"Sceptile will win!"
Ash firmly believed in his Pokémon.
If a Trainer doesn't believe in his Pokémon, how can he win?
And Ash had something to say too; although Sceptile might not be as good as Tyranitar in all aspects, in terms of speed, his Sceptile definitely had the advantage!
Even if the opponent's speed had increased by one stage.
"What a great look in your eyes. Then..."
Mammon looked at Ash's determined gaze, and his smile slowly widened.
"Tyranitar, Dragon Dance."
"Ban~!"
Tyranitar roared, its massive body dancing in an ancient and mysterious trajectory, faint Blue light flickering around it.
The Dragon-type Dragon Dance! A stat-boosting move that increases Speed and Attack.
"Sceptile, Leaf Blade!" Ash immediately shouted to Sceptile.
Sceptile spread its arms and quickly rushed towards Tyranitar, moving very fast.
Sceptile's biggest advantage was originally its speed, not to mention that it had gained a speed boost after using Max Airstream.
Of course, since Tyranitar had used Max Airstream twice, its speed had increased twice. If one increase was canceled out, it would be equivalent to Tyranitar only having increased its speed once.
However, even with one speed increase, Tyranitar's speed still couldn't compare to Sceptile's.
Sceptile's movements were extremely swift, as if unaffected by its injuries. The leaves on its arms continuously extended, turning into two green light blades.
Sceptile swung its Leaf Blade without hesitation, striking at Tyranitar.
The Grass-type Leaf Blade.
Because it was in the middle of Dragon Dance, Tyranitar naturally couldn't dodge in time.
In reality, Mammon's Tyranitar was very proficient with Dragon Dance, and the stat-boosting time wasn't long, but Sceptile was indeed very fast.
Sceptile's Leaf Blade heavily slashed across Tyranitar's body. Tyranitar lets out a low Growl, enduring the pain brought by the Leaf Blade.
Blue light points entered Tyranitar's body, caused by Dragon Dance.
"Its defense is that strong?" Ash couldn't help but exclaim when he saw Tyranitar show little reaction after being hit.
Sceptile's physical attack had been boosted once by Max Knuckle!
"Continue with Leaf Blade!" Ash continued to command.
Sceptile changed its stance, and Leaf Blade once again tore through the air, slashing towards Tyranitar.
"Next."
Tyranitar raised its thick arm to block in front of itself.
The Leaf Blade slashed down fiercely, but it was directly blocked by Tyranitar's claws.
"What?"
Ash was startled, and Sceptile, who had just unleashed Leaf Blade, was also stunned.
"Grab it." Mammon's grin widened.
Tyranitar twisted its claw and directly grabbed Sceptile's wrist.
Sceptile snapped out of its shock and immediately tried to retreat upon sensing Tyranitar's movement, but it was still a step too slow.
Tyranitar's claw gripped Sceptile's wrist like an iron clamp. Sceptile tried to break free but found it impossible.
The enraged Sceptile roared at Tyranitar, who showed a ferocious smile.
"Sceptile!"
Ash already had a bad premonition. Oh no!
"You were really careless, Ash." Mammon shook his head.
"Tyranitar."
Tyranitar let out a low Growl, grabbed Sceptile's hand, and forcefully slammed it to the other side.
A scene that left everyone dumbfounded appeared: Sceptile's entire body was swung into the air by Tyranitar, tracing a semicircle trajectory, and then slammed onto the ground.
Boom!
The battle arena shook heavily. Sceptile's body trembled slightly from the pain, showing how hard that fall was.
"Dark Pulse!" Mammon gave no opportunity.
Tyranitar opened its mouth, and black energy waves condensed within.
The next moment, the black wave shot out, hitting Sceptile on the ground squarely, exploding with a bang.
The distance was too close; Sceptile had no chance to dodge, especially since its injuries were already severe.
When the smoke cleared, Sceptile was already lying on the ground.
"Sceptile is unable to battle. Tyranitar wins."
The referee announced the battle result.
"I'm sorry, it's my fault. Get some good rest, Sceptile." Ash recalled Sceptile, apologizing to him.
He had underestimated Tyranitar's power, and... "This Tyranitar, such strong power!"
In the audience, Gary looked at the Tyranitar on the field with shining eyes. This is so cool!
Gary really liked it; he wanted to catch one too.
"Indeed, it took Sceptile's Leaf Blade without using any special moves. That's truly exaggerated." Professor Oak was also full of admiration.
"It's Ash's own problem. Sceptile should have used ranged attacks. Fighting Tyranitar in close combat, his thinking is flawed."
Blue crossed his arms, pouting, saying he really couldn't understand why Ash would make Sceptile use Leaf Blade in close combat.
Although Tyranitar's speed was indeed inferior to Sceptile's, reaction speed and movement speed are often two different things.
"Every Trainer has his own battle habits. Ash indeed prefers to have Sceptile use Leaf Blade in close combat."
