It's the Alola Pokémon League where the finest trainers in all of Alola gather together to decide who is the strongest of them all!

"Yo, yo, yo, oh, hungry fans! Some fresh Manalo Masaladas will sort you out!"

"Hurry, hurry! Manalo Masaladas fresh from the oven! Get 'em while they're hot!" Meowth and Wobbuffet hollered happily as they, Jessie, James, Inkay, Gorgiest, and Mime Jr. continued their Masalada sales as the Alola League finally got underway.

Now, here in Manalo Stadium, the Battle Royale Qualifying Round is about to begin and our heroes will be in the center of it all as the curtain finally unfurls!

With the heroes, Ash and Sarah walk over to the stadium's exit point where they enter the battlefield along with their friends, seeing all of the competitors who had come to take part in the qualifiers including some old friends such as Oluolu, the Master Fisherman from Lana's previous Grand Trial with the Totem Wishiwashi, Kahili, and Mina.

"Alright! Hey, look, it's Oluolu!"

"And, the Master Fisherman!"

"It's Mina! And, there's Kahili over there! Wow! Everybody we met in Alola is going to be a competitor for the Pokemon League!" Ash, Lana, and Mallow gushed in amazement.

"And, at the end of it all, one among us is going to be crowned as the very first Alola League Champion!" Lillie beamed in excitement.

"I'll make sure of that as I work my way up to the top!" Ash exclaimed, getting pumped up.

"I will, too!" Kiawe added, sharing his sentiments.

"Don't forget me!" called Acerola as she and Mimikins met up with them.

"Hey! Acerola, ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!" Sarah cried as she and the former Ulu'Ulu Trial Captain shared a hug and laughed. "Are you competing, too?"

"I came with Uncle Nanu and decided to participate when I heard you all will be competing. Don't you think it sounds like a whole lot of fun, Mimikins?" Acerola grinned as Mimikins gave a happy coo.

"Those trainers with us all gathered from the entire Alola Region!" Ash remarked.

The group then heard fangirl screams and they turned to see Ilima swarmed by his fan club as the fan girls found him and cheered for their hero, "Go, Ilima/Come on!/Show them what you're made of/You can do it/Win it now/Yay/Yay, Ilima!"

"Thank you, thank you very much," the former Melemele Trial Captain chuckled in thanks.

Tupp, who was watching nearby, fumed in annoyance as he watched, "Ick, ick! Seriously! That Ilima, I can't stand him! He may be a hot favorite with the girls but he's my favorite on the losing streak!"

"Hate whoever, Tupp. Just make sure you all stay out of Guzma's way and don't interfere," Plumeria ordered, unconcerned.

"Yes, Sis," the Team Skull grunts nodded as the Team Skull admin spoke to their leader.

"You know, Guzma? I heard that Ilima's very good since he was a former Trial Captain on Melemele Island. I'm sure you can wipe the floor with him but promise me you'll be careful."

Guzma just scoffed but turned his attention to Kukui while he made his way onto the stage to kick off the competition.

"Professor Kukui!" Ash grinned.

"Alola, fans!" Kukui greeted as the crowd cheered loudly.

"Welcome! I'm extremely grateful to see so many Pokémon trainers gathered here in our Manalo Stadium! I now declare that the Alola Pokémon League is now open and officially underway! Time for you to Shift Gear and shift into turbo so give it all you got until there's nothing left to give!"

(Theme Song: Pokémon League Arc - Moon Pride (Sailor Moon Crystal ft. Momorio Clover Z))

MOON PRIDE! Anata no chikara na naritai (I want to be your strength)

The opening begins with an overview of Sarah, her friends, Asha, and Race standing together with their Partner Pokémon in the midst of a floral field and the full moon before the camera pans forward and passes Sarah upward before the main titles appear in a flurry of light, electricity, and snow.

POKEMON SUN & MOON: Pokémon League Blues!

Nine lights (red, gold, yellow, green, blue, white, crimson, cyan, and an orange/yellow/violet mix) flew around the main titles before passing by and the final light showed Asha, Race, Ash, Kiawe, Lillie, Lana, Mallow, and Sophocles standing in a circle with their backs to each other and looking out on the horizon (with the Alola girls having a tear fall from their eyes, the boys looking determined as they glared hard, Race looks contempt yet determined as a flash of lightning streaks by him, and Asha looks out to her right worriedly and with heartache)

Namida wa hono wo tsutai (Tears roll down my face)

Hitomo wa akaku moeru (My eyes are burning red hot)

Inazuma no yo ni hageshiku (Being just as violent as lightning)

Dareka ga ai wo sakeru (Someone cries out for love)

We then quickly pan over to Sarah as she holds her hands in a prayer position with her eyes closed as if she's in some sort of slumber before she eventually wakes up and the camera pans to the moon in a blissful space of wonder.

