I have added this story to my Patreon. You can support me and read the 50 latest and advanced chapters there. It also fed and motivate me to write more chapters!
Free Members will get 10 Chapters Ahead of the schedule on Patreon!!!
Link: Patreon.com/AVRKingsTL
—------------------—
Azure flames burned on Infernape once more. This time, forget Paul—even the Elite Four and Champion Steven couldn't understand this match at all.
Infernape's stamina was undoubtedly down to a sliver; it was at a level where even standing was difficult. Even if he had barely snapped out of being unable to battle through sheer willpower, it didn't mean Infernape could continue fighting.
It could only be said that not losing consciousness was already a great success.
But Infernape proved with actions that not only could he stand, he could even use a Fire-type ultimate move again: Flare Blitz!
Can't understand, totally can't understand.jpg!
The flaming Infernape stomped the ground and lunged forward, his body trailing a long streak of deep blue fire that set the field ablaze.
Only then did Paul snap back to his senses, then said coldly, "Don't be afraid. The opponent is just putting on a front. Use Fire Blast!"
Paul didn't believe the opponent would have the strength left to dodge Fire Blast while using Flare Blitz. A normal Infernape might be able to do it, but the current Infernape couldn't.
Magmortar aimed his twin barrels at Infernape. However, before he could charge his flames, Infernape's figure suddenly vanished from his sight. The next second, Magmortar felt an intense heat pressing down from above!
"Boom!!" Infernape, having flickered above Magmortar, slammed into him with a heavy Tackle. The power of Flare Blitz was poured into Magmortar's body without reservation. Even as a fellow Fire-type Pokémon, Magmortar couldn't quite handle being scorched by flames of this temperature.
The situation now could be said to have completely reversed from a few minutes ago.
Before evolving into Infernape, Monferno—as a Fire-type Pokémon—had also been badly hurt by Magmortar's flames. That was because Magmortar's flames were overwhelmingly powerful in terms of temperature, exceeding Monferno's fire resistance, thus causing massive damage.
It was the same now. After Infernape stacked the power of the Super Blazefire Ability with Flare Blitz, the temperature of the move had reached an incomprehensible level. So even the heat-resistant Magmortar felt an extremely intense heat, even his skin felt scorched.
To make a Fire-type Pokémon feel this way, one could imagine just how strong the power and temperature of Infernape's Flare Blitz were.
"Boom!!"
A massive explosion rang out on the field. An azure figure flew out of the smoke, landing steadily on the ground after tumbling several times in the air.
This was Infernape using the recoil of Flare Blitz to propel himself away, avoiding being grabbed directly by Magmortar.
But at the same time, the moment Infernape landed, a visible electric current flickered across his body. This was a manifestation of the Flare Blitz recoil.
Paul ignored the Magmortar in the smoke and stared intently at Infernape. Although the opponent's speed was beyond his expectations—hitting Magmortar with Flare Blitz before Fire Blast could even be launched—the recoil damage to Infernape was inevitable.
With Infernape's stamina, after taking the recoil from a Flare Blitz of that power, he should have collapsed by now, right?
However, when the electricity coursed through Infernape's body, he only dropped to one knee before slowly standing up again under everyone's shocked gazes.
Now, even the spectators cheering for Infernape were a bit dazed. Some who understood Pokémon battles even started cursing in disbelief.
"Wait, is this guy freaking hacking?!"
"Beaten like that, then using Flare Blitz twice in a row, and he can still stand?!"
"So you have infinite stamina or what?"
In the special spectator seats, Lance rubbed his brow, looking puzzled as he said, "What kind of freak is Ash's Infernape? Does he not take recoil damage from Flare Blitz? But that's not right either; the pain on Infernape's face just now proved that the recoil damage was real."
Lorelei also shook her head in confusion. "I don't know. I'm an Ice-type user."
Bruno shook his head as well. "I don't know. I'm a Fighting-type user."
Steven rolled his eyes. If you don't know, you don't know; no need to emphasize the reason like that. Am I supposed to say I'm a Steel-type user, so I don't know why Infernape can still stand?
"Ash's Infernape is a bit different from normal ones. I think the issue might lie with that erupting Blaze before he evolved. Although those flames seem to have disappeared after evolution, I can feel the power of those flames when he uses Flare Blitz," Steven analyzed seriously.
Unlike those goofy guys, he actually wanted to know why Infernape hadn't fallen after using Flare Blitz so many times.
After thinking for a while, he could only guess it might be related to Infernape's Blaze. With the boost from the Blaze combined with his intense willpower, Infernape achieved an effect similar to Endure.
Although Infernape looked like a flickering candle in the wind, he had actually unleashed countless attacks in this state, and he was even using a recoil move like Flare Blitz. It was simply incredible.
If one word were to explain this phenomenon, it would probably be 'miracle.' And what creates miracles is the bond between human and Pokémon.
But then again, how long had Ash and Infernape been together? Could their bond reach such a level? Therefore, Steven was more inclined to believe it was the effect of Infernape's Super Blazefire Ability.
Lance and the others also thought it made sense. The most mysterious thing about this Infernape was his Blaze. Perhaps besides increasing power, this Blaze had other effects?
As for the actual situation... it could only be said that Lance and the others were half right.
Infernape being able to hold on until now was indeed related to his Blaze, but it was mostly due to the power support provided by Ash.
Though Infernape's will was strong, if his stamina were completely exhausted, it would be impossible to muster even a sliver of strength.
The reason he could still move and even use Flare Blitz was entirely due to the power provided by Ash's Aura Fusion. With his body nearing its limit, Infernape used his own will to adopt a desperate fighting style.
