Ash hung the Pokeball back on his waist and reached for the second Pokeball.
"For this next match, let me show you... what a true surprise is, Gym Leader Raihan."
"Go, Little Lugia!"
The Pokeball was thrown, and the light slowly gathered on the other end of the field. After the light dissipated, a figure entirely different from an ordinary Lugia appeared on the field.
Its body was much smaller than that of an adult Lugia, only about two meters in length from head to tail.
But the imposing aura it emitted was in no way weaker.
Its entire body was covered in a layer of dark black scales, as if it had been soaked in the night.
The usually gentle orange eyes were replaced by a deep blood-red hue. Despite this, there was not much bloodthirsty frenzy in its eyes but rather a calmness like an ordinary Pokemon.
Dark Lugia, this was the second Pokemon Ash decided to bring out!
Woo~
Little Lugia let out a low cry, the aura in that sound causing the air in the entire gym to stagnate.
In the spectator stands, Clair, who had been seated, instantly sprung up from her seat.
"This, this..."
Her hand pointed at the dark figure on the field, her lips trembling so much that she could hardly speak.
Next to her, Lance also stood up abruptly, his eyes widened round, and his face showed unprecedented shock.
"Lugia... Sea God Lugia?!"
"This is impossible!"
As trainers from the Johto Region, how could Lance and Clair not recognize Lugia!
That was one of the two guardian deities symbolizing the entire Johto Region, the legendary creature that governs the sea!
Throughout Johto, those who have seen the true form of Lugia are very few, let alone having Lugia appear before them for a battle.
But this... this is real?
Did Ash really have a Sea God in his hands?
And this Lugia looks completely different from the legendary one!
Only Cynthia present on the scene seemed relatively calm.
A hint of surprise also flashed in her golden eyes, but it was quickly replaced by a gentle smile.
This Lugia was personally handed over to Ash by her back then.
At that time, Little Lugia was in such a pitiful state, but now it's so spirited, all thanks to Ash!
Yet Cynthia never imagined.
In less than half a year, this little fellow, whose life was once in jeopardy, had made it all the way to the Elite Peak.
In terms of ordinary Pokemon, such growth speed is already considered miraculous.
For a Legendary Beast, it goes without saying.
For such creatures, every leap in level means a drastic change in power.
Precisely because each step carries significant weight, the growth of Legendary Beasts seems particularly slow, often taking years to measure even a slight level increase.
Under normal circumstances, a Legendary Beast growing from Junior Elite Level to the Elite Peak would take three to five years at least.
Not to mention the two small grade gaps between.
Yet by Ash's side, the speed of Little Lugia's improvement is no different from that of regular Pokemon.
It should be noted that the regular Pokemon here refers to the regular Pokemon around Ash.
If compared to ordinary Pokemon outside, Little Lugia's growth speed can be said to surpass them by hundreds of miles!
When Lugia handed Little Lugia to Ash, she was there.
It can be said that she shares quite a bit of connection with this Little Lugia.
'Little one, your father's trust was not misplaced. Ash is indeed the most suitable trainer for you.'
'Besides him, there is no other trainer in the world qualified to handle you.'
As she thought silently, Cynthia's gaze turned to Raihan on the other side of the field, preparing to see what reaction this mighty warrior from Galar would have.
But to her surprise, Raihan's expression was neither the shock of Lance nor the excitement of Clair.
That guy was scratching his head with a bewildered look, staring at the dark figure on the field with a face of "What the hell is that?"
Cynthia: ...
She almost forgot that Raihan is from Galar.
Galar is located across most of the Pokemon Realm from Johto. Even if Raihan is knowledgeable, he doesn't need to study every Legendary Beast from every region.
Furthermore, this Little Lugia has changed its appearance, entirely black, so much so that even someone like Cynthia who has seen the original had to take a closer look to recognize it. It's normal for Raihan not to recognize it.
"What kind of Pokemon is this guy? It looks pretty unique!"
Clair almost had a brain hemorrhage upon hearing that. What kind of nonsense is this guy talking?!
