Chapter 53: Chrysanthemum Grass Leaves and Serena

Da Wu: "…Don't pull on me, I want to be quiet!"

After being defeated by Ash, this top-tier rich handsome guy from Abundant Source showed an obvious decadent trend.

Ash: "…Enough already, I'll give you a chance, let's fight again."

Da Wu silently squatted in the corner, without a ripple,

Throw a hammer!

He finally understood that as long as the opponent is Mewtwo, he has no hope of winning.

"I'll switch Pokémon!"

"Is that true?"

The unflappable Da Wu suddenly revived to full health, radiant and refreshed.

"Really!"

Ash nodded, "But there's still a limit to the Pokémon you can field—at least one must be Psychic or Dragon type."

"Cut the talk, let's go! Violent Flying Dragon!"

"Violent Dragon~ Violent Dragon~"

Violent Flying Dragon is a quadruped Pokémon with two splendid blood-red wings, a long tail. Above its eyes are two blood-red protrusions, and each side of its head has three small triangular wings. Its base color is deep blue, with the head, neck, limbs, and inner tail blood-red, while the lower jaw and belly are covered by three plates.

Compared to the crab-like Metagross, Violent Flying Dragon looks more imposing, its whole body exuding a brutal aura.

【Pokémon】: Violent Flying Dragon (♂)

【Type】: Dragon+Flying

【Ability】: Intimidate (upon entry, lowers opponent's Attack)

【Level】: 100 (Champion)

【Held Item】: Dragon Fang (boosts Dragon‑type move power by 20%)

【IVs】: 5v, Defense 28,

【Base Stats】: total 600,

This Violent Flying Dragon's level is 100, the same as Da Wu's ace Shiny Metagross,

but its battle power is considerably lower,

not only because its IVs are only 5v, but also because Da Wu and his Shiny Metagross put in far more effort and devotion, achieving the equivalent of maxing out the six effort values in the game,

However, since Ash said he wouldn't use Mewtwo anymore,

Da Wu also felt confident about winning a round back.

Looking at Da Wu, who had taken his stance,

Ash: "…"

He wanted to say let Da Wu first send out a Four‑Heavenly‑King‑level Pokémon for Latias to practice on, to boost a bit,

but after thinking, he decided not to go too far, lest he really offend the person.

Furthermore…

The higher level should also meet the requirement,

Ash directly sent out Latias, and after two turns of evasion, still knocked it out in one move!

Da Wu: "…"

"Why bother evading those two turns if you're just going to get one‑shot anyway?"

Once again sinking into withdrawal, feeling extremely depressed, Da Wu couldn't help but be deeply shocked by Ash's current strength.

With that strength, why aren't you entering the World Championship to make a name for yourself? Stuck in a tiny regional tournament playing pretend?

If Ash knew what Da Wu was thinking, he'd only reply: "You can't even imagine the joy of the Baby Cup,"

Moreover,

Ash couldn't possibly give up those Pokémon that were destined to be caught.

Unaware of Da Wu's thoughts, Ash invited again, "Wanna go another round?"

"Another round? You're just using me as XP fodder, right?"

Heart mumbling mp, outwardly, Da Wu suppressed the tremor in his arm, forcing a calm smile as he waved his hand,

"I've got other things to do, let's leave it here for now—I'm out!"

Seeing that, Ash didn't try to hold him back any further.

Inside, he even praised Da Wu's magnanimity—remaining so refined despite being beaten like that, truly a gentleman of Abundant Source.

Before parting,

Ash said, "By the way, if you're looking for Mega Stone veins, I suggest checking the End Cave. Call me anytime if you run into trouble—I and Mewtwo will come right away!"

Having just released an ordinary blue Metagross and preparing to take off, Da Wu

twitched the corner of his mouth upon hearing that,

"I will!"

But inside he thought, "No way! As the illustrious Champion of Abundant Source, exploring a cave could be dangerous? How could that be!"

Seeing Da Wu off,

Clemont couldn't help but remark, "No wonder he's a Champion—losing twice in a row and still not discouraged, his demeanor is truly extraordinary!"

Yurie: "Yeah yeah! Mr. Champion's Shiny Metagross is so cool!"

"Huh?"

Serena seemed to recall something, "I remember you also have a Shiny Metagross, Ash, right?"