Tatoe Don'na (No matter what) Kurayami Demo (Dark it is)

Hitori janai yo ne? (You're not alone, you know?) Watashitachi Wo (We're together)

Terasa Moonlight (Shining in moonlight) (AH)

Sarah is then shown in Ula'Ula's Malie City on a rainy day (while in a hand-painted/CGI background and holding an umbrella over her head) where she turns and suddenly sees a person that looks like Dia with a Shiny Zeraora at a tree while holding an umbrella over his head and reading a book before they took notice of her. The little princess gave a brief yet nostalgic sigh before she was joined by Blitz and Curly and then her boyfriend, sister, and friends as they got together and cheered, throwing their umbrellas up in the air.

On'nankoko ni mo yuzurenu kyoji ga aru (Girls, don't give away your self-respect)

Sore wa ouji-sama ni unmei nagazu (Don't throw away your destiny for a prince)

Mizukara Tatakau Ishi (Fight for yourself)

Soon, Sarah's friends and Asha along with their Partner Pokémon start to fight against other trainers in the Alola League's elimination and quarter rounds as they climb their way to the Top 16 spots for the official tournament. Sarah and Race stand together as their Pokémon fight before they face each other and they order Blitz and Robbie to go at each other and see who's the better trainer and Pokémon between them.

Shiny Make-Up! Kagayaku yo hoshizora wo atsumete (Keep shining as you collect the starry sky)

Tada mamorareru dake no kayowai sonzai ja nai wa (We aren't weak girls who need man's protection)

In the midst of the competition, Team Skull appears to crush the competition and win in their own right with the most prominent of its members showing themselves as follows: Tupp, Zipp, Rapp, Plumeria, and Guzma (the main head of Team Skull preparing to compete himself). Kukui, Lusamine, Wicke, Faba, Burnet, Doug, Delilah, David, and Doug are shown together as they nod to wish everybody participating in the Alola League good luck and we even get a glimpse at an unknown Pokemon appearing from an Ultra Wormhole. Sarah reappears and draws Cosmic Grace before she holds it out and its light shines for all of Alola to see.

Shiny Make-Up! Tatakau yo hoshizora wo matotte (I will fight in the starry sky)

Atarashii densetsu ga ima koko kara hajimaru (A new legend begins from here)

La la, Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon

The opening ends with quick shots of the main group of nine as they and their Pokémon reappear together and do poses, ready to face the Alola League head-on and have fun no matter who wins or loses the entire tournament.

(Pokémon League Arc Opening Ends)

"It's the Alola Pokémon League qualifier, the Battle Royale! Hello, and welcome to the first-ever Alola Pokémon League! My name's Caster and I'll call the play-by-play as we enjoy the show! There's only a short time left until things kick off with our judges being our Kahunas: Olivia, Hala, Hapu, and Nanu! Now, please turn your attention to the jumbo screen; amongst you 151 trainer and Pokémon teams as the battle royale goes, only sixteen of you will be left standing for the official tournament! So, battle hard and have fun!"

"Okay, let's all get through this together!" Ash declared as he and the others put their hands together.

"Remember, everybody, the point of this is to not only see who's the strongest among us and all of Alola but to also have fun as we make it to the Top 16. That way, no matter who wins among us, we'll split whatever prize it was," Sarah reminded.

"Let's get jinkie with it!" Lana finished.

With that, the heroes and Hau all gave a hearty cheer, "YEAH!"

Among the audience in the bleachers, Hiccup, his friends, Gobber, Stoick, their dragons, and their Partner Pokémon were watching them preparing to compete in the front row seats. As for Sarah's family (which included some of Asha and Race's Pokémon among them), they were watching in their own area specially designed to hold them all in the stands, the spot also being large enough to hold Nebby, Nebula, Reshiram, Elder and Alder, and Eternatus to allow them to watch the entire league together.

"Ugh, this sucks! Why do I have to be stuck up here when I should be having fun on the battlefield? Some guys have all the fun," grumbled Silvally as he wasn't chosen to participate in the Battle Royale Preliminaries.

"Come on, Ani; you know why Sarah had to choose him for this one. She wanted to give him a chance to experience how official Pokémon battles are done," Tou-Tou replied.

"He's right, Silvally. Besides, in the Pokémon Leagues and the journeys leading up to them, trainers are only permitted to carry six Pokémon at a time from what we've been told," Frosmoth added.

"But, did it really have to be six? Why can't they just allow us to join in, too? It's no fun when only six of us get to have fun," sighed Jolteon.

"You know why, Jolteon. Sarah will be disqualified on the spot," reminded Vaporeon.

"Right, and she and her friends have to be careful. Kukui told them that a lot of matches are decided before they even start when trainers pick the right or wrong Pokémon to battle with," Sonic concurred.

"Sounds like they had their work cut out before they even started," admitted Blaze.

"But, at least they're ready for the big cheese's run," put in Falcon.

"Good luck, you guys!"

"Go get 'em!"

"Make it a good one!" Hiccup, Astrid, and Jakanee cheered.

"Yeah!" the Poms and Buddies hollered excitedly (as they were sitting with the Vikings, Jakanee, and the dragons in their spots amongst the audience).

"Finally, it's time! Here we go!" Lusamine grinned as she, the adults, and Sarah's blood family all watched from their viewing platform.

