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For his fourth Pokémon, Paul sent out the Aggron that had appeared earlier. So far, Paul had revealed five Pokémon; except for the last one which remained a mystery, Ash had a general grasp of the combat strength of the others.
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Aggron is a Steel and Rock-type. Its Rock typing has a fourfold super-effective effect against Charizard, and because of its Rock typing, Charizard's flames aren't super-effective against Aggron. Overall, it could be called a total defeat in terms of type advantage.
But Ash didn't really care about such things. So what if the types were reversed? Had he not fought and won against type disadvantages plenty of times before?
"Charizard, keep fighting!"
"Roar!!"
"Very well, use Flamethrower!" Ash waved his hand, ordering Charizard to use Flamethrower as a feint.
Charizard flapped its wings and flew into the air, took a deep breath, and then suddenly erupted. A scorching pillar of fire streaked across the sky, heading straight for Aggron. The burning flames, combined with the Sunny Day high in the sky, made the audience feel a wave of intense heat.
This was heat passing through the barrier; one could only imagine how exaggerated the temperature on the field actually was.
"Rock Blast." Paul chose to respond with a Rock-type move. Fire-type moves are naturally at a disadvantage against Rock-type moves, but Charizard's flames—
"Boom!!" Rocks slammed into the pillar of fire falling from the sky, but they were completely melted in the blink of an eye. The subsequent rocks were also melted one after another by the Flamethrower. In the end, Aggron's five rocks were all launched, but they only slightly weakened the power of the flames.
Aggron, with its massive weight and having just finished a move, couldn't possibly dodge the Flamethrower. Crimson flames completely engulfed Aggron, and a pained wail echoed from within the fire.
As the flames slowly dissipated, Aggron's figure was revealed. Its steel armor had turned a charred black, looking as if it were not far from melting.
While Aggron itself hadn't lost its ability to battle yet, its panting and weakened state showed that it had taken considerable damage.
"Fire Blast!" Seeing that Aggron could still fight, Ash unhesitatingly had Charizard use the ultimate Fire-type move, Fire Blast!
The launch speed and time of Fire Blast are slower than Flamethrower, but in Aggron's current state, moving to dodge was basically impossible.
Not to mention now, even at full health, Aggron's chances of dodging Fire Blast were next to none. After all, with its slow speed, what attack could it possibly dodge?
It is extremely difficult for a Pokémon to balance speed with a massive build; at least Paul's Aggron couldn't do it.
"Head Smash." Paul's expression remained calm, showing no signs of panic or frustration despite Aggron being heavily damaged. It seemed he had anticipated this scene long ago.
The move he used also indicated he intended for Aggron to make one final, desperate attack. Head Smash is one of the most powerful Rock-type moves, with power equivalent to ultimate moves like Blast Burn and Frenzy Plant.
However, compared to those moves, this one doesn't leave the user immobilized; it just causes recoil damage equal to half the damage dealt, which is higher than other recoil moves like Flare Blitz.
But Aggron's ability is Rock Head, so it wouldn't be affected by the recoil. However, Head Smash is a move where the body is used as a weapon, so regardless of whether it hits the opponent or not, it would inevitably be hit by the Fire Blast.
That's why it's said that Paul's attack this time was a desperate gamble—all or nothing.
Massive Rock-type energy covered Aggron's body, turning it a grayish-brown. The surrounding ground cracked due to the energy overflowing from Aggron's body, with spiderweb-like fissures spreading across the floor as if the entire field were about to be shattered.
"Roar!!"
"Aggron!!"
Both sides unleashed their moves simultaneously. The crimson flames formed the character for "Great" in the sky, and the space even became distorted due to the terrifying temperature.
Aggron also kicked off the ground, suddenly leaping up and charging head-on into the Fire Blast!
"Boom!!!"
