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It is well known that Ash possesses a famous 'active' skill, which manifests when his Pokémon are severely injured or the situation looks grim. Ash uses words of encouragement and motivation to temporarily restore his Pokémon's stamina and will to fight, allowing them to turn the tide.
Its manifestations are not fixed, including phrases like 'You can do it!', 'Cheer up!', 'Hold on!', 'Show some backbone!', 'Dodge quickly!', and so on.
This 'active' skill is dramatically and jokingly referred to by the public as 'Revival Roar'.
Of course, Mammon doesn't consider this unscientific; After all, Pokémon, as creatures, inherently possess a somewhat idealistic attribute.
Ash's 'Revival Roar', strictly speaking, is an encouragement to his Pokémon, allowing severely injured Pokémon to recall past bonds and warmth, forcefully strengthening their will and unleashing their potential... Alright, I can't keep this up.
Mammon had seen Ash's 'Revival Roar' many times in his previous life, but for it to happen so early in the battle?
And to be honest, although Marshadow's Shadow Sneak looks incredibly cool and exaggerated in its effects, the damage to Lucario shouldn't have been directly severe, right?
Inside the arena.
The Shadow energy of Shadow Sneak gradually dimmed, the shadow moved quickly, and Marshadow's small figure slowly emerged from the shadow, still with that innocent, adorable expression.
In front of Marshadow, Lucario, semi-crouching on the ground, was panting heavily, looking as if he had sustained considerable injury.
"Tsk~ Is his defense that weak?" Mammon raised an eyebrow.
Ghost-type Shadow Sneak does not have a type advantage against Lucario. Theoretically, if their levels were similar, even if Lucario took the full brunt of the attack,
To use gaming terms, there's a 60% chance his HP bar wouldn't drop below half. That should be the case.
But it seems this Lucario's defense is even lower than I imagined.
Or... is Marshadow's strength too great?
Mammon glanced at the innocent Marshadow. In truth, this Marshadow has a rather shy personality and isn't very keen on special training. When asked to train, he often slacks off.
Most of the time, Marshadow acts as a little follower, trailing behind Shiny Gengar, secretly sneaking snacks.
Naturally, this Marshadow's current strength, let alone compared to Diancie and others, is actually only slightly stronger than those in Mesprit's tier.
Hmm, just right for fighting top Champions.
"Darn it! This Marshadow is so strong!"
Ash's brows furrowed as he looked at Lucario's injuries.
"Return, Lucario."
After some thought, Ash decisively recalled Lucario, deciding to switch to a main Pokémon to battle Marshadow.
"Changing Pokémon? Ash, what main Pokémon do you have that's suitable for battling Marshadow?"
Mammon wasn't surprised. Anyone familiar with Ash would know that he really likes to rotate Pokémon in battle.
The most classic example is a full team battle where the opponent only used two main Pokémon, while Ash had already sent out five Pokémon... This is Ash's rotation frequency, one of his defining characteristics.
"Dragonite! I'm counting on you!"
Ash unhesitatingly threw out his second Pokémon.
"Bawu~!"
A flash of white light, and a plump, orange Dragonite appeared in front of Ash, feigning a fierce expression as he glared at Marshadow.
"Dragonite, huh?"
Mammon chuckled softly, looking at this Dragonite feigning ferocity; he was quite cute.
"Using Dragonite to battle Marshadow?" Wallace was a bit puzzled.
Although Dragonite's Flying-type is super effective against Marshadow, that type advantage... he'd have to be able to hit him first.
"And I remember Ash's Dragonite's Terastal type is Normal, right? After Terastallizing into Normal, Extreme Speed is quite powerful."
Wallace recalled that Ash's Dragonite had some impressive moments.
Terastallizing into Normal-type, then using Extreme Speed to charge wildly, was very effective.
"Hmm, Ash seems to be Terastallizing."
Steven nodded, watching Ash's actions in the arena.