"Amazing! This Battle Royale will be a test of limits, reaction time, and endurance amongst everybody. And, only these Top 16 trainers will be the ones who will enter the main tournament once it is all over."

"Heh, that Prof. Kukui, full of surprises and always wanting to start things off with a bang these days as the youngsters always do," Delilah and Doug breathed and chuckled in fascination.

"You're right! I can't wait to see it finally happen!" Wicke gushed, unable to contain her excitement.

"Come to think of it, I did remember Faba saying at the eleventh hour that he wanted to participate in it, too," Burnet noted, remembering Faba's last-minute decision to join in after hearing that the Masked Royal will battle whoever wins the Alola League.

"Trainers, please proceed to your starting positions and get ready to rumble!" Caster announced as the tournament was about to begin.

"Ooh! Looks like it's starting!" Rotom-Dex beamed as the heroes and their old friends, rivals, and enemies took their places and waited in silence until the Kahunas stepped forward and raised their arms to give them the all-clear.

"Pokemon? Get ready!" Hala announced as the clock for the Battle Royale preliminaries counted down from 10 seconds, allowing everybody to release their Pokémon from their Pokeballs or get them in a battle stance if they're already out.

"Okay, Pikachu!"

"Ready!" Ash and Pikachu declared as they got ready.

"I'm counting on you, Turtonator!"

"Got it, Bro! My flames are lit and I'm pumped!" Kiawe and Turtonator bantered knowingly with determined smiles.

"Let's get them, Togedemaru!"

"Ready, set? Charge it!" Sophocles and Togedemaru grinned.

"Sandy, you ready?"

"Let's ride, Dudette!" Lana and Sandy smirked.

"Here we go, Shaymin!"

"In position!" Mallow and Shaymin called, ready to give it their all.

"Snowy, best of luck!"

"You too, Mama!" Lillie and Snowy smiled at each other.

"Robbie, ready to rumble?"

"You bet!" Race and Robbie said, sharing a fist bump.

"Ready to claw your way to victory, Proud?"

"I endeavor not to miss!" Asha and her Haxorus cried out, bracing themselves for their first-ever Pokémon League.

Sarah smiled at her friends, boyfriend, and sister as she turned to Duke, "Well, Duke, this is your first-ever Pokémon League, too. Are you ready to fight in honor of your people, Queen Naganadel, and Poipole?"

"Yeah, bring it! This will be the contest of the century for Poipole Fantasy! WHOOO!" the evolved male Naganadel grinned as he gave an excited spin.

"Countdown is almost complete! Pokemon Trainers, get ready to rumble! 3, 2, 1! LET IT...…RIIIIIIIIP!" Caster finished as the clock struck zero and a plethora of fireworks went off with the dragons spitting out fire and flames into the air to celebrate the official beginning of Kukui's Alola Pokémon League.

The Battle Royale Preliminaries were finally underway as everybody scrambled to knock each other out of the running for the Top 16 with one of the first being Hiroki, one of the Pokémon School trainers Sarah battled previously, as he rushed at them.

"Ready, everybody? Here I come, one of those spots in the Top 16 will be all mine!" he bragged as he and his Mudbray ran forward to attack just as a Water Gun, Flamethrower, and Electroball volley was thrown at them and they were on the ground, defeated, "I am, I am... A... Champion...uh, or not..."

"Mudbray is unable to battle!" Hala announced as Hiroki was the first one kicked out, dropping the trainer roster to 150.

An Alolan Geodude was able to hold off a charging Tauros with his hands just as a Torkoal came sliding back and fired Flamethrower at a Spearow who dodged and used its wings to send the Fire Type attack back at the Coal Pokémon.

"Pikachu, Iron Tail!" Ash screamed as Pikachu used his trademark Steel Type move against a Sudowoodo who fell to the ground in defeat, knocked out and beaten.

"Sudowoodo is unable to battle!" Hala declared, much to Ash's delight.

"Way to go, Pikachu! Yeah!"

"Don't let your guard down, Ash! Heads up!" Kiawe warned as a Poliwrath came charging at the Kanto pair.

"Pikachu, use Electroweb!" the Kanto Trainer barked just in time, allowing Pikachu to fire Electroweb and trap Poliwrath as it was shocked into submission and was sent flying towards an unsuspecting female Araquanid before they were beaten.

"Poliwrath and Araquanid are unable to battle!" Olivia called, handing the next battle to them.

"And, that's all she wrote, folks! Poliwrath and Araquanid are both taken out of the running!" Caster announced as the crowds continued to cheer.

"Hey, thanks, Kiawe!" Ash thanked.

"Hey, right now, this is not the time to thank me," the Fire Type student replied as he and Turtonator faced off against a Mega Salamence and it fired a powerful Flamethrower attack at the Blast Turtle Pokémon. "Turtonator, Dragon Tail!"

"Right!" Turtonator called, getting himself into position as he tanked the Fire Type move and waited for the Dragon/Flying Type to come at him before he landed his Dragon Type move with a hard uppercut. "Take...THIS!"

Then, Lillie and Snowy came in as they saw Mega Salamence coming their way after it was beaten hard by Turtonator's Dragon Tail and saw their chance, "Snowy, use Powder Snow!"

