Faced with Iris's invitation,
Ash naturally didn't refuse.
After all, this was one of the main reasons for his trip!
"Then let's do it, Iris! For this battle, I specifically prepared Pokémon just for you!"
Ash's words immediately got Iris fired up atop the platform.
"Then come out, my partners!"
As she spoke, Iris flung her arm forward.
The five Poké Balls in her hand shot into the air.
As red light flashed—
Five figures slowly revealed themselves across the battlefield of the Opelucid Gym.
"They're the partners who helped me ascend to the Champion's throne!
Ash, are you ready?!"
Haxorus, Dragonite, Excadrill, Garchomp, Goodra—
And Emolga on the platform above.
This was Iris's championship lineup!
The moment they appeared,
Dragon roars echoed throughout the entire stadium.
Even through the screen, the audience could feel the sheer power of these Pokémon.
That sky-piercing aura was almost tangible!
The might of the dragons was fully unleashed at this moment!
[Raihan: A Dragon Champion, huh? What a bold title—but with Dragon Master power, she really does deserve it.]
[Lorelei: Indeed. Iris isn't just absurdly talented, becoming Unova Champion at such a young age—she also possesses the Dragon Master power that even the Dragon Clan envies. That's the strongest ability to communicate with true dragons.]
[Drayden: Good, good, good! As expected of my disciple—outstanding indeed.]
[Drake: This level of strength surpasses even mine. As expected of someone raised in Unova's Dragon Village.]
[Drasna: But something feels off. Why does it seem like Iris doesn't have any battle system at all? I don't see Mega Stones on any of her Pokémon.]
[Professor Kukui: Not just Mega Stones—there's no Z-Ring either.]
[Steven: So Iris has no battle system whatsoever? That's strange. She's the Unova Champion—finding a few Mega Stones shouldn't be hard!]
[Alder: Maybe the kid doesn't know… but why didn't future me remind her? Not having a battle system is a big disadvantage! Surely I'm not that unreliable… right?]
Drayden: The most unreliable person in all of Unova is you.
[Drayden: Iris, don't worry. I'll make sure you're fully equipped with battle systems! Unova will never fall behind others!]
[Lance: But for this battle, if nothing unexpected happens, Ash should take it. He has three systems! Fully maxed out!]
[Lorelei: So what? You still don't have Dragon Master power.]
Hey—why did this circle back to Dragon Master power again?!
This topic just won't die, will it?!
Iris is the Dragon Champion, I'm a Dragon-type Elite Four member!
That's fundamentally different, okay?!
Being directly called out, Lance decided to add another mark next to Lorelei's name in his little red notebook.
Maybe before long,
The entire notebook would contain just one name—
Lorelei!
...
On screen—
"I'm ready!"
Facing Iris's championship lineup, Ash's hands were trembling.
With excitement!
What could be more thrilling than battling an opponent like this?!
"Beep beep, Rotom! A closely matched opponent has been found for you!"
At that moment, the Rotom Phone chimed.
Ash and Iris both pulled out their Rotom Phones at the same time.
On the screens, the message World Coronation Series Match Found was displayed.
"Eh?! Ash (Iris), you're in the World Coronation Series too?!" ×2
Their voices rang out simultaneously, both filled with surprise.
Clearly,
Neither had expected the other to be participating—
Much less to get matched together!
"As expected of the opponent I've always believed in. You reached the Great Ball tier already? Perfect—let me test whether you're qualified to step into the Ultra Class!"
After opening Ash's profile,
Iris studied it carefully and discovered that Ash was already ranked 101st.
Just two more wins, and he'd advance from Great Ball to Ultra Class.
Once you entered Ultra Class, it meant—
You were officially among the top hundred Trainers in the world.
Of course,
Iris never doubted Ash's strength.
She was just surprised.
After all, the World Coronation Series had only been running for three months.
In the previous season, Iris had participated—
But she hadn't seen Ash anywhere between Ultra Class and the Masters Eight.
There was only one explanation.
Ash hadn't participated at all back then.
And now, he had climbed to 101st place in just three months!
Iris even knew that during these three months,
Ash had spent nearly half his time helping with Professor Cerise's research tasks.
If Iris knew that—
She'd be even more shocked.
Ash, meanwhile, was equally stunned by Iris's ranking.
Ultra Class, Rank 49.
