"Hmph! What an arrogant bastard!"
Up in the stands, Lance let out a cold snort after hearing Giovanni's domineering declaration.
He was clearly displeased—but there was nothing he could do about it.
After all, Giovanni had defeated him fair and square to advance.
Even so, Lance wasn't convinced.
If they fought again, he didn't believe he'd necessarily lose.
No—after this World Championship ended, he had to raise even stronger Dragons.
Best case scenario, he needed to find a Dragon-type Legendary Pokémon.
When it came down to it, hadn't he lost last time simply because of Giovanni's Landorus?
Next time!
Next time, he would defeat Giovanni!
"Champion Lance, it seems you really don't like Elite Four Giovanni?" Karen asked with mild surprise.
Not only her—Lorelei and Bruno also looked taken aback.
Lance was proud and aloof by nature, and precisely because of that, he rarely expressed personal feelings toward others.
Seeing such obvious irritation was extremely rare.
"Is it because you lost to Giovanni earlier?" Karen smiled faintly, sounding as if she were comforting him."Battles always have winners and losers—it's nothing to take so hard, right?"
The implication was clear: just win it back next time.
However—
"What nonsense are you talking about?"
Lance shot Karen a cold glance.
"A loss is a loss. I'm not the kind of person who can't accept defeat. I simply dislike the man, that's all."
"…Emmm."
Karen made an awkward face.
"Ground-dwelling ants like him," Lance said flatly,"will one day learn that Dragons of the sky are forever beyond their reach."
Ah. That explained it.
Karen finally understood.
So in the end, it was resentment over losing.
Still, she knew Lance wasn't someone who couldn't take defeat.
Back when he challenged Dylan and got completely countered by four Ice-type foxes, he hadn't held a grudge.
Even when he lost to the "cheating" Yellow, his resentment hadn't been this strong.
So why was losing to Giovanni different?
Karen pondered silently.
Lance shouldn't know Giovanni's true identity—otherwise, he'd have exploded long ago.
As someone who had participated in the Saffron City incident and served as one of Team Rocket's Champion-level combatants, Karen knew exactly who Giovanni really was.
But she had no intention of exposing it.
She loved chaos—and watching Giovanni become a Kanto Elite Four member amused her to no end.
Especially now, when he might even make it into the World Championship Finals.
On the field—
"Great Tusk!"
Giovanni sent out his usual lead once again—Great Tusk—and immediately Terastallized it.
Savage and overwhelmingly powerful, Great Tusk was an exceptionally dangerous opponent.
"Come on, Red," Giovanni said, hands in his pockets, leaning forward slightly."Let me see how you differ from last year."
The thick malice rolling off him created intense pressure.
His emotions were rising without him noticing—perhaps because of the stage itself.
Not only would defeating Red make him the new Champion of Kanto—
It would also send him to the finals against Dylan.
A battle to determine the strongest Trainer in the world.
Of course, Giovanni knew full well he couldn't defeat Dylan, who wielded so many powerful Legendary Pokémon.
But what did that matter?
As Selene once said—Dylan was an otherworldly demon.
The concept of "strongest" didn't apply to him at all.
But Giovanni could be second only to him.
Aside from Dylan, he would be the strongest Trainer in the world.
The strongest man.
This was different from his past self-proclaimed arrogance.
If he defeated Red, he would truly become world number two.
"I will defeat you," Red said.
As always, he wasn't one for many words.
Giovanni's provocation earned only this calm response.
Red didn't know why Giovanni seemed so different from his usual composed self.
But it didn't matter.
He could feel Giovanni's overwhelming battle intent.
"Blastoise!"
Red decisively threw out his opening Pokémon.
Blastoise landed heavily, letting out a low growl at Great Tusk.
Great Tusk roared back without hesitation.
Two powerhouses faced each other.
"Yo—this is rare," Blue said with interest, arms crossed."Never seen the old man this flashy before."
"Yeah," Leaf nodded seriously."Anyone watching would think you were the one down there, Blue."
Blue: "???"
Blue was instantly full of question marks.
He really wanted to protest—this was pure slander!
Sure, he liked showing off, but he wasn't that arrogant!
"…Hmm."
Lillie blinked.
If anything, she thought this was Giovanni's true self.
Back when she and Dylan visited Viridian Gym, Giovanni had been just as domineering before their battle.
"I just wonder who'll win—Giovanni or Red," Leaf said, tilting her head.
