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At the pier, the weather had calmed down, making it possible to travel to New Island. However, the Kanto League had issued an order prohibiting anyone from going to New Island.
Therefore, even though the weather was gradually clearing, the ships at the pier still could not depart, and no one at the pier was allowed to travel to New Island by any means.
To prevent anyone from sneaking over, the Kanto League even dispatched the Gym Leaders from two nearby cities—Vermilion City and Saffron City.
With two Gym Leaders stationed there, some individuals with ulterior motives abandoned their plans and chose to watch the commotion from the pier.
Since the League forbade others from going to New Island, it indicated that something must have happened there. The strongest Trainer competition reaching the League was also a slap in its face.
Perhaps the League had already sent people to arrest the organizers, and when they returned, they would surely come to the pier first, allowing for some entertainment.
However, the Trainers at the pier saw nothing of the sort, but they clearly witnessed an explosion!
A massive mushroom cloud rose from the sea. New Island was just an insignificant speck to them, but the mushroom cloud was even larger than New Island itself.
Moreover, the previously calm ocean suddenly became turbulent, and terrifying waves directly rushed towards the pier. The Trainers waiting at the pier to watch the show quickly retreated, their faces changing color, but they couldn't escape the waves in time and were drenched.
"What's going on? Why are the waves suddenly rising again?"
"Yeah, isn't the weather already good? These waves are even bigger than during the previous storm!"
"Did you see it just now? There seemed to be a mushroom cloud over New Island. Could it be an explosion from New Island that caused the waves to rush here?"
"Don't be ridiculous. If the waves from New Island's explosion reached here, how massive would that explosion have to be!"
"Exactly, it's not like the entire New Island was destroyed!"
"Uh... that's true, but how do you explain the mushroom cloud from New Island?"
"...Hiss, that's also a problem, isn't it?"
A group of drenched people discussed animatedly at the edge of the pier. Erika and Lt. Surge, hearing their conversation, exchanged glances.
As the people sent by the League to guard the pier, they knew a little about the inside story.
There seemed to be an entity on New Island that even the League greatly feared, and the Elite Four had already been dispatched to deal with it. If it was a Champion-level battle, then at its peak, it might indeed be able to destroy a small island!
However, if the mushroom cloud on the island just now was truly an explosion, then even a Champion-level Trainer probably couldn't cause such a commotion. A bad premonition flashed through their minds.
Could it be... that there was a God Domain Level existence on New Island? And that God Domain Level existence unleashed an extremely powerful move, directly destroying New Island!
...On New Island at this moment—
No, it shouldn't be called New Island now, but rather a vast sea!
There were still some remnants floating on the surface of the sea, but the entire island was almost completely destroyed in that recent clash. Those remnants were the last remaining pieces of the island.
On the sea level, an 'iceberg' quietly melted, revealing the figures of people inside.
Misty and the others, the Kanto Elite Four, all of them were inside that several-meter-high iceberg. Everyone's faces, including Lance's, showed lingering fear.
If he hadn't ordered all his Pokémon to use Protect simultaneously, and Lorelei hadn't also ordered all her Pokémon to immediately use Ice-type moves to create ice walls as protection, with Lapras using Sheer Cold as the final layer of defense, they might have met the same fate as New Island!
Even so, they were extremely lucky to have survived, with all defenses barely holding out until only Lapras's Sheer Cold remained as the last line.
Lance's Pokémon, who had blocked the attack outside with Protect, all suffered considerable damage. Lance quickly recalled them one by one into their Poké Balls, otherwise, they would probably have already fallen into the sea.
And Lorelei's Pokémon were in the same situation.
After all the defenses were broken through, only the final Sheer Cold remained as the last line of defense. When Sheer Cold was on the verge of shattering, the aftershock finally dissipated. So, their survival was indeed extremely fortunate.
Agatha and Bruno even regretted not having released their Pokémon. Agatha only had Gengar guarding her from within its shadow, while Bruno hadn't released any Pokémon.
The result was that they had played almost no role in the explosion just now.
If not for good luck, they would all be gone by now.
"Where's Ash? Where's Mewtwo?" After recovering for a while from Sheer Cold, Lorelei immediately thought of Ash and Mewtwo.
