A/N: Thanks for the review, Julie Togepi. Yeah, you'd think that Misty would become very strong, but I was talking about that Kanto and Johto series where Misty didn't do as much battling as Ash and still seemed to be at almost the same level, with the same going for Brock. Sure, years of training at a Gym should've improved their skills... but by that logic the strongest Trainers should all be old people but the Elite Four seem to be in their twenties and thirties... and the strongest Trainers are sometimes children.

Ash sighed. He still hadn't gotten past five pages of the book explaining contest rules, and he was already bored out of his head. He had never read up on much regarding human biology, but he guessed that if it was possible for people to actually die of boredom, well then, he would be coming close.

It didn't help that he had very little interest in contests anyway, or that most of the words seemed to be outdated gibberish to him and so he understood less of it than he normally would have.

As he glanced around his office though, an idea occurred to him. He had always been better at learning by watching other people do things rather than reading, A video tape would have been much better- but there weren't any of contests since no place other than Vanessa's domain seemed to care about them. But then again, he was technically in charge, so he could always force (in his head that was quickly replaced by 'request') his people to do a live demonstration of one so that he could learn better! And then he could stop trying to read. That was a bonus.

As he closed his book though, his thoughts immediately went to the paperwork he had to look over and he groaned. That was just out of the frying pan and into the fire. Why couldn't something interesting happen?

Someone should've told Ash Ketchum to be careful about what he wished for.

The phone in his room began ringing, and Ash thought he recognized the number as Wade's. Honestly, that guy was just short of being telemarketer kind of annoying in Ash's book, but considering that he didn't have much better to do he picked it up anyway.

"So what's it this time?" Ash asked before he noticed two people in the background.

"Oh, I see from your expression that you've probably already understood what's happening," Wade said. "Remove their gags, please."

"Ash!" Misty said from the corner.

"Great, now put them back on," Wade said. "As you can clearly see, I have two of your friends captive. Also, I have your Greninja with me as well."

"What do you want?" Ash asked.

"Oh that's obvious," Wade said. "I want your Gym Badges of course, but I can't take them as ransom. That counts as taking them by force and they have to either be won in combat or given freely, so what I want is for you to battle me. I think you're still in Linnea's old capital?"

"Yes," Ash said.

"Good then, because I'm currently only twenty miles offshore from where you are," Wade said. "Don't keep me waiting for too long." The phone disconnected, but from a small slit at the bottom a fax arrived, with a map of Galea and a red X on it that could only be Wade's location.

Ash stared at the map. The next moment, he had grabbed Pikachu and bolted down the stairs two at a time.

There was a brief but heated meeting. It was heated as Celera, Mr. Jennings, Gulliver, and his other advisers strongly recommended waiting for further info rather than charging in blindly. It was brief as Ash was in charge and so he ended the meeting after five minutes anyway, rented a motorboat, and set off for Wade with Gulliver as his first mate.

Gulliver kept asking questions along the way, but Ash was so full of adrenaline that he didn't remember what it was that he had answered. He just covered his eyes from the glaring sun and tried to calm himself down.

The island wasn't hard to find. As they approached the beach, Ash saw Wade, just standing there, calmly. There were about a dozen people behind him. He couldn't see Brock or Misty, but there was a cottage on the island.

As they got off, Ash really wanted to dive ahead and challenge Wade to a battle instantly. It was what Wade wanted of course. But then again… his friends were at stake. So a small part of him, a very tiny wise part- said that he should try something else first.

"So, Wade, you want to battle?" Ash asked.

"That is correct," Wade said.

"Where are they?" Ash asked.

"Oh, they're currently inside," Wade said. "Don't worry, I haven't touched a single hair on their heads."

"Well, if you want to fight me, why not fair and square?" Ash asked. 'Those people behind you- some of them are your Gym Trainers, right? Well then, why don't we just have a battle between you and me directly. After all, you do have a reputation for being fair, don't you?"

Wade seemed to be seriously considering it. It was something that Ash was counting on, while he had heard that Wade was about Linnea's level, his chances of winning would be reduced if he had to fight five Trainers before he got to Wade. He thought that perhaps appealing to his good side might get him to agree to a fairer fight, and it would be especially important since he didn't know Wade's special rule and what he was getting into.

