Pokemon: Spiritual Master

"Espe!"

Water, flames, and thunder swept toward Ninetales under the enhancement of psychic power and the "Everstone."

Since it couldn't cause much substantial damage to Teacher Johan, attention had to return to Ninetales.

Moreover—

Ninetales' attack had arrived.

Moonlight scattered down. In the snowy haze, a beam of moonlight fell toward Espeon, while Espeon's three combined forces were precisely to face this attack.

Boom!!

The ground exploded as Espeon was sent flying by the falling moonlight.

A red beam shot out.

Espeon was recalled.

Red suddenly started running while throwing a Poké Ball into the air.

"Aerodactyl, Steel Wing!"

From the red light, Red's Aerodactyl appeared in the sky, its massive wings gleaming with metallic luster.

With wing beats, it rapidly covered considerable distance, charging toward Ninetales.

Bang! Bang! Bang—

Accompanied by shattering Aurora Veils and scattering ice crystals all along the way, it showed fierce威势, not only unblocked by Aurora Veil and ice walls but growing even more ferocious.

Using Steel-type against Ninetales was undoubtedly an excellent choice.

Red obviously understood that Aerodactyl's Steel Wing alone wasn't enough to completely defeat Ninetales. After all, Aerodactyl was Rock and Flying-type, not Steel-type.

So after approaching Ninetales, Red's hands suddenly glowed with brilliant rainbow light.

"Aerodactyl, Mega Evolution!"

"Roar—!!"

The Key Stone in Red's hand resonated with the Mega Stone carried by Aerodactyl.

Red's Aerodactyl... could actually be considered a gift from Boss Giovanni.

Giovanni had once given Red a Secret Amber, and this Aerodactyl was what Red had revived from it.

In Red's team, this Aerodactyl was Red's wings, capable of carrying Red in aerial combat, even lifting Red's entire team including the massive Snorlax—showing this Aerodactyl's tremendous strength.

The Mega Evolution light came and went quickly. When it tore through the evolution light and emerged, its appearance had changed somewhat.

Mega Aerodactyl!

Under wild battle rules, there were no limits on enhancement usage frequency. As long as the trainer could withstand the physical burden of multiple enhancements and had matching enhancement methods for their Pokémon, they could use them.

With Red's physical condition—

"Aerodactyl, Iron Tail!"

Mega Aerodactyl reached Ninetales. Its tail, covered with black jagged rocks, gleamed with metallic luster as it struck toward Ninetales.

But whether Aerodactyl approaching Ninetales or performing Mega Evolution, this time was enough for Ninetales to act.

Johan didn't hesitate: "Ninetales, Freeze the World!"

"Oowoo~!"

The long-accumulated cold burst forth completely. Freezing crystals almost instantly formed on Mega Aerodactyl's tail.

Even the metal coating Iron Tail couldn't prevent the cold's invasion.

After seeing Ninetales' "Fairy Plate" and Espeon being blasted away by Ninetales' Moonblast, Red realized Ninetales' Fairy-type power was exceptionally strong.

So he deliberately summoned Rock-type Aerodactyl to "induce" Teacher Johan and Ninetales to use Ice-type moves.

Regarding how to counter Ice-types, Red had gained some confidence after his battle with Lorelei.

But unexpectedly—

Even with confidence and Steel-type move protection, the Ice-type move's power was still so terrifying.

"Earth Control's" boost to Ninetales was still too great.

Seeing this, Red immediately reacted, changing tactics: "Aerodactyl, Whirlwind!"

"Ninetales!" Johan also responded immediately.

Crack crack crack—

Layer after layer of ice crystals spread, not affecting Aerodactyl but applying to Ninetales itself.

The ice crystals froze Ninetales' limbs, firmly fixing it in place.

Simultaneously, the cold accelerated freezing Mega Aerodactyl.

"Aerodactyl!!"

Red stopped and shouted loudly.

"Roar—!!!"

Hearing Ninetales' call, Mega Aerodactyl gritted its teeth, enduring the cold's erosion while desperately flapping its wings.

Crack crack crack—

The ice crystals under Ninetales' feet finally shattered. Ninetales transformed into red light, flying back to Johan's Poké Ball.

But before Ninetales was blown away, Mega Aerodactyl maintained its struggling posture, frozen into an ice sculpture that crashed to the ground with a "bang."

"Rest for now, Aerodactyl."

Red took out a Poké Ball to recall the frozen Aerodactyl.

Although Aerodactyl temporarily lost fighting ability, if it really wanted to break free, it could continue since Ninetales hadn't had time to reinforce the ice.

