Chapter 117: Gary's Defeat

Chapter 117: Gary's Defeat

The five-minute break passed quickly. Ash continued to send out Zapdos, and Gary sent out Magmar.

"Magmar, Flamethrower!" Gary shouted.

Magmar immediately launched a stream of scorching flames toward Zapdos. Zapdos easily dodged and then, under Ash's command, struck Magmar with a Drill Peck.

Ron shook his head in the stands and said, "Ash was careless."

Just as Ron predicted, Magmar braced itself and caught Zapdos's Drill Peck head-on with both arms.

The impact from Zapdos sent Magmar crashing into several massive rocks behind it. Only after Zapdos's momentum dissipated did Magmar force a bitter smile and, with both hands, released a large amount of poisonous liquid, splashing it all over Zapdos's face.

Magmar then collapsed, but Zapdos was badly poisoned. When it crashed into Magmar, Magmar's fiery body managed to burn Zapdos as well.

Zapdos won that round, but in reality, its condition had dropped to its lowest point. In a war of attrition, Zapdos wouldn't be able to hold out.

Ash understood this and recalled Zapdos, then sent out his Charizard.

"Go, Arcanine!" Gary shouted. "Arcanine, Extreme Speed!"

Arcanine suddenly accelerated and leapt at Charizard. Charizard extended its claws and forcibly blocked Arcanine's Extreme Speed. Then Ash shouted, "Charizard, like that—use Seismic Toss!"

Charizard grabbed Arcanine and flew into the sky, spinning several times midair to disorient it. Then it dove toward the ground and slammed Arcanine hard into the rocky terrain, successfully knocking Arcanine out of the battle.

Ron watched speechlessly. Charizard using Seismic Toss—only Ash's Charizard could do that. Ron also had a Seismic Toss TM, but when he tried to teach it to his Charizard, it said it couldn't learn it.

Even though the move was simple, Ron's Charizard could imitate it. But the power was never as strong as when used as a proper Seismic Toss. This was something Ron still couldn't understand.

Gary had only one Pokémon left—Blastoise. Ash thought for a moment and didn't swap out Charizard. Just like in the anime, the final battle was between Charizard and Blastoise.

But unlike in the anime, this was Gary's last Pokémon, while Ash still had more to go.

"Charizard! Flamethrower!" Ash shouted.

"Blastoise! Hydro Pump!" Gary shouted.

No flashy tricks—just a direct clash of basic moves. The two attacks collided, and the Hydro Pump overpowered the Flamethrower and struck Charizard. However, due to the weakening effect of the flames, the Hydro Pump's power was significantly reduced.

"Charizard, fly in and use Seismic Toss!" Ash said.

"Withdraw and Rapid Spin," Gary ordered.

As Charizard approached, Blastoise withdrew into its shell and spun rapidly, crashing into Charizard and knocking it back. Then it followed up with another Hydro Pump, sending Charizard flying.

"Damn, I can't get close," Ash shouted. Then, a spark of inspiration struck him—he remembered how Ron had Charizard use Inferno during the Sinnoh League to alter the battlefield.

"Charizard, Flamethrower—attack the whole rocky field!" Ash shouted.

Charizard nodded and began unleashing waves of Flamethrower across the rocky terrain. The temperature of the entire battlefield began to rise. Gary frowned and said, "Blastoise, Hydro Pump!"

Blastoise launched a Hydro Pump at Charizard, but Charizard was agile in the air, dodging left and right to evade the attack. The Flamethrower continued sweeping the field without pause. Soon, the rocky terrain turned red-hot, and Blastoise began to look uncomfortable.

"Blastoise, cool the area with Hydro Pump," Gary said. He had also realized Ash's plan—to slowly roast Blastoise and drain its stamina.

"We're screwed," Ron said, slapping his forehead.

"What's wrong, Ron?" Ruby asked curiously.

"Spraying water on scorching hot rocks creates steam—and that steam is extremely hot! Gary used Hydro Pump so recklessly... even if Blastoise doesn't get scalded, it'll definitely be worse off. He should've started cooling it down from the beginning, not after it already got that hot," Ron said helplessly.

Anyone who's been in a sauna understands this principle—steam releases a lot of heat. So now, Blastoise was destined to lose.

The Hydro Pump hit the rocky field, producing large amounts of steam that enveloped the entire area. Blastoise cried out in discomfort. After all, it was a Water-type Pokémon, accustomed to low temperatures. The high heat made it suffer.

Ash's eyes lit up. He immediately had Charizard charge into the steam. Charizard, being a Fire-type, could endure even magma—this level of steam heat was nothing.

With a loud boom, Charizard's swirling airflow blew away the steam. Charizard and Blastoise had their hands locked in a power struggle.

"Great job, Charizard! Now use Seismic Toss!" Ash shouted.

Charizard roared and used its strength to lift Blastoise into the air. Gary sighed, knowing the battle was lost.

Seismic Toss was successfully executed, and Blastoise was slammed hard into a rock, shattering it into pieces. Blastoise lay atop the rock, no longer able to battle.

"Blastoise is unable to battle. Charizard wins! With all six of Gary's Pokémon defeated, Ash is the winner!" the referee announced.

"We won!" Ash jumped up excitedly and ran to hug Charizard. Trainer and Pokémon cheered together in joy.

Gary recalled Blastoise, sighed, walked over, and shook hands with Ash. Then he said something to Ash, who suddenly froze, then nodded.

Ron watched the scene, knowing that Gary was ready to fully retire from being a trainer and focus on studying—preparing to succeed Professor Oak.

After the morning match ended, Ron, along with Brock and Misty, went to find Ash. Seeing them, Ash smiled and shared the news that Gary was retiring from training.

"It's okay. That's his dream, right?" Lillie said. "Just like me—if I can't be a trainer, becoming a breeder is great too."

When Brock heard that Lillie also wanted to become a breeder, he perked up and began explaining breeding knowledge to her. Lillie, being a top student, already had extensive knowledge of Pokémon and, under Brock's solid guidance, started to gain understanding and make progress.

"Ash, your next opponent will likely be Leaf. You'd better study up on Hoenn region Pokémon, or you might fall behind," Ron reminded him kindly.

"I know, Ron," Ash said seriously. "This time, I've caught the three legendary birds. I can take on your legendary Pokémon. In this Silver Conference, I'm going to beat you!"

Ron wanted to tell him that even among legendary Pokémon, there were tiers of power. But he held back. Better not ruin Ash's happy fantasy just yet.

What would happen if Aerodactyl completely overpowered that Articuno? That would be amazing! Ron thought mischievously, feeling a bit excited.