"No," Wade finally said. Well, it had been a long shot anyway. "I think I will reject your, ah, kind offer. After all, it does seem a bit unfair for me to use five Trainers, but then again, this is war, not a children's game, and I consider it perfectly acceptable to use whatever advantage I might have. After all, you weren't even going to fight me in the first place."

"Let's start then," Ash said."I challenge you to a battle!"

"Can everybody wait a minute," Gulliver said. Everyone turned to look at him and he looked slightly freaked out by all the attention. "Uh, I just wanted to say, uh, sirs and ma'ams, that Lord Wade here has Sir Ash's Greninja, right?"

"Yes," Wade said. "And just who exactly are you supposed to be?"

"I'm Sir Ash's right 'and man, sir," Gulliver said. "And, since the Greninja is milord's property, than don't you gotta give it back to him if he asks?"

Ash blinked. "Right. Yeah, I would like my Greninja back."

Wade frowned. "Well, you heard the boy. Give him his Greninja back."

As Ash waited for his Pokemon, he took Gulliver aside and said, "Thanks buddy! I wouldn't have thought of that myself. I was too busy thinking… well, I wasn't thinking very much is all."

"No problem," Gulliver said, blushing slightly. "Just happy to be useful is all. I 'ope you win."

"Could I ask for Misty and Brock back too? They are my friends," Ash said.

"I don't think so," Gulliver said. "They're not yours like your Pokemon are yours, I mean you don't own them, slavery was banned several hundred years ago so I guess people don't count. But he can't kill them after you challenge him or hurt them anymore."

"Right, thanks again," Ash said. Pikachu squeaked happily at Gulliver and nuzzled his leg. It wasn't an actual Nuzzle, thankfully.

Ash got his Greninja back, but he was only allowed six Pokemon, so he took out his Grimer for the battle.

Wade had insisted on using a full set of Gym Trainers, but that proved to be of very little use as Ash swatted the majority of them down like fleas.

He preferred to use Roserade, for one thing Mega Drain meant that he could heal even if he got a bit of damage, and it was strong enough that even type advantage didn't seem to bother it much. Not to mention the sun was out and making the sea glitter, and Roserade seemed to enjoy it.

A girl named Wendy, who kind of reminded Ash of Lorelei of the Elite Four if her skin was slightly darker and she dressed up like a navy secretary. Her Lanturn managed to Paralyze his Roserade, but that was about it.

"Well, so that was all for naught, I guess," Wade said. "Now, my special rule is that I can negate the abilities of Pokemon."

"That's it?" Ash asked. "I was kind of expecting something more- I mean, I guess that Pikachu's Static and all won't work, but that rule doesn't seem to be overpowered like the others."

Wade smirked. "You haven't completely understood the scope of it, I think. No matter. Go! Gyarados!"

"Oh, a Red Gyarados," Ash said. That took him back all the way to Johto and reminded him of Lance… and Brock and Misty, both of whom had been with him! "Pikachu! Go!" A quadruple type advantage would useful here, even if Pikachu didn't have Static anymore.

"Dragon Rage!" Wade said.

"Pikachu, use Quick Attack to dodge," Ash said.

Pikachu moved with all speed despite the sand, but didn't go to strike Gyarados. "Now! Hit 'em with a Thunderbolt, Pikachu!"

Pikachu charged and let loose a bolt of lightning. It clearly did massive damage as the Gyarados shrieked in rage.

"Gyarados! Thrash!" Wade said.

But Ash wasn't going to give him an opportunity. "Thunderbolt! Finish it off now!"

Wade watched his prized Gyarados fall yet again. And it hadn't even taken down a single Pokemon yet.

"Not bad, though perhaps it was my mistake," Wade said. "I should've switched out. Shiftry, go!"

"Pikachu, nice job, come back," Ash said. "Go! Drapion! Use X-Scissor!"

It would've been a deadly attack if the Shiftry hadn't dodged it. "Use Extrasensory!" Wade said.

Ash opened his mouth to tell Drapion to dodge it before he realized that a Psychic move wasn't one that you could dodge. Thankfully the move didn't do too much damage. "Shake it off, Drapion, and get closer to Shiftry! Keep trying to land an X-Scissor!"

