Kabu, the Ever Burning Man of Fire!

"Fetch, Sirfetch!" What appeared to be a white Farfetch'd that carried a leek resembling a sword and another leek that resembled a shield raced across the road that led to Motostoke, lashing out wildly with his sword shaped leek as he met his opponent!

"Thwackey!" The evolved form of Grookey was batted away and landed in a defeated slump before his trainer as the white Farfetch'd flashed a smirk at them while the trainer dropped to his knees.

"Sirfetch'd!"

"I didn't know Farfetch'd could evolve," Ash commented as he looked towards the Pokemon. "I'm guessing that only Galarian Farfetch'd can turn into that similar to how Galarian Linoone evolve into Obstagoon?"

"Right you are," Marnie spoke with a light nod. "It takes a lot of training and hard work to evolve a Galarian Farfetch'd into a Sirfetch'd though so not many trainers catch them as a result of that."

Ash looked towards the defeated Thwackey before looking back at Sirfetch'd. "Well it sounds like Sirfetch'd will fit right in with us, right buddy?"

"Pika pika!" Pikachu pumped his fists.

"Tox tox!" Toxel chimed in, Pikachu flashed him a glare as Toxel stepped forward as if to say that he'd like to challenge Sirfetch'd.

"Sorry Toxel but I was actually thinking about letting Drizzile handle this, he could use the experience." Toxel hung his head while Pikachu flashed the lizard a smirk. "You can have the next battle, I promise." Pikachu flattened his ears and lightly growled at that while Toxel stuck out his tongue at him in a childish manner.

As the other trainer left Ash stepped forward and took his place, flashing Sirfetch'd a friendly smile while he grasped at the ball containing Drizzile. "Sirfetch'd, I've seen you in action and you seem to be quite the powerful Pokemon! Would you honor me with a Pokemon battle?" Sirfetch'd responded by slashing the air before him with his sword as he gave Ash a challenging stare. An excited grin crossed Ash's face as he quickly tossed Drizzile's ball forward. "Drizzile, I choose you!"

"Drizz..." Drizzile burst out and plopped onto his side, giving Sirfetch a lazy and unmotivated expression as Ash lightly began to sweat, remembering how Drizzile's were lazy by nature.

"Drizzile, cloak yourself and fire Water Pulse whenever you feel like it!" Sirfetch'd rushed forward and began wildly lashing out with his sword leek causing Drizzile to roll his eyes and utter a sigh before camouflaging, Sirfetch'd halted in place and looked around in an attempt to locate the water lizard while a sphere of water formed behind his back and was fired at the Fighting type!

"Fetch!" Sirfetch'd squawked before turning around with an agitated expression, the tip of his sword leek started glowing bright green as he slashed at where the attack had been directed from, slashing at Drizzile with Leaf Blade and knocking him off his feet as his camouflaged faded! Drizzile stayed on the ground and stared up at the air, he was still able to fight but seemed to lack motivation.

"Come on Drizzile, you can do it! I've got faith in you!" Ash called out to him.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu chimed in.

Drizzile rolled his eyes towards Ash and let out a sigh before standing back up and getting a firm grip on the ground. Sirfetch'd let out a cry as his sword leek turned bright pink, the bird took a hard and brutal swing at Drizzile with the water lizard just barely stepping out of the way in time, uttering out a yawn as it happened.

"Driz..."

"Soak!" Drizzile lazily threw forth his arms as he sprayed Sirfetch'd with a light sprinkle, the attack would do no damage but it was set up for the next attack. "Sucker Punch!" Drizzile cloaked himself in camouflage once more as Sirfetch'd uttered a growl and began frantically looking for him once more, Drizzile uncloaked right in front of Sirfetch'd and flashed the Pokemon a smirk before headbutting him!

"Fetch!" Sirfetch'd fell onto his back after Drizzile made impact, the bird's grasp on his sword and shield loosened as his eyes turned to swirls.

"Alright!" Ash pumped his fists and quickly reached for a ball before halting his movement with a look of concern as he saw Drizzile drop to one knee while holding his head. "Drizzile...?"

"D-Drizzz!" A blue light cast around Drizzile's body as he started growing taller and slimmer, the green coloring on his feet had vanished completely as his legs were completely colored black with the blue coloring only now existing on his upper body and tail, his hands were now colored black as well almost giving the impression the Pokemon was wearing gloves! His tail had also grown out of it's short curled form that it had as Sobble and Drizzile, now being slender and was extremely long, so long that if it hadn't been so light boned he'd be dragging it along the floor! He made a finger gun motion with his right hand as he turned towards Ash and Marnie.

"Leon, Inteleon!"

"Inteleon?" Ash blinked as he pulled out his Rotom Phone, wanting to learn more about his newly evolved Pokemon.

"Inteleon the secret agent Pokemon, it has many hidden capabilities such as fingertips that can shoot water and a membrane on its back that it can use to glide through the air!"

Ash's eyes lit up as he gave Inteleon a look of amazement. "I look forward to our next battle together, your evolution sounds so cool!"

"Pika!" Pikachu looked equally amazed while Inteleon flashed them both a smirk before returning to his Pokeball. The unexpected evolution had distracted him from the previous events and he only just remembered as Sirfetch'd began to stir, the bird Pokemon looked up at Ash with a look of respect as it gently bowed its head before turning to take his leave.

