When the match ended, the two Trainers stepped forward to shake hands. Ash took Ayame's hand with a smile.
"That was a really interesting battle. I hope we get to fight again someday."
"Can you tell me how your Monferno learned that footwork?"
"Footwork?" Ash blinked, then understood. "Oh, you mean how it dodged your Bellsprout's Razor Leaf mid-fight. It learned that from your Bellsprout. I have to say, your Bellsprout is amazing. If it had faced anyone but me today, even an trainer might have lost."
He meant it.
Monferno had looked like it won comfortably, but that was only because Ash had supported it with Aura. Aura did not simply raise Monferno's raw strength. It also sharpened perception to an extreme degree.
A power boost was only half of it.
With Aura, Ash could sense the tiniest shifts in posture, breathing, and weight distribution. Against an evasive specialist, that advantage was enormous.
If you dodge at the instant you sense my strike, my Aura senses your dodge, and I can adjust to the place you are about to move. That kind of reading hard-countered Bellsprout's style.
That was why Monferno could be "toyed with" early on and still not truly collapse. Only that sudden Heel Kick had caught it off-guard and nearly turned dangerous, but it held on.
Once Ash had fully recorded Bellsprout's movement patterns through Aura, Monferno could replicate them.
It was Aura that allowed the learning to happen so quickly, but Monferno's talent mattered too. Even with perfect memory, a body that could not keep up would never reproduce the steps.
As for Bellsprout's soft-neutralizing technique, it was a different story. That was not something Aura could master in a single match, and even if it could, the technique did not suit Monferno's fighting style. It was a defensive counter, while Monferno's nature leaned toward offense.
Once Ash had understood how to break through it, he chose the simplest answer: attack cleanly and end the match.
So the fight ended not because Monferno slowly solved every puzzle, but because Ash decided it was time to close it out.
No matter how exquisite Bellsprout's skill was, how could it outdo a Trainer who could read the whole field with Aura?
Across from him, Ayame's delicate expression tightened.
"I'm glad I battled you," Ayame said at last. She squeezed his hand firmly, then flicked her hair and turned toward the players' bench. "I learned a lot today. To think a Pokémon genius like yours exists, and the Trainer who drew it out is incredible too. I look forward to our next fight."
From Ayame's side of the stands rose a wave of wailing. Some fans even demanded an immediate rematch, an absurd request that was denied on the spot.
It was Ash's first taste of truly fanatical devotion.
He had thought his own supporters, and even the Elite Four's, were intense. Clearly, there was always a bigger mountain.
After the match, Ash rejoined his friends in the stands.
Brock stared at him with jealous resentment. Misty's gaze was frosty. Gary looked like he was enjoying himself far too much.
Ash and Pikachu exchanged a quick look. Scratching his head, Ash asked, "What's wrong? Why are you all looking at me like that?"
"Heh-heh. Ash, you lucky devil," Gary drawled. The tone made Ash's skin crawl.
"What do you mean, lucky? Stop talking nonsense."
"Still pretending?" Brock exploded. "I saw everything. Why else would you keep holding Ayame's hand? And when she left she gave you the sweetest smile! Curse you, I should never have cheered for you!"
Brock looked like he might chew through his sleeve out of pure heartbreak.
Misty said nothing. She only stared with faint reproach, which somehow felt worse.
Ash rolled his eyes. "All I did was talk strategy with her. You're imagining things."
"Tsk. Believe what you want. I trust my eyes," Gary added, clearly enjoying the chaos.
Ash's eyebrow twitched. Romance might fly over his head, but being teased in front of Misty still annoyed him.
He shot back, "Ready for your afternoon match? Don't blame me if you crash out in the top sixty-four!"
Gary's face stiffened. "I… I'll win, thank you very much!"
Amid the bickering, they left the arena.
From the VIP box, Leon and the others watched Ash depart. Every day he surprised them, and they were eager to see what he would reveal next.
So far, only one of Ash's earlier "stars" had appeared: Pikachu. And even then, it had shown nowhere near its full power.
Aerodactyl and Gengar were also worth watching. Would anyone force Ash to reveal his true strength?
That afternoon, on the Rock Field, Gary directed his Blastoise with a grim expression as it faced his opponent's Nidoking.
Blastoise had climbed all the way to High-peak through these rounds. There was no telling when it might break through to next Elite- Champion level, but for now its strength already ranked among the very best at the Indigo Plateau Conference.
Gary's opponent in this round was no slouch either.