The sand didn't make it easy to move, especially for a Pokemon like Drapion, while a lighter one like Shiftry seemed to skip along as it pleased, using Extrasensory at a range and taking quite a toll on Drapion.

"Time for a change in tactics, Drapion, Sludge Bomb!" Ash said.

Now, the ranged attack did hit, but it didn't do enough. Another Extrasensory took care of Drapion.

"Good job," Ash said. "But here's something that won't get bogged down- Haunter, go! Use Venoshock!"

Ash was in for a surprise. Haunter, instead of floating around, promptly fell into the sand. It seemed to want to get up again, but was unable to.

"I do think it floats by the ability Levitate," Wade said. "Too bad that's negated."

"Still, use Venoshock!" Ash said.

The attack still worked, and Shiftry was taken care of before it could use a Dark attack.

"Go, Graveler!" Wade said. "Use Earthquake!"

The seismic wave seemed to be dampened only slightly by the sand, and there was no way for Ash to ask Haunter to dodge with it being unable to fly. Haunter was taken out.

"Haunter! Return!" Ash said. "Go! Roserade! Use Mega Drain!"

Roserade was Paralyzed, and unfortunately it found itself unable to move while Wade unleashed another Earthquake.

"Again! Mega Drain!" Ash said, hoping to recover from the damage that Roserade had taken.

This attack hit, and Roserade seemed markedly better than before, albeit still Paralyzed, and Graveller, instead of keeling over, seemed to have continued standing.

"That's the power of Sturdy," Wade said. "Now, Earthquake!"

The attack hit, and Ash called for another Mega Drain. Roserade was Paralyzed and unable to move, yet again, and so got hit with another Earthquake.

"Roserade! Mega Drain!" Ash said. This time the attack went through, but Roserade was still quite beat up after the whole ordeal anyway, as Graveler hardly had any life force to drain.

"Skarmory! Go!" Wade said.

Ash withdrew Roserade and switched for Arcanine. Thankfully, Arcanine was light on its feet and didn't mind the sand that much. "Arcanine! Use Flamethrower!"

"Use Aerial Ace to dodge, and then strike!" Wade said.

Ash remembered with a jolt that he had seen this strategy before… with Winona, a gym leader from Hoenn. And that attack was going to hit. Using Aerial Ace, Wade could dodge almost any attack and strike at the same time.

"Arcanine, use Flame Wheel to create a wall of fire around you!" Ash said.

"Skarmory! Pull out!" Wade said. But Skarmory was going too fast to stop and ran full force into a wall of fire.

"Arcanine! Don't let it get away! Use Fire Fang!' Ash said.

Arcanine leaped on its opponent using Fire Fang and kept the Skarmory pinned to the ground.

"Skarmory! Get out of its grip. Use Peck!" Wade said. Skarmory pecked Arcanine on his nose, and that was enough for it to break free.

"Finish it off with a Flamethrower!" Ash said. Skarmory couldn't take off fast enough and was engulfed in flames made even hotter by the scorching sun.

"Skarmory, return," Wade said. "Go! Golduck!"

"Arcanine! Come back! Go, Pikachu!" Ash said. "Use Thunderbolt!"

"Golduck! Use Surf!" Wade said.

A huge wave crashed towards Pikachu, and a huge bolt of lightning arced towards Golduck. They both collided in a wave of sparks and water so that for a few seconds, it was impossible to tell what had happened at all.

The wave receded to reveal Pikachu sitting in the sun happily with Golduck unable to get up.

"So much for that," Wade said.

"Well, you're at your last Pokemon," Ash said confidently. He still had four Pokemon standing and Wade had only one. He figured this was in the bag.

"Allow me to tell you a little story, boy," Wade said. "You see, around fifty years ago I was a Trainer not much unlike yourself, when I won the Torrential Badge. I managed to do it with a single Pokemon, one that I doted on of course, even though I expanded my collection later on. The Pokemon in question was a Vigoroth, a Pokemon that I kept from evolving initially using an Everstone."

"Are you going to keep talking or are we actually gonna fight?" Ash asked. "Or are you just stalling?"