"Sirfetch'd wait!" Ash called out, Sirfetch'd turned to look as Ash raced over to him and dropped down to his knee to look the Pokemon in the eye. "Sirfetch'd you were an amazing and powerful battler, I have no doubts that you could grown even stronger and I'd like to accomplish that together. I aim to become a Pokemon Master you see and it'd be a huge honor to have you alongside me as we work together to become the best we can be!"

Sirfetch'd didn't need a second to think about it, giving Ash a quick nod in response. Ash gave the bird Pokemon a smile as he reached for an empty ball and gently tapped Sirfetch'd on the head, Sirfetch'd disappeared in a beam of red light and the ball began to shake within the palm of his hand before chiming to announce the capture complete, the ball then disappeared in a bright light as it was transferred to Oak's laboratory!

"I'll see you soon, Sirfetch'd."

"No way, Ash Ketchum?!" Ash heard a woman's voice behind him causing him to turn to see who it was as they obviously recognized him, a large grin quickly formed as he was greeted by the sight of an old friend from the Hoenn days.

"Flannery?! What are you doing here?"

"I'm here visiting my grandpa, he's the Gym Leader!" Flannery proudly spoke before tilting her head. "What are you doing here? You're doing the World Championship from what I hear, not many competitors are here from what I'm told."

"One of my traveling companions is participating in the Galar League, besides it's nice getting to learn about and discover new Pokemon. You can never have too many friends!" Ash stated with a smile.

"Heh, sounds like they've got quite the obstacle coming their way." Flannery crossed his arms as she boasted. "My grandfather rarely ever loses, I've aspired to be as strong as he is! Someday I'll be the strongest Gym Leader in Hoenn... hopefully it's before Norman retires." Flannery sweat dropped, rubbing the back of her neck. "I'd like to earn the title!"

"We'll see about that, my friend's been training practically nonstop since beating Nessa. Your grandfather doesn't stand a chance!"

Marnie glanced between the two before holding out her hand to greet Flannery. "Hello I'm Marnie," She introduced herself as Flannery seemed a bit too friendly for her taste.

"Oh? Ash has a girlfriend? Never thought I'd see the day!" Flannery was quick to assume causing the two to turn beet red as a result while Flannery laughed out. "Don't cha worry, Ash ain't my type so you won't hear complaints from me but I'm sure that there are girls out there that won't be so pleased to hear that you stole Ash's heart!" Flannery cast her a smirk before looking back at Ash. "Well if your friend is battling my grandfather we should probably get back into town, the battles are picking back up from lunch soon."

Marnie glanced at her Rotom Phone to check the time before nervously sweating. "She's right, it won't be long until Zach goes out to battle Kabu! We should get going!"

Bede stood with his back against the wall of Motostoke Stadium with a frustrated look, more cracks aligned the ball belonging to Eevee as the silver Eevee looked up at Bede with worry and concern visible across his face.

"It's your fault we lost," Bede growled at Eevee, his gaze fixated on the Pokeball as he clenched his fist around it, cracks could be heard taking form as Eevee flinched before hanging his head. "We didn't even come close, no wonder dad won't speak to me!" Bede punched the wall with his other hand, leaving a dent and drawing a bit of blood as he cast a glare at Eevee before looking up as he noticed Zach entering the stadium.

"Alright, time to beat Kabu and earn my third badge!" Zach clasped his hands together while Lucario and Cinderace let out cries of excitement! Both of them were sitting it out as a certain Pokemon was ready to return to the fold and was eager to prove himself to his trainer but they were excited nonetheless after all the hard training they put in to get there!

"Just don't get too cocky, okay?" Dawn asked while giving him a worried look. "If you get too cocky then you'll likely loose, I've seen this happen before."

"Oh Dawn you worry too much, he'll be fine!" A familiar voice spoke up causing the two to turn towards the individual with Zach's eyes lighting up upon seeing who it was.

"May!" He quickly sprang forward to greet her before the pair met in a hug. "I didn't expect to see you here, what are you doing here?"

"Well you did let it slip that you and Sonia broke up," Although they hadn't seen each other since the group had left Hoenn, May had called him a few times over the Rotom Phone and one such experience was shortly after his breakup with Sonia with him acting all gloomy. "And I know how anxious you get around crowds so I've come to offer you my support if you need it. I-I know that she was helping you but the two of you aren't... you know."

"I'm still friends with her, we're just not dating anymore." Zach informed. "I think she's dating Nessa now but I'm not sure. Either way she couldn't make it today as she's busy with research, I-I was going to try and get through it alone."

"You don't have to, I'm here for you!" May and Dawn spoke up simultaneously before blushing heavily as they shot each other a light glare.

"Wait-"

"You-?" Dawn's eyes widened in realization as she realized that she was worried about the wrong girl this whole time! It wasn't Chloe that loved Zach in the same manner that she did, it was May!

Chloe's eyes shifted between the two girls before widening as she realized what was going on. Zach similarly went pale as sweat started pouring down his face.