Compared to them, those two were at the epicenter of the explosion, and without any protection. Even a God Domain Level existence might not fare well.
Falling into the sea would be even worse; the explosion's aftermath caused the waves to churn continuously, and in a few seconds, they could be swept thousands of meters away.
If they fell into the sea, unless they coincidentally drifted to another island, otherwise... their chances of survival were slim.
"No, I'll have Starmie and the others search the sea right now!" Misty, after hearing Lance and the others' analysis, anxiously took out her Poké Ball. Even if it was like finding a needle in a haystack, they had to try!
"No need, I'm fine." A cheerful voice rang out behind Misty. Everyone quickly looked in the direction of the voice, finding Ash, his clothes tattered, carrying Mewtwo and standing barefoot on the surface of the sea.
At this moment, Ash's shirt was completely shredded, with only a few black threads hanging on him, and his denim trousers had turned into shorts, with only a section remaining on his thighs. However, his hat was perfectly intact on his head, seemingly unaffected.
Mewtwo lay motionless on Ash's shoulder, appearing to have fainted.
"Ash! Are you alright?!"
"You brat, you made us so worried!"
"When did you get behind us?"
"..."
A cacophony of voices continuously echoed on this last small piece of island. Apart from the area Lorelei protected, which was large enough for several people to stand, the rest of the island had turned into a pile of debris.
Originally, this scene should have been Ash's triumph, followed by everyone rushing to embrace him.
Ash was currently standing on the surface of the sea, likely using a special energy to do so. Everyone could only converse with Ash from this narrow standing area, unable to run over and hug him.
They were all curious how Ash had avoided that super explosion just now. This was an explosion that destroyed an entire island, yet Ash, at the center of the explosion's energy, seemed to have suffered no harm.
At most, his clothes were torn.
"...Actually, it's nothing much. I just had a little Aura left, so I used Aura to create a barrier during the explosion, and brought Mewtwo around behind you, borrowing your strength to block the aftershocks of the explosion."
Ash explained to everyone with a smile. In reality, the situation was not as perilous as they imagined. Although the entire island was destroyed, he still had a little reserve energy, more than enough to Protect himself.
During the explosion, Mewtwo was directly knocked unconscious by the destructive force. That Psystrike was the last of Mewtwo's internal power; she had no remaining strength to maintain a protective barrier.
If there was anyone in the worst situation during this explosion, it was her. If Ash hadn't pulled her out, she might have been destroyed in this explosion.
Even if she had miraculously survived, she might have been swept away by the waves and ultimately swallowed by the sea. Ash truly saved Mewtwo's life.
"Anyway, it's good that you're alright. This time, it's all thanks to you, Ash. Otherwise, even if we could contend with Mewtwo, if things had escalated to that point, we probably all would have perished here." Lance said gratefully to Ash, his face filled with emotion.
Judging from the attack Mewtwo unleashed just now, even if all their Elite Four Pokémon went all out, they could barely withstand Mewtwo's attack, but they would ultimately be destroyed by the aftershocks of the explosion.
They didn't possess Ash and Mewtwo's formidable physical resilience. If they were caught in the explosion's aftermath, it would undoubtedly be a death sentence.
No one would have expected Mewtwo to use such a self-destructive fighting style. That last attack clearly disregarded her own safety, intending to take them all down with her!
"I'm not that amazing, Mr. Lance~~" Ash said modestly, but the smile on his face couldn't be contained, his nose almost growing longer.
Being praised by Lance, the head of the Elite Four and the Johto Champion, brought Ash immense satisfaction. The only regrettable thing was that Lance was praising his own combat ability. If only one day his Pokémon could elicit such a remark from Lance... that was still a long way off.
"By the way, Mr. Lance, and everyone, I have a favor to ask you." After the smile, Ash's expression became serious. He earnestly pleaded with Lance and the other Elite Four.
"What's with the 'favor'? Just ask, with your contributions, even if you asked for the stars in the sky, Lance would try to pluck them for you." Bruno readily agreed with a hearty laugh.
