"Directions…?" The Elite Student froze for a moment, her sharp mind suddenly short-circuited.
A Trainer who'd supposedly only been traveling for less than a month… had just beaten an Elite Four-level AI?
That was something academy students struggled toward for years, sometimes over a decade!
And now, some rookie kid who just wandered in claimed he did it?
What kind of international joke was this?! No way she'd admit it! If his claim was true, what did that make them? A bunch of useless nobodies?
"You must be a top student from another academy here on an exchange, right?" she pressed, forcing a smile. "Even if you're going to make excuses, at least try something believable. A 'Trainer who just started traveling less than a month ago'? Do you think I'd actually fall for that?"
Ash frowned, his voice edged with irritation. "I already told you, I'm just a rookie! And it was a simulation battle. You don't actually think that strategy would work against a real Elite, do you? If I tried the same lineup against the real Karen, I'd get crushed."
Ash was crystal clear: simulations were simulations, reality was reality. He had only used a gimmick strategy he'd learned from Tactician Ash in the group chat. It worked here because the AI had predictable patterns.
But against a real Elite? Not a chance.
Did anyone seriously believe a Level 1 Pokémon's Sturdy could hold out against an Elite's full-powered attack in reality? Did anyone really think Endeavor from a rookie-level Pokémon would land clean on an Elite's partner?
That's why Tactician Ash had called the setup a "circus act." It looked flashy, sure, and it could annoy other players online, but try it in a real battle and reality would smack you in the face.
So while Ash had cleared the AI, he wasn't proud, just amused. For him, it was fun, nothing more.
But this so-called Elite Student wouldn't let it go. She was obsessed with his win, convinced he was some prodigy hiding his true identity.
He sighed, whispering to Brock and Misty, "She's pretty, but I think something's wrong with her brain."
Brock and Misty: 'Ash, you know people can still hear you even if you whisper, right?'
"What did you just say?!" the girl snapped, her cheeks flushing. "How rude! I believe you now, you're definitely not from any prestigious academy. A proper school could never produce someone as vulgar as you!"
Ash's eyebrow twitched. "You're the one who started pestering me! I've already said it, real battles and computer sims aren't the same, but you keep pushing me!"
"Fine then!" the girl shot back, fire in her eyes. "If you insist, we'll settle this the old-fashioned way! Let me show you that what's written in textbooks is absolute!"
...
A short while later, at the academy's outdoor training ground.
Students crowded around the battlefield, buzzing with excitement.
In the center, Ash and the Elite Student stood face to face, their eyes locked, sparks practically flying between them.
Brock and Misty exchanged uneasy glances. They had only come here to ask for directions, yet somehow Ash had ended up facing off against the academy's top junior student.
Still, the way the students here carried themselves rubbed them the wrong way. Even Joe, who admitted he was near the bottom of the class, spoke as if he could completely dismiss the Cerulean Gym.
Heh. Even if Cerulean really was considered the "weakest Gym," it was still a Gym!
If someone like Joe could talk down to Misty, then what about the others? Especially this so-called "top student."
These academy kids seemed to treat simulation battles and whatever was written in their textbooks as if it were absolute truth. Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad thing for Ash to battle her, just to shake her out of that mindset.
"Don't say I'm picking on you just because you're a girl. I'll let my partner battle first… You're up, Ralts!" Ash called, pointing toward the field.
Ralts chirped happily, then with a flicker of light Teleported from Ash's shoulder straight to the center of the battlefield.
Her sudden appearance drew gasps from the gathered students, not because they recognized her, but because she was just that adorable.
"Ralts… a Pokémon from the Hoenn region? But it looks different from the one in my textbooks…" the top student murmured, narrowing her eyes.
Unlike the younger students, she had studied Pokémon from Hoenn and even Sinnoh, not just Kanto species. So she knew what a Ralts was, but Ash's Ralts seemed unusual, subtly different from the book illustrations.
"A Psychic and Fairy type, then. In that case, I'll use this one!" she declared, plucking a Poké Ball from a rack nearby and tossing it onto the field. A swirl of misty gas materialized into the shape of a mischievous Ghost.
"Gastly!"
Ash frowned. "Wait, that's not your own Pokémon, is it?"
"That's right," the girl replied with a smug smile. "These are academy battle Pokémon. Even though I haven't raised them personally, I know all of their strengths and weaknesses. Gastly, being Ghost and Poison type, is the perfect counter to your Ralts! You didn't think I wouldn't recognize a Hoenn Pokémon, did you? This is the difference textbooks make."
Her tone dripped with pride.
Ash gritted his teeth. "Textbooks, textbooks… you're really starting to get on my nerves. Fine! I'll show you something you won't find in any textbook!"
Under the guidance of so many mentors, Ash had come to respect the value of knowledge. He knew that becoming a true Pokémon Master meant combining travel, experience, and study. But people who treated textbooks like the be-all and end-all really irritated him.