"I-I'm just going to go wait in the stands, good luck Zach!" Chloe gave her best friend a quick smile before hurrying off as fast as possible while May and Dawn silently leered at one another.

Zach nervously shook as he wasn't sure how to respond to this situation. "W-Well if there's a problem, you could both go with Chloe!"

"No!" May quickly shook her head. She'd witnessed Zach having an anxiety attack before and didn't want him to be alone if it happened again, she came all this way solely to prevent that from happening and she wasn't about to step aside and let it happen!

"No way, you said it yourself that this stadium is thrice as big as the one you battled Milo and Nessa in. I-We'll be waiting for you if you need us!" Dawn spoke up with her usual bright smile. The two girls gave each other a swift look that showed each other that their feelings for him were genuine as neither one was willing to back down!

Zach let out a sigh of relief as he was thankful for their presence but he was still nervously sweating as he knew the situation he'd found himself trapped in wouldn't be over. He couldn't dwell on that matter for now though as he had a battle to fight! "T-Thanks you two, that means a lot." He flashed the two an appreciative look before turning his attention to the stadium's entrance as Ash and the others arrived along with an admittingly attractive red headed girl. He tilted his head lightly as he wondered who that was before May was quick to speak up.

"Flannery?"

"May! It's been awhile," The two friends clasped hands together before pulling away. "So your friend's the one that is going up against my grandfather?"

"Yep!" May glanced towards Zach with a warm smile.

"Hm, not bad-Oh my gosh a Cinderace!" Flannery suddenly squealed out causing Cinderace to leap up from surprise as Flannery quickly rushed over and gave Cinderace a tight hug. Cinderace seemed to still have Scorbunny's personality within as she liked the attention, closing her eyes and returning the hug with a sigh of content.

"I've always wanted one, 'll trade you my Blaziken for it!" Flannery offered, rushing towards the trainer immediately upon releasing her hold on Cinderace. A pleading look in her eye as Zach sweated before quickly shaking his head.

"No deal, all of my Pokemon are special to me but Lucario and Cinderace hold a very special place in my heart. They always stick by my side and I stick by theirs no matter what, I wouldn't trade either of them for the world, not even Arceus itself!" Lucario and Cinderace nodded as they wrapped their arms around their trainer while uttering out soft growls of confirmation.

Flannery had a brief moment of disappointment before waving it off with a smile. "Ah don't worry, I feel the same way about my Torkoal! Anyways good luck in your battle, you'll need it!"

"Thanks I-We should really get going!" Zach quickly realized as he turned to May and Dawn, the two quickly nodded and the three gave the others a light wave before rushing off.

"Good luck!" Ash called out.

"Here we are with another exciting batch of action filled battles! First up is the return of Challenger 64 who is going for his third gym badge today," The announcer spoke as the field transformed into a grassy field. "Today's challenge is the challenger's choice, three wild Pokemon are within the grass. He can either catch them or defeat them in battle! And here he is now folks, let's give a cheer for challenger Zach!"

The crowd erupted with a loud roar as Zach stepped out onto the field, the cheering had grown a bit since his defeat of Nessa but it was still hardly anything in comparison to the Gym Leaders themselves, some finding it hard to invest in challengers as most gave up at this stage, others weren't easily impressed, while the rest simply enjoyed a good battle regardless! Zach's eyes darted towards the crowd causing him to freeze up briefly as the sight of the larger crowd was starting to get to him, the stadium was even bigger than the ones in Hulbury and Turffield!

Cinderace and Lucario gave their trainer a light tap on the shoulder and let out soft cries of assurance as he snapped out of it with a shake of his head though he still looked a bit unnerved. "Right I think catching is the way to go about this, best not to wear ourselves out and it'll save them from getting hurt!"

Lucario nodded with a smirk while Cinderace flattened her ears at the thought of him having another Fire type.

"Ace!"

"Don't worry Cinderace, I'll think of what to do with them later. I could never replace you!" Cinderace crossed her arms and smiled at her trainer's words as he reached for a ball. "Dratini, let's go!"

"Drati!" Dratini let out a coo as she burst from her ball, the appearance of the beautiful Dragon caused the crowd to let out a loud cheer causing Zach to momentarily flinch before throwing out his arm as a Vulpix emerged from a nearby patch of grass.

"Thunder Wave!" Dratini swished her tail and several yellow rings of electricity were released in small waves, flowing across the stadium ground before making contact with Vulpix, the fox Pokemon halted in place as it's body sparked from paralysis!

"Great job Dratini!" Zach praised as he tossed an empty Ultra Ball at Vulpix, the ball hit the ground and started shaking before uttering out the chime that signified the capture! The ball disappeared in a bright light as it was transferred away.

Dratini let out a happy coo while Cinderace and Lucario looked around before spotting a Litwik, both Pokemon cried out and pointed towards it.

"Great work you two, Thunder Wave!" Dratini let out a happy coo and released another wave of electrically charged rings, halting the hopping Litwik in it's tracks before an Ultra Ball was quickly thrown at it!

"Two down, only one left!" Zach exclaimed as the Pokeball teleported away. "Now where is it-Aaah!" He felt something hot slithering up his back causing him to quickly remove the top half of his gym uniform before proceeding to shake it out, a small red centipede Pokemon landed on the stadium floor with swirls in it's eyes as it motioned back and forth from a dizzy spell.

