Honestly, he hadn't expected Calyrex to be this powerful.
With just one clean blow, he had forced the literal gods of time and space to their knees.
Looks like his plan of making Calyrex a famous online Pokémon had paid off after all!
Now, only Giratina remained.
Naoki, riding Koraidon, and Calyrex, still on Glastrier, rushed toward it. Together with Ho-Oh, they formed a three-pronged assault.
It took all of them working in perfect harmony to finally bring the Shadow Dragon under control.
Once it was still, Naoki approached calmly and placed his right hand on Giratina's forehead.
"Good boy, Giratina… the bad guys are gone now."
Giratina's crimson glare faded.
But in the depths of its six burning eyes… was fury.
Fury.
'How dare that little Pokémon take control of me.'
The idea alone filled Giratina with righteous anger.
"I'll leave the rest to you and Ash. We'll be right behind you," Naoki said with a steady voice.
Giratina let out a cold snort and surged forward, charging toward Shadow Hoopa with its massive, swirling body cloaked in darkness.
Now, only Groudon and Kyogre remained.
But in truth, the Sky High Pokémon, Rayquaza, had a natural dominance over both. And with the Guardian of the Seas, Lugia, assisting in the skies, the battle had already begun tilting in their favor.
By the time Naoki reached them, the two ancient titans were already on the brink of being subdued.
With help from Rayquaza, Lugia, and the others, Naoki stepped forward calmly, placing his right hand gently on each of their foreheads.
After a brief moment, the crimson glow faded from Groudon's and Kyogre's eyes.
The Legendary Pokémon, once manipulated by darkness, had finally returned to their senses.
Only one enemy remained now—Shadow Hoopa.
...
Meanwhile, across the desert…
Ash and Hoopa were soaring swiftly on Latias, wind rushing past their faces as they tried to outrun their shadowy pursuer.
"Disappear!"
Shadow Hoopa's cry echoed across the sky. A golden halo spun from its body and, in a flash, it teleported directly in front of Latias.
Latias had no time to react and flew straight into the halo, reappearing on the other side, directly in front of Shadow Hoopa.
Ash's eyes narrowed. "Latias, use Psychic!"
"Wooo!"
Bright psychic energy pulsed around Latias as she unleashed a surge of telekinetic force straight toward Shadow Hoopa.
But Shadow Hoopa raised his hand casually, summoning a halo midair.
The Psychic blast was absorbed by the ring and shot back out from behind Latias.
"Ah!"
Caught off guard, Latias was hit in the back, staggering in midair. Ash and Hoopa lost balance and began to fall.
Zapdos darted forward, catching them just in time with a burst of wind and thunder crackling behind him.
"Hmph."
Shadow Hoopa narrowed his glowing red eyes and raised his hand once more. A massive stream of seawater came crashing down from another golden ring, pouring like a flood toward the ground below.
Ash and Hoopa instinctively shielded their faces, bracing for the deluge.
But just then, a beam of icy blue light shot through the air, slamming into Shadow Hoopa's chest.
"Kyurem!" Ash's face lit up in surprise. "He's back!"
Kyurem had returned with a vengeance, his breath still frosty and body glowing with chilling energy.
But Shadow Hoopa's rage erupted.
"You again?!"
Furious, he flung open a glowing portal behind Kyurem. The icy dragon barely had time to react before being sucked through the halo and hurled back to the World Tree.
Kyurem flapped his wings hard, trying to turn and return to the battle, but the ring had already vanished behind him.
He circled in frustration, roaring at the sky.
Meanwhile, Shadow Hoopa turned his attention back toward Hoopa and Ash.
"No one will interrupt us now," he growled, his red eyes gleaming. "I am the real Hoopa. You two… disappear!"
Just as the final word rang out, the shadows behind him stirred.
Without warning, a deep purple vortex opened behind Shadow Hoopa.
From within it, Giratina emerged silently, its serpentine body twisting out of the distortion as it launched a surprise attack from the shadows.
The powerful blow from Giratina sent Shadow Hoopa flying backward through the air before it crashed into the desert with a heavy thud, stirring up a storm of sand.
"Giratina's here too!" Ash's eyes widened in awe.
It was clear now, Mr. Naoki had managed to free the other Legendary Pokémon from Shadow Hoopa's control.
"Then it's our turn, Pikachu!" Ash shouted with determination. "Thunderbolt!"
"Pika-chuuuu!"
A brilliant bolt of lightning exploded from Pikachu, streaking across the sky and crackling toward the fallen Hoopa.
Shadow Hoopa quickly raised a hand, summoning one of its golden rings to redirect the attack.
But just as it did, a deep, commanding voice echoed from behind.
"That's enough!"
Shadow Hoopa turned in shock.
Charging through the air, galloping across the void on a glowing white steed, was Calyrex, riding the Glastrier, brandishing his gleaming snow spear.
As he advanced, his figure blurred and shimmered, teleporting between flashes of light, closing the distance in an instant.
Before Shadow Hoopa could react, the massive snow spear pierced through the air and struck it with full force.
The impact was devastating, power and purity intertwined, and Shadow Hoopa's consciousness flickered.
"Now!" Naoki called out, leaping down from Koraidon at just the right moment.
He landed cleanly atop Shadow Hoopa's massive frame, placing his hand gently on its forehead.
"Hoopa, it's alright now. The bad guys are gone."
A warm, golden light flowed from Naoki's palm into Hoopa.
The sinister, swirling purple aura surrounding Shadow Hoopa's body began to unravel and fade, as though the darkness was being purified by something ancient and kind.
"Aaaaaaah!" Shadow Hoopa wailed in anguish as the malicious power that had taken root in it for a century was stripped away.
Naoki spoke gently, like talking to a wounded friend.
"What's done is done. The past is behind you. From now on, live peacefully with everyone who cares about you."
At that moment, Little Hoopa floated closer, watching its larger, darker half.
Ash's words from earlier echoed in Little Hoopa's mind:
"Please stop hurting others… Hoopa just wants to live peacefully, with its shadow too."
Meray, Baraz, Ash, and everyone from Dahara City and the Valley of Arche... they had all been waiting for this moment.
So many warm smiles, so many outstretched hands… Shadow Hoopa had not been hated, it had only been misunderstood.
"Everyone's waiting for Hoopa to come home," Little Hoopa said softly, floating closer. "You won't be alone anymore. Come home with Hoopa."
After everything that had happened, Hoopa finally understood what was truly in its heart.
A gentle, radiant warmth flowed from Hoopa into its shadow—the part of itself that had been sealed away for a hundred years.
In that stream of golden light were its memories—the joy of playing in the Valley of Arche, the laughter of friends, the kindness of Ash and the others, the bond of Meray and Baraz, and the feeling of belonging it had once forgotten.
All of that warmth began to fill the hollow, lonely place inside Shadow Hoopa.
The once-furious shadow flinched, surprised by the sudden emotion welling up inside. And then… it stopped resisting.
It looked at Hoopa with wide eyes, not with hatred, but with understanding.
Then, something miraculous happened.
Shadow Hoopa's massive body began to shine with golden light, the same gentle glow Hoopa had shared.
That golden light then surged forward, flowing directly into Little Hoopa's body.
The air sparkled as the two halves of Hoopa, light and shadow, merged into one.
Within the light, Hoopa's form shifted, changing quickly.
The wild energy of the Confined Form gave way to something brighter, calmer, and more complete. The true form of Hoopa, the unbound, joyful guardian, had returned.
"Hoopa is back!" Hoopa cried joyfully, spinning in the air with its six golden rings. "This is Hoopa's real power—ta-da!"
...
Bonus @500
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