"Against a Gigantamax Cinderace, that Chien-Pao really can't fight."
Blue rubbed her pale chin as she looked at the massive, imposing Gigantamax Cinderace standing in the arena.
Once a Pokémon Gigantamaxes, dodging Max Moves becomes nearly impossible due to their sheer range.
And sending a Dynamaxed Chien-Pao to trade blows with a Gigantamax Cinderace would be outright foolish.
Chien-Pao was 4× weak to Fighting. Even Dynamaxed, it wouldn't matter—forcing a trade with Gigantamax Cinderace would only end badly.
After all, Chien-Pao was a high-speed attacker. Legendary or not, it was still fragile.
"Come back, Chien-Pao."
Dylan obviously wasn't that dumb. He recalled it immediately.
"As expected of you, Leon. In that case, I'll go with this."
Dylan sent out Wo-Chien again.
Letting Chien-Pao fight was impossible, and the last of the Treasures of Ruin—Wo-Chien—wasn't appropriate either.
Its Dark/Grass typing meant a 4× weakness to Bug, and Cinderace could learn U-turn.
There was no way Wo-Chien would survive a Bug-type Max Move from Gigantamax Cinderace.
So Wo-Chien was the best choice to face it head-on.
"Wo-Chien again…"
Leon's eyes flickered. Wo-Chien's Ground-type moves were super effective against Cinderace.
But no matter—Libero meant Gigantamax Cinderace could change its type.
"Wo-Chien!"
Dylan recalled Wo-Chien and activated his Dynamax Band, funneling energy into its Poké Ball.
Wo-Chien was released again—one pulse, two pulses, three pulses—
It grew larger and larger until Dynamaxed Wo-Chien towered over the field.
Two massive Dynamax Pokémon now faced each other. The visual impact alone made the crowd erupt with excitement.
Dynamax battles always set the blood boiling—two colossal monsters clashing with enormous, visually explosive moves… impossible not to hype people up.
But to be honest, Dynamax battles were also the most straightforward.
Because of the huge attack ranges, dodging was nearly impossible. Most Dynamax battles devolved into trading Max Moves with almost no technique.
And this time was no exception.
Dynamax Wo-Chien unleashed Max Quake repeatedly at Gigantamax Cinderace.
Leon, meanwhile, had Gigantamax Cinderace counter with Max Knuckle, pounding Wo-Chien in return.
And the final outcome—
"Wo-Chien and Cinderace are both unable to battle!"
The referee announced.
"What an unexpected result! Max Knuckle from Cinderace and Max Quake from Wo-Chien landed at the same moment—both have been taken out!"
The announcer's booming voice echoed through the stadium.
"Yes!! This means Leon has defeated two of Champion Dylan's main Pokémon!"
"And they were legendaries too! Our Leon is way too strong!"
"Don't do this, Champion Dylan! Please just end it with your dragons—if this continues I'm going to start believing Leon can win!"
"Leon is lucky to have fans like you…"
"But seriously, does Leon have a shot at beating Dylan's third legendary? Oh man, I hope he can!"
The crowd buzzed with excitement.
"That's the second one!"
Leon watched Dylan recall Wo-Chien, his heart pounding with exhilaration.
He had already defeated two of Dylan's main Pokémon! And both were legendaries. Truly worthy of being himself!
But he wasn't in a rush—Leon believed he could defeat one more! If he managed that, he would have beaten three of Dylan's legendary mains. He would be the true second-strongest under Dylan!
"Then I'll be counting on you again, Chien-Pao."
Dylan sent Chien-Pao back out.
The cold snow leopard landed silently before him.
Leon hesitated. Of his remaining Pokémon, none were especially suited to fight Chien-Pao.
Charizard? Absolutely not—Charizard was his ace. He would only use it when he had no other choice.
And truthfully, Mega Charizard X wasn't especially great against Chien-Pao either.
Even though Mega Charizard X was powerful, its Speed wasn't enough.
"Aegislash, battle!"
After some thought, Leon sent out Aegislash.
The eerie, floating sword Pokémon materialized before him, its eye beneath the hilt glaring at Chien-Pao.
"He's really using Aegislash against Chien-Pao? Another self-imposed type disadvantage."
Blue raised a brow. Leon was truly bold.
"Probably no other option left. And Steel resisting Ice isn't bad," Giovanni said calmly.
Though Ghost-type wasn't effective on Chien-Pao, Aegislash could use Sacred Sword, which was super effective.
