Mastermind

8 - Battle Awaits

The three researchers looked at the Pokémon in intrigue. It was as if the power it contained was released in waves around the room.

"Hey Ash..." Professor Cerise asked whilst still timidly looking at the superior Pokémon. "Chloe said she's going to see you battle, can we come too?" He asked.

"Sure thing," the boy said walking up to the group, before placing his hand on Geninja's right shoulder. "But first, we gotta train!"

The pair had walked into the night outside. Goh had gone to bed already, and the three researchers had called it a day and gone home.

It was now midnight, and Ash decided to take his training to a more open area. He chose the street outside the lab, because no one was driving at that barbaric time.

"Alright Greninja, can you just show me what you've been doing for the last few years, maybe what you learnt from Zygarde?" He asked his partner.

"Gren!" It shouted back before closing its eyes and releasing his arms to his sides. It stayed there for a couple seconds, simply silent and motionless.

Then, Greninja suddenly opened it's eyes and flexed it's limbs and core, pronouncing it's defined muscles. An orange aura started floating around the water type, and soon after, ice formed around its calf's enlarging the already bulky muscles.

The Pokémon vanished.

"How'd I get here?" Ash asked. He turned around and saw that Greninja and him had switched positions in a fraction of a second. One moment the ocean was on the right of him, next, he could see the ominous light of the lab protrude through the window and the sudden cliffs and sea were on his left.

"Gre. Greninja, Ja!" The Pokémon shouted.

"So if that power aura is floating around you, and then you move, I move too?" He asked.

Greninja nodded.

"We'll have to look into that!" He laughed.

A few days passed and the morning of the battle arrived. Ash and Greninja tried their best to keep their training secret, but struggled as explosions and wind retreated many a time every hour.

"Hey Ash, you ready for your battle?" Goh asked while walking to the airport from the car.

"Of course, my team has never been stronger!" He gloated.

"Ash, if the battle is a 2v2, or a 3v3, what other Pokémon are you gonna use?" Cerise asked.

"I already know my opponent's Pokémon, battle style, and his overall mental patterns. No need to worry!" He grinned.

"You do seem to know what you're doing!" Ren complimented.

"But you can't be too overconfident..." Chloe whispered under her breath.

"Chloe, we're both champions but just in different regions, it's fair game!" He retorted.

"This guy's a champion? Who the hell is he!?" Goh screamed in excitement.

"Paul Shinji. He was my old rival in the Sinnoh region, and he won!" Ash said happily.

"And you don't think he'll do it again?" Chloe asked.

Ash simply huffed at the thought and walked through the revolving doors into the airport.

"Here we are! Great Magmat Stadium!" Chrysa shouted whilst putting away her phone, which presumably had a map on it.

The group was looking up at a huge doming build.

"Why is it so big?" Goh asked.

"This is the second largest stadium in Sinnoh, beat only by the League which moves every year." Cerise answered.

"Ok guys, I'm gonna go and meet up with the film crew. You can all go explore the place in the meantime!" Ash said with a smile.

"Cya Ash!" Goh shouted as he led the others into the large glass doors.

The boy chuckled as he followed them inside.

And with that, Ash was ready to get into his correct mindset before the battle. He had spoken to his Pokémon the previous night to discuss strategy, and was now walking up to the film crew, responsible for recording all Great Rank Pokémon World Tournament battles and above.

"Ash!" A woman shouted in excitement after seeing the young man. She was wearing bright clothes and a hat that required attention, and was also carrying a huge camera on her left shoulder.

"Hey everyone!" He responded.

"Ash, would you mind if we interviewed you before your big battle?" Another man asked while holding a pole with a circular light on the end.

"Sure, and I hope you're going to stream it live?" The boy asked with a tint of hope in his voice.

"Of course!" They all laughed.

Chloe, Goh and the Researchers were all taking their seats in the stadium at this time. The seats were positioned in an odd way. The combination of the mass number of seats created kind of a huge oval, more space was on the bottom, whilst an overhang started forming towards the top. The group was towards the bottom, and the middle of the length of the shape. This meant that directly in front of the seats was a perfect view of the entire court. Their seats were bright blue and comfortable, not itchy or grippy in any way. Because of their location, a metre or two was free above and below them.

"Arceus, how much were these seats. They're practically the best in the entire stadium!" Ren shouted over the chatter of the fans and looking straight towards the middle of the court.

"I'm telling you! Ash is rich!" Goh shouted whilst sitting down in his seat.

Suddenly, music started penetrating the sound of the talking, and an image appeared on the huge TVs above the middle of each side of the stadium.

"Hello Fans! Today, we will witness an amazing reimaginated battle between two very old friends. Ash and Paul first met five years ago right here in Sinnoh, and became rivals soon after. Their tension led them to the Sinnoh League, where Paul ended up coming out on top!" A woman wearing cold blue clothing spoke with a microphone. "However, last year, Ash won the first League in the Alola Region! Statistically, Paul will win due to his immense win to lose battle ratio. Luckily, we have Ash right here to talk to!"

At this point, the sound of the crowd of about 8,000 people had died down, and most were now curious as to what Ash would say.

"Thanks Romae, Yes, it's true that my loss count is many times higher than Paul's, however this is because I am not afraid to learn. I try to battle anyone and everyone stronger than me to learn more strategies and tips for my Pokémon and life. I love losing, not because it brings me down or helps me battle more, but because it explains why I don't win. Paul will never intensionally pick a fight he can't win, but respects those who try. I've dealt with people who don't care about others or simply want to be the best, but you can't do that without respect!"

"Wow! The wisdom of a great Pokémon trainer has been shared with millions of people tuning in around the globe. We wish both of you a whole lot of luck, Ash, and of course, Pikachu!"

"How'd that go, bud?" Ash asked his partner.

"Pika, Pikachu!" He laughed.

"Yeah, but..." he thought solemnly looking down, "I kinda feel bad for Guzma," he continued walking down the curving hall, below the stadium, and currently pacing towards his respective side. It wasn't long before the boy could start to hear the cloud of chatter echoing down the tunnel. He dove into his right pocket, bringing out a pair of gloves, one somehow heavier than the other. He put them over his hands, flipping his right wrist to see a glowing sphere inbuilt with the glove. A key stone.

"Kinda great that we ran into them, otherwise we wouldn't have got this speaker!" He glamoured as he placed a wire around his ear and turned the main amplifier towards his mouth. He readjusted it and turned it on, connecting it to the main stadium.

Eventually, the curving stopped and Ash could see the open gate holding the light of heaven on the other side. He stood in the shadow of the ceiling, looking into the eye-straining light.

"You ready?" He asked looking up at Pikachu.

"Pi..."