"Chill out!" Snowy yelled at the Dragon Type as she froze it solid and Hapu quickly signaled its defeat.

"And, Salamence is unable to battle!"

"Great shot, Lillie!"

"I went for it!" Kiawe and Lillie congratulated each other with a smile and a thumbs-up.

"Keep it up, you guys!"

"Go for it!"

"Yeah!"

"WHOO-HOO!"

"That's right! Take 'em down!"

"Knock those amateurs' blocks off, GO!" Braxien, Altaria, Prinplup, Donphan, Frosmoth, and Lopunny cheered loudly, really getting themselves sucked into the competition as they watched Sarah, Duke, and their friends battle the other remaining trainers and Pokémon in the competition.

A loud and violent BOOM sounded off as Sandy and Shaymin landed side by side as the dust settled, showing a defeated trio comprised of a stunned and defeated Herdier, a Corsola, and a Staryu as they collapsed.

"Alright!" Lana and Mallow cheered as they stood together and did a girl power pose with their chosen partners.

"Nothing's gonna stop us now! Right, Shaymin?"

"Yeah, Mallow!"

"Nice battling there, Sandy!"

"You rock, you rule!"

"Togedemaru, use Zing Zap! Let's go!" Sophocles shouted, signaling Togedemaru to take down a Shinotic just as a Politoed came up from behind her and got ready to attack which only made him smirk cheekily. "Now, use Spiky Shield! Go!"

"Mind your eyes!" Togedemaru quipped mischievously, sharing his smirk as she used her Spiky Shield on Politoed when it grabbed her and was struck at point blank before falling in defeat while she stood strong with her new move at play. "And, that's how we do it, Roly Poly Style!"

"Awesome! Togedemaru just learned a new move, that's amazing!" Ash grinned in surprise.

"Thank Sonic, Ash! She was the one who taught Togedemaru her defense specialty," Sophocles grinned back.

"They all look great!" Burnet praised happily as she and the rest of the adults watched from above inside their viewing area.

"Their training's paying off and it's all in full view!"

"It won't be long before they blaze over to the Top 16!" Rotom-Dex and Rotoscope grinned as they joined them.

"This is astounding! I've never seen such fiery spirits coming from trainers such as them! The adults are brilliant but with the youngsters showing how hard they worked, our world couldn't be in better hands!" Doug laughed heartily.

"But, Sarah... Where's our baby?" Delilah pondered, scanning the battlefield for Sarah and Duke.

Wicke looked around and noticed Faba with Alakazam squaring off against a Boldore, "Look, there's Faba! Over there!"

"Alakazam, use Psychic!" Faba called to his partner.

"Feel the power of the Psychic Pokémon!" the Psi Pokémon declared as he used Psychic on the Rock Type and made it panic as it floated about before he threw it towards a bush wall and knocked it out.

Olivia noticed this and declared the battle over with the victory going to Alakazam and Faba (with the trainer roster quickly dropping to 79) as Caster announced, "And, the winner is Faba with a wonderful Psychic knockout by Alakazam!"

Ash and Pikachu soon found themselves going up against a powerful Gyarados as it gave off a challenging roar, "A Gyarados?"

The pair suddenly sensed that they were being attacked from behind and they turned to find a Skarmory swooping downward to pull a fast one at them as Ash shouted, "And, a Skarmory, too!"

Pikachu dodged just in time just as Skarmory used Metal Claw but ended up attacking Gyarados instead while it used Bite, allowing them to strike back as Pikachu landed on the Atrocious Pokémon's spikes, "Use Thunderbolt!"

Without a moment's hesitation, Pikachu unleashed his Electric Type attack and shocked Gyarados and Skarmory until they could no longer fight just as Caster commented in amazement, "Amazing! It looks like Ash's Pikachu duped both Skarmory and Gyarados before they pulled a fast one on them using Thunderbolt! What an ingenious strategy!"

"Way to go, buddy!" Ash praised his partner amidst the dust being kicked up.

"No problem!" Pikachu grinned before they realized they couldn't see their friends anymore.

"Hey, wait, where are Kiawe and the others?" Ash blinked in surprise, seeing no trace of his friends and classmates.

Elsewhere, amidst the dust, Turtonator and Kiawe were squaring off against an Alaolan Sandslash as it spun around and used Gyro Ball. Despite getting hit when Turtonator countered with Flamethrower, the Ice Type tanked the attack and prepared to attack again as it unsheathed its claws.

"Turtonator, use Shell Trap!" Kiawe shouted, allowing his partner to use Shell Trap to defend against the evolved Alolan Mouse Pokémon just as it struck his shell and the shell exploded, sending the Ice Type flying before they rushed off to face yet another opponent. "Come on, let's go!"

"Right behind you!"

In another part of the battlefield, a Pyukumuku and a flopping Magikarp prepared to attack as their trainers watched in silence over who was going to make the first move (despite the two of them not being powerhouse Pokémon for the most part). But, their thunder was stolen when an Electro Ball took them by surprise and knocked them out.

"No, Magikarp!"

