"Match, start!"
Natsui and Noland gave their first orders almost at the same time.
"Articuno, use Blizzard!"
"Articuno, use Steel Wing!"
The temperature dropped as Natsui's Articuno spread its wings and covered the sky in snow. The Blizzard expanded quickly, hiding both Pokémon from the people below. Noland had no intention of backing away, and his Articuno rushed straight into the storm with Steel Wing, disappearing into the white curtain almost immediately.
From the stands, the battle became impossible to follow. The spectators could only hear the wind, the cries of the two Articuno, and the occasional impact coming from somewhere inside the storm.
What they could not see was that the fight had already begun to tilt heavily toward Natsui.
Noland's Articuno entered the Blizzard expecting to force a close-range clash, but Natsui's Articuno never stayed where it expected. It used the storm to move around its opponent, attacking from above and from the sides before disappearing back into the snow. Noland's Articuno tried to turn and answer each attack, but every time it found the right direction, Natsui's had already moved somewhere else.
Aerial Ace struck across its back and knocked it lower through the storm. Noland's Articuno recovered and fired Water Pulse into the snow, but the attack passed through empty space. Before it could search again, Ice Beam came from another direction and grazed one of its wings, leaving frost across the feathers.
A sharp cry came from inside the Blizzard.
Max immediately leaned forward.
"Who do you think will win?"
Scott shook his head. "It's hard to say. They're both Articuno."
Ash also hesitated. From where they were standing, neither Pokémon could be seen clearly enough to judge the battle.
Brock was the only one who answered without much doubt.
"I think Natsui's Articuno will win."
The others turned toward him.
"Why?"
"They might be the same species, but that doesn't mean they're equal," Brock explained. "Noland hasn't been working with his Articuno for very long. Natsui's has been fighting beside him for much longer, and it's already faced several powerful opponents."
Ash immediately remembered the battles at Shamouti Island and the Crystal Tower. Those were only the ones he had personally witnessed. Considering how much Natsui had traveled, there were probably many more.
Inside the Blizzard, Brock's judgment was already proving correct.
Noland's Articuno tried to force another close-range exchange with Steel Wing, but Natsui's slipped past it and attacked from behind. The hit sent Noland's Articuno tumbling through the snow before it managed to recover. By then, several fresh marks had appeared across its body, while Natsui's Articuno had barely been touched.
The Blizzard finally began to weaken after a few minutes. The wind slowed, the snow thinned, and both Legendary Pokémon gradually came back into view.
The difference between them was obvious.
Natsui's Articuno still flew smoothly, showing little sign that the fight inside the storm had troubled it. Noland's Articuno was breathing harder, and frost remained across part of one wing. Its injuries were not serious yet, but it had clearly taken the worse of every exchange.
Noland frowned.
He had sent Articuno into the Blizzard to attack, only to lose control of the battle the moment both Pokémon disappeared from sight. He could not allow that to happen again.
"Keep your distance! Water Pulse!"
His Articuno quickly pulled away and fired.
Natsui's Articuno avoided the attack without difficulty and immediately closed the distance again. Aerial Ace struck before Noland's Pokémon could prepare another Move, knocking it sideways through the air.
"Steel Wing!"
Noland's Articuno tried to counter at close range, but Natsui's pulled away before the glowing wing could connect. It circled behind its opponent, and Ice Beam struck across its body before it could turn around.
Noland's Articuno dropped several meters before regaining control of its flight.
Even with the Blizzard gone and Noland able to give commands again, the situation had barely improved.
His Articuno was spending almost the entire battle reacting.
Whenever it tried to create distance, Natsui's closed it. Whenever it tried to attack, Natsui's forced it to defend instead.
Natsui had already seen enough.
"Don't let it recover."
His Articuno immediately accelerated.
The pace of the battle changed.
Noland's Articuno tried to climb away, but Aerial Ace caught it before it could escape and knocked it higher into the air. It barely managed to steady itself before Ice Beam passed across one wing, forcing it to change direction again.
Noland gritted his teeth.
His Articuno could still fight, but it had lost control of the battle completely.
He needed something that would interrupt Natsui's pressure and give his Pokémon time to recover.
"Articuno, use Blizzard!"
Noland's Articuno spread its wings, and another freezing storm exploded across the sky.
This Blizzard was much larger than the first. The clouds that had already gathered above the Battle Factory helped the cold spread even farther, and within moments the entire open roof was covered in snow and freezing wind.
The storm poured into the arena below.
Ash and the others quickly moved away from the worst of the cold, but May looked back toward Natsui. He was still standing in the Trainer command zone while the Blizzard blew directly toward him.
She grabbed a towel and hurried back.
Only when she reached him did she realize the cold was not touching him at all.
A barrier surrounded the platform.
Gengar emerged from Natsui's shadow with a grin.
"May, you made that trip for nothing~"
May stared at it before realizing that Gengar had been protecting Natsui the entire time.
Embarrassed, she started to leave.
"Don't go," Natsui said.
May stopped.
"Come stand beside me. Watch the battle from here."
She moved closer and looked up with him.
Even inside Noland's Blizzard, the fight had not become any easier for his Articuno.
It had created the storm hoping to slow Natsui's pressure, but Natsui's Articuno was still the one controlling the exchange. Aerial Ace struck through the snow and knocked Noland's Pokémon away before Water Pulse could find its target. Moments later, Ice Beam flashed through the storm and forced it lower once again.
Noland's Articuno had created the Blizzard.
Natsui's Articuno was still using it better.
The storm eventually became so thick that even Natsui could no longer tell the two Pokémon apart. Only brief blue shapes appeared through the snow before disappearing again.
At that point, neither Trainer could give useful commands.
Natsui fell silent.
Noland did the same.
The battle continued somewhere inside the Blizzard, hidden from everyone below.
But after everything that had happened so far, there was already little doubt about which Articuno was stronger.