Chapter 54: The Battle to Prove the Determination!
Last time on "Pokémon Kalos Journey", as the group and Hikaru were continuing to make their way towards Shalour City so Ash and Yuki could have a chance at winning their third Kalos Gym Badge, they were confronted by an energetic Trainer named Korrina, along with her partner, Lucario!
As Korrina challenged both Ash and Yuki to a battle, Hikaru recognized her as the Shalour City Gym Leader. But when Korrina battles Ash, Hikaru couldn't help but notice on how peculiar Korrina's battling method was as the battle went to Korrina.
Korrina is introduced to Hikaru, who has a Mega Ring and a Mega Stone unlike her, since she's hunting for a Lucarionite. But before she could, she explained that she needed to win 100 battles in a row, which made Ash number 99 since she defeated him.
But as Yuki faces Korrina in a battle next, the Hawlucha Boy proved to be a worthy opponent as he found a way to strike back at Lucario despite of the Aura Pokémon's brute force and speed. Eventually, the battle ended in a draw, with Lucario and Hawlucha accepting each other as rivals.
"Is she really supposed to be a Gym Leader? She's more like on a sugar rush to me. From what I know, Gym Leaders don't let their Pokémon attack randomly when the Leader doesn't say a specific order. There's something wrong with this..." Hikaru thought again seriously.
"I'm guessing you know what's wrong too, huh, bro?" Infernape asked, as he faced his human brother. Hikaru nodded back, before he watched Korrina tend to Lucario's wounds from her recent battle while Yuki tended to Hawlucha's wounds, with Clemont and Serena's help.
"Yeah... And it's something that Korrina doesn't seem to be aware of herself." Hikaru spoke seriously, but silent enough to only let Infernape hear.
Later...
After the battle, the Hawlucha Boy helped Hawlucha recover from his wounds from the battle he had with Lucario, as Korrina did the same for her Aura Pokémon. Once the recovery was done, everyone was ready to move out to the next town.
For Korrina, she didn't count that battle as a win or a loss since both Lucario and Hawlucha were defeated together at the same time. So with that in mind, she tried to see if there is another opponent she could battle against.
"One more Trainer left! Who'll be my 100th streak victory? Maybe Serena? Maybe Clemont? Or maybe Hikaru...?" Korrina asked, feeling excited to earn her 100th win. Lucario smiled, understanding on how excited his partner was.
But as the Fighting Type user was pondering over this, both she and Lucario felt a presence as they noticed Hikaru facing them, with Infernape at his side.
"Huh? Is something wrong?" Korrina asked. The others were already done packing by the time the young Aura Guardian confronted the Shalour Gym Leader.
"Tell me something... Are you really the Gym Leader of the Shalour Gym?" Hikaru asked bluntly, causing Korrina to blink in confusion before she frowned at the Sinnoh Champion.
"What's with the silly question? Of course I'm the real Gym Leader of the Shalour Gym! What about it?" Korrina asked before Hikaru closed his eyes, before he opened them up again with the stern expression staying.
"To be quite honest, after seeing you battle against both Ash and Yuki separately, I hardly find it appropriate to call a Trainer like you a Gym Leader." Hikaru said, catching everyone except Infernape by surprise as Korrina glared back.
"What... What's that supposed to mean!? What do you mean I don't seem to be an appropriate Trainer to be called a Gym Leader!? What did I do wrong to make you look down on me like that?" Korrina asked, before Hikaru explained.
"Gym Leaders are Trainers that take their duties as a Gym Leader seriously. Every Gym Leader I've met so far had different unique battling strategies that were able to catch the challengers off guard. But when I watched you and Lucario battle together, it didn't seem to fit a real Gym Leader's style." Hikaru explained.
"How so?" Korrina asked bitterly, with Lucario glaring at the young Aura Guardian, too. He didn't appreciate being criticized for his battling style, along with Korrina's method of battling.
"Well, during your battle... every time when you look like you command a move, you actually don't. A Gym Leader always calls out a specific move to a Pokémon to make an attack. They don't just pose or show how energetic they are like you did. But despite of that, your Lucario just went ahead and attacked without you giving a specific order. Why is that?" Hikaru asked.
Stiffened from the criticizing she was getting from the young Aura Guardian, the Fighting Type user clenched her fists and bit her lips.
