth towards the pinned Dragonite.

"Our Pallet Town challenger has combined two powerful moves to get around Dragonite's aerial advantages!"

"Use Flamethrower!"

At Pava's shout Dragonite began blowing fire into the Fissure energy.

The flames however were shattered by the power of Fissure, which struck Dragonite without any issue.

The field was silent for a moment, and he could see Pava trembling in horror.

The stones clattered off Dragonite, who was shown to be completely slumped over.

Pava was still trembling as the ref made the call.

"Dragonite is unable to battle! The winner is Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town!"

"With a myriad of Tauros and strategy to his name, Ash Ketchum has won the first round!"

Tauros stared at the defeated Dragonite, then at his hoof, then back at Dragonite.

"Brooo." 'So that is what hitting something with Fissure looks like?'

He nodded as Pava returned Dragonite, her body still trembling and tears in her eyes.

He was happy to have won, but Pava crying made the victory feel off somehow.

He wanted to say something, but she ran off before he could.

…

While he hadn't felt the best about his win on the field, off the field it was all cheers and celebrations.

"Way to go Ash! That's one down and nine more to go!"

He and Misty tapped glasses: not alcohol but of juice.

The four of them could drink in the near future, but that time wasn't now.

"Yeah, though I can only hope they go easier than that one. I'll admit I could have taken a better team into that fight, and I'm just as amazed that Rock Slide-Fissure thing worked as well as it did."

"Well, I'll admit I was wrong, as rare as it is. That Tauros did better than I had expected as an equivalent to Serperior."

The Pokédex wasn't really partying, even if it was flashing colorful lights from his screen. It wasn't quite strobe lighting, but it was a decent try.

"I'm just glad we managed to get that move down right. Tauros really did need a better ranged option for aerial opponents, and I'm just glad that the work we put in for it was worth it."

'Perhaps going forward it would pay in trying to be less clever, but in the end it was a victory, and not a pyrrhic one.'

"Pyrrhric? That is a word for fire right? Is there a problem with fire I was not aware of?"

He raised his hand, questioning the term as well.

"I'm actually with Iris on this one. I think I've heard that term before, but I have no idea what it means exactly."

'It means winning a battle with such losses that you basically lost as well. It was usually used in reference to battles won that left a large portion of your army as casualties, or cost you an invaluable commander.'

So like what happened when Harrison beat him in Johto then. Blaziken had ended up so battered that Harrison hadn't his strongest Pokémon for the next round, and had lost as a result.

"Isn't that what you'd call a hollow victory?"

"Similar, but not quite the same. 'Winning the battle, but losing the war' is a better term to compare the statement to."

The Pokédex's beep was followed by Iris shaking her head.

"People really do come up with too many ways of saying the same thing."

…

After the post-victory feast and some light training exercises with Iris, the group went back to the bunk house they'd be staying at during the tournament. Fortunately for them, the facilities included a PC with internet access so the competitors could consult about their possible opponents, or simply surf around the net for entertainment between matches. Anabel was now sitting in front of said PC, checking on the recent replies to her latest blog entry. Even though the occasional haters and trolls would pop up to annoy every once in a while, the reception was notably more positive now. After the first round, many of the participants felt bold enough to ask if she saw their matches and even boast a little about their victories.

However, among the many upbeat comments, there was one from someone identified as 'MasterBuilder87', whose icon was a hardhat like the ones worn by construction workers. Said comment read as following:

Salon Maiden, I don't know whether I should say this, but here I go. You might have seen my match: I was knocked out in the first round. I feel terrible for losing alright, but I feel even worse for the way I acted after I lost. I was nervous, because this was my first tournament after all. I think my opponent noticed and even though we were enemies on the field, he tried to give me some encouragement. That definitely helped me through, which is why I feel guilty over running off crying like a little baby, not even thanking him or congratulating him on his victory. What should I do?

Anabel read and reread the message a few times. Although she couldn't know for sure, her intuition told her the author of this message had to be the same girl Ash had beaten before. Her story seemed to match too closely on the result of Ash's first match to be a simple coincidence.

‘Poor girl. Maybe she needs somebody to talk to right now.' She could easily type a reply on the blog, but if she felt as bad as she said, maybe a meeting in person would be more appropriate. Maybe, if she was lucky, she hadn't left town yet.

First things first, though: she couldn't let herself be identified out there. She'd have to go incognito.

'Hey Ash,' she told the Trainer, who was sitting on the couch and looking for channels on the TV, while Pikachu rested comfortably on his lap.

"Yeah, what's up?"

'Do you have a spare hat and a hoodie I could borrow for a bit?'

…

As it turned out, he did have them. Before leaving their bunk house she simply told Ash and the others she'd go out for a walk and be back at dinnertime.

Fortunately, they didn't ask any questions. She'd brought along a pair of round, big sunshades to hide her eyes, which coupled with the hat and hoodie Ash provided would make the perfect disguise. Save the occasional curious glances, nobody took notice of her; everyone was too busy with the League's excitement, plus many other people had even more outlandish looks, so it wasn't like she'd stand out anyway.

Despite all the emotions floating in the air, Anabel didn't feel overwhelmed at all. Even with the occasional thoughts of rage or sorrow over losing, most people were more focused on the competition's excitement, either from the participants themselves or those who came to show their support for their friends. Even several of the eliminated competitors were trying to take it in stride and make the best of it by cheering on their friends. That was very positive.

'Now, where could she be?'

Problem was, she had no way to tell for sure whether Pava would still be around the Indigo Stadium grounds, and she'd be hard to find amongst so many people. Neither did she know where she was staying at, and although the Pokédex would probably be able to figure it out, it was too busy giving Ash reports about his ever-growing family tree, unfortunately.

There were two places where she'd have a high chance to find her: either the restaurant area, possibly going to get something to eat for comfort after the loss, or a Pokémon Center to treat her team after they got injured. The latter case seemed the most likely, as any Trainer who cared about their team would go there first thing after a match, so she decided to check that first.

With the amount of competitors, there were of course a lot of Pokémon Centers all over the place, although most of them were in the same general area. If Pava was there, she might take a while to find her, but it wouldn't be as hard like, say, when Ash was kidnapped by Sabrina.

'It's worth a try. Pava Gilbane… where are you now?'

Using the map in the pamphlet to orient herself, she stood in the center square, so as to have a radius spread all over the area. If Pava was there, she'd just have to irradiate her telepathy waves within two or three blocks around to find her.