"I didn't expect you to be this amazing, Iris—Ultra Class, Rank 49 already."
Iris nodded smugly.
"Of course. But that rank doesn't really reflect my strength. It carried over from the previous season. This year I've been busy challenging Grandpa Alder, so I haven't grinded rankings yet. Otherwise, I'd already be in the Masters Eight."
She clearly enjoyed Ash's surprise.
"I see."
"Then—are you ready to face your promotion match?"
Bracing one hand on the platform railing, Iris leapt down.
Surrounded by her Pokémon,
She landed in the Trainer's area of the Opelucid Gym battlefield.
At that moment,
The referee, Referee Rotom, arrived as well.
"This match is between Challenger Iris and Challenger Ash.
Battle format: 2v2.
The match ends when one side's Pokémon are all unable to battle.
Please send out your Pokémon."
"So, Ash—what kind of Pokémon will you use to battle me?"
At this moment, Iris released her Champion's aura in full.
Even an aged Alder, fighting after losing his partners, was still a genuine Champion.
And someone who could defeat Alder head-on—
Naturally couldn't be underestimated.
Facing Iris's challenge,
Ash stepped forward, standing directly opposite her.
The instant Ash took position—
The Dragonite that had been standing behind Iris spread its wings and landed in the center of the field.
"Roar!"
A thunderous roar, paired with its ferocious gaze—
Dragonite's pressure instantly swept across the entire stadium.
Feeling that shockwave,
Karuna frowned slightly.
This Dragonite's power was unquestionably Champion level.
Such a young Unova Champion—
This year's Masters Eight was going to be very interesting indeed.
"My disciple's not bad, right?"
Drayden asked Karuna with satisfaction.
[Alder: It hasn't been easy… just five more years! In five years, I can retire, and Unova will finally welcome a new Champion. Then I can go join my old partners.]
[Professor Oak: Why push yourself this hard? Volcarona and the others wouldn't want to see you like this.]
[Alder: Don't worry. I'm not that fragile—I'm just tired.]
[Drayden: Please rest assured. The future of Unova will be protected by us.]
[Iris: That's right! I won't let Master Drayden or Grandpa Alder down!]
Unova, Floccesy Town.
Alder downed the wine in his cup in one gulp.
His heart had sealed itself shut the day his partner died.
If not for his inability to abandon Unova,
He might've stepped down from the Champion seat long ago.
"Really jealous of that kid Steven—giving up the Champion title whenever he wants."
Alder shook his head helplessly.
The burden he carried was far heavier.
Unova wasn't Kanto, nor was it Kalos.
All it had was the name Dragon Village.
In terms of overall strength, it sat in the lower-middle tier among all Leagues.
If he stepped down now,
Unova would lose all its voice at League conferences.
Before Unova's second Champion was born—
The Unova Champion could only be Alder.
"Marshal, stop hiding. Come have a drink with this old man."
...
On screen—
Dragonite's ferocious gaze instantly pulled Ash back to his days in Unova.
"Dragonite—long time no see!"
Hearing Ash's greeting,
Dragonite paused for a moment.
It gave Ash a goofy wave—
Then immediately reverted to its fierce expression.
Outside, its name was Sang Biao.
"Ash, what Pokémon are you going to use to fight my Dragonite?"
Iris looked at Ash with great interest.
She was very curious—
Which Pokémon would Ash send out?
Back when they traveled in Unova,
The only truly reliable Pokémon Ash had was Krookodile.
But knowing Ash,
He'd never send Krookodile against her Dragonite.
Especially considering type matchups.
That was why Iris was so curious.
"Actually, I did catch a Dragonite recently. But it's still too inexperienced, so I didn't bring it."
"What?! Dragonite's such a cute Pokémon—how could you leave it at home?!"
Clearly,
Iris's focus wasn't on battle strategy at all—
She was just upset she couldn't see Ash's Dragonite.
Ash remained calm.
He pulled a Poké Ball from his pocket,
Tossed it lightly in his hand, then looked at Iris.
"So instead, I brought another partner.
This one's a Dragon-type Pokémon I caught while traveling in Kalos."
"What is it?!"
"He's a great guy."
With that, Ash threw the Poké Ball into the air.
A flash of red light—
And a bat-like Dragon-type Pokémon, colored purple and black, appeared on the battlefield.
Noivern.