"What is that Pokemon?" Ash pulled out his Rotom Phone.

"Sizzlipede the Radiator Pokemon, it stores flammable gas in its body and uses it to generate heat. The yellow sections on its belly get particularly hot!"

"Wow, it sounds like a cool Pokemon!"

"Pikapi!" Pikachu flicked his tail as both trainer and Pokemon displayed interest in the Pokemon as it was captured and transferred away to the lab! The crowd cheered as the first act of the gym challenge was complete but that was the easy part, this was where things would get interesting!

"And Challenger Zach decided to complete the first act by capturing the Pokemon, avoiding battling them by inflicting them with Paralysis! No doubt he cares a great deal about Pokemon and from the sounds of it won some new fans over but will love be enough to beat Kabu?! We'll soon find out!" The announcer spoke, Zach and his Pokemon took a step back as the field disappeared beneath the ground before resurfacing as the battlefield! A bright light shined on the other entrance to the field followed by an immense series of cheers as Kabu came racing out, showing extreme agile despite his age as he took a leap and landed upon his position on the battlefield, giving Zach a light smirk before beckoning him forth with his hand to signal the start of the match.

Zach rushed forward and took his position as Dratini slithered onto the field before him, uttering out a melodic coo as she gazed towards Kabu.

"The battle will consist of a four on four matchup and come to an end as soon as either side is unable to continue battling, only the Challenger is permitted to switch out his Pokemon if they so desire. Trainers pick your Pokemon!" The referee called out as he signaled the start of the match.

"Dratini, you can do it!"

"Drati!"

Kabu smirked and reached for a ball before giving it a good throw. "Ninetales, let's light things up with Confuse Ray!"

"Ninetales!" Ninetales' eyes glowed bright blue as Dratini couldn't help but lock eyes with her, the Dragon Pokemon started to sway back and forth with a dizzy expression as it was struck with confusion!

"Dragonair shake it off and use Aqua Tail!" Dratini shook her head, her eyes still looked a bit glazed however, her tail became surrounded in an aquatic veil of water as she lashed out and slapped Ninetales across the face with it, pushing the fox Pokemon back as she grunted out.

"Not bad, not many trainers can successfully raise Dragon types but I can see the two of you have a great bond. That won't be enough to beat us though, Inferno!"

"Nine!" Ninetales lunged forward, opening up her mouth as she fired off a large stream of fire at Dratini! The Dragon type began to sweat from the intense heat, narrowing her eyes as her breath slowed and grew heavier.

"Rain Dance!" Dratini began to sway about before slapping herself with her tail as she danced awkwardly, rain began to pour down from the sky while her trainer threw out his arm with a smirk. "Now Aqua Tail once more!"

"Drati!" Dratini panted, her tail ignited in an aquatic veil of water once more as she struck Ninetales across the side of her cheek!

"Disable!" Kabu ordered, Ninetales fired off a yellow beam of energy that struck Dratini, while it didn't do any damage it did lock off Aqua Tail from being used again!

"Dragon Tail!" Dratini's tail began to glow green as she lashed out appearing to be aiming for Ninetales before striking the top of her own head! The Dragon type suddenly collapsed in a defeated heap as swirls formed in her eyes.

"Dratini is unable to battle, will Zach be able to recover or will he fall into the same trap like so many others?"

"You did good Dratini, now rest up. Obstagoon will take over from here," Zach returned his Dragon type while grabbing the Fast Ball containing his Dark type before giving it a hurl, Obstagoon burst out with a loud roar before suddenly turning around and pulling his trainer into a tight hug, powerfully squeezing him while uttering a growl of pure happiness!

"I-It's good to see you too b-but how about we focus on the battle now and hug later?" Zach managed to breath out through the badger's grasp, Obstagoon flickered his gaze towards Ninetales and uttered out a light growl as he released his trainer, eager to prove himself to his trainer as he swiped his paw against the dirt and looked ready to charge!

"Stomping Tantrum!" Obstagoon flashed a smirk at his trainer's command, the badger's eyes ignited with a fiery rage as he started leaping up and down, the ground shaking beneath as he wildly thrashed his arms about before charging forward at an immense speed, thrashing his arms about Ninetales' body and giving her a good kick as she was sent flying before landing in a defeated heap before Kabu!

"Wow, Obstagoon sure looks stronger than when we last saw him!" Chloe commented.

"Well it did get a vast amount of experience fighting Moltres," Marnie explained. "He's probably at the same power level as Lucario and Cinderace!"

Kabu returned Ninetails with a calm expression, placing the ball back onto his belt while reaching for another. "Salazzle, let's light this up!"

"Salaz!" Salazzle burst from her ball, sticking out her tongue as she examined the situation before her. Obstagoon crossed his arms, not appearing the least bit intimidated as he uttered a growl.

"Poison Gas!" Salazzle opened her mouth, releasing a purple cloud of gas that flew towards Obstagoon causing the badger to begin coughing as a bright purple tint formed across his face!

Zach grit his teeth but neither he nor Obstagoon looked ready to give up!

