Heba: Oh? Black Ash is going up against Koga in full force? Even though Koga was still a Reserve Elite Four at that time, his strength should've been close to a true Elite Four already.
Koga: More or less. To become one of the Elite Four, you usually need at least six Pokémon of Elite-level strength. A Reserve Elite Four member needs at least four, and among them, there must be one that can truly be called their ace.
Koga: Back then, I was already preparing to take over one of the Elite Four seats. Even my weakest Pokémon had already stepped into the Elite rank. Ash's Pikachu might be strong, but I didn't think I'd lose.
Koga wasn't being humble in the slightest.
Ash's Pikachu, to him, still looked like it had a gap to close.
Even if Pikachu were stronger than every Pokémon he owned,
he still wouldn't believe he would lose.
That was the confidence worthy of an Elite Four!
If one lost heart before the battle even began,
how could they live up to the title of "Elite"?
Under the tense gaze of the crowd, this "Elite" showdown officially began!
In the shadow world—
Ash had already decided to send out Pikachu.
Koga thought briefly, then materialized a red-and-white Poké Ball in his hand and tossed it forward.
"Go, Arbok!"
"Chaaaar!"
With a flash of light, a massive purple cobra appeared on the field.
Arbok looked similar to an ordinary cobra,
but its belly bore a terrifying pattern—one of more than twenty distinct face markings found among its kind.
Koga's Arbok had the most common of them all: the Fright Mask.
Black eye sockets, crimson-and-yellow eyes,
and a wickedly curled black grin.
Most Pokémon would probably wet themselves at the sight.
And snakes, of course, were natural predators of mice.
(Though, granted—after hibernation, the tables sometimes turned.)
But clearly… Koga's Arbok wasn't about to take a nap.
Yet facing such a terrifying cobra, Pikachu showed not an ounce of fear—
in fact, his fighting spirit flared!
Not only had Pikachu longed for an evenly matched opponent,
but he had just electrocuted an Arbok not long ago.
Of course, Jessie's Arbok was nowhere near the same level as Koga's.
"The match is one-on-one. The first Pokémon to fall loses! Now—begin!"
As Aya announced the start of the battle from afar,
both sides gave orders almost simultaneously—
"Thunderbolt!"
"Dig!"
Brilliant lightning burst from Pikachu's small frame,
while Arbok moved with blinding speed, vanishing underground in a blur of dirt and dust.
By the time Thunderbolt struck the ground,
Arbok had already tunneled deep below.
"So fast…! Pikachu, use Iron Tail on the ground!"
Pikachu's mastery of Thunderbolt was already near perfection—
the speed of both his charge and his lightning strike was extraordinary.
But Arbok's digging was even faster.
More importantly, Koga had predicted the use of an Electric move,
so he countered instantly with Dig.
Still, Ash wasn't out of options.
Without hesitation, as soon as Arbok dodged the lightning,
Ash ordered Pikachu to unleash Iron Tail.
A silver metallic sheen coated Pikachu's lightning-shaped tail.
Then Pikachu leapt high into the air, spun several times midair,
and slammed his tail down with all his might!
"Pikaaaa—CHU!!"
BOOM!!
A thunderous explosion roared across the field!
The entire courtyard shook as though an earthquake had struck!
Koga was momentarily stunned amid the quaking—
utterly flabbergasted.
Honestly, even after seeing Pikachu train with weighted gear,
Koga hadn't thought much of it.
Weights were one thing—but with such a small body,
how much strength could that Pikachu really have?
So when Ash called for Iron Tail, Koga had actually scoffed.
"Using Iron Tail on the ground? What are you, a Snorlax?"
That tiny body—what could it possibly do?
Once Pikachu struck the ground and stiffened from recoil,
that would be his moment to counterattack!
But when Pikachu's Iron Tail came crashing down, Koga's jaw hit the floor.
What the hell—was that really Iron Tail?!
Did Pikachu just use Earthquake??
No way—that body type couldn't pull that off!
And Pikachu didn't even know Earthquake!
You've got to be cheating!
Koga: …The hell?!
Koga: What was that?! Did Pikachu just use Earthquake?!
Denji: That power's insane… Volkner, I haven't heard you call Pikachu useless for minutes now!
Volkner: Denji, can you not?! Are you done yet?!
Leon: With power like that, even some Pokémon of the same level can't compare. Just by training with weights… could it really make such a difference?
Steven: No, it's not just the weights. It's also how Pikachu uses Iron Tail.
Steven: Remember what Black Ash said before—he discovered that Pikachu's tail holds exceptional strength, so he's been training it intensively. In other words, Pikachu's tail is his strongest point of force.
Steven: The Pikachu we see here focuses all his strength into one spot—power condensed into a single strike, shattering the ground in an instant. Even knowing the principle doesn't make it any less jaw-dropping.
Ash: Holy crap! Pikachu's Iron Tail is that strong?! I've gotta teach my Pikachu Iron Tail too!
Ash typed furiously in the chat, eyes gleaming as he stared at the Pikachu beside him—
or more accurately, at Pikachu's tail.
Pikachu felt a chill run down his spine,
hurriedly wrapped his tail in his arms,
and glared at his trainer with suspicion.
"Pika! Pikapi!"
That other Pikachu trained that way from the start!
You can't just make me do that now—you'll kill me!
Seeing Pikachu's expression, Ash awkwardly withdrew his burning gaze.
He'd gotten a bit carried away…
To reach that Black Ash's Pikachu level wasn't something done overnight.
It would take long, grueling training to build such power.
There was no point in being jealous now.
The best time to start training a Pokémon is right after you first catch them—
and the second best time is now!
"Don't worry, Pikachu. I'll definitely help you catch up to that other world's Pikachu."
"Pikapi…"
The way you said that doesn't make me feel reassured at all…
PS:
Koga is known as the "Poisonous Ninja Master," who initially serves as the Fuchsia City Gym Leader specializing in Poison-type Pokémon. He is a master of ninjutsu and later becomes a member of the Elite Four of the Indigo League, leaving his daughter Janine to take over his Gym.
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