"Keh keh keh~"
As Gengar drifted backward, it suddenly let out a creepy laugh, both arms swinging in rapid succession.
Two clumps of pitch-black ghostly energy instantly condensed around its fists, tearing through the air with a shrill wail as they shot toward its opponent!
"Rio!"
Seeing the incoming Shadow Punch, Riolu didn't pull back the motion it was already making. On the contrary, the blade of its claw was coated with an even harsher layer of silvery light!
It charged straight into the Shadow Punch, razor-sharp claws carving icy arcs through the air!
Boom—wham!
Shadow Punch and Metal Claw collided violently, and a ring-shaped shockwave exploded out where the two attacks met.
"Rio…" (This move really is quite a bit stronger than Ice Punch…)
Riolu was forced back several steps by the blast of air. It had to slam its palms down against the floor to finally grind its retreating body to a halt.
"Gen…" (Same to you. You're making me step it up a little.)
Gengar was likewise blasted backward, its plump body rippling in the air like waves on water. In its eyes flickered a hint of surprise.
Just one exchange.
That had only been a single exchange.
And yet the power Riolu had burst out with was actually on par with its own!
"Keh keh keh keh!"
Staring at the small blue pup in front of it, Gengar's face slowly twisted.
Its mouth stretched all the way to its ears, both fists becoming blurred afterimages as countless punches wrapped in purple-black energy poured out like a rainstorm, ghostly aura surging to blanket half the battlefield in eerie miasma!
"Bull… forget it, use Quick Attack to dodge."
Seeing Gengar just wildly throwing out Shadow Punches, Grey naturally knew exactly what was going on with it.
It was basically fighting on its own, not listening to a word Ash said.
Grey decided to ease up a little and this time chose Quick Attack instead of having Riolu charge in with Bullet Punch.
Those dark fist shadows drenched in ghostly aura slammed down one after another. The way they came crashing from all directions made it look as if they were trying to pin Riolu to the floor, leaving it unable to move.
The moment Riolu saw the attack coming, its muscles exploded with power and it stepped out hard!
White light wrapped around its entire body. Its figure vanished from where it had been standing, leaving behind only an afterimage just barely visible to the naked eye!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Shadow Punch after Shadow Punch struck nothing but air. The ghost-type energy exploding on impact pounded the floor full of craters, yet they were always just a step behind Riolu!
In fact, that very force became a tailwind, pushing Riolu forward!
It stepped on the shockwaves from the explosions and surged ahead at high speed!
Inside the dojo at that moment, a streak of white light was flashing across the field at a terrifying speed, flickering in and out of sight. Only faint afterimages were left in its wake, enough to make anyone watching dizzy.
"Gen?"
Gengar shook its head, scarlet eyes straining to track that elusive white streak.
But with Quick Attack fully unleashed, the afterimages left behind by such extreme speed made its vision blur. Its gaze went fuzzy, and even its floating body started to wobble.
It was getting dizzy… and a little sick…
Just as Gengar's head was spinning—
Swoosh!
The white light suddenly condensed right in front of Gengar. Riolu appeared as if it had teleported, its body still wreathed in lingering energy that hadn't yet dissipated!
Gengar's scarlet eyes were dazzled by the sudden flash of white, its expression going blank for an instant.
Grey seized the opening and shouted, "Zen Headbutt!"
Bzz bzz—
A faint psychic hum began to echo through the air.
A strange pink light bloomed on Riolu's forehead, and dense psychic power wrapped around its head like liquid.
"Rio!"
With a short battle cry, Riolu lowered its head and drove forward like a battering ram!
Its head, reinforced by psychic power, was like a heavy hammer as it slammed solidly into Gengar's round, pudgy belly!
Thud!!
The terrifying impact made Gengar's scarlet eyes almost pop out of its head. Its plump body was smashed away like a kicked-up rubber ball!
"Gen!"
While it was still airborne, Gengar twisted its body, forcing itself to stabilize. A cold blue aurora flashed across its fist and in an instant enveloped the whole hand!