"Leer!" Obstagoon gave Salazzle a harsh leer. "Then follow up with Night Slash!" Obstagoon's claws turned a dark purple color as he raced across the field, taking a harsh swing at Salazzle!

"Flamethrower!" Salazzle opened her mouth and blasted Obstagoon with a stream of fire as he approached, slowing him down but the badger seemed to share his trainer's persistent attitude, continuing to advance despite the pain before blindly slashing at the air, missing Salazzle due to the intense heat blinding him. The badger then grunted as poison sapped away at his health. Zach didn't appear concerned, flashing the badger a smirk which was quickly returned.

"Stomping Tantrum!" The attack doubled in power if the previous attack failed and with a quadruple weakness to Ground attacks? Salazzle was surely finished! Kabu widened his eyes before giving a respectful smirk as Obstagoon raced wildly across the wild, thrashing his arms about while stomping the ground.

"Flamethrower!" Kabu wasn't foolish, accepting the defeat but he figured to dish more damage before that! Salazzle released another stream of fire upon the approaching Obstagoon, his progress started to slow before he uttered out a loud roar, summoning forth more energy as he charged forward and headbutted Salazzle before hurling her into the ground!

"Salazz..." Salazzle laid in a defeated slump as the crowd let out a roar of approval. Kabu calmly returned Salazzle while reaching for his final Pokeball. "Not bad kid, you're really forcing my hand here. It's not often I'm forced to resort to using this guy in battle but here we are, Charizard's lets heat things up!"

"CHAR!" A black scaled Charizard burst onto the field and roared out as it shot a stream of fire up into the air, apparently Ash's wasn't the only one that loved doing that.

"Charizard!" Zach gasped out, his hand quickly reached for Obstagoon's Fast Ball. "Obstagoon return for now, we're going to have to try a different tactic. Raichu, I need you!"

"Rai rai!" The Alolan Raichu levitated above the field as he burst from his Pokeball, the electric mouse's gaze soon fixated upon the shiny Kanto starter as he prepared to battle!

"Use Surf!"

"Rai rai!"

"Huh?" Kabu raised an eyebrow at the command before offering an impressed smirk as a large wave of water began forming beneath of Raichu before it came crashing down on top of Charizard! Charizard's tail flame lightly flickered as the fire lizard was pushed back by the wave, an irritated growl escaped his lips as he delivered Raichu a fierce glare.

"Dragon Pulse!"

"Counter with Psychic!"

"Rai rai!" Raichu's eyes glowed bright blue as a similar glow surrounded the green-blue energy pulse, redirecting it towards it's user! Charizard's eyes widened as the attack flew back into his mouth before dropping down his throat, a loud explosion occurred within him causing his face to turn green shortly before he turned to the side and hurled.

"Gross!" Chloe commented with a look of disgust.

"Eevoi..."

"Oi, look at Charizard's tail!" Marnie pointed towards Charizard's tail as the flame heavily ignited!

"CHAR!" Charizard roared out as his eyes glowed a fiery shade of red!

"That's Blaze!"

"Pika pi!"

"Inferno!"

"CHAR!" Charizard slammed his foot against the ground as a large geyser of fire erupted from his mouth and soared across the field towards Raichu, the blast struck Raichu and showered him with fire and ash before he or his trainer could even react! Raichu let out a pained cry as his fur was scorched by the fiery blaze before promptly dropping face first against the floor, his tail collapsed against his backside as he laid against the ground with swirls forming within his eyes!

"And Raichu is unable to battle, Kabu just evened up the field but will he be able to take advantage of that hold and overtake the challenger's lead?!"

"Raichu return," Zach returned Raichu to his ball while offering the downed Electric type a smile. "We tried and that's what counts. Alright Obstagoon let's finish this!"

"Obsta!" Obstagoon stretched out his arms as he released a loud roar upon release.

"And it appears that the challenger has resorted to using Obstagoon again rather than reveal his final Pokemon, how interesting!"

Kabu flashed a smirk as he stretched out his arm to issue out another attack. "Inferno once more!"

"Shield yourself with Stomping Tantrum!"

"Obsta!" Obstagoon slammed his foot against the ground causing pieces of the battlefield to splinter up but rather than attack Charizard with them, Obstagoon grabbed one of the large splinters of rock and hoisted it in front of him, utilizing it as if it was a shield! The fire blasted against the rock and everywhere around it but Obstagoon was left unharmed, the badger flashed his trainer a smirk before hoisting the rock up once more as he prepared to throw it at Charizard! The rock soared through the air and struck Charizard's face, knocking the fire lizard off his feet and onto his back as he was knocked unconscious!

"That's quite clever..." Dawn mused with a light smirk.

"I'm guessing they came up with that trick in order to prevent another Moltres incident," May theorized with an impressed look.

"Charr..." Charizard groaned out before he was returned to his Pokeball.

"Unbelievable folks, it appears that Obstagoon has beaten yet another one of Kabu's Pokemon!" The announcer shouted out as the badger and trainer shared a quick celebratory hug. "Will Obstagoon have what it takes to beat Kabu's final Pokemon or will Kabu be able to change the tide of the battle?!"

"You're really something kid, I haven't had to start off with this maneuver in a very long time. Centiskorch, let's scorch this up!" Kabu shouted as he threw forth another Pokeball.

