"You might not trust humans right now, or even me. But... it doesn't matter if you don't trust me yet. I trust you! You aren't a curse, and you aren't useless in battle! You are an incredibly strong Ghost-type, Gengar!! So... be my partner!"
"Ginga..." Gengar finally turned its head and looked into Ash's sincere eyes. It closed its eyes and gave a small nod. It agreed!
"Haha! I look forward to working with you, Gengar!" Ash took out a Poké Ball and tapped it gently against Gengar.
The Pokémon vanished into red light. The ball didn't shake once, emitting a crisp ping instantly. Ash had officially caught Gengar!
[Lance: See! I told you! Team Rocket really did come through with the assist!]
[Diantha: Team Rocket... truly formidable. Not even Lance's 'jinx' can stop them!]
[Lorelei: When you put it that way, it really is the greatest miracle in the world!][Lance: ...]
In the Footage—
The afternoon after catching Gengar, Professor Oak delivered the rank locator. On the device, several light dots appeared representing trainers in Vermilion City ranked around 10,000. Ash tapped a dot, and a face appeared—it was the blonde man from this morning!
Ash's rank was over 10,000, but the gap between him and the blonde man wasn't more than 1,000. A challenge was possible. "Rank 9,535, Hitoshi..."
[Diantha: Tsk tsk, this Hitoshi guy is in for a world of pain.]
[Agatha: Heaven may forgive sins, but man-made disasters are unavoidable.]
[Lorelei: Imagine grinding to Rank 9,500 only to run into a Champion-level monster. He's going to cry.]
In the Footage—
Ash, Gengar, and Chloe found the blonde man walking down the street. He looked arrogant again, as if he hadn't been cowering in fear just hours ago.
Seeing Ash, he panicked until he realized the "purple ghost" wasn't visible behind him.
"What do you want now? I told you, if you want that Gengar, take it! I don't want it!" The man was at least "better" than Damian in one way: even seeing Gengar grow stronger, he had no desire to take it back. In his mind, Gengar's "curse" was too disgusting to handle.
"I'm here for a battle!" "A battle? You? What's your rank?" The man had been so scared earlier that he hadn't noticed Ash was the one who blocked the Shadow Ball. He looked at Ash with disdain.
"Rank 10,425!" "Rank 10,000? Hahaha! Kid, in the WCS, even a one-rank difference is a huge gap! I'm 9,500. We're nearly 1,000 ranks apart! Are you sure?" "Of course!"
Ash pulled out his Rotom Phone. Seeing the red Rotom device, Hitoshi felt a prickle of unease.
Most people used regular smartphones; a Rotom Phone was the mark of someone with talent, connections, or a starter from a Professor. But he couldn't back down now without losing face.
They found a nearby clearing. A Rotom Drone appeared instantly to act as the referee.
[Lance: This is a great system. Connecting battles to a global ranking via smartphones.]
[Leon: It seems the future WCS can be expanded this way! High-tech ensures fairness everywhere.]
In the Footage—
The battle was a 1v1. Hitoshi sent out his Pokémon: an Alakazam! It seemed he really hated Gengar, choosing its natural rival. Ash, naturally, sent out Gengar!
"Hmph! So much for loyalty. You found a new master in the blink of an eye!" Hitoshi mocked. "Gengar being stuck with a trainer like you was its greatest misfortune!" Ash retorted. "Blaming Gengar for your own failures...
I'll show you just how strong Gengar really is! Gengar, Shadow Ball!"
"Ginga!" Fuelled by old grudges, Gengar's Shadow Ball was massive. "Alakazam, Psybeam!"
The rainbow beam collided with the dark energy. A shockwave swept through the crowd. After a few seconds, the Shadow Ball began to overpower the Psybeam!
"How?! That Gengar shouldn't have this kind of power!" Hitoshi yelled. Under his care, Gengar had never won. "Gengar isn't weak! The only thing weak was its trainer!" Ash shouted, his body mirroring Gengar's movements.
"When a Pokémon and Trainer are of one mind, they reach their true potential! Go, Gengar!"
The Shadow Ball's speed doubled, smashing through the Psybeam and hitting Alakazam directly! Alakazam, a glass cannon, was left reeling. "Finish it! Ice Punch!"
Gengar sank into the ground and re-emerged right in Alakazam's face, its fist glowing with frigid light. BOOM! Alakazam was frozen solid instantly. Hitoshi collapsed to his knees, eyes vacant. Ash and Gengar walked up to him.
"Hitoshi, your biggest mistake was lying to Gengar. That hurt more than being abandoned. You lied to it for three years. It's only natural that it wanted revenge.
This battle marks Gengar's new life. From now on... just watch as he reaches the peak while you spend your life in regret!"
"Ginga!!" Gengar gave Hitoshi a look of utter contempt before turning away with Ash. Hitoshi felt a deep, sinking realization that he had just discarded something legendary.
[Lance: Ash's charisma is overflowing here. Is this the same kid I know?]
[Leon: After seven regions, he's finally exuding the aura of a Champion.]
[Cynthia: That kingly aura is starting to look a lot like Red...]
[Leon: Heh, it's more than just a resemblance. Red beat all of us in the real world just now, remember?]
The audience was stunned. Red had beaten all the Champions? If Ash was the counterpart to such a monster, and he was only 14 or 15 in the footage... then his winning the Master Eight wasn't just possible—it was expected.
In the Footage—
After the victory, Ash's rank rose. In just a few days, using Gengar and Dragonite, he tore through the Normal Class, reaching Rank 2,000 after over twenty consecutive wins.
Finally, at Rank 2,000, he met a "decent" opponent...
Note on WCS: I'm basing this on the game's Master Ball Tier. In the original anime, the ranks were a bit messy. Here, anyone can sign up, but you have to grind through the ranks to move up.
🌟 The story is already written… waiting to be unleashed. Claim early access on Patreon: Patreon.com/kazama677
🔓 You hold the keys to bonus chapters:💬 10 reviews ignite 1 bonus chapter🔷 60 Power Stones summon another
🔥 Your power determines how fast the tale unfolds.