"Pikachu, I choose you!!"
Ash thrust his arm forward, pointing toward the battlefield. Pikachu sprinted along his arm and leapt lightly onto the arena.
"Pikachu?!"
"Hahaha… kid, when I saw you carrying a Pikachu earlier, I thought it was just your little pet."
"I never expected you'd actually send a Pikachu out to face my test."
"Interesting… very interesting."
Across the field, Master Caldor burst into laughter, clapping his hands in amusement when he saw Ash's choice of Pokémon.
"Master Caldor," Ash replied with a faint smile curling at the corner of his lips, "underestimating your opponent can be costly. Be careful… or my little pet Pikachu might defeat you."
The atmosphere of the battlefield subtly shifted.
What had started as a tense, serious confrontation now felt more lively—almost like the playful trash talk competitors exchanged before matches at the City Battle Arena.
"Oh? Defeat me?" Caldor chuckled.
"I'm looking forward to seeing that."
Usually, people from various organizations treated him with extreme reverence, almost worshipping him like a distinguished master.
But Ash's casual banter made the old craftsman look at the boy with newfound curiosity—and even a hint of fondness.
"Kid, you make the first move."
"Alright then—I won't hold back."
Ash answered immediately before giving Pikachu the command.
"Pikachu, greet our opponent with Thunderbolt!"
"Pika!"
On the battlefield, Pikachu darted around with incredible agility. The electric sacs on its cheeks crackled brightly as a golden bolt of lightning, as thick as a human arm, burst forth like a roaring thunder serpent and shot straight toward Heatmor.
"Heatmor! Show them our spirit!"
"Split it apart with your claws!"
Seeing Pikachu's attack, the old craftsman immediately issued a counter-command.
"Crack—!"
The lightning struck down from above, the surrounding air buzzing violently with electricity.
Just as the golden thunder serpent opened its jaws to strike Heatmor's neck—
Heatmor moved.
"Skraa!"
With a sharp glare, Heatmor swung its orange claws upward.
It grabbed the lightning's core and tore it apart with brute force.
Brilliant electric sparks scattered everywhere, crackling around Heatmor's claws.
Pikachu's full-powered Thunderbolt had been completely neutralized.
"Not bad power," the old craftsman said with a grin.
"But still lacking a little refinement."
"Is that so?" Ash replied calmly. "I wouldn't be so sure."
Ash wasn't discouraged in the slightest.
After all, Heatmor had used Fire Lash—a fully developed attack move—to counter the Thunderbolt.
If Heatmor had simply stood there and taken Pikachu's Thunderbolt without any damage, Ash might have immediately revealed his trump card—Will Empowerment—to boost Pikachu's strength.
But Heatmor clearly couldn't tank the attack without using a move.
That meant it wasn't invincible.
At least for now, Ash had no intention of revealing Will Empowerment.
He wanted Pikachu to face Heatmor with its own strength first.
After all—
The battle had only just begun.
And Pikachu's power was far from fully revealed.
"Pikachu, keep moving—use Thunder Wave!"
After exchanging a brief retort with the old craftsman, Ash immediately launched his next offensive.
"Pika!"
Pikachu instantly took advantage of its speed and agility.
With a burst of Quick Attack, it darted into Heatmor's blind spot behind its back.
Its cheeks glowed brilliantly.
A thin arc of electricity snapped forward and struck Heatmor.
"Crackle—!"
Heatmor's base Speed stat was only 65.
Even though it was nearly 15 levels higher than Pikachu, the difference in speed was still obvious.
The electric arc struck before Heatmor could react.
"Skra—!"
Heatmor's body stiffened as electricity coursed through it, its expression twisting with discomfort.
"Kid, not bad."
"But don't think landing a single Thunder Wave will stop my Heatmor from fighting."
"You're being far too naive."
The old craftsman's aura suddenly surged like a roaring furnace bellows feeding fresh air into a blazing forge.
"Let me show you what a real battle looks like."
"Heatmor—Fire Lash!"
"Skraa!"
Heatmor instantly sprang into action.
From its long tubular snout erupted a whip-like stream of blazing fire.
The flaming whip snapped through the air with a sharp crack as Heatmor swung its head.
Like a scarlet venomous serpent, the fiery lash whipped straight toward Pikachu.
…
This was Fire Lash with Grandmaster proficiency.
The technique had already transcended the original constraints of the move itself.
Like a snake striking with deadly precision, the flaming whip lashed toward Pikachu with frightening accuracy.
"Not good!"
"Pikachu—use Reflect!"
Realizing he had underestimated a Grandmaster-level move, Ash immediately shouted.
"Pika!"
Pikachu reacted instantly.
It rolled sideways across the ground, then thrust both paws forward.
A crystal-clear energy barrier materialized in front of it.
"CRACK—!"
The fiery whip struck the barrier the moment it formed.
The impact sounded like a hammer smashing against glass.
Cracks spread across the reflective shield like a spiderweb.
Though the barrier wasn't completely shattered, the force behind the attack still sent Pikachu tumbling backward.
"Pika!!"
Pikachu scrambled to its feet with a painful cry.
Reflect could halve incoming damage, but it couldn't eliminate it completely.
Even after the shield absorbed part of the impact, half of the attack's power still hit Pikachu directly.
"Heatmor—don't stop!"
"Keep using Fire Lash!"
Unlike Ash, whose brows were furrowed with concern, the old craftsman looked completely energized.
"Skraa!"
"Whoosh—!"
The flaming whip cut through the air again and again.
Countless fiery lash strikes intertwined, forming a blazing net that sealed off every escape route around Pikachu.
Ash had just learned something firsthand—
When a move was trained to its absolute peak…
It could produce a spectacle like this.
Realizing Reflect alone wouldn't save them—and that passive defense would only lead to defeat—Ash chose to fight back.
His eyes sharpened.
"You want to measure our courage?"
"Then take a good look at it!"
"Pikachu—Thunderbolt!!"
"CRACK—!"
Pikachu's cheeks blazed with electricity.
A roaring golden thunder serpent lashed forward, its tail whipping violently as it surged toward the incoming fiery whip.
High above the battlefield—
The golden thunder serpent and the scarlet flame serpent collided.
The moment they met, they wrapped around each other in a deadly struggle.
Lightning roared.
Flames surged.
And the air of the battlefield grew hotter and more intense with every passing second.
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T/N:
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