Then Gengar slammed a fist down hard into the floor!
Creak!
Cold air spread wildly, a thin layer of frost crawling over the dojo floor.
Only then did Gengar finally manage to stop itself from skidding any farther. It slowly pushed itself up and glared at Riolu.
Taking that hit in the stomach— even for a usually mild-tempered Gengar, that was enough to stir up real anger.
Little blue pup, you've successfully pissed me off!
Gengar lifted both arms. Its left fist was coated in glittering ice, while its right fist was wrapped completely in ghost-type energy.
As the two powers converged, the temperature in the dojo plummeted in an instant!
"Hey! Gengar, why aren't you using Shadow Ball? Stuff like Shadow Punch isn't going to do much!"
Seeing the moves Gengar was using, Ash shouted from a distance, trying to wake up Gengar's real battle potential.
Under Brock and Misty's guidance, he already knew Gengar wasn't suited for physical attacks.
But if even he knew that, why was Gengar still insisting on using something as weak as Shadow Punch?
Ash really couldn't figure it out. All he could do was keep reminding Gengar, hoping it would take him seriously.
"Gen." (Why are you talking so much? I'm already doing you a favor by stepping up to fight for you.)
Gengar usually got along well with Ash when they were just playing around, sure. But that didn't mean it fully acknowledged Ash—especially when it came to battles.
Unless Ash personally defeated it in a fight, most of the time it simply wouldn't listen to his commands.
Even though it had lost again and again, it still wouldn't follow Ash's orders.
It was stubborn like that.
"Ash, Gengar doesn't really seem to be listening to you. Do you still want it to keep fighting like this?"
Grey looked at Gengar with a half-smile, then turned to Ash. "You still have time to switch Pokémon. If it were me, I'd stick with Riolu."
"This…"
Hearing Grey say that, Ash glanced up at Gengar, which was still floating in midair, its fists frozen mid-motion.
Gengar was looking back at him too.
"Gen." (So in the end… I still don't cut it, huh.)
Being stared at like that, Gengar couldn't help recalling the scene of being abandoned back then.
Back when it had followed its trainer's commands… and still lost fight after fight.
That was also why it no longer wanted to listen to anyone's instructions.
If they couldn't command it properly anyway, then it might as well just fight on its own.
But now, it seemed like it had messed everything up again.
Gengar rubbed at its brow. Its eyes looked the same as always, yet there was a hint of complicated emotion flickering in their depths.
"Gen." (Got it.)
Gengar was about to sink back into Ash's shadow when the next thing Ash said froze it in place.
"If it's not Gengar, then the only point of this battle is just to get the badge."
Ash gave an embarrassed smile, scratching the back of his head so hard that his cap was knocked askew to the side.
"Gen?" (What's that supposed to mean?)
Gengar was confused.
It didn't acknowledge Ash, yet he still kept sending it out to battle.
"Because you're amazing! Didn't you say your last Trainer dumped you for being too weak? But I think you're the strongest Gengar there is!"
"And besides, this time our opponent is Dojo Master Grey. I want Dojo Master Grey to see just how much we've improved over these past few days!"
Ash's tone was sincere, not a trace of pretence in it.
Even if other people thought Gengar was on the weaker side, to him, this was definitely the best, most outstanding Gengar there could be!
"Gen…" (The strongest… Gengar, huh…)
Gengar lowered its head, lost in thought.
Ever since it had followed Ash, it had been hearing this kind of encouragement from him.
And the reason Ash wanted to send it out… was actually for its sake.
For a moment, Gengar's throat tightened. Its eyes grew a little misty.
Really… enough to move a ghost to tears.
"Gen." (Fine. Then I'll listen to you… just this once!)
Gengar took its place in front of Ash, standing there like a loyal guardian, waiting for his command.
"Not bad."
Grey gave a slight nod, folding his arms across his chest. "Then let me see just how strong you and your Gengar really are."
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