"That's because... That's because even without me giving a specific order, I just know that Lucario knows what to do! He and I have been together ever since I was just a young girl! Who are you to lecture me about my battling style!? You're just a kid who got lucky with your achievement as the Champion!" Korrina shot back.
Hikaru narrowed his eyes at the retort as the others watched in worry. Ash and Serena came over to pull Hikaru back, with Yuki and Clemont trying to pull the Shalour Gym Leader back.
"Come on, you two. Stop it!" Serena pleaded as Ash tried to aid her.
"Yeah... Arguing over something like this isn't going to help anyone!" Ash added, until Hikaru spoke out.
"No... It is going to help if the amateur excuse of a Gym Leader here thinks before she acts in a battle." Hikaru spoke out sharply, causing Korrina to glare back with gritted teeth.
"Amateur excuse!? You've got some nerve calling me that when you're just an outsider that is the Champion to another region!" Korrina shot back. Infernape and Lucario looked ready to attack each other in case one more wrong move was made.
"Just great... Things looked like they were brightening up when this all of a sudden happened!" Yuki grunted as he struggled to pull Korrina back, due to the Fighting Type user's persistence.
Just before things looked like they could get any worse, they heard someone call out to them as a trunk approached to where they were!
"Attention, miss! Yes, you! Is that Lucario your partner?" A woman called out from a megaphone, catching everyone's attention. The bickering stopped as they all turned to see a truck with a strange picture.
"Who's that?" Ash asked as the truck opened up... to show a trio of... appraisers?
"Certainly nobody suspicious! We're the Mega Evolution Consulting Group!" The man explained, causing Ash to question the title of the trio.
"Mega Evolution what...?" Ash asked in confusion.
"Nobody suspicious? That's definitely a clue that they're a group of suspicious people..." Yuki thought blankly as the trio came down the steps, with the little appraiser explaining on what their job was.
"Our job is to give you a consultation, concerning on how strong your Pokémon will become and what kinds of moves it'll use once it Mega Evolves." The little appraiser explained, as the woman stepped up.
"We're also aware that your Lucario wishes to Mega Evolve, using the Mega Stone from Geosenge Town!" The woman explained, causing the Shalour Gym Leader to forget her early dispute with Hikaru before she turned to the three.
"Now, how do you know that?" Korrina asked, allowing the little appraiser to explain.
"See, when it comes to Mega Evolution, we know everything that there is to know! From soup to dessert!" The little appraiser explained. This impressed Bonnie as she beamed at hearing the details.
"Wow! That's cool!" Bonnie exclaimed, with Dedenne squeaking out its agreement.
"That's kind of weird, though... They know everything about Mega Evolution? I thought the Mega Evolution Guru was the one who knew everything, just as you explained to us, Korrina." Yuki admitted in suspicion.
The Fighting Type user nodded to that as the woman explained, ignoring the confused and suspicious expression the Hawlucha Boy was giving off.
"A thorough consultation is an order! I sense that our encounter was meant to be!" The woman assured, with her two men agreeing. But as they were walking towards the duo, Korrina smiled as she tried to reassure that there was no need.
"Wait, there's no need! We're already super strong, anyway! And as soon as Lucario Mega Evolves, we'll become stronger than we ever were before!" Korrina assured, with Lucario grunting in agreement.
"Stronger than you ever were... That's only if you realize on how much difficult it is to master Mega Evolution..." Hikaru thought as he recalled when his Lucario Mega Evolved once, where problems began to occur for the Aura Pokémon.
But as he was thinking that, the appraisers were already making their way to take Korrina's Lucario up for consultation.
"It's a free consultation, so there's no reason to decline!" The man assured as he pulled Lucario onto the stage, with the woman taking Korrina.
"Now! Step right this way!" The little appraiser said with a chuckle. By the time Korrina was pulled to the consultation stage, Lucario was already taken up there. As she was dragged there, the woman asked to take her Mega Glove.
"We'll need to take this as well!" The woman explained as she took the Mega Glove off of her hand, much to the Fighting Type user's dismay as she tried to reach for it back.
"What... That's mine!" Korrina protested, only to be reassured by the appraisers.
"Fear not! It's safe with us!" The woman said as she got onto the stage as the man went over to Hikaru, with the little appraiser going to Pikachu.
"Would you mind if I take this as well?" The man asked as he was about to lay a hand onto Hikaru's Mega Ring, only to be glared at by the young Aura Guardian, which froze the appraiser in his tracks.
