Chapter 35: Shocking Battle for the Ash Cup
The next morning, Sora and the gang quickly ran to the lobby. They have overslept that morning. Back at the lobby, Prof. Oak and Ash are waiting impatiently for Sora's arrival.
Oak: Where are they? They're going to be late!
Ash: I'm sure they'll get here, Professor. We have to be patient.
He then looks up to see Sora's gang running and panting. The trio stops to catch their breath when they looked up to see Prof. Oak.
Sora: Sorry we're late, Prof. Oak. We've overslept this morning.
Oak: Sora, you came just in time. The match will start in a few minutes. How are you three suppose to become champions if you keep loafing around?
Plucky: Hey, I don't deserve this kind of talk from a science geek!
Sora: We're going to get ready, so we're heading in right now.
Oak: Be careful though. There are a lot of tough opponents entering, including Ash.
Sora: We know. I can't wait to face these people. Let's go!
Ash: I can't wait to see you in the finals.
The trio enters the arena while Oak and Ash went up to the seats with their friends. Upon entering the arena, they heard loud cheers from the audience. Some of the fans, including the Ham-Hams are holding up posters that said "Go Team Sora!"
Sora: Wow! We are really popular. So who are we fighting first?
Hamtaro & Bijou: Come on, Sora! Show them what you're made of!
The first team Sora will be facing is Team Kirby. Kirby, Meta-Knight and King Dedede walks up to the arena. Yoshi cheers for both Sora and Kirby. Tiff and Tuff are cheering for Kirby.
Yoshi: Go, Sora and Kirby! Show people what Sora and Kirby are made of!
Tiff & Tuff: Come on, Kirby! You can do it!
Sora: So I'm fighting you, Kirby. Just to let you know, I won't go easy on you.
Kirby: Kirby...no go...easy too!
Referee: Let the battle begin!
The battle starts with Kirby inhaling Sora. Kirby released Sora into a star, but now he has brown spiky hair like Sora and a Keyblade.
Sora: Kirby, is that a Keyblade?
Meta-Knight: Kirby is now Keyblade Kirby. He can use all the abilities you know, Sora.
Plucky: We've gotta be careful, kid!
Sora and Kirby starts clashing Keyblades while Plucky is battling Meta-Knight and Dizzy is battling Dedede. Meta-Knight is using Mach Tornado on Plucky, doing some damage. He then proceeds with Drill Rush, but Plucky dodges it and counters with Gravira. Dedede slams his hammer on the ground, but Dizzy dodges it and proceeds to do Mega Punch and Mega Kick on him. Dedede then did the Super Dedede Jump to jump real high and dive bomb Dizzy, but he dodges again.
Dedede: Curses! I need to unleash my ultimate attack!
He charges his hammer as it opens up to reveal a jet inside. He uses the Jet Hammer to spin around the arena, but Dizzy counters with his own Spin Attack. Dedede's hammer flew out of his hands and he got dizzy afterwards. Dizzy proceeds to knock him out of the arena with a headbutt. Meta-Knight charges his Galaxia and unleashes a giant Mach Tornado, but Plucky uses Stop to freeze time. He proceeds to use Fira, Blizzara, and Thundara on Meta-Knight. When time returns to normal, Meta-Knight got knocked out.
Dizzy: Now all that left is Kirby.
Plucky: Let Sora handle it. He's got that one.
Sora and Kirby are still clashing Keyblades. They both used Sonic Blades to charge at each other. Kirby proceeds to use Strike Raid, but Sora blocks it. Sora then charges at Kirby, but Kirby uses Stun Impact to paralyze him. Kirby proceeds to use Fira and Blizzara on Sora, doing some damage to him. He then charges at Sora, preparing to deliver the finishing blow, but Sora got back up and uses Ars Arcanum which he delivers a series of slashing combos at Kirby. Kirby reverts back to his normal self and got knocked out.
Referee: Team Sora is the winner!
Sora walks up to Team Kirby.
