[Whitney]: Huh!! Why did Miltank lose! Even if Heracross used Sword Dance, it shouldn't be able to match Miltank's multiple Rollouts in a head-on collision!
Rollout is quite a buggy skill. As the number of uses increases, its power can even surpass the strongest moves several times over! Moreover, that Miltank is the Pokémon she'd poured all her energy into training! In a head-on confrontation, Ash from the White World had been swept by her in a three-KO streak! The trump card of a Gym Leader is always a cut above!
So even if Black Ash is gifted and has a hand in training Pokémon, that Heracross still shouldn't have caught up to a Gym Leader's ace in such a short time! Even with Sword Dance!
[Lance]: Because it was in the air.
[Cynthia]: In the air, Miltank's Rollout won't continue to accumulate power. Instead, it will grow weaker and weaker because it has no point of leverage.
[Brock]: That's right. The reason Rollout gets stronger each time is because successive rolls build speed and power! If it's in the air... there's nothing to push off from!
Looking at the experts' tips, Whitney finally understood. No wonder Black Ash had shown that conspiratorial smile! She'd been tricked! How hateful. Was she really that simple, to fall for such a fool's gambit...
[Diantha]: Have you noticed? Black Ash's trajectory is basically the same as White Ash's, but the process is different. Whether it's the Mewtwo event, the Lugia incident, even the Crystal Tower incident, even the chance encounter with Whitney.
[Lance]: I noticed long ago. What I'm curious about now is how that incident on Clear Cliff will develop.
On Clear Cliff, White Ash and Mewtwo met again, and it was also the first time White Ash truly clashed with Team Rocket's upper echelons! And on Black Ash's side... Mewtwo is studying with Lugia. So, would Black Ash miss the Clear Cliff event entirely and miss the confrontation with Giovanni?
You know, unlike White Ash, Black Ash holds a grudge against Giovanni. As Black Ash's first defeat, Giovanni must be deeply engraved in his mind. If we could see those two fight again... that scene would be wonderful to think about!
[Giovanni]: Hmph. That brat from the other world had better not meet me again. If he does, he won't be as lucky as last time to escape with his life.
[Ash]: That's not necessarily true! Pikachu in the Black World must have gotten much stronger after all this training! This time, it might not lose to your Beedrill, Mr. Giovanni!
[James]: Hey, hey! Watch how you speak to our Boss! You call him Boss Giovanni!
James was anxious. Why call him 'Mister'? By that logic... wouldn't he become Ash's subordinate!?
[Ash]: As if! I'll call him what I want!
[Giovanni]: Brat, a battle in the wild is different from a Gym battle. It's a fight with no holds barred. It won't end with a simple 'Knock Out' like your Gym battles!
[Lance]: Do you think there's a possibility... if you dare to use means other than a Pokémon battle in that world, Black Ash might even dismantle your jet?
[Giovanni]: ...
Damn! He hadn't expected that!! To be fair... messing with White Ash is one thing. But messing with Black Ash... wouldn't that be suicide? Especially now that Black Ash's Aura power has undergone a qualitative change. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call him the strongest non-Legendary-tier Trainer, would it? Trying to use underhanded means against an Ash like that? That would just be asking for death...
[Steven]: Giovanni, say something, Giovanni!
[Lorelei]: Why so quiet? Can you do it? Act all high and mighty, hahaha!
[Giovanni]: Just you wait! Sooner or later, the world will belong to Team Rocket!
After delivering that line, Giovanni fell silent. The disadvantage was his for now. He'd bide his time.
...
In a Black World —
With the fall of the Miltank, Whitney's defeat was officially confirmed. She was still a little in disbelief. How had her Miltank lost in a straight clash?
At the same time, she was thinking that Heracross's strength was just too immense! Her Miltank had rolled so many times, its power almost stacked to the peak! And yet Heracross had stopped it.
"Here, this is the Plain Badge. Your Heracross is really powerful. It seems you've put it through a lot of training."
"Hehe, thanks for the compliment. Actually, I've only had him for about a month. This guy's strength is much greater than I thought. I started him with ordinary weights and switched to star-iron weights not long ago. But the sixty-pound load still chafes him. He hasn't fully adapted yet."
Ash took the Plain Badge and patted Heracross beside him.