Another reason to wear the shades: that way nobody would notice her eyes glowing while she was doing so.

'One… two… three.'

And with that, she immediately sent out a telepathic wave all over the Pokémon Center area. She kept her focus, trying to pinpoint specific thoughts.

'…No chance whatsoever, that Fisher gal…'

'… look out for the rookies, one of them kicked out Mandi last year and there are more of them this time, yet somehow he got through round one this time…'

'… betting everything on Oak's grandson!'

'There's no need to call it pathetic, right?'

Random thoughts flashed one after another in quick succession. She might need one or two extra laps to find her.

However, a couple minutes or so later, she found there was no need for that. Specifically, she focused on the mind of a Nurse Joy who was on duty.

'…Your Dragonite will be fine, but you should let him rest for tonight. He was lucky to not to suffer any severe fractures in the wings. Besides, he'll need some time to get used to his new form.'

'Thanks, Nurse Joy. I'll come pick him up tomorrow.'

That was her, Anabel was sure of it. Not too surprising: after the damage it took against Ash's three Tauros, it was logical of Pava to take her Dragonite to the Pokémon Center. At least that ensured she wouldn't leave until tomorrow, as she had to wait for the recovery.

With that in mind, Anabel followed the mind signature like a beacon. She could teleport to go faster, but in front of so many people it'd be better to avoid giving herself out.

It took her a bit, but she managed to find her. Pava was walking across the street as she talked through her cellphone. Anabel briefly read her mind and realized she was talking to her family to let them know she'd go back the next day.

'Maybe… I should approach her while she's alone. So nobody interrupts us.'

Yeah, that was the best choice. For now, all she could do was follow her subtly. Sooner or later she'd have to go back to her own bunk house to rest. It had been a long day after all.

…

Pava did a quick stop at the ice-cream parlor, and after taking out her sorrows in a giant Banana Split, she went back to the rest zone. Ironically, it turned out it wasn't too far from where they were staying, so it was a bit weird they didn't cross paths before.

She did a quick mind scan to confirm Pava was alone in her bunk house. It seemed she didn't bring any companions along, so they'd be able to talk to each other without any issues. Taking a deep breath, she approached the door.

'Here goes,' she mused before knocking thrice.

Pava took a bit to answer, and when she opened the door, Anabel noted she was barely an inch taller than her, and still had her eyes a bit red from crying so much. Poor girl, that defeat had clearly done a number on her.

"Yeah? Can I help you?"

'I received your message. I thought maybe you'd like a reply in person.'

"Message? What are you…" The girl flinched slightly as she realized something. "Wait a minute, did I just hear your voice in my head?!"

'You did,' Anabel replied without moving her mouth to make her point. 'When I said I wanted to find my voice, it was because I literally lost it. I can't talk directly, but I can communicate this way.'

"So you're… you're the one who writes that blog, the Salon Maiden?" The girl's face lit up, and Anabel could feel her spirits lifting.

Anabel smiled at her, but gestured at her to be a bit more discreet.

'Shhh, please don't let other people know I'm here. Can I come in? Like I said, I think we should talk, and in private if possible.'

"S-sure. P-please come in."

Anabel entered the bunk house and Pava closed the door behind them. The place looked virtually identical to the one she shared with Ash and the others. It almost looked too big just for her, with nobody to share it.

"So it's true? You're the real deal, a Bloodliner in the flesh?" She said as if she'd just met her favorite movie star. "I've always wanted to meet one, really. What's it like? Do you have other powers aside from that telepathy?"

Anabel just smiled, and outstretched her hand towards a jacket hanging on a coat rack, bringing it towards them. Luckily for them the windows' crystals were opaque and nobody would see them even if they tried to peek.

'I can do just about anything Psychic-type Pokémon can. It comes in handy to better understand them.'

"Sounds awesome. I'd love to do something like that myself."

Anabel smiled again. She seemed like a good girl, and it was nice to talk to somebody that way, without having to hide what she really was.

Even if technically she was hiding who she was.

'But I'm not here to talk about me. As you might have guessed, I saw your battle today. That defeat was a harsh blow on you, wasn't it?'

Pava's smile instantly vanished. The girl lowered her head, evidently still ashamed at herself for acting that way. Anabel could feel there was another layer beneath the defeat in itself, and that was what made her feel bad. But she couldn't push her too much to say it; it was her choice to do so.

"I guess my luck had to run out sooner or later. Still… it's really frustrating to go down in the first round. I didn't want that."

'There's no shame in losing,' Anabel assured her. 'You actually did pretty well, you just… ended up matched against an opponent much stronger than you expected.'

That was true. Even though her initial performance left a lot to be desired, her Dragonair, now Dragonite, was clearly pretty strong and well-trained, to the point it seemed the kind of Pokémon most Trainers would save for later rounds.

"Yeah, that boy with the Tauros was really good," Pava admitted. "In fact, if Dragonair hadn't evolved right then and there, I doubt we'd made it to the last bout. When he evolved I thought… I thought he could make the miracle again, just like he's always done before."

"Always?' Anabel asked.

Pava glanced at her once more. Even without reading her mind, the girl's demeanor gave away that she was about to talk about something delicate, something she evidently didn't like to touch. Though she was wearing the sunshades for protection, for a moment she was tempted to take them off so the girl could look her in the eye, if only so as to inspire some trust on her.

Fortunately, that wasn't needed.

"I've won almost all of my battles thanks to Dragonite. I know it's unfair to make him do the heavy lifting but… I don't know what else to do. I barely had time to train him, and whenever things got hard for us, he'd pull a victory for us. I thought it'd be the same now but, well, guess our streak had to end sooner or later."

Anabel gave the girl an inquisitive look. One of the golden rules for any Trainer was that a Pokémon team had to be exactly that: a team, well-formed and trained. There was the fact that every Pokémon would grow stronger at its own pace, and there was focusing on strengthening one Pokémon alone, leaving the rest behind.

However, Pava had just said she only had time to train her Dragonite, meaning there might have been the circumstances forcing her to make that call.

'I can tell you did an amazing job with your Dragonite, so I find it weird your other Pokémon weren't anywhere near the same level. I assume there's a story behind it?'

Pava sighed again. "A long and pretty boring story. One I'm sure you won't like to hear."

'I'll be the judge of that,' Anabel insisted. 'Who knows, you might feel better after telling me. Don't worry about the time, it's not like I have many plans for the rest of today.'