Sora: Hey, Kirby. That was a great battle.
Kirby looks up at Sora and smiles.
Meta-Knight: You have grown a lot stronger, Sora.
Plucky: Yeah, and Dedede wasn't cheating either this time.
Dedede: I told you before, I've changed.
Dizzy: Kirby good. Maybe Kirby can fight a rematch with Sora.
Sora: Great idea, Dizzy. Maybe someday, we'll fight against Kirby again.
Kirby: Kirby...rematch...with Sora.
Sora and Kirby shook hands and took a 10 minute break. After the break is over, Team Sora went up to the arena again. This time, they'll fight Team Megaman. Megaman, Protoman, and Bass walks up to the arena. Roll cheers for Megaman.
Roll: Come on, Megaman! You can do it!
Sora: Megaman, It's good to see you again.
Megaman: Good to see you too, Sora. I won't go easy on you.
Sora: Me neither. Show me what you've got!
Referee: Let the battle begin!
The battle starts with the three robots firing their busters. Megaman and Protoman charges their busters up while Bass fires his Bass Buster like a machine gun. Dizzy dodges the Bass Buster and proceeds to headbutt him. He proceeds to do a Spin Attack, but Bass counters with the Top Spin, spinning his whole body too. Megaman and Protoman fires their Super Mega Buster and Super Proto Buster, but Sora and Plucky dodges them. Protoman slams his arm cannon into the ground and unleashes a Flame Blast which released flame pillars down the ground, but Plucky dodges it. He proceeds to use Blizzara on Protoman, doing some damage. Sora and Megaman are firing Fira and the Mega Buster at each other.
Bass uses the Crash Bomber on Dizzy, sticking the bomb on him which then explodes after a few seconds. Dizzy got all mad and proceeds to deliver Mega Punch and Mega Kick on Bass. Protoman uses the Metal Blades on Plucky, but he dodges all of them, uses Gravira to lift Protoman up, and threw him towards Bass who Dizzy tossed. Plucky finished both of them off with Thundara. Sora fires more Fira at Megaman, but he uses the Mirror Buster to reflect the Fira back at Sora. Megaman then ran up and proceeds to use the Hard Knuckle on Sora, but he dodges it and uses the Sonic Blade. The attack hits Megaman, knocking him out.
Referee: Team Sora is the winner!
Sora walks up to Team Megaman.
Megaman: We've really underestimated you, Sora. You've grown a lot stronger.
Sora: You're not bad yourself, Megaman.
Protoman: Even with all of our weapons, you're still powerful.
Plucky: It's because we're really that good.
Bass: Next time we fight, me and Megaman will have to go with our Super Adapters.
Sora: That's a fight I'm looking forward to.
Megaman: Me too. Next time, I'll go with my Super Adapter and give it everything I got.
Sora and Megaman shook hands and took a 10 minute break. After the break is over, Team Sora went up to the arena again. Their next opponent is a familiar blonde, spiky-haired warrior.
Sora: Cloud? You're our next opponent?
Cloud: What a surprise. I'm looking forward to this day.
Plucky:(Whimpers)I'm not looking forward to this fight though. I have a long life ahead of me.
Dizzy: No worry, Plucky. We can beat Cloud.
Plucky:(Whimpers)Do you remember the pain we received from him last time?
Dizzy: But that was beginning of adventure. Now we stronger. We can beat him again.
Sora: I knew we would face each other again. I've gotten a lot stronger and better since we last fought.
Cloud: That's great, but I've gotten a lot stronger too. Don't expect me to go easy on you.
Sora: Me neither. And we promised that we have no dark powers involved.
Aerith: Come on, Cloud!
Leon: You can do it, buddy!
Referee: Let the battle begin!
