Across the anime dimensions—
All the viewers stared at the two little Pokémon in front of Ash, the ones that looked like tiny green cells.
Every last one of them had fallen into complete stupefaction.
Zygarde.
A divine beast that governed order, overseeing the ecological balance of the entire world.
And if ecological destruction ever reached an irreversible point—
It could wipe out all species, erase the world's biodiversity, and allow brand-new ecosystems to evolve again from zero.
That revelation horrified everyone.
Wasn't that basically a world-ending power?
It could directly erase all life in the world and let everything begin reproducing anew from scratch.
Countless people felt their scalps go numb.
They simply could not imagine that these two tiny cell-like creatures actually held such a divine office.
"So because daylight and night were swallowed, the order of laws became distorted, and that attracted it here?"
"No, wait… judging from the way it talks to Ash, they seem very familiar."
Professor Oak turned to glance at the Ash beside him.
This kid really did keep giving people one impossible shock after another.
At this rate, in the future, he would probably end up meeting nearly every divine beast in the world.
Zygarde's appearance also made Professor Oak and the other Pokémon researchers breathe a little easier.
Zygarde had appeared, and the ranking video still wasn't over.
That meant there would still be another twist later on.
"I just hope… it can deal with Necrozma."
After all, Necrozma was not like Eternatus, which had only awakened passively.
Necrozma was a creature of the Ultra World.
It had actively invaded the Pokémon world and swallowed the Sun God and Moon God.
It was an invader.
There was no way to avoid it, and no way to stop it from appearing in the future.
Zygarde's appearance gave Professor Oak and the others hope—
But it also made them feel deeply uneasy.
Because if even Zygarde couldn't solve Necrozma—
Then Zygarde might end up wiping out all living species and forcing life itself to begin again from zero.
In the Dragon Ball world—
On the Supreme Kai planet—
Of the five Supreme Kais—East, West, South, North, and Grand—four had already been devoured by Majin Buu.
The only one remaining, the East Supreme Kai, now stared wide-eyed at Zygarde in the video.
"A divine beast of order? It can erase all species in the world and make life begin reproducing again?"
Stormy waves rose in his heart.
Even as the Supreme Kai of a universe, he could not accomplish something like that.
He controlled the law of creation.
He could create planets—
But he could not, without destroying the planet itself and without damaging it in the slightest, wipe out all existing life upon it and make it begin evolving again from zero.
This Zygarde—
Was very strong!!
The authority of order it controlled was terrifying!!
The video continued.
"Squishy, Solgaleo and the others chased Necrozma into the Ultra World. We have no way to get there."
"I know. Which is why we need to go to the Ultra World right now."
In that instant, countless chains of order governing the world seemed to appear within its eyes.
Light shone from Zygarde's eyes.
Then the light burst forth and slammed into the air ahead.
Boom—!
A seven-colored light hole appeared before them, leading to who knew where.
"Let's go. Lillie, you all stay here."
Ash and the others rode on Charizard and flew into the Ultra Wormhole.
The video's perspective followed them in.
The passage inside the Ultra Wormhole was filled with dreamlike seven-colored streams, like a spacetime tunnel.
Charizard flapped its wings as it flew through the passage.
Ash glanced down at his Z-Ring.
"The Z-Ring recharges really fast in here. It was full the moment we came in."
That made Professor Oak thoughtful.
According to the previous narration, the aura energy blanketing Alola had come from Necrozma's leaking power.
And Z-Moves were techniques released through Pokémon after Z-Crystals absorbed the aura energy of Alola.
Professor Oak stroked his chin.
"So in that case, the Ultra Wormhole itself is probably formed when this 'aura energy' reaches a certain density and twists space."
Soon…
Another hole of light appeared ahead of Charizard.
The exit had arrived!
Whoosh—!
Ash and the others emerged from the Ultra Wormhole.
"So… this is the Ultra World?"
Everyone stared at it.
What a strange world.
