However, since this was Ash's request, Palkia reluctantly agreed.
Only…
It had two hands.
If each hand was holding a human, how was it supposed to fight?
Seeing Palkia's anxiety, Ash pointed to Palkia's shoulders.
"Hikari and I can stay up here."
The shoulders?
That indeed wouldn't affect battle!
The next moment—
Ash and Cynthia appeared on Palkia's shoulders, left and right.
The two of them had simultaneously achieved the feat of stepping on a god!
[Steven: In a sense, this is basically walking alongside a god.]
[Wallace: Be bolder—this is walking on a god. Who else has done that?]
[Chloe: Hey! Didn't Ash jump on Lugia's back with Melody way back then?!]
[Leon: If so… only Ash can so easily accompany gods. I can't compare.]
Whoa—
Was Leon being literal just now?!
In some ways, Ash had actually surpassed Leon!
After all, Ash was the only one who could interact with gods so naturally.
In the video—
"Hurry up already! I can't hold on much longer!"
Darkrai, once again blocking an incoming Draco Meteor in the sky, was truly at its limit.
Have a little mercy on this centuries-old Darkrai, please!!
"We're coming now!"
Ash waved back at Darkrai, speaking in a surprisingly relaxed tone.
Having found the key to solving everything, his mood had lightened.
Reinvigorated, Palkia surged forward again.
Target: Dialga.
As long as Dialga didn't get close to the Space-Time Tower, everything could still be saved.
A pink spatial aura enveloped Palkia's whole body—
and Ash and Cynthia were wrapped within it as well!
The next moment—
Just as Dialga finished charging Roar of Time—
Palkia launched an uppercut straight into Dialga's jaw!
"Now! Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"
"Pika—CHU!!"
Humans are most vulnerable while pooping.
Gods are most vulnerable while releasing their signature move.
At that moment, they must focus all their power—
and once Roar of Time is being fired, Dialga could barely counterattack.
That gave Palkia an opening!
Ash didn't waste the chance—Pikachu's Thunderbolt pierced through Palkia's spatial aura and crashed into Dialga!
Pikachu had a clear target:
Dialga's Time Diamond.
Only by striking it could they interrupt Roar of Time.
And indeed—
(Against gods: Pikachu is a Noble Phantasm!)
The golden lightning struck the Time Diamond,
and the time energy gathering in Dialga's mouth dispersed instantly.
'Not bad, human boy!'
Seeing this, Palkia formed an Aura Sphere and hurled it at Dialga.
A booming explosion—
Dialga's body plummeted from the sky into the town below.
Another row of buildings dissolved into light particles before Ash's eyes.
The situation was even more urgent than he thought.
That impact had already been the smallest one.
Yet even so, Eterna Town continued to disintegrate uncontrollably.
"Come on, Dawn!"
Ash turned toward the Space-Time Tower behind him.
That tower was their last hope!
Only…
Would it really go smoothly?
On the ground—
Dialga rose from the rubble again,
those icy eyes stained with crimson.
"Di—yaaa!!"
Its furious roar shook the whole town!
Time energy surged outward, accelerating the collapse of Eterna Town.
With the naked eye—
More and more buildings rotted away under the temporal distortion.
"It's all because of you! YOU! You're destroying Eterna Town!"
Darkrai was nearly driven mad.
As the god of nightmares, it was famous for its calmness.
But this scene—
this destruction of the town that held its cherished memories with Alicia—
made calm utterly impossible.
Its eyes were now blood-red with rage.
Seeing Darkrai on the verge of losing control,
Ash raised his right hand—
and waves of Aura entered Darkrai's body.
"Darkrai, calm down! There's still a chance!
Once Oración plays, Palkia can restore Eterna Town."
Ash's gaze was unwavering.
Even Palkia nodded.
'I will take responsibility for everything I have done.
When this battle ends, I will restore it all.'
With Ash's aura, Palkia felt its shattered Pearl of Space slowly recovering.
It only needed a bit more time.
When fully restored—
even if Eterna Town faded into the void,
Palkia could rebuild it exactly as it was.
This was the confidence of the god of space,
the highest among gods.
After a long silence, Darkrai could only choose to trust Ash.
It had no other option.
Its domain was nightmares—
it didn't have the power of Palkia or Dialga.
[Bruno: Master Ash is always like this—able to take control even in the harshest despair.]
[Drayden: I get it now! This is what "Crisis-Ash Mode" means!]
[Paul: To say something like that in this situation… he really is a hot-blooded idiot.]
[Gary: Ash isn't an idiot. Everything he does is for his friends. Even if he's facing impossible odds, he'll never give up.]
[Blue: Interesting—you're confusing, Gary. You fight him, yet you don't let anyone else say anything bad about him. Don't tell me you're a tsundere?]
[Gary: Ridiculous! We're rivals! Only I get to complain about Ash!]
[Ash: Even if you say that, I won't go easy next time! I'll fight with everything I've got!]
[Gary: You looking down on me?! I'm not someone who needs your mercy! Next time I'll beat the crap out of you!!]
Ash had truly angered Gary.
Originally, Gary was planning to inherit his grandfather's research and become a scientist.
After all, in this family, in terms of battling talent—
he couldn't compare to his older brother, Blue.
But Ash's words lit a competitive fire in him!
Mercy?
MER-CY???
HE was not that kind of person!
Decision made!
After the Silver Conference, he would return home and ask Blue for special training.
No way training under a legendary-tier battler would be worse than Ash's traveling experience!
Five years later, at the World Championship, he would definitely make Ash acknowledge him!
Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west!
Gary was already fantasizing about stepping on Ash on the world stage.
Thinking that, he subconsciously kicked the chair in front of him.
"—Tch!"