"And honestly, it's not as hard as it looks. If Aegislash can withstand the opening assault and counterattack, Chien-Pao won't take it well."
Giovanni continued analyzing. Chien-Pao was a fast attacker—its defenses were low.
If Aegislash managed a defensive counter into Sacred Sword, it could potentially one-shot Chien-Pao.
Of course—that was only in theory.
Landing Sacred Sword on Chien-Pao in practice would be incredibly difficult.
And… Aegislash also had that move.
On the field—
"Aegislash, huh? Interesting." Dylan narrowed his eyes.
"Chien-Pao!"
Under Sword of Ruin, Aegislash's Defense dropped.
Seeing Leon not attacking first, Dylan struck.
"Sucker Punch!"
Chien-Pao dashed forward, lightning fast.
"Aegislash, Air Slash!"
Leon ordered back.
Aegislash unsheathed itself and swung, unleashing a blade of pressurized air.
Chien-Pao slipped past it effortlessly, then leapt high, claws glowing poison-purple.
Sucker Punch!
"King's Shield!"
Aegislash instantly raised its shield, forming an absolute defense.
But—
Chien-Pao's Sucker Punch swept past from the side, avoiding the shield entirely.
A feint?!
The entire audience froze.
Of course—if Chien-Pao attacked head-on, King's Shield would not only block the attack but also lower Chien-Pao's Attack. Dylan would never allow that.
Leon's expression tightened. He had foreseen this possibility.
"Sacred Sword!"
Aegislash unsheathed again, its blade glowing blue as it swung toward Chien-Pao.
A perfect opportunity—Chien-Pao had no footing midair!
"Aerial Ace!"
Chien-Pao twisted its long body backward as if doing a backflip.
With Flying-type Aerial Ace, it forcibly corrected its position midair.
Sacred Sword sliced just past its tail tip—missing.
Leon's pupils constricted.
Bam!
Aerial Ace slammed into Aegislash. Even with Steel resisting Flying, Aegislash was in Blade Form—its defense was paper-thin.
It staggered.
Chien-Pao seized the moment.
"King's Shield!"
"Taunt!"
Leon shouted desperately—but Dylan was faster.
No!
Leon felt his stomach drop.
Chien-Pao growled with a mocking, sinister edge—Taunt!
Aegislash froze mid-motion, furious.
King's Shield was sealed. And all status moves as well.
Dylan even predicted the timing…
"Hell's Spike!"
With Taunt successful, Chien-Pao raised a glowing black claw.
The Dark-type Hell's Spike struck Aegislash hard.
Aegislash crashed to the ground, unable to float.
Chien-Pao stayed on top of it.
"Sacred Sword!"
Leon tried again desperately.
"Sucker Punch!"
Chien-Pao's claws struck before Aegislash could move.
Aegislash fell limp.
"Aegislash is unable to battle. Chien-Pao wins!"
The referee declared.
Leon stared, speechless.
"You also had Destiny Bond, right?" Dylan asked with a smile.
"So you really figured it out."
Leon gave a helpless laugh and recalled Aegislash.
"Of course. I train Aegislash too, after all."
Dylan shrugged. He'd used Taunt not only to block King's Shield, but also to prevent Destiny Bond.
He knew the tactic well.
"You're too strong, Dylan!"
Leon's eyes were blazing with excitement. Dylan was exactly the kind of opponent he loved.
"Then next—my ace will take the stage!"
With burning passion, Leon threw his sixth Poké Ball.
Rillaboom was already weakened and no match for Chien-Pao—so it was time for Charizard.
ROAR!!
Charizard spread its wings and let out a powerful cry before landing in front of Leon, staring fiercely at Chien-Pao.
Leon's ace—Charizard!
"This is only the second time I've seen it, but your Charizard really has presence," Dylan said with a grin.
"Hahaha—Charizard is my pride!"
Leon was clearly thrilled. Even fighting legendaries, this battle was still incredibly fun!
"And since that's your ace, out of respect—I'll bring out my ace too."
"…???"
Leon froze.
Those words triggered a painful flashback—from the Hammerlocke Stadium—of that dragon of radiant light…
But Dylan had promised he wouldn't use Ultra Necrozma today.
Yet—
Leon's eyes widened as Dylan recalled Chien-Pao and reached toward the special Poké Ball hanging over his chest.
"Wait! STOP! Dylan—what are you doing!?"
(End of chapter)