Chapter 635: The Final Movement of the Finals

As a tank-type Pokémon.

Mudkip is strangely immune to Mirror Move but can learn Counter.

Therefore, to avoid absurd scenarios like—"Mudkip held firm at Alice's call, used Counter, and Bisharp collapsed"—Baimu decisively abandoned Dragon Dive.

He and Super Bisharp opted for special attack moves, even though Dragon Dive would likely have knocked out Mudkip in one hit.

After all, bonding is an essential element in the anime that cannot be ignored.

In terms of outcome, the choice was very correct.

Without physical attack moves, Mudkip had no countermeasures and could only endure passive damage until defeated by Dragon Pulse amplified by Ground-type power.

Alice's creative idea of using Mudkip's antennae as whip-like vines for Strong Whip was ingenious.

But that was all it was.

"Alice's remaining Pokémon are two; Baimu has not lost a single Pokémon. Can she stage a stunning comeback from this position? Let's wait and see!"

The commentator's voice echoed through the arena.

Cheers and shouts filled the stands, countless eyes burned with fervor, as if desperate to leap onto the field and replace one of the combatants.

Inside the arena.

A light drizzle soaked the ruined ground, forming patch after patch of mud.

Light dimmed under the weight of dark clouds.

Like Alice's current dire situation.

No clear sky above.

"You've done well, Mudkip."

She recalled the unconscious Mudkip into its Poké Ball, her throat bobbing slightly.

Though she had mentally prepared for this before the match, Super Bisharp's overwhelming power still sent a chill down her scalp.

"Phew…"

Too difficult.

Alice even thought of Xia Ka and Syrona—her past battles with them had been equally grueling, equally one-sided, with not a single glimmer of hope for victory…

So what?

Giving up was never her nature!

"It's your turn!"

Without hesitation, Alice hurled the Poké Ball forward with all her strength.

Bang!

White light flashed.

At a distance from Super Bisharp, the first Pokémon to enter—the Garchomp—appeared.

"Kapok!"

After prolonged rest inside the Poké Ball, its condition had noticeably improved; its breathing was steadier, and it no longer wobbled while standing.

But natural recovery could never match abilities like Regenerator, so it wasn't fully restored.

Yet it still had fighting strength—

Enough!

Alice's heart surged, golden light seeped from her clenched fist as she shouted: "Show them our power! Garchomp! Meteor Mash!!"

"Kapok!!"

Garchomp roared and leapt high as a great bird striking water, its wind blast scattering the falling rain.

It opened its tooth-filled maw, gathering Dragon-type energy rapidly, then spewing out a deep purple orb that exploded violently.

Boom!

In an instant.

Deep purple energy projectiles spun around it like petals scattered by a celestial maiden, radiating terrifying light and heat, then surged en masse toward Super Bisharp.

A foul wind howled!

Garchomp became a supersonic fighter jet dancing with countless missiles!

"Jump!"

Baimu ordered.

Objectively, due to type matchups, Meteor Mash should have been weaker than Mudkip's Rainy Torrent.

Yet in the anime, when trainer and Pokémon unleash a move with absolute conviction, its power inexplicably surges to terrifying levels.

Ash had repeatedly used this force to elevate even the weakest moves to divine mastery.

This was one of the unpredictable factors in anime battles.

"Gurrr!"

Super Bisharp slammed its massive tail into the ground and leapt impossibly high, far beyond human imagination!

Whoosh!

The meteor-like projectiles and Garchomp shot past its former position.

Alice would not let go—she shouted: "Chase it!"

"Kapok!"

Garchomp responded loudly, its wing-like fin blades tilting slightly to one side, executing a 180-degree turn along the arena's edge; the Meteor Mash did not dissipate but continued chasing after Super Bisharp alongside it!

Baimu remained calm, bellowing: "I was hoping you'd come! Heavy Slam!"

Conviction is but one form of the bond between trainer and Pokémon; under Super Evolution, the connection between him and Super Bisharp could never lose to Alice's.

"Gurrr!"

Leaping to its limit, the Mega Aggron crossed its arms, silver-white rings of light spinning around it!

The next instant.

It suddenly spread its arms wide.

Hmm!

Silver light flared.

Mega Aggron, like a resplendent comet falling from the heavens, met the charging Sharpedo with an unstoppable momentum!

The silver-white rings and the meteor swarm collided.

Boom!

Like the trembling chime of a great bell.

Immediately after, silver and purple light intertwined, erupting into a violently reverberating, terrifying explosion.