Professor Oak shook his head. This was each Trainer's battle style and habits.
Professor Oak paid close attention to the Trainers from his Pallet Town, so he clearly knew that when Ash used Sceptile, he often had Sceptile use Leaf Blade in close combat.
And Sceptile itself was very proficient with Leaf Blade, so there was nothing more to say.
"Tsk~ This isn't a good habit." Blue clicked his tongue and shrugged, noncommittal.
He believed that when Tyranitar was using Dragon Dance, having Sceptile throw an Aura Sphere would have been the best option.
After all, a Tera Dark Tyranitar was still weak to Fighting-type moves.
But this was Ash's personal habit and style.
"But dealing with this Tyranitar next won't be easy. This Tyranitar's strength... is very strong."
Blue looked at Tyranitar, his gaze much more serious. He himself was a Trainer extremely skilled in raising Pokémon, so his eyesight and observation skills were excellent.
So he could tell that this Tyranitar had been exceptionally well-raised in all aspects, and its performance in the battle just now proved it.
This Tyranitar's stats were absolutely astonishingly strong!
On the field.
"Greninja!"
Ash thought for a second, then threw out his fifth Pokémon.
The Poké Ball opened in mid-air, white light landed, and a dark Blue Greninja landed gracefully, then slowly straightened up and crossed its arms, coolly staring at Tyranitar.
It was Greninja!
"You've raised it very well, Ash. It seems that giving Froakie to you back then was the correct choice."
Mammon looked it up and down, saying with satisfaction.
"Ha~ I also really like Froakie, thank you very much, Mammon."
Ash showed a smile.
"That's good. Let me see your and Greninja's strength then." Mammon smiled.
"Of course!" Ash was full of energy, adjusting his hat.
"Greninja, let Mammon see our bond!"
Greninja responded with a low Growl, closing its eyes.
When the power of their bond was strong enough, that trust would respond to them!
A huge waterspout unexpectedly rose from Greninja's feet, completely engulfing its entire body.
The next moment, the waterspout shattered with a roar, and Greninja reappeared before everyone's eyes.
The shattered water waves condensed into a giant Water Shuriken fixed behind Greninja. Red markings appeared on its head, and black fur appeared on both sides of its head, very similar to Ash's hairstyle.
Bond-transformed Greninja, also known as Ash-Greninja!
"Ash-Greninja, huh." Mammon scanned the Bond Greninja, raising an eyebrow.
Bond Greninja was Ash's ace during his journey in the Kalos region. As for whether it or Pikachu was truly the ace, it's hard to say.
But it's undeniable that after Greninja could undergo Bond Transformation, in many battles, the great frog Master was the last to appear.
So, in a sense, Bond Greninja was Ash's ace in Kalos.
The great frog Master wasn't exactly underpowered, but the crucial point was that in the most critical battle, it fell short!
In the finals of the Kalos Lumiose Conference, Ash specifically had the great frog Master come out last, setting the stage perfectly for him.
But the great frog Master, fighting a less-than-full-strength Alain's Mega Charizard X, didn't carry the team... In that grand final battle, the real MVP was actually the Electric Rodent, defeating Alain's Tyranitar and Metagross, two pseudo-legendary mainstays.
And the great frog Master's Golden Shuriken will truly be talked about for a lifetime.
But no matter what, no one would deny Ash-Greninja's strength.
Among Ash's Water-type starters throughout the generations, Bond Greninja is absolutely the strongest, bar none!
Even the squirting turtle has to step aside and make way for Ash-Greninja.
"Is Greninja going to use this form now?"
In the audience, Misty frowned slightly, saying with some concern.
Bond Greninja is a power-up not inferior to Mega Evolution, and it is unique to Ash.
So strictly speaking, others only have four power-ups in a battle, but Ash has five!
But the problem is, Bond Greninja has side effects.
Because this is a transformation that embodies the bond between Greninja and Ash, it also causes Ash's body to resonate with Bond Greninja.
In layman's terms, if Bond Greninja gets hurt, Ash will also feel some of the pain.
Although it's not a complete resonance, it's still quite severe. Once Bond Greninja is unable to battle, Ash will also feel great pain, and his stamina will be greatly depleted.
This is the price.
It's also fortunate that Ash himself has a good physique, otherwise he really couldn't withstand this kind of strain, as it's fine once or twice.
But if this happens frequently, his body will really develop problems.
Therefore, both Professor Oak and Red, among others, actually advised Ash to use this Bond form less often.
It is indeed strong, but sacrificing his body is truly not worth it. Even if it won't endanger his life, what if he gets sequelae from doing it too many times?
"There's no turning back." Brock shook his head.
"To defeat this Tyranitar, Ash must go all out, and Ash must be thinking the same thing."
Brock sighed.
For Ash, he would absolutely never give up. Defeating just one Pheromosa isn't enough, is it?