On the two massive screens before Lusamine wasn't just some random feed—it was none other than Haru's image itself.
It seemed Lusamine had found some way to monitor Haru, meticulously recording everything she managed to gather about her.
And more than that—she appeared to be using certain special methods to interfere in Haru's life… guiding her, or even influencing the people around her into taking certain actions.
Her device also seemed capable of creating "suit-people"—avatars that allowed her to "touch" Haru directly, even from far away in Alola.
In other words, although Lusamine hadn't personally gone to Kanto, she was still making contact with Haru.
What's more, during these encounters, Haru herself hadn't noticed a single thing.
Such a method was beyond ordinary comprehension, but in Lillie's eyes, it was nothing short of what could be called "Lusamine's giant hand."
This wasn't just stalking anymore. As Haru's legitimate girlfriend, Lillie had to come down hard on this!
With that thought, Lillie strode quickly to Lusamine's side, hand reaching to rip off Lusamine's "game helmet," hoping to forcibly disconnect her from the net.
But just as her fingers reached out, another thought struck her.
Why did she have to stop Lusamine?
That made no sense. Why was she always the one reacting passively?
So… was there a chance she could replace Lusamine and enter the game herself?
She could easily tie Lusamine to the side and let her watch helplessly while she "played the game" instead.
The girl stared at Lusamine's face, sinking into contemplation.
Yes, that was the way to do it. This would also give her a chance to see, from an outsider's perspective, exactly what her beloved Mr. Haru was up to every day.
---
Alto Mare—Haru's battle against Ash was about to begin.
Knowing that if he refused, Ash would likely keep pestering him endlessly, the exasperated Haru finally agreed to his battle request.
Thankfully, what Ash wanted was a battle and not a "battle," otherwise Haru would've already bolted.
For this fight, however, Haru's first Pokémon wasn't any of his usual mainstays. Instead, he sent out an earlier-stage form of Salamence—Bagon.
Previously, Haru had caught three baby Pokémon: Ralts, Bagon, and Charmander. Ralts had already participated in one battle, but Charmander and Bagon had never once fought formally.
Their only experience so far was sparring with Mew and a few others.
This was to be Haru's first real fight alongside Bagon.
Naturally, the little dragon showed signs of unease.
Over this time, Bagon had indeed learned quite a bit from its seniors.
Especially from Mew—since Mew knew just about every move that could be learned, those three little ones had an advantage when it came to move training.
But putting all that theory into actual combat… that was another story entirely.
Even if the opponent was just an ordinary Pikachu.
Could it win? And if it lost, would it bring shame to its Trainer?
After all, Haru had never once lost a battle. If Bagon was the one to ruin that streak, it might never be able to hold its head up before the seniors again.
Especially before Mew—if it lost, Mew would definitely call it a bottom-feeder for the rest of its life.
The others might not be so blunt, but there was a high chance they'd start looking down on it too.
What if, next time everyone went on a picnic, it was the only one not invited?
The more Bagon thought, the more nervous it became. Even before the match started, beads of sweat were already forming on its body.
Bearing the burden of a "100% win rate," it truly had every reason not to lose.
Ash himself was surprised by Haru's choice. He had thought for sure Haru would send out Mew or one of his other ace Pokémon—never in his wildest dreams had he expected a Bagon.
Was Haru underestimating him?
From what Ash knew, that Bagon was something Haru had only recently caught at Professor Oak's place.
Meaning he couldn't have had much time to train it, so its level of preparation couldn't possibly be high.
And pseudo-Legendary Pokémon all shared the same problem in their first and second stages—they weren't much in terms of fighting power.
That was why they were called "late bloomers."
If you put it into base stats, a Bagon only had around 300.
Compared to that, Pikachu was leagues ahead.
So, in Ash's view, Haru's choice to send out a pseudo-legendary at this point was nothing short of reckless.
"Are you sure you want Bagon to battle me?"
Glancing down at his Pikachu, Ash once again asked Haru for confirmation.
Perhaps without realizing it, his voice already carried a hint of displeasure.
Though Ash admitted Haru was strong, that didn't mean he was willing to be underestimated. And sending out a Bagon against him—there was no denying that felt like being "looked down on."
"Of course. Bring it on."
Haru smiled faintly, curling his fingers in a beckoning gesture.
Yes, Bagon's "level" and "base stats" could only be described as baby-dragon-tier—but that didn't automatically mean its opponent was stronger.
Even Pikachu, the so-called "Pika-god," had to follow some kind of growth curve, right? It wasn't like it spawned at max level from the start.
More importantly, all of Haru's "baby Pokémon" were ridiculously competitive.
Even though Haru had never once pressured them, they were constantly grinding themselves into the dirt, as if they were inmates in some hyper-disciplined Dutch Pokémon prison.
And all of this effort was for one reason: to make sure that when the day came for them to battle in Haru's name, they wouldn't embarrass him.
Being the Pokémon of a Trainer with a 100% win rate came with serious pressure.
And if, by some chance, Bagon did lose? Haru still had a fallback option… though in truth, "losing" was a word that didn't even exist in his dictionary.
Victory and glory were not moments in his life- they were his life.
"Well, if you insist…"
Seeing that Haru had made up his mind, Ash tugged down the brim of his cap and shouted:
"Let's go, Pikachu! Use Thunderbolt! Show him our Pika Release: Chidori Flow!"