A larger centipede that greatly resembled Sizzlipede appeared, being much larger as it towered over both Zach and Kabu while looking down upon Obstagoon with a challenging glare which was swiftly returned as Obstagoon looked up with a growl of defiance!

"Centiskorch the Radiator Pokemon, it's body temperature can reach nearly 2,000 degrees! While it's body may be dangerous it also has large sharp fangs!" Ash's Rotom Phone informed.

"It's evolution is even cooler!" Ash breathed out in amazement while Marnie cast him a glance.

"Ya could offer Zach a trade ya know, if ya find something that he likes." Marnie offered up a suggestion causing Ash to momentarily pause in consideration. "I seriously doubt that he'd keep his considering how Cinderace reacts to him simply looking at wild Fire types."

"I'll consider it..."

"Let's make this interesting, Dynamax!" Kabu activated his Dynamax band as bright purple and red clouds surrounded Centiskorch, the Pokemon began rapidly increasing in size before towering over the stadium, gazing down at it while his body began more serpent-like, almost resembling a Chinese dragon at first glance! The Gigantamax Centiskorch let out a loud cry that echoed across the stadium followed by an immense cheer from the crowd.

Zach clenched his fists as he looked towards Obstagoon before the two nodded at each other, both knew the stakes here. One Pokemon remained on Zach's side but if Obstagoon was taken out before Centiskorch and it remained in it's Gigantamax form, it'd be quite deadly and impossible to beat until the form wore off and Obstagoon was already looking worn out from the poison and the previous battle. Zach could return Obstagoon and not take the chance but he knew Obstagoon didn't want that and he respected the badger Pokemon's choice on the matter. He activated his own Dynamax band as Obstagoon increased in size before towering over the stadium and locking eyes with the large centipede Pokemon before crying out like a kaiju!

"Max Darkness!" Obstagoon let out a cry, flinching from the poison before sending off a massive burst of dark energy with a swing of his arms, the burst made contact with Centiskorch and knocked it back before the centipede recovered and cast a light glare.

"Max Flare!" A massive burst of fire erupted from Centiskorch's mouth as he blasted Obstagoon, the badger grunted and collapsed to his knees as the Fire struck before fully collapsing forward with a loud thud that shook the entire stadium and even caused his trainer to lose his balance and fall onto his rear.

"Obstagoon is out folks! With minutes left before the Dynamax phenomenon wears off things do not look good for Zach! Who will be his final choice?"

"Lucario and Cinderace are both incredibly fast but I've already promised this battle to you and I intend on keeping my word," Zach spoke to a ball after returning Obstagoon to his own. "Prinplup, let's go!"

"Prinplup!" Prinplup burst out and tapped his chest as he gazed upwards at the towering Fire type.

"He's doomed." Chloe moaned as she placed her head in her hands. "Prinplup is nowhere near fast enough to avoid the Dynamax attacks!"

"Not necessarily, look!" Ash pointed out as Zach instructed Prinplup to use Ice Beam on the ground, causing the field to become encased in ice!

"Max Flutterby!" Kabu shouted.

"Hop on your belly and slide!" Prinplup fell onto his belly and slid across the field, Prinplup was in his home environment and able to quickly maneuver as the green energy blast struck where he stood moments ago.

"Bubblebeam!" Prinplup fired off a series of bubbles at his opponent, while it wouldn't be enough to take it out in it's current form dishing out a bit of damage didn't hurt their chances once things were even!

"Max Flare!" Kabu ordered, hoping the heat would prevent Prinplup from escaping.

"Slide!" Prinplup hopped onto his belly and began to slide away, the heat of the approaching flame quickly melted the ice but Prinplup had enough friction to keep going! The penguin safely sliding away as Centiskorch reverted back to his normal form. The two Pokemon locked eyes with one another as their trainers cried out.

"Lunge!"

"Drill Peck!" Prinplup's beak began glowing as his body started twirling and rapidly spinning like a drill, the penguin Pokemon launching himself forward as Centiskorch lunged at him! The two Pokemon made contact, Prinplup's beak started between Centiskorch's pincers as the two Pokemon gave each other a final glare, knowing that they were moments from one or the other coming out on top!

"Solar Beam!" The sun had intensified greatly due to it being at it's peak, allowing for Centiskorch's mouth to instantly begin firing off the attack at the trapped penguin!

"Whirlpool!" Prinplup waved his flippers through the air as a large whirlpool began forming around it, Centiskorch was pulled in and forced to let go of Prinplup with the solar beam being fired upwards out of the stadium! Centiskorch was flown and thrown about in the whirlpool as it was trapped within the attack, Prinplup began swimming towards the centipede as his body began to spin rapidly like a drill once more before making impact! Centiskorch was blasted out and landed with a thud before sliding across the ground, coming to a halt in front of his trainer with swirls formed within its eyes.

"And just when all hope appeared to be lost Zach managed to hold out and get a win at the very last second! What an incredible battle, folks can definitely expect to see him battling it out at Stow-on-Side Gym next!"