Being in Johto and not recognizing the Sea God?!
"Raihan! Don't tell me you don't even recognize the Sea God?!"
Raihan looked utterly confused: "Sea God? What Sea God?"
"One of the guardian deities of Johto!" Clair stomped her foot in rage, "The Lugia from legends that guards the ocean!"
"Oh—" Raihan then nodded in sudden realization, "So it's Lugia."
"But wait a minute, Clair, isn't Lugia supposed to be all white? Why does this one look like a lump of coal?"
After coming to Johto, he indeed saw pictures of Lugia, but only vaguely and without studying every detail to embed it deeply into his memory.
However, he did remember Lugia's color, pure white like snow, completely the opposite of this coal black, right!
Clair: ...
This guy really has a way with shocking words, actually saying Lugia is a coal ball!
Cough cough, although this particular Lugia does indeed look a bit like one, a black Lugia... she hasn't actually seen one.
It's just that Lugia's look, as someone from Johto, she could never mistake it.
Lance finally came to his senses at this time, he looked at Ash with an extremely peculiar gaze.
"Ash, can you explain this? Where did this Lugia come from?"
"Also, why does its appearance completely differ from the Lugia I know?"
Facing the gaze of several Champions, Ash didn't hold back.
"This is Little Lugia, the true Sea God Lugia's child."
"After the Sea God incident years ago, for some reasons, Lugia couldn't personally take care of him, so entrusted the child to me to help care."
"As for his appearance..." Ash rubbed his nose, "Little Lugia's body harbors the power of another Legendary Beast."
"The merging of both Legendary powers within him has brought about some changes, so his appearance now isn't quite like a typical Lugia."
Once Ash said this, both Lance and Clair became petrified.
It was several seconds before Clair cautiously started speaking.
"A-Ash, did I hear wrong?"
"Did you just say... that Little Lugia harbors another Legendary Beast's power within him?"
Lance swallowed several times, barely able to speak clearly.
"No way... a child of a Legendary Beast is hiding another Legendary Beast's power within him? This... this is surely unprecedented even in the chronicles of Legendary Beasts?"
Clair also spoke in disbelief.
Although Little Lugia is just a child, in terms of the nobility of his bloodline, he's undoubtedly the next heir of the Sea God!
Not to mention the additional power of a Legendary Beast within him; once he fully absorbs and matures, what kind of terrifying existence would he become?
Raihan's reaction was completely different from Lance's and Clair's; upon hearing the words "Legendary Beast," the confusion on his face instantly transformed into intense excitement.
"Legendary Beast?! A real Legendary Beast?! And it harbors another Legendary Beast's power within?!
His eyes suddenly brightened, emitting an aura eager to try.
"Wow, Ash, oh Ash, you sure are giving me surprises today one after another! First, it was that MEGA Lucario's Double Dragon Pearl, now a Legendary Beast pops up."
"This six-on-six battle is really thrilling!"
Raihan tossed his head, adjusted his orange bandana, and pulled out that levitating Rotom Phone from his waist, snapping away at Little Lugia on the field.
"Let's take some photos first; later I can use them to tweet!"
After taking the shots, he tossed the phone back into the air, his gaze sharp once more.
"But back to the point, whether your's truly a Legendary Beast, or one with another Legendary Beast's power within, neither of us nor my partner will lose!"
"Let your Legendary Beast become one of the stepping stones for me to challenge Leon!"
If the opponent were an adult Legendary Beast, with power reaching Divine Domain Level, Raihan would absolutely turn and leave without hesitation, but if it's just an undeveloped Legendary Beast...
It's only Elite Peak; there's a huge gap to Champion Level.
Besides, Lugia can't use MEGA Evolution; fighting it might actually be easier than Lucario!
With Raihan's fighter-full declaration, the atmosphere in the arena became tense once more.
The sandstorm kicked up by Gigalith had lost its support the moment Lucario fell.
Now the sky over the arena is clear, the gale has long since subsided, leaving only remnants of dust from the massive crater formed after the blast.