A milky-white shockwave, laden with dust, rain, and grass clippings, spread violently across the entire arena and surged skyward, forming a massive mushroom cloud visible even outside the venue.

The intense flash inside the arena made countless spectators instinctively shut their eyes, and the commentator's shouts were drowned out by the thunderous roar of the explosion.

A moment later.

The light gradually dimmed.

A vast, lingering cloud of smoke shrouded the field.

The thick dust rolled continuously through the air, even covering the rain-laden clouds above; the once-bright battlefield grew somewhat dim.

The spectator stands' defensive barrier blocked all the drifting smoke, and amid the uproar, many spectators rose to look down, eager to glimpse the situation inside the field at first glance.

"The clash of Heavy Impact and Meteor Mash! What will the final result be!?" the commentator repeated his earlier words, eyes fixed on the smoke-filled screen.

Finally.

As the rain continued to fall, the smoke inside the field largely dispersed.

In the very center, a large patch of bare soil was revealed; Sharpedo lay sprawled there, and beside it stood Mega Aggron, its presence as heavy as a mountain.

"Grr… roar…"

Its voice sounded exactly like thunder rumbling through the clouds, its expression barely changing from start to finish.

Beep!

The referee raised his flag. "Sharpedo is unable to battle! The winner is Aggron!"

"The victor is decided! Aggron, unstoppable as a falling bamboo! It looks like Trainer Baimu will smash through the second half of the finals alongside it!" The commentator's shout drew thunderous, high-spirited cheers from the crowd.

The grand finals would be concluded by a single Pokémon.

This was something many had wished to do but couldn't, and now it was about to unfold before their very eyes.

Many spectators shouted in unison.

"One last Pokémon! One last Pokémon!"

But some spectators still cheered desperately for Alice.

"Go for it! Go for it!"

"Turn it around starting now! His Aggron can't hold out much longer!"

The earth-shaking uproar fully embodied the passion and fervor the spectators held as the match neared its end; even Brock and the others couldn't help but join in, cheering for both sides.

Everyone understood.

The match was drawing to a close.

Alice, as the one directly involved, felt it even more keenly—especially upon realizing that neither Goodra nor Sharpedo had inflicted much obvious damage on Mega Aggron.

How strong.

She calmly recalled Sharpedo, soothing it gently: "You did great, Sharpedo."

For it to charge head-on against Mega Aggron in its "wrecked state," its performance was more than commendable.

As for what comes next…

Alice took a deep breath, looked up at the arena's giant silver screen, and saw that the Rotom Drone had just aimed its camera right at her.

She suddenly smiled.

Most of the spectators were baffled—how could she still smile when the situation had grown this dire?

Some spectators believed Alice had her own trump card, that she was about to reveal her final hand.

Only she herself knew.

She had simply thought of a certain boy wearing a cap with Pikachu on it.

Ash.

Though I don't know whether you've been watching my match.

But rest assured.

I won't give up!

No matter what difficulties I face, I'll see it through to the very end!

Alice held her Poké Ball high, exposing it to everyone's gaze as if on display, and declared in a clear voice:

"It's your turn to take the field! This is the path we must walk to become Dragon Masters! Show Baimu just how powerful you are!"

Having said that.

She hurled the Poké Ball forward.

Poof!

From the white light, an olive-colored, upright giant dragon—its body covered in a hard carapace, a blood-red battle-axe held in its jaws—stepped onto the field; its sharp twin claws sank into the soft soil, and its crimson eyes burned with spirit.

"Rooooar—!!"

A long, drawn-out howl rang out!

"Iris's final Pokémon! Haxorus! What an overwhelming presence!"

Even if Ash and Cilan were present, it would be hard to see the shadow of the once-adorable little show-off, Axew, in this majestic dragon beast.

In just one short year, it had undergone earth-shattering changes.

Even though Iris was not yet the Unova Champion, Haxorus had clearly surpassed Excadrill and Dragonite to become her strongest partner.

If this 5:0 match still had a chance of a comeback, then without a doubt, the hope lay with Haxorus!

The rain was cold.

Yet it could not douse the fire of fighting spirit burning in her heart.

Iris gently closed her eyes and extended her hand; golden light shone from her palm, looking extraordinarily mystical.

Even without Mega Evolution.

The Dragon Heart still tightly bound her and Haxorus together — the two of them were by no means inferior to All Baimu and Mega Aggron!

Murmurs rose from the stands.

Many were startled by this strange sight.

The commentator grabbed his notes and, before the uproar could spread further, shouted: "Iris has activated the Dragon Heart! As a trainer who hails from the Village of Dragons! She possesses the miraculous power to understand Dragon-type Pokémon!"