"Way to go Prinplup, you did it!" Zach jumped up, cheering on his Water type as the crowd proceeded to roar loudly as he was declared the winner! Prinplup smiled at his trainer and let out a cry before his body became surrounded in a blue blinding light! The penguin began to grow as tall as the majority of his teammates, his body lost the blue tint that his previous stages had as his body began changing into a primarily black coloring with a singular patch of white on his chest. His flippers were now outlined in a dark blue color and his beak had broken off into a trident shaped crest that adorned the front of his head. Empoleon stood proud as he tapped his chest with a proud expression.

"Empoleon!"

Zach's eyes lit up with amazement while he pulled out his Rotom Phone to read up on the newly evolved Pokemon.

"Empoleon the Emperor Pokemon, it avoids unnecessary disputes, but it will decimate anything that threatens its pride!"

"That's kind of excessive... but still pretty awesome that you evolved!"

"Empo!" Empoleon tapped his chest once more while Cinderace and Lucario cheered for their newly evolved team member.

Kabu approached Zach and began to speak up. "I haven't felt a spark in a battle like that for a long time, I've got no doubts that you'll get far! You've got a good brain when it comes to battling and have the strength to back it up! Which brings me to the question... will you date my granddaughter? I'm old but still young enough that I could be blessed with seeing great grandkids in my life time and I'd be honored if it was the offspring of the future Galar champ!"

"What is he-Not again!" Flannery moaned out before quickly rushing down the stairs and taking a leap over the barrier onto the field to shout at her grandpa!

"N-No thanks, I already have enough romantic drama going on!" Zach shook his head before sweating as he thought about his wording. "Er-Not to be disrespectful or anything, I mean she is hot! I-If I didn't already have my eyes on somebody else I'd totally accept the offer!"

Flannery shot bright red as she cast her grandfather a glare. "No offense taken, he says that to everyone who beats him. Thanks for the kind words though!" Flannery smiled with a hint of a light blush before giving Kabu a glare. "How many times must I ask you to stop?!"

"Hehehe," Kabu gave her a light smirk. "Last time I promise." The man then reached into his pocket and handed over a badge with a fire emblem on it. "Anyways you were wanting this? Here ya go!"

Zach took the badge, his face still bright red from the embarrassment he'd been put through before turning to show off the badge to his Pokemon. "We've got the Fire badge!"

"Carrr!"

"Ace!"

"Empo!"

Zach returned Empoleon before heading back into the locker room to get changed. May and Dawn were currently waiting for him inside and had heard what he'd said to Kabu. The two turned to each other with a light blush and were silent for a moment before Dawn spoke up.

"Well he clearly loves one of us,"

"Or both, otherwise he'd have already chosen." May informed with a light smile. "That and I don't think he'd publicly announce he loves two different girls."

"I suppose that's true, whatever happens though. Whichever of us he chooses, let's just promise to not destroy our friendship over it."

"Deal!" The two smiled at one another before directing their attention towards Zach as he walked into the room in order to congratulate him on his victory.

Marnie, Ash and Chloe stood in the entrance to the stadium as they waited for Zach and the others to come out. A few minutes later Dawn, May and Zach soon joined them, their attention turned to Bede as he finally moved from where he'd been waiting with Zach's eyes immediately locking onto the rubble beneath Bede's hand. After taking in Eevee's pleading look he knew what was happening. "Bede don't do that, Eevee trusts you and does his best to please you!"

"Well his best isn't good enough!" Bede spat out as he looked away, possibly hiding tears of his own as he sniffled. "If he really wanted to please me, we'd have beaten Kabu instead of losing him and Gardevoir to Ninetales!" Bede started to run off, Eevee cried out as tears flooded from his eyes, the shiny attempted to give chase before tripping and sliding across the ground due to his soaked paws allowing for Bede to outrun him. Bede paused at the exit to the stadium before glancing back at Zach. "Take good care of Eevee," He muttered before racing off.

"Bede!" Zach growled out.

"Eevoi!"

"Hey come back here, I've got words for you!" Ash growled as he raced after Bede.

Eevee hung his head, his ears flattened against his head as he stared at his paws. "Eevoi..."

Zach let out a sigh before getting down onto his knees to pet Eevee. "Eevee I hate to say it but he's not coming back, he knows that I wouldn't leave you here. Why don't you come with us? You're a pretty amazing Pokemon and you work hard, you'll fit right in with the rest of my team!" Eevee gazed up with a saddened expression before looking back at the floor.

"Eevoi..."

"If you'd rather wait that's fine, I'll wait here with ya!" And sure enough he did just that, sitting down with Eevee and waiting with Eevee even though he knew it was hopeless. A few days had passed, Ash and Marnie had spent the time training while Zach hardly moved and probably would have starved had it not been for May and Dawn bringing him food every so often. On the marking of the fourth time Eevee finally stirred and walked towards Zach before standing up on his hind legs and giving him a light lick of appreciation, signaling that he was ready to begin anew with him!

Zach gave Eevee a light smile and held out an empty Friend Ball, Eevee silently bumped it with his head before disappearing in a red beam of light as the ball let out a chime to announce the capture!

"Welcome to the team, Eevee!" Zach exclaimed with a welcoming smile later that day as he let Eevee out to meet some of his teammates.

"Carrr!"

"Ace!"

"Obstagoon!"

"Rai rai!"