Amidst the deafening roar, the crimson flame character and the grayish-brown rock energy collided violently in mid-air. The heat of the fire instantly swallowed Aggron's figure, the air sizzled from the burning, and distorted heat waves swept out in all directions. The barrier firmly kept the spreading heat waves within the field; otherwise, the entire Indigo Stadium would have been set ablaze!
Aggron's Head Smash erupted with incredible piercing power, forcing a gap through the flames with its rock energy. Its massive body, shrouded in rubble, continued to charge while enduring the searing pain of the burns.
But the power of the Fire Blast exceeded expectations. The flames clung to its rock shell like maggots on a bone. The once-hard armor began to develop fine cracks under the high temperature, and the already charred armor actually began to melt. Wisps of black smoke rose from the gaps. Had it not been for its Rock typing supporting it, Aggron might have been melted right then and there.
"Aggron—!"
Aggron let out a roar of pain, its limbs trembling slightly as they failed to withstand the encroachment of the flames, but its eyes still burned with desperate determination.
It showed through its actions what "willpower as hard as rock" meant. But unfortunately, some things cannot be achieved by willpower alone. Even if one's will is as strong as Infernape's, in the face of an absolute gap in strength, it likely would have fallen long ago if not for "cheating."
And Aggron didn't have a "cheat." Its will was strong, but that was as far as it went.
"Boom—!"
With another loud crash, Aggron slammed heavily onto the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust. As the flames gradually faded, its body lay limp on the ground, its rock shell covered in cracks, with some areas even melted and emitting wisps of black smoke.
It tried to prop itself up, but as soon as it lifted its front limbs, they fell back down powerlessly. A faint whimper came from its throat, and its eyes slowly closed.
The field fell into a brief silence, with only the residual heat from the fire and the lingering smoke. The referee raised a flag and announced loudly: "Aggron is unable to battle! Charizard wins!"
After the silence came deafening cheers. At this point, Paul had lost four Pokémon, with only two remaining.
Although Paul still had his ace, Torterra, unused, Torterra was completely countered by Ash's Venusaur. Combined with Charizard's fierce performance, which one of them could Torterra possibly beat?
So the result of this match was basically set in stone.
Paul expressionlessly recalled Aggron and then took out his next Poké Ball: "Torterra, prepare for battle."
To everyone's surprise, Paul's fifth Pokémon was Torterra. Charizard's performance just now was not something an ordinary Fire-type Pokémon could match. Sending out Torterra now—wasn't that just seeking its own destruction?
However, once Torterra took the field, the blazing sun hanging high in the sky also began to fade. Sunny Day had ended.
Without the boost from Sunny Day, Charizard's flames certainly wouldn't be as strong, but the situation was still unfavorable for Torterra.
But just then, Ash pointed a Poké Ball at Charizard: "Come back, Charizard."
"You did great, thanks for your hard work." After comforting the Charizard in the Poké Ball, Ash took out another Poké Ball.
"I choose you, Venusaur!" Facing Torterra, Ash once again brought out Venusaur!
Paul's cold face showed no emotion; this result was entirely within his calculations. Having watched so many of Ash's matches and fought this round against him, he had thoroughly understood Ash's personality.
Although he couldn't predict the power of Ash's Pokémon at all, he could still anticipate which Pokémon Ash would use from his known roster when facing Torterra.
Although the situation was also quite unfavorable against Venusaur, it was still better than facing Charizard.
"It seems Paul already anticipated that against Torterra, Ash would definitely send out Venusaur to battle. That's why he chose to send out Torterra when facing Charizard," Brock said with a thoughtful expression from the stands.
The opponent had only been in contact with Ash for such a short time and yet had grasped Ash's personality so thoroughly. While this was partly because Ash was indeed simple and easy to understand, one couldn't deny the opponent's strength as a Trainer.
If Paul were facing any Trainer other than Ash, the Indigo Plateau Conference championship might already be in his pocket.
Unfortunately—wait, unfortunately my foot! Ash winning the championship is what they were hoping for!
