Indigo Plateau Arena was bustling with excitement.
On the field, the battle between Gloria and Serena had reached a fever pitch.
As Serena's Galarian Zapdos's Thunderous Kick landed, Gloria's Nihilego was knocked out.
"Oh my! Nihilego is down! Trainer Gloria only has one Pokémon left!"
"Trainer Gloria has been pushed to the brink! And Trainer Serena, she still holds three match points! Can Trainer Gloria still turn the tide?"
The Sunglasses Host's passionate and enthusiastic voice reached everyone's ears.
"Gloria! Go for it! Gloria have to hold on!"
"Gloria are the last hope for our Galar region, Gloria!"
"I beg Gloria to hold on, at least make it to the top eight…"
"Hahaha~ Our Serena is just strong!"
"Serena, crush them! Defeat the opponent and Gloria'll be one of the Eight Masters!"
The live stream was filled with comments from viewers in the Galar and Kalos regions.
After all, for viewers from these two regions, both Gloria and Serena were their region's 'sole representatives'.
They didn't expect them to charge all the way to victory, as that was truly too difficult, but… at least aim for a top eight spot, right?
In the audience stands.
Diantha's expression was now very serious and worried, and Raihan was no longer abstract, his brows tightly furrowed.
And Hop's palms were sweating from nervousness; no matter what, they absolutely supported Gloria in their hearts.
But the battle situation was really not going well; Serena was truly strong.
"Phew~ As expected, Serena, you are still so amazing!"
On the field, Gloria adjusted her breathing, letting her heartbeat gradually stabilize, before smiling brightly at Serena and speaking.
"you are also very strong, Gloria." Serena's eyes were burning with intensity.
Just one more step! Just one more step and she could advance to the top eight and become one of the 'Eight Masters'!
But it was precisely at such a critical moment that she needed to remain calm.
"Come on! Your last Pokémon!"
"Ah~ Get ready to battle, Urshifu!"
Gloria tossed her last Pokémon high into the air, and with a low growl, a majestic and imposing Urshifu landed in front of her.
Urshifu's steady eyes gazed at Galarian Zapdos, then it raised its hands, one in front and one behind, with its left leg slightly bent and lifted.
This was the standard Single Strike Style Urshifu battle stance.
This was Gloria's final trump card, Single Strike Style Urshifu!
She had been recommended by Diantha to the dojo on Armor Island to apprentice under Mustard, who was the former Champion of the Galar region and still held the Pokémon League's highest undefeated streak record.
And Mustard was most famous for his ace Pokémon being the legendary Urshifu!
Gloria joined the dojo, then underwent Mustard's trials, and finally successfully obtained Kubfu, evolving it into Single Strike Style Urshifu.
It must be said that Urshifu's combat power was extremely strong.
By now, Urshifu was Gloria's absolute trump card.
"Urshifu!"
Gloria took out a Terastal Orbs and tossed it towards Single Strike Style Urshifu.
Urshifu was instantly enveloped in dazzling, dreamlike crystals, and as the crystals shattered, a Tera Water Urshifu appeared.
"The Legendary Pokémon Urshifu…"
Serena narrowed her eyes slightly; it certainly gave off a lot of pressure.
But… what of it?
Her Galarian Zapdos was also a Legendary Pokémon.
"Zapdos!"
"Chirp~!"
Galarian Zapdos shrieked loudly, its ferocious and violent aura quite astonishing, as it charged towards Urshifu with its powerful legs.
Fight!
Both Galarian Zapdos and Urshifu were strong in close-quarters combat, and their battle was naturally extremely thrilling and intense.
However, Galarian Zapdos was, after all, injured, and after an intense fight, Galarian Zapdos still fell to Urshifu's Surging Strikes.
"This Urshifu actually defeated Serena's Zapdos in a head-on confrontation; it's really strong."
Platinum was a bit worried; she knew that Serena's Galarian Zapdos had extremely strong frontal combat power.
"Hmm, but it's still too difficult to make a comeback." Mammon nodded.
On the field.
"Magearna!"
Serena pondered for a moment and did not use Blacephalon, which she had been saving, but instead threw out her ace Pokémon.
A silver-white robot Pokémon, resembling a maid, appeared in front of Serena.
It was the Steel/Fairy-type Mythical Pokémon, Magearna!
This was the Pokémon she found and caught after Diantha gave her information about it.
The battle continued, Gloria's Single Strike Style Urshifu was incredibly powerful, but Magearna fought steadily and even set up a Trick Room.
Urshifu's speed was reversed, making it slower than Magearna.
