One single sentence from Bruno instantly stirred the hearts of all viewers!
He spoke with such confidence—could it be that Bruno truly had some kind of secret technique?
[Lorelei: Hurry up, Bruno! Share it!]
[Bruno: Hehe, if I share it, it wouldn't be a secret weapon anymore. Just wait and see!]
[Leon: Now you've got me curious. What could it be? Don't tell me you ran into the legendary Wishing Star—Jirachi—and made a wish that always comes true?]
[Lucian: I can't think of anything else either.]
[Bruno: Hahaha, I'm not telling you!]
[Lorelei: Say it now! Don't force me to punch you!]
[Bruno: I'm not Lance, don't get it wrong! I'm not afraid of you!]
Good grief—fearless in the face of authority!
His credibility was only rising!
At that moment, in the back mountains of Pallet Town, Bruno was holding a Pikachu and laughing loudly.
"Pikachu is the key! You idiots!"
Just then, the text on the light screen began to scroll again.
[Mortal vs. Deity! The Lily of the Valley Conference Quarterfinals Reignited!
Ash's Revenge Battle After Three Years!]
[Question: In this battle, how many Legendary Pokémon will Tobias use?]
[A: Three]
[B: Two]
[C: One]
[Now drawing the lucky viewers.]
[Five… Four… Three… Two… One]
[Ding! Lucky viewers selected.
This round's lucky viewers are: Bruno, Delia.]
[Please answer the question.]
[Bruno: ???]
[Bruno: Damn it, why is it this hard when it's my turn?! Shouldn't it be asking who's going to win?! Who knows how many Legendary Pokémon this guy has?! Maybe aside from Darkrai, the rest are all Magikarp!]
[Lorelei: Hahaha, serves you right! That's what you get for not telling me your method!]
[Lance: Exactly! Hoarding secrets never ends well. If you'd told us, maybe the question would've been something simple like who wins!]
[Bruno: You want to freeload off my secret weapon?! Dream on! Even if I get everything wrong, I won't tell you!]
[Bruno: I choose B. I remember Tobias saying he also has a Latios—this has to be right!]
[Delia: I see. Then C is definitely wrong. I'll choose A.]
...
[Q&A ended. The answer will be revealed after this battle concludes.]
[Livestream resumes]
...
[Tobias: To be honest, I have six full teams of Legendary Pokémon.]
[Delia: In that case, looks like I win.]
[Lorelei: Hahaha, this is killing me. The main character is right here and none of you asked him. Now look—he just gave the answer himself.]
[Bruno: Damn it! Why didn't you say it earlier?! You only say it after I've answered—are you targeting me on purpose?!]
[Tobias: You didn't ask.]
[Bruno: ...]
Holy crap—that actually makes sense!
Bruno clutched his chest in pain, feeling something slip through his fingers.
Ah!
It was his shattered heart!
...
On screen—
Neither Sceptile nor Darkrai made the first move.
Both were waiting for their Trainers' commands.
At this level of battle, even the slightest mistake could cost the entire match.
Trainer and Pokémon alike were extremely cautious.
"Darkrai, Dark Void."
In the end, Tobias was the first to attack.
At his command, Darkrai moved at once.
As the Nightmare Pokémon's signature move, Dark Void was something Darkrai had mastered to an absurd degree.
With a simple raise of its hand,
a mass of black energy shot toward Sceptile on the opposite side of the field.
At the same time, Ash's command rang out.
"Sceptile! Use Agility to dodge!"
As soon as the words fell,
Sceptile clenched the twig in its mouth, lowered its body, and—
Like an arrow released from a bow, it vanished from its spot.
It was so fast that three or four green afterimages of Sceptile could be seen moving across the field.
Faced with Darkrai's Dark Void,
Sceptile dodged it with ease.
At the same time, the distance between the two rapidly closed.
The sheer speed made Tobias pause.
This Sceptile was much faster than it had been three years ago.
He vaguely remembered that during the Lily of the Valley Conference,
Darkrai's Dark Void had hit this very Sceptile with ease.
Tobias had intended to open with Dark Void followed by Dream Eater to take out one of Ash's Pokémon right away.
Who would've thought that the speed Sceptile displayed in that instant alone would leave him impressed?
"Very good. I acknowledge your Sceptile. But do you really think this means you can avoid Darkrai's attacks? You're underestimating me!"
As he finished speaking,
the scattered look in Tobias's eyes instantly sharpened.