Cloud charges at our heroes with his Sonic Blade. They managed to dodge some of them and Sora counters with his own Sonic Blade. They both clashed Sonic Blades at each other. When they stopped, Plucky uses Fira at Cloud who blocks it with his Buster Sword. He then slashes Plucky aside and proceeds to jump and stab him, but Dizzy came in and headbutts Cloud in the stomach. Cloud then knocks Dizzy aside with his Buster Sword. He slowly walks towards Dizzy, but Sora rams him with his Sonic Blade. Cloud counters with his own Sonic Blade. The two of them flew so fast that for an instant, everyone can't see them.
Plucky: Wow! That's like anime fast!
Dizzy: Plucky still watch cartoons! Plucky still watch cartoons!
Plucky just grumbles as the battle continues. Sora and Cloud both clashed again and began rapidly clashing and dodging their attacks. Cloud thrusts at Sora, but he jumps on top of the Buster Sword and kicks Cloud. He got up and punches Sora back, but he quickly grabs onto Cloud's sword. Cloud spins his body around with Sora going around with him. He took a might slam of his sword to the ground, sending Sora down as well. Cloud attempts to jump and thrust down his Buster Sword, but Sora dodges and proceeds to clash with Cloud again. The two keeps clashing with their blades that it caused a shockwave that resonates throughout the stadium. Suddenly, Sora knocks Cloud's sword off of him and proceeds to slash him. Cloud was panting as well as Sora.
Sora: Man, I've faced a lot of tough opponents, but you are by far the toughest.
Cloud: You leave me with no choice, kid. I have to unleash the power within me.
Cloud then transforms into his dark form, gaining one dark wing.
Sora: Hey, I thought we agreed not to use dark powers!
Cloud: Sorry, but I have to win this competition, no matter what!
Sora: Look, I understand your reason to win. But that doesn't mean we're quitting.
Cloud charges at Sora with full speed, but he dodges his attacks. Plucky then casts Aero to protect Sora and the whole gang from Cloud's attacks. The trio continues to dodge his attacks until he lost his power and weakly got on his hands and knees.
Cloud: No! But how?
Sora: Now to finish him off!
Sora uses the Ars Arcanum and finishes Cloud off with a powerful strike. Cloud tried to get up, but he was too exhausted and fell down.
Referee: Cloud is unable to battle! Team Sora is the winner!
The audience cheers for Team Sora's victory. Sora uses an Elixir to heal Cloud back to full strength. He stood up and looks at Sora.
Sora: I'm sorry. I didn't know how serious you were at winning this. We just entered to become stronger and have some fun.
Cloud: It's OK. I'm sorry for the way I've been acting. I let my rage took the best of me. Maybe I'm not ready to fight him.
Sora: Don't doubt yourself. You're really strong. You still fight the darkness inside of you. But at least you're still not alone. We got your back and whatever your problem is, we can help.
Cloud: You remind me of myself when I was a kid. I used to be enthusiastic and self-confident too. After joining SOLDIER, my life changed and I didn't show anymore emotions. That is until I met you.
He puts his hand on Sora's shoulder.
Cloud: Thank you. I've never met a person quite like you. I hope the time will come again when we shall have a rematch.
Sora: You got it! And no dark powers next time.
Cloud then hands a Keychain to Sora. It looks like a yellow bird.
Cloud: It's called the Metal Chocobo. It has great power and may aid you on your journeys.
Sora: OK. Thanks, Cloud.
Cloud then left the arena. Sora puts on the Keychain and his Keyblade changes again. It now looks like a gray metal key. The team took a 10 minute break. After the break's over, they went back to the arena. Their next opponent is Team Goku. The team consisted of Goku, Vegeta, and Piccolo. Gohan and Dende are cheering for them.
Gohan: Come on, dad! You can do it!
Dende: Show them what you're made of, Piccolo!
Sora: So I'm fighting Goku next. This should be an interesting fight.
Goku: Sora, I hope you're ready, because I won't go easy on you.
Plucky: So Big Green is part of your team, huh?
Piccolo: I HEARD THAT, DUCK! WHEN THE BATTLE STARTS, YOU ARE SO DEAD!
Referee: Let the battle begin!