Lance, standing nearby, rolled his eyes. What the heck was he talking about, plucking stars? You agreed so readily, why aren't you going to pluck the stars?
However, he knew Bruno was just speaking metaphorically. In reality, Ash's contributions this time were definitely enough for the League to grant him almost any request. Plucking stars and the moon might be an exaggeration, but if the League could do it, they would indeed try to get it for him.
"I want to take Mewtwo back to Pallet Town, have a good talk with her, and once her heart's knot is untied, let her go free. Can I?" Ash presented his request, but this request completely surprised the Elite Four.
They hadn't expected Ash to make a request not for himself, but for Mewtwo.
Talk to Mewtwo, then set Mewtwo free... Does this child truly have no greed at all?
Don't let the fact that Mewtwo was knocked out by Ash deceive you; Mewtwo's strength was genuinely overwhelming to the Elite Four. Any single member of the Kanto Elite Four would be unable to contend with Mewtwo, unless all four went at her together.
If not for such formidable power, would Lance have said Mewtwo was dangerous? It was a power that even Giovanni feared yet desperately wanted to get his hands on!
But now Ash was saying he just wanted to talk with Mewtwo, and as long as Mewtwo's heart's knot could be untied, he would let Mewtwo pursue her freedom... He was completely unaffected by Mewtwo's immense power!
"...Alright, I'll agree to this condition on behalf of the League."
"Lance, this..."
"Don't worry, I'll take full responsibility if anything goes wrong!" Lance interrupted Bruno, making a direct promise.
He was well aware of the risks that releasing Mewtwo into the wild would pose to the outside world. He also knew that many high-ranking officials within the League coveted Mewtwo's power.
So, by all accounts, he should have brought Mewtwo back. But since Ash had said so, how could he, a dignified Elite Four member, not agree?
This was not about saving face, but rather due to Ash's efforts in this battle and his recognition of Ash's character.
If a fifteen-year-old boy could be so insightful, even forsaking power within his grasp, it would be overly sentimental for him, an Elite Four member and Champion, not to be more decisive.
"Really?! Thank you, Mr. Lance!!" Ash bowed happily to Lance. What he didn't notice was that Mewtwo's arm on his shoulder trembled slightly, but only for a fleeting moment.
No one present noticed this either, only Gardevoir narrowed her eyes, deep in thought... The strongest Trainer incident finally concluded. Although it was a misunderstanding of a competition, the three participants who came all strongly agreed that the title of 'Strongest Trainer' absolutely belonged to Ash!
"Strongest" here didn't refer to the strongest in Pokémon battles, but rather the strongest Trainer in a practical sense... To be honest, in terms of Trainer hand-to-hand combat, if Ash claimed second, probably no one would dare claim first. Isn't that the strongest Trainer?
Corey, Fergus, and Neesha were strictly forbidden from speaking about the New Island incident. The three of them also vowed solemnly before Lance and the others, guaranteeing they would not utter a single word about New Island.
They indeed had no such intentions. At this moment, their hearts were filled only with gratitude, grateful to have survived such a major battle.
It was entirely thanks to the combined protection of Ash and the Elite Four that they lived to see another day. Therefore, they would absolutely heed the Elite Four's instructions.
And they secretly swore to themselves that they would never again join in the excitement of such unknown competitions. They were lucky that Ash and Lorelei had come this time, otherwise, they might have perished on New Island!
Even if they didn't die, their Pokémon would probably have been stolen.
It's worth mentioning that the three cloned Pokémon Mewtwo had did not perish in the great battle. Perhaps by Mewtwo's command, at the start of the battle, the cloned Charizard flew away directly, while the cloned Blastoise carried the cloned Venusaur and left by sea.
After everything calmed down, they returned and saw Ash carrying Mewtwo. They then angrily attacked Ash, but Lance quickly dealt with them.
Although the power of these three Pokémon was strong, how could they compare to Lance?
Ultimately, these three Pokémon were recalled into Poké Balls and given to Ash. This was because, strictly speaking, these were Mewtwo's Pokémon. Once Ash had helped Mewtwo resolve her issues, these three Pokémon would also be given to Mewtwo to take with her.
Only Mewtwo had the right to decide what to do with these three Pokémon.