"Ugh, that's the breaks," the trainers sighed in defeat.

"And, Pyukumuku and Magikarp are out of here but who unleashed that punishing Electro Ball?" Caster informed as the dust revealed a grinning Pikarla as she stood with her Pikachu named Bolt who had a messy hairstyle compared to the hairstyles of his friends including Presley back at Pikachu Valley.

"Boy, Bolt! You sure gave those two a pika-run for their money!" Pikarla grinned at her partner.

"And, I'm not even trying," Bolt smirked only to be beaten himself when Robbie appeared from within the dust and struck him with Wood Hammer and Race then appeared, smirking at his old friend. "…..I'm done for, ugh."

"Ooh! And, it's 'Sayonara' for Pikarla's Pikachu! That Wood Hammer from Race's Mimikyu has gotta hurt!"

"No pika-way!" Pikarla gasped.

"Sorry, Pikarla, no hard feelings," chuckled Race before he and Robbie shared a fist bump again.

Now, the trainer roster was down to the last 65 still standing with their Partner Pokémon as nearly 2/3 of the trainers competing in the Battle Royal Preliminaries had all been beaten and kicked out of the running. The competition in its early stages was already starting to get down to the wire as it was now no-holds-barred for the remaining trainers with the selections for the Top 16 getting closer and closer to being in the main tournament.

"It looks like our Battle Royale is now reaching its impending climax! So, from here on out, keep your eyes peeled because it's now an even tougher battle for survival!"

A Talonflame charged towards Gladion and his Silvally as the eldest Synthetic Pokémon and his human friend/master braced themselves for another victory that would bring them closer to the main tournament.

"Dodge it, Silvally!" Gladion shouted as they both dodged the Fire/Flying Type before he took out Silvally's Rock Type Memory Drive (the Memory Drives being perfectly legal for his partner, Tou-Tou, and Silvally to use). "Mighty Beast Silvally, accept this Rock Memory within yourself and make the earth tremble with your sharp-minded might!"

He threw the Memory Drive and Silvally accepted it into his RKS System with his head scales, eyes, and tail fin becoming dark grey, preparing to finish Talonflame off in one blow, "The stone fang that pierces through it all, drop the fiery wings onto the ground! Use Multi-Attack!"

Silvally charged forward with his Rock Type Multi-Attack which struck Talonflame hard and knocked it out, dropping the trainer roster to 59 as they rushed forward to the next trainer unfortunate enough to cross paths with them.

"Let's do it, in one shot!"

"Agreed!"

As the two of them ran, they suddenly heard Ash and Pikachu screaming as they were knocked back hard and were starting to grow exhausted which stopped them dead in their tracks.

"Man, that hurt..."

"Not fun," they groaned in pain.

"Ash?"

"Hmm?"

"Gladion?"

For a moment, Ash and Gladion did nothing but stare at each other in silence as their Pokémon did the same. Neither moved an inch as they waited for someone to make the first move until...

"Look out!"

Ash gasped at Gladion's warning as a Primeape prepared to attack Pikachu from behind and he saw a Clawitzer preparing to do the same to Silvally.

"Pikachu/Silvally, use Thunderbolt/Crush Claw!"

Acting quickly, the two Pokémon darted past each other before attacking Primeape with Crush Claw and Clawitzer with Thunderbolt and beating them on the spot, prompting their human friends to exchange knowing smiles as they turned to them.

"You better not lose this early before then," Gladion began.

"Same to you," nodded Ash as they rejoined their respective partners and parted ways while the trainer roster dwindled to 47.

As for Sarah and Duke, they found themselves facing Mad Magmar, Mr. Electric, and their Magmortor and Electivire. There wasn't time to figure out how they were able to escape from prison along with Viren (who was watching from behind them in his place in the audience (who, in turn, were shocked to find out that they joined the Pokemon League and not continuing to serve their time behind bars for their crimes as they should've)).

"Listen up, the both of you!" Viren sneered at Mr. Electric and Mad Magmar as he looked at the princess and the male Naganadel. "You make sure this royal ingrate here is taught a valuable lesson she'll never forget!"

"Not a chance! Duke, show them your speed!" Sarah scoffed, allowing her Ultra Beast to demonstrate his species' superior power and strength as he zigged and zagged around a shocked Magmortor and Electivire who had no response to his extreme speed as they couldn't keep up with him. "Now! Poison Jab plus X-Scissor! Sic 'em, boy!"

His three needles glowing purple and green, Duke unleashed his combo attack and took both of his opponents down, sending them into a nearby all and giving them a victorious raspberry.

"Huh?! THAT'S NOT RIGHT!" Viren blurted out in shock while Duke threw him a raspberry in response.

"And, that's a win! The princess' Naganadel has struck Mad Magmar and Mr. Electric out of the qualifying round!*l" Caster announced as Olivia gave Sarah and Duke the victory and the trainer roster showed that only 34 trainers were remaining in the running. "Only a few left until we have our Top 16 for the main tournament! But, out of all of them, one of them is grabbing our attention as we speak! You all know who for she is our region's royal princess herself; the one, the only, SARAAAAAAAH TOMOE!"