"I don't recall giving you permission to take something that's really valuable to me, sir. And besides, why take my Key Stone when you're already borrowing the amateur's Key Stone?" Hikaru said sternly as Infernape eyed the man suspiciously.
"Uh, well..." The man stuttered as the little appraiser turned to Pikachu.
"Since we're here, we'll also look into Pikachu's Mega Evolution!" The little appraiser declared, much to both Ash and Pikachu's surprise.
"Pikachu and Mega Evolution? That doesn't sound right..." Yuki admitted in confusion. Hawlucha folded his arms, as he started to become suspicious of the trio as well. The man cleared his throat and walked over to the Kanto Trainer.
"We'll tell you everything! Like how strong Pikachu will become when you use the Mega Stone from Geosenge Town!" The man said, causing both Hikaru and Yuki to blink before they eyed the appraisers suspiciously.
Korrina tensed in surprise too, before she eyed the appraiser suspiciously. But she couldn't say much when the man started to take Pikachu to where Lucario was, much to the Electric Type's displeasure.
"H-Hey, wait!" Ash called out, unsure of this. As for Bonnie, she was a little clueless about the trio as she was more interested in knowing whether Dedenne had the ability and power to Mega Evolve like Lucario did.
"So... if Pikachu can Mega Evolve too, then... I want to find out if Dedenne can! Please tell me, please?" Bonnie pleaded excitedly, only to be turned down by the woman as she gave a nervous chuckle to the little girl.
"Oh ho... What a shame. There's no way Dedenne could have Mega Evolution!" The woman said bluntly, much to Bonnie and Dedenne's surprise.
"What!? Why not!?"
"Dedenne!?" The two couldn't but help express their annoyance and surprise as the man brought Pikachu over to where Lucario stood!
"So! I think it's time we began!" The woman declared until Korrina piped up about the words the appraisers spoke about moments ago.
"Hold on a second... How do you know there's a Mega Stone in Geosenge Town, anyway!?" Korrina demanded, catching the appraisers off guard before they tried to explain about their knowledge about the Mega Stone.
"Our job is to know all of that stuff!" The little appraiser explained, with the man adding in the details.
"Along with the Key Stone, it's needed to facilitate a Pokémon's Mega Evolution!" The man added as the woman made the finishing touch with the explanation.
"Everybody knows that! A Pokémon will Mega Evolve with the use of two stones!" The woman assured, only to be cut off from the Shalour Gym Leader.
"You're wrong! There are different Mega Stones! Each Pokémon requires its own specific Mega Stone to Mega Evolve! The Mega Stone in Geosenge Town is a Lucarionite! Only Lucario can Mega Evolve from that!" Korrina explained.
That stiffened the trio as Ash, Serena, and Bonnie were surprised, too. Clemont seemed to have figured it out mostly as he remembered something from when they encountered Diantha and her Gardevoir.
"Professor Sycamore was talking about the same thing! He says Gardevoir's Mega Stone was Gardevoirite!" Clemont added in until the Kanto Trainer remembered something from his previous travels.
"Oh yeah... Back when I traveled at Sinnoh, Cheveyo had Absol that could Mega Evolve into a Mega Absol because of a Mega Stone called an Absolite! It happened when you battled him, right, Hikaru?" Ash asked, earning a nod from the young Aura Guardian.
"That's right... I remember how strong and different his Absol became during our battle together..." Hikaru said as he recalled his tough battle against the Specter. Yuki narrowed his eyes, now realizing that the appraisers had a little error for what they said earlier.
"Uh... Now that I think of it, he did say that..." The appraiser spoke silently, with the little appraiser adding in his words.
"So, what we're saying, is that Pikachu won't Mega Evolve using a Lucarionite!" The little appraiser added, causing the group to glare at the trio as the woman glared at the two for their errors.
"How could you forget as something important as that!?" The woman snapped, causing the other two appraisers to laugh nervously.
With the beans spilled, the group came to realize that they were no experts on Mega Evolution as they were ready to fight if they needed to.
"Alright! What kind of Mega Evolution Consulting Group are you!?" Serena questioned with Ash adding a similar question.
"Who are you guys!?" Ash demanded as the man made quick action.
"The jig is up... It's showtime!" The man said as he pressed onto something that was on his wrist! As he did so, a cage cube surrounded both Pikachu and Lucario, much to everyone's surprise.
"Open this thing up!" Korrina demanded as she banged onto the truck's side, with Ash doing the same.