She was in no hurry, and even if it turned out to be too long, Ash and the others would understand. Until then, Pava needed someone to listen to her, and she'd chosen to be that person.

"My family has a construction business," the blonde began. "Sometimes I help them; carrying bricks and cement bags around is good to keep in shape, as you can see."

She showed off her biceps with a hint of pride. Suddenly the online name and the hardhat icon made a lot more sense.

"Still, I had wanted to be a Trainer for quite a while, and travel throughout Kanto to compete here. I know I'll have to take over the family business one day, but until then, I'd like to do other things."

Anabel nodded. The pressure of family duties was never easy to deal with.

"Everything was going well, but barely two months after I left, I got a phone call from Mom. Dad had an accident at work, and he's still undergoing rehab so… my traveling plans were truncated, at least until he fully recovers."

Anabel placed a hand on her mouth. As the girl continued to tell her story, she saw her attitude during the match in a new light, and suddenly her reaction to being defeated became more understandable.

Pava told her how much she had to beg her parents to let her become a Trainer. While she didn't mean to deny her family business, she wanted to make her own path and do other stuff in her lifetime. After she finally got her license, it looked like everything would turn out fine.

But things came to a halt when her father suffered that accident. They were short on staff, and although she knew she'd have to take over the construction business sooner or later, part of her hoped it'd be later. Nevertheless, blood was thicker than water, and her journey came to a halt before she was even able to get a full Pokémon team.

Afterwards, the family job left her with limited time to spare. In her free days she could barely take her Dratini (by a lucky stroke, she found him shortly before she had to go back home) to do some training at the local Battle Club, eventually getting him to evolve. He became strong enough to challenge a Gym for an instant entry badge, and that was how they got their pass for the competition. As for the rest of the team, sometimes she had no choice but to make do with Bug-Catching Contests just to fill the empty slots.

After finishing her rather long tale, the blonde once more sighed, but Anabel could sense she felt a lot better after getting all that off her chest. She didn't understand why she was ashamed; it wasn't as bad as she thought.

"So, that's my story," She concluded. "Pathetic, isn't it?"

'Not at all.' Anabel shook her head. 'You just had too many pressures thrown upon you. This competition meant a lot to you, didn't it?'

"Yeah. That's why I didn't want it to end so soon. But I guess I deserve it, for making Dragonite carry us through our battles. And no matter how frustrated I am, I have no excuse for running off like I did. It's not that boy's fault that I'm such a lousy Trainer."

That was a pretty big stretch, Anabel thought. Sure, she might have not made the best calls in her training methods, but it wasn't like she had too much of a choice either. The fact her family didn't seem to give her enough support certainly didn't help matters.

At that point, spending time around Iris had given her enough knowledge about Dragon-types to understand how hard they were to train, especially for beginners. But the efforts always paid off if done well, and Pava had shown it. Anabel knew exactly what Pava needed to hear.

'You're not a bad Trainer. You raised your Dragonite to a great level, and not many beginners can boast of something like that. With time and dedication, all of your Pokémon can and will become just as strong as him.'

"But what about, you know, my family's business?"

There was the real issue. Anabel never had to deal with that kind of family pressure, as her uncle never pushed her into going for the military despite being a soldier himself. In fact, he actively dissuaded her from doing so.

Then again, Pava's message at the blog asked at the end what she should do. She couldn't leave without at least giving her some advice.

'Once your dad recovers, I think it's only fair you're allowed to make up for the lost time. It's good that you want to help your family, but that doesn't mean you should neglect what you want to do and makes you happy. Use that time to train your Pokémon, make them up to par with your Dragonite. If you could train him so well, you can do the same with the rest.'

"You think so?" Pava seemed to lift her spirits at that.

'It's worth a try at least.'

Unfortunately, right then a beep went off in the Bloodliner's pocket. As she pulled out the device, she saw Ash had used his Pokédex to send her a written message to let her know they were waiting for her to start dinner.

'I'm sorry, that's my cue to leave. I've got people waiting for me.'

"Too bad. I was starting to enjoy chatting with you."

'We can still keep in touch through the blog, if you want. Maybe I can't always come in person, but if you need to talk or anything. I'll be there. That's why I opened it in the first place.'

"Sounds good to me. Thanks, I'm feeling a lot better now. I'm sorry that you had to come here just to help a stranger."

'Don't worry. I was glad to help.'

Anabel stood up and walked towards the door. Before leaving, though, she still had one more thing to say.

'Can I ask you for a little favor? Let's keep this little chat between us. Don't tell anyone you met me in person, okay?'

"My lips are sealed."

Anabel waved Pava goodbye and left the house, walking back without any hurry for dinner with her friends. All things considered, that was a pretty good way to end her day.

She was glad her blog had served to help someone. Hopefully Pava would be just the first of many.

The next morning

Yawning, Ash wandered through the bunk house that he had been allotted as a competitor, only somewhat awake this morning.

It was the start of day two, and that meant round two. He had a lot of time before his battle, so he was in no rush to get to it.

He had the entire morning to wake up, and that meant he had time for a nice, waking shower.

He opened the door to said shower, and found himself staring at a wet and naked Iris toweling herself off.

He was suddenly very awake, alertness coming over him in a massive bolt of pure focus.

"Morning Ash."

He nodded dumbly at Iris, who continued to dry herself. The white fabric of the towel clashing with her brown skin, and covering and revealing different parts of her body as it moved along.

His eyes couldn't help but follow the path of the towel.

He could vaguely recall noting that the bunk house was a smaller space than his house, let alone all of Pallet Town around it, but the ramifications of it had only really just become apparent to him.

"Shower is all yours. Misty and Anabel will probably still be asleep for a while."

And so Iris flung the towel into the provided hamper and walked off, still naked. His eyes followed her as she walked out the door and out of sight, then looked down.

"Cold shower."

…

As she entered the room that she shared with the slumbering Misty and Anabel, Iris had a thought come to her.

Could she have kissed Ash then and there?

She thought about it for a moment, and shook her head.

Clearly Ash was not the only one who could be making better strategies at Indigo.

Though that would imply she planned on having him walk in on her showering. It had just been a fun accident.

Elsewhere

While Ash had pre-battle excitement to deal with, others had battles to win in round two.

The Water Field had a battle between a Butterfree and a Pidgeot, and one might think that this was a tad problematic for the Butterfree.

It would, if there wasn't a certain tough cookie commanding it.

"Pidgeot, Sky Attack!"