The battle starts with Goku charging at Sora, Piccolo going after Plucky, and Vegeta going after Dizzy. Goku battles Sora fist-to-blade. They were fighting so fast that almost no one can see what they're doing. Piccolo charges up a Special Beam Cannon and fires a drill-like beam at Plucky, but he dodges it and counters with Thundara. Vegeta charges up a Galick Gun and fires a purple energy beam similar to a Kamehameha at Dizzy, but he dodges it. Dizzy proceeds to clash with Vegeta hand-to-hand. Goku and Sora are still clashing, but then Sora uses Stun Impact to paralyze Goku. He then use Strike Raid on him. Team Goku falls back and thinks of a strategy.
Goku: Man, these guys are really tough. We need to fight a lot harder.
Piccolo: I shall unleash my newest move on them.
Vegeta: I too have a new move to show them.
Goku: Let's show them what we've got!
Piccolo then charges up a Light Grenade while Vegeta charges up a Big Bang Attack. Piccolo fires a yellow energy sphere at Plucky, but he dodges it. The energy sphere hits the floor which caused and explosion, sending Plucky flying forward. Vegeta fires a blue energy sphere at Dizzy. He dodges it, but the energy sphere too hits the floor, sending Dizzy flying too. Goku then activates his Kaio-Ken x20 and charges at Sora. Sora tried to block Goku's attacks, but he keeps getting hit by his punches and kicks. Goku sent Sora flying and charges a Kamehameha. He fires the blue energy beam, but Sora manages to dodge it. Sora, Plucky, and Dizzy are panting heavily.
Goku: You should give up, Sora! You don't stand a chance!
Sora: I'm never...gonna...give up!
Plucky: We need to...come up...with a strategy!
Dizzy: Maybe we should...gang up on...one of them.
Sora: That's a great idea, Dizzy! Let's do it!
First, they focused on Piccolo. Piccolo tried to block them all of, but they surrounded him. Plucky uses Fira on him, Dizzy uses the Spin Attack, and Sora uses the Sonic Blade. Together, they managed to knock out Piccolo. Next, they focused on Vegeta. Plucky uses Blizzara, Dizzy uses the Spin Attack again, and Sora uses another Sonic Blade. They also managed to knock out Vegeta. Finally, they went after Goku. Goku uses Kaio-Ken x20 and charges after Sora, but Plucky and Dizzy guards him. Goku manages to knock out Plucky and Dizzy, but the Kaio-Ken wears him out and he got tired. Sora proceeds to finish him off with Ars Arcanum, knocking him out.
Referee: Team Sora is the winner! They will proceed to the finals!
Sora then walks up to Team Goku.
Sora: That was a great battle, Goku.
Goku: Yeah, you were pretty strong yourself.
Plucky: That was the toughest fight we have ever faced so far.
Vegeta: You should consider yourselves lucky you survived.
Dizzy: Team Goku strong. We underestimate Team Goku.
Piccolo: We've underestimated you guys too.
Sora: Goku, can we have a rematch next time?
Goku: Sure, Sora. I'll have to go Super Saiyan next time. And who knows? I might need to team up with someone as powerful as me.
Sora and Goku shook hands and left the arena for a 20 minute break. During the break, they were talking to Ash and his friends again. The Ham-Hams were there too.
Hamtaro: You were amazing, Sora! For a moment, I thought you were gonna lose.
Bijou: It was a miracle zhat you've managed to pull zhat off.
Sora: Thanks, guys.
Lapis: You've had us all worried there for a moment.
Lazuli: Lazuli was crying for Sora's safety too.
Sora: So who is the next opponent?
Ash: You'll be fighting me next. If you thought the last fight was tough, you ain't seen nothing yet.
May: Good luck, Ash. I'm rooting for you.
Ash: Thanks, May.
Oak: The match will start any minute now, so you two better hurry!
Sora and Ash shook hands and then left for the arena.
Announcer: Ladies and gentlemen! We have reached the finals of the Ash Cup!