Sixty pounds—only twenty pounds less than Pikachu's pre-enhancement load. But unlike Pikachu, who could swing his arms freely and even fight with an eighty-pound load, Heracross, carrying sixty pounds, could at best jog or walk. To run fast or even take flight... he was still far from that.
"A month... Ash, are you a newly debuted Trainer? Hey, to be defeated so easily by a rookie Trainer shows my strength as a Gym Leader isn't up to par!"
Hearing Ash say he'd only trained Heracross for about a month, Whitney naturally assumed he was a rookie.
But...
"Rookie? I'm not. I've been traveling for over eight months. Two months ago, I won the Indigo Plateau Conference. A month ago, I won the Orange League. And now I'm aiming for the Silver Conference!"
Whitney: ...
She thought he was a cute newbie, but he turned out to be a top contender? He won a Conference on his first journey, the Orange League a month later, and now he's already challenging his third conference? She hadn't lost unjustly at all!
"Oh, by the way, Miss Whitney, I might have to trouble you tomorrow. Sabrina will be challenging too. By the way, Sabrina is also an Honorary Trainer of the Orange League—its Champion, in fact."
Whitney: ...
Are you guys here to beat up on the weak? No, no, she wasn't that weak! But this opponent was clearly a master among masters! She just didn't know how strong Sabrina was...
After the Gym challenge, the group had a meal with Whitney, who sent her Pokémon to the Pokémon Center to heal. That night, Ash and the others went out to visit the night market. Brock walked alone, giving Ash, Misty, and Sabrina some space. What's a good brother? That's a good brother!
As the largest city in Johto, Goldenrod City had many attractions besides the department store and supermarket. The three of them played around for a while. This was also a rare time when they weren't training their Pokémon. A good balance of work and rest~
The next day, they returned to the Goldenrod Gym, where Whitney and Sabrina faced off. This time, Whitney skipped the bells and whistles and sent out Miltank directly. Three-on-one. If she won, she'd give the badge. After all, in the end, only Miltank could really fight. The other two were basically freebies.
And then... Sabrina's Alakazam knocked out Miltank with Psychic before it could even start rolling!
When a Normal-type Miltank encounters this rogue fighting method, there's really no counter. First, Miltank's level hadn't reached the point where it could resist Psychic. Second, Miltank's Rollout is a slow starter. To build enough speed and force to break free from Psychic would take two or three rolls at least. So this battle ended even faster than yesterday's fight with Ash! In fact, if Ash had sent out Heracross at the start, Miltank probably wouldn't have gotten to roll at all...
...
[Whitney]: Cruel! Too cruel! I've realized the Gym Leaders in the Black World's Orange Archipelago and Johto League are just too tragic! They get beaten once, and then have to get beaten again the very next day!
[Caitlin]: Can't be helped. Most Pokémon have a hard time against Psychic-types. Just one Psychic move, and without a high enough level, they're done for.
[Norman]: That's right. Especially Pokémon skilled in close combat. If their level is suppressed by a Psychic-type, melee fighters basically have no chance of winning—unless that Pokémon is Dark-type.
Ranged Pokémon can still use long-range moves to interrupt moves like Psychic. But what about those good at close combat? Unless their level is high enough to break free from Psychic, otherwise... a single Psychic move can make you wish you were dead! Whitney's Miltank is the best proof of this!
[Sabrina]: But Psychic-types are very afraid of Dark-type Pokémon. Against a Dark-type, a Psychic-type's combat effectiveness drops by at least ninety percent.
As the saying goes, every advantage has its disadvantage. Psychic is broken, but against Dark-types... it's a bit helpless. Dark-types are completely immune to Psychic moves. Plus, Psychic-types are generally frail... no, they're delicate. So once Psychic moves are useless, they're basically sitting ducks.
...
In a Black World —
After Sabrina obtained the Plain Badge, Ash and the others had to bid farewell to Whitney. Whitney asked them to stay and play in Goldenrod City, but Ash rightfully refused. Being able to stay and play for a day was already a luxury because of his two girlfriends. How could he keep playing? No more training? No more collecting badges? No more Conferences? After declining Whitney three times, Ash and the others left Goldenrod City.
On the way to Ecruteak City, the four experienced many events, big and small. During this time, they didn't slack on training. Dragonite and Mewtwo were doing well now. Misty's Omanyte seemed to be on the verge of evolution. And Sabrina was still looking for her sixth Pokémon.
The three starters in Ash's hands (the Johto starters) had all improved a lot, though it would probably take a long time before they evolved.