The Pidgeot had flown into Butterfree with a ferocious attack, though the Butterfree that had been struck had poofed out of existence shortly after impact, along with a haze of red dust.

"What?!"

"Pidgeot's dangerous attack had been sent off course by a combination of Rage Powder and Substitute! The real Butterfree can now launch a dangerous counter-attack, but how will it do so!?"

"Quickly Butterfree, use Electroweb!"

At A.J's command the Butterfree had flown up behind the Pidgeot and blew an electrified webbing down on it. Pidgeot squawked in mental shock before screeching in electrical shock as the webbing pinned it down into the water.

While not sinking, the electric webbing did mix with the wetness now affecting Pidgeot for an enhanced damaging combo.

"And would you look at that folks! After turning it all around against Venomoth and Poliwrath, Pidgeot has finally met its match! This might be it folks!"

Pidgeot continued to sizzle for a good minute before the webbing fizzled out, leaving Pidgeot to float in the water harmlessly.

"No!"

"Pidgeot is unable to battle! The winner is A.J!"

Butterfree fluttered back over to A.J, who fist pumped in joy.

"Yeah! That's two down and eight more to go! Good job Butterfree!"

"Free!"

Butterfree fluttered around him happily for a moment, as A.J put a thoughtful finger to his chin.

"Wonder how Jeanette's doing. Both our matches are at the same time…"

Meanwhile on the rocky battlefield

Jeanette grimaced as her Golduck fell to the ground, defeated.

Her opponent's Golem cheered at the defeat, while her opponent laughed at her.

"I get that you basically had a throw away Pokémon with that Beedrill of yours, but you must really be a rookie if you think you could beat my Golem just because of type advantage!"

"That Beedrill defeated both of your previous Pokémon, or did that slip your mind?"

Her opponent shot her a nasty look.

"Just send your last Pokémon out so Golem can wreck it just like your last two."

Having returned Golduck she took out her last Pokéball for that battle.

She had preferred to not use this one as early as she had, but she had no choice.

"Go!"

And with that she sent out Bellsprout, for whom the appearance of her secret weapon sent her opponent into hysterical laughter.

"Chor chor chor chor!"

He laughed oddly.

"And what seems to be a desperation move by young Jeanette! Jeanette must be leaning heavily on type matchup to get her out of this mess!"

"Hope you are ready to bow out in embarrassment! Golem, use Fire Punch!"

Golem charged at Bellsprout, fist blazing with intent to strike her little ace right in the face.

She didn't give a command, as Bellsprout knew exactly what to do.

"Bell!"

*SLAM!*

The crowd was utterly silent at what happened, and could only stare at what followed next.

*SLAM! SLAM! SLAM!*

"You are seeing exactly what you are seeing folks! I'm drug tested, and I am seeing the Bellsprout slam the Golem around like nothing just as you all are!"

Her opponent could only stare at her in utter disbelief as his comeback was being beaten away by a simple Bellsprout, who tossed his Golem away right into a battlefield stone and shattering the stone pillar.

Golem wasn't moving in the aftermath, and she grinned.

That was a bit closer than she'd like, but that was round two done with.

She hoped A.J's battle had gone better than hers had, though she was sure he also passed this round.

"Golem is unable to battle, the winner is Bellsprout!"

"Well folks, that was the results type matchup would tell you, though I don't think Bellsprout used any super effective moves!"

"Good job Bellsprout!"

"Bell!"

On the Grass Field, an unrelated battle was concluding.

"Electabuzz, finish this battle with Hyper Beam!"

Electabuzz formed the orange sphere in hand before firing said beam into his opponent.

The Machamp that had been standing against him tried to get away, but the paralysis it had taken on from Discharge flared up, and it was blasted with the full strength of Hyper Beam.

Machamp slumped over in defeat, and the battle was called in his favor.

He grinned, not just at his win and Electabuzz's performance, but also the fact that so far he had done pretty well hiding Marowak.

They had worked hard at getting their new power mastered, that he had some concern about how his other Pokémon might perform in comparison.

But Parasect, Dodrio, Electabuzz, Pinsir, and Tangrowth had all performed well in the first two rounds, and his worries were starting to subside.

It was eight more battles to the end, and the power of Break Evolution continued to remain a secret to spring only when it was time.

Back to Ash

With a few hours before his battle, he had taken advantage of the break in battles of people he knew on the omnipresent monitors and screens (Paul had just defeated his opponent with Hypno and Red with Poliwrath) for a quick bathroom break.

He had been swapping at his possible team set ups for an hour, and while he liked to think he had an idea on how to do it better than the first battle he needed a break before looking back at them.

"Hello victim."

The voice came out of nowhere just as he finished, and he was lucky that he was already zipping his pants back up when he jumped and turned around to see who had snuck up on him like that.

Who he found was a complete stranger: a large faced man with a massive nose and mouth, with a brown mop of hair. While Ash was taller, the man staring him back was notably wider and bulkier than he was, though it was not because of muscle.

"Pi-Pikachu!" 'His name isn't victim, and you shouldn't sneak up on people like that! Who do you think you are, Team Rocket?!'

The man didn't react to Pikachu's words, most likely because he couldn't tell what they meant. He continued to look at him with an expression that was almost hungry.

It was honestly making him a bit uncomfortable, as the guy was a bit too close to him for comfort.

"Like I said, I'm merely saying hello. I do like to be polite to my victims before I crush them."

His words had a feeling to them like something covered in oil, and his breath smelled of pickled things.

Ash at least figured out who this guy was. He hadn't seen a picture of him yet, but he assumed that this guy had the same name as the one he was supposed to fight today.

The name was escaping him though, as the pickle smell was distracting him.

"Can you leave my personal space?"

"No."

He pushed himself up taller, shoving his face upward and closer to his own face. Pikachu was sparking threateningly, but he wasn't taking the hint.

Hopefully it wasn't because he knew that if Pikachu did shock him, the Jennies would swarm en masse.

"You recovered quickly: usually when I do this you rookies are a lot more cowered. Could be the height, or perhaps you really think you're tough stuff. All rookies do, at least until they are good and crushed. That is my specialty you see. I am the Rookie Crusher, and I am going to crush you on the Ice Field."

The way the guy said it was with great pride, as if he was happy to have a title like that.

"Of course, I'm sure you understand why I so like what I do. I mean, you certainly crushed that Dragonite girl. Sent her off in tears."