After all, wasn't the fun of Pokémon battles about unpredictability, finding unexpected ways to win? Who just followed the book word for word?
"Go, Ralts! Aura is in my heart!"
"Ralts!"
Ash's eyes glowed faintly blue, and Ralts's hair lifted as though stirred by a phantom wind. Her bright eyes shimmered with the same light, the two of them glowing in unison.
Aura Fusion.
Not every Pokémon could enter this state. Up until now, only Pikachu had managed it with Ash.
Yet Ralts had been able to synchronize with him from the very beginning, her bond even stronger than Pikachu's.
It was because Aura Fusion depended on one thing above all else: synchronicity. Some called it trust, or even "heart."
With Pikachu, their bond had skyrocketed after their head-on clash at the start of their journey. They had literally understood each other through battle.
Pidgeotto and Butterfree hadn't reached that level yet, perhaps because they hadn't fought side by side in the same raw, up-close way.
But Ralts? From the moment she hatched and recognized Ash, she had trusted him completely. That bond had been there since the very beginning.
Aura Fusion could comprehensively enhance a Pokémon's abilities, almost like indirectly raising its level. Still, with Ralts's current strength, she couldn't handle too much of Ash's Aura.
But since Gastly was only high-tier as well, that boost was more than enough.
And Aura Fusion wasn't just about raising stats…
"So cute!"
Ash, about to give his first command, stumbled at Elite Student's sudden outburst. Gastly wobbled in midair, clearly offended.
What the heck?! Who starts a battle and then blurts out that? You'll hurt your Pokémon's feelings, idiot!
Gastly gave its Trainer a betrayed look, but Elite Student's eyes stayed locked on Ralts, sparkling with unrestrained delight.
Ralts's floating hair revealed more of her delicate face than usual, and for the first time everyone saw her wide, shining eyes. It was like Cupid's arrow had struck the entire class at once.
How could a Pokémon be this cute?!
"Hey! We're still battling!" Ash snapped.
"Sorry," Elite Student covered her mouth with a laugh. "I didn't expect her to look so different with her hair lifted. Textbooks only show her usual appearance, but this… this is something you can't learn from books."
Ash's mouth twitched. "I wasn't telling you to admire her looks! Ralts, show her what you can really do, use Thunder Punch!"
Elite Student froze. "Thunder Punch? From that Ralts?"
She glanced at Ralts's tiny arms and nearly laughed. Psychic-types were terrible at physical attacks, and Thunder Punch was way out of Ralts's league. No way.
"Zzzzt!!"
Before she could finish her thought, golden electricity crackled around Ralts's small fist. With a flash, Ralts vanished, reappearing in front of Gastly faster than the eye could follow, and,
CRACK!
Her Thunder Punch landed clean, slamming Gastly out of the air and driving it into the floor with a booming impact.
Dust flew. Elite Student stood frozen, jaw slack.
No… way.
Not only could this little thing use Thunder Punch, but it hit like a truck. Psychic-types weren't supposed to be this physically strong. What was this, some kind of violent little fairy?
"Now! Confusion!" Ash shouted, striking while the iron was hot.
Blue light flared in Ralts's eyes. Gastly was yanked back into the air like a ragdoll, then slammed left, right, down, up, six brutal impacts in a row echoed across the training field.
"Thump! Thump! Thump!"
Each slam drew gasps from the crowd. Ralts herself hovered serenely in midair, her hands glowing as she toyed with Gastly like it was nothing.
Finally, Ash raised his hand. "That's enough."
Ralts's eyes dimmed, and Gastly dropped to the ground with a dull thud, Aura completely faded. The outcome was clear.
Gently, Ralts set Gastly in front of Elite Student, then floated back toward Ash. She spread her tiny arms, smiling brightly: "Ralts, Ralts~~"
'Did I do well, Ash~~?'
"You were amazing, Ralts. Look, everyone's stunned." Ash picked her up and turned so she could see the crowd.
Sure enough, every student, even Brock and Misty, stood with mouths hanging open.
This adorable little Ralts had just turned into a terrifying battle monster.
Ash had hidden another trump card.
Brock and Misty exchanged the same thought. First he'd hidden Aura Sphere against Brock. Then Electric Acceleration against Misty. And now… this! A violent little Ralts!
Who was teaching him to keep so many secrets?!
"How did you do that? Has your Ralts already reached the advanced level?" Elite Student asked at last, silently recalling her fainted Gastly.
Ash shook his head. "She's the same level as your Gastly."
"The same…? You can actually see her level?"
"Why wouldn't I be able to?" Ash replied casually.
"That's impossible. Without special equipment, only someone at least Gym Leader level could tell that just by looking!" she insisted, her voice rising.
Ash crossed his arms, eyes firm. "That's why you shouldn't treat textbooks as absolute. Traveling and battling teach things you can't learn here. I've only been on the road for a month, but this is what experience gives you."
...
10 Bonus Chapter if we can hit @500 PS this week
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