Pokémon: Above the Top

Sato stared at the Sigilyph before him, its power nearing the Elite Four level… but inside, he quietly let out a sigh of relief.

'Good… as long as it's not quite at Elite Four level.'

"Umbreon, jump onto Sharpedo, Sharpedo, Ice Fang!"

"Sha!" "Umbre!"

Sharpedo and Umbreon responded in unison. They closed in on each other and, once joined, charged together toward Sigilyph.

Bzzz~

A loud hum rang out as nearly tangible Psychic energy burst from Sigilyph's body, spreading outward in all directions with no distinction between friend or foe.

"Umbreon, Dark Pulse, break through the Psychic suppression."

"Umbre!"

Standing firmly on Sharpedo's back, Umbreon opened its mouth and blasted forward with a powerful Dark Pulse.

Due to the overwhelming type advantage, the Psychic energy dissolved the moment it clashed with the Dark Pulse.

But the next moment, another wave of Psychic energy curved around the Dark Pulse and struck directly at Sharpedo.

With Miracle Eye still in effect, Psychic-type moves could still be used effectively on them!

"S-SHAA!"

Sharpedo let out a pained cry. Even without type advantage, the sheer power of the Psychic attack dealt massive damage.

Yet despite this, Sharpedo maintained control over its Whirlpool and Aqua Jet, charging forward with Umbreon on its back.

Umbreon could feel its partner's determination and knew it absolutely couldn't afford to falter now…

As Sigilyph drew near, Umbreon's blood-red eyes locked onto its target.

Closer… closer… closer…

NOW!

"UMBREE!"

With a sudden leap, Umbreon timed Sigilyph's retreat perfectly and latched onto both of its wings with deadly precision!

Bite!

"SIGIIIIIIL!"

This time, it was Sigilyph that let out a wretched scream. Its third eye had been bitten directly by Umbreon, who now thrashed it violently in its jaws without letting go for a second!

"AHHH!"

On the other side of the field, Caitlin's face turned pale. Her floating hair dropped instantly, and the Psychic aura surrounding her collapsed in a blink.

Bite: an average Dark-type move, but with a decent chance to cause the target to Flinch.

Caitlin's sudden loss of amplification pointed to only one possibility: Sigilyph had flinched, breaking its connection and rendering it unable to receive her psychic boosts!

"Sharpedo, Assurance."

Strike while the iron's hot! Under Sato's command, Sharpedo showed no mercy and launched a full-force Assurance toward Sigilyph!

"I-I FORFEEEEIT!"

Just as Sharpedo's attack was about to land, a panicked, desperate voice rang out.

It was Caitlin!

"Sharpedo!"

Before Sato could even finish his command, Sharpedo forcibly twisted its trajectory, narrowly avoiding Sigilyph's wing as it shot past.

Swoosh~

The referee raised his flag and called out loudly, "CAITLIN HAS FORFEITED! THE WINNER OF THIS ELIMINATION MATCH IS SATO FROM SHADOWNIGHT TOWN!"

"We won!"

Sato exhaled in relief and smiled, crouching down to catch Umbreon mid-leap, while even the normally composed and quiet Sharpedo circled him joyfully twice.

On the other side, the defeated Caitlin no longer seemed as haughty as before.

She somewhat dejectedly recalled her still-shaken Sigilyph. Her gaze toward Sato now carried not only the earlier disdain, but also clear fear… and a hint of unwillingness.

Yet when she thought about how her Psychic power had been disrupted by him, Caitlin couldn't help but feel a bit relieved.

Every time she lost control of her powers, it looked like her Pokémon grew significantly stronger. But to her, it was equivalent to burning through her mental strength without limit.

If the outburst lasted too long, it would undoubtedly cause permanent damage to her Psychic energy.

Of course, as proud as she was, Caitlin might secretly lend Sato a hand someday… but she would never admit to having been helped.

…Thank him?

'NOT A CHANCE <(｀^)>'

Watching Caitlin turn and walk away, Sato was glad he didn't have to exchange pleasantries. He simply took Umbreon and Sharpedo and went off to find Rose.

----

Another five days passed. The preliminary round of the Pokémon League Ace Tournament -the group stage- had finally rea come to an end.

At Arena 3, Sato sent out the Sharpedo + Cacturne combo and defeated his final opponent with overwhelming strength.

With that, Sato finished the group stage with ten out of ten wins, claiming first place in his group and officially advancing to the Ace Tournament finals!

On the same day, Wallace, Flint, Phoebe, Will, and Marshal also advanced as first-place winners in their respective groups.

Meanwhile, Norman, Ryoko, Volkner, and Caitlin scraped by with second-place finishes.

From Sato's list of notable Trainers, Fantina, Morty, Aaron, and Jona were unfortunately eliminated. A bit of a shame…

The rest of the qualifiers were all veteran Trainers from various regions. Every Ace Trainer who made it through was among the best of the best.

Among them, the number of young Trainers who advanced made up exactly one-third of the total, a record high in recent years.

With the preliminaries over, everyone naturally gathered in the Pokémon Center lobby, waiting to regroup with the other finalists.

After ten days of intense battles, everyone felt exhausted… but also unusually excited.

Each time they recalled the thrilling moments from their matches, they couldn't help but share their stories, creating a lively atmosphere.

As for those who hadn't made it -like Jona and the others- though disappointed, they still smiled and offered their congratulations.

"What a shame. I was this close to beating Mr. Orin, but his Machamp was just too strong… my Slaking couldn't take him down!"

Norman shook his head and complained!

…Only to be met with collective eye rolls from the group.

'Mr. Orin, a well-known martial artist from Johto, was also a veteran Ace Trainer who specialized in Fighting-type Pokémon.

And yet you, Norman, tried to go head-to-head with a Normal-type Slaking…

If you had won, that would've been the shocking part!'

"Ugh… my Milotic still isn't beautiful enough. I've got to keep working on it."

Wallace appeared to be complaining; but the pride and vanity on his face were impossible to miss.

Everyone turned their heads. 'Here we go again, another show-off!'

Wallace treated every match like a performance, and still managed to defeat his opponents with ease.

Compared to other Champions like Lance or Steven, Wallace was still participating in the Ace Tournament, but his overall strength made others wary.

So far, he had used: a Peak Ace Gorebyss and Ludicolo, and a Peak Ace Milotic that was really close to the Elite Four level.

Among the crowd, Wallace was unanimously considered the strongest contender in this year's tournament, no question about it.