[Brock: I get it now, I finally get it! Back then my Onix wasn't paralyzed by electricity at all—it was literally melted!
Electric-types really can't hurt Ground-types, but high heat can crack rocks!
Maybe the temperature Pikachu released back then caused my Onix's body to come apart, and that's why it fainted!]
[Misty: Now that you say it, I do remember. After that battle, a bunch of rock fragments fell off Onix. That does line up with physics.]
[Steven: Confirmed! Ash, Master of Physics!]
[Bruno: As expected of my teacher—being able to find even the tiniest chance of victory in an unwinnable fight… is this the power of the Aura Guardian!]
Hey, you Ash-fanatic!
But honestly… that was great!
Who am I kidding—I'm one too!
On-screen——
Such a bizarre way of winning earned Ash waves of praise.
Where did all these voices come from?
Naturally, from the crowd drawn over by Pikachu's golden lightning.
Ever since the sand tornado had been crushed by Tyranitar with overwhelming force,
the entire road had turned into a sandstorm-swept desert.
But once the battle ended,
the raging storm gradually died down,
and the drivers finally managed to reach Ash.
"Kid, your Pikachu is real handsome!"
"For real! Shame I didn't bring a camera. That would've been a top-tier 'Move of the Century' contender!"
"Same here."
"..."
Faced with all the praise,
Ash scratched his head shyly.
But before he could respond—
Another wave of sand rose from the desert.
However,
Tyranitar had already suppressed its own Sand Stream ability.
Meaning this was another Pokémon entirely!
Trapinch and Vibrava had already appeared.
Which means the next one in the 'three-three-seven' progression
was their final evolution.
A true Ground Dragon—
Flygon!
The moment Flygon emerged,
that sky-ringing hum echoed again—
ultrasonic waves generated by its vibrating wings,
a sound that bewitched the mind.
And the instant that sound rang out,
the surrounding spectators vanished from Ash's sight at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Damn.
They really ran fast.
Even Chloe was startled.
She had no idea Vermilion City residents had such insane stamina!
Flygon—entering the field!
Like Vibrava,
it carried the dual Ground/Dragon typing.
Its base stats weren't as high as Garchomp,
but because it could learn Dragon Dance,
it earned the title of a 'true' Ground Dragon.
Of course,
Flygon wasn't a pseudo-legendary.
Its base stat total was only 520.
Even so, the Dragon typing gave it remarkable power.
Flygon's body was mostly green with two green antennae on its head,
its wings green with red edges,
and its eyes protected by red lens-like covers
to keep sand from damaging its vision.
Right now,
those red eyes were locked tightly onto Ash.
Its wings vibrated—another blast of ultrasonic force surged forth.
This time,
Ash didn't send Pikachu out.
Compared to Vibrava, Flygon was far faster.
The same tactic wouldn't work twice.
So Ash switched Pokémon.
"Gabite, it's your turn!"
"Yaa!!!"
The freshly evolved Gabite was clearly still riding its excitement.
Upon being chosen,
the ferocity hidden in its body surged out instantly.
As the second stage of Garchomp,
Gabite's intimidating presence was in no way inferior to its final form.
And this battle involved something else—
determining who was the real Ground Dragon!
For some reason,
the moment Gabite saw Flygon,
it felt an instinctive urge to tear it apart.
Seeing Gabite so fired up, Ash was delighted.
Being able to fight alongside an old partner—
that itself was a blessing.
"Alright! Let's go!"
"Gabite, use Draco Meteor!"
"Yaa~!"
Light swelled orange-red in Gabite's jaws.
Flygon instantly halted its ultrasonic attack—
it could sense that this opponent was no pushover.
And it felt the same instinctive hostility toward Gabite.
Flygon's red lenses flashed purple;
it thrust its head upward and fired.
It used Draco Meteor as well.
Draco Meteor vs Draco Meteor!
Orange light and purple light intertwined—then exploded.
Meteor fragments rained down.
Tyranitar stepped forward.
The tyrant of Mt. Silver roared silently.
Its feet slammed into the desert,
and endless sand surged up,
forming a towering dome of swirling grit
that shielded Ash and Chloe completely.
Absolute Sand Defense—Tyranitar special edition!