"Pikachu!" Ash cried out. But just before they could do more, a shadow loomed over the group as they all looked up to see a familiar Meowth balloon flying high in the air! The familiar evil trio was on it as Yuki recognized them immediately.
"Team Rocket!? You morons again!?" Yuki snapped angrily.
"That's our name! Don't wear it out!"
"When other bites work, the clout is clout!"
"To protect the world from devastation!"
"To unite all people within our nation!"
"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"
"To extend our reach to the stars above!"
"Jessie!"
"And James!"
"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!"
"Surrender now, or prepare for a Mega-Evolved fight!"
"Meowth, that's right!"
"Wobbuffet!"
"Come back here, Team Rocket! Pikachu!" Ash called out as Pikachu and Lucario called down for their Trainers!
"Rar!"
"Pika Pi!" The two cried out as Korrina glared to where they flew.
"Team Rocket?" Korrina questioned with a glare as Bonnie explained for her.
"They're bad guys who always tries to steal people's Pokémon!" Bonnie explained, with James affirming for her.
"Tiny twerp's right! We populate a terrifying and mysterious organization that performs unseeingly acts of evil everyday!" James explained, much to the Gym Leader's displeasure as she snapped at the trio.
"All I care about is getting Lucario back!" Korrina snapped, only to be insulted.
"Blah blah blah!" was all James said as Jessie smirked at the plans they want to succeed in today.
"We'll Mega Evolve both Lucario and Pikachu and create an invincible Mega Evolved Pokémon posse, the likes of the world has never seen!" Jessie boasted only for Meowth to notice two Pokémon missing with them.
"Hey... Aren't we forgetting two strong Pokémon? Maybe they could Mega Evolve, too!" Meowth pointed out, as he gestured to both Infernape and Hawlucha, much to both Hikaru and Yuki's annoyance as they glared at their enemies.
"You're right! We'll snatch them too, pronto!" Jessie called as she pressed a button to summon mechanical hands! They reached out to grab both Fighting Types until the boys countered with attacks.
"No you don't! Hawlucha, Karate Chop!"
"Infernape, Close Combat!"
The two Fighting Types slammed their Fighting Type moves onto the arms, destroying them both! The evil trio wailed in surprise as Hikaru focused his eyes on them.
"You three say that you'll force both Lucario and Pikachu to Mega Evolve, but how will you do that when you plummet straight down!?" Hikaru grunted as he quickly focused before sending an Aura Sphere onto the balloon!
Both Korrina and her Lucario widened their eyes in surprise to see the boy throwing an Aura Sphere to where the balloon was! The attack made contact, causing the balloon to pop and plummet straight down to where the ground was!
"YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING!" The trio screamed as they were slammed onto the ground! The impact of hitting the ground caused the cage to shatter, allowing both Lucario and Pikachu to make their escape!
The Aura Pokémon also took Korrina's Mega Glove in his mouth before they both ran over to where Ash and Korrina stood!
"Pikachu!"
"Lucario, thank goodness!" The Trainers embraced their Pokémon happily despite of them being away from them only for a few minutes. Serena, Bonnie, and Clemont ran over to their friends, all happy to see that the two were safe from the evil trio.
Yuki gave a brief smile before he turned to where Hawlucha stood.
"Cha." Hawlucha spoke, as if he knew what he needed to do. The Hawlucha Boy nodded to the Wrestling Pokémon as they heard groaning coming from nearby. They both turned to see the evil trio groaning as they quickly recovered from the fall they've taken.
"ARGH! How dare you mess with our invincible plans, twerp!?" Jessie shrieked angrily.
"Do you realize what you've done!?" James added angrily until Hikaru stepped up, with his eyes glowing to show that he was ready to use his Aura powers.
"Actually, I do know what I did just now. And that, was to stop you morons from succeeding in your completely flawed plan." Hikaru said calmly, as Infernape got ready to fight when he needed to.
"Flawed plan!? It's only flawed because you got in our way! Let's settle this with a Pokémon battle and may the worst twerp lose!" Meowth declared, as Yuki stepped up to take the easy challenge.
"The worst twerp, huh? That's easy to say who it is, since it's you guys that are the dumbest here." Yuki said with a cheeky grin, while Hawlucha stepped up to stand with the Flame Pokémon.
"Wait! Let me and Korrina do this, Yuki! Hikaru!" Ash called out. Both boys turned to see the two Trainers running over to take their place as they faced the evil trio with Pikachu and Lucario at their side.