Red recalling it was obviously to wait for Teacher Johan to summon his Pokémon first, then counter accordingly.

Losing the first round led to him summoning Espeon while Teacher Johan summoned Ninetales, immediately falling into obvious passivity.

This caused Espeon and Aerodactyl to gain no advantage while becoming increasingly passive.

So Red made this choice.

Actually, thinking carefully, Ice and Fairy-type Ninetales was quite effective against Red's Pokémon.

Seeing Red's action, Johan guessed Red's thoughts.

But there was no choice.

After brief consideration, Johan threw a Poké Ball.

"Tyranitar!"

"Tar!!"

The fierce "Desert Tyrant" made a powerful entrance. Sand began flying in the wind and snow, but didn't completely suppress Ninetales' blizzard. Instead—

Sand and snow merged!

Ice crystals formed on sand particles, making them more solid while becoming more painful when hitting bodies.

"Teacher Johan really merged two weather conditions?" Flint gasped.

"Ultimately," Steven pondered briefly, "blizzards and sandstorms have basic compatibility potential."

Blizzards relied on wind, as did sandstorms.

Blizzards froze all moisture, while sandstorms also disliked moisture.

"Then I'm counting on you, Poliwrath!"

After confirming Teacher Johan's Pokémon, Red also threw a Poké Ball.

What entered was clearly Poliwrath!

Unlike Ash whose starter was Pikachu, although Red also had a very important partner Pikachu, Red's starter... was a Poliwag.

Originally it evolved into Poliwhirl to save the drowning Red, then evolved into Poliwrath to save Red who had been knocked into water by Lt. Surge.

Starter Pokémon were special existences for any trainer.

Compared to "Old Jing Family's" purple fatty's unreliable nature, Poliwrath was definitely the big brother in Red's team—maybe not the strongest, but absolutely most trustworthy and dependable.

Water and Fighting-type attributes were particularly effective against Tyranitar.

"Tyranitar!" Johan felt considerable pressure.

Another legendary-level Pokémon!

Counting the previously appeared Snorlax, Espeon, and Aerodactyl, there were already four legendary-level Pokémon.

This strength...

Tyranitar faced the imposing Poliwrath without retreating.

I fight strong enemies!

"Mega Evolution!!"

The Key Stone at the end of his glasses chain glowed, connecting with Tyranitar's Mega Stone.

"Tar!!!"

Tyranitar roared as sand frantically poured from its feet, sand snakes spiraling upward.

In this desert place, what might be ordinary terrain for other Pokémon was like half a home field for Tyranitar!

Countless sand particles shot skyward. The originally ordinary desert ground instantly became true desert terrain. The blizzard's influence weakened while the sandstorm raged more fiercely, with Tyranitar extracting large amounts of sand from the desert floor.

In brilliant light, vicious claws tore through evolution light as the menacing Mega Tyranitar stepped forth.

At this moment—

This place seemed to become a desert hell.

"Such a powerful sandstorm..."

Seeing this, Red pursed his lips.

Although Tyranitar hadn't reached legendary level, after Mega Evolution, its strength improvement was terrifying.

It seemed Teacher Johan and Tyranitar's bond was extraordinarily deep.

However—

The bond between himself and Poliwrath was equally strong!

"Poliwrath!" Red waved. "Use Bulk Up!"

"Poli!"

In the raging sandstorm, Poliwrath tensed its entire body. Its already robust form showed extremely defined muscle lines as its aura climbed.

Seeing this, Johan didn't hesitate: "Tyranitar, Dragon Dance!"

"Tar!!"

Blue-purple Dragon-type energy spiraled as Mega Tyranitar's aura also soared in the sandstorm.

"Poliwrath!"

Red clenched his fist: "Close Combat!"

"Poli!"

Poliwrath's feet immediately exploded, kicking up large amounts of sand as it charged toward Mega Tyranitar at high speed.

Tyranitar was quadruple weak to Fighting. Using Fighting-type moves was undoubtedly the best choice.

Even—

Red was confident that if Poliwrath could get close to Mega Tyranitar, it could one-shot it!

Johan naturally understood this situation clearly.

Even if Tyranitar tried Iron Defense to block, it could withstand one hit but not a second, falling into absolute passivity.

So defense was absolutely not an option.

Only offense.

Offense was the best counter to offense.

But even in mutual offense, Tyranitar might only have one chance—

"Tyranitar—"

Johan called.

"Tar!!"

"Precipice Blades!"

Mega Tyranitar roared loudly, stirring up sand everywhere. All the power accumulated from the diamonds it had eaten poured out completely.