He glared into the creep, using all he could in sheer body language to send off how clearly he did not agree with him.

"I did not like doing that. I don't like making people cry, no one does."

"Oh but that is where you wrong rookie. Many love to see people crushed so utterly, put down in their place. It is enjoyable, it is thrilling, and it is what I live for."

"Pika." 'Well you clearly don't have a life then. No one can live a life just out of making others miserable.'

Again, the creep could not hear Pikachu, so he did not respond to him.

"You'll be my eighty-eighth rookie crushed as of today, and I am going to enjoy it. After all, I heard talk that you are one of those real top tier rookies. Like that freak rookie who somehow won the Kalos League last year with some super Steelix, or that other freak in Unova who had a psychic type eating his head. It will be an especially thrilling time seeing you crushed like all the rest, though I do fear that it won't be quite as enjoyable as I hope it will be."

"Oh, and why is that?"

He didn't know why he was asking the question, and prolonging his exposure to this person, but it was asked and couldn't be un-asked now.

"Because I have my oddest suspicions you aren't really a rookie at all Ash Ketchum. I've beaten non-rookies, and those battles just don't do it for me. They are hollow victories, as meaningless to me as actually winning Indigo."

With that he backed away, a defiant smirk as he exited the bathroom while walking backwards.

…

"And we are live at the Ice Field with a thrilling second round match up! In the red corner is the rookie Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town, and in the green corner is someone with his own name, but we all know him by a different title around here after the decades he's been around. The Rookie Crusher!"

When he had been named he had gotten cheering, but when the Rookie Crusher got his he got loud booing, but over the booing came rough, harsh, and screaming cheers.

"Crush him!"

"Make him cry!"

"Show him his place!"

"Go Crusher!"

Said Crusher only seemed to hear the cheers for him, and was dramatically blowing kisses into the crowd as if he was having the time of his life and surrounded by nothing but adoring fans.

"Pika…." 'This is what a heel does, right? That's the term in wrestling right?'

Ash shrugged. That was probably the correct term, but he was more a sumo wrestling sort of Pokémon Trainer. If he got a Pokémon that was more into wrestling he'd probably get a better idea of what a heel exactly was.

"This will be a three on three match, with the winner decided by who loses their three Pokémon first. Begin!"

"Exeggutor, let's show this kid how a good crushing feels!"

"Yanma, I choose you!"

By type alone, Ash liked to think he had called it. As Yanma buzzed over the Ice Field, type was on his side.

Not just type, but speed and mobility. An Exeggutor was many things, but a figure skater it was not.

He was sure that this guy had ideas on how to work around it, but he could handle any tricks he might have.

"Aerial Ace!"

Yanma began the battle by speeding towards the unflinching Exeggutor.

"Double Team!"

The Crusher's command was given calmly if with authority, and Exeggutor duplicated into an entire ring of Exeggutors.

The duplication didn't stop there, as the Exeggutors went on into several rings.

Yanma sped through an entire line of them before vanishing, and slicing through a second line of them about a third of a rotation away.

Yanma's body glowing green as he sped through the last of that particular line.

"That Double Team has extensive quantity, and Yanma is tearing through them all in a search for the real one! With the aid of Speed Boost, that will go quickly!"

"Not quite! Let's start the crushing!"

The Crusher had pulled a pair of shades from his shirt and had placed them on his face. It wasn't just him trying to be cool though.

Exeggutor gave a bellow in reply, before every Exeggutor dupe suddenly flashed in bright, blinding light. The entire field was suddenly awash in a massive dome of light too intense to look into.

"Gahh!"

"Yan!"

"Pika!" 'What is going on!'

The entire time the Crusher was laughing hysterically.

"Normally when a Double Team duplicate uses a move, it is just an illusion, a trick of the light. You can't get fifty Flamethrowers out of it. However, the move Flash is a bright light being used to blind a foe or illuminate an area. It appears to be an exception to the general rule with Double Team. I must admit, this human is pretty clever with his moves."

"Don't say it aloud; you'll just give him satisfaction!"

Despite his best attempt to snarl that at his Pokédex quietly, the Rookie Crusher had a fresh laugh in store.

"Glad I have a new fan, even if it's just a P.D.A without a mute button!"

"I am not a P.D.A! The light is fading away, have Yanma destroy him!"

He did not need the encouragement from the Pokédex as the light faded away, and while he was still squinting he could still see the field somewhat.

Yanma was dazed and woozy, but otherwise fine.

"Yanma, use your sonic waves to shatter the duplicates! Accuracy won't matter if you do that!"

Yanma began to flap his wings, building up the concussive force that made Yanma pests in some parts of the world.

"Oh, that is actually a pretty good idea rookie, too bad it is too little too late! Exeggutor, use Zen Headbutt!"

It might have just been his still squinting eyes, but it was like Exeggutor blurred out of existence and appeared in front of Yanma before slamming an entire blue glowing face into his Bug-type.

Yanma was sent crashing into the ground, smashing a few Exeggutor duplicates while the attacking Exeggutor faded into the crowd once more.

"Yanma, are you alright!?"

Yanma pushed himself back up, slipping a bit on the ice, but vibrated his wings in an affirmative.

"Good, let's go for a Quick Attack!"

Yanma nodded, body glowing white.

"Seed Bomb!"

Yanma was about to speed off like a jet-powered vehicle, but in a blink of an eye seeds began raining down on Yanma from the duplicate field.

They rained down on Yanma, smashing him into the ice with just as much ferocity as Zen Headbutt.

The entire time the Crusher was gleefully laughing.

…

"I don't get it. Yanma's fast, and Exeggutor isn't. Yanma should be able to react faster. Is that creep using a Psychic attack to move faster?"

At Misty's question Anabel shook her head.

They could see if that was what was going on. Neither Yanma or Exeggutor were glowing in a way that could be seen as a psychic boost or bane.

"That is what is going on, but not in the way you think."

Iris pointed to the field, which drew Anabel and Misty to look in confusion, before both noticed it.

The purple flicker engulfing the field momentarily.

…

"You used Trick Room!?"

At seeing the brief purple flicker, the Crusher's mouth curved into a wide grin.

"Yep. What you going to do about it rookie?"

"Trick Room is a psychic-type move that distorts the movement speeds of the Pokémon trapped within it! A Snorlax could beat a Jolteon in a foot race under Trick Room! This move has got Ash Ketchum on the ropes!"

The announcer's declaration on Trick Room made Ash growl in frustration, before an idea came to him.

