In two battles against Lorelei, there was one time when Lorelei barely won using her second team of Pokemon, but the second time, two of Lorelei's main Pokemon were defeated, one of which was the deity they worshipped in the Orange Archipelago, the Sea God Lugia!
No wonder Yuji became the challenger. Wow, this isn't just any kid; he's a real monster!
After learning about Ash's information, everyone realized that this challenge was different from the past. It was likely to be a thrilling head-to-head, making ticket grabbing extremely important.
In the past, Yuji's battles with challengers were also held at Pummelo Stadium, and tickets would typically sell out. However, generally, even after being announced the same day, there would still be some leftover tickets the next morning, which would sell out shortly before the event started.
But this time, it was different. After the people on Ganju Island learned about Ash's information, they almost flocked to grab tickets. By nearly midnight, all the battle tickets were sold out.
The popularity of this battle far exceeded that of previous battles, and it was likely that they would finally see Yuji using his full power, bringing out his trump card Pokemon for the match.
...
The next day, Ash and Yuji stood at the center of Pummelo Stadium's field, with Misty and Serena at their dedicated spots—specifically, the chairs where contestants sat during their mid-match rest.
The battles in Pummelo Stadium were all six-on-six. When one side lost three Pokemon, there would be a halftime break and the venue would change, so there were special contestant rest seats behind the contestant's standing positions. Misty and Serena sat there.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Pummelo Stadium. The two contestants on the field today are our top Trainer Yuji from the Orange Archipelago, and from Pallet Town in the Kanto Region, the competitor with the name of the Quartz Conference Champion, Ash!"
"This battle is initiated by our top Trainer. Usually, he acts as the challenger, but today he is considered the home side challenger, which in itself is quite astonishing. However, in comparison to Ash's experiences, this scenario seems reasonable."
"Ash has been out for just half a year, with records of defeating the current Johto Elite Four's Koga and winning against Elite Lorelei of Kanto in a two-on-two battle. Additionally, Ash seems to possess the unique Sea God, something ordinary people couldn't achieve in a lifetime, which Ash accomplished in just over half a year."
"Today's match is guaranteed to be an exciting spectacle, so keep your eyes wide open and don't miss any details, dear audience!"
Ah Ming, the host at Pummelo Stadium, started to adjust the atmosphere on site, and with his shouting, the noise in the venue multiplied several times.
"This battle will be a full six-on-six. Both sides can freely switch Pokemon. When one side loses three Pokemon first, a mid-battle break will occur, and the venue will change. The first side to lose six Pokemon is the loser. Now, let the match begin!"
With the referee's order, both sides threw a Pokeball onto the field.
In a flash of light, Ash sent out his newly captured Pokemon on the Orange Archipelago—Lapras!
While Yuji sent out a pink, slimy Pokemon called Ditto!
"Ash sends out Lapras, it's an extremely rare Pokemon, and before this, it has never appeared under Ash's command. Could this be Ash's new powerhouse? On Yuji's side, it's his evergreen victor—Ditto!"
"Of the last ten challengers, almost half have struggled to get past Yuji's Ditto alone. Even if they managed to barely defeat Ditto, their own Pokemon were greatly exhausted. I wonder how Ash will tackle Ditto?!"
Ditto is an extremely peculiar Pokemon. It can transform into the appearance of various Pokemon and even sync their ability values. This means that even against stronger opponents, Ditto can mimic their ability values.
However, this synchronization isn't without limits. Ditto can boost its ability by at most two levels. The higher the level, the fewer levels it can span for synchronization. For instance, if Ditto is at the Junior Elite Level, and the opponent is at the Champion Junior Level, Ditto can barely match their standard.
If the opponent is at the Champion Intermediate Level, then Ditto wouldn't be able to fully sync all ability values.
Moreover, Ditto's Physical Strength doesn't sync with the opponent's. Its stamina is its own, causing it to struggle to keep up if it wants to transform into a higher-level foe.
The opponent can use moves freely, but Ditto might find its stamina depleted after just two moves.
Furthermore, to utilize Ditto effectively, one must correctly assess the other Pokemon's skills and potential moves. If the opposing Pokemon can't use a move you're trying to command, Ditto could experience a delay, which would be a weakness during battle.
Thus, while Ditto seems impressive—capable of transforming into any Pokemon, inheriting their abilities and skills—it's actually a Pokemon of very high operational difficulty.
Yuji achieving such records using this Pokemon shows he's indeed formidable on the Trainer level.
Once Ditto appeared on the field, it instantly began transforming. In less than a second, Ditto became identical to Ash's Lapras.
The two looked almost indistinguishable. To spectators, if the two Pokemon spun around each other, it would be hard to tell them apart. But in Ash's eyes, his Lapras was completely different from the opponent's.
Not to mention, every Pokemon's Aura is distinct. Just by Aura alone, there's no way Ash would misidentify.
When Ash initially caught Lapras, it was a badly injured little guy with just an Advanced Junior Level, almost starting from scratch.
Through Ash's training over time, along with long-distance journeys every day, Lapras experienced significant growth, now reaching Elite Junior Level.
This level is comparable to the mainstay Pokemon of ordinary Gym Leaders. Achieving this in such a short period indicates not only Ash's cooking skills but also Lapras' diligence in training and inherent talent.
That's why in just under a month, it leapfrogged an entire major level!
At the start, Ash had already used his Eye of Insight on the opponent's Ditto, confirming its level as Elite Peak.
Level-wise, Ditto far exceeded Lapras, but post-transformation, its level could only match Lapras.
This is one of Ditto's flaws. Against higher-level opponents, it can boost to their level. But facing lower-level foes, it can only maintain parity.
Against lower-level foes, Ditto's sole advantage is slightly higher Physical Strength.
"Lapras, use Ice Beam!"
"We'll use Ice Beam too!"
The battle commenced without warning. Both sides simultaneously commanded their Pokemon to use Ice Beam. The icy blue light collided in the air, and a biting chill instantly filled the arena.
The current field consisted of rocks and water, with a large pool at the center. But when the Ice Beams collided, the cold vapor froze the central pool over in the blink of an eye!