"Drati!" The five Pokemon greeted Eevee with open arms as Eevee flicked his tail in acknowledgement but didn't have much a reaction beyond that.

"I know it isn't the same as Bede's but we're like a family, we look out and care for another. If you lose we won't hold anything against you, but together we'll try and make you the best Eevee, or best Eeveelution you can be!" The other five Pokemon cried out in agreement with their trainer. A light smile formed across Eevee's face as he slowly walked forward and into his new trainer's arms, uttering out a light sigh as he felt the other Pokemon joining in with Obstagoon letting out an excited cry before spinning them all about!

May and Dawn giggled out at the sight while Marnie watched on with a light smirk, not noticing Ash silently creep away in order to contact Brock.

"Ash, it's so good to see you again!" Brock excitedly exclaimed as his face appeared on the Pokemon Center's videophone. "How's it going?!"

"It's going great, Brock! I'm actually calling for some advice." Ash nervously sweated while Brock tilted his head.

"Oh? What kind of advice?"

"Well I met this girl during my recent travels and-"

"Say no more Ash, I've been waiting for this day for so long! In all honesty I actually expected you to ask this during your time in Alola, I mean I'd have gone crazy being cooped up with three beautiful young women all day like you were! I'm honestly surprised that you didn't get with one of them but I digress." Brock hoisted up a large book from the floor and began quickly skimming through it. "So what's this girl like? Does she have a favorite color? Favorite tv show? Cartoon? Pokemon? What is her personality like-UGH!"

"Croagunk!" Croagunk appeared on the screen as Brock fell to the floor, the poison frog having Poison Jabbed his trainer.

Ash lightly sweated at the sight and nervously chuckled as he offered Croagunk a wave. "Hey Croagunk, been awhile!"

"Croa..." Croagunk turned and silently stared at the screen, the only sound was that of his soft croaks before Brock recovered and got back to his feet.

"Well what's this girl like?"

"Oh she's perfect! She's the most attractive girl I've ever laid eyes upon and she aspires to be a Dark type Master similar to Misty and Iris' goals! S-She even has an Electric mouse as her best friend much like I do!"

"Pika..." Pikachu blushed at the mention of Morpeko causing Brock to smirk.

"Well it certainly sounds as if you hold a great deal of admiration towards her. I trust she feels the same way?"

"Of course! There's not a doubt in my mind! T-That's not why I called you, y-you see I want to ask her out but..."

"You don't know the perfect destination for a first date?" Brock questioned with a teasing smirk.

"No! T-That's why I wanted to ask you, the love doctor!"

"Well luckily for you the love doctor's advice is confirmed to be flawless!" Brock boasted as he thumbed towards his engagement ring. "The first date is a special one, you've got to really impress her and show her that the two of you are meant to be! That's how I ended up winning Olivia's heart!"

"Croa..." Croagunk croaked out in confirmation.

"You should take her to a festival or a fun fair, I'm sure that the two of you will find that very enjoyable!" Brock pulled up his Rotom Phone which had a Croagunk themed phone case as he prepared to look up some possible locations for his best friend and brother figure. "Where are you currently located?"

"Galar, Motostoke to be precise."

"Hm... I'm not seeing any major events happening there within the next few weeks," Brock flicked his finger across the screen before letting out a shout. "Aha! This is perfect! You were wanting to visit Larvitar at some point in your journey right? Well why not visit him soon? The Wind Festival will be starting up at Fula City, which is located along the Johto region's coastline, in just two weeks! You could stop by Mt. Silver then head on over to Fula City to get the most of the trip! I've heard good things about the Wind Festival and I'm sure that you and Marnie will enjoy it!"

Ash gave Pikachu a look before sharing a smirk with the electric rodent as the two appeared to be in agreement over the decision.

"Alright then looks like we'll be going to Johto soon!"

"Pi Pikachu!"

Brock smirked while uttering out a light chuckle. "Good luck with your date, Ash!"

"Thanks Brock, hopefully I see you soon!" Ash thanked his friend before disconnecting as he quickly made his way back to his friends. Chloe had taken her leave several days ago, so it was just Zach, Marnie, May and Dawn who sat around a table while the aspiring Gym Challenger played with his Rotom Phone's map app.

"Stow-on-Side's actually not that far from here so why don't we head there next? It'd only take a day or so by foot and we could get in some more training!"

"Sounds perfect ta me!" Marnie spoke before offering Ash a smile as she saw him returning. "Where have you been?"

"Stuff," Ash casually responded causing Marnie to give him a questioning look before she shrugged in response. Ash figured to keep it a secret for now as there wasn't a real hurry to get to Johto, Latias and Corviknight could get there overnight and the Wind Festival was still two weeks away! It had been quite a long time between Zach's second and third gym match so he figured it'd be fair to let him battle against the fourth Galar gym before they took their leave once more. Besides he was interested in seeing what else the region had to offer and perhaps he'd get ideas for places to take Marnie after the Wind Festival date!

"Things are definitely looking up, eh Pikachu?" Ash grinned.

"Pika pi!" Pikachu smiled back at his trainer while unbeknownst to them, the dark purple clouds continued forming off in the distance.

As promised Larvitar will be entering the picture fairly soon but there's still a bit of a wait until that happens! :)