Diantha was sparring with Cynthia.
"Zapdos, Thunder!"
"Gardevoir, Psychic!"
"Screech~!!"
Zapdos flickered with blinding arcs of electricity, screaming as he summoned a barrage of lightning from the high heavens.
"Gar-de-voir!!"
Gardevoir vibrated with intense Psychic energy, causing the air itself to hum and distort as she intercepted the lightning.
BOOM!
The two streams of energy collided, resulting in a series of deafening explosions.
Amidst the smoke and noise, Cynthia's voice cut through: "Zapdos! Use our combo!"
"Screech!!"
Zapdos focused the erratic electricity onto his long, sharp beak.
He flapped his wings, turning his body into a living missile.
Discharge + Drill Peck.
The combination turned Zapdos into a streak of yellow lightning. He was moving so fast he blurred.
Seeing the incoming assault, Diantha shouted immediately:
"Gardevoir! Use Reflect! Block it!"
"Sana!!"
Gardevoir raised her hands, quickly forming a transparent, shimmering wall of light in front of her.
CRACK!
It was useless. Zapdos's electrified beak pierced the Reflect barrier like glass.
The momentum carried him through, smashing directly into Gardevoir.
"Sana..."
Gardevoir let out a cry of pain as the impact knocked her back tens of meters, sending her tumbling out of the battle circle.
The winner was decided.
"Amazing," Diantha said, recalling her Gardevoir.
"Legends really are different. To control that much electrical energy while launching a physical impact at that speed... Your Zapdos is terrifying."
Receiving a compliment from her "little sister" Diantha, Cynthia tried to look humble.
But the pride between her brows was impossible to conceal.
"Hehe~ It's normal," she laughed, flipping her hair.
While the two women were chatting, a deafening BANG echoed from the adjacent field.
The earth trembled beneath their feet.
They turned their gaze to the other training ground.
There, Sam's Lucario had just punched Red's Mega Blastoise.
The force of the blow had buried the massive turtle halfway into the ground, leaving a deep crater in the earth.
"Hiss..."
Diantha gasped. "Sam's Lucario... is a monster."
Cynthia put away her smug look. The Zapdos that Diantha had just praised?
Compared to Sam's Pokémon, it wouldn't even last a minute.
"Sam is too strong," Diantha murmured, looking at Sam in the distance with admiration.
"If he participates in the World Series, he is guaranteed the Number One spot. Even Leon wouldn't be able to defeat Red this easily."
Diantha touched Cynthia's arm.
"I really envy you for having such a husband."
"Hehe~" Cynthia raised her eyebrows.
Just as she was about to tease Diantha about finding her own man, a shout interrupted them.
"BIG NEWS!!"
Brock ran over, holding his phone high, screaming in surprise.
"Everyone! Big news!"
Sam, having just finished his battle with Red, walked over to the sidelines.
"What is it, Brock?"
Cynthia, Diantha, Red, Ash, and Dawn all gathered around.
Brock read the headline from his phone, his voice trembling with excitement.
"It is reported that Sabrina, the Gym Leader of Saffron City in the Kanto Region, has formally applied to the Unova League to challenge Alder, the Champion of the Unova Region!"
"The Unova League has accepted her challenge."
"Wait, there's more!" Brock scrolled down.
"Before the news was even announced... Gym Leader Sabrina had already defeated three of the Unova Elite Four in the internal review!"
"She defeated Shauntal (Ghost), Marshal (Fighting), and Grimsley (Dark)!"
"And just now... the latest update came in!" Brock yelled.
"She just defeated the final Elite Four member, Caitlin (Psychic)!"
The group was stunned.
Sabrina swept the Unova Elite Four?
"The Unova Alliance has confirmed it," Brock continued.
"The match will be held in Vertress City in three days! Gym Leader Sabrina will officially challenge the current Champion, Alder, for the title!"
Sam was surprised.
Sabrina? Wanting to be a Champion?
Gym Leaders challenging the League was a normal promotion channel.
The Alliance actually encouraged it to keep the Elites and Champions sharp.
But based on Sam's understanding of Sabrina, she wasn't interested in titles or fame.
She preferred solitude and psychic training.
Why the sudden change? Sam wondered.
Beside him, Cynthia went silent.
She silently glanced at Sam, her hand unconsciously gripping his arm tighter.
A heavy pressure suddenly rose in her heart.
A woman's sixth sense is a terrifying thing.
Cynthia had a hunch. No, she was certain.
Sabrina wasn't challenging Alder because she wanted to rule Unova.
She didn't care about the Unova Region at all.
Cynthia remembered the news report about her own wedding, the World Championship Title.
She saw the news, Cynthia realized, her eyes narrowing.
She thinks she needs a Champion's title to qualify for the Ranking Match.
She's doing this... to come after Sam.
Sabrina was tearing through an entire region's league just to crash the wedding.
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