Yanma was not going to do it in this fight, but he did have a Pokémon who could.

"I know that look! Exeggutor use Block!"

Red lasers shot out from each of the still present dupes of Exeggutor, binding Yanma to this battle.

A similar move had been done by Giovanni against Yanma before, and he had managed to find a way around it.

He would do the same here, especially as he had trained in a way to get around the same technique since, and it would also help burn Trick Room out.

"Zen Headbutt!"

"Detect!"

Yanma's eyes flashed green as Exeggutor appeared in front of him, heads glowing. With seconds to spare Yanma fluttered out of the way, leading Exeggutor to crash into the ice with no harm.

"Now U-Turn!"

Trick Room might drastically affect speed, but with barely a quarter of a foot between them that wouldn't do much.

Yanma, with a light green sheen to his body, slammed into the downed Exeggutor.

The walking rainforest yelped in pain as Yanma glowed entirely green, before turning into a green light that shot towards Pikachu and himself.

He held up the Park Ball Yanma called home, and sucked him up with a sufficient return.

"Hey! What about my Block!?"

"It doesn't work on U-Turn or Volt Switch! This isn't the first time someone tried that trick on Yanma!"

At his declaration the Rookie Crusher growled at him.

"With a masterful counter Ash Ketchum had broken the lock that the Rookie Crusher put him and Yanma in. But with that bind over, he'll have to send out a second Pokémon! Who will it be?!"

He pulled the Heal Ball from his belt.

"I choose you!"

The Heal Ball exploded in the air, releasing its occupant and slamming down on the field with a crash whose shockwave blew away a few more Exeggutor dupes.

The real one had righted itself, just in time to stare down Goodra before being engulfed in a spinning swarm of duplicates trying to hide it once more.

"Pikapi!?" 'Ash, you are using Goodra now? What happened to being strategic and stuff!?'

"If that was Pikachu complaining about your choice of Pokémon, I'm actually on your side for a change human."

The split on his battle calls aside, it was time to turn that battle around.

"Rain Dance!"

Goodra bellowed, as a spiraling rain cloud formed above the field. The rain came down, and while it did not get rid of the Exeggutor dupes, it did expose them.

The rain drops went through them, while the real Exeggutor got wet.

It also suggested that the speed issues were solved, at least for now.

"A Water Pokémon huh? Exeggutor, Seed Bomb!"

He didn't know what type Goodra was? Well, Goodra didn't look like other Dragon-type Pokémon. He could use that.

"Goodra, use Sludge Wave!"

Emerging all around Goodra came the wave of sludge, which sped out from Goodra and across the Ice Field.

The Seed Bomb was entirely engulfed in the sludge and neutralized, while the sludge continued on to strike Exeggutor, who slipped on the back foot on the now wet ice as the attack hit.

The two factors conked the plant Pokémon to the ground, and with that the ref's call.

"Exeggutor is unable to battle!"

…

Idly watching the battle being streamed his way, Giovanni chuckled while taking a sip of a glass.

Ketchum actually did get something from their battle other than a badge he didn't need after all.

…

The Rookie Crusher returned Exeggutor silently, before looking at Goodra with annoyance.

"Some freak Pokémon I've never seen before. Now isn't that annoying. Don't think that alone will save you kid. I've been crushing rookies before you were even born! You'll be crushed just like your eighty-seven predecessors! Go!"

And with that declaration the Rookie Crusher sent out his second Pokémon.

Said Pokémon was a Snorlax, whose landing left fresh cracks in the ice.

"Say rookie, another of your kind used a Snorlax here last round. He looked like you, and I'll give him credit for his ideas. That being said however, this Snorlax is going to clobber that thing my own way!"

"Clobber them!"

"Show them their place!"

"What even is that Pokémon? It looks like taffy!"

The jeers came down from the crowd, the last of which confused Ash.

"What do they think taffy looks like?"

"Battle begin!"

No time to ask that question, as the battle was on once more.

"Slide into that thing!"

At the Crusher's command the Snorlax speed forward, moving fast not just because of Trick Room.

The water itself moved Snorlax forward: the rain and the ice mixing together like a slipping slide traversed standing.

Snorlax's gut was now heading right at Goodra, who tensed at the looming blow.

"Bide!"

Goodra nodded, just as the sliding force of raw flesh slammed into Goodra.

The blow pushed Goodra back, and left a decently sized red aura around him. The Rookie Crusher eyed the move with disdain.

"Oh really, Bide? Do I look like someone who is going to fall for that?! Snorlax, Yawn!"

Snorlax opened its mouth wide, and released a storm of purple bubbles at Goodra.

On each impact of a bubble on Goodra his stance would slip, but a ripple would cross his body and jolt him awake like a fresh cup of coffee.

The red aura of Bide even grew a bit from each jolt of near exhaustion. It wasn't a huge increase in the power behind Bide, but it would add up.

The Crusher looked up at the rain cloud still pouring on the Ice Field.

"Hydration. Shit!"

"Go!"

He meanwhile had no problem with Goodra's Hydration, and with the extra charge from it all Goodra blasted at Snorlax with a concentrated beam of damage.

Snorlax took the beam head on, sliding across the ice like a curling puck.

It was a solid hit, but the battle was hardly done with.

"Let's get in close while we still have some Trick Room! Snorlax, Thunder Punch!"

Snorlax nodded before speeding ahead, just appearing in front of Goodra like the great lummox had used a flash step technique.

With a pair of electrified punches Snorlax began to pummel at Goodra with a series of rapid blows so fast, at least under Trick Room, that Ash couldn't follow them.

"Trick Room is ticking down, but the Rookie Crusher is making all the use of it he can with a series of devastating blows! Devastating, at least on paper!"

The Rookie Crusher looked up at the commentator box in shock.

"On paper? On paper!? Have you ever been punched by a super-fast Snorlax!? It's painful and a contradiction of nature's intent all at the same time! Plus, that thing is a Water-type, so it has got to be really feeling those blows!"

"Are you sure about that?"

The Crusher looked at him in utter confusion, before his gaze turned to Goodra and Snorlax. The Trick Room had worn off, so the Thunder Punches were now coming a lot slower.

Goodra was now swiveling to avoid the punches, and on top of it Goodra didn't look that damaged from the exchange.

"The fuck is its type!?"

"I'll show you: Goodra use Dragon Pulse!"

Goodra stuck his head right up against Snorlax's, and formed the Dragon Pulse.

