And here we are! As you will soon see, Ash leads with his secret weapon for a very good reason...
Light exploded on the field, then faded, revealing the form of Primeape. He immediately let out a screech and pumped his fists in the air, causing the crowd to cheer in excitement, before leveling a confident gaze on his opponent.
Ash smiled at the display. Primeape had definitely changed from back when he'd sent him to train for the P1 Grand Prix, he realized. For starters, he seemed calmer. Not by much, but enough that Ash could tell. The fighting type also stood with absolute confidence, unfazed by the sight of his powerful opponent. And apparently he'd also developed a taste for the crowd's affection, too. He chuckled.
Even though he hadn't had a chance to practice at all with Primeape before the match, since getting him sent back had taken time, he felt confident. Primeape had changed, yes, but he was also the same pokemon Ash had bonded with all that time ago. The memory of their brief conversation before the battle was still fresh in his mind.
...
He pressed the button on the pokeball without hesitation. There was a burst of light then a familiar shape emerged of a round, simian pokemon. Standing upright, he stood nearly as tall as Ash now, cream fur glistening. His once wiry frame now looked denser and more muscular, especially his arms. Primeape immediately began to bounce up and down happily, giving excited screeches. Pikachu sprang off Ash's shoulder and greeted Primeape, who replied by lifting Pikachu into the air and tossing him jubilantly several times. Then he set the electric type down, ruffling his head as he staggered dazedly about.
"Hey Primeape!" Ash said enthusiastically. "It's great to see you again!" Primeape screeched again and in a flash, snatched the cap off Ash's forehead. He placed it on his own head and smiled proudly. Ash chuckled. "So Anthony said you've been training hard, huh?"
Primeape's expression changed into one of pure, confident pride. He nodded seriously.
"Think you could help me with this battle then? There's this guy named Tobias with a super tough pokemon. But I know with your help, we can win."
Ash didn't even finish speaking before Primeape gave a sharp nod, then plucked Ash's hat off his own head and placed it back on Ash's. He held out a fist.
Ash made a fist and gave him a fist bump. "Thanks, Primeape."
...
"Ready buddy?" he called. Primeape nodded, not looking back. Even though it had been so long, he still felt the familiar bond with Primeape.
Across the field, Tobias' expression remained cool and unchanged. "A fighting type. I see. Get ready, Darkrai."
With a swish of flags, the match began.
Ash sprang at the chance to call the first move. "Primeape, Cross Chop."
Primeape raised his fists, an orange glow spreading over them, and charged across the stadium.
"Dark Pulse." Tobias delivered his command calmly, almost emotionlessly. Darkrai zigzagged across the battlefield, nothing more than a shadowy blur. One moment it was there, the next moment it flitted away before reappearing behind Primeape. It raised one arm and fired a beam of dark energy.
Even as Darkrai fired the pulse, Primeape ducked, appearing as a cream blur, the motion too fast even for Ash's experienced eyes to follow. The beam shot over Primeape's head, missing by less than an inch. "Mega Kick!" he shouted. The words hardly left his mouth before Primeape whipped his foot out in a clean, powerful strike, nailing Darkrai in the chest and sending it reeling.
Tobias' eyes widened ever so slightly. Ash had to hold back a gasp of shock. He knew his Primeape was good, but man the power and speed he'd displayed exceeded Ash's expectations.
"Your Primeape is impressive," Tobias called, his voice low yet carrying easily across the field.
Ash nodded appreciatively. "Yeah! Primeape's been the reigning P1 Champion for the past 5 years," he called back. "So he's super skilled!"
"Good." Tobias' replied evenly.
Meanwhile...
Iris blinked and tilted her head when she heard Ash's statement. "Wait a second... How could Primeape be training for 5 years? Ash must have caught him when he was 10, but he's still 10..."
Cilan laughed. "That's Ash for you. Full of spicy surprises!"
Iris could think of no reply. "Uh ok... I'm just gonna watch the battle."
...
Ash glanced around the battlefield. He could tell that Primeape's Mega Kick had done solid damage too. Darkrai now hovered several yards away from Primeape, eyeing him carefully. "Okay Primeape, Cross Chop, again."
The fighting-type wasted no time charging the attack and springing across the field towards Darkrai.
"Ice Beam." Darkrai quickly raised both arms, a blue orb forming at the end. It fired the orb, sending arcing beams of energy at Primeape and striking his raised arms, halting him in his tracks. Primeape tried to press forward for a moment, but Darkrai quickly pushed more power into the attack, generating a small explosion of energy and throwing Primeape back.
