In the fourth battle recap…
No one expected the first god-slayer to be… Professor Kukui!
His Incineroar, with barely half of its HP left, took on Melmetal head-on and defeated it in a brutal, close-quarters slugfest!
Sure, in terms of absurdity, it didn't reach the level of Charizard or Pikachu—
After all, Ash's two early "Legendary-slayers" were:
A low-BST, everywhere-common electric mouse, and
A malnourished, stunted Charizard missing its primal flames.
But in terms of pure visual impact?
This close-range brawl, trading blow for blow until one Legendary fell—
It was even more shocking than the previous two divine fights!
[Hala]:"Good heavens! Incineroar is way too cool! I want one too!"
[Cynthia's Fan Lila]:"W-what the…? A starter Pokémon tanking a Legendary in close combat?! My Umbreon couldn't do that in ten lifetimes!"
Her Umbreon stood beside her, tilting its head in confusion.
If it knew its own Trainer was slandering it like this… she'd definitely receive a 'gift' in her shoes later.
[Flint]:"Shoo shoo! A big buff wrestler like Incineroar is for macho men like me! What's a girl gonna do with it?!"
[Gardenia]:"Says the guy who gets bodyslammed by his own Infernape. Let me handle the real muscles here."
[Leon]:"Hah… Incineroar, huh? Definitely a top-tier Pokémon."
After witnessing Incineroar slay a god, Champions and Elite Four members were all blowing up the chat.
Arceus above—another Pokémon capable of slaying a Legendary appeared.
And this time, the Legendary one it defeated had far higher credibility than the previous ones!
Alola, once seen as a small, remote region…
was now skyrocketing in fame worldwide.
And the one whose popularity soared the most—
Torracat's final evolution, Incineroar.
Lance stroked his chin.
Back when Kukui battled him, that Incineroar wasn't nearly this strong.
Looks like after losing to him, Kukui really put in the training grind…
"Man, after this? I don't see how Ash wins anymore!"
"Same, thank goodness I bet on Professor Kukui! Tapu Koko hasn't even battled yet, and he already took down one of Ash's Legendaries!"
"Easy money!!"
People who were already pessimistic about Ash now doubled down.
Ash still had one more Legendary—but so what?
He now had to defeat:
A nearly Legendary-level Incineroar, AND
A Guardian Deity with actual divine authority.
With what? Pikachu?
Absolutely impossible lah~
"Wow… such a strong fire tiger! But wait—I should also have an Incineroar in the future, right? Mine just hasn't evolved yet! One day he'll be just as cool!"
Ash wasn't discouraged at all after seeing Melmetal fall.
If anything, he looked excited.
Thinking about his own future, Incineroar was enough to keep him awake for days.
The Champions blinked.
…Oh yeah, Ash does have a Torracat.
Sure, from the earlier battle, Torracat looked far weaker than Incineroar…
But the future is full of possibilities.
On screen—
After confirming Melmetal wasn't in mortal danger, Ash sighed in relief and recalled it.
"You did great, Melmetal. Rest now. Your partners will handle the rest!"
He returned to his Trainer's box and pulled out a Poké Ball.
"Against Incineroar… it really has to be him."
"Come out—Torracat!"
"Meow!"
The fierce little cat reappeared.
The bell around its neck still glowed faintly with fire—
But it was no longer smoking.
Clearly, while inside the Poké Ball, Torracat had successfully suppressed the explosive flames it tried to absorb…
And probably absorbed a good portion of those flames.
Just not all of them.
If it had fully absorbed them, Torracat's power might've risen one or two whole grades.
"Again? Torracat vs Incineroar?"
Alder raised a brow.
Torracat seemed strangely fixated on battling Incineroar.
Did they have some kind of rivalry?
Did Torracat resent its future evolution?
Cynthia narrowed her eyes and analyzed:
"This time… Incineroar might not handle Torracat so easily."
She pointed to Torracat's glowing bell.
"Torracat has already absorbed a good amount of Blast Burn's power. Its bell isn't smoking anymore—just burning steadily. But Incineroar… even though it proved its strength, defeating Melmetal with low HP…"
"…just how much stamina does it have left? Without resting in its Poké Ball first… the outcome is unpredictable."
The Champions nodded in agreement.
Incineroar was strong—insanely strong.
But even Pokémon had limits.
On screen—
Professor Kukui did not recall Incineroar.
Of course not.
These two Pokémon shared a bond that transcended training—
They were rivals who always chased each other, step by step.
And here, in the grand arena where destiny converged…
They would settle their unfinished duel head-on.
("Head-on": meaning Incineroar, still carrying damage from Stone Edge, Accelerock, and trading blows with a Legendary, would fight Torracat at low HP.)
"Torracat—Flame Charge!"
"You're using Flame Charge again? Then we'll keep using Bulk Up!"
If Ash wanted to rely on speed…
Kukui would use the same answer as before:
Stay still.
Let the opponent crash into a wall.
With one Bulk Up already active, adding a second would push Incineroar's Defense even higher.
"Rooaar!"
Incineroar flexed, its muscles swelling again like pumped air.
Torracat burst forward in a blaze of red flames—
and slammed into Incineroar!
"BOOM!"
Incineroar was knocked back several meters, leaving two deep trails carved into the dirt.
Professor Kukui froze.
Earlier, even with one Bulk Up, Incineroar could tank Flame Charge easily.
Why did it get sent flying after two Bulk Ups?
Then he noticed:
Torracat's bell is burning with stored explosive fire,
Incineroar is panting heavily, close to exhaustion.