The audience cheers, waiting for the battle.
Announcer: In this corner, we have the challengers, Team Sora!
The audience cheers for Team Sora as they arrived in the arena.
Announcer: In the other corner, we have the title champion, Ash Ketchum!
The audience cheers as Ash arrives in the arena.
May: Get him, Ash! Show him what you've got!
The two boys walked into the arena and stared at each other.
Ash: Since I'll be fighting you three, I'll be using three of my Pokemon.
Sora: Fine by me! We'll give it everything we got!
Ash brought out three of his Pokeballs.
Ash: Grovyle, Swellow, Torkoal, I CHOOSE YOU!
He threw his balls and out came Grovyle, a blue bird with a red face and white stomach, and an orange tortoise with a black shell and steam coming out of it's nose and shell.
Ash: I'm not gonna go easy on you!
Referee: Let the battle begin!
The battle starts with Sora going after Grovyle, Plucky going after Swellow, and Dizzy going after Torkoal. Dizzy charges for a headbutt against Torkoal, but he uses Iron Defense to hide under his shell and turn into metal. Dizzy hits the shell and screams in pain. Torkoal then uses Flamethrower, burning Dizzy. Plucky uses Thundara on Swellow. Swellow took the hit, but he broke out of the Thundara. He then use Aerial Ace to hit Plucky multiple times without missing. Sora and Grovyle are clashing with the Keyblade and Leaf Blade. When their blades clashed again, Sora's Keyblade flew out of his hand, leaving him vulnerable to Grovyle's Leaf Blade. He took the hits and suffered massive damage. Team Sora are panting heavily.
Plucky: Man...this is...a much tougher...fight than...Cloud and Team Goku.
Dizzy: Dizzy...could barely...keep it up.
Ash: You three better quit now while you have a chance!
Sora: We'll...never...quit. We'll keep...fighting...to the...death.
Ash: Very well. Prepare for my Pokemon's ultimate attacks!
Grovyle and Torkoal are charging up for their ultimate attacks while Swellow came charging at Plucky. Swellow uses Sky Attack which he covers himself in a light aura while Grovyle and Torkoal uses Solarbeam and Overheat. The attacks all hit Team Sora, knocking out Plucky and Dizzy while Sora is still standing, but has taken a lot of damage.
Sora: Man...I...will...not...give up.
Ash: That's pretty impressive that you're still standing, Sora. But it's now time to end this! Grovyle, Swellow, Torkoal, finish him off!
Grovyle prepares his Leaf Blade, Swellow prepares his Wing Attack, and Torkoal prepares his Body Slam. All three of these attacks collided at where Sora stands and a massive explosion occurs.
Plucky & Dizzy: SORA!
Ash: Looks like I won! Huh?
When the smoke clears, Ash could see his Pokemon have collided with each other.
Ash: What happened? Where's Sora?
?: I'm up here!
Everybody looks up to see Sora flying.
Ash: Since when did you learn how to fly?
Sora: Goku taught me a thing or two. Now I'll win this!
Sora uses Cura to heal himself. He proceeds to go after Swellow. He uses Gravira to bring Swellow down to the ground. He follows with Thundara while Swellow is still pinned to the ground. Swellow took the hit and got knocked out. Sora then went after Torkoal. He uses Blizzara to freeze Torkoal. He then follows up with Sonic Blade, knocking Torkoal out.
Sora: Now all that's left is Grovyle.
Suddenly, Grovyle starts to glow a green aura.
Sora: What was that?
Ash: Grovyle is using Overgrow. His grass type attacks will be much more powerful now.
Grovyle uses Leaf Blade which grew twice their sizes. He came charging at Sora and they clashed blade-to-blade again. He once again knocks Sora's Keyblade off, but before he could deliver the finishing blow, Sora uses Stop to freeze time. He quickly ran to his Keyblade and uses the Strike Raid on Grovyle. When time returns to normal, Grovyle took some damage. Sora then use Stun Impact to paralyze Grovyle. Before Sora could deliver the finishing blow, Grovyle counters with Bullet Seed, hitting Sora in the face. Finally, Sora uses Ars Arcanum while Grovyle uses Leaf Blade, clashing with their blades. They both delivered their final strikes at each other and stood at the opposite ends of each other. After a few seconds, Grovyle faints.