He rolled backward into a neat handspring and back onto his feet. Then he charged Cross Chop again and lunged for Darkrai.
"Dark Void!" Tobias called. Darkrai generated a swirling orb of dark red light between its hands and shot it at the approaching Primeape.
Not slowing down even slightly, Primeape charged straight through the orb, shattering it before bursting out the other side. The look of shock on Darkrai's face was priceless. Primeape made sure to savor it before he smashed both arms into Darkrai's face.
["NOT THIS TIME!" Ash shrieked, jumping up and down. "NOT THIS TIME TOBIAS! NO MORE STUPID DARK VOID! HOW DO YA LIKE THAT?"]
Ash cheered. "That was great, Primeape!" Excitement rushed through him. The strategy had worked flawlessly. He'd successfully caught Tobias off guard and gotten an edge in battle.
Tobias blinked, the slightest flicker of surprise coloring his features. "I see," he stated, dipping his head. "Your Primeape has Vital Spirit?"
Still grinning, Ash nodded. The tactic was even better than Heracross using Sleep Talk. With Primeape unable to fall asleep, he was effectively immune to two of Darkrai's best attacks. It was the perfect trump card. And he owed his friends for thinking of it. A few weeks earlier he was sure he would have simply rushed into this battle, gung ho, and probably gotten beat again. Thanks to all the time he'd spent with his friends though, plus seeing Iris' strategies, he decided to make one of his own. And now this strategy had given him a fighting chance.
In the stands...
Iris beamed as she saw Ash's Primeape shatter the Dark Void attack and deal a blow to Darkrai. Ash hadn't told anyone what his super-secret strategy was, but now she understood. "Ash's Primeape has Vital Power, doesn't it?" Iris asked, turning to Cilan.
"Vital Spirit," Cilan corrected, "But yes, you are indeed right! I must say, Ash has truly become the master chef of this fight. He is using strategy and his natural instincts to bring out the full spice of the battle."
Rolling her eyes, Iris turned back to the battle. Now Ash had a real chance. Not only was his Primeape exceedingly strong, but he had put a dent in Tobias' strategy.
"Ice Beam." Darkrai fired off the attack lightning-quick, striking Primeape and causing him to slide back.
"You ok?" Ash called. Primeape smirked and nodded, shaking himself and sending a few tiny ice crystals fluttering to the ground. "Alright, then let's try Close Combat."
Primeape clenched its fists tighter, a red-orange aura surrounding his body, then leaped towards Darkrai.
"Use Dark Pulse." Darkrai zigzagged forward once more before suddenly appearing behind Primeape. It raised its arm to fire a Dark Pulse. Primeape lashed out with his foot, but this time Darkrai was prepared. The strike passed under it, and Darkrai fired Dark Pulse, hitting Primeape directly.
Primeape rolled with the strike and back onto his feet, snorting in annoyance. As he did, Darkrai floated backward a few yards, closer to Tobias' side of the field. Ash grinned, an idea forming in his mind. A way to even the odds further. "Primeape, stay close ok? Darkrai isn't great at fighting close range." Primeape gave a nod of understanding. "Now, use Cross Chop!" This time, Primeape charged in, keeping his stance low. Almost immediately, Darkrai began retaliating with several Dark Pulse attacks.
Weaving expertly around them, Primeape continued his charge, drawing ever closer to Darkrai. Darkrai began to move backward, even as it continued its attack. Primeape never wavered, dodging each attack skillfully, sometimes so close Ash could see his fur part for the speed of the attacks. With any other pokemon, the idea would have failed, he was sure. The distance Primeape had to close was great, and the amount of focus it required to dodge the oncoming Dark Pulses was intense. In fact, he was absolutely certain it was only Primeape's P1 training that allowed him to succeed.
As Primeape drew within yards of Darkrai, Tobias smoothly uttered his next command. "Darkrai, Ice Beam!"
In the blink of an eye, Darkrai stopped Dark Pulse and fired off the blue beam of energy. It struck Primeape in his chest, staggering him backward. Darkrai didn't stop there, however. With a flick of its wrist, it bathed the battlefield in-between them with ice, freezing the earth.
Primeape shook off the Ice Beam and glared across the icy expanse. Slowly, he took a step, placing his foot gently on the ice. As soon as he put weight on it, his foot slid and he pulled back to stand on solid earth, letting out a snort of frustration. Ash frowned. Primeape needed to get close to land a hit. But to do that, we needed to cross the ice first. But how?