Bare rocks were exposed everywhere, and as far as the eye could see there was no trace of life.
There was no sun in the sky.
No moon either.
There was no light in the entire world.
By all logic, if there was no light, then nothing around them should have been visible.
And yet everyone could still clearly see the environment.
The whole world was dim and gray.
Everywhere was barren land.
There was no green plant life at all.
Even the few scattered trees that could be seen had twisted trunks like the claws of a witch, while their leaves were sharp like needles.
Because there was no light—
The whole world felt dead and stagnant, suffocatingly oppressive.
So this was the Ultra World.
Everyone had imagined what the Ultra World might look like, considering it contained Ultra Beasts of such terrifying power.
But no one had imagined it would look like this.
This world had no sun and no moon either.
No daylight.
No night.
Could it be that the Ultra World's day and night had also been swallowed by Necrozma?
They couldn't help but speculate.
And just then, a sound rang out from within the video—
"Roar!"
That roar was followed by the appearance of one Ultra Beast after another around Ash and the others, all glaring at them with unfriendly expressions.
"Back off."
Zygarde jumped onto Ash's head, narrowed its eyes, and released an invisible pressure.
Those violent Ultra Beasts instantly scattered in fear.
Dong—!!
In the eastern edge of the Ultra World, a blazing light suddenly lit up in the distance.
Though it only flashed for an instant, it was immediately noticed.
In a world without light, it was simply too conspicuous to miss.
Ash and the others rode Charizard toward the place where that light had appeared.
"ROAR!!"
"ROAR ROAR ROAR!!"
As they drew closer, furious howls echoed continuously, each one incredibly powerful, generating visible sonic shockwaves that shattered the surrounding rocky peaks.
Broken stone covered the ground.
And the source of all this—
Was a creature with brilliant golden fur, shaped like a lion.
Solgaleo.
It was the Sun God itself, the one that had followed right behind Necrozma into the Ultra World.
At this moment, Solgaleo kept letting out painful roars.
It was using its own body as a weapon, smashing itself into the surrounding mountains again and again.
All the viewers were baffled.
What was Solgaleo doing?
"Solgaleo!"
Ash shouted and jumped down from Charizard's back, about to rush toward it.
"Don't go over there. That isn't Solgaleo anymore. It's been swallowed by Necrozma," Zygarde's voice rang out.
The viewers across the dimensions froze.
Not Solgaleo anymore?
Then yes—
That made sense. The sun had already disappeared in the outside world, which meant Solgaleo had already been swallowed.
They looked at Solgaleo carefully.
Sure enough—
This was no longer truly Solgaleo.
Dark black crystals had emerged across its body, embedded in various places.
This was clearly Solgaleo in the process of being swallowed by Necrozma.
But apparently it hadn't been fully assimilated yet.
Everyone could see that Solgaleo's eyes occasionally regained clarity. Bursts of energy erupted from its body, and it continued hurling itself into the surrounding mountains, apparently trying to shake Necrozma off.
[Necrozma has already swallowed Solgaleo.]
[This is the form it takes after consuming Solgaleo—]
[Dusk Mane Form.]
[However, because it is simultaneously swallowing both Lunala and Solgaleo, it has not yet fully digested Solgaleo.]
[Solgaleo therefore still retains part of its own consciousness.]
[As time passes, Solgaleo will be swallowed completely.]
The narration sounded.
So that was it.
This was the form brought about by swallowing Solgaleo—
Dusk Mane Form.
In the video—
Ash also realized now that this was no longer truly Solgaleo.
At the same time, they discovered the four guardian deities—Tapu Koko and the others—scattered around the battlefield, all unconscious.
"Solgaleo hasn't been fully swallowed yet. If we break the black crystals embedded in its body, we can still save it."
Zygarde carefully examined Solgaleo's condition before speaking.
The instant those words were spoken—
Ash did not hesitate in the slightest.
"Pikachu, Electro Ball!"
"Greninja, Water Shuriken!"
