"Golbat, use Wing Attack to cut through one of the Rock Slides!!"
Since there's no way to dodge, make a path through! It's the only way out for Golbat now.
However, Aerodactyl's Rock Slide, to Golbat, was akin to a meteor. Given Golbat's strength, there was no way it could slice through a meteor.
Wing Attack struck the Rock Slide, but the giant rock didn't budge and instead sent Golbat flying!
A foolhardy attempt!
This phrase rose in everyone's hearts as Golbat was smashed down by the rock, ultimately falling beneath the Water Field with a splash. Golbat was directly smashed into the water.
Generally, water can act as a buffer; being pressed into the water is much better for Golbat than being pressed onto the ground.
But in reality, the power of Rock Slide, once pressing down, is akin to Golbat falling onto a concrete floor, even from that height!
The rock sank into the water, and Golbat couldn't rise back up. Mandi's pupils contracted as he worriedly shouted Golbat's name.
Ash's brows furrowed slightly; perhaps this attack went a bit too far. An Elite versus an Elite Level Pokémon, and Aerodactyl went all out. Perhaps Mandi's sneak attack earlier angered him.
Yet it was also Aerodactyl's fault initially, so one couldn't blame Mandi.
The referee, seeing Golbat hadn't surfaced for a long time, quickly sent down a Water Type Pokémon to find him. Eventually, the referee's Water Type Pokémon fished up the breathless Golbat.
This wasn't just losing the ability to battle; his life was almost gone!
Upon witnessing this, Ash's expression changed subtly, and he hurried to Golbat's side, using the Power of Viridian to heal him, managing to save the breathless Golbat.
"Phew... Sorry, Mandi. Aerodactyl was battling for the first time since its revival, so it went a bit overboard. I've treated Golbat a bit, and he's not in serious trouble. A quick recovery at the Pokemon Center and he'll be lively again soon."
Ash showed a sincere apology on his face, not using it as an opportunity to boast about his Aerodactyl's strength, but truly feeling sorry.
Rarely did he end up fighting someone's Pokémon to this extent. On one hand, because he usually fought beyond his level, holding back was out of the question; no matter how hard he tried, the opponent wouldn't end up in such a state.
On the other hand, most of his other Pokémon were very measured, and they would hold back during wild battles, retracting their strength if the difference in power was too great.
But Aerodactyl was different. From ancient times, it engaged in life-and-death struggles. To it, showing mercy wasn't in its vocabulary; every move determined life or death!
Plus, Golbat had angered Aerodactyl, making it even less likely for it to hold back in anger, resulting in this situation.
Because of this, Ash felt a bit guilty, lucky that Golbat was okay; if not, he might have had to withdraw from the match immediately today.
A scenario of unforeseen failure.jpg.
Seeing Golbat was alright, Mandi's expression relaxed, his inner turmoil eased, feeling relieved.
Aerodactyl landed beside Ash, showing a trace of apology on its defiant face. It didn't think it had done anything wrong; wasn't battle a matter of life and death?
Moreover, the opponent had caught it off guard with an attack, something that was unthinkable in the past. Its time resting at Oak's Research Institute had dulled its vigilance.
The opponent chose to sneak attack, so going all out was entirely normal, wasn't it?
It expressed its regretful look because its Trainer was apologizing to the opponent.
Even though Aerodactyl didn't know what it did wrong, it still joined its Trainer in offering an apology.
With Golbat unharmed, Mandi didn't blame Ash; even if Golbat had been harmed, he couldn't blame Ash or Aerodactyl in the slightest, as not holding back in normal battles was expected.
To put it bluntly, what if holding back led to a counterattack overcoming them? Though the idea of an Elite Level overcoming an Elite Level seems fantastical.
Ash's first match ended with a flawless victory, without a single casualty. He could have won with a single Pokémon, but he swapped each one out to give them all battle experience.
Otherwise, even Kingler could have taken down Mandi's three Pokémon.
...
Those attending the Quartz Conference must have collected at least eight badges. Even if not everyone has challenged a Gym Leader's true strength, many Gym Leaders increase the challenge difficulty based on the number of badges the challenger holds.
Typically, to obtain the eighth badge, one must at least have Elite Level prowess.
Once you have obtained seven badges, the difficulty of the eighth badge is insurmountable.
This is why, usually, Trainers who have traveled for half a year can't participate in the Quartz Conference.
Those Trainers attending the Quartz Conference usually have traveled for seven to eight months to a little over a year, which is the best time to participate—not attending below this duration, while above, they might ignore the Quartz Conference.