A second later, inspiration struck. "Primeape, Mega Kick on the ice!" With a grin, Primeape raised one leg high in the air, then brought it crashing down on the ice. The ice cracked, then exploded upwards, sending several shards and large chunks into the air.
"Now, hit those chunks with Close Combat!" Primeape's fists glowed orange and he unleashed a flurry of punches, striking the falling ice. The chunks were sent flying from the impact, straight towards Darkrai.
"Dodge it," Tobias called. With precise, skillful movements, Darkrai began to duck and weave around the flying ice, causing all but one to miss; the largest. Darkrai quickly fired a Dark Pulse, shattering the last one midair, making it explode in a shower of ice crystals and smoke.
And from that smoke, Primeape burst out, right on top of Darkrai. Using Close Combat, he unleashed another lightning-fast barrage of strikes, hitting Darkrai multiple times.
The blows hammered Darkrai back, causing it to recoil sharply. It threw its arms up, in a seemingly desperate attempt to block the blows. Then, just as Primeape landed his final strike, Darkrai's arm whipped out and he seized Primeape by the leg before shooting into the air.
"Primeape!" Ash cried. His pokemon now dangled several feet above the battlefield, tight in Darkrai's clutches and unable to land a solid blow with any of his limbs.
"Now Darkrai. Dark Pulse."
Ash's eyes widened. Before he could think further, Darkrai raised its other arm and began firing Dark Pulse after Dark Pulse, pummeling into Primeape, with blow after blow before blasting him off with a final strike.
Eyes closed, Primeape shot away from Darkrai, then hit the ground and skidded across the battlefield.
Ash almost leaped from his trainers box. "Primeape!" he shouted, fists clenched. "Don't give up!"
As he tumbled across the field, Primeape's eyes suddenly snapped open. He slammed one fist into the earth, slowing his slide.
"Alright, now use Mega Kick and go get Darkrai," Ash cried. Primeape's feet glowed and he kicked off the ground, cratering it as he threw himself forward.
At Tobias command, Darkrai fired a rapid Ice Beam blast at Primeape. The beam shot across the stadium towards Primeape.
Just as it did, Ash spat out his next command. "Primeape, use Cross Chop on the ground." Both Primeape's fists glowed and he plunged them into the earth, ripping up a chunk of earth and throwing it up just in time to block Ice Beam. The chunk of rock froze over as it was hit.
"Grab that rock and get in there," Ash called impulsively. Seizing the rock in both hands, Primeape raced towards Darkrai, holding it like a shield.
"Darkrai, blast it away with Dark Pulse." Holding out both arms, Darkrai fired twin Dark Pulses at Primeape. The attacks struck the rock, drilling into it. Primeape pressed onwards still, gaining momentum with each step he took.
"Don't let him get you!" Tobias called. Darkrai poured more power into its Dark Pulse. Primeape dug in and pressed forwards, now only a couple yards away. Suddenly, the makeshift 'shield' exploded with a blast of smoke. The smoke cleared a second later and-
Primeape was gone.
For a moment, Tobias seemed genuinely surprised. Then his gaze narrowed. "There!" he called urgently. Darkrai's head jerked back and he looked up just in time to see Primeape above him, coming down with a Close Combat attack. It raised its arms, dark energy crackling across them. Then Primeape crashed down on the dark-type with vehement force, causing both pokemon to slam into the earth. Dust exploded outwards, covering the area completely.
Tobias threw his arm forward in a wild gesture. "Dark Pulse!"
"Mega Kick!" Ash blurted.
Both trainers paused, hearts beating and breaths held, waiting for some kind of signal from within the cloud. Unable to see, Ash knew he had nothing else to rely on but faith in his pokemon and their skill. A vivid flash of dark light split the dust, followed by a sudden, audible WHAM!
Several more seconds later, the dust finally settled. A huge crater now marked the battlefield. And in that crater stood... Primeape. Beside him, just a few feet away, lay an unconscious Darkrai.
Ash jumped into the air and cheered. Primeape crawled out of the crater, then stood tall at the edge, fists raised eyes and eyes burning with triumph. He pumped his fists several times, basking in the cheers and praise from the crowd, then strode towards Ash's side of the field. He made it all the way to Ash before he sank to his knees, panting heavily.
"Hey, Primeape... You were... you were amazing," he breathed. Looking now, he could see the battle had taken almost everything Primeape had left. The P1 champion had just been too proud to show it. "Rest now, Primeape." The bold fighting-type managed a weary nod. Ash grinned, pulling out his pokeball and returning him. Gazing a fondly at the ball for a moment, he let his victory sink in.
