Pokémon, Ash's art style is off!

That brief pause—that's enough!

Pikachu's other paw gripped Alakazam's whiskers tightly from below!

Bearing the will of his comrades!

Pikachu has a reason why it absolutely cannot lose!

A sudden burst of power!

A tremendous force, completely out of its size and seemingly squeezed from the depths of its soul, suddenly erupted!

The spatial fluctuations abruptly ceased!

Pikachu actually dragged Alakazam back from the moment he was about to use Teleport!

Alakazam and Sabrina bowed their heads in astonishment.

Their gazes simultaneously fell upon the wounded golden figure below.

In their line of sight, a crackling lightning bolt appeared, and a tightly clenched fist rapidly enlarged!

At this moment.

Just like... at that moment!

285. The most intense battleground in history!

It's like even the most powerful cart can be overwhelmed by a small horse.

Alakazam, who is almost like a glass cannon Sabrina, is no match for the rather intelligent Pikachu in close combat!

Not to mention that this Thunder Punch is the pinnacle of Pikachu's perfect unity of spirit, energy, and will!

Just one punch.

The connection between Sabrina and Alakazam was severed by the violent electric current!

Without Sabrina's support, Alakazam is even more helpless and vulnerable in front of Pikachu.

She went from being a big truck driver to a little girl, and was sent flying by a single punch!

boom--!

A loud bang.

Alakazam slammed across the entire arena and crashed hard into the wall!

The referee standing to the side was sweating profusely, his gaze fixed on the crater in the wall beside him that had created radial cracks.

Too brutal, too dangerous!

If I had strayed any further... I might be just like Alakazam now!

He's just a referee who gets paid a monthly salary, why would he take such a big risk!

It's decided, I'll apply for retirement after this game!

Let whoever wants to be the referee do it!

With the intention of doing his last shift well, the referee took a deep breath.

Looking at Hu, whose body was half-embedded in the wall and who was no longer able to fight, he decisively raised the flag in his hand and shouted loudly.

"Huji cannot fight!"

"Sarcasm's three Pokémon are all unable to battle!"

"Therefore, the winner is—Ash from Pallet Town!"

Only after the last word was uttered did the audience recover from the shock of the scene.

"W-This is a win?"

"We won! We really won!"

"Bonds! This is what bonds are all about! The bond between the three Pokémon combined, and in the end, their friendship defeated the big boss with a single punch. This was truly worth the ticket price!"

"To see such powerful individuals fighting, I'd gladly marry Miss Joey right now!"

"Wake up! You're not under any illusion spells, so why are you talking nonsense?"

The sound waves surged in from all directions.

Among the excited audience who were almost ready to overturn the stadium, Xiao Gang was secretly wiping away tears in a corner of the stands.

"Well done, Ash!!"

"...Well done!"

Xiaoxia and Haixing, standing nearby, raised their arms high and joined the crowd in chanting "Champion!"

Upon hearing Xiaogang's noise, his face immediately showed his disgust.

"I know you're excited, and I'm excited too! But this... does it really warrant crying like this?!"

Seeing two lines of tears hanging under Xiao Gang's squinty eyes, they realized that this was somewhat embarrassing for the original trio!

"You don't understand! These are tears of joy!"

Xiao Gang wiped away his tears.

"After all, the stronger Ash is, the more valuable I am!"

"...What, what is the gold content?"

Lillie, sitting to the side, blinked, her right hand still clenched, her palm red from clapping, and tilted her head.

You don't know yet, do you?

Seeing that the sponsor had spoken up, Xiao Gang explained in a rather amiable manner, even though it didn't suit his aesthetic.

"The only person Ash has ever lost a Pokémon battle to since his debut... is me!"

Xiaomao: "?!"

Nemo: "!?"

Xiao Gang pointed to himself.

Even with his squinty eyes, one could sense an indescribable pride!

"That's right! Ash has challenged so many gyms, fought in so many tournaments, and won against so many strong opponents."

"But the only fair and square defeat I ever suffered was against me!"

what does this mean?

This means that his status, and the status of Pewter City Gym, will continue to rise as Ash gets stronger!

He has embarked on a path that will allow him to stand shoulder to shoulder with his father, Wu Neng!

His father had to lose so many times to revitalize the dojo, while he might only need to lose once to become a living legend!

........

In the field.

The tingling sensation from being hit by the lightning fist was still lingering in her mind. Sabrina couldn't even stand up straight and ended up kneeling on the ground.

We lost, we lost completely.

This is the first time since I lost my memory.

But strangely, she didn't feel the resentment she had imagined.

On the contrary, it was as if something warm was flowing into the empty places in her heart, filling those gaps that she couldn't explain.

Is this... Pokémon battle?

"That was a fantastic battle!"

A voice suddenly rang out in front of her. Sabrina was slightly startled and looked up to see that Ash had appeared in front of her at some point.

He stood backlit, his cheeks still glistening with sweat from the fierce battle, but his eyes shone with an astonishing brightness.

Ash stretched out a hand towards Sabrina.

"Your thoughts have been fully conveyed during the battle!"

"Is that so...?"

Sabrina's gaze focused on the hand that Ash had extended to her.

Her eyelashes trembled, and she subconsciously raised her hand, her fingertips touching Xiaozhi's palm.

Xiao Zhi grasped her fingers and gently tugged, causing Sabrina to stand up.

"Of course!"

They separated in an instant, and Ash, letting go, casually stuck out a thumb.

"Don't you already understand?"

"After all... now you not only understand the feelings of Pokémon, but you also understand the joy of battling!"

"Pikachu, Pikachu!"

Pikachu nodded as well.

Seeing Sabrina suddenly blushing in front of Ash, Sabrina's father, high up in the audience, was so excited he almost cried!

That's it! That's right!

What battle? What victory? It doesn't matter at all!

This is exactly what he wants to see! This is exactly what he wants to see!

Just as Sabrina and Ash were having a lively discussion, oblivious to everyone else, they were reviewing and exchanging ideas.

A group of people poured down from the aisle of the stands.

"Congratulations, Ash!" "Congratulations!"

"Well played!" "You didn't let us down!"

"Hmph, at least I didn't waste those few days!"