The island's ground continued to quake under the unrelenting fury of the duel, cracks spiderwebbing across the stone as psychic and aura energies clashed like warring storms.
Mewtwo's composure fractured with each exchange.
He teleported in rapid succession, circling Ash like a predator testing for weakness.
He unleashed a barrage of Psywave pulses rippling rings of mental disruption that distorted the air and assaulted the mind, aiming to shatter Ash's focus from within.
Ash, his aura blazing like a blue inferno, weaved through the assault with Renewal Taekwondo's evasive footwork, his steps leaving glowing afterimages.
"You're predictable when you're angry!" he shouted, countering with an Aura Palm Thrust a forward strike that sent a concentrated beam of life energy lancing toward Mewtwo.
The Legendary deflected it with a swipe of his hand, the deflection exploding against a nearby boulder and reducing it to dust.
Mewtwo snarled telepathically. "Your arrogance will be your end!" He channeled his power into a massive Psycho Boost, condensing psychic energy into a swirling vortex above his head before launching it downward like a meteor.
The attack tore through the terrain, carving a trench as it hurtled toward Ash.
Ash met it head-on. His psychic barriers flared as he leaped into a Renewal Taekwondo Flying Side Kick. Aura coated his leg like armor as he pierced the vortex's core, dispersing it in a brilliant explosion that lit the sky.
The backlash sent both combatants skidding apart, breathing heavily Mewtwo's tail twitching with uncharacteristic frustration, Ash's jacket torn and singed, exposing his battle-worn upper torso.
A ripple passed through the onlookers. Seeing his upper torso misty and sabrina licks their lips with a pretatory look which makes ash to get a sudden chill , while the other female trainer and nurse joy blushed, on seeing his body attempting to cover their faces while peeking through their fingers.
Brock and other male trainers, meanwhile, muttered bitterly, a cloud of jealousy hanging over them.
Undeterred, Mewtwo pressed the advantage, summoning illusory duplicates once more this time a dozen, each radiating false energy signatures to confuse Ash's aura senses.
They swarmed him, fists and psychic blasts raining down in a chaotic symphony. Ash spun into a defensive Renewal Taekwondo Whirlwind Block, his arms blurring as psychic shields deflected the fakes, while his aura pierced the veil to identify the real one.
A precise Hook Kick connected with Mewtwo's shoulder, drawing a grunt of pain and shattering half the illusions.
"You're learning," Mewtwo admitted, his voice laced with grudging respect as he retaliated with a Telekinetic Slam grabbing Ash mid-spin and hurling him toward the cliff's edge.
Ash twisted in the air, using his psychic control to slow his descent, then propelled himself back with an aura-boosted jump.
He closed the distance in a flash, unleashing a Renewal Taekwondo Combination Assault: a rapid series of punches and kicks, each amplified by blue energy bursts that forced Mewtwo on the defensive for the first time.
A jab grazed Mewtwo's cheek; a low sweep nearly toppled him; an uppercut sent psychic sparks flying.
Mewtwo blocked the final knee strike but felt the impact reverberate through his body.
"How... how does your fragile form endure this?!" he demanded, countering with a point-blank Confusion wave that flipped Ash's world upside down, disorienting his senses.
Ash shook it off with sheer willpower, his aura grounding him as he dropped into a sweep kick to unbalance Mewtwo, following up with an Aura-Infused Elbow Strike that cracked against the Legendary's guard.
The two traded blows in a brutal melee psychic blasts met with aura counters, Renewal Taekwondo precision clashing against Mewtwo's raw power.
The island's wildlife fled as trees splintered and waves crashed violently against the shore from the shockwaves.
Scene Change:
Unbeknownst to the combatants, Jessie had wandered farther from the underground complex, her mind a whirlwind of unresolved emotions.
The letter's revelations played on loop in her head her mother's sacrifice, the irony of her Team Rocket life, the unbreakable ties to James and Meowth.
She clutched the ruby earpieces in her pocket like a talisman, eyes distant and unfocused, barely registering the distant booms and flashes as she emerged from the foliage into the open clearing the heart of the clash area.
Her high-heeled boots crunched over cracked stone, but she didn't notice the danger.
"What now...?" she murmured to herself, lost in thought.
"Leave everything behind? Or drag them down with me...?"