Emotionally, she hoped Red would win.
After all, he was her friend.
"Hmph," Blue snorted, saying nothing—but his gaze drifted toward Red.
Don't mess this up, Red.
You beat me to get here—if you lose now, I won't forgive you.
Dylan's eyes flickered slightly.
To be honest, even he couldn't say who would win this match.
Giovanni was now at least as strong as Dylan had been back when he used Beedrill—possibly stronger.
That was without counting Mewtwo, of course.
Landorus and Mega Kangaskhan had massively boosted Giovanni's strength.
If Beedrill were usable, Dylan would've given Giovanni even better odds.
But Red was no slouch either.
Red's current strength was terrifying in its own right.
On the field, the battle between Great Tusk and Blastoise continued.
Terastallized Great Tusk fought with brutal aggression.
Even against a full-power Hydro Pump, it dared to charge in with Headlong Rush, meeting it head-on without falling behind.
Giovanni's Great Tusk fought in an extremely aggressive style.
Because that was exactly what it was built to do—attack.
Under Giovanni's command, Great Tusk forced its way into close combat range.
Red knew better—Blastoise engaging Great Tusk up close was suicide—so he tried to maintain distance.
But it wasn't that simple.
Great Tusk tanked Hydro Pump head-on, slammed Blastoise into the ground, and pressed the attack.
After the exchange, Great Tusk had taken a super-effective hit—
But Blastoise wasn't much better off.
Thankfully, its shell absorbed a lot of the damage.
Seeing this, Red recalled Blastoise and sent out his second Pokémon—
Venusaur, immediately activating Gigantamax.
Giovanni responded at once, recalling Great Tusk and sending out Nidoking, Gigantamaxing it to counter Venusaur.
After a brutal Gigantamax clash, both Nidoking and Venusaur were heavily injured.
"The fight's incredibly close," Hop muttered in amazement.
Neither side recalled their Pokémon—they continued battling.
In the end, Venusaur gained the upper hand, defeating Nidoking with Earth Power.
But Venusaur was at its limit.
Giovanni played it safe.
To avoid Great Tusk getting poisoned, he sent out Nidoqueen, who finished off Venusaur.
Red then sent Blastoise back in to face Nidoqueen.
Giovanni didn't switch.
In the end, Nidoqueen barely defeated Blastoise with Thunder.
Red followed up by sending out Pikachu, who swiftly knocked out Nidoqueen with relentless speed.
The score was tied again.
"Perfectly even," Leon said with a grin.
"Yes," Gloria nodded."They're evenly matched. We'll have to keep watching."
"But Giovanni is seriously impressive," Hop added."He's the only semifinalist who specializes in a single type."
Specialization made it easier to grow strong—but also easier to counter.
Giovanni was known worldwide as a Ground-type specialist.
Yet this battle proved that overwhelming strength could overcome targeting.
"Yeah… I really want to battle Giovanni someday," Leon said eagerly.
Gloria rubbed her forehead helplessly.
After all—she had lost to this Ground-type specialist herself.
On the field—
Giovanni sent out Great Tusk once again.
Though brutally powerful, Pikachu's agility made it troublesome.
Ground-types were immune to Electric, but Pikachu still had Iron Tail and Surf.
After several exchanges, Great Tusk actually fell into a disadvantage.
It roared furiously—it hadn't landed a single hit on that cursed electric mouse!
Giovanni immediately adjusted his strategy.
"Stealth Rock!"
Jagged stones appeared across the field, restricting Pikachu's movement.
Red ordered Pikachu to use Surf during the setup, but it failed to interrupt Stealth Rock.
Red considered using a wide-area Discharge to clear the hazards—
But that would give Great Tusk a free opening.
Against a Ground-type Terastallized Great Tusk, Electric attacks meant nothing.
After a brief deliberation, Red recalled Pikachu.
This match was too important.
He couldn't afford reckless decisions.
Giovanni was a terrifying opponent.
Red had to defeat him—
So he could challenge Dylan.
So he could become the Champion of Kanto.
Great Tusk wasn't in good condition either—but Stealth Rock was a problem.
After some thought, Red threw out his ace.
Roaring Moon.
Considering Giovanni's Ground-type team—and Roaring Moon's four-times weakness to Fairy—
Red chose not to Terastallize it.
"Heh… a Dragon," Giovanni chuckled.