Under the continuous barrage of Thunderbolt, Urshifu ultimately couldn't hold on and fell heavily to the ground.
Urshifu's defeat also meant that Gloria had completely lost.
"Sigh, I still couldn't win."
Gloria recalled Urshifu, looking at the Poké Ball in her hand, feeling inevitably disappointed and sad.
She had lost to Serena before, and now she had lost again… Gloria's feelings were complex; she had truly given it her all, but still couldn't defeat Serena.
Perhaps, she still needed to work harder.
"Congratulations, Serena."
"Thank you. I hope we can battle again in the future."
Serena smiled at Gloria; this battle today also taught her a lot.
The seventh top eight participant was decided, and now only the last battle remained.
Akari vs. Red!
"Akari… this girl is really strong."
Misty looked at the Blue-haired girl on the big screen and couldn't help but frown slightly.
After all, at the beginning of the year, Akari had frantically climbed the ranks, charging all the way up the Eight Masters list with overwhelming force, and easily defeating Steven and others.
She only stopped after reaching No. 3.
Although she looked like a very young girl, her strength was truly unfathomable.
"Hmm, Ash, do you know the relationship between Akari and Platinum?"
Brock asked Ash curiously; although he and Misty were also members of Team Rocket, their status was, of course, not as high as Ash's.
Akari's identity had always been a point of public curiosity because her appearance was so similar to Platinum's.
So similar that they looked like twin sisters.
But when busybodies asked Mr. Bellritz, Platinum's father, about it, Mr. Bellritz's expression in the video at the time was incredibly complex.
The emotions in his eyes could almost be charted into a pie graph.
But when faced with the question of whether Akari was Platinum's sister, Mr. Bellritz shook his head in denial, yet he didn't state Akari's exact identity.
Most importantly, on Akari's official ID, she was actually from Kanto…
"Akari and Platinum…" Ash hesitated a bit.
"Actually, I'm not entirely sure, but I've heard Karen and others mention some things, but I don't know if they're true or false."
Ash paused.
"you know, Mammon's second daughter, her name is 'Akari', and she's Platinum and Mammon's daughter…"
"Huh?"
Brock and Misty froze for a moment, then both of them simultaneously widened their eyes.
"You mean, Akari is Mammon's daugh—mmph mmph…"
"Shh, I didn't say anything!"
Ash quickly covered Misty's mouth, making a shushing gesture to her.
After all, Mammon and the others hadn't made this news public; although Ash was a bit oblivious, he knew that such secrets shouldn't be casually blurted out.
Besides, this was just speculation.
Because if it were true, it would be truly outrageous.
"Ahem, let's watch the match."
Brock cleared his throat twice, changing the subject, and his gaze also turned to the arena.
Akari and Red were now standing on the battle stage.
"I wonder if Red can defeat Akari."
Brock was, of course, psychologically on Red's side, because Red was Ash's older brother.
"It's a bit difficult, Akari is ranked No. 3." Misty pouted.
"Brother Red…"
Ash nervously watched Red in the arena. Go, Brother Red!
On the field.
"Uncle Red, I didn't expect to battle you in such a competition; it feels truly wonderful."
Akari's eyes curved into a smile, her pure and clean smile very captivating, and her clear voice was as pleasant as a little oriole.
Red: "…"
However, Red only responded with silence.
"I know, Uncle Red, you must be very excited right now, because you've always been like this, loving to battle strong Trainers."
Akari didn't care, smiling as she took out a miniaturized Poké Ball, still very lively and energetic.
"Don't worry, I'll definitely take this battle seriously today! I promise you'll be satisfied, Uncle!"
Red: "…"
Red raised a hand and slightly pulled down his cap brim, the shadow of the brim covering his Red eyes.
He wasn't familiar with this girl who looked extremely similar to Platinum, although under Ash and Blue's instigation, he had reluctantly joined Team Rocket.
But unlike Ash, who was 'socially awkward', the taciturn Red was genuinely a bit socially awkward.
Well, except during battles.
So Red rarely went to Team Rocket Castle, except for special instances when Ash occasionally dragged him along.
But every time he went to Team Rocket Castle, if Akari was there, she would always greet him proactively.
But what even Red found hard to bear was that Akari always called him 'Uncle Red'… Red wasn't someone who cared about others' opinions of him, but even so, he was only seventeen this year!
And the girl opposite him looked to be about sixteen or seventeen; no, you're about the same age as me, but you're calling me 'Uncle'? What does that mean?
Although I don't talk much, you can't bully an honest person like this, can you? Do I look like a thirty-year-old uncle?
Red felt that the girl opposite him was truly impolite.
Red:.....