[Misty: I don't even have to check—I know Ash didn't understand!]
[Ash: Nonsense, I… I totally understood!]
[Gary: Really? I don't buy it.]
[Ash: Idiot Gary, I'm not you! What's so hard? You just keep winning, that's all.]
[Gary: Knew it. He didn't understand a thing. But hey—that's Ash for you.]
Gary: Finally!
After so many years, he'd caught Ash slipping!
Ash, when it comes to brains, you'll never beat me.
Gary grinned smugly, then glanced back at the chat—only for his face to instantly turn beet red.
[Ash: I'm a Champion. Are you?]
Perfect critical hit.
On screen—
Feeling a little guilty, Ash stuffed all his dessert into his mouth at once.
But the pastry was too dry. Unsurprisingly, he started choking.
He thumped his chest, trying to force it down.
Koharu rushed to grab a glass of water, but just as she lifted her hand—she froze.
"Here, have some water."
A warm voice spoke from the side.
A cup was handed to Ash.
Ash gulped it down, finally swallowing the stuck pastry.
"Phew, that saved me—thanks!" he said with relief, turning his head.
And there stood the very person he was about to challenge—Champion Leon.
Leon smiled as he greeted them. He thanked Ash again—if not for him, yesterday's incident could have caused casualties.
This time, Leon had come to express his gratitude, and also to honor the promise he'd made.
But he'd also overheard something interesting.
This boy named Ash… was the Champion of the Alola League.
True, the Alola League had only just been established. But Leon had heard about that decisive Champion battle.
The Alola Champion had challenged Alola's strongest trainer—
and even a Guardian Deity had joined the fight.
Meaning Ash's title wasn't just Conference Champion—but a true Regional Champion.
That was interesting.
Fifteen years old… and already a League Champion.
A genius among geniuses.
No wonder his Pikachu hadn't gone berserk even after being flooded with wild Dynamax energy.
[Lance: Something's off. Why is Leon so shocked about Ash being Alola Champion? Is there something we don't know here?]
[Aaron: Probably just his age. Fifteen and already a Champion is shocking enough.]
[Leon: No. If it were just that, I'd only admire him. I wouldn't be shocked.]
Alola, Melemele Island.
Professor Kukui watched the rolling chat, eyes thoughtful.
The Champions and Elites were speculating why Leon reacted that way.
But Kukui… had already guessed part of the truth.
He and Tapu Koko…
If that was the case, then Ash's strength was being vastly underestimated.
On screen—
Leon invited Ash to Wyndon Stadium for their battle.
Following in Leon's footsteps, Ash brought a still-stunned Koharu along.
The Champion himself would accept Ash's challenge.
The whole thing was so surreal that Koharu's brain froze completely—
until Leon spoke again.
"Ash, why do you want to battle me?" Leon asked with curiosity.
"Because you're the world's number one—the strongest trainer who even defeated Mr. Lance!"
"Hahaha! Now that's a good reason."
"Here, take this."
Leon tossed something to Ash.
"This is a Dynamax Band. Wear it, and you can wield the power of Dynamax."
"Thank you so much, Mr. Leon!"
Ash strapped it onto his wrist immediately.
He'd been wondering how to make Pikachu enter that state again.
Last night, he'd even gone over battle replays with Pikachu for ages.
But no matter what, he hadn't figured it out. He'd even thought maybe Pikachu had to slam the ground every time to activate it.
But that wasn't what Leon did in his matches…
For this battle, Ash had prepared thoroughly.
He even brought his Alolan Z-Ring, inlaid with Pikachu's exclusive Z-Crystal.
No time to mourn Lance's defeat.
Up next—the strongest rookie in history, Champion of the Alola League—Ash Ketchum!!
The battle officially began!
Ash sent out his closest partner—Pikachu.
Leon, as always, chose his ace—Charizard.
At first, Leon had only agreed to battle as a reward for Ash's help yesterday—
so as not to let the boy down.
But after learning Ash's true identity, he grew serious.
If he slipped up here and lost… it would be a laughingstock.
Ash's specialty was fast offense. Against strong foes, he always struck first.
"Pikachu, Quick Attack!"
"Pikachu!"
At Ash's command, Pikachu darted forward on all fours, a streak of white lightning aimed at Charizard.
"Charizard, meet it with Thunder Punch!"
"Charizard!"
Charizard roared, spreading its wings.
Golden lightning crackled around its claws.
Ash and Pikachu were in perfect sync.
But so were Leon and Charizard.
From the moment the battle began, Charizard had sensed Leon's burning will to win.
Then it too could not hold back!
Pikachu's Quick Attack was fast—
but Charizard tracked it instantly.
The next moment, its electrified fist smashed down on Pikachu's head.
Pikachu was blasted ten meters back before it could stop itself.
"I'm fired up already, Pikachu!" Ash shouted.
"Pika—CHU!"
"Good! Now, use Electroweb!"
Pikachu leapt high, gathering electricity into its tail before whipping it forward.
A huge net of lightning spread across the sky, crashing down toward Charizard.
"Not bad! Charizard, another Thunder Punch!"
Charizard's fist gleamed golden once more.
With a single punch, it ripped the massive net apart down the middle.
Even after breaking through, lightning still crackled around its claw.
"So strong!" Ash's eyes shone with excitement.
So this was Leon's ace, the symbol of the strongest Champion…
Unbelievable!
"Pikachu, meet it with Iron Tail!"
Still airborne, Pikachu twisted mid-spin, its tail gleaming like polished steel.
Charizard dove straight at it, claws sparking.
Neither yielded—Iron Tail clashed with Thunder Punch!
The impact's shockwave hurled both Pokémon backward.
"Flamethrower!"
"Thunderbolt!"
The two voices rang out simultaneously from opposite ends of the stadium.
Golden lightning met blazing crimson fire.
The massive collision forced Wyndon Stadium's protective shields to activate automatically.
Up in the air, the referee wiped imaginary sweat from his brow.
If not for his experience keeping him airborne in time, even the backlash might have knocked him out for weeks.
Just who is this kid? He's actually fighting Mr. Leon evenly!
This spectacle was only a step below yesterday's clash between Leon and Lance.
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