His plan had actually succeeded. By using his strategy with Primeape, he'd defeated Darkrai and overcome Tobias' first pokemon... with only one of his own. He really had grown since the Sinnoh League. Although he had a feeling that Tobias pokemon would only get harder from here on out. He couldn't let his victory get to his head.
Tucking Primeape's pokeball away, he looked up. Tobias had returned Darkrai and now stood gazing across the field. His face remained a mask of calm, though Ash detected a smile as well. "I have to say, that was an incredible match, Ash Ketchum. You've improved greatly since last year. I haven't had anyone push Darkrai like that since I battled the Sinnoh's Elite 4."
Ash's eyes widened, and he blinked upon hearing the praise. "Well, Primeape did all the hard work," he said with a chuckle.
"Indeed," Tobias replied, a hint of amusement in his voice. "Still, don't expect the rest of this battle to be so simple."
Ash gave a sharp nod of determination and set his jaw. "I don't," he replied confidently.
Tobias selected his second pokeball and released the pokemon within. Latios emerged with a draconic cry before blasting across the battlefield fast enough to generate a loud roar before swooping back to Tobias' side of the field.
He stared at the blue and white jet-like Pokemon as it hovered in the air. Memories of his previous battle against it returned to him. It had defeated both Sceptile and Swellow with ease, even managing to stop the latter from landing a single blow. But this time would be different. Taking a deep breath, he let a smile play across his lips. One down, 5 to go.
So I ultimately chose to do 1 battle this chapter so I can update quicker for you guys. I think I will stick to this format of basically doing 1 fight per chapter. It allows each pokemon to shine more and allows me to update faster.
I hope everyone enjoyed the surprise. Ash's Primeape returns! This was a decision a long time coming. And I wanted to give Ash a good win. Too often he scrapes by in his victories. Though to be clear, it literally took almost everything Primeape had to win that. I just figured Primeape, being a P1 champion, would be too proud to let his exhaustion show during the fight.
So for some reviews:
Crackymcgranky: It pains me to disappoint, but no Infernape here. I thought about bringing him back, but ultimately it didn't work out. I always found it weird he didn't use Infernape or Charizard in the Sinnoh semifinals. Like, why Torkoal? His other choices I kinda get, but Torkoal seemed so weird to me. I eventually decided on Primeape instead, because of the ability and because it fit Ash's strategy. Infernape would sadly still be susceptible to Dark Void.
Reader: Dannggg! You hit the nail on the head! A while ago I was researching and was always thinking about bringing Primeape back. As soon as I found it he could have Vital Spirit I was sold. Naturally, this worked exceedingly well for Ash, as you can see. Good guess!
Snorlax would have been pretty cool actually, and his Snorlax is tough. But I picked Gabite in the end because I wanted something a little different, plus Gible was there in the first fight against Tobias, who remarks how strong Gible is.
Luckenhaft: Precisely. Ash's Charizard feels like he would try and make himself strong enough to beat anyone with nothing. I mean, can you imagine how amazing it would be to See Ash's Charizard defeat Alain's mega? Or Leon's Giganta? With nothing but himself? Oh man, it would be so cool.
Xavier: X is cool, and looks really awesome for sure. Plus thats a dope typing. But ultimately i don't think I can picture Ash having one. If he did, it would probably be Y. But like I mentioned, I don't think Ash's Charizard would want either.
Ricardo: I'm glad you're enjoying this story! :D I definitely agree. People say Ash is weak but usually, it's justified if he's fighting with newly caught Pokemon. And hopefully, this battle with Tobias is more interesting. As you can see, Ash's secret weapon is Primeape. And thats why he had to lead with his secret weapon as well, because it was his counter to Darkrai. With Tobias unable to use Dark Void and Dream Eater, hopefully the battle was more interesting.
As for 1v1's... Well, Primeape definitely got his! ^.^
Fearofvengeance: Ah, sorry to disappoint but unfortunately I don't plan to cover the Decolore Islands. I was never a huge fan of the arc and I have no inspiration to do so. After the league, I plan to wrap things up and move on to other stories.
AJ: It really would have been neat to have Infernape back. As I mentioned though, I eventually chose Primeape for strategic reasons, and because I always liked Primeape. Plus I imagine his Primeape would be incredibly strong after training for... years? Idk, a long time. Time in the pokemon world is weird.