As long as his will remained, combined with the Super Blazefire Ability's boost to his body, Ash could preserve that last sliver of stamina for him. He could fight until his body completely collapsed!
But in other words, when Infernape becomes unable to fight, it means not just his stamina, but perhaps even his life will become precarious, and he might even die!
This was already like fighting at the cost of his life, and such a thing wasn't something a normal Pokémon could do.
What is called a Pokémon being 'unable to battle' is generally when the body suffers a blow so severe that its functions trigger self-protection and enter a coma. This preserves as much life force as possible and prevents damage to life itself.
Infernape's approach was to forcibly use his will to turn off the body's self-protection switch. Additionally, the Super Blazefire Ability burned hotter the more critical Infernape's condition became, and along with the power for action provided by Ash, this allowed Infernape to stand until now.
Even the Elite Four didn't notice that Infernape's second Flare Blitz was actually more powerful than the first!
This was the boost brought by the Super Blazefire Ability: the more critical his life was, the hotter it burned, like the brilliant moment of a firework's explosion.
However, the consequences following the brilliance of a firework's explosion go without saying.
Under normal circumstances, Ash would never let Infernape do this. Just as Paul thought, he wasn't the type of person to force a Pokémon to fight when it was exhausted.
But this was Infernape's own will. After the Aura Fusion, Ash and Infernape were almost of one mind. Ash knew better than anyone how much he wanted to win this battle.
Even if he had to burn himself out completely, he would dedicate everything to this battle. Thus, Ash responded to Infernape's feelings.
"If you want to risk your life, then I'll risk mine with you!"
As long as Infernape's body didn't completely collapse, Ash could back him up. With Viridian Power, Venusaur's life energy, the rainbow wing's power of Nirvana, and Mewtwo being there...
With these safety nets, it would be hard for Infernape to die even if he wanted to. This was why Ash went along with Infernape's recklessness.
Seeing Infernape stand up once more, even Paul's expression became very grim. He had known since Infernape was a Chimchar that this was a very stubborn and strong-willed monkey.
No matter what training or pressure he put him under, Chimchar could Endure it. Not being able to improve his strength or lacking talent was one thing, but in terms of will, if Chimchar was second, Paul felt no Pokémon could claim to be first.
But the will Infernape was showing now was a bit too exaggerated. This wasn't just willpower anymore, right? It felt like he was using a cheat, becoming a perpetual motion machine that would never fall.
"Encore, use Flare Blitz!"
As Ash's voice fell, Infernape was once again covered in azure flames. Paul and Magmortar were already somewhat numb; this guy used Flare Blitz like it was a joke.
It looked like he'd take recoil, it looked like he'd fall with a touch, but in reality, it was all a lie!
"Magmortar, Scorching Sands!" Scorching Sands, a Ground-type move, uses Fire-type power to generate hot sand to attack the opponent. So even though it was a Ground-type move, Magmortar's execution speed wasn't slow.
Hot sand appeared around Magmortar, then shot out like bullets.
This time, Infernape didn't dodge. Instead, he let the flame on his head burn even hotter. The blue flames enveloping his body even showed signs of turning black.
The covering hot sand melted instantly upon touching the Flare Blitz. The next second, Infernape, carrying flames that seemed capable of burning even space, arrived before Magmortar. Under Magmortar's slightly terrified expression, Infernape slammed into him hard!
"Boom!!" A blue pillar of fire soared into the sky, hitting the protective barrier above before suddenly spreading out.
For a moment, blue flames filled the entire field. The surrounding barriers tightly confined all the flames within. The whole field turned blue; the spectators outside, and even Paul, couldn't see what was happening inside.
Perhaps in the whole arena, only Ash knew what the situation inside was like.
As the flames slowly dissipated, Infernape's figure stood behind Magmortar. An electric current coursed through him, but this time, Infernape didn't even drop to his knees. His body only trembled, he bent slightly at the waist, and then quickly returned to normal.
On the contrary, Magmortar slowly turned around, his gaze toward Infernape full of complexity. And that was his last look at Infernape.
"Boom!!"
Magmortar collapsed with a thud. The surroundings became silent. The spectators supporting Paul seemed to have been struck dumb, unable to say a word. But the spectators supporting Ash, after a brief silence, erupted into cheers that shook the entire arena.
Even they never imagined that Infernape could win this duel. Despite countless times when Infernape had clearly been knocked down by the opponent, the Pokémon standing at the end was actually Infernape.
"You call this a flickering candle in the wind? This remaining fire of yours is made of freaking Sacred Fire, isn't it? The kind that simply can't be blown out!"
"Magmortar is unable to battle! Infernape wins!" The referee also felt it was incredible, but as a professional referee, he immediately declared Infernape's victory.
With the referee's announcement, the string that had been kept tight in Infernape finally snapped, followed by an endless sense of exhaustion.
Pain and exhaustion from all over his body flooded his brain, making Infernape almost lose the strength to stand. Even with Ash's Aura support, now that Infernape's tense nerves had relaxed, his willpower could no longer support him to continue fighting or even stand.
"Good job, Infernape. Come back." Ash didn't even have much time to be happy; he hurriedly took out a Poké Ball to recall Infernape. Given Infernape's current state, he needed to quickly use Viridian Power to stabilize him.
He would let Venusaur help Infernape recover properly after the battle was over.
"You did great. I'll leave the rest to your partners," Ash encouraged the Infernape inside the Poké Ball, then turned his gaze toward the now-calm Paul.