Dragon Heart!?

For many, it was the first time they had heard such a strange term.

But special abilities were actually commonplace in the Pokémon world — from psychics and mediums at the top, to Aura users and mysterious travelers at the bottom.

The world was never short of their footsteps.

Therefore, regarding Iris's strange display at this moment, the audience could only look forward even more to the process and outcome of the battle.

Across the field.

All Baimu nodded slightly.

A Haxorus with an exceptional Ability meant that Mega Aggron's Filter could no longer block its super-effective moves.

In a sense, it was being countered.

But it was no big problem.

Even though Mega Aggron had already fought two consecutive battles, a Haxorus relying solely on the Dragon Heart to defeat it was still a fool's dream!

"Dragon Dance!"

"Taunt!"

Both trainers gave their orders at once.

Haxorus raised its head and roared; pink-purple currents swirled around it like flames, dramatically boosting its presence and abilities!

Mega Aggron watched it power up without moving, only casually curling its claw when the opponent's gaze met its own.

"Gugou."

In fact.

No matter what expression or posture Mega Aggron put on, this Taunt was bound to succeed.

Because Haxorus could no longer hold back its urge to attack.

For its companions, for its trainer!

It would take down this seemingly very tough big guy, and in one stroke reverse the tide to complete the comeback!

Attack! Attack!

"Roar!!"

Haxorus suddenly charged forward, clumps of mud flying everywhere, the air kicked up by its explosive charge letting out a fierce howl.

"Brick Break!"

Iris shouted.

All Baimu's gaze was calm. "Iron Defense."

Mega Aggron stood in place waiting quietly, its expression identical to its trainer's, as if it hadn't seen the fiercely charging Haxorus at all.

The two sides closed in.

"Roar!"

Haxorus nimbly twisted its body, its brown-red glowing great tail aimed squarely at Mega Aggron's head, and whipped down viciously!

Thwack!

seems heavy hammer striking steel plate.

Amid the tremendous crash, when the smoke cleared, Mega Aggron showed no reaction whatsoever — only a flash of gleaming silver light swept across the spot Haxorus had just struck.

It looked at the Haxorus right before its eyes with an indifferent gaze, and curled its claw again.

"Gugou."

Come again.

"Roar!!"

The fury in Haxorus's heart was ignited; its claws and the axes by its mouth lit up with brown-red light as it struck repeatedly at various spots on Mega Aggron's body.

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!

Every strike was immensely heavy, making listeners' teeth ache and hearts tremble.

The commentator shouted: "Haxorus's offensive is exceptionally fierce! But… it looks like it's having no effect on Aggron at all!"

"How can that be!"

Iris's pupils shook violently; she had never imagined that what Garchomp and Goodra had faced before was still not Mega Aggron's limit.

What level of defense was this?

Terrifying!

The Double-Axe Battle Dragon was just like a child wielding a wooden hammer, charging head-on against a fully armed heavy-armored knight—

Apart from making a few clanging sounds, it accomplished nothing else.

The Mega Bossgodora even actively leaned its face over, or guided the Double-Axe Battle Dragon to launch attacks at certain spots.

The result.

From start to finish, Mega Bossgodora's position never shifted in the slightest, like an immovable towering mountain peak.

"Guou..."

It gazed down at the dragon beast gripping the axe blade, exhaling great plumes of white breath from its mouth, the accumulated dissatisfaction having reached its peak.

Who would have thought.

So this is the so-called grand tournament finals ace Pokémon.

So this is the so-called rule-breaking ability, ignoring filter-ability type-based suppression attacks.

What I had been looking forward to, was actually just this...

Mega Bossgodora suddenly extended its right claw, fiercely seizing the axe blade the Double-Axe Battle Dragon had slashed over, completely ignoring the type energy attached to it and the opponent's shocked expression, then with a slight twist of its body, swung with all its might!

Whoosh!

The Double-Axe Battle Dragon was instantly sent flying backward, scraping a trail several meters long across the ground before finally stopping.

It raised its head.

What greeted it was a terrifying roar comparable to an explosive sound wave; the visible pale-white sound made it instinctively raise both claws in front of its body while retreating several steps at once!

The remaining grass was uprooted and flew into the air, scattering in all directions along with countless clumps of dirt and gravel as if gaining their freedom.

"Guou!!"

A blood-red glint rose in Mega Bossgodora's azure-blue eyes as it stared straight at the Double-Axe Battle Dragon, its fierce, murderous demeanor seemingly warning the opponent.

Bring out your full strength!

Otherwise—

I'll beat you to death!!