The crowd cheered for Sarah and Duke as they prepared to face off against Tupp, Rapp, Zipp, and their friends (who reluctantly signed up the night before under Guzma's orders) which drew the attention of the adults, Rotoscope, Rotom-Dex, and her blood family from their viewing area.

"Look, Your Majesties, there's Sarah over there! She's with Duke!" Rotom-Dex cried out in surprise as he and Rotoscope directed everybody to Sarah as she and Duke faced off against Team Skull.

"Singing Horseas, dudes and dudettes! Get a load of this, our main royal is now in a poison rodeo with Team Skull of all trainers! She's gonna be Poke-Stew if she doesn't have a trick up her sleeve!" Rotoscope informed in bewilderment.

"This is where your victory run ends, Princess!" Tupp barked at Sarah.

"GOOOOOO!" the Team Skull grunts, Rapp, and Zipp screamed as they ordered their Pokémon to take down Duke with Tupp's Salazzle joining them as well.

"Use your Dragon Pulse, Duke! Full power!" Sarah countered, allowing her Poison Pin Ultra Beast to use all three of his needles and send all of their Pokémon flying back to their trainers after knocking them out cold.

"Come on, is that all you got?" Duke grinned.

"Duke, wait! Plumeria's coming now," Sarah warned as she saw the Team Skull admin and her Salazzle emerging from the smoke as the two prepared to take them down themselves.

"So, Princess, I see that you're emerging as one of the crowd's favorites. I wouldn't get too cocky or complacent because you're rising to the top after beating these guys, ya hear?"

"Big Sis," breathed a surprised Tupp.

"Now, let's see if you're worthy enough for a spot in the Top 16 for the main tournament. Salazzle, Sludge Wave! Let's go!" Plumeria began, her partner sending waves of poisonous sludge hurtling toward the male Naganadel.

"Not gonna happen! Duke, use Smart Strike! Go!" the princess countered as Duke shot forward and blocked Salazzles Sludge Waves with Smart Strike. "Now, use Scale Shot!"

"HYAAAAAHHHH!" Duke screamed as he struck Salazzle with Scale Shot, leaving Plumeria impressed but undeterred as was her cool-headed personality.

"You're good but I know you can do better. Alright, Salazzle, Dragon Claw!" she continued, allowing Salazzle to go for a physical attack.

"Duke, look out!" Sarah shouted as Duke dodged Salazzle's Dragon Claw attack and gauged it as he avoided each strike thrown at him. "You use Dragon Claw, too!"

The two Pokémon clashed with Dragon Claw now but they were in a stalemate as Plumeria and Sarah then decided to call out a special attack, "Dragon Pulse/Thunderbolt!"

They fired at each other within point-blank range with Dragon Pulse and Thunderbolt but they were evenly matched for the most part with both Pokémon and Ultra Beast skidding back from the hits they took.

"Finally... Salazzle, Dragon Pulse again!" Plumeria smirked, deciding to end it with one final attack.

"Spin right into it with your large needle!"

"Let's...….DANCE!" Duke quipped as he charged forward and spun into the Dragon Pulse attack with his large needle facing forward, turning himself into a giant top while using his momentum to shield himself.

"Whoa!"

"Are you seeing this?!"

"No way!"

"Amazing, Duke's using his spinning momentum to cancel out Salazzle's Dragon Pulse!" Hiccup, Zenna, Ruffnut, and Fishlegs gasped in wonder.

"Odin's beard!"

"Mighty crafty of the princess!" Stoick and Gobber gawked in fascination.

"Awesome!"

"WHOO!"

"Get 'im, Duke!" Tot, Nano, and Mini cheered as they jumped up and down happily.

"Yeah! Ha-ha-ha! That's my girl!" Liberty laughed heartily.

"Slick!"

"Now, that's what I call creative!" smirked Snotlout and Astrid, impressed.

"SHE'S DOING IT!"

"They're both doing it!"

"YAY, MAMA!"

"YIPPIE!"

"Come on, kid! You and Mom got this!" Blitz, Curly, Nebby, Nebula, and Dusk encouraged the two from their family's viewing spot.

Plumeria and Salazzle gasped in shock as they realized their folly too late when they saw the Poison Pin Pokémon/Ultra Beast break through the Dragon Type attack effortlessly; with Duke now at close range thanks to his spinning top momentum, there was no time for them to launch another counterattack or move out of the way so they were left wide open for a final attack from Sarah and her Ultra Beast.

"Iron Tail!" Sarah roared.

"Eat my pin tail, Poison Breath! RAGH!" Duke bellowed, slamming his middle needle down on Salazzle's head as it turned to iron in a metallic silver-grey coloration and knocked his strongest opponent by far and Plumeria out of the competition.

"Ooh! Headshot by Sarah and her Naganadel, looks like it's game over for Plumeria and Salazzle!" Caster grinned as the crowd cheered louder and the trainer rostered dwindled to 20 trainers remaining in the running.