Indeed, Ash had already taken out his Terastal Orbs and threw it directly at Dragonite.
Terastallization!
The Terastal crystals shattered, and a Terastallized Normal-type Dragonite appeared before everyone's eyes.
With this, a Terastallized Normal-type Dragonite is immune to Ghost-type attacks but is also weak to Fighting-type attacks.
This choice... "It has its pros and cons, I suppose. Perhaps Ash feels that Ghost-type is more troublesome."
Steven pondered for a moment before speaking.
To be honest, Steven felt that this Terastallization was more beneficial than detrimental. After all, without Terastallization, Dragonite would be quadruply weak to Ice.
Mammon would surely exploit that to launch an offensive. Terastallizing into Normal, while making him weak to Fighting, removes the quadruple weakness and grants immunity to Ghost-type.
It definitely offers more advantages.
On the field.
"Dragonite, Scale Shot!"
Ash waved his arm, full of spirit.
The Terastallized Dragonite flew high, his wings flapping powerfully, and green scale light shot down, densely assailing Marshadow on the ground.
Dragon-type Scale Shot.
"Sucker Punch." Mammon commanded.
A black light flashed in Marshadow's eyes, and his figure instantly shot up, charging towards Dragonite at high speed.
The incoming Scale Shot was entirely dodged by Marshadow twisting his body.
"Extreme Speed!" Ash immediately shouted.
Extreme Speed?
Upon hearing this, the audience members were all stunned. Normal-type Extreme Speed is indeed a priority move, and one with a very high priority among them.
But the crucial issue is that Normal-type Extreme Speed is useless against Marshadow.
A white light flashed behind Dragonite, and his figure instantly flew towards Marshadow with astonishing speed, almost brushing past him.
Although Marshadow reacted, he couldn't catch up to Dragonite!
Extreme Speed has a higher priority than Sucker Punch!
"So that's how it is."
Looking at Marshadow, who was forced to stop in mid-air, Mammon raised an eyebrow.
Trying to catch up to an Extreme Speed Dragonite with Sucker Punch is not very realistic.
While Extreme Speed cannot be used for direct offense, it's perfectly fine for countering Marshadow's Sucker Punch.
However, Lucario also knows Extreme Speed, so why the need to switch to Dragonite?
But Mammon quickly understood.
Dragonite, in Extreme Speed mode, lightning-fast, came from behind and above Marshadow. As Extreme Speed faded, Dragonite spun around, and a white aura flowed.
Flying-type Aerial Ace!
"Fire Punch!"
Marshadow quickly turned around, his right fist ignited with surging flames, and he fiercely slammed it towards Dragonite.
Aerial Ace vs. Fire Punch!
With a bang, Aerial Ace and Fire Punch, two attacks, collided heavily.
The flames of Fire Punch continuously erupted, yet they couldn't suppress the charge of Aerial Ace.
A draw!
"With Dragonite's power, he can't even overpower Marshadow?"
Ash's brow furrowed. It was precisely because he perceived Marshadow's strength to be considerable that he specifically switched to Dragonite.
But he didn't expect Dragonite's STAB Aerial Ace to be unable to overpower Marshadow's Fire Punch.
This guy is small, but his strength is surprisingly powerful.
"Dragonite!" Ash's mind raced, and he suddenly shouted at Dragonite.
Dragonite roared, suddenly increasing his power output.
Boom!
Accompanied by a loud crash, both Dragonite and Marshadow were simultaneously pushed back by the powerful impact.
"Scale Shot!!"
But Ash had no intention of stopping his offensive.
As Dragonite retreated, his wings continuously flapped, and green scale light shot out.
However, Marshadow's figure immediately 'melted' into a shadow, rapidly gliding across the ground.
Boom boom boom!
Scale Shot continuously bombarded the ground, but it didn't hit the shadow that Marshadow had transformed into.
"Earthquake!" Ash continued his fierce assault.