"No, I'm just pointing out why the fact that you relegated my special rule as nothing worth worrying about was a big mistake," Wade said. "If it there was no point in having it, I wouldn't have used it. Go! Slaking!"

Unlike Marley's Slaking, it didn't look like it was suffering from anorexia or like it would fall over at the slightest breeze. It was even taller and heavier than Norman's Slaking. Also, rather than lying down, it was standing on two feet like a human.

"I thought you hadn't evolved it," Ash said.

"I didn't finish, did I?" Wade asked. "See, the problem with a Slaking is that it is so lazy that half the time, even in the midst of a battle, it does nothing. It has incredible attack power and speed, but those qualities are rather useless if it won't do anything fifty percent of the time. That's why I wanted to keep him as a Vigoroth, but then it struck me, I could just negate his ability."

"What?" Ash asked. "You mean you can…"

"Ah yes, I never mentioned saying that I could only negate your Pokemon's abilities, or that I even had too," Wade said. "It applies to mine if I wish it, as you will shortly see, and I can use it to great effect. Slaking! Return!"

Slaking crossed over the space between himself and Pikachu with a speed that Ash thought wasn't possible, and with his left arm gave a backhand that knocked Pikachu back twenty feet.

And that was it. In the short amount of time it would have taken Ash to say a complete sentence, Pikachu, who was Ash's oldest Pokemon, and who had not been seriously hurt throughout the fight, had been taken down.

"You don't seem so smug now, do you?" Wade asked. "And oh yes, the sand doesn't bother my Slaking here a bit. After all, we've been practicing on sand for quite some time."

Ash withdrew his Pikachu and scratched his head. He tried to think back the time he had faced Norman, even though that had been a long time ago. He had defeated it using his Grovyle- after Grovyle had activated its Overgrowth ability. An ability which would not work in this situation!

But, Ash did get an idea. "Go! Roserade!"

"Really? Did you forget that your Pokemon is Paralyzed?" Wade asked. "Slaking, use Return again!"

"Solar Beam!" Ash said.

Slaking was right in front of Roserade when she released a beam of greenish-white light that smacked Slaking right in his mouth.

Ash smiled. He knew that even though Slaking was very tough, there was no way that a Pokemon could take a move that powerful from his Roserade. Slaking was pushed back ten feet and flipped over.

Slaking got up and brushed the sand off of himself. The attack had done serious damage, no doubt, but Slaking was capable of taking a hit.

"Oh, so that's why you choose Roserade," Wade said. "Of course you would, with the sun shining so brightly, Solar Beam needs no time to charge. Though you got lucky that Roserade was able to do something at all."

"You would've figured it out sooner if you'd just learn to praise the sun," Ash said. "Roserade! Use Solar Beam again!"

"Hyper Beam!" Wade said.

The two beams of light collided in mid-air as they battled for dominance. The resultant flare was so bright that neither Ash nor Wade could look at it directly.

Slowly but surely, Slaking won and the Hyper Beam struck Roserade. On the plus side though, the beam seemed to have lost most of its power and Roserade got up again.

"Okay, while Slaking's still recharging, use Mega Drain!" Ash said.

The attack didn't heal Roserade much, mainly because it did very little damage.

"Hit 'em with another Solar Beam!" Ash said.

This attack did another good bout of damage, but Slaking wasn't down from the count. If anything, taking two serious hits seemed to just encourage it. And, it was finally done recharging.

"Roserade! Another Solar Beam!"

"Slaking! Another Hyper Beam!"

Roserade moved her arms, but then suddenly stopped. Paralysis had a tendency to strike at the worst possible times. Roserade fainted.

But Ash didn't spend time regretting his decisions or cursing his luck, he sent out Arcanine next immediately, trying to strike as much as possible while Slaking was still breathing heavily, a worn-out look in his eyes, and some drool dribbling down the corner of his mouth. A Hyper Beam took a lot out of a Pokemon.

"Fire Blast!" Ash said. It was a powerful move made even stronger by the searing sun, but one that didn't seem to do enough damage to Slaking to knock it out. Ash really was astounded. How could anything possibly take that many powerful hits?

"Slaking, use Return!" Wade said.

