"Unbelievable, the final-evolution Kingdra chosen by Trainer Mandi was instantly knocked out by Ash's Pikachu with just a Quick Attack! That's Ash's Pikachu for you!"
"Now Trainer Mandi only has one Pokemon left. Can he turn the tides with this last Pokemon?!"
Mandi: ...
Turn the tides? Are you kidding me? Have you seen the power of that Pikachu? How am I supposed to turn the tides against that?
This is not a question of quantity, it's a question of quality!
Even if there were ten Pokemon left on my side, as long as they are at the same level, it doesn't matter. The opponent can use Quick Attack to instantly take out Kingdra, and they can do the same to the remaining Pokemon.
The gap between us is too large, it's beyond what numbers can compensate for.
Only when facing Ash's Pikachu did Mandi realize what true despair felt like.
But Mandi is an experienced Trainer, a Trainer who has collected eight badges. He wouldn't just give up or forfeit; even if it means going down, he'd go down standing!
"My last Pokemon, please... Go, Golbat!"
A flash of light appeared, and a Pokemon with a huge mouth took to the skies, a Flying Type Golbat.
To give credit where it's due, despite being a little weaker (Mandi: How rude of you?), Mandi's battle intelligence was definitely online. Against a Water Field, he used three Pokemon that countered Water Types, can handle water, and could fly in the sky, ignoring field restrictions.
Unfortunately, his opponent was Ash. The excellent matching system of the Quartz Conference stopped Mandi in the first round of preliminaries.
A top sixteen strength now turned into a top-five hundred position, quite unlucky indeed.
"Come back, Pikachu." As Mandi sent out his third Pokemon, Ash recalled Pikachu to his side.
In the preliminaries, Ash planned to let multiple Pokemon take the stage as much as possible, regardless of whether others would analyze or target them afterward. That wasn't Ash's concern.
It's not just that there may or may not be competitors with equivalent Pokemon strength in the Quartz Conference. The power his Pokemon are currently showing is far from his full strength.
If anyone were to try and target him based on surface-level information, they would meet a more miserable end.
"The last Pokemon—I've decided it's you, Aerodactyl!!"
"Roar!!" The Pokeball Ash threw exploded in the air, revealing a powerful gray Aerodactyl in the sky.
The last sky boss of ancient times—Aerodactyl!!
The once-majestic presence of Golbat diminished immediately upon seeing Aerodactyl. Meeting Aerodactyl's fierce gaze, Golbat couldn't help but retract its wings.
Aerodactyl may not be a true dragon, but it's indeed the sky's overlord!
In ancient times, it dominated the skies! As for the Sky Dragon, that's a dominion of even higher skies, and Aerodactyl's sky level was too low for it to bother with.
When facing Flying Type Pokemon, Aerodactyl naturally suppresses them. This has nothing to do with Ability or attribute; it pertains to Aerodactyl's innate genetic aura.
Facing Flying Type Pokemon, even if they are of equal or higher level, Aerodactyl can suppress them with its aura.
So now, when Golbat faces Aerodactyl, it can't even use seventy percent of its strength.
"Oh my! The third Pokemon chosen by Ash is an extinct Fossil Pokemon, Aerodactyl! So far, only Lance owns an Aerodactyl!"
"Aerodactyl's Old Amber is much harder to find than regular Fossil Pokemon, and even if found, extracting a complete gene chain of Aerodactyl is uncertain. Until now, only Lance had an Aerodactyl in the entire world, and Ash's Aerodactyl is the world's second!"
Aerodactyl's appearance shocked the host. Of all discovered Aerodactyls, aside from Lance's, only Ash's Aerodactyl exists.
While Aerodactyl may not be stronger than a Legendary Beast, it is indeed rarer than a Legendary Beast.
Who would have thought that a Trainer traveling for just over half a year could bring out an Aerodactyl like this?
Talent, strength, and luck combined, trainers all looked at the boy standing on stage, radiating with attention.
The surrounding cheers made Aerodactyl's face glow with satisfaction. Even from ancient times to the present, it enjoys being in the spotlight. This is the first time it's been on a public stage since Ash captured it.
No wonder those mythical creatures enjoy being commanded by humans to battle; the feeling of being enveloped by cheers is insanely enjoyable!
And this is without even having made a move. Once it does, even more cheers are guaranteed!
"Golbat, Air Slash!"
While Aerodactyl basked in the surrounding cheers, Mandi snapped out of the shock and ordered Golbat to attack immediately.
No matter how slim the chances of winning, it's better to fight first!
Golbat flapped its wings, sending dozens of pure white air blades raining down, creating a whistling sound in the air.
"Aerodactyl, use Rock Slide to counter!" Ash reacted quickly, ordering Aerodactyl to defend as soon as the attack began.
But Aerodactyl was still immersed in the cheers and didn't react to the oncoming attack, getting hit by the Air Slash.
An Elite Level attack against an Elite Level Aerodactyl was nothing, but a bit of sting was there. Aerodactyl instinctively shielded itself with its wings, looking like a drenched rat.
After the Air Slash, Aerodactyl spread its wings slightly, revealing an angry face.
"Roar!!" I was enjoying the cheers, right? Was that a sneak attack!!
Ash covered his face helplessly. Honestly, getting hit like that was quite embarrassing. The level gap between the two sides was enormous; Aerodactyl shouldn't have been hit even with closed eyes, yet it was careless.
Thankfully, the opponent's level was low, and the Flying Type move was resistible for Aerodactyl. Otherwise, this alone could have put Ash at a disadvantage.
"Aerodactyl, don't underestimate any opponent. Take this seriously, or you won't be in the next round!"
"Roar roar!!" Aerodactyl nodded at Ash repeatedly, wearing a slightly flattering smile.
Not being allowed on stage again would be unacceptable. Having finally come out for fresh air, nearly having even that privilege taken away was too much!
Turning back, Aerodactyl looked at Golbat with fierce eyes.
"Roar!!" You're the one who embarrassed me, huh!
With Aerodactyl's roar, six massive rocks appeared around it, each rock about two meters in diameter. If even one hit Golbat, it would be done for.
Mandi and Golbat, sweating at the sight of the terrifying Rock Slide, couldn't help but drip some sweat from their foreheads.
The heck is this Rock Slide? This looks like a meteorite!!
If hit, there's a 100% chance of losing. But how do you dodge such a massive move?
As the trainer and Pokemon thought of countermeasures, Aerodactyl willed the six meteor-like rocks to hurl toward Golbat!
The six rocks blocked all retreat routes for Golbat, leaving no escape gap, at least not one a regular Golbat could dodge.