"Charizard, Blast Burn!"
Boom!
Energy surged violently.
The three Pokémon simultaneously unleashed their attacks, aiming them at the Necrozma controlling Solgaleo.
Electronic color blocks flashed in Solgaleo's eyes, meaning Necrozma had detected the danger. It quickly constructed an energy barrier.
But in the next second, Solgaleo roared, its eyes regaining clarity, and it dropped the barrier itself.
Though that clarity only lasted a second before Necrozma regained control—
That one second was enough to change everything.
Pikachu and the others' attacks had already reached it.
Dusk Mane Necrozma hurriedly shifted sideways.
Boom!!
A mushroom cloud rose from the ground, thick smoke and flames exploding outward. The earth was torn open and shattered inch by inch, the fragments turning into countless cannonball-like projectiles under the impact of the blast and scattering everywhere.
Dusk Mane Necrozma had dodged.
But then—
Three figures suddenly burst through the smoke in front of it.
"Pikachu, Iron Tail!"
"Charizard, Dragon Claw!"
"Greninja, Cut!"
The three figures arrived in an instant before Solgaleo, their attacks aimed at the black crystals embedded in its body.
They were just about to succeed—
"ROAR!!!"
Suddenly, golden shockwaves exploded out of Solgaleo's body. A terrifying aura twisted around it and rose explosively upward.
The world itself seemed to wail.
An overwhelming surge of force blocked Pikachu and the others' attacks and sent them flying.
At this moment, Solgaleo's aura was far more terrifying than before, even stronger than Necrozma had been after swallowing Lunala.
Its divine might flooded the Ultra World.
Countless Ultra Beasts shivered, as though sensing that their god was enraged.
Though Solgaleo's eyes still occasionally regained clarity—
The greater control over the body was now held by Necrozma.
The whole body had essentially been seized.
It had truly become Dusk Mane Form.
In subspace—
Watching Dusk Mane Necrozma, Palkia and Dialga both revealed grave expressions.
If this had been the old them, they definitely wouldn't have been able to defeat it.
Necrozma had already become an existence at the quasi-Main God level.
But that had been the old them.
Now they had received ranking rewards from the video and had grown much stronger. This Necrozma would not be able to defeat them.
But—
Necrozma was also on the ranking list.
It too would receive a reward.
And after receiving that reward, they still wouldn't be able to beat it.
Electronic color blocks flashed in Necrozma's eyes as it stared at Pikachu and the others.
Pikachu and the others, having been blasted back by the shockwave, adjusted themselves in midair and landed steadily on the ground.
"Gwa-cha!"
Greninja looked back at Ash.
Ash immediately understood what it meant. His eyes sharpened, he turned his cap backward, and in a deep voice he said:
"Greninja… Bond Phenomenon!"
Shhh—!
A column of water spiraled up at Greninja's feet, wrapping around it completely.
Its form began to change dramatically.
Its body became leaner and more explosive with power.
Its eyes shone with deadly sharpness.
The water of the vortex condensed into a giant shuriken across its back.
Bond Phenomenon.
Ash-Greninja Form!!
This was an evolution unique to it and Ash alone.
Under the amplification of Bond Phenomenon, its level had officially stepped into the rank of Second-Tier Divine Beast.
"It's here, it's here, the transformation! Ash-Greninja Form!!"
The Trainers of the Pokémon world were ecstatic.
No matter how many times they saw it, the form was unbelievably cool.
"ROAR!!"
And just then, Charizard also turned and roared at Ash.
Its tail flame burned fiercely.
On its forehead, a symbol flickered into existence for an instant, like the double-helix symbol trapped inside a glass marble.
Form change?
It could do it too!
This was something it had learned in Charicific Valley—
Mega Evolution.
And it didn't even need a Mega Stone. As long as the connection between it and its Trainer was deep enough, it could do it!
Ash seemed to feel something. His heart flared like a flame.
"Charizard, evolve!!" he shouted without hesitation.