Meaning, from this moment, the damaging effects of the sandstorm will no longer provide any advantage to the Pokemon on the field.
But Little Lugia's face showed a slightly pained expression as Stealth Rock took effect; with Flying-type attribute, this time the damage doubled, reducing some of his physical strength.
At this moment, Raihan took the initiative, waving his big hand forward: "Flygon, Dragon Breath!"
The Flygon floating mid-air suddenly trembled its wings, gathering a surge of orange-red energy in its mouth.
The next second, a ghostly purple flame gushed from its mouth, transforming into a rolling energy stream shooting towards Little Lugia in the sky.
Where that dragon breath passed, even the air was scorched and distorted.
"Lugia, dodge." Ash's tone remained relaxed; such an attack was trivial to Little Lugia.
The two-meter-long body of Little Lugia spun slightly in mid-air, those jet-black wing membranes gently flapped, its entire silhouette vanished like an inky wraith.
The ghostly purple dragon breath whisked past the spot he originally occupied, finally exploding against the barrier on the other side of the field, spewing a brilliant spray of sparks.
Little Lugia had already floated to the other side of the Gym, his posture graceful as if merely strolling.
"Wow, quite speedy." Raihan squinted, his fighting spirit growing greater in his eyes, "Then get closer, Flygon, use Dragon Rush!"
Flygon's wings abruptly retracted and expanded, enveloping its entire body instantly in a layer of ghostly blue Dragon-type energy.
The energy got increasingly intense, and in the blink of an eye, Flygon transformed into a blue meteor, carrying the tearing wind as it charged straight at Little Lugia.
Champion Junior Level's full-force rush, its power enough to crash through a small building.
Ash grinned: "Lugia, Aeroblast!!"
"Whoa!"
Little Lugia's jet-black wing membranes suddenly stretched to the limit.
The next moment, the feather blades on the wing membranes started to tremble wildly, and the surrounding air seemed to be drawn by some invisible force, converging eagerly between its wings.
The absorbed air currents were highly compressed between Little Lugia's wings, condensing into a nearly visible silvery-white air wave, which quivered slightly due to the internal high pressure.
The following second, Little Lugia's wings suddenly flapped forward!
"Boom!!"
The air compressed to the extreme roared out with the flap of its wings, transforming into a thick silver-white gust.
The gust carried a sharp scream of tearing air, barreling right toward the rushing Flygon with crushing force.
Where the air pillar passed, the air was stirred to emit a heartbreaking wail, and the dust on the field was pulled up by the terrifying suction, rolling and revolving along with the pillar.
"Boom——!!!"
Ghostly blue Dragon-type energy clashed fiercely with the violent silver air pillar.
Air currents splattered like blades, shockwaves surged furiously outward from the collision point!!
The entire Gym trembled slightly, with waves of dense ripples spreading on the barrier.
But unexpectedly, the Flygon, which was supposed to have the advantage in strength, was pushed back by the ferocious whirlwind!
The silver pillar penetrated through the energy encasing Dragon Rush, slashing fiercely across Flygon's body.
Flygon emitted a pained screech, its whole body tumbling backward dozens of meters like a kite with its string cut, until finally halting its descent against the barrier.
"How could—"
The smile on Raihan's face froze.
According to the strength comparison, his Flygon is an authentic Champion Junior Peak, just a step away from Champion Intermediate.
Whereas Ash's Little Lugia was merely Elite Peak, a whole level lower.
Normally, in a face-off, it was Little Lugia who should be disadvantaged, yet the situation was completely reversed now, with his Flygon being pushed back!
This isn't right!
Clair cheerfully explained from the audience: "Muscles and Leon are all you think about. You didn't forget Lugia is a Legendary Beast, right? And a Tier One God at that!"
"Every Tier One God, be it grown or not, possesses their own exclusive moves, and what you just saw as Aeroblast is the exclusive skill of the Lugia clan."
"The power of a Legendary Beast's exclusive skill can't be judged by the standard of ordinary skills."
Raihan: ...
What the hell kind of mechanic is this?!
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