"Incredible speed… ridiculous penetration…" Brock's voice was low.
So this was the true strength of the boy Professor Oak had personally vouched for.
Not bad at all.
That Pikachu—
Was absolutely not a "normal" Pokémon.
Its potential was close to absurd.
Because this sort of improvised move fusion… was not something a rookie Trainer could deliberately coach.
Judging by the timeline—
The only explanation was that Pikachu had figured this out on its own.
Brock slowly lifted his hand. A second Poké Ball appeared in his palm.
"You're strong."
"There's no doubt you're going to win this Gym battle."
"But the will of stone doesn't crumble from a single setback."
"Go."
"Graveler!"
Red light flared.
A stocky Rock-type crashed heavily onto the field.
Graveler gave a low roar, thick stone arms slamming into the ground. By instinct, it tried to start the battle the way it always had—stack its defenses with Harden, then curl into a cannonball and become a rolling, armored bulldozer.
That was the product of training: a pre-planned tactic.
Just like Ash discussed strategy with Gyarados in advance, Graveler had gone over battle plans with Brock. Every second on the field had to be used.
However—
The moment its rocky feet met the floor—
"Skrrr—!"
The slick stone beneath them, coated in a thin film of water, sent Graveler's solid lower body sliding out from under it.
It stumbled, skidding half a step, the Harden glow flickering over its body in a messy, sputtering pulse—almost breaking entirely.
Brock's already-narrowed eyes drooped another fraction.
That was why he'd said earlier that he was certain to lose.
He'd already seen it.
Water.
Those shallow puddles.
The torrents Gyarados had unleashed at full power had soaked the field… and now they were Graveler's worst enemy.
The glossy wet stone might as well have been greased. Graveler's foundation—its ability to plant and generate force—was completely ruined.
Its proud Rolling offense, on this drenched Core battlefield, had become a sad joke.
"Pikachu!" By now Pikachu knew exactly what to do, and Ash knew exactly what to say. He only needed to give the slightest push.
"Thunder Shock—target its feet!"
"PIKA——CHU!!!"
Pikachu moved almost before the command finished.
This time, the thunder coiled inside it erupted outward as several bowl-thick serpents of golden lightning, each one a crazed whip lashing into the shallow water pooled around Graveler's feet.
"BOOM! SHHHH——!!!"
Electricity and water collided, vaporizing in an instant.
Blinding white light and a deafening crack ripped through the air.
Scalding steam and rock dust blasted up at point-blank range like a burning shotgun spread.
"GRAAAH!!!"
Graveler's roar of pain was raw and torn.
The sudden, all-around, zero-blind-spot explosion of boiling vapor wrapped its rocky armor in choking heat. The Harden glow it had just managed to stabilize shuddered violently, almost collapsing outright.
The temperature itself wasn't the core problem; Rock-types had a wide tolerance.
The real killer was that dust-laced steam conducted electricity.
Fine golden snakes of lightning ran rampant through the vapor, clinging like parasites, burrowing into each exposed joint and armor seam they could find.
Numbness.
Burning pain.
Sight blocked.
Graveler was plunged into chaos and agony.
"Now!" Ash's voice cracked across the field like a finishing blow.
"Volt Accelerate—"
"End it!"
"PIKA——!!!"
Pikachu's body blurred into blazing gold once more.
Its target—
That exposed, wobbling rock core in the middle of the swirling steam, footing wrecked, defense full of holes.
Gold flashed.
"THUD!!!"
The impact was so heavy it made everyone's heart lurch.
The golden streak punched through the boiling mist and slammed into the center of Graveler's round, armor-plated chest.
For a heartbeat, time froze.
Graveler's pain-twisted expression was etched clearly across its rocky face—
Then its hulking body left the ground entirely.
All that momentum—kinetic force wrapped in raw electricity—had nowhere to go but straight through.
Once the current generated its own magnetic field, it also helped cut down the recoil Pikachu had to endure.
The electrical damage, though, didn't drop in the slightest.
"KRASH!!!"
Like it had been hit by a fully loaded dump truck at top speed, Graveler's body shot backward, slamming into one of the thick, rough-hewn pillars at the edge of the field.
"CRACK!"
The supposedly solid stone pillar spiderwebbed with fractures.
Graveler slid down slowly from the impact point, then flopped onto the floor like a discarded boulder.
The rocky armor over its body was stained char-black at the center of the hit, cracks spidering out in all directions. Tiny golden arcs still skittered along those fissures, stubbornly refusing to die.
Its eyes were rolled white. Thin wisps of smoke trickled from the corners of its mouth and nose.
It wasn't getting back up.
One shot.
Another one-shot.
Compared to what Onix had just taken, Graveler's injuries were lighter.
Volt Accelerate didn't hit as hard as Volt Tackle.
The referee's flag finally dropped. When he spoke, there was the faintest tremor in his voice.
"Gra… Graveler is unable to battle!"
"Gym Trainer Brock's two Pokémon are both unable to battle!"
"The winner—Ash from Pallet Town!"
Silence.
An even deeper, heavier silence swallowed the Core Arena whole.
Only the dripping of muddy water from the cracked dome onto scattered rubble marked time with a steady, hollow drip… drip…
Dust and steam slowly settled.
In the center of the field, Pikachu panted lightly, the arcs fading from its fur.
It lifted its head and met its Trainer's eyes.
We did it.
Ash met that gaze and nodded back.
We did it, partner.
He exhaled slowly, forcing air out of his lungs along with his adrenaline.
His hand came up, pressing the brim of his cap down again, hiding the mess of emotion in his eyes and leaving only the faint, sharp curve of his mouth.
Can't smile. Gotta hold it together~
He physically forced the corners of his lips not to twitch up.
At the passage entrance—
Misty's hand was still clamped over her mouth, her eyes cartoonishly wide.
Once again, Ash and Pikachu had blown straight past the limits of what she thought a "rookie" could do.
Brock stood there in silence for a long time.
He walked over to the fallen Graveler, crouched, and brushed his fingers lightly across the charred cracks in its armor, feeling the unsettling residual heat.
Rock-type Pokémon had a lot of inorganic structure. Compared to flesh-and-blood Pokémon, they could absorb a frightening amount of punishment.
As long as they weren't killed on the spot, a little more mineral intake and rest would see them back in shape.
Brock straightened up.
His gaze pushed through the thinning haze of dust and steam and locked on Ash.
At first, his expression was as flat and serious as a stone wall.
Then, slowly, a complicated smile spread across his face.
In that smile were shock, evaluation, approval, anticipation—
A whole spectrum, rolling past like a dial sweeping its range.
He'd had a good impression of all four rookies from Pallet this year.
But as for the one standing before him now—
Brock was willing to call him the strongest of the four.
Compared to Professor Oak's grandson—the one who'd strutted in with a cheer squad of girls following behind him—
This kid felt much more reliable…
=_= Brock thought: Maybe I should just trade grandsons with the Professor.
He opened his hand.
Resting in his palm was a dull-gray badge shaped like a rough-hewn shard of stone.
"Ash…"
Brock's voice carried clearly across the quiet arena.
"This Boulder Badge…"
"You've more than earned it."
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