"The Pokémon Contest, Rustboro Convention, has finally reached the grand finale of the Contest Battle!"
Amidst the MC's roaring introduction, the audience erupted in a passionate frenzy.
The finals. No matter the venue, it represents the absolute peak of the competition—the moment of highest skill that everyone has been waiting for with bated breath.
As Kashiwagi took his place in the trainer's box and scanned the sea of faces filled with excitement and anticipation, he felt a rare flutter of nerves. His heart was pounding.
I want to win.
He wanted to wrap up his debut with a perfect ending. He was only one step away from victory; there was no room for carelessness or underestimating his opponent. He had to choose his Pokémon wisely.
Kashiwagi knew Ursula was formidable. Even if she didn't challenge Gyms or the Pokémon League, her years of Contest experience had taught her exactly how to drain an opponent's points with precision.
He looked across the stage at Ursula in her black dress. His gaze met her confident, proud eyes, and both saw the same burning desire:
"Victory!"
"Contest Battle Final! Begin!"
With the MC's shout, Kashiwagi and Ursula threw their Poké Balls in unison!
Pop! Pop!
A pillar of red fire surged in front of Ursula as Flareon stepped out from the embers, its fluffy fur swaying like a living flame.
On the other side...
From within a cloud of pitch-black smoke, a blood-red light gleamed. Then, massive silver claws tore through the mist as if ripping away a cloak, revealing a towering, majestic figure.
"Hmph..."
Aggron exhaled the remaining black mist. It didn't let out its usual earth-shaking roar to intimidate its opponent. It knew the Contest stage was different from its past battles; it had to remain "cool" without being overly aggressive or violent.
How to pull that off? Its trainer had taught it a simple trick: Stay quiet.
What the audience and judges saw was a silver titan as vast as a mountain, yet completely serene. Its silver armor reflected the sunlight in a dazzling display, and its battle scars looked like glorious medals of honor, drawing gasps of admiration from the stands.
The three judges exchanged glances, their approval plain to see. A crucial part of a Contest is evaluating the Pokémon's condition. Often, low scores aren't due to poor move combinations, but rather the Pokémon's lackluster physical or mental state. Aggron's raw power remained to be seen, but it was clearly raised with expert care.
Flareon was equally impressive—the way its fur mimicked flickering flames in the breeze proved it was in peak form.
"Fire Spin!" Ursula decided to strike first.
"Flare!" Flareon took a deep breath, its fur quivering as it expanded, and a brilliant, spiraling tongue of fire erupted from its mouth!
But Ursula wasn't done. "Flare Blitz!"
In an instant, Flareon's fur ignited with sky-blue flames. It charged forward, diving into the Fire Spin and using it as a rotating fiery tunnel. The blue orb of the Flare Blitz flickered within the red vortex—a stunning display of red and blue that provided incredible visual impact!
Kashiwagi was surprised, not just by the speed of the combo, but by how Ursula used the overlap to bring the moves' power back up to standard levels. She traded raw power for beauty through variation, then regained that power through synergy.
From a pure battle perspective, this "flashy" move might be hollow, but in a Contest, it was a point-scoring machine. If Aggron failed to counter it, Kashiwagi would lose a massive chunk of points.
"Meet it head-on! Use Metal Burst!" Kashiwagi shouted.
Aggron paused for a fraction of a second. As the Pokémon with the deepest bond with its trainer, it heard the subtle nuance in the command. During the week Mawile had been practicing, Aggron had acted uninterested, but it had secretly practiced "power dampening" and "visual enhancement" to ensure its trainer's victory.
Time to verify the results!
Aggron took heavy strides, charging forward in silence. A silver light enveloped its body as it collided head-first with Flareon.
BOOM!
Red and blue flames splashed across Aggron's body as Flareon struck like a homing missile. The fire surged, momentarily covering the titan like a massive living torch!
Kashiwagi's point bar instantly dropped by nearly a fifth.
But despite the searing heat, Aggron didn't show a hint of pain. It lunged forward with savage speed, its claws snatching the Flareon that was trying to retreat.
"Throw it up!"
"GRAWR!"
Aggron let out a low grunt and tossed Flareon high into the air! The flames on its armor seemed to come alive, merging with the silver light and flowing toward its mouth into a concentrated silver orb.
"Smog!" Ursula didn't panic, issuing a quick defensive command. No matter what move Aggron used, the black haze would obscure its beauty—a perfect disruptive tactic.
But she had underestimated Aggron.
The silver orb spiraled upward, cutting through the air, and exploded violently before Flareon could release the hot smoke.
However, it wasn't smoke that released from the blast—it was a magnificent, glittering silver firework!
Flareon was dazed by the explosion. Its falling body was knocked even higher, and it reflexively released the Smog, causing hot black soot to rain down.
"Sand Tomb!" Kashiwagi yelled.
Aggron raised both claws. A narrow but dense vortex of sand surged toward the sky, forming the shape of a "Sand Flower." It not only dispersed the black smoke but also caught Flareon, keeping it suspended in the air!
Ursula's points dropped twice in a row, losing nearly a third of her bar. The five-minute timer now had only two and a half minutes left.
"Use Flame Charge to accelerate! Break out of there!" Ursula clenched her fists.
In mid-air, Flareon turned into a red ball of fire, spinning with the direction of the Sand Tomb to build momentum until it was flung out, regaining its freedom. It was a beautiful recovery, costing Kashiwagi some points.
But Flareon didn't realize Aggron had been waiting for its escape.
"Rock Tomb!"
As it searched for a landing spot, Aggron predicted its trajectory. It slammed a foot down, causing the ground to heave, and massive boulders instantly entombed Flareon.
Technically, this move had zero "beauty," but it was the decider. Ursula tried to command a counter, but by the time the rocks crumbled into dust, Flareon was on the ground, swaying.
It was unconscious.
Aggron might not be as good at making "pretty" scenes as Flareon, but its combat prowess was on a level Flareon couldn't hope to touch.
"Flareon is unable to battle! The winner of the Rustboro City Contest—Mr. Kashiwagi!"
The MC's voice boomed as he declared the victory. Ursula stared in shock for a long time. It wasn't until the judges started their commentary that she let out a helpless smile.
"I lost, huh?"