An aura completely different from his earlier lax demeanor radiated from him.
"Darkrai! Ice Beam!"
The next second, Darkrai gathered energy in front of its chest,
then fired two blue beams from both hands at the still-approaching Sceptile.
Sceptile was a Grass-type.
If it were hit by Ice Beam, it would take double damage.
Facing the near-sealing dual Ice Beams,
Sceptile could only halt its advance and dodge backward.
"You're the one underestimating me! Do you know how many times I've simulated battles against you over these past three years?!"
"What does that have to do with me?"
Ash was fired up and ready to pour out his hard-earned battle experience—
only to be ruthlessly cut off by Tobias.
In response, Ash decided that once he won,
he was absolutely going to mock Tobias mercilessly.
This guy was just too annoying!
"Sceptile! Bullet Seed!"
Ash pointed forward and gave the order.
"Scet!"
Sceptile's golden eyes rapidly swept over Darkrai.
A plan instantly formed in its mind.
Calmness was Sceptile's defining trait—
no matter the situation, it could maintain absolute focus.
Just like now!
Sceptile leapt lightly backward,
green Grass-type energy gathering in its mouth.
The next instant, its jaws parted slightly.
Countless green particles shot forward like a machine gun.
Sceptile's Bullet Seed was aimed straight at Darkrai's hands.
All it needed to do was interrupt Darkrai's Ice Beam!
And just as Ash and Sceptile had anticipated—
Although Bullet Seed's power wasn't high,
it was extremely effective at interrupting moves.
The continuous barrage made it impossible for Darkrai to maintain the Ice Beams.
Left with no choice, it halted the attack.
"Now it's our turn! Sceptile—X-Scissor!"
From the moment he lost to Tobias at the Lily of the Valley Conference,
Ash had replayed that battle countless times in his mind.
In that fight, Tobias's victory didn't rely solely on the raw power of Darkrai and Latios.
More importantly, it was the combination of moves.
Ice Beam, Dark Void into Dream Eater—
Tobias's movesets complemented each other perfectly.
Once any single move landed, it would be followed by a devastating combo.
Darkrai executed this even better than Latios.
To defeat Darkrai, speed was essential.
Ash did have the so-called "type disadvantage master" buff.
But against a Pokémon like Darkrai,
it was best not to rely on that if possible.
After all—
This was no ordinary opponent.
Any tiny mistake could mean total defeat.
Against a Dark-type like Darkrai,
besides Fighting-type moves, the most effective were Bug- and Fairy-type attacks.
Sceptile couldn't learn Fairy-type moves.
Which meant Bug-type was the best choice!
Just like now!
Darkrai, having been interrupted mid–Ice Beam, was still waiting for Tobias's next command.
But Sceptile—boosted by Agility—was far faster than Darkrai expected.
In the blink of an eye,
that green figure was already right in front of it.
In Tobias's starry blue eyes, disbelief filled every corner.
Wasn't this speed a bit too ridiculous?!
"Darkrai! Use Dark Pulse in all directions!"
Looking at the Sceptile right before him,
shock also flashed through Tobias's eyes.
Compared to the Lily of the Valley Conference,
Ash's improvement was downright absurd!
Back then, Sceptile had only defeated Darkrai thanks to prior damage and attrition.
But now, Sceptile had avoided Darkrai's attacks twice in a row—
And even found an opening to counterattack in between!
For some reason, Tobias felt excited.
It had been so long since he'd experienced this kind of thrill in battle!
Receiving Tobias's command,
Darkrai snapped out of its shock at once.
It trusted its Trainer's orders completely.
Dark Pulse could be fired as a concentrated blast—
But it could also ripple outward around the body.
What Darkrai did was form a full 360-degree defensive system with Dark Pulse.
Wave after wave of suppressive energy spread around Darkrai.
Dawn clutched Piplup tightly, her heart pounding.
She felt like she'd seen this scene three years ago.
Back then, when Ash launched a counterattack,
Tobias had effortlessly dismantled it.
Would it be the same this time?
No!
Of course not!
The current Ash was the Alola Champion!
He had grown far more than he was three years ago!
Just before Darkrai's Dark Pulse could fully spread—
Sceptile leapt high into the air using its speed.
With the moonlight overhead,
Sceptile descended like a green leaf—
Seemingly light, yet carrying immense force!
The Leaf Blades on its arms were coated in brownish-green Bug-type energy.