But Ash didn't even flinch.
Gary, however, stubbed his toe and hissed in pain.
All Ash's fault!
In the video—
"Di—yaaa!!"
Surging with temporal energy, Dialga rose into the air again.
Facing Palkia—
and the two Pokémon beside Palkia—
Dialga was furious.
A god's dignity had been offended!
It threw its head back—
dark energy gathered above it—
A rain of Draco Meteors poured at Palkia like there was no tomorrow.
"Careful—this round will hit the Space-Time Tower!"
The moment Dialga launched its attack, Cynthia instantly grasped the scale.
It would reach the tower.
And more importantly—
the people in the hot-air balloon behind them.
They were the key to this whole mission!
"Palkia, can you take it?!"
Ash asked seriously.
'Dialga is enraged. This attack is massive. I can dodge it,
but the tower behind us will be hit.'
Palkia understood the stakes.
There was a Plan B, but Plan A was far easier.
Restoring a broken Eterna Town was not the same as rebuilding one from the void.
"I see… Then I'll leave Dialga to you and Darkrai. Cynthia and I will help Dawn and the others."
Darkrai twitched slightly at Ash's words.
It should never have gone to find Ash in the first place.
Otherwise it wouldn't be repeatedly assigned to block Dialga—
the being multiple tiers above itself.
But at least this time Ash assigned Palkia too.
Otherwise Darkrai truly would've given up.
"This won't last long—hurry,"
Darkrai said coolly.
Acting tough… extremely hard acting!
"Paaaluu—!"
The two deities charged again.
Ash and Cynthia jumped onto Garchomp.
Before leaving, Ash injected more aura into Darkrai and Palkia.
He still didn't fully understand aura—
but he knew it helped.
At the same time, Cynthia released another flying Pokémon:
Togekiss.
She landed on its back and told Ash:
"I'll stop the Draco Meteors. You go help your friends—Eterna Town won't last long. Hurry!"
Without hesitation, she flew directly toward the incoming meteors.
"Let's go, Garchomp."
Ash gazed toward the endangered balloon.
Their balloon could no longer control its direction.
"Gaaarchomp!"
Steam blew from Garchomp's mouth,
then jets of air blasted from behind it—
Ash clutched Pikachu tightly,
his eyes locked on Dawn's hands gripping the basket edge.
A blue streak cut across the night sky.
Residents below watched the comet-like Garchomp streaking upward.
They didn't know what it was going to do—
but they knew the trainer on its back was fighting for Eterna Town.
"Please… succeed!!"
"Good luck!"
"Kid! If you pull this off, we won't catch Darkrai or Pikachu anymore!"
"Yeah! Meowth agrees!"
"Alice, I'm sorry! I should've believed you!"
"..."
Everyone's hopes—
Ash's mission.
From start to finish, Ash had only been an outsider dragged into the conflict.
Yet he still fought with everything he had.
"Please… let this work!"
[Misty: Please… please succeed, Ash!]
[Brock: Ash… it's all on you now!]
If anyone had the deepest sense of immersion, besides Ash, it was Brock.
He had been there for both Lucario and the Mystery of Mew and The Rise of Darkrai.
His adrenaline was pumping; his hands trembled.
[Professor Carolina: This is embarrassing… A whole Sinnoh League, and we rely on a child from another region.]
[Aaron: Don't worry, ma'am! Now that we know the crisis, we'll stop it no matter what!]
[Flint: Yes! For Sinnoh's honor, we four Elite Four will fight!]
[Lucian: Cynthia can't defeat either of the two gods—what makes you think you can? Can you beat the gods, or beat the Champion who can't beat them?]
[Aaron: Hey, Lucian! Not the time!]
[Lucian: I'm stating reality. Borrowing Ash's strength isn't shameful.
Letting Eterna Town be destroyed would be the real shame.]
[Sheena: My apologies. Dialga and Palkia fighting is our failure as the People of the Aura Guardians. Calming the gods is our duty.]
[Cynthia: Aura Guardian? Who are you?]
She waited—
but the barrage didn't answer.
Somehow, Cynthia felt uneasy.
Aura Guardians—another legend.
…Interesting.
If she claimed she could calm Dialga and Palkia,
she'd better prove it.
But—
Cynthia glanced at Ash, eyes shining with resolve.
To be safe, she'd bring Ash along.
In the video—
Garchomp quickly reached the green hot-air balloon.
Ash originally planned to bring everyone up to the tower.
But inside were Dawn, Brock, Alice, and Tonio.
Even with Garchomp's wide back, there wasn't space for five people.
"Garchomp, can you lift the balloon with them in it?"
Ash asked.
Garchomp scanned the balloon—
and nodded.
It wasn't planning to carry them—
it would drag the balloon upward.
However—
before it could act, voices came from the basket.
"Ash, don't worry about us!
Hurry and take the disc to the tower—there's no time!"
Dawn's voice was unwavering.
Brock and the others nodded.
"Ash! Go! We'll be fine!"
Alice held up the music disc toward him.
The meaning was obvious.
Eterna Town was their beloved home.
To protect it, they would give anything—even their lives.
Everyone stared at Ash.
"…I will!"
He didn't argue.
He took the disc from Alice and directed Garchomp toward the tower.
For the first time, Ash felt something he'd never felt before—
A mission.
This tiny disc carried the hopes of countless people.
Fly.
Higher.
Dawn and the others watched quietly—
Garchomp streaking upward like a comet, Ash on its back.
Ash soared.
But then—
Disaster struck.
Dialga's Roar of Time suddenly fired toward Ash—
from an angle no one expected.
In an instant—
Despair drowned everyone.
Could the protagonist…
die in this ranking video?!
No one could accept that.
Not like this.
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