"Venusaur, let's take them down this time!"
"Saur!" A fire called fighting spirit burned in Venusaur's eyes. In the last match, the opponent ran away halfway through; they couldn't run away again this time!
"Torterra, use Light Screen." This time, Paul didn't rush to attack but chose to set up a screen. Venusaur was definitely not an opponent that could be dealt with easily. To win, he had to be prepared for a battle of attrition, so setting up a screen to reduce damage was necessary.
"Frenzy Plant!" Ignoring the opponent's screen-setting, Ash directly had Venusaur use its ultimate move. Forget all the fancy stuff, take a Frenzy Plant first!
"Saur!" Venusaur stamped its feet, and countless thorny green plants instantly appeared beneath the already battered field. The thick green plants turned into straight blades, thrusting towards Torterra!
Just before Frenzy Plant could hit Torterra, Torterra finally managed to set up the Light Screen. It was clear that Torterra wasn't very familiar with this move; it had learned it, but wasn't proficient at all.
However, using it in an actual battle wasn't a problem.
"Bang!!" Frenzy Plant hit the transparent wall. The strong resistance caused Frenzy Plant to stall for a moment, but then it pierced through the wall, though its force had been reduced by nearly half.
"Bang bang bang!!" Frenzy Plant hit Torterra repeatedly. A look of pain appeared on Torterra's face. Even with the power halved, Venusaur's attack power was no joke. Plus, since it was a grass-type ultimate move, the damage was still considerable even with Light Screen.
"Zen Headbutt!" Paul's eyes narrowed slightly. The moment Frenzy Plant retracted, he chose to retaliate. psychic-type moves are super-effective against Venusaur, though Torterra didn't have a good grasp of this non-STAB move, as could be seen from the Light Screen earlier.
But now that Venusaur had used Frenzy Plant, its entire body was in a state of immobilization. Even using the relatively slow-to-start Zen Headbutt, it could still accurately hit the opponent.
"Torterra!" A deep blue energy appeared on Torterra's head, covering it and making its head look like a hammer. Then, Torterra moved its four limbs and quickly charged towards Venusaur.
"Dodge it and use Body Slam!"
Dodge it? Was he out of his mind? How could a Venusaur that had used Frenzy Plant dodge?
Hearing Ash's command, everyone, including Paul, felt that Ash must have forgotten that Venusaur had just used Frenzy Plant. Although Frenzy Plant is powerful, it has the side effect of being unable to move for a short period.
Even for Champion-level Pokémon, they can only minimize this immobilization infinitely, but they cannot completely eliminate it.
Could it be that Ash's Venusaur could do something even Champion-level Pokémon couldn't?
Then, Venusaur suddenly Splashed in front of everyone, its leap so high it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it flew, leaving the audience with their mouths wide open.
This is possible too?!
Torterra's charge missed because of Venusaur's leap, and just as Venusaur reached its peak, all its body's power quickly converted into a downward plunge, falling with a force intended to crush Torterra—Body Slam!
"Boom!!"
A heavy sound rang out on the field, and the powerful shockwave sent dust flying everywhere. Torterra's entire body was pinned down by Venusaur. What was pressing down on Torterra was not just Venusaur's weight, but also the force of Body Slam. Thus, even though Torterra struggled with all its might, it couldn't break free from Venusaur's suppression.
"Use Frenzy Plant just like that!" Even with Light Screen present, Ash still chose to use Frenzy Plant. After all—why not use an ultimate move with no side effects?
Dozens more thorny green plants emerged from the ground, tightly binding the Torterra pinned beneath Venusaur. A transparent barrier appeared around Torterra, but it could only block Frenzy Plant for a brief moment before being pierced through like a paper window.
Frenzy Plant wrapped around Torterra's body, its thorns stabbing deeply into Torterra's flesh. A continuous flow of grass-type energy poured in through the thorns, and Torterra let out a pained wail—