"Arcanine! Use Extreme Speed to get away!" Ash said.

Arcanine bounded away, moving out of Slaking's range.

"Slaking! Focus Punch!" Wade said. Slaking stopped moving, and instead had closed its eyes and one of its fists started to glow red.

And then, it unleashed its attack. It was almost as powerful as a Hyper Beam. The punch itself was too far away from Arcanine, but the shockwave from it still struck the Pokemon, and that seemed to be enough to badly injure it.

"Now, use Body Slam!" Wade said.

Slaking launched itself into the air.

"Arcanine! Use Fire Blast!" Ash said.

Arcanine's flames struck Slaking right in the stomach, but it endured them and landed on Arcanine, finishing the poor thing off.

"That must've broken some bones," Wade said.

Slaking got up. Compared to before, it was in worse shape, but at the same time, still looked like it could dish out several more powerful blows.

"It's all down to you buddy," Ash said. He had kept his Greninja for last not because he thought it was weak, but because it had been such a long time since he had last seen it that he was worried if they'd get along, or if Greninja would still be ready for a battle.

Ash released Greninja. Greninja's eyes widened upon seeing Ash, and for a moment, Ash was back in Kalos and reliving all his fights with Greninja, and it was then that he got his confidence back. He could do this! After all, that Slaking had taken damage and clearly wasn't invincible. And, he had a special bond with his Greninja. Yup, Greninja would just transform, and they would beat Slaking!

Except for the fact that it sort of… didn't happen.

"Slaking! Use Body Slam!" Wade ordered.

"Greninja! Dodge!"

Greninja got out of the way. Thankfully, it was faster than Slaking, though it was clear to Ash that even if Slaking landed a single blow, it would all be over.

"Use Water Shuriken!" Ash said.

Greninja obeyed, always staying out of range of Slaking, and aiming for the Slaking's face and stomach, both spots which had been attacked before and would be much more painful. The Slaking howled.

Ash was confused, however. He couldn't feel himself linking up with Greninja like he usually did. Was it possibly because of Wade's special rule? Was that transformation an ability? Or was it because he no longer had a special connection with Greninja?

"Focus Punch!" Wade said.

"Greninja! Water Shuriken!" Ash said. The Water Shuriken broke Slaking out of its focus and the earlier attack like before never came. It was then that Ash realized that Focus Punch's drawback was that it could be interrupted.

The battle basically continued with Slaking running around and Greninja chucking Water Shuriken at him while dodging. The Water Shuriken were doing damage, but for a decisive blow, Ash guessed that Greninja would have to get close to Slaking. But Greninja couldn't, not without being crushed.

But then Ash got an idea. "Greninja! Dive into the ocean!"

That was an odd command, given how Greninja was a freshwater Pokemon and saltwater didn't suit it that much, but Greninja glanced back at its Trainer.

Though Ash knew Greninja wasn't transforming, he knew he still had a bond with his Pokemon. Enough that with a simple glance, he conveyed what he wanted Greninja to do.

Greninja dived into the sea.

"Slaking can swim, you know!" Wade said. "Slaking, go into the water and grab that Greninja!" Slaking stepped into the water- exactly what Ash had been hoping for.

Greninja was, by nature, a very stealthy Pokemon. As Slaking went deeper into the water and it came up to his waist, Greninja chose that moment to strike with a very close range Water Shuriken, involving three blows to the stomach, face, and neck.

With that, Slaking, finally toppled over.

Ash smiled. No matter what happened, it seemed that Greninja still did understand Ash.

Wade seemed too shocked for words. "Slaking! Get up- you need to get up!" he said desperately, but it was in vain, and his Torrential Badge left him and floated towards Ash.

As Ash gripped the Torrential Badge, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his stomach. The next moment, he dumped his lunch onto the beach. And then his breakfast. Ash felt like he had suddenly developed a fever and began shivering even though the sun had felt uncomfortably warm just a few moments ago.

He remembered how Celera had said that maybe he just couldn't handle all the Badge's powers at once. It made him wonder if he had perhaps seriously overdosed himself.

That was his last coherent thought before he felt the world spin and he lost consciousness.

A/N: Thanks for reading, and do please review if you liked!