Plumeria was flustered but she had to smirk as she gave a mental congratulations to Salazzle for getting them far in the preliminaries and saw how far Sarah had come since they last battled. What's more, now that she and Team Skull were taken out, that left Guzma as the only remaining member amongst them who would be going on to the main tournament so she knew that she did her duty.

"Alright, you got me. I don't care. Besides, I did what I needed to do," she said as she and the grunts left, leaving Sarah and Duke to watch them go.

"Now, we're down to the most gifted trainers but remember, only sixteen will continue to the main tournament! Place your bets, everybody! Let's see who gets taken out of the running now on the home stretch!"

The pair then turned to see Guzma and a Scizor in his possession effortlessly defeating another trainer's Kommo-o and Hala calling the match to them, realizing that amongst the final sixteen trainers still standing, he'll be amongst them.

"Hmm... Kommo-o is unable to battle!" Hala announced before he noticed Guzma, glaring at Hala with a deadly sneer.

"And, that's that; Kommo-o is down and out by Guzma and his Scizor!"

"Heh! Is that all you got? Some Alola League this is turning out to be, that punk and his Kommo-o were not even a contest," he spat at the Melemele Island Kahuna.

Hala hummed worriedly at his former student and even Kukui, watching from his spot, couldn't help but be worried for his former friend as he only muttered, "Guzma..."

It all comes down to the wire as only one trainer remains to be taken out, the trainer roster now standing at 17 which Ash and Pikachu noticed as the end of the preliminaries were drawing closer.

"Almost there!"

"We got it!" they said to each other determinedly.

But, it was Kiawe and Turtonator who clinched it as they decided to end things off with a bang by using a Z-Move against the remaining trainer left battling with a Metagross, "Inferno Overdrive, MAXIMUM POWER!"

"BURN, BABY, BURN!" With a fully-charged Inferno Overdrive, Turtonator defeated Metagross and ended the preliminaries, allowing him and Kiawe to clinch their spot amongst the Top 16.

"IT'S OVER!" Caster finished as fireworks were launched and the dragons unleashed their flames in celebration while everybody cheered. "What a photo finish; Kiawe and Turtonator burned Metagross with an Inverno Overdrive, securing their spot and giving us our Top 16 trainers that will move on to the main event! Let's hear it!"

"Look! I see them; Ash, Kiawe, Mallow, Lana, Sophocles, Race, Asha, Sarah, Gladion, Lillie! They all did it!"

"Sweet! All of our cool cats slam-dunked their way into the big leagues and not one of them was kicked out!" Rotom-Dex and Rotoscope squealed excitedly as they took photos.

"Way to go!"

"Thank goodness..."

"That's our Ponchita," grinned Burnet, Wicke, and James as they, Nikki, Diane, Johnathan, Donna (former queen), and David applauded.

"Our baby girl is all grown up...!"

"I'm so proud of her!" sniffed Doug and Delilah, feeling extremely proud of their daughter as the former happily hugged and consoled his wife as she cried tears of joy for the princess.

"Pikachu, we did it!"

"We're in!" Ash and Pikachu cheered as the Kanto Mouse Pokemon took his place back on his partner's shoulders.

"Turtonator, thanks a lot."

"*lYou're a big help, Bro."

"Wow, Snowy, you battled so hard!"

"Sure did!"

"Shaymin, you were excellent!"

"Thanks, Mallow!"

"Sandy? Let's give it our all in the next round!"

"Radical!"

"We did it, Togedemaru!"

"We did! Yeah!" the rest of the gang praised as their partners smiled back proudly.

"That's that, Robbie. We're in, you were great."

"I know," smirked Race and Robbie as they shared a final fist bump.

"Nice job, Proud. Not too shabby for our first Pokémon League preliminaries," Asha told her Haxorus.

"'Aye, but the fun's getting started," grinned Haxorus as he clapped his partner's back.

"Wow... We, we did it, we're all in," Sarah chuckled, feeling elated as she and an equally ecstatic Duke saw her sister, boyfriend/betrothed, and friends with her moving on to the main tournament.

"Sarah?"

Sarah felt a hand clasp her right shoulder and she turned to find Hau grinning at her with his Alolan Raichu beside him, "Alright, Hau! Congrats, man, you're also in the Top 16!"

"And, how! I really look forward to battling you and Aqua again in the next round."

"We'll be there, count on it."

The two friends clasped hands knowingly as fireworks continued to go off in the sky, celebrating the Top 16 trainers that will compete in the main Pokémon League. Despite feeling happy and relieved to have made it to the competition, the little princess remembered that she still had to battle Guzma should the two of them finally clash once more once they get through her friends, sister, and/or betrothed. Even though she would love to win for the sake of her family and friends, she still needed to keep her promise to Kukui and Hala to find out why Guzma ran away and what made him tick that day when he abandoned them so harshly.

As dusk fell on the end of the first day of the Alola Pokémon League, the group was getting their Pokémon back from the Four Alola Nurse Joy Sisters (all of whom had been brought over from their island abodes to take part in providing healthcare and medical treatment for the hundreds of Pokémon brought to the competition).

"The Pokémon that you dropped off are all feeling as healthy as can be!" they smiled in unison.

