"So strong!"
At the very start of the match, Leon's Seismitoad was already being relentlessly chased and pummeled by Lance's Mega Gyarados. The continuous barrage of attacks had clearly hit their mark, and everyone—including Raihan and the others—had grim expressions.
This was… not a good start at all.
At least from the looks of it, Seismitoad didn't seem to stand a chance against the sheer power of Mega Gyarados.
"Champion Lance's strength is still as overwhelming as ever… I'm afraid Champion Leon might be in for a tough battle," Alder sighed from the other side of the stands. He was one of the League's veteran Champions.
Compared to younger Champions like Cynthia, Alder's attention was drawn more toward Lance.
Lance's battle style was actually very simple—his greatest strength was crushing his opponents through absolute power!
He was like a blade drawn from its sheath—razor-sharp, merciless, and dazzling. Such ferocious, unrelenting offense was his strongest form of defense. And under the brutal onslaught of Lance's dragons, most opponents simply collapsed.
"Judging by the current situation, Seismitoad isn't suited to handle Mega Gyarados. Gyarados is a Pokémon that thrives on brute strength. If Seismitoad can't withstand its assault…"
"Then it will inevitably fall behind," said Wallace, his eyes calmly analyzing the battle.
As a Champion who specialized in Water-types—and who also had a main Gyarados on his team—Wallace knew the species' strengths and weaknesses inside out.
Among all Water-types, Gyarados was considered a top-tier choice. Most trainers were familiar with it.
Gyarados possessed terrifying offensive power and a commanding presence, but the thing that troubled its trainers the most was its quadruple weakness to Electric-type attacks.
Even so, countless trainers still loved using Gyarados.
Why?
Because, compared to other powerful Water-types, Gyarados was much easier to obtain.
Magikarp were everywhere—catching one was trivial. As long as you got one with decent potential and trained it patiently, you could have your very own mighty Gyarados.
Of course, catching a Magikarp was easy—but raising it into a properly trained Gyarados was another story. Still, in the hands of a truly skilled trainer, Gyarados's strengths could be pushed to their absolute limit.
Powerful. Dominant. Ferocious.
As for Seismitoad, Wallace knew a bit about it too. It reminded him somewhat of his own main Pokémon, Ludicolo. Both had highly balanced stats.
Balance, in one sense, meant mediocrity—but it also meant the absence of glaring weaknesses.
However, facing Lance's savage Mega Gyarados, Leon's Seismitoad clearly couldn't handle such a ferocious assault.
"Seismitoad still has some special abilities. I'm sure Leon has his own plan," Alder said with a slow shake of his head. After all, the battle had only just begun, and he wasn't ready to make any firm conclusions yet—though he personally favored Lance's Mega Gyarados.
Meanwhile, in the arena—
When Gyarados's Aqua Tail slammed down, a massive cloud of dust and smoke erupted. Lance stood with his arms folded, watching impassively.
A moment later, a blue figure shot out of the smoke and skidded across the ground, finally steadying itself.
It was Leon's Seismitoad.
"Hm?"
Lance narrowed his eyes slightly.
The injuries on Seismitoad didn't seem as severe as he had expected.
That shouldn't be possible. The Stone Edge from earlier had been mostly blocked, yes—but some of the attack definitely landed.
Still, that wasn't the main concern. The real issue was Aqua Tail.
Although Seismitoad was part Water-type, it was also part Ground-type, which meant it didn't resist Water-type moves.
That meant Aqua Tail should have dealt normal damage.
And since Mega Gyarados excelled at physical offense, even without a type advantage, taking that hit head-on should have left Seismitoad seriously injured.
But…
"Those vibrating warts…" Lucas, sitting in the stands, noticed the detail immediately and understood what was going on.
If he remembered correctly, in the games, Leon's Seismitoad had the hidden ability Water Absorb, which nullified Water-type moves and restored HP instead.
However, Mega Gyarados's ability was Mold Breaker, which ignored such abilities.
That meant it wasn't Water Absorb at work—but rather Seismitoad's unique physiology. The pulsating warts on its arms and back could vibrate, producing effects like paralysis, interference, and other unusual phenomena.
"A physical ability, huh? No wonder he picked this one to face my Gyarados," Lance muttered with a faint snort. "Showy tricks."
His mind turned quickly, and he soon realized why Aqua Tail hadn't hit as hard as expected. Still, such gimmicks couldn't stop his Mega Gyarados.
"Truly… a troublesome opponent," Leon murmured under his breath, his expression composed but tense. He had originally planned to hide Seismitoad's special ability for a decisive moment later on—but the onslaught from Mega Gyarados was simply too overwhelming.
He didn't have the luxury of waiting.
"I'll have to take the initiative, or Seismitoad will stay on the defensive forever."
Leon's mind raced through countless tactical possibilities until he settled on one.
"Seismitoad—Aura Sphere!"
Seismitoad croaked, clapping its hands together as a glowing blue sphere of fighting energy formed between them.
In the next instant, the Aura Sphere shot forward at incredible speed, heading straight for Mega Gyarados.
A Fighting-type move—super effective against Gyarados's Dark typing!
"Such a feeble attack… Don't embarrass yourself."
Lance's eyes flashed with disdain. "Gyarados!"
Mega Gyarados roared, water swirling around its long tail before it whipped it fiercely—shattering the incoming Aura Sphere instantly.
"Dragon Dance!"
Its massive, serpentine body rose slightly off the ground, moving in an ancient, almost mystical rhythm as a fierce aura surrounded it.
Attack and Speed sharply rose!
"Seismitoad, Drain Punch!"
