The next day, the sun rose as usual, and the alarm woke Sam from his sleep.
After washing up quickly, Sam went to the cafeteria for breakfast. Then he headed toward the Indigo Plateau Stadium with his Pokémon.
Now that the tournament had entered the Top 16, the Indigo Plateau Conference had attracted even more attention. On the road leading to the stadium, spectators from all over had gathered to watch the matches.
Sam's battle was scheduled for the afternoon, so he could enjoy watching the other matches in the morning.
The first match of the Top 16 featured Ash, and his opponent was his new friend Ritchie, a Trainer who also owned a Pikachu.
The Pokémon on Ritchie's team were very similar to those on Ash's team. This battle could truly be called an evenly matched fight.
As the two Trainers stepped onto the battlefield, the commentator began introducing them.
"Now let us introduce the two competitors. On the left side in blue is Ritchie, and on the right is his opponent, Ash from Pallet Town."
"I don't know if everyone has noticed, but the Pokémon used by Ritchie and Ash during the qualifiers are very similar. The most special point is that both Trainers have Pikachu as their trump card Pokémon!"
The audience, who initially had not been particularly excited about this match, suddenly became curious after hearing the commentator.
After all, Pikachu was not considered a particularly powerful Pokémon. Yet both Trainers had managed to reach the Top 16 of the Indigo Plateau Conference using one. That alone was enough to spark the audience's interest.
On the battlefield, Ash and Ritchie both wore serious expressions. It was clear they were taking this match very seriously.
"Go, Bobby!"
Having drawn the first move, Ritchie sent out his first Pokémon—a Butterfree named Bobby.
"Butterfree!"
Seeing Ritchie's Butterfree, Ash suddenly felt a wave of nostalgia. He wondered how his own Butterfree was doing now.
"Then my choice is Squirtle! Go, Squirtle!"
The strength predictions made by the online community were quite accurate. Ash and Ritchie were indeed evenly matched.
Squirtle and Butterfree fought fiercely. In the end, Ritchie relied on Butterfree's Sleep Powder to defeat Squirtle, winning the first round.
"Thanks for your hard work, Squirtle."
Ash's expression grew serious. Losing a Pokémon first meant he was already at a disadvantage. He needed to find a way to turn the situation around.
"Please, Pikachu!"
In this critical moment, Ash called out his most trusted partner without hesitation.
"Pikachu appears! Ash's Pikachu is entering the battlefield!"
Pikachu had always been a fan-favorite Pokémon. As soon as it stepped onto the battlefield, loud cheers erupted from the crowd.
Facing Ritchie's Butterfree, Pikachu didn't hold back. With swift attacks, it quickly defeated Bobby, helping Ash even the score.
"Great! Well done, Pikachu!" Ash shouted excitedly.
After defeating Butterfree, both Trainers were back on equal footing, each with two Pokémon remaining.
"Ash looks like he might lose…"
Watching from the stands, Sam silently analyzed the situation.
If his prediction was correct, Ash might still lose this match.
Ash's trump card had always been Pikachu, but judging from its performance today, it didn't seem particularly fired up.
In more familiar terms… Pikachu was holding back again.
Perhaps because Ritchie was Ash's friend, Pikachu simply wasn't fighting at full power.
Sam's prediction soon proved correct.
Although Pikachu had defeated Butterfree easily, it was cleanly defeated when facing Ritchie's Charmander.
Seeing Ritchie's Pokémon, Sam finally understood why Ritchie and Ash had become friends.
Both Trainers disliked forcing their Pokémon to evolve.
Based on its strength, Ritchie's Charmander could have easily evolved into Charmeleon or even Charizard, yet it still remained a Charmander.
After Pikachu lost the ability to battle, Misty and Brock, sitting in the coaching area, exchanged helpless looks.
They were already used to Pikachu's extremely inconsistent performance, but they hadn't expected it to hit rock bottom at such a crucial moment.
Now everything depended on Ash's final Pokémon.
Ash had been pushed to the edge.
"Thanks for your hard work, Pikachu."
Even after the loss, Ash didn't blame his partner. He gently placed Pikachu aside, took a deep breath, and prepared for the final round.
"Go, Charizard!"
"Charizard appears! Player Ash has sent out Charizard! Although we couldn't see a battle between the two Trainers' Pikachu, it's still exciting to witness a battle between Charmander and Charizard!"
The level of Ritchie's Charmander was indeed similar to Ash's Charizard. Both had roughly early Gym-level strength.
However, facing its evolved form put Charmander at a disadvantage. It also lacked the ability to fly, which further worsened the matchup.
After a prolonged struggle, Charmander was finally defeated by Charizard.
"Ash, your Charizard is really strong! But I won't give up! Let's go, Pikachu!"
According to the original storyline, Ash's Charizard would normally refuse to fight seriously, causing Ash to lose.
But this time, things were different.
After battling Charmander, Charizard engaged Ritchie's Pikachu in a fierce duel.
Even Sam hadn't expected what happened next.
Instead of Pikachu having a dramatic comeback, Charizard suddenly broke through its limits.
At the critical moment—just before losing the ability to battle—Charizard's Fire-type power erupted.
Empowered by this sudden burst of strength, Charizard launched a powerful counterattack and defeated Ritchie's Pikachu, helping Ash advance to the Top 8.
"What a surprise…"
Watching Ash jump up and down in excitement on the battlefield, Sam couldn't help feeling a little surprised.
Originally, he had expected Ash to stop at the Top 16, just like in the original story.
But now, Ash had successfully reached the Top 8.
Since the storyline had already changed…
Would Ash eventually win a championship in the future?
Thinking about it, Sam couldn't help but feel curious about what might happen next.
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