"You got tricked, Gardevoir!"
"Garde~"
Gardevoir barely stabilized herself after flipping in mid-air, landing gracefully.
First came the Water Shuriken smoke screen.
Then another shuriken to seal off her movement.
Finally, Greninja charged straight in for close combat when she had nowhere to dodge!
Truthfully, Ash's combo was pretty well-executed.
But—
That was all.
That Slash looked flashy, sure,
but it was still just a small move.
Even landing cleanly, it caused barely any damage to Gardevoir.
And Ash wouldn't be able to use the same trick twice.
A Champion wasn't a loaf of bread—you don't get to slice them the same way repeatedly!
Ash was still at a significant disadvantage, with no chance to win.
That's what everyone in the world believed—
Until suddenly, in the footage, Ash seemed to transform into someone completely different!
"That's it, Greninja!"
"Ge-koga!"
"Slash!"
Greninja's consecutive slashes came down again—
But this time, it moved faster.
Much faster.
Ash's special ability had activated—
that strange phenomenon where, once his heart synced with his Pokémon,
Their power surged dramatically.
But even with this boosted speed, Greninja still couldn't touch Gardevoir's dress hem.
All was hopeless—
"WE CAN STILL GET STRONGER!
STRONGER!! GO, GRENINJA!!!"
"GE-KOGA!!!"
BOOOOM!!
At Ash's cry, a raging water vortex erupted skyward, swallowing Greninja entirely!
Within the torrent, Greninja began to change—
Red markings emerged on its head,
and dark, hair-like shapes flowed behind it.
Just like Ash's red hat.
At this moment—
Their bond became powerful!
"...What the hell is that?"
"...no idea!"
"A new move? Since when do moves change appearances?!"
The entire world stared, stunned beyond belief.
Greninja's whole form had changed—
wrapped in a towering water vortex, looking unbelievably cool.
But how?
What even triggered this?
[Daigo:'pats Wallace on the shoulder' Our next Water-type Champion, please explain.]
[Wallace I don't know either!! I've never seen such a Greninja!]
[Bruno: Maybe Ash gained a new special ability during his travels?]
[Leon: No, not just Ash. Ash and Greninja. Remember why Diantha challenged him in the first place? Because Greninja underwent a strange transformation!]
[Diantha: Such an incredible change… Greninja's entire appearance has shifted, and that swirling water vortex… Truly unprecedented!]
If even the Kalos Champion had never heard of this,
the rest of the world knew even less.
They could only keep watching—
"Yes! Miss Diantha—this is mine and Greninja's full strength!"
Ash was visibly excited.
Every time he and Greninja entered this state,
He felt a limitless power flooding his body—
as if he and Greninja were moving as one.
"So that's it… this must be the transformation Greninja has shown lately! Then allow me to witness your true power, Ash."
"Alright! Greninja—Slash!"
Ash mirrored Greninja's pose, one hand touching the ground,
Before, both dashed forward like lightning!
White blades materialized in both of Greninja's hands.
In the next instant, it was already in Gardevoir's face!
"Shadow Ball!"
"Garde——!"
But Gardevoir barely had time to form even a tiny Shadow Ball
before Greninja was already upon her—
DOUBLE SLASH descending!!
BOOM!!
The collision shook the ground—
And Gardevoir was blasted back several meters,
sliding across the earth before stopping.
Greninja, meanwhile, only slid back slightly.
Completely unfazed.
Greninja had won that exchange!
"A shocking transformation… if that had landed cleanly, even Gardevoir wouldn't be unscathed."
Sweat formed on Diantha's brow.
She hadn't expected Greninja's transformed state to be this strong.
She couldn't hold back anymore.
"Gardevoir—Shadow Ball barrage!"
"Garde~!"
Multiple Shadow Balls formed and launched like bolts of darkness!
Ash responded instantly:
"Water Shuriken!"
"Ge-koga!!"
Greninja's hands struck its thighs—
And an equal number of Water Shurikens blasted forth!
Shuriken and Shadow Ball clashed mid-air,
creating a thick cloud of white smoke!
"Slash!"
"Trying the same tactic again? We won't fall for it twice!"
Diantha's eyes sharpened.
The same trick wouldn't work.
But—
Ash and Greninja never planned on hiding this time.
Greninja burst straight through the smoke—
charging head-on, blade gleaming!
Gardevoir began teleporting away—
Once,
twice,
three times—
Both moved like dancers—
one vanishing unpredictably,
The other matched her speed with pure reaction and instinct.
And somehow—
Greninja was getting faster.
After who-knows-how-many teleports,
a shadow appeared in front of Gardevoir—
Greninja had caught up to her teleportation speed!
"GE-KOGA!!"
SLASH!!
The white blade carved across Gardevoir's torso,
sending her flying dozens of meters away!
A single strike—
devastating!
If you want to read more, join my Patreon/kazama677
60+ advanced chapters available.
I will drop 1 bonus chapter for every 30 Power Stones.
Bonus chapter for every 20 reviews/comments