"Um, could I ask you for a favor?"
The girl who had been hiding behind the tree and spying earlier walked out. She had a beautiful face and a mature figure, making Brock blush instantly the moment he saw her.
The girl's appearance excited Brock. The sadness from parting with Suzie earlier completely vanished at this moment. After all, Brock wasn't the kind of man who would hang himself on a single tree. Having experienced the pain of many failed goodbyes, Brock's heart had already become unbreakable.
"I'm sorry, my father caused you trouble!"
Unexpectedly, the girl walked past Brock and went straight to Red, bowing apologetically in front of him.
"A favor?" Ash asked in confusion.
"Could you please defeat my father's Hitmonchan!" the girl pleaded.
Seeing the puzzled expressions of Ash and the others, the girl explained why she wanted Red to defeat Hitmonchan.
"What a terrible father!" Misty said angrily. Ash and Brock remained silent…
From the girl's explanation, everyone learned that her name was Emi, and the middle-aged man from earlier was her father.
In order to win the championship of the P1 Grand Prix, the middle-aged man refused to go home and stayed away constantly, which made Emi, as his daughter, worried and sad. She feared that her father would become completely obsessed with the fighting tournament forever, so Emi came up with a solution.
Since he couldn't obtain the championship, she would let her father taste complete defeat. That way, the middle-aged man might finally give up his obsession with the championship.
"I don't mind. I was planning to enter Hitmonchan into the P1 Grand Prix anyway," Red said calmly.
Red and the others followed Emi to their residence. The place where Emi and her father lived was called the Fighting Spirit Dojo, which was filled with all kinds of fitness equipment.
According to Emi, the middle-aged man hoped to operate a Fighting-type specialist League Gym in the future. Because of that, he was obsessed with the P1 Grand Prix, hoping to realize his grand dream through this opportunity.
"What exactly is the P1 Grand Prix?" Brock asked in confusion.
"The P1 Grand Prix is a Fighting-move tournament specially held for Pokémon. It's said to be organized by the Fighting-type Elite Four member Bruno, so it has attracted the attention of many trainers," Red explained while holding a promotional poster for the P1 Grand Prix.
"That's right. Because there's a chance to meet the Fighting Elite Four member, my father has been obsessed with becoming the champion. He's been staying in the mountains all the time and ignoring everything at home," Emi said sadly, lowering her head.
"Leave this matter to us!" Brock promised, blushing as he looked at Emi.
"Us? Brock, are you planning to enter the fighting tournament too?" Ash asked.
"Not just me. Ash, don't you also have a Primeape that specializes in fighting?" Brock said.
"That's true! A competition like this is perfect for Primeape!" Ash suddenly realized.
"This tournament might even improve the relationship between you and Primeape," Red said leisurely.
"Then Brock, which Pokémon will you send out?" Misty asked in confusion.
"I can send out Geodude. The poster says that using Normal-type physical moves is also allowed," Brock explained. "I'll work hard too and defeat Hitmonchan for Miss Emi!"
"...?"
Red glanced at Brock with slight surprise.
(How come I never noticed before that Brock is this stubborn? He actually dares to send Geodude into a fighting tournament.)
After all, Geodude's typing is doubly weak to Fighting-type moves. If it runs into Red's Hitmonchan, it might be smashed into rubble with a single punch.
Because of Red's appearance once again, the Team Rocket trio wisely disappeared and returned to their old profession, selling snacks and drinks at the tournament venue.
"Thanks for waiting, everyone! The grand celebration of Pokémon fighting techniques, the P1 Grand Prix, is about to begin!"
The announcer shouted at the venue, heating up the atmosphere.
"The contestants are entering one after another!"
"First is Hitmonchan, known as the Fighting Machine, and its trainer Anthony! The number one candidate for this tournament's championship!"
Emi's father Anthony slowly appeared on the arena together with his Hitmonchan.
"Next is the kicking demon Hitmonlee and its trainer, Giant!"
The tall and imposing Giant appeared on the field alongside Hitmonlee. Team Rocket had originally planned to target this person, but because Red was present, they decided to honestly earn money by selling snacks instead.
"Following that is last year's champion—Sir Ankaku—and his partner Machamp!"
With a height comparable to Giant and a powerful build, Ankaku entered together with Machamp.
...
"Finally, the last three contestants are temporary entrants: Red, Ash, and Brock. Notably, Red and Ash are twin brothers. I personally have very high expectations for contestant Red's Hitmonchan!"
Through a lottery draw, Red successfully obtained the privilege of battling first. He stepped forward to the arena and sent out his Pokémon.
"Alright, the first match of the tournament begins now," the announcer explained. "Facing the muscular Machoke, newcomer contestant Red shows no fear and calmly sends out Hitmonchan to battle."
"The match begins!" the referee announced.
"Machoke, use Brick Break!" the opponent ordered.
"Comet Punch," Red said calmly.
With its excellent punching speed, Hitmonchan's rapid punches continuously neutralized Machoke's Brick Break. At the same time, the punches struck Machoke's body one after another, steadily draining its stamina.
"Impossible! Machoke, quickly use Cross Chop!"
Unable to believe how fragile his Machoke seemed, the opponent hurriedly gave another command.
Machoke crossed its arms and used Cross Chop toward Hitmonchan, yet Hitmonchan strangely chose not to dodge.
"Why isn't my brother commanding Hitmonchan to dodge?!"
Ash, sitting in the audience seats, anxiously looked at Hitmonchan who was about to take the hit. He appeared slightly panicked, while Pikachu on his shoulder tightly grabbed Ash's neck in fear of falling.
"Relax, Ash. Red wouldn't do something without confidence. Didn't you notice that Hitmonchan intentionally took Machoke's attack?" Brock explained.
"Endure it, then use Counter!"
Hitmonchan crossed its arms in front of its body and forcibly endured Machoke's attack. An astonishing aura burst from its body, intimidating Machoke who tried to retreat. With a single punch, it knocked Machoke to the ground. The power of the punch even shattered the arena floor.
Seeing that the referee was still stunned, Red reminded him, "Mr. Referee, you can announce the result of the match now."
Hearing Red's words, the referee quickly snapped back to reality.
"The winner of this match is contestant Red!"
All the spectators were shocked by Hitmonchan's strength. After recovering, they erupted into cheers and applause for Hitmonchan.
Seeing this scene, Hitmonchan happily raised both arms and walked around the arena, enjoying the praise from the audience.
"What an amazing move…" Ash said in astonishment. He turned to Brock. "Brock, what kind of move is Counter?"
"Counter is a Fighting-type move. It returns the damage received from the opponent's physical attack back to the same opponent at double the power," Brock explained.
"No wonder Machoke was knocked out by a single punch from Hitmonchan," Ash said in understanding.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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