He could almost hear Snorlax swear something as the Dragon Pulse went right off in Snorlax's face.

Snorlax was blown right down to the field, shattering a hole into the ice from the fall.

"That was a critical hit if I ever saw one! I can't see how Snorlax… oh my!"

Snorlax had pushed itself back up from the blow, standing up again.

The annoyed look on the Snorlax's face was matched by the one on the Crusher's.

"Clever kid, real clever. But now I've got your number, and your rain is about to run out. I am going to konk that Dragon and clobber it! Enjoy the last moments of rain you've got!"

Ash glared back at said angry Crusher.

"And I will! Goodra, use Thunder!"

Goodra's body was surrounded by a yellow glow that shot up into the sky. Goodra then waved his left hand down, which sent a bolt down on Snorlax.

The electric blast shocked the quite soaked Snorlax for what Ash was sure was massive damage.

Meanwhile Pikachu nodded in approval. They had taken up a bit of work to try and get electric moves working for Goodra in the last few months after they had tried previously as a Goomy way back then.

It had originally been Thunderbolt, but Thunder was a fine move to 'accidentally' learn too.

Pikachu and Goodra had done a lot of work, and it was paying off as a somewhat steamed Snorlax thumped down on the field in defeat just as the last rain cloud vanished.

"Snorlax is unable to battle!"

"And with that the Rookie Crusher is being crushed by this Rookie! The advantage that our veteran competitor had at the start has been eroded away by the surprise factor of Ash's Goodra! Can he turn it around for himself?"

The Rookie Crusher's body was trembling, his hand unable to stay still as he returned Snorlax. The trembling continued, escalating more and more before he exploded.

"Him! Crush! Me! Never! I! AM! The! Rookie! Crusher! I break him, not the other way around! No rookie will ever defeat me! No wait, that won't happen either way! He's no rookie, he's a fake! Faux! His soul ain't green for the squishing! I'm still going to break the faker! I've beaten the boring before, but oh no for once, for once; for once I am going to enjoy this! I'm going to destroy the fake rookie bastard!"

His limbs were flying around, his body in constant motion as he jumped and snarled and bit at the air. It was almost funny, if making him want to step a bit further away from him as he snapped.

Goodra did in fact stepped back nervously.

"Pikapi." 'The fact he isn't exactly wrong about the rookie thing makes this sort of weird, or is it just me? The fact he's right about that makes this a bit of a different experience than it should be, even if I am not sure how exactly.'

He was also right about him being a bastard, but that was neither here nor there. Also his use of the word 'bastard' was not exactly in the correct context as the accurate use of the word.

Right now he looked like he was about to make Jessie and James look sane.

"Green contestant, if you have suffered a complete loss of mental facilities we will call the match. Per the ruling of the eighty-fifth Silver Conference…"

"I am NOT trying to bite the faker's face off, so I am perfectly sane! I'm just going to grind him to dust, crush him with more relish than I've ever crushed anyone before!"

It might be Ash's imagination, but the judge looked almost ready to raise a flag, as if to make an unofficial call on his sanity.

"Wigglytuff, wipe him out utterly!"

His final Pokémon was sent out, landing on the field with less of a crash as it stared down Goodra.

"Wigglytuff the Balloon Pokémon, and the final evolved form of Jigglypuff! A Normal and Fairy type, the fur of this Pokémon is quite soft. In colder regions some sleep with them to stay warm in cold nights. I would not sleep with this one however, as it might strangle you in your sleep with its surprisingly flexible ears."

Indeed, the Wigglytuff did in fact look scarier than usual. It was glaring at them, with a purple sheen under its eyes and a menacing smile.

He had in fact seen a Wigglytuff like this before. At Indigo no less, even if not at a League fight.

"Pikakaan." 'Okay, I sniffed it. I am mostly sure that isn't actually Harley's freak Wigglytuff, but I am pretty sure it may be related. Perhaps a cousin on the 'freaky Wigglytuff' family tree.'

Goodra stared down the Pokémon, and Ash wondered about keeping Goodra out to fight Wigglytuff. Goodra had done a pretty good job so far, and it would hide a Pokémon.

As he had not brought a Tauros today, any of the other Pokémon he had brought would be unknowns to the tournament, and with Yanma as tired as he was he wasn't super up for sending him back out unless he had to.

Yet at the same time, he wasn't sure how this matchup would go for Goodra.

"Goodra, you want to take a breather or stay in? I have an idea on how to handle this one, and if it fails you and Yanma can finish the job with a bit of time to recover!"

Goodra nodded.

"Goo!" 'Yeah, I'd like that.'

Ash blinked in surprise that he actually got words out of that. Still, he returned Goodra with a smile that had quickly removed the surprise from his face.

"And to finish this battle Ash Ketchum is switching Pokémon!"

"It isn't going to work fake! Wigglytuff will utterly devastate anything you send out!"

Other than Yanma and Goodra, he had brought four other Pokémon with him.

Pikachu was obvious, and he also had Squirtle, Exeggutor, and Ambipom. He could see how any of them might do it, but he was going to ensure he'd get a win without a defeat to his name today (as this creep deserved to have inflicted on him), there was only one Pokémon he could use.

One who'd be able to take a recipe from May's cookbook on how to defeat sinister Wigglytuffs (with ninety-four percent less chance of May's Purple Surprise being recreated while doing so).

"Ambipom, I choose you!"

With that, he sent out his final Pokémon, with Ambipom twirling from her released state in air and landing with little slipping on her two tails.

"Begin!"

"Tuff!"

And with the beginning Wigglytuff began floating, levitating over the field like a parade balloon plotting to eat someone.

At least, that was how its expression looked to him.

"Good luck hitting a balloon Pokémon faux-rookie! Now I'm going to melt you! Wigglytuff, Fire Blast!"

Wigglytuff's gaping maw opened wide, revealing a fiery orb within. Wigglytuff spat the flames down, being thrust up into the air by the expulsion of superheated power.

"Deflect with a Counter-Shield!"

"A what?"

Ambipom was quick to answer the Crusher's question by jumping into the air and spinning with a swarm of Swift stars. The stars collided with the Fire Blast, shattering it into harmless sparks far from the ice they were aiming to melt.

Ambipom landed back on the ice while Wigglytuff remained floating above the remaining stars without damage, having lowered itself back down from the push Fire Blast gave it.