Ah.
Torracat absorbed Blast Burn's power…
And Incineroar truly had almost no stamina left.
That's why Flame Charge hit harder than ever.
But wait—
If Incineroar was that tired…
Why hadn't Blaze activated yet?
Kukui stared suspiciously.
As Incineroar's Trainer, he knew its Ability well.
It wasn't Intimidate—it was Blaze.
If its HP was low…
Blaze should've activated long ago.
Was his Incineroar secretly sandbagging him?!
Unaware his Trainer was accusing him mentally, Incineroar simply beckoned Torracat forward again—
provoking it.
Torracat's temper instantly ignited.
"Wait, Torracat—!!"
"Perfect! Darkest Lariat!"
Torracat couldn't stop—it had already snapped.
It launched into Flame Charge—
Only to run straight into—
"DARK—EST—LARIAT!!"
Incineroar's eyes flashed.
Dark energy condensed around its claws as its hand curled into a spear-like strike.
"WHAM!!"
The dark claw thrust into Torracat's abdomen.
Torracat's eyes bulged.
It flew backward like a rag doll, smashing into the ground.
The chat exploded.
[Hala]:"As expected of Incineroar! Even half-dead, it hits FAST, HARD, ACCURATE!"
[Lila]:"Incineroar is strong… but Professor Kukui is even stronger! He trained its reflexes to this level!"
[Professor Kukui]:"Exactly! After evolution, Incineroar's speed drops, so I had to train its dynamic vision and reaction time. A heavyweight fighter must win through stillness!"
[Kukui]:
"Speed-style Pokémon normally counter heavyweights!
But MY Incineroar has no weakness!!
Speedsters get countered INSTEAD!"
Even Leon, Steven, Cynthia, and the others acknowledged Kukui's skill.
Leon even said:
[Leon]:
"Kukui… if you weren't a professor, I might've mistaken you for a regional Champion."
[Steven]:
"If Professors held Champion titles, Kukui would stand at the top."
(Oak: "Please, go on.")
On screen—
"Torracat!!"
Ash shouted.
Torracat trembled…
Then pushed itself back to its feet.
Darkest Lariat wasn't something it could take twice.
If Incineroar landed another one—Torracat was done.
"Meow!!"
Suddenly—
white-red flames burst across Torracat's body.
This wasn't Flame Charge.
This was—
BLAZE—ACTIVATED!
Kukui's mind blanked.
So Torracat triggered Blaze…
But MY Incineroar didn't?!?!
"Great! Keep the momentum—Flame Charge again!"
"You're still using Flame Charge?! Then let's end this! Darkest Lariat!"
Incineroar prepared its killing blow.
Torracat streaked forward like a bolt of lightning—
now powered by Blaze, and double Flame Charge speed boosts!
So fast that—
Incineroar's enhanced vision couldn't track it.
"Meow!!"
A crushing force slammed into Incineroar's ribs.
Torracat appeared at Incineroar's flank.
Then it bounced away—
And attacked again from another angle!
"Now—Retaliate!!"
"BAM!!"
Torracat slammed into Incineroar's back, then raised a paw glowing with deep emotional force—
The hatred, the frustration, the one-sided beatings it had taken all its life—
ROARED INTO A SINGLE STRIKE.
"WHAM!!!"
The paw smashed the top of Incineroar's head—
Almost knocking it out instantly.
Retaliate: boosted by emotion.
Super-effective on Fighting-type Incineroar.
The damage was greater than every hit Torracat had dealt so far.
Torracat left the impact area and retreated to Ash's side.
Incineroar dropped to one knee, panting hard, eyes unfocused.
"Wow! That Retaliate hit HARD!"
"Incineroar's at its limit!"
"If not for Intimidate dropping its Attack earlier, and all those Bulk Ups raising Defense… Incineroar might've been KO'd!"
Some knowledgeable spectators broke down the logic.
Incineroar should've been out of stamina long ago.
Retaliate landing clean like that should've ended it.
Then—
"INCINEROAR!! WE CAN'T FALL HERE!!"
"ROOOOOAAAR!!"
Incineroar suddenly stood up again—
And flames engulfed its entire body.
White-red fire.
The sign of—
BLAZE—FINALLY ACTIVATED!!
Chat: "???"
Champions: "???"
What do you mean NOW Blaze activates?!
Are you allowed to cheat like this?!
But then something even more ridiculous happened.
When Torracat saw Incineroar enter Blaze—
It roared again—
And its white-red Blaze flames turned into—
DEEP CRIMSON!!
BLAZE — STAGE TWO.
Everyone: "????????"
WHAT DO YOU MEAN by a TWO-STAGE BLAZE?!
WHO APPROVED THIS?!
Does every member of the Litten line break the balance?!
People were already Googling flights to Alola to catch a Litten.
Looks like we're both at our final limit."
Kukui exhaled. Even he was shocked by Torracat's Stage-Two Blaze.
But… this was Ash.
The boy of miracles.
He steadied himself.
"So, Ash… shall we use THAT?"
Ash nodded.
He raised his left hand—
A black-and-silver bracelet appeared.
Set into it—
A golden prism-shaped crystal.
Everyone froze.
This wasn't a Keystone.
And even if it was—Torracat couldn't Mega Evolve.
[Kukui]:
"What?! That's the Z-Power Ring!!"
[Leon]:
"Z… Power Ring? What's that?"
Not just Leon—
The whole world outside Alola was confused.
No one had ever heard of this "Z Power" thing.
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