Its arms crossed—
And slashed down viciously onto Darkrai's head!
X-Scissor—hit!
A Bug-type move with double effectiveness!
Darkrai was clearly stunned by the sudden aerial attack!
Why did you come from above?!
When did you even jump?!
"Press the advantage! Sceptile, use Brick Break!"
The moment X-Scissor landed,
Ash immediately followed up with another command.
He had replayed this scenario countless times in his head.
That was why his orders flowed so smoothly.
Upon hearing Ash's command,
Sceptile grabbed the ornament on Darkrai's chest and yanked it violently down from the air.
The instant they hit the ground—
Sceptile formed a blade with one hand
and slammed it straight into Darkrai's face!
Another double-effective hit!
[Sawyer: That Sceptile is so cool! I've decided—my future starter will definitely be Treecko! I want my own Sceptile too!]
[Leon: Ash's Sceptile is illegally strong. Even with Agility, that level of speed isn't something ordinary Pokémon can achieve!]
[Aarune: Amazing! In just three turns, he's completely suppressed Darkrai using speed alone. This battle is really something to look forward to!]
[Bruno: Of course! This is Master Ash of the future! As a Champion, he's unbelievably strong!]
[Gardenia: How can there be such a handsome Sceptile?! Elegant and cool, fast and powerful—I'm totally in love with Sceptile!]
[Flint: Tch, a Grass-type Sceptile. Just a toy for Fire-types! If we're talking about the coolest, it's definitely Infernape!]
Even wrapped in bandages,
as long as he had a mouth, Flint would never concede!
Hope? Not even worth one Infernape hair!
[Blue: Now this looks right! As Red's junior, how could you lose so easily before? That would be slapping Red in the face! This is more like it! Take back everything you lost, Ash—do you hear me?!]
[Ash: I will! The future me losing at the Psychic Conference must've just been careless! From now on, no matter which region I challenge, I'll bring my strongest lineup! I said it already—from now on, I won't lose a single match until I reach the pinnacle and become a Pokémon Master!]
Seeing Ash's response,
Blue, in Orre, nodded in satisfaction.
That's more like it!
If Ash kept losing,
he and Red would both lose face.
Besides, it was just a Darkrai.
Blue wasn't bragging—
any one Pokémon from his team could handle it easily.
And Red? Don't even get started.
As that guy's senior, he wouldn't allow Ash to be this weak!
(Gary: Then what about me?)
Still, Ash had good attitude.
That way, Blue could have more time to chat with Queen Eileen.
After finally finding someone who fit his type,
this time he was definitely going all in!
Meanwhile—
On the other side of Orre.
After carefully sensing the aura of the statue of Sir Aaron, the Aura Guardian,
Red finally turned back, satisfied.
But when he did, he saw Yellow fast asleep on a lounge chair behind him.
That wouldn't do!
Sleeping here would cause her to catch a cold.
So Red decisively took out a Poké Ball
and released his partner, Charizard.
"Charizard, hold Yellow. Don't let her catch a cold."
After saying that, Red didn't look back,
walking straight toward the room behind the statue that recorded Sir Aaron's deeds.
That scene—
Was witnessed perfectly by Leaf, who was holding two ice creams.
Plop.
Both ice creams fell straight to the ground.
Aunt Delia! This question is too hard! She doesn't know what to do!
Leaf covered her face and burst into tears!
Should she… sacrifice herself instead?
At that moment, a sinister idea quietly formed in Leaf's mind.
[Diantha: So handsome, Ash~]
[Cynthia: Watch your wording. And don't drag your voice like that when you talk.]
[Diantha: Oh my, Champion of Sinnoh—have you finally seen your own heart? Don't you feel like something important is about to be taken from you every time you hear me speak~?]
[Diantha: Don't be nervous. Take a deep breath—feeling dizzy is perfectly normal~]
...
On screen—
At the moment Brick Break landed,
Sceptile immediately retreated, guided by its sharp instincts.
At the same time, Ash launched his next command.
"Sceptile! Use Swords Dance!"
Ash's eyes were locked onto the dust cloud that had yet to settle.
Based on his understanding of Darkrai,
although all the attacks had landed and dealt double damage—
Sceptile had a major weakness.
The moves that countered Darkrai were all physical.
But Sceptile's physical attack stat wasn't particularly high!
And the Rotom Referee hadn't declared Darkrai unable to battle yet.
Which meant—
The fight wasn't over.
…..
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