"Are you sure about this?" Yuki asked, earning a nod from the Kanto Trainer.
"Of course! And besides, this could be Korrina's chance to earn her 100th win in a row!" Ash added, causing the Shalour Gym Leader to agree before she got ready to battle in her battling outfit.
"That's right! Let's do this, Ash!" Korrina exclaimed as she wore her Mega Glove again, thanks to her Lucario getting it back. Hikaru frowned before he took steps back to let his Kanto friend and the Gym Leader handle the trio.
Yuki did so too without hesitation, as he and Hawlucha watched to where Serena and the others were standing.
"Ready, Pikachu?"
"Pika!"
"Let's show them, Lucario!"
"Rarr!"
"Pumpkaboo, you're up!" Jessie shouted out as James sent out his Pokémon.
"Inkay, come on out!" James called out as both Pumpkaboo and Inkay took the field to face both Pikachu and Lucario!
Jessie / James: Pumpkaboo + Inkay VS Ash / Korrina: Pikachu + Lucario
The villains made their first move with Jessie and James calling out the attacks!
"Pumpkaboo, Shadow Ball!"
"Inkay, Psybeam!"
The two Pokémon launched their attacks, but Korrina was ready to counter the incoming attacks!
"Lucario, use Bone Rush!" Korrina shouted out.
The Aura Pokémon wasted no time forming a long bone before he spun it around! The Psybeam and the Shadow Ball attack were blocked, much to both Jessie and James' surprise while Serena and Bonnie were amazed!
"I didn't know you could do that with Bone Rush!" Serena admitted, as James tried to attack again.
"We're not through yet! Inkay, I want you to use Tackle on Lucario!" James called out, allowing the Revolving Pokémon to aim to take Lucario down. But Korrina was ready again as she called out a countermove.
"Lucario, use Power-Up-Punch!" Korrina shouted out. Wasting no time, the Aura Pokémon punched Inkay hard before he jumped up to slam the Bone Rush attack onto the Dark-Psychic Type!
Hikaru narrowed his eyes at that, as he bit his lips.
"They're doing it again... They're being too reckless!" Hikaru grunted as Infernape just watched calmly. As for the trio, they watched in shock to see Inkay getting knocked down badly as James gasped to see his Pokémon get defeated.
"Inkay, no!" James exclaimed, much to Jessie's annoyance.
"Must I fix everything! Shadow Ball!" Jessie cried out. But just as Pumpkaboo was about do so, the Kanto Trainer was already onto making an assault onto the Ghost-Grass Type!
"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" Ash shouted out. The Mouse Pokémon shot up before he shot his Electric Type attack to where Pumpkaboo was floating! The Thunderbolt hit not just Pumpkaboo, but the evil trio! They screamed before they were blasted high into the sky!
"WE'RE BLASTING OFF AGAIN!" Team Rocket screamed as they disappeared out of sight.
Winner: Ash + Korrina
"Ah ha ha! We did it! That's our 100th win in a row!" Korrina laughed happily as she and Lucario gave each other a high-five. But as she did so, she widened her eyes in realization as she gasped before she frowned at what she had forgotten.
"Uh oh! I did it again! I forgot to get their footprints!" Korrina exclaimed, causing the Hawlucha Boy to give a sheepish smile.
"Even if you did ask them, I hardly believe morons like those guys would just give away their Pokémon's footprints that easily..." Yuki chuckled sheepishly as Korrina rubbed the back of her head, before she brightened up.
"Yeah... Guess it's too late now! No biggie, no biggie!" Korrina giggled, with Lucario nodding his head in agreement. The group laughed at this while Hikaru remained frowning, as he had witnessed the "reckless" battling style Korrina had done with her Pokémon again.
Later...
After recovering from the "attack" Team Rocket landed on them, the group were prepared to make their way to where Geosenge Town was before heading for Shalour City. But before they could leave, Korrina had to confront the Sinnoh Champion.
"So! What did you think of our 100th win just now, Mr. Champion? Not so amateur now, right?" Korrina asked with a confident smile on her face. The others watched as the young Aura Guardian opened his eyes and sighed.
"You think that battle against the morons changes my opinion of you and Lucario's reckless battling style? Not even close." Hikaru said bluntly, much to Korrina's surprise before she glared back at the Sinnoh Champion.
"What!? And why not!?" Korrina demanded, before Hikaru explained.