A Pokémon Ash caught in Kalos—
One that once seriously injured Zapdos.
In terms of strength, it ranked among Ash's top-tier Pokémon.
Truthfully, Ash would've preferred using Naganadel.
But Naganadel was in Ultra Space—
Without Solgaleo, Ash couldn't contact it at all.
No problem.
Ash believed Noivern was more than enough to face Iris's Dragonite.
The moment Noivern appeared,
It let out a piercing screech.
As a Sound Wave Pokémon,
Noivern's cry had terrifying penetrative power.
In an instant, everyone present covered their ears.
Even Dragonite across from it wasn't spared.
Though the battle hadn't officially begun,
In the very first exchange—
Noivern already took the lead.
"Not bad! Now I'm really looking forward to this battle!"
"Ash, I'm really excited. Every time I battle with you, my Pokémon and I grow stronger—and understand ourselves better!"
"Let's battle with everything we've got, Iris!"
"OK, Ash!"
Iris extended her hand toward Noivern in midair.
A faint golden light flickered—
Then vanished.
But Iris had already clearly grasped Noivern's information.
This was Dragon Master power—
One of the reasons she was called the Dragon Princess.
The ability to communicate with and understand all Dragon-type Pokémon, regardless of ally or enemy.
Within the Dragon-type domain—
It was practically an instant win button.
[Cynthia: I've always had a question about Dragon Master power. Many Legendary Pokémon have Dragon attributes—does that mean Dragon Master power can communicate with gods?]
[Professor Oak: I believe it's likely one-way communication. Whether a god responds depends on their relationship with the user. If it's Ash—even without Dragon Master power, he can communicate with deities.]
[Drayden: As far as I know, Dragon Master power works seamlessly with nearly all Dragon-types aside from gods—even pseudo-legendaries are no exception!]
[Flint: Honest question—does this move count as "touch it and it goes dumb"?]
...
On screen—
With Noivern on the field, the atmosphere turned strange.
Two dragons facing off—
A battle to the death was inevitable.
Both were Flying-type Dragons.
Even if Dragonite was a pseudo-legendary—
So what?
Ash's Noivern had once seriously injured Zapdos.
And that was right after evolving.
After all these years, its strength had only grown.
When the Opelucid Gym was first built,
It had already accounted for the destructive power of Dragon-type battles.
The battlefield was enormous—
Even two flying Dragon-types clashing midair posed no issue at all.
At the referee Rotom's signal,
Both Trainers issued commands.
"Dragonite! Dragon Rush!"
To Iris, once a battle began,
The fastest way to win was the best way.
Among Flying Pokémon, speed was everything—
Even for dragons.
Dragon Rush was perfect for pushing speed to the extreme.
Dragon-type energy wrapped around Dragonite's entire body,
Transforming it into a massive blue dragon.
The blue dragon dove from above toward Noivern!
Facing such an attack—
Ash didn't panic at all.
Under everyone's gaze,
He raised his right hand.
Embedded in the wrist device on his arm—
Was a blue-violet crystal.
The Dragon Z-Crystal of Alola.
Ash crossed his arms.
The Z-Crystal flashed.
He performed a motion resembling a dragon tearing its prey apart.
As the motion completed—
A blue-violet aura erupted from Ash's body and poured straight into Noivern.
At that moment,
The same aura enveloped Noivern.
Bathed in blue-violet energy,
Noivern spread its wings—
All the aura converged at its head.
A colossal purple dragon, soaring through the heavens,
Burst forth from Noivern's mouth!
Like a raging dragon crossing a river,
It dyed the entire stadium purple in an instant.
Dragonite, still mid–Dragon Rush, didn't even have time to react—
Before it was completely swallowed by the purple dragon.
Even the blue Dragon-type energy around it was devoured bit by bit!
"Such pure Dragon-type energy! What did Ash just do?!"
Drayden stared at the scene in disbelief.
He couldn't understand how a few simple motions from Ash could cause Noivern to unleash such terrifying power!
That pure Dragon-type force—
Made him feel as though he were glimpsing the Black and White Dragons themselves.
"It's an Alolan Z-Move."
Karuna, who had been quietly observing, finally spoke.
She had paid attention to Alola's newly established League—
But she never imagined Z-Moves could possess such overwhelming power!
Not inferior to Mega Evolution at all!
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