Greetings, Mgunnels3 here, and welcome back to A Promise Kept Ash's Johto Journey. We only have three more chapters of this Tournament, and we will be in for seven or eight chapters in the Whirl Islands before we get a very long Tournament one last time before the league. That said, let's get this going, shall we?
Chapter 61: Ash vs. Gretta: Former Champ vs. Student of the Elite Four.
"Human Speech"
"Pokemon Speech"
Heracross and Primape moves clashed as both Pokemon were returned to the ring belt. Ash remained calm as Gretta noticed this and knew that Ash would be better at competition than most trainers she had faced.
"Mega Kick now, Primape," Ash commanded her, who charged in at Heracross.
"Brick Break now," Gretta commanded her Pokemon. As the two Pokemon slammed into each other, the Brick Break overpowered Primape and sent her to the mat.
"False Swipe now," Gretta commanded her Pokemon, who slashed at Primape.
"Cross Chop before she could land that," Ash slammed her arms into Heracross before the False Swipe. "Man, that was close. I know that move can cause trouble for Primape and me, but I know that she had figured that I would counter that, and the move Counter won't work against that," Ash said with a sigh of relief.
"Not bad, Ash. Most trainers I've faced couldn't react to that quickly, and you are the one trainer here that I had my eyes on when it comes to wanting to battle," Gretta said, showing respect to Ash, who nodded.
"Thanks, Gretta, but this battle has just begun; Thrash now," Ash commanded his Pokemon.
"Furry Attack and Mega Horn," Gretta commanded her Pokemon. Primape slammed her fist right into Heracross hard as the two Pokemon clashed.
"Brick Break," Gretta commanded her Pokemon, who slammed its arm into Primape hard, sending her back.
"Counter," Ash commanded, slamming right into Heracross, sending Heracross to the mat hard.
"These Pokemon are showing how strong they are, ladies and gentlemen, not to mention what victory means to them," the announcers said. "But who will clinch the win for this match is the one who can get the upper hand, but it seems like the two aren't at the moment, but equal in strength."
Ash and Gretta were smiling and staring down, ready to continue the battle. "Cross Chop now, Primape," Ash commanded her, who charged right at Heracross.
"Brick Break," Gretta commanded her Pokemon. The two Pokemon clashed and were sent back as Primape. How she was moving caught Ash's attention, and he knew he could use that move to his advantage.
Primape's Cross Chop landed a big blow to Heracross hard as Primape was panting. She was struggling to keep up with Heracross despite winning so far.
"I can see why you are as strong as you are, Gretta, that's for sure. But I can tell that this match will be over soon," Ash said to Gretta, who nodded.
"Agreed, Ash, you are showing why you've won the Tournament before, and yes, this match is over, Mega Horn now," Gretta commanded her Pokemon.
"Aerial Ace now," Ash commanded Primape. Gretta was surprised to hear this move being used. "End this with Cross Chop," Ash commanded Primape, who charged at Heracross.
"Brick Break now," Gretta commanded her Pokemon as the two Pokemon clashed again. This time, Primape got the upper hand and landed the finishing blow to the match. Ash and Gretta were surprised by this.
"And that is the match, ladies and gentlemen. Moving on to the Tournament's semifinals is Ash Ketchem and Primape," the announcer said as Primape and Ash both sighed at this; this was a tough match. Gretta returned her Heracross and bowed to Ash and Primape.
"Well done, you two; maybe we'll face each other again one day, but until then, I will be heading home to hone my skills," Gretta said to Ash and Primape. They were taken aback that she was leaving than staying for the rest of the Tournament as Gretta left the arena, and Ash went to the locker room with Primape.
The Tournament continues as Ash sees Brawly and Norman make it to the next round. "Man, now we are down to two gym leaders from Hoenn. This is going to be fun," Ash said, figuring he would face one of the two. As the last Quarter Finals match ended, it was revealed that Ash would be up against Norman in the next round.
"Well, young man, it's time to see how much you've come taking on a powerful Normal-type like Slaking," Norman said as he walked over to Ash and Primape. Ash nodded. "Yeah, I've been watching your matches, and I can tell that it's going to take more than fighting-type moves to beat you," Ash said to Norman, who nodded. "Don't think I'm a new gym leader means I will go easy on you. Ash, like my gym challengers, I expect nothing more than greatness from you, and seeing you and Primape battle out there, I can expect that and more," Norman said before taking off.
"He hasn't changed at all, Ash," Brawly said to Ash, who turned around. "As you know, he and I used to be rivals back in our trainer days, and he just became a gym leader just a few months ago, while I've been one for almost a year," Brawly said to Ash, who was taken aback as did Primape.
"I will say this even though he's been more of a family man lately. He's no slouch when it comes to battles like Gretta. Many townsfolk consider him strong to the point that he could be an Elite Four member, but he wants to enjoy challenges and not think that," Brawly said to Ash. "Ash, you not wrong about his Slaking. Even Hariyama has trouble with him in most practice matches, so be on your guard," Brawly said before leaving as Ash sighed.
"No pressure or anything, huh? Ash?" Primape said to Ash, who nodded.
"You can say that again, Primape. We're up against a Pokemon that we've never faced before," Ash said to Primape, who nodded as he looked up at Slaking and noticed that they are the type to take hits and dish them back to their opponents when not loafing around. That last part made Ash curious about what that meant.
"Oh, come on, Ash, because it's part of his name. Think about it. He's normally loafing around every time he launched his attack in the round," Primape said to Ash, who rubbed his head at realizing this.
"Still, it looks like it's a small window for that, but we might be able to use that to our advantage," Ash said to Primape, who nodded.
"Be careful, Ash, from the looks of it. Slaking hits harder than Counter, so we need to think of a way to win this," Primape said to Ash.
With Ash moving on to the next round, Ash is up against Norman, who already shows that it will be a tough battle. What will happen next? As the P1 Grand Prix continues.
Stay Tuned.
Done and done. Sorry about the wait, everyone. Many things have happened during the writing, as most of you know about the laptop issue. The other is coming off from a seven-day work week right after my vacation. That said, this chapter is shorter than usual, mainly my fault because I wrote the beginning part at the end of the previous chapters. And I know that I didn't put Gretta at her best so far. Don't worry. Ash will be facing her again later down the road, aka the third story of this trilogy. That said, it's Ash vs. Norman in the next chapter. See you all next time.