Referee: Team Ash is unable to battle! Team Sora is the winner!
Everybody in the audience cheers for Sora's victory except for May who was a little disappointed that Ash has lost.
May: I can't believe that Ash have lost. And he gave it his all.
Ash ran up to his Pokemon.
Ash: Grovyle, Swellow, Torkoal, are you all OK?
His Pokemon all nodded. Sora walks up to Ash.
Sora: That was the toughest battle I've fought so far.
Ash: My Pokemon didn't even hold back and you still won. I guess humans can be as powerful as Pokemon.
Sora: I'm glad we get to battle each other.
Ash: Me too. Next time we battle, I'm gonna use my star team.
Sora: What's that?
Ash: I'm not gonna tell you. You'll have to wait until then.
Sora: OK. Anyway, that was a great battle.
Sora and Ash shook hands. Minutes later, Sora was at the top of the stand, holding a giant golden trophy with a Pokeball on top.
Sora: WE'RE THE CHAMPS!
The audience cheers for Team Sora's victory as they looked at each other. The three of them knew that if they stick together, anything was possible. Cloud was in the corner of the arena. He smiles at Sora and walks away into the shadows. Back in the lobby, Sora was given a new Keychain called the Thundershocker. It's looks like the lightning tail of Pikachu. He equips it and the Keyblade now looks like a lightning bolt with a spark for a tooth.
Sora: I get it now. The strength of heart, the way to become a hero, it comes from our friends. Mine comes from Plucky and Dizzy.
Oak: I beg your pardon?
Sora: With these guys by my side, no one can take us down. We're unbeatable. Not even Ash or Goku can stand a chance against our friendship.
Oak: But that's not what I...
Ash stops him and puts his arm around the professor's back.
Ash: I agree, Professor. I couldn't have made it this far as a Pokemon Trainer without the friendship from my Pokemon, May, Max, and Brock.
May: He's right. The same goes for me as a Pokemon Coordinator. Together, the three of you make great heroes. And as a team, you can overcome anything.
Plucky: That's right. There's no force that can stop us. Not Ganondorf...
Dizzy: Not Frieza...
Sora: And not even Riku.
Sora and Ash gave each other a high-five and they all cheered.
Oak: Well, we better get ready for the regular Pokemon League tomorrow. We'll have another special tournament after the League's over.
Sora: No problem. Good luck with your League, Ash.
Oak: Oh no! I've been so busy planning for the tournaments, I forgot to move that pedestal.
Sora: Leave it to us, Professor!
Oak: You would do it? But you said it was to heavy before.
Sora: True, but I didn't do it with my friends. Together, we can move that thing!
Sora, Plucky, and Dizzy walks over to the pedestal and moved it. When they moved it all the way, a bright light flashes. As the light dims, they saw a Keyhole on the ground.
Plucky: A Keyhole? We were having so much fun, we forgot about it. Sora, you know what to do!
Sora took out his Keyblade and points it at the Keyhole. It fires a beam at the Keyhole and seals it with a click. Everyone saw what happened.
Sora: It's a long story.
Plucky: We should head back to Traverse Town and tell Leon what happened.
Sora: But first, we need to send Goku and the others back to their world, then we go back to Traverse Town.
Sora's group said good-bye to Ash and his friends. They picked up Goku's group and left the stadium. Before they leave the Ever Grande Conference, Sora found a chest containing five Pikmin. They went back to the Gummi Ship and left the Pokemon World. They took Goku's group back to their world, except Gohan who joins Sora, and warps back to Traverse Town.
That's it for chapter 35. Next time, Sora and the gang will return to Traverse Town for two important errands.