"Really?"

Upon hearing that, Yurie lunged at Ash's leg like a cat that's seen catnip, eyes gleaming, rubbing back and forth.

"Ash, I want, I want~ let Yurie have a look, okay? Just a look, I definitely won't touch randomly!"

"Sure! And even if you touch it, it's fine; the Shiny Metagross isn't so precious as to be that fragile."

He affectionately rubbed the head of the blond loli,

Ash led the way to the town's Pokémon Center, and via the transfer machine brought over this Great Sauce he had captured during the Sinnoh era!

And Bulbasaur, who insisted on coming along and calls herself the Chrysanthemum Consort,

……

The Shiny Metagross had a silvery-white body full of metallic texture, with two gold structures on its forehead resembling the letter X.

Its noble color scheme lets the Shiny Metagross's appearance far surpass that of a regular Metagross.

After interacting with the Shiny Metagross for a while,

Looking at the longing-filled Yurie, Serena, and Clemont,

Ash still conveyed the three's thoughts, seeing as Yurie had let him meet Ash,

The Shiny Metagross showed a simple, honest smile and agreed to play with the three for a while.

Releasing its psychic power, it first let Serena and Yurie sit on its head.

Carrying them, it flew up above the town, letting them admire the last glimmer of the setting sun.

During this time,

Small, with a light-green body and a tuft of green leaf on its head, the Bulbasaur stuck directly onto Ash.

Desperately venting the longing from not having seen each other for just a few days,

No matter how you try to pull it off, it won't come down.

This made Ash laugh; it seemed that after finishing the trip to Chengdu, the little guy had become even more clingy to him.

He rubbed the Bulbasaur,

Ash pressed his forehead against the little guy's head, their noses lightly touching,

The little guy sucked in a breath, closed its eyes, and showed a happy smile.

However,

After the Shiny Metagross came down from the sky,

the Bulbasaur completely revealed a different side from before, glaring angrily at Serena,

She had smelled Serena's scent on Ash's body.

As a Grass-type Pokémon with a keen sense of smell, and being female, the Bulbasaur was certain she hadn't made a mistake.

This left Serena and Ash dumbfounded and laughing,

They ended up being jealous of a Pokémon again, and this one was even more severe.

Finally, because it grew completely dark, Clemont still didn't get a chance to be alone with the Shiny Metagross,

but he did manage to get a group photo,

In the center of the photo, Ash holds the Bulbasaur, Pikachu stands on his shoulder, and beside him are Croagunk and Serena,

In front is Latias, with the Shiny Metagross and the rocket sparrow on its left and right, while the others stand to the sides.

In the corner of the photo, Mewtwo left only a cold, aloof back view for the camera,

What makes people unable to hold back laughter is,

when the photo was taken, it happened to capture the adorable sight of the Bulbasaur glaring angrily at Serena.

After placing the Bulbasaur on his other shoulder, Ash rubbed the Shiny Metagross's head and decided to let them stay overnight at the Pokémon Center,

At night,

Ash's embrace was inevitably taken over by the Bulbasaur,

Serena was pitifully pushed to the edge of the bed by the Chrysanthemum Consort,

The Shiny Metagross lingered in the room, like a lifeless chair, silently motionless.

However,

When it saw Ash and the Bulbasaur asleep, showing their happy expressions,

the Shiny Metagross couldn't help but recall when it and Ash had fought together through the entire Sinnoh League, frolicking with other companions in the Johto preliminaries.

Its face likewise broke into a happy smile.

……

The next morning,

Because he hadn't gotten any energy from Serena, Ash today seemed not very spirited.

Fortunately, after breakfast,

Ash's condition gradually recovered to its peak.

The Shiny Metagross and Bulbasaur were sent back by Ash to Masara Town,

Before parting, Ash tightly hugged the Shiny Metagross and Bulbasaur, urging them to train well.

Although they didn't get a chance to compete in the crucial elimination round of the Vertress Conference, they could still participate in the melee beforehand.

He said goodbye to Professor Oak.

Ash and his party continued on their journey,

As noon approached and they were about to eat, Ash's group encountered a special passerby in the forest.

She was a woman with dark-red hair who owned a Fairy-type Eevee,

and she declared boldly that if she beat Ash, he would have to accompany her on a date~

In response,

Ash's answer was naturally……