"Good, good! Yozora, you really are amazing!"
The old rancher chuckled inwardly as he watched Yozora command his Aegislash, cutting down his grandson's Pokémon one after another in an instant.
This was exactly what he wanted!
What he hoped for was that Yozora would give his grandson a proper thrashing—suppress that arrogance, break down that smug temper, grind it down completely.
Otherwise, every time he saw the boy swagger around, his blood boiled.
The old man knew well: his grandson wasn't truly a bad kid, just far too young, far too reckless. The problem was—without real strength, what right did he have to act so cocky?
"Hit him, hit him hard…" The old rancher's heart sang as he watched his grandson's face twist with frustration.
"Damn it! That shield of yours is like some kind of ghost—unbelievably strong. And yet it's already taken out two of my main battlers in a row. Defense alone would be bad enough, but its attack and speed are flawless too!"
Komai gritted his teeth as he stared at Yozora's Aegislash, his envy burning so hard it almost ached.
Damn it all—if only that shield Pokémon belonged to him!
Absurd. Totally absurd! It was supposed to be a shield, so why did it have the firepower to obliterate everything in sight?
Komai shook his head quickly, forcing away such unrealistic thoughts. He recalled his fainted Nidoqueen, then pulled out his most treasured Luxury Ball.
With a sharp hiss, the black-and-gold sphere spun into the air, releasing a brilliant flash of white light. A massive blue turtle beast with cannons sprouting from its shell landed heavily on the battlefield.
"Blastoise!"
Komai's final Pokémon had appeared.
Pokémon: Blastoise
Type: Water
Tier: Commander, mid-level
Potential: Lord-tier
Note: Komai's first Pokémon, received at age ten. Trained for years, its power is formidable.
…
"Well, Yozora? This Blastoise is my ultimate trump card. Not bad, right?" Komai smirked, confidence returning as he sent his ace onto the field.
That confidence was born of pure trust in his strongest partner—an emotion every true trainer shared.
Yozora understood well. When he battled with his Beedrill, Charmeleon, or Golduck, he too felt as though nothing could stop them.
"I see. Then out of respect, I'll get serious too…"
Yozora's lips curved upward. He snapped his fingers. "Unsheath your blade, Aegislash!"
Clang—!
Aegislash's long sword slipped free, the shield-like scabbard swinging into its other hand.
"What—?!"
Komai froze in shock as he saw the Pokémon's stance.
Wasn't it supposed to be a shield?Why did it suddenly reveal a gleaming blade?
Then realization struck. Its name was Aegislash—a sword and a shield, united as one! Both devastating offense and impregnable defense…
Damn it. Why did such a broken Pokémon even exist in this world?
Komai's heart cramped painfully. And the worst part? Such a powerful, unfair Pokémon didn't belong to him—it belonged to Yozora.
In Komai's eyes, this Aegislash had to be one of the rarest of the rare, far beyond ordinary Pokémon. Not just rare in Kanto—even in Kalos, it would be considered near-mythical.
And indeed, his guess wasn't wrong. Aegislash as a species was incredibly rare, on par with pseudo-legendaries in terms of scarcity—perhaps even rarer.
In raw stats it fell short of pseudo-legendaries, but with its unique "Battle Switch" ability—shifting freely between Shield Forme and Blade Forme—it wielded both extreme offense and defense. Its overall power rivaled, if not surpassed, many pseudo-legendaries.
In the original games, Aegislash had been nerfed again and again by the developers. Yet even so, in World Championship tournaments, its usage rate remained sky-high.
Why?
One reason: strength.
"You should have guessed by now," Yozora explained with a smile, each word sending fresh sweat down Komai's back. "Aegislash has two forms: Shield Forme and Blade Forme. Earlier it was in Shield Forme—unbreakable defense, but almost no offense. Now, though, it has shifted into Blade Forme. And its attack power will be… overwhelming."
Komai's expression twisted as the truth hit home.
So that was it.
During the last two battles, Yozora hadn't even been fighting at full power. Even so, his Aegislash had still one-shot both his Nidoqueen and Tauros.
And that was its weak form?
Now that it was in Blade Forme, how could he possibly stand against it?!
"Hah! Yozora, stop messing around. The world is fair. There's no such thing as a Pokémon that broken!" Komai forced a laugh. "Two forms? Don't try to scare me. It just has decent attack and defense at the same time, that's all!"
"Really? Then see for yourself. Aegislash—use Sacred Sword!"
Yozora's eyes sharpened as his command rang out.
Shing!
Aegislash swung its blade, slicing the air. A wave of emerald-blue sword energy erupted forth, surging straight at Blastoise with crushing force.
Komai's heart clenched tight. Just from the pressure radiating off that sword aura, he knew Yozora had spoken the truth. Aegislash truly had two forms—and in Blade Forme, its attack power was terrifying beyond compare!
"Don't give in, Blastoise! Withdraw into your shell and use Iron Defense!" Komai shouted desperately.
Blastoise instantly retracted into its shell, its entire body becoming a massive armored fortress. Black steel light shimmered across the shell, fortifying it even further.
Withdraw + Iron Defense!
In an instant, its defenses skyrocketed. Though only a mid-tier Commander-level, its durability now rivaled the peak of that stage.
BOOM!
The sword aura slammed against Blastoise's shell with a deafening explosion. Smoke and dust blasted skyward, swallowing the battlefield.
Seconds stretched into eternity before the haze finally cleared.
Blastoise was still curled up tight inside its shell… but its condition was unknown.
"Blastoise…" Komai called, voice trembling.
"Blaa…"
With a pained groan, Blastoise slowly stretched out its head and limbs—then collapsed heavily to the ground, unconscious.
Even Komai's ace, his strongest partner, had been taken out in a single strike.
The battle was over.
Aegislash had swept through all three of Komai's Pokémon, crushing him without mercy.
"Blastoise?!" Komai's eyes bulged in disbelief.
Thud.
His knees buckled. He collapsed to the ground, staring blankly at his fallen ace.
He couldn't believe it. Even Blastoise—his pride, his strongest—had been defeated in an instant.
Just how powerful was Yozora, really?
"Komai, do you know?" Yozora's voice was calm, even faintly mocking. "In our village, I'm considered the weakest one. After nearly half a year, I've only managed to collect four Gym Badges. I always thought I was terrible… but it turns out, you're even worse."
"I almost envy you. So weak, yet still so confident. Honestly, I wish I could be that carefree."
He spoke without the slightest hesitation, his face perfectly composed—yet his eyes never left Komai's expression.
As expected, Komai's eyes widened further and further, his face flushing red as shame gnawed at him from the inside out.
And so, the lesson was delivered.
(End of Chapter)