Leon's expression hardened. If Mega Gyarados was allowed to keep boosting with Dragon Dance, it would soon become a monster beyond control.
He had to stop it now!
"Seismitoad, go!"
With a powerful leap, Seismitoad kicked off the ground, charging straight toward Mega Gyarados.
"Oh? Taking the offensive now?"
A cold smile tugged at Lance's lips, his white teeth gleaming. "Dark Pulse!"
Just having a special ability wasn't enough to fight his Mega Gyarados.
Lance would show Leon what absolute power meant.
Mega Gyarados halted its dance, opened its jaws, and unleashed a blast of purple-black energy straight at Seismitoad.
Seismitoad twisted its body midair, dodging the Dark Pulse, and with a powerful jump, landed directly on Mega Gyarados's back!
"Thrash!"
"Drain Punch!"
Their voices overlapped—Lance and Leon issuing commands at the same time!
Mega Gyarados's body glowed with an eerie purple-black light as it thrashed violently, trying to throw Seismitoad off.
But Seismitoad gripped tightly onto its scales, one arm glowing with white energy while the warts on its arm pulsed rapidly—then struck downward with full force!
Bang!
The Drain Punch landed squarely!
Mega Gyarados let out a roar of pain, its movements becoming even more frantic.
"Seismitoad's that strong?"
Green couldn't help but gasp in surprise. Even while struggling to keep balance on top of a rampaging Mega Gyarados, Seismitoad had managed to hit hard enough to make it roar in pain?
After all, a Mega Gyarados's defense was supposed to be formidable!
"Seismitoad's warts are special," Lucas explained from the stands. "Their vibrations amplify its strength—and sometimes produce other effects as well."
In short, while Seismitoad's overall stats were balanced and its attack power not exceptional, its unique physiology allowed it to push its strength beyond normal limits.
"Gyarados!"
Lance's voice was calm but commanding.
Mega Gyarados roared again and shot straight upward into the sky. The air whistled violently as it climbed higher and higher, Seismitoad clinging tightly to its back.
Then—its body twisted, reversing its momentum into a terrifying dive.
The air pressure was monstrous, the wind slicing past them so fiercely that Seismitoad could barely keep its eyes open—or breathe.
Under the tense gaze of everyone watching, Seismitoad's grip finally gave out, and it plummeted.
"Seismitoad!" Leon's face paled. If it fell from that height…!
"Outrage! Follow with Giga Impact!"
A cold light flickered in Lance's eyes. That pest thinks it can match my Mega Gyarados?
Mega Gyarados's eyes turned blood-red as a savage aura exploded from its body. Outrage!
In the games, Outrage was a powerful physical Dragon-type attack, but in reality—it was more of a frenzy state, a temporary surge of unstoppable strength that left the user disoriented afterward.
At the same time, Mega Gyarados was surrounded by brilliant white light, spiraling energy condensing around its body—Giga Impact!
"Seismitoad, Hyper Beam!"
Leon's expression was grim. Outrage followed by Giga Impact… Lance clearly intended to end this in one decisive blow.
And with the added momentum of the dive, the force behind it was unimaginable!
As Seismitoad fell, it sensed the terrifying aura rushing toward it from above. It clenched its fists and forced out the destructive black energy gathering in its mouth.
Mega Gyarados charged downward like a meteor—while Seismitoad fired its Hyper Beam upward!
Giga Impact vs. Hyper Beam!
The two ultimate Normal-type attacks collided head-on!
A shockwave of pure force erupted, black and white energies entwining in midair, clashing violently.
But before long, the audience realized—Mega Gyarados was pushing forward!
Its advance wasn't slowing—it was accelerating!
With a final, earth-shaking roar, the Giga Impact tore straight through Seismitoad's Hyper Beam, slamming directly into the Pokémon's body!
A cry of agony rang out as Seismitoad was smashed downward like a meteorite, the immense force nearly shattering its frame.
Mega Gyarados drove it straight into the ground.
BOOM!
The entire arena trembled like an earthquake. Cracks spidered across the battlefield, and at the center, a massive crater had formed.
"H-Holy—! With that kind of impact, Seismitoad's gotta be done for…" Green gasped, staring at the devastation.
This battlefield had been specially reinforced to withstand powerful attacks—yet it had nearly been destroyed in a single blow.
That alone spoke volumes of Mega Gyarados's power.
And as for Seismitoad, which had taken the full brunt of that hit—
"It's over," Lucas chuckled softly. "Seismitoad may have solid endurance, but taking a Giga Impact powered by Outrage head-on? It's practically impossible to survive that."
Unless Seismitoad had absurdly high stamina, there was no way it was getting up.
Lance's Mega Gyarados wasn't just strong—it was monstrous.
"Leon was too careless," Lucas added. "He shouldn't have let Seismitoad get that close to Mega Gyarados."
Indeed, Seismitoad's unique ability made it the right choice to counter Gyarados in theory—but Leon hadn't been able to fully bring out its potential. The vibrations of its warts still held other, unrevealed effects—but it was too late now.
Lance simply didn't play by conventional logic. His fighting style was pure aggression—brutal, overwhelming, and absolute. He didn't just fight to win—he fought to dominate.
The dust slowly cleared.
Mega Gyarados floated back before Lance, its eyes regaining their calm blue color as the crimson haze faded.
At the bottom of the crater, Seismitoad lay motionless.
"Seismitoad is unable to battle! Mega Gyarados wins!"
The referee jumped into the crater to confirm before raising the flag high and shouting the result.
Lance takes the first victory!
(End of Chapter)