Additionally, just before arriving in Ecruteak City, Brock met up with Suzie again and returned Vulpix to her—something they'd agreed on via mail a long time ago.
It's worth mentioning they also participated in many competitions along the way. In these non-League contests, Ash basically swept through effortlessly. Why participate? Besides being fun, these contests tested more than just a Pokémon's combat power. And the rewards for these niche competitions were very rich! Bug-Catching Contests, Fishing Contests, etc... Aside from trophies, there was plenty of food and even prize money! This was a must for Ash, who was short on funds!
Also, on the way to Ecruteak City, they met Gary again. Gary was now followed by an Umbreon, which should be his original Eevee. Not only had it evolved, but its strength had improved! At least, when Ash and Gary had a preliminary battle, Ash's Noctowl could only barely suppress it.
Not long after saying goodbye to Gary, the group arrived in Ecruteak City.
Compared to Goldenrod City, Ecruteak was more rustic, with buildings of a more ancient style—but that was because of the faith here. The people of Ecruteak City... believed in Ho-Oh. Therefore, their customs were more traditional, including the architecture.
The four of them first went to visit the Burned Tower. Before coming, they'd learned the general history of Ecruteak City. Legend said this scorched tower was burned to its current state by Ho-Oh's sacred flame. It was a shame Charizard was still training in Charicific Valley, and the Rainbow Wing was with it. Otherwise, Ash would have loved to take out the Rainbow Wing and see if this place reacted to it.
"Huh? This place..."
As soon as he stepped into the Burned Tower, Ash keenly sensed a large amount of Aura! With his Aura power growing as it had, Aura detection had become somewhat of a passive skill. As long as the distance wasn't too far, he could sense how many people—even Pokémon—were around.
Therefore, upon entering the Burned Tower, the swarming Aura signatures were all under Ash's observation.
Buzz—
Ash's Aura power expanded, scanning the surrounding Aura signatures directly. The illusory figures around them suddenly became substantive. Originally... those Aura signatures were all Ghost-type Pokémon! Gastly, Haunter, and even Gengar!
"Eek... There are so many Ghost-type Pokémon!" Misty couldn't help but grab Ash's clothes. She wasn't just afraid of bugs—ghosts scared her too...
In Sabrina's burgundy eyes, starlight flowed. Then she also made a fearful gesture and grabbed Ash's arm.
Ash: ...
Misty being afraid was normal, but what were you afraid of?? He was pretty sure these Ghost Pokémon couldn't stop you from using Psychic!
"I don't seem to have any Ghost-types on my team... Maybe... catch one?" Ash muttered, pulling out a Poké Ball. Among Ghost-types, the Gastly line was definitely a good choice. Even among numerous Ghost families, their abilities were quite top-notch! He hadn't met a suitable Gastly before. Now was just right...
"What are you guys doing here?"
A voice interrupted Ash's train of thought. They looked toward the source and saw a tall young man wearing short sleeves and a headband.
"Hello, I'm a Trainer from Pallet Town. I came to Ecruteak City to challenge the Gym, but before that, I wanted to see the Bell Tower where Ho-Oh once lived."
"Oh? You know of Ho-Oh too?" Hearing Ash say 'Ho-Oh,' the young man visibly perked up. He waved his hand, and the surrounding Ghost-type Pokémon dispersed obediently.
This made Ash freeze— You're kidding! I was about to catch a Ghost-type!
"Of course I know Ho-Oh. I met him on the first day of my journey."
Hearing Ash's annoyed tone, the young man didn't understand why he was angry, but his expression instantly turned serious upon hearing Ash's words.
"You met Ho-Oh? Impossible! Ho-Oh hasn't appeared before humans for hundreds of years!"
"No, who are you? You say impossible, so it's impossible?" Misty, seeing the Ghost Pokémon leave, found her courage and shouted at the youth.
"I am Morty, the Gym Leader of Ecruteak City. You can call me Morty. I am also the世代 caretaker of the Bell Tower. I know all the records on Ho-Oh, so I'm certain you haven't seen Ho-Oh."
The young man revealed his true identity—Morty, the Ecruteak City Gym Leader!
Ash and the others were speechless for a moment. How... they'd run into the Gym Leader again! It seemed except for the second Gym, all the other Gym Leaders came to them first!
PS :
Morty: The Ecruteak City Gym Leader and caretaker of the Bell Tower
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