"And I guess that was a Counter-Shield! Our near-triumphant rookie managed to prevent a potentially catastrophic ice thaw while putting on a show! Perhaps he has some interest in Pokémon contests?!"

Not really Mr. Announcer, but if Ambipom saw one and wanted to enter and they weren't doing something pressing he would indulge her gladly.

"He is not triumphant! Wigglytuff use Sing!"

Wigglytuff took a deep breath, before spewing out several dozen shimmering musical notes.

"Block them with Shadow Claw!"

Ambipom thrust both tails out, glowing with shadowy energy, expanding it out a bit farther than usual. The inflated shadows took the notes head on, popping without impact.

The Crusher was growling at him now, and Wigglytuff took the cue to fire more Sing notes down at Ambipom.

This time she extended the Shadow Claw on her tails out further, and used them to pierce the notes before they got too closer to her.

"Are we at a stalemate people!? Wigglytuff is out of Ambipom's range, while Ambipom can stop any of Wigglytuff's attacks!"

"Don't count us out just yet. We haven't even started our offensive yet! Use Swift and aim for just above Wigglytuff!"

Ambipom may not have been his Pokémon back then, but she did remember how May had taken down her own nail yanker Wigglytuff.

With a sweep of her tails Swift was sent flying in two distinct trails. Both of these trails curved around and hit each other just behind Wigglytuff.

The result of said explosion sent Wigglytuff hurdling down to the ice and flailing with all limbs helplessly.

The Crusher could only stare at what had just happened in disbelief.

"Now jump behind Wigglytuff and hammer it!"

Ambipom nodded and with two glowing tails of Double Hit propelled herself upwards and just above where Wigglytuff was currently falling, before slamming the pink menace with a second strike of Double Hit.

Wigglytuff was propelled further down into the ice, from which the Pokémon was bounced back up like a ball hitting the ground.

This time Ambipom struck Wigglytuff with Power-Up Punch, propelling both from the impact.

However just as Ambipom crested at a top point of impact Wigglytuff bounced on the ice, and both began to rebound or fall towards the other for a repeat performance.

Two more strikes by Power-Up Punch, another Wigglytuff bounce into the ice.

This happened again and again in a perpetual motion action of constant damage, until it came time for a fifth where he could see flames flicker begin to flicker in Wigglytuff's mouth.

"Let's finish this in one final attack!"

His shout reached Ambipom, who nodded as her tail fists glowed bright blue.

"Now, before Wigglytuff can melt the ice and get out of our trap! Ambipom, end this with Focus Punch!"

With all of the force she could muster Ambipom slammed into Wigglytuff with two Focus Punches. At the impact the Ice Field itself shattered into dozens of floating ice blocks and dozens of little impact waves.

She bounced off the impact and landed on a larger ice block a few feet from where Wigglytuff had been smashed through the ice, ready to continue the fight if needed.

However, after a few moments the waves rolled over Wigglytuff, revealing dizzy eyes and a defeated Pokémon.

The only noise he could hear was a very loud gasp from Crusher.

"Wigglytuff is unable to battle! The winner of the match is Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town!"

The crowd exploded in positively gleeful joy, though the people who had been loudly cheering for Crusher were notably silent.

At least at first. Then they became quite loud.

"Is he really a rookie!?"

"No rookie could actually defeat the Crusher! He must be some sort of not-rookie in disguise!"

"Is he really fifteen!?"

"He's a plant! Plant!"

However, they remained just a very loud minority in an overall gleefully cheering crowd.

"After skillfully taking Wigglytuff's own strengths and using them to his own advantage Ash Ketchum has won a stunning second round victory against the infamous Rookie Crusher! He is the first rookie to ever crush the Crusher in his over two decades of experience at what he does! His streak is now over due to the perfect victory of Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town!"

He could only grimace. If it was perfect Yanma would not have taken as much damage as he had.

Pikachu tapped against his neck, even as Ambipom bounced over from ice block to ice block for a hug.

"Pikapi." 'Chasing utter perfection gets you nowhere, just take the compliment. If nothing else, enjoy the scenery.'

Pikachu was pointing to said Crusher, who had gone utterly pale and seemed, as best Ash could tell, to have fainted while standing up.

He at least didn't seem to be hearing or seeing anything that was going on outside of himself, up to and including the still defeated Wigglytuff floating in the remains of the Ice Field.

"Medics, please come onto the field. The green challenger appears unresponsive."

Elsewhere, watching via a phone stream

He watched with some level of amusement as the large disgrace was lifted into a stretcher and carried off by a team of orderlies, leaving his half-brother to his victory.

He was quite perky in his celebration hugs with his Pokémon. He could appreciate such openness.

He could also appreciate better resolution than Hilda's phone, but such things couldn't be helped.

"Well, that isn't what you expect a League challenger to look like. Even the older ones generally look somewhat attractive, if only in appearance. He didn't even have that. What would people call that sort of thing, a washout?"

He chuckled at Hilda's derisive view of the challenger Ash Ketchum had just defeated.

"He's an outlier. Disregard him and the data properly correlates with what you expect it to. Though for all of his oddness, there is something about him I do have to wonder."

"Why the 'Rookie Crusher' still exists?"

He shook his head at Hilda's growl.

"No, wickedness is quite good at persisting. There is no mystery there. No, he merely brought to my attention an unsolved equation that had been in my face this entire time, but I hadn't realized it. Nor you for that matter."

"An equation neither of us noticed?"

He rose a finger up, then a second one.

"This is about the second year we've been seeing what my siblings are capable of. A number of them challenged gyms and Leagues as their means of doing so. As much as it pains me to say it, that so called 'Rookie Crusher' was right. Ash didn't quite seem like a rookie did he?"

Hilda looked at him like he wasn't quite making sense.

"I saw his Pokémon in action in Fuchsia. Those weren't veterans of battle. Unless he started entirely from scratch, I can't see it. Even Trainers who start with new teams will generally keep one more experienced Pokémon with them. Are you sure it isn't just you taking the words of a deranged creep too seriously? Vermell was more skilled in his fights, and Ash clearly made mistakes. Is Vermell some fake-rookie too?"

He shrugged.

"I can't quite explain it; perhaps it is just with everything else odd about him. Creating Z-crystals, and little nagging oddities you feel watching him while he battles I didn't get with any of our other brothers or sisters. There is more to him than we know."

Hilda gave him a side glance.

"So I take it you want him spied on again?"

"Certainly so. Think of it as a chance to prove me wrong, or come to see what I'm seeing."