[Professor Oak]: ????
[Diantha]: Dynamax?
[Cynthia]: Are you kidding?
In the Pokémon chat area, everyone was baffled.
Charizard was already in its final evolution.
How could it still evolve?
(At this point in time, Mega Stones had not yet been researched and understood.)
But in the very next second, their eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.
Ash's body erupted with endless seven-colored rays, and Charizard's did the same.
Lines of light connected the two.
Then—
Charizard's body underwent a huge transformation, engulfed in white light.
A few seconds later—
Charizard reappeared, its body now completely different.
Its originally orange hide had turned pitch-black.
Its whole appearance became far more savage. The once-smooth edges of its wings had become jagged like fangs.
Blue devil-like horns sprouted from its head.
Blue fire leaked from the corners of its mouth.
Its tail flame had also changed from orange-red to a ghostly blue.
And Charizard's aura had reached the rank of a Second-Tier Divine Beast.
Everyone was dumbfounded!!
Charizard really did have a further evolution!?
[Leon]: It should be another kind of Bond Phenomenon, just like Greninja. There's no way Charizard actually has another evolution. Why doesn't my Charizard have one!?
All the Pokémon researchers and Trainers of the Pokémon world were completely dazed.
[Cynthia]: Mm, it should probably be another form of Bond Phenomenon.
[Diantha]: So Bond Phenomenon isn't unique to Greninja? Since Charizard has it too, does that mean maybe we can also form Bond Evolutions with our own Pokémon?
[Steven]: Ahhh, I'm so curious. Can Ash please come out and explain this in detail?
Of course, Ash wasn't going to explain anything.
He was only six years old right now, and he himself looked completely confused.
In the video—
"Then it's my turn to act," Zygarde said.
With those words, the two cell-like Zygardes floated into the air and released a strange vibration.
The scene split into two panels—
One showing the Ultra World, the other showing the real world.
"W-What is this?"
Looking down over the world…
Everyone saw dense green points of light appearing everywhere in the world that had lost both day and night.
On grass…
On trees…
On stones…
On glaciers…
Even on the backs of some humans—
Green points of light appeared.
They had seemingly always been hidden in the world, only now slowly revealing themselves.
The whole world looked as though it had been submerged in a sea of green.
As the camera zoomed in, everyone finally saw what those green lights were.
"Hiss!!"
Countless people sucked in cold air.
They were all tiny green cell-like creatures!?
Were they all the god of order, Zygarde?
"No, that's not right."
They quickly noticed that these cell-like creatures weren't actually Zygarde.
Their bellies lacked the central core.
[These are Zygarde Cells.]
[They continuously self-replicate and serve as the eyes through which Zygarde monitors the ecology of the world.]
[At the same time, they are fragments of its power.]
[When all of the Cells return to their body, Zygarde transforms into its complete form.]
Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh—!
Everyone watched as the countless Cells turned into innumerable streams of green light, flew toward the Alola region, and then shot into the Ultra Wormhole.
Then—
They all merged into the two Zygardes.
As stream after stream of green light poured in, the forms of the two Zygardes began to change dramatically.
Originally no bigger than an infant's palm—
They suddenly became canine-like beings with blue-green collars.
[This is Zygarde's 10% Form.]
As more and more Cells merged in—
They changed again.
This time into serpentine forms, with five badge-like protrusions extending from the head.
[This is the 50% Form.]
Its aura was terrifying.
And it still wasn't over.
Though no more green light flowed in—
The two 50% Form Zygardes turned to look at each other.
Then they collided.
White light burst forth!
The two Zygardes fused.
Within the white radiance, their bodies underwent a massive change.
A terrifying aura rose higher and higher, filling the Ultra World.
This aura now stood toe-to-toe with Necrozma's own.
The white light slowly began to fade.
No one dared blink.
Everyone wanted to see Zygarde's new form the very instant it appeared.
They all knew—
The final battle was about to begin!!
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