"Pika—!!"
At once, Pikachu launched into its signature move.
Yellow electricity gathered between the pouches on its cheeks before bursting forth in a brilliant surge, crashing straight toward the poor, small, defenseless Bagon.
Thunderbolt was no joke—even with Pikachu's relatively low special attack, the same-type bonus made it a very formidable move in battles between baby Pokémon.
And worse, with the battlefield drenched in rain, the electricity didn't shoot forward in a single line—it spread outward in a massive AOE.
That meant dodging would be nearly impossible.
If Bagon could fly, it could've easily avoided the attack.
But unfortunately, it wouldn't gain that ability until it fully evolved into Salamence.
So just like Groudon, slow and grounded, it had no choice but to take the hit head-on.
Yet Haru showed no sign of panic.
"Pointless. Bagon is a proud Dragon-type Pokémon—born with resistance to the basic elements of Water, Fire, Grass, and Electric."
"Besides, your Thunderbolt may have widened its range thanks to the water, but its power's been diluted in the process."
"So let's just push straight through that tiny spark. Bagon—"
"Use Draco Meteor! Show them what a solar bombardment looks like!"
When it came to high-powered Dragon-type moves, the list was surprisingly short.
Outside of exclusives, the most universal special attack was Draco Meteor, with a whopping 130 base power.
Of course, it harshly cut the user's Special Attack after use, practically gutting that stat unless the move scored a guaranteed critical.
But the trade-off was worth it: this attack packed enough power to rival Dynamax moves.
If it landed, Pikachu's condition would be anything but good.
"So it's even learned that move?" Ash's eyes narrowed. "But… they're just meteors. Pikachu—blast them out of the sky!"
"Use Thunder! Shatter them with lightning from above!"
Since Draco Meteor literally summoned meteors from the heavens to rain down, striking them from the sky was a clever tactic.
No matter how strong Draco Meteor was, if the meteors never landed, the move was meaningless.
Meteors? Just rocks waiting to be fried.
And in the rain, Thunder came with a boosted effect…
But the moment Ash gave the command, he realized Bagon wasn't where it had been.
At some point, it had slipped behind Pikachu.
"Keh keh keh… If you'd used Thunder instead of Thunderbolt, maybe you'd have had a chance."
"But now…"
"I've been waiting for your Pikachu to go all-in with a big move. That's exactly the opening I needed."
"I never intended to rely on Draco Meteor for damage. My real finisher comes next."
"Bagon—hit it point-blank with Double-Edge! Show that Pikachu your fists!"
"Wha—what?!"
Before Ash could even react, Pikachu was sent flying by Bagon's headlong charge, slamming into the rain-slick floor with a heavy thud.
True, Bagon's Special Attack had dropped from Draco Meteor—but Double-Edge was pure physical, unaffected by the penalty.
With 120 base power, only slightly weaker than Draco Meteor, and flawless accuracy, the move was devastating.
Against the paper-thin Pikachu, it was brutal.
Normally, Double-Edge would deal recoil damage, but Bagon's ability, Rock Head, completely nullified it.
Which meant it could spam the move without consequence.
Even without Haru's orders, Bagon began gleefully spamming Double-Edge on its own, as though determined to finish the fight with sheer brute force.
The only pity was that Double-Edge wasn't Dragon-type, so it couldn't benefit from STAB, lowering its damage ceiling a little.
"Damn it!"
Blindsided by the sudden reversal, Ash clenched his fist, shouting encouragement to his partner:
"Get up, Pikachu! You can do it! I know you can!"
Maybe it was the Trainer's words, but Pikachu's tail twitched.
Slowly, agonizingly, it began to rise.
It had begun.
Haru's expression shifted oddly as he watched.
Was this it—the legendary anime-only god-skills? "Dodge it!" "Hang on!" "Stand up!"
Seriously though, how was a paper-thin Pikachu still standing after eating so many high-power moves?
Was this really the durability a Pikachu was supposed to have?
Even so… could these "anime skills" really change the outcome?
Just as Haru thought that, Pikachu struck a pose he had never seen before.
Wait—that was…
"Play Rough! Pikachu, hit Bagon with Play Rough!"
No good!
The instant Ash called the move, Haru's instincts screamed alarm.
With no choice, he threw his hand forward, using his own brand of "anime god-skill":
"Bagon, dodge it!!"
But whether it was due to lacking "bond power" or something else, Bagon simply couldn't evade in time.
There was no doubt about it—if Play Rough landed, the fragile baby Dragon would be one-shot.
After all, Play Rough was a Fairy-type move, the perfect counter to Dragon. And its base power was nothing to scoff at.
Haru was already preparing to send out Charmander, Ralts, or even Flutter Mane when both he and Ash froze in shock.
Bagon hadn't gone down.
No—it hadn't been hit at all.
Standing protectively in front of it was a small red jet-like figure.
Latias. Latias had flown onto the battlefield!
Of course, being Dragon-type herself, she didn't emerge unscathed—after tanking the Play Rough, she was clearly weakened.
"Uuu—!"
Her eyes blazing with resolve, Latias shielded Haru with her body and let out a sharp, defiant cry at Ash.
"…"
What… what just happened?
Haru was utterly dumbfounded.
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