"It's just as I said before, just when you made a command... Lucario did something else after listening to you. I noticed it when you commanded Lucario to use Power-Up-Punch. But strangely, after he did so, he followed it up with a Bone Rush, which was not something you ordered him to do." Hikaru explained sternly.
"What...? What does that have to do with anything!? In the end, we won, right!?" Korrina retorted, until Hikaru glared back at her.
"That kind of attitude proves you're not worthy to use Mega Evolution yet! If your grandfather had seen the way you battle, I'm sure he would agree with me, considering how strict he is when it comes to battles!" Hikaru shot back sharply, catching Korrina off her track.
The group watched with widened eyes to hear this coming from the young Aura Guardian.
Infernape didn't say a word to this, as he knew what his human brother meant. And despite of it being painful to the Shalour Gym Leader, it was the truth that she needed to accept, whether she wanted to or not.
After Hikaru spoke his words to the Fighting Type user, he turned back and was about to get ready to move on to where their next destination was with the others until he heard something from Korrina.
"Battle me, then..." Korrina spoke silently, catching Hikaru's attention.
"What...?" Hikaru asked, as he was a bit caught off from the sudden challenge.
"I said, battle with me and Lucario! If you have the nerve to speak those words to us, then you should be able to prove your theory about us not being ready, right!?" Korrina demanded as she turned to her Aura Pokémon.
Understanding her desire, the Aura Pokémon jumped up and landed to face both Hikaru and Infernape.
"Korrina...?" was all Ash could say before the young Aura Guardian sighed and turned to face his new opponent.
"Alright, then. I accept your challenge. Maybe after this battle, you'll accept the hard truth I revealed to you whether you like it or not." Hikaru said as he took out a Pokéball to send someone to face Lucario to battle.
"I'm counting on you, Lucario! Let's go!" Hikaru cried out as he sent his own Aura Pokémon to face the other Lucario.
Korrina tensed to see another Lucario, before she noticed that Hikaru's Lucario held a Lucarionite attached to his arm.
"So it's true then... He does have a Key Stone and a Mega Stone." Korrina breathed out before she called out to her partner.
"Doesn't matter, though! Let's show them on how wrong they are about us, Lucario!" Korrina called out, causing her Aura Pokémon to grunt out in agreement. Infernape watched his human brother and Lucario fight from behind.
As for the group, they watched on the sides to see the battle happen.
"How did it come to this...?" Serena asked worriedly.
"Well... Hikaru always had an eye for what battling strategies his opponents would use. I just don't know how well Korrina can take it as the battle goes on." Ash explained, recalling the times when Hikaru commented on others' battling strategies.
And it happened weeks after the Spear Pillar incident, during the time when Hikaru had battled against another Trainer. Starting that time, the young Aura Guardian always commented on how well others battled with their methods of battling.
Yuki kept watch with Hawlucha at his side, as he knew that this was going to be a nasty battle, no matter how it went. Clemont took his place as the referee before he allowed the battle to begin on his call.
"And... battle begin!" Clemont called out.
Korrina: Lucario VS Hikaru: Lucario
"Let's get this over with quick, Lucario! Use Swords Dance!" Korrina shouted out. Surrounding himself with swords, the Aura Pokémon raised his attack power high to make things much more easier for himself.
Hikaru's Lucario just watched carefully before he noticed the opponent charging in for a Power-Up-Punch!
"I should've known..." Hikaru thought as he called for an evasive counter.
"Dodge it, Lucario! Then, use Bone Rush!" Hikaru called out. Wasting no time, the Aura Pokémon managed to evade the Power-Up-Punch before he formed a bone to slam it onto Korrina's Lucario!
Multiple hits was what Korrina's Lucario took as he grunted angrily, before stumbling back.
"Ugh... We're not done! Lucario, use Metal Sound!" Korrina shouted out, causing her Lucario to use his claws to send painful soundwaves for Hikaru's Lucario to hear! Both Hikaru and Lucario flinched at the loud sound being sent to them.
"Good! Now this should make things much more easier! Lucario, Power-Up-Punch!" Korrina shouted out.
Charging to where Hikaru's Lucario was, Korrina's Lucario aimed to punch, only to be blocked by Hikaru's call!
"Counter with Bone Rush!" Hikaru shouted back. The bone countered the punch, which caught the Aura Pokémon off guard! Korrina gritted her teeth before she commanded for an attack again.
