Countless shuriken pierced through the Light Screen, their power cut in half on impact.
That was the strength of Light Screen—it reduced the damage of special moves.
But just as Delphox started to relax—
Everything went dark.
A black frog with those same deadpan eyes was suddenly right in front of it.
Delphox flinched—
And in the next instant, a sphere of blue energy slammed straight into its abdomen.
Boom—!
"Phox—!"
The impact sent Delphox flying.
But it wasn't over.
Before it could recover midair—Greninja appeared above it again.
Another Water Pulse formed—and slammed down onto its back.
Boom—!
"Delphox—!"
With another explosion, Delphox was driven straight into the ground.
A deep crater formed as rocks and dust burst outward.
Its eyes spun—completely knocked out.
...
Silence fell over the battlefield.
No one said a word.
Everyone just stared, mouths open, trying to process what they'd just seen.
All they caught was a blur—a black shadow flashing twice—and Delphox was already down.
They hadn't even been able to follow Greninja's movements.
It didn't make sense.
"Gasp—!"
Three seconds later, the crowd finally reacted.
A collective gasp broke the silence.
"Aa… Aaron's Greninja is way too strong—this speed is insane!"
Yuri said, still in shock.
"That's absurd… If it were me, Frog Boss would take me out in 0.01 seconds…"
Victor swallowed as he spoke.
Grace said nothing, but the shock in her eyes was obvious.
Every time Aaron fought, his Greninja completely shattered her understanding of what a Pokémon could do.
That kind of speed—
It was like teleportation.
A black phantom.
Her eyes stayed on the tall figure on the battlefield, a hint of curiosity in her gaze.
...
"Impossible!!!"
Lyra shouted, her voice breaking.
"There's clearly Psychic Terrain in effect!"
"All priority moves should've been neutralized—so why is your Greninja even faster!?"
Her eyes welled with tears as she demanded an answer.
Her strongest Delphox hadn't even had time to react—It was taken down instantly.
How was she supposed to accept that?
"Isn't there a possibility…"
"…that my Greninja can teleport?"
Aaron stroked his chin, looking at her with a straight face.
"Greninja can teleport!?"
"You think I'd believe that!?"
"Mmmgh-mmgh…!!"
Lyra's lips trembled as her cheeks puffed slightly, eyes glossy with tears that finally spilled over.
"Cousin… he's bullying me!!"
She broke down completely, rushing over and clinging to Grace as she cried.
Aaron: "..."
She lost… and immediately started crying?
And ran to complain to her cousin?
He was completely speechless.
"Alright, alright…"
"Don't cry. Don't mind him—he's just a jerk."
Grace shot Aaron a look while gently patting Lyra's shoulder.
"Aaron… you're something else, hahaha…"
"You actually made her cry—brutal."
Yuri ran over, laughing as he grabbed Aaron.
Aaron let out a helpless sigh.
"I really didn't expect her to be this sensitive… she just started crying."
"I didn't mean to."
Yuri grinned.
"Yeah, yeah… not on purpose—totally intentional, right?"
"That felt good…"
He looked way too pleased with himself.
"You didn't respect me before, huh?"
"Now my bro's got you handled—let's see if you still dare mess with me!"
"Alright, alright… we're all friends here. Don't take it too far."
Aaron pushed him away with a slight look of disgust.
At that moment, Grace walked over with Lyra.
Lyra's eyes were still red from crying.
"Yuri, Aaron… my cousin didn't mean any harm. She's just a bit spoiled."
"She lost this match fair and square."
"Hmph… you jerk! Next time, I'm definitely not losing to you!"
Lyra raised her fist, baring her small fangs as she glared at Aaron—fierce, yet oddly cute.
"It's fine, it's fine… we're all friends."
Aaron laughed it off, then added,
"Do your best next time… I'm really strong."
"I'm strong too!"
"Yeah, yeah—you got perfected three times in a row…"
"Aaaah—Aaron, you jerk!"
"Hahaha—!"
...
Amid laughter and playful bickering, a new friendship took shape.
That night, Aaron and the others stayed at Simon's villa.
Each of them had a luxurious room, complete with a bathtub. After a relaxing soak, they turned in for the night.
...
The night passed quietly.