From their hidden vantage point nearby having followed her trail after discovering the cloning lab James and Meowth watched in growing horror.
They had been arguing about the DNA data when they spotted her silhouette against the battlefield's glow.
"Jessie! Get back!" James hissed, his voice cracking with panic.
Meowth's fur stood on end. "She's walkin' right into dat mess! Dat's Mewtwo she's gonna get blasted!"
But Jessie, vacant-eyed and oblivious, stepped deeper into the fray, right into the path of the escalating battle.
Mew, still concealed by camouflage, noticed the human entering the battlefield between the Pokémon and the Aura Guardian.
She knew of Aura Guardians well—her own sister once protected the Tree of Beginning. Over centuries, Mew had witnessed many, including the last one she aided in Sinnoh while sealing a Spiritomb.
She had been enjoying the clash between her copycat brother and the Aura Guardian, fascinated by the mingling of psychic and aura energy.But now, an innocent bystander was in danger.
As she prepared to intervene, she saw the Aura Guardian act first.
Ash, mid-dodge from another Psywave, caught sight of her first a flash of magenta hair and white uniform amid the chaos.
His aura senses screamed warning: an innocent human, unprotected, wandering straight into Mewtwo's line of fire.
Mewtwo, sensing the distraction, seized the moment.
"Foolish interruption!" he roared telepathically, charging a devastating Psychic Orb a condensed sphere of purple energy the size of a boulder, crackling with enough force to level a building.
He hurled it toward Ash, but its trajectory arced wildly, veering toward the unaware Jessie as collateral.
Time seemed to slow.
James and Meowth's faces twisted in despair, memories flooding them in a heartbreaking rush their sibling-like bond forged in failures and triumphs.
James recalled the day they'd met in that dingy gang hideout, her fierce protection pulling him from despair; Meowth remembered her sharing scraps of food when they were starving, treating him like family despite his quirks.
"Jessie... no!" James cried, lunging forward but too far to reach her.
Meowth clawed at the ground, tears welling. "We can't lose her she's our big sis!"
Ash's eyes widened. "No get out of there!"
In a burst of desperate speed, he channeled every ounce of his aura and psychic power into his legs, propelling himself like a rocket.
The air whistled as he closed the distance, his body twisting into a dramatic Gogeta Kick a high-velocity spinning heel strike inspired by legends he'd admired in his travels, infused with explosive aura to shatter barriers.
His boot connected squarely with the incoming Psychic Orb, the impact erupting in a blinding flash of blue and purple.
The orb detonated harmlessly mid-air, the force sending shockwaves that knocked nearby trees flat but Ash absorbed the recoil, his martial arts training keeping him airborne.
Without breaking momentum, he scooped Jessie into his arms in a bridal carry strong yet gentle, one arm under her knees, the other cradling her back.
He landed in a skid, psychic shields enveloping them both as residual psychic shards rained down harmlessly against the barrier.
Jessie's body pressed against his chest, safe and unharmed.
For a heartbeat, the world froze. Jessie blinked up at him, her vacant daze shattering as reality crashed in.
Ash's face hovered inches from hers sweat-slicked hair tousled, eyes fierce with protectiveness, his aura's warm glow casting him in an almost ethereal light.
He looked every bit the handsome prince from the fairy tales she'd secretly adored as a child: brave, unyielding, saving her from certain doom without a second thought.
Her heart skipped, a flush creeping up her cheeks. "You... you saved me?" she whispered, voice trembling.
For the first time, she saw beyond the "twerp" she'd chased for nearly an year the boyish rival became a man, strong and heroic, his arms secure around her like a promise of safety she'd never known.
James and Meowth, frozen in relief, collapsed to their knees. "She's... okay," James choked out, tears streaming as he clutched Meowth. The cat Pokémon nodded, sniffling. "Dat was too close... she's our family. We can't ever lose dat."
Mewtwo hovered above, his attack thwarted, eyes narrowing at the interruption but for now, the fight paused, the air heavy with unspoken shifts. Ash set Jessie down gently, though his protective stance lingered.
"Stay back it's not safe," he said softly, his gaze meeting hers with unexpected warmth.
Jessie nodded numbly, her developing feelings blooming like a forbidden flower, forever changing how she saw him.