"Come on, come on! Let's keep up the pressure!" Korrina called out, causing Lucario to flip back before he formed a bone!
"Is Korrina's Lucario using Bone Rush?" Serena asked, with Clemont agreeing.
"I think so! And he did it without her command!" Clemont agreed, before they watched Korrina's Lucario to try and hit Hikaru's Lucario with the super effective attack.
"Don't get ahead of yourself! Attacking head-on isn't going to work that easily! Dodge, then use Calm Mind!" Hikaru shouted out. Dodging every swing from the Bone Rush thrown at him, Hikaru's Lucario managed to calm himself down as he began to increase his special powers.
"This is it! An opening! Power-Up-Punch once more!" Korrina called out.
Dashing to where his opponent was, Korrina's Lucario aimed to punch the young Aura Guardian's Pokémon, only for the Aura Pokémon to be aware of his charging opponent before he dodged out of the way to evade the powerful punch!
"Argh... This isn't good. Will you stop running and battle already!? Lucario, use Bone Rush!" Korrina yelled out loud. Forming a bone like before, the Aura Pokémon tried to strike at Hikaru's Lucario with the Ground Type attack.
But as Korrina's Lucario was getting near, the young Aura Guardian narrowed his eyes.
"No one's running away. Lucario, block it with your Bone Rush!" Hikaru called out. Forming a bone quickly as he could, Hikaru's Aura Pokémon slammed his attack onto Korrina's Lucario's bone as the two struggled to overpower one another!
Then, with the two of them stuck from attacking each other, Korrina's Lucario found the chance to charge up a Power-Up-Punch! The young Aura Guardian noticed this coming as he gave a warning to his Aura Pokémon.
"Incoming!" Hikaru shot out quickly, causing his Aura Pokémon to narrowly dodge out of the way before a counterattack was issued.
"Now, Aura Sphere!" Hikaru called out, allowing Lucario to charge up an Aura Sphere before throwing it to where Korrina's Lucario stood! Shocked by the sudden counterattack, Korrina's Aura Pokémon took the hit hard!
"RRGH!" Lucario yelled as he tumbled onto the ground from the super effective attack.
"Whoa... That was a big hit!" Bonnie pointed out sadly as Dedenne watched in worry.
"And it probably did a lot of damage. Since Hikaru's Lucario used Calm Mind to boost special attacks like Aura Sphere, it must've done some serious damage onto Korrina's Lucario." Yuki pointed out, as Korrina's Lucario struggled to get up.
"Lucario, come on! I know you can keep battling! We can't give up now!" Korrina pleaded, which encouraged her Aura Pokémon to get back up. The Fighting Type user smiled in relief before the relief turned into confidence.
"Yeah! Now that's what I'm talking about!" Korrina exclaimed, causing the young Aura Guardian to raise an eyebrow.
"So he withstood the attack... I guess I shouldn't be too surprised." Hikaru said plainly before he turned to his Aura Pokémon.
"Lucario, are you ready to wrap this up with one more attack?" Hikaru asked, causing his Aura Pokémon to nod with a small smile of agreement. Nodding back to his Fighting-Steel Type, the young Aura Guardian revealed his Mega Ring while his Lucario revealed the Lucarionite.
Both Korrina and her Lucario widened their eyes, as they realized what they were about to do. The others noticed this, with Ash pointing it out.
"Look at that! Is Hikaru about to...?" Ash started to ask, with Yuki affirming it for him.
"He is!" was all Yuki needed to say for everyone to see the two stones on both Hikaru and Lucario glowing together.
"Let's make things right! Lucario, Mega Evolve!" Hikaru called out as he tapped onto the Key Stone, which allowed the Lucarionite and itself to glow and sync with one another! The energy surrounded Hikaru's Lucario, allowing him to feel the power surge into his body!
Everyone watched to see the Mega Evolution go on as the body of Hikaru's Aura Pokémon changed, from a regular Lucario to a Mega Lucario!
"He Mega Evolved Lucario..." Yuki pointed out as Korrina bit her lips, feeling the sweat from her forehead.
"Things just got even tougher... Lucario, keep your guard up! Use Power-Up-Punch!" Korrina shouted out. Dashing to where his opponent stood, the Aura Pokémon aimed to land a punch onto the Mega Evolved Lucario, but Hikaru was ready.