On Mega Tyranitar's body, Red seemed to see... the shadow of Boss Giovanni's Pokémon.

Uncle Giovanni?

Earth mastery?

Red was stunned.

Instead, he wasn't particularly surprised by Johan's "Precipice Blades" command.

Why be surprised?

Dragon Ascent, Freeze the World, Earth Control...

Was he missing Groudon's Precipice Blades?

Rumble rumble—

The ground shook violently as earth cracked. Large rock chunks flew from the splits, slightly hindering Poliwrath's advance, though the impact wasn't major.

But in the cracked earth, as fissures extended, suddenly a crimson blade wrapped in scorching magma pierced upward from under Poliwrath's feet, encased in swirling sand.

"Poli—"

Poliwrath's pained cry came as the massive stone blade carried it rapidly upward. When reaching the peak, scorching magma exploded like earth's roar.

"Precipice Blades... seems even stronger?" Flint murmured.

"Remove 'seems'," Lance grinned.

More than just stronger...

The entire earth's power seemed mobilized.

"After the Master Tournament, growth and learning weren't limited to just us," Steven took a deep breath and said softly.

Everyone paused, then nodded.

They had all gained much—how could the champion Teacher Johan not have grown?

But just then—

Red's voice came again.

"Poliwrath, Hydro Pump!"

From atop the lava stone blade, a terrifying water column struck.

"Tar?" Tyranitar was confused.

This was the first time it had seen an opponent who could counterattack after taking Precipice Blades...

Johan wasn't surprised that Precipice Blades hadn't one-shotted Poliwrath. The type disadvantage was too obvious, and—

Who ever heard of Champion-level Pokémon one-shotting legendary-level Pokémon?

Being able to severely damage it showed Tyranitar performed quite well.

Johan was surprised that Red's Poliwrath could counterattack so quickly after taking such a powerful Precipice Blades.

The surging water column shot forward. Mega Tyranitar couldn't dodge in time and took a direct hit.

Bang!!

"Tar..."

Surging water met dry sand, creating large clouds of steam.

"Poliwrath!" Red clenched his fist and shouted again.

But Johan moved faster, immediately taking out a Poké Ball to recall Tyranitar.

"You did excellently. Rest for now, Tyranitar."

After speaking to the Poké Ball, he quickly threw the next one.

Bang—

This time, Johan threw the Poké Ball very accurately, right in front of the staggering Poliwrath falling from the stone blade.

At least he was an aura user.

"Urshifu, Surging Strikes!"

"Garruu!!"

Urshifu leaped from the red light, stirring up water flow and unhesitatingly throwing punches at Poliwrath.

"Poliwrath, Close Combat!"

"Poli!"

The somewhat staggering Poliwrath faced Urshifu's incoming punches, immediately gritting its teeth and enduring the pain to throw punches back.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang—

Instantly—

Rapid-fire sounds of fist-to-fist, muscle-to-muscle collisions accompanied by constantly exploding dust spread throughout the canyon.

"Poli?"

The more they clashed, the more surprised Poliwrath became.

It discovered—

The opposing Urshifu might be inferior in raw strength, but far superior in fighting techniques!

Importantly, the opponent seemed to be sleeping?

"Urshifu, Wicked Blow!"

"Garruu!"

Urshifu's eyes suddenly opened. The previous Surging Strikes technique suddenly changed as it gathered power for a thunderous punch.

Poliwrath tried to dodge sideways but found Urshifu had suddenly changed fighting styles.

Boom!!

Unable to dodge in time, it took the punch directly to the face and flew backward.

"Poliwrath!!" Red cried out.

Suddenly changing fighting styles mid-battle was completely unexpected for an opponent in intense combat.

This was exactly what Johan wanted.

Although Red was strong—

He came from another world and knew virtually nothing about Johan and his Pokémon. Through Lance and Flint's battles with Red, plus the "Special" manga, Johan had gained considerable understanding of Red and his Pokémon.

This was the information gap.

In Pokémon battles, information gaps were crucial.

"Now, Urshifu!"

With a low roar, Urshifu shot forward, catching up to the flying Poliwrath.

"Poliwrath, Reversal!"

"Poli!"

Poliwrath's pained eyes suddenly opened. Seeing Urshifu's fist falling again, it suddenly grabbed Urshifu's arm.

Just as it prepared to exert force—

Urshifu struck first.

Boom!!

Urshifu directly pressed its palm against Poliwrath's head, forcibly pressing it to the ground.

Taking a slight breath—

Endless punches rained down frantically, afterimages making it seem like countless fists were unleashed.

