He knows Pokémon better than me.

“Not bad~”

On the other side, Ash also pulled out a Tri-fold Rotom and found that his ranking had jumped to 2600+. That's quite a big improvement!

But what pleased him even more was that Melo Meta, who had just completed the feat of defeating two opponents in a row, had regained 100% of his confidence.

"Meta!! Meta!!"

It raised its thick, nut-like arms high, shouting repeatedly at the audience on the surrounding viaducts, demonstrating its power.

The fighting spirit that had disappeared has been completely regained.

"Uh, this isn't 100%, it should be 120%, right?"

Ash smiled as he looked at Melmeta, who was constantly striking various bodybuilding poses. Was she being too confident?
His gaze then fell on his opponent, and after thinking for a moment, Ash walked over.

"What a wonderful battle, Mr. Aryu."

He typed GG.

A-Liu looked somewhat dazed. He recalled the Bee Queen, shook hands briefly with Ash, and then left the arena dejectedly.

He had been in seclusion for a year, so how come he still failed to turn the tables right from the start?
"Could it be that the insect attribute is really ineffective?"

If I were like Cynthia, with Garchomp as my partner, would I be able to dominate the battlefield?!

Ash shrugged helplessly. Surely this Bug-type expert wouldn't go astray?
The seaside festival is still unfolding, and the next battle scene makes Ash feel as if he has returned to the past.

Ah Xun put one hand on his hip and pointed sharply forward with the other:
"Hmph, Shinji, let me show you just how powerful I am after I've gone into seclusion!"

Shinji snorted coldly, his words still sharp:
"Come on, let me see how much you've improved."

Ash squinted. Back in the Lily of the Valley Conference, Shinji and Ash had a battle, and Ash suffered a crushing defeat.

However, although Asuka has been diligently training in the Battle Frontier, Shinji hasn't slacked off at all, as evidenced by the various specialized training facilities at the Seaside Gym yesterday.

Asuka started with the power-type Heracross, while Shinji countered with the speed-type Iron Mask.

"Split the tiles!"

"Missile needle!"

"Continuous corner ramming!!"

Indeed, Heracross's every strike is incredibly powerful, and when his attacks miss, they can create a large crater in the ground.

Unfortunately, they ran into the Iron-Faced Ninja, who was known as the "Former Number One Speedster".

"Move at high speed!"

"See the truth!"

"Move at high speed!"

Shinji's tone remained unchanged, methodical and orderly.

Since the Sight Cut cannot be used consecutively, the Iron-Faced Ninja will use High Speed ​​Movement as a buffer after using Sight Cut, and then use Sight Cut again to avoid all of Heracross's wide and sweeping attacks.

bass!bass!bass!
The Iron-Faced Ninja's body was also frequently illuminated by a red amplification light, and his movements became increasingly light and swift.

Acceleration feature activated!

After several rounds, only the afterimage of the Iron-Faced Ninja remained on the field, dazzling the eyes.

"Damn Shinji, all you can do is run away! Fine me!!"

Ah Xun gradually gained popularity and started trash-talking.

Upon hearing this, Shinji frowned and finally launched his attack:
"Yan Hui!"

The Iron-Faced Ninja darted out in an instant, its sharp claws striking Heracross's chest with incredible speed, forcing the robust beetle to stagger backward.

Four times the restraint, remarkable results!

One strike was enough to make Heracross suffer and kneel on the ground.

"The battle is over. Swallows return!"

Before the latter could catch his breath, the Iron-Faced Ninja launched another sneak attack, appearing silently behind Heracross with speed comparable to teleportation, and delivered another Swallow Return Hand Chop to his back.

Two consecutive attacks, each four times stronger than the target, knocked Heracross to the ground.

"Heracross, you can't fight!" Rotom shouted immediately.

Seeing Ash's face flushed red on the sidelines, while Shinji remained calm on the other, Ash couldn't help but shake his head.

Ashun, instead of training Pokémon, he should first temper his impetuous nature.

Especially against a calm opponent like Shinji, his red temper can go berserk in a heartbeat, and his commands become distorted.

Xiao Zhi looked around.

Has A-Liu left yet? Let's learn some real insect-type combat.

"call"

On the field, Ah Xun took a few deep breaths, trying to calm himself down. His father had warned him about this problem several times.

But I tend to get carried away in battles; emotions are not something that can be easily controlled.

"In that case, please, my trump card!!"

Soon, Ash sent out his Sinnoh starter Pokémon, Emperor Naboo, whose body shone with a metallic luster, its chest held high, displaying the majesty of an emperor.

This clearly shows that this King Naboo has been bred exceptionally well!
Seeing this, Shinji calmly said:
"Continue fighting."

The Masked Ninja's acceleration ability is still in effect; even simple flight maneuvers appear as if he is teleporting, making it difficult to pinpoint his true location.

"Let me show you the power of Emperor Naboo! Emperor Naboo, Black Mist!"

Ah Xun seemed to have found a solution and spoke up.

"Cross scissors!"

But the Iron-Faced Ninja was faster, his claws forming a cross shape as he struck Naboo's chest first.

Bang bang!

However, Emperor Naboo withstood the attack with his bare body, his body emitting a muffled thud like metal, remaining as immovable as a mountain.

He opened his mouth, and a thick, damp black mist enveloped the entire area.

Once inside, the Iron-Faced Ninja suddenly revealed his true form, and his movements became sluggish—relative to the state after continuously triggering his acceleration ability.

The black mist has the effect of reverting the abilities of everyone on the field to their original state.

"Now! Blizzard!"

The light, harmless black mist that Emperor Naboo spewed from his mouth suddenly transformed into a chilling and deadly blizzard, instantly engulfing the entire area.

The Iron-Faced Ninja was naturally affected.

Squeak!

Not only that, the black mist moistened the cicada wings of the Iron-Faced Ninja, and now, after being blown by the blizzard, ice crystals immediately formed on the wings.

Not only did the speed return to its original level, it even decreased.

"Now! Spray the water!"

Emperor Naboo condensed a watery cloak around his body and rushed out swiftly. The Iron-Faced Ninja, whose speed had been reduced, had no time to dodge and was hit head-on.

Whoosh! Bang!
The masked ninja was thrown away in an instant, landing in front of Shinji.

The already incredibly fragile Iron-Faced Ninja's eyes darted around and he lost consciousness on the spot.

"Iron-Faced Ninja, incapacitated!"

"Aerial shot," Rotom said loudly.

Ah Xun finally breathed a sigh of relief. Success!
"That Ah Xun guy, he won't back down at all!"

Seeing this, Ash smiled and nodded. Nowadays, none of them are rookie trainers who have only been traveling for a year. They all have quite a lot of experience in cracking the opponent's tactics.

"."

Shinji silently recalled his Iron-Faced Ninja, looked at the Poké Ball in his hand, and frowned slightly.

As expected, this guy can only be used for surprise attacks; he's only of minor use. (End of Chapter)