"Thanks a lot, all of you!" Ash, Hau, Kiawe, Mallow, Lana, Lillie, and Sophocles thanked the girls.

"Thank you."

"We appreciate it, ladies."

"We're grateful for your help, Nurse Joys," Asha, Race, and Sarah added in gratitude.

"Wow! Get a load of this; all four Nurse Joy sisters! From all for islands just for the competition!"

"Talk about uncanny family relations and resemblance," Rotom-Dex and Rotoscope quipped humorously.

"I gotta admit, you did well out there, kid."

"Yeah, Plumeria's Salazzle was a tough cookie to deal with," Silvally and Tou-Tou congratulated Duke, impressed by his battling skills and how he and Sarah handled themselves against Plumeria's partner.

"Yeah, for a runt who looks like an E.T. from Outer Space, you're not too shabby," Eternatus admitted gruffly.

"It was so much fun! I've always wondered what official Pokémon League battles are like and that was wild!" Duke grinned back.

"I wonder who's going to battle who in the main tournament from tomorrow," Prinplup commented.

"And, what'll Mom and the others do if any of them ends up being paired with Guzma?" added Donphan.

"Nothing's for certain, even Calculator and I can't determine the outcome of who will be battling against who in Pokémon Leagues," Nitro explained.

"That all depends on the league officials and their choices on the battle roster in the following days," Race's Metagross confirmed as everybody then turned their attention to the TV monitor above them and Caster appeared to confirm the battle roster for the next day.

"Thank you all for waitin', folks! Hope you got your popcorn ready 'cause I'm now very happy to announce tomorrow's lineup for Round One of the main event!" he grinned as Ash and Pikachu waited in anticipation and he began to call out the roster. "Match 1: Ash vs. Faba!"

"I'm up first! YES!" the Kanto trainer screamed excitedly.

"Best of luck to you, Ash!" Lillie grinned.

"Thank you!"

In his hotel room, Faba was also intrigued as he realized that he didn't have a chance to battle Ash last time before he turned over a new leaf, "Oh, I'm up against Ash for the first match, eh? I guess I better come up with some sort of a battle plan then."

"Match 2: Ilima vs. Guzma!"

Ilima, who was with the gang in another spot of the Pokémon Center, looked on in surprise as he would be going up against Team Skull's leader.

"Match 3: Hau vs. Principal Oak!"

"Alright! My match against Principal Oak is gonna be all mine!"

"A drive in the Carbrink. Nothing too Diacie!" Hau and Principal Oak grinned, looking pleased with the results.

"Match 4: Mallow vs. Lana!"

Mallow and Lana were surprised as they balked, "You're my opponent for Match 4?!"

"Did he really say us?!"

"I'm afraid so. Good luck, girls," Tai Lung cooed softly.

"Match 5: Sophocles vs. Race!"

Race smiled softly in response to this but Sophocles was now worried, "Oh, I'm so nervous!"

As the battle roster was called, all of the trainers who were kicked out following the Battle Royale Preliminaries watched with anticipation and excitement over who would be battling who tomorrow. Even Team Rocket couldn't help but watch on from their truck, eager to see which of their former enemies would be battling whom the following day. Even Acerola and Mimikins (who might possibly be in the Top 16 themselves) couldn't help themselves as they watched from their hotel room while Nanu slept as usual.

"I can't wait! Right, Mimikins?" Acerola asked her ghostly friend.

"Fun, fun!" grinned Mimikins, sharing her human friend's sentiments as she flipped.

"Match 7: Kiawe vs. Asha!"

"...Just like Akala's mountain, I'm now completely on FIRE!" Kiawe exclaimed, ready to do battle against Sarah's sister.

"Hmph. You better have the battle fortitude to back it up, then," smirked Asha, eager to see how Kiawe would fare against her.

"And, to wrap it all up for Round 1, Match 8: Lillie vs. Gladion!"

Everybody was shocked as they realized that Lillie would have to battle Gladion early on in the Quarter Finals and not in the Semifinals or the Finals as they hoped.

"What?! My brother?" Lillie gawked, being the most shocked of all.

With Gladion, Silvally, Bones, Umbreon, Noivern, and his Lycanroc, they too heard that he and Lillie were being pitted against each other as they looked out towards the ocean, wondering how their battle would go down between them.

But, Hashimoto and Ching Wan noticed something off as Caster didn't announce an opponent for Sarah.

"Hey, Ani-Chan, why hasn't that guy called an opponent for Master?"

"Don't know, she'll probably get one in the second half. These are probably for the first eight given we have sixteen trainers here," they bantered quietly.

"Are you saying we won't see Mom battle until the day after tomorrow after the others have their matches?" Star asked after hearing the Wushu Brothers.

"Most likely."

"Yeah."

"Let's give it everything we got!" Ash declared

Everyone cheered, ready to give it their all for the upcoming matches, "YEAH!"

Our heroes and Hau have made the cut for the Top 16 and will be moving on to the actual Pokémon League! The ring will be bigger, the trainer roster will be gone, and there will be thousands upon thousands of fans from Alola and all over the world cheering them on! There's no doubt about it; the best is yet to come as the journey continues!