The man commanded a formidable lineup: Nidoking, Golem, and Onix. Two were at High-Peak, and one at High Level.
Even Gary had to admit that, purely in terms of Pokémon, his opponent held the edge.
Yet Blastoise perfectly countered the opposing team.
After a brutal two-for-one exchange, Gary sent Blastoise onto the field to finish off the opponent's Golem. Now only one Pokémon remained on each side. The final clash would decide who advanced to the Top 32.
"Now! Nidoking, use Stone Edge!" Gary's opponent, Conway, shouted.
Nidoking roared and slammed its fist into the ground. Dozens of razor-sharp stone blades erupted upward, surging straight toward Blastoise.
"Withdraw into your shell, then fire Hydro Pump!" Gary shouted at the same instant.
It was a gamble.
"Blast!"
Blastoise pulled its head and limbs completely into its shell. Jagged stone blades smashed into the carapace from below, detonating with terrifying force.
The impact blasted Blastoise into the air. Cracks even spread across the surface of its shell.
Gary clenched his fists, his expression tense. Blastoise had already taken heavy damage earlier in the match, and Stone Edge was a Rock-type finisher. Tanking it head-on was a massive risk.
Then, Blastoise suddenly extended its limbs midair, twisting its body with astonishing control. Twin cannons on its back locked onto Nidoking below.
A roaring torrent exploded forth.
"BOOM!!"
Fresh from unleashing Stone Edge, Nidoking had neither the time nor space to dodge. The twin Hydro Pumps struck dead-on, two barrel-thick columns of water slamming into its body like invisible siege hammers.
A half-meter wave burst outward, washing away shattered stone debris. Even the front-row railings were drenched, and nearby spectators recoiled instinctively.
Nidoking howled as it was hurled backward, its body crashing into the arena's rock wall.
"CRASH!"
The wall shattered. Nidoking tumbled across the field and finally lay still, unmoving.
"Nidoking! Nidoking!" Conway shouted desperately.
There was no response.
After a brief pause, the referee raised his flag.
"Nidoking is unable to battle. Blastoise wins! The winner of Round Four is Trainer Gary!"
Gary had advanced to the Top 32.
With that, both Trainers from Pallet Town secured their spots in the Top 32. Four had originally set out; the other two, barely noticed, had never even earned eight Badges. They started smoothly, only to hit a wall midway.
Ash and Gary's growth had been exponential, allowing them to handle increasingly difficult Gym challenges as their Badge count rose. When progress outpaces strength, a single Gym can halt a Trainer for months.
There simply hadn't been enough time, half a year was barely sufficient for both Badge collection and power growth unless one was a true prodigy.
Only Ash and Gary made it to the Indigo Plateau Conference.
And even that was already an incredible outcome.
That evening, Professor Oak and Delia arrived at Indigo Plateau to celebrate. Delia prepared a full feast, proudly showing off her cooking skills.
Ash and Brock helped on the side.
They drank cola, laughed, and celebrated late into the night. Oak and Delia stayed over; there was no sense driving back so late.
Ash's room had bunk beds. Delia took the lower bunk, while Ash slipped out quietly around midnight.
On a cliff overlooking the Indigo Plateau, Ash sat beneath a crescent moon with Pikachu beside him.
"Pikachu… we're in the Top 64 now."
"Pika-pi~"
"It's been such a hard road," Ash murmured. "Sometimes I still can't believe it."
"Pika?"
"I mean, think about it. I've only been traveling half a year, yet here I am at the Indigo Plateau Conference, cruising into the Top 64. I even feel like the Championship isn't out of reach… doesn't that feel unreal?"
"Does it?" a sultry, teasing voice replied. "I'd say you one-shotting me with a punch is far more dreamlike."
Mewtwo appeared beside him, arms crossed, an amused glint in her eyes.
Since the Conference began, she had rarely shown herself, preferring to observe from within her Poké Ball. A tournament like this held little interest for her; she was here to watch humanity through Ash.
Seeing him brooding on a cliff was… new.
Ash, lost?
"Ahem. You've got a point," Ash said. "But personal strength is one thing. Pokémon power is another."
"So what, are you upset you're improving too fast?" Mewtwo scoffed. "In human terms, that's called whining about nothing."
"Heh, you even picked that up." Ash smiled faintly. "No, I'm not complaining. I just feel… really lucky."
He looked down at Pikachu, then up at the stars.
"Lucky to have you all with me. Without you, I wouldn't be here today."