The ground cracked in layers!

"Garruu!"

Stopping its punches, Urshifu stepped back, spreading its arms and roaring.

Its flowing mane was majestic and imposing.

Its aura—

Already showed signs of approaching legendary level!

Seeing this, both Johan and Red were surprised, unconsciously making eye contact as if reaching some understanding.

Red quickly made a decision.

Recalling Poliwrath, he threw another Poké Ball at his feet.

"Vee, Psychic Terrain!"

Espeon entered again!

Hum—

A field filled with strange power rapidly spread.

"Coach Bear!" Johan's eyes showed faint blue as his voice resonated in Urshifu's mind.

"Focus."

Hearing this, Urshifu nodded slightly, took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. When it opened its eyes again, they were calm, silently staring at Espeon.

"Wicked Blow!"

Psychic Terrain's deployment prevented Urshifu from using its previous tactics of quickly approaching Poliwrath with surprise attacks and Aqua Jet.

But the current Urshifu was wrapped in dense black light, seemingly ready to forcibly tear through Psychic Terrain and the psychic field Espeon had woven.

"Vee, Dazzling Gleam!"

"Espe!!"

Using their distance advantage, Espeon cried out loudly. Pink light exploded like a flashbulb, painfully blinding while attacking Urshifu's body.

Single Strike Urshifu was quadruple weak to Fairy!

But facing such intense light, Urshifu showed no retreat.

Gritting its teeth, it closed its eyes and spread aura power to replace vision, continuing toward Espeon.

Close combat was Urshifu's only chance.

"Vee, Reflect!" Seeing Urshifu's unwavering advance, Red changed strategy.

"Espe!"

A transparent barrier formed before Espeon.

At the same time—

Urshifu finally reached Espeon and threw a punch, immediately feeling Reflect's resistance.

"Garruu!!"

Urshifu closed its eyes, but with aura assistance, everything around was in its "sight."

Simultaneously, scenes of years of daily punching practice flashed through Urshifu's mind.

Surging Strikes or Single Strike—

Just one punch!

Urshifu's aura power suddenly exploded.

Crack crack crack—

The Reflect barrier continuously shattered under Urshifu's fist. As Espeon retreated while following Red's commands to use Dazzling Gleam again—

"Espe!!"

When Urshifu broke through Reflect, Dazzling Gleam's intense light shone again.

But Urshifu had locked onto Espeon firmly.

"Garruu—"

In the brilliant light, black light emerged like night swallowing sunlight.

"Espe?"

Espeon blinked and found Urshifu had appeared before it.

Looking down from above—

In fighting stance—

Everything seemed slow.

Yet everything seemed fast.

The ordinary-looking fist grew larger in Espeon's eyes.

"Vee!" Red's voice came, instantly snapping Espeon from its shock.

"Espe!!"

Dazzling Gleam's light became more blinding as "Everstone" power burst from Espeon!

Boom!!!

"Espe..."

Espeon grimaced, sliding on all fours and carving four furrows in the ground.

Gasping heavily, it endured severe pain while immediately looking warily at Urshifu, guarding against another attack.

That punch...

Had reached legendary level!

But seeing Urshifu standing there with closed eyes, Espeon was confused.

"Coach—cough, Urshifu is unable to battle, Roto!"

"Congratulations, Coach Bear." Johan recalled the unconscious Urshifu with a smile.

Though it lost—

It was worth it.

"Teacher Johan finally has a Pokémon defeated," Diantha sighed.

During the Master Tournament, Teacher Johan's pressure was really too intense...

Constantly threatening shutouts—who could handle that?

"Red is indeed very strong," Cynthia added seriously.

More than just strong...

Red might actually have a full legendary team!

Even more exaggerated than Teacher Johan.

"Next—" After putting away Urshifu's Poké Ball, Johan's finger quickly moved across the miniaturized Poké Balls at his waist.

He shared Cynthia's thoughts.

Red might really have full legendary team, while his side was still somewhat lacking.

Maybe he had established a slight advantage, but—

It wasn't enough.

So if he really wanted victory—

He needed to bring out some things early and catch Red off guard!

With this thought—

Johan withdrew his hand and called:

"Gengar!"

"Ka-kaah!!"

Ah-ha! Finally my shining debut!

Gengar immediately emerged from Johan's shadow.

Gengar?

Red raised an eyebrow.

The next second—

All of Red's hair stood on end.

He spun around.

Only to see—

The Gengar that had just entered was already behind him, grinning with its red tongue out, black claws resting on his shoulders.

"Ka-kah~"

Oh, quick reflexes~