Dragonite descended from the sky, landing heavily on the ground. With a violent rumble, a materialized Earthquake shockwave vibrated outwards.
Marshadow naturally didn't want to endure the Earthquake's impact. The shadow quickly transformed back into his body, and he leaped up.
"Wave Bomb!" Mammon commanded.
Marshadow brought his arms together, and a cerulean Wave Bomb condensed, shooting rapidly towards Dragonite.
"Dragon Claw!"
Dragonite raised his two thick arms in a cross, and the Wave Bomb exploded on his sharp Dragon Claws.
Dragonite grunted, his strong physique allowing him to endure the obstructed Wave Bomb. Then, Dragonite flapped his wings and charged towards Marshadow again.
"Meet him head-on."
Mammon lightly clicked his tongue. Since Ash wants Close Combat, he'll oblige.
Marshadow let out a low growl. The 'mist' on his headpiece, wrists, and neck ignited like flames. This was the 'Full Power Marshadow' form.
It signified that Marshadow's fighting spirit was burning, and he was beginning to give his all!
With two small hands radiating white light, Marshadow swiftly met the incoming Dragonite.
Fighting-type Brick Break!
The distance between the two Pokémon grew shorter. Dragonite roared, his Dragon Claw tearing towards Marshadow first.
Marshadow, however, swayed his feet lightly, nimbly leaping to dodge the Dragon Claw. Brick Break then took the opportunity to fiercely strike Dragonite's shoulder.
Dragonite cried out in pain, yet he endured it, thrusting his other Dragon Claw at Marshadow.
Marshadow had no time to dodge and could only defend with his forearm.
The Dragon Claw hit hard, and Marshadow grunted, his body sent crashing to the ground by the immense force of the Dragon Claw.
But the next second, Marshadow slammed the ground and got back up, dodging Dragonite's pursuing Outrage.
Brick Break once again fiercely struck Dragonite's tail, making Dragonite cry out again.
Brick Break and Dragon Claw, Outrage and Force Palm, Wing Attack and Drain Punch... The two Pokémon engaged in intense and thrilling Close Combat, both refusing to yield, ferociously exchanging blows.
"No, this can't go on, Dragonite will give out first!"
Brock's brow was tightly furrowed, watching Dragonite in the arena with great concern.
The Close Combat between the two seemed like a back-and-forth exchange, but upon closer observation,
It becomes clear that Dragonite is at a distinct disadvantage because Marshadow is smaller and noticeably more agile.
Out of three of Dragonite's attacks, at least two would be dodged and one would hit. But out of three of Marshadow's attacks, at least two would hit, though one might be defended against by Dragonite.
At this rate, even with Dragonite's strong physique as a pseudo-legendary, he would be the first to give out.
Especially since most of Marshadow's attacks are Fighting-type moves, and Dragonite, now Terastallized into a Normal-type, is weak to Fighting.
"You can do it, Dragonite!"
Ash continuously cheered Dragonite on.
And Dragonite, who had been panting heavily and starting to tire, instantly became energized as if injected with adrenaline after Ash's encouragement, continuing his fierce assault on Marshadow.
Marshadow was caught off guard and hit once, but once he adapted to this rhythm, Marshadow's advantage reappeared.
Marshadow's more agile body compared to Dragonite gave him more room for error.
Catching Dragonite off guard, Marshadow's full-force Close Combat finally overwhelmed Dragonite.
Boom!
Dragonite's body crashed heavily to the ground, and his Terastallization dissipated into specks of light.
Seeing Dragonite finally loses its ability to battle, Marshadow also lets out a long sigh of relief, rubbing his aching arms, slowly turning around, and preparing to walk back in front of Mammon.
After thinking about Gengar's teachings, Marshadow even put on a limping act, as if he was almost at his limit and severely injured.
"Bad..."
Marshadow weakly called out to Mammon, indicating that he probably couldn't handle the next opponent and needed three days of good rest to recover.
Mammon: "..."