[Steven: Who would've thought the same Tyranitar that debuted so violently could be this gentle? Using sand so delicately to protect Ash and Chloe… what a warmhearted Pokémon.]
[Brock: The precision of its sand control is terrifying! I wonder what kind of training it went through on Mt. Silver to get this strong!]
[Red: Oh right. A few days ago I ran into a family of Tyranitar on Mt. Silver. I noticed one of the Pupitar had good talent, so I gave it some pointers. If nothing unexpected happened, this should be that same Tyranitar.]
[Blue: Ahh, that explains why I sensed your style from it. You actually trained it!]
[Gary: Blue bro, since Red helped Ash prepare a Pokémon, shouldn't you raise one for me too!?]
[Blue: Fine. Just this once.]
[Gary: Thanks, Red bro!]
[Blue: ???]
[Blue: Why are you thanking him!?]
[Gary: Same thing, same thing!]
Same!?
How is that the same!?
I raised the Pokémon—you're thanking him!?
So infuriating.
Feels like something precious of mine just got stolen.
Hmm.
NTR?
On-screen——
A Tyranitar taught by Red was undoubtedly powerful.
Its arrogance and strength were exactly what let it rule Mt. Silver.
But right now, Ash hadn't ordered it into battle.
Ordinarily, Tyranitar would've rushed in regardless of orders.
But after getting mobbed in Professor Oak's backyard
by Charizard, Infernape, and the other seniors…
it learned the rules of survival:
Always follow Ash's commands.
Today was a rare day out—
it wanted to make a good impression.
After Draco Meteor exploded,
Flygon kicked up sand to hide itself.
Gabite immediately scanned the storm—
and spotted multiple green silhouettes.
Not Double Team—Flygon couldn't learn that.
Meaning what Ash saw
was pure speed.
"A gifted one, huh…"
Ash admired it.
He liked talented Pokémon—
even opponents he'd cheer for when they fell.
That's just who he was.
Decision made.
He'd catch this Flygon later.
And he already had a countermeasure:
"Gabite—Stealth Rock!"
Gabite fired rows of silver stones that vanished into the sandstorm—
a perfect trap for a speed-based foe.
Sure enough,
explosions rippled through the desert—
"Now! Gabite, Dragon Claw!"
Green light wrapped around Gabite's arms,
forming razor-edged claws.
Gabite lunged like a phantom toward the green silhouette.
Flygon sensed danger instantly—
dragons were sensitive to dragon-type energy.
It shot upward, blue draconic aura coating its body—
Dragon Rush!
Cynthia's signature move!
Flygon dived,
Ash countered:
"Gabite—block it with Dragon Claw!"
Both were Dragon-type.
Both took 2× damage.
A pure head-on clash.
The storm intensified,
a living mosaic—
with only two lights shining:
blue and green.
Blue crashed into green—
But the green light held.
Gabite held back Flygon's Dragon Rush by sheer will.
"Well done! Gabite—Crunch!"
As the two clashed,
Gabite grinned wickedly.
Tyranitar, watching from the sand pit,
smirked cruelly.
Crunch, huh?
No one understood that move better than Tyranitar.
This little Gible-kid had been personally trained by it.
Let's see if Flygon could handle it.
[Cynthia: Very good—using Gabite's strengths at just the right moment. That's Ash for you!]
[Professor Kukui: Amazing, Ash! Once Crunch lands, Flygon won't escape!]
[Alain's umbrella friend: As expected of the pre-evolution of the strongest pseudo-legendary, Garchomp! Even like this, it wins the mirror match!]
[Professor Sycamore: Looks like the advantage is yours, Ash!]
[Paul: Garchomp, huh? Seems strong. I should get one.]
Among battlers,
no one could refuse the absolute security of a Garchomp.
Unless you were rich—
then you could buy yourself a Metagross.
Or even Steven's shiny platinum Metagross.
On-screen——
Gabite, having stopped Flygon's Dragon Rush,
gave a sinister smile.
Flygon tried desperately to break free—
but failed.
Then—
Gabite bit down hard on Flygon's head.
Crunch!
A crisp crack echoed.
Something definitely broke.
Tyranitar smiled proudly.
Good teeth should be used like that!
And then—
white light engulfed Gabite.
Evolution light!
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