"Not yet, Lucario... Not yet..." Hikaru said silently, causing his Mega Evolved Lucario to brace himself as the Power-Up-Punch was getting closer and closer. Then, at the exact moment when the time was right, the young Aura Guardian made the call.
"Now, do it! Use Aura Sphere!" Hikaru shouted out, catching the Shalour Gym Leader by surprise. She wasn't able to call for a counterattack as she could only watch her Lucario get blasted high into the air by the powerful Aura Sphere attack!
"Lucario! No!" Korrina gasped as she ran to where her Aura Pokémon had fallen badly. Everyone gasped to see what occurred as the dust cleared, to show Korrina's Lucario twitching weakly for his defeat.
"K-Korrina's Lucario is unable to battle! Which means the winner of this battle goes to... Hikaru!" Clemont declared as he gestured the young Aura Guardian as the winner for this battle.
Winner: Hikaru
Korrina held her defeated Fighting-Steel Type in her arms as she called out to him in worry.
"Lucario, are you okay?" Korrina asked worriedly. In response, the Aura Pokémon grunted weakly before he looked to see Korrina watching him with upset and worried eyes, causing Lucario to give a weak smile before he closed his eyes again.
"Oh no..." Korrina said weakly before she embraced her now unconscious Aura Pokémon.
As for Hikaru, he let his Aura powers die down. And for his victorious Aura Pokémon, the Mega Evolution wore off. Infernape joined the two as the young Aura Guardian walked over to where Korrina was with her defeated partner Pokémon.
At seeing the young Aura Guardian walk over to her, she gave a small glare to Hikaru.
"What...? Now that you've won, are you gonna try and boast about it?" Korrina asked bitterly, causing the young Aura Guardian to narrow his eyes.
"No... There's nothing much to advise you really... That's because I know... that no matter how hard you battle or train... With the way you and Lucario are at the moment, you can't call yourself a Gym Leader or a Mega Evolution Successor." Hikaru pointed out bluntly.
That struck the Fighting Type user hard as she widened her eyes before she gritted her teeth. She looked back down at her defeated Aura Pokémon as the others watched in worry.
"Korrina..." Serena spoke out in worry. Bonnie kept Dedenne into her bag as the Electric-Fairy Type seemed to have gotten frightened for how intense the battle went. Clemont had nothing much to say, but he was indeed speechless for what occurred just now.
"Hikaru...?" Ash asked, as Pikachu turned to Korrina first before turning to the young Aura Guardian.
"This feeling... It's just like when he lectured me at the end of our battle when my Pokémon and I lost to him so badly... I guess now Korrina's getting it, just so that she could learn a lesson of what she's doing wrong. But does she know, really?" Yuki thought in question.
The day was starting to go bright, until the battle just now ended up crushing the light of what was left in the group at the moment.
To be continued...
Yuki's Team:
Hawlucha: (M): (Flying Press, Aerial Ace, Karate Chop, Focus Blast)
Heracross: (M): (Swords Dance, Protect, Brick Break, Megahorn)
Bulbasaur: (F): (Razor Leaf, Tackle, Vine Whip, Leech Seed)
Tyrunt: (M): (Bite, Rock Polish, AncientPower, Bide)
Litleo: (F): (Ember, Noble Roar, Take Down, Fire Fang)
Buizel: (M): (Water Gun, Scald, Double Team, Iron Tail)
With Prof. Sycamore:
Amaura: (F): (Icy Wind, Rock Throw, Take Down, Mist)
Next chapters:
Chapter 55: The Search for the Lucarionite
Chapter 56: The Test to Achieve Mega Power!
Chapter 57: Mega Problem to Mega Conflict!
Chapter 58: The Truth to the Berserk Aura
Chapter 59: The Separation to Realize
Next chapter preview:
Korrina: We're finally here... IN GEOSENGE TOWN! Now we can find a Lucarionite so that Lucario could Mega Evolve!
Clemont: But this is a big town, so it's not going to be easy to try and find a Mega Stone in a place like this...
Yuki: No good... This place doesn't even have one Mega Stone. It's just evolution stones or something like that...
Korrina: That can't be... Grandfather told me that there would be a Lucarionite in this town... And I WILL find it no matter what!
Hikaru: That kind of determination and attitude may be good, but there's a chance that your words could backfire, along with that arrogance of yours.
Korrina: ARGH! You, mister... need to stop making fun of me! Just because I lost to you doesn't mean you have to be so cruel!
Events that occurred:
- Korrina challenges Hikaru to a battle, but loses
