As Natsuhiko had said before.
The rapid approach of Beedrill forced Glaceon's "Frozen Beam" to be interrupted, relieving the crisis of Natsuhiko's Togekiss while also putting defensive pressure on Hilona.
Fortunately.
Spiritomb fought again, blocking Beedrill's path with the repeated use of "Deceit".
Beedrill, as always, didn't back down.
Just continuously accelerating as if it didn't care about "Deceit".
Accompanied by increasingly fierce winds.
On the other side.
Lucario endured a barrage of Latios' "Scale Shot", braving the damage as it rushed in front of Latios.
Infernape, holding a heavy slab, lay in wait.
Lucario's advance was just a decoy, its figure obstructed by the slab and dust; it was the real main attacker.
Garchomp, with its eyes narrowed, tightened its body, ready to kill Latios in a single hit, confident in its ability to do so.
What a pity.
Everything seemed as if Hilona had truly pulled Natsuhiko onto the same level.
But with one move, this illusion was utterly shattered.
Buzz—
The familiar spatial fluctuation and distortion.
The invisible Superpower Threads, originally two strands, suddenly became three.
The vision of the lunging Garchomp and Lucario blurred.
Latios, which seemed like a "simple" Pokémon, transformed into an Aegislash holding the "King's Shield" and snickering!
The "Wave Missile" was completely ignored by Aegislash.
Garchomp's "Dragon Dive" forcefully collided with the shield of Aegislash, creating a dull sound.
Fully blocked!
What?!
Seeing this, Hilona was clearly stunned.
Instinctively, she looked at Gardevoir and Alakazam.
Gardevoir's brow was tightly furrowed, struggling but not allowing Alakazam to break free.
Meanwhile, Alakazam appeared calm and composed, its slit-like eyes met Hilona's gaze, causing a jolt in her heart.
In an instant.
The situation on the field changed almost instantaneously.
Aegislash, which had been hiding in the shadows, unintentionally drew closer to Togekiss, so after swapping places, Latios was now beside Togekiss.
Yet it didn't stop.
In the next moment, Latios turned into Beedrill.
Spiritomb's accumulated power to use "Deceit" missed again, and Latios didn't look back, transforming into Infernape.
Glaceon, lurking behind Spiritomb, was distinctly taken aback.
But the fully charged Beedrill, with Long Needle saturated in purple toxin, almost directly resisted against Togekiss's body.
In an instant.
Hilona's Togekiss, in bewilderment, was overwhelmed by intense pain accompanied by terrifying force, directly slamming it to the ground.
Upon hitting the ground, before it could sense the toxin's spread, it again saw the figure of Latios.
In the blink of an eye, the figure of Latios became Aegislash, still in sword shape mode, sword and shield form, the silver gleam of the sharp blade reflecting sunlight, prompting it to close its eyes instinctively.
But as soon as those eyes closed, "Iron Head" came down relentlessly.
Boom!!!
It's not over yet.
Infernape appeared again without anyone noticing, with both arms hammering down.
Earthquake!
Flying-type Pokémon are immune to Ground-type Techniques, but landing on the ground makes it different.
Rumblings——!!
The field collapsed suddenly.
The speed of all these changes was too fast.
So fast that the audience only saw a blur in their vision, not fully recognizing where each Pokémon was.
It felt like all of Natsuhiko's Pokémon resembled phantoms, appearing suddenly, then it wasn't them anymore.
They only felt a headache watching.
But regardless of the result, cheering was the right thing to do.
The less they understood, the more they should cheer.
This way, others wouldn't know they didn't understand; it's clearly a good way to cover up.
However, they also secretly vowed to watch the replay later, frame by frame, so they could boast to others.
As they say, amateurs watch the excitement, professionals watch the method.
In the stands, Lance, Kona, and Flint jumped from their seats.
They exchanged glances.
All saw disbelief in each other's eyes.
"I should... not be mistaken, right?" Kona asked softly.
"Should be..." Lance replied, his mouth agape.
"Not mistaken..." Flint interjected.
Then all three exchanged glances and said in unison:
"Dual Core?!"
They understood, but not the most.
The office where many silent big shots in the finals quietly gathered.
"Tsk, impressive, Ghost-type Elite Four Agatha, Natsuhiko, this youngster, even if he's not truly Dual Core, he's close." Elite Trainer Yuanzhi smacked his lips.
"Could be Latios' power just recently enhanced, not yet fully accustomed to its strength." Morden was also in this office.
"Certainly talented, if he attains Elite Trainer Level, it may be a qualitative leap for him."
"Hmph, first reach Elite Trainer Level and then speak."
"..."
Agatha sat in the corner, leaning on a cane, and didn't respond.
But at this moment, Agatha's old face was wrinkled into a smiling blossom.
Her expression, subtly revealed a rarely seen big smile.
"That rascal... Doctor really is a side job."
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PS: 11k words! Asking for monthly votes!!