Chapter 138: A Rival's Return

Mustard sat outside his dojo, meditating in the morning sun with his Urshifu. However, he was stirred from his thoughts when he heard some approach. Cracking an eye open, he saw a Lilac haired teenage approach.

"Is this the Master Dojo?"

"I certainly hope so, otherwise someone is honing in on my turf," Mustard chuckled. "What can I do for you, young lad?"

The teenager bowed before making his request.

"I'd be honored if you'd accept me as your student. I have much to learn, and I've heard great things about your dojo."

"I'm flattered, but I'm afraid we're all booked up at the moment. You can always check back later, though."

The teen grimaced, but continued.

"Then would you please do me the honor of a battle?"

Mustard thought for a minute, then smiled.

"Tell you what. I'll agree to a battle, if you can defeat my strongest student."

"Agreed."

Mustard turned to fetch them, but turned around at the last minute.

"Pardon me, but I forgot to ask for your name."

"Paul. Paul Veilstone."

Meanwhile, Ash was inside the dojo, watching as his Lucario and Sirfetch'd sparred. Lucario launched Aura Sphere after Aura Sphere, all of which Sirfetch'd blocked with his leek sword. Once the attacks had ceased, Sirfetch'd charged forward to strike Lucario with a Brutal swing, only to be blocked by Bone Rush.

"Alright, way to go guys!"

"At this rate, you'll be more than ready to take on Leon!" Goh said, making Ash chuckle.

"I don't know about that, but we'll certainly try our best, right guys?"

"Cario!"

"Fetch'd!"

Before their sparring match could go on, Mustard approached him.

"Excuse me, Ash, but I have someone looking for a battle with my strongest student."

"Cool! Where is he?"

"I'm looking at him."

"You mean me?"

Mustard chuckled.

"Your humility is inspiring, my boy, now come on."

Confused but curious, Ash followed Mustard outside, Goh right on their heels.

When Ash saw who it was that wanted to battle him, his eyes lit up.

"No way, Paul?!"

Paul couldn't help but chuckle.

"I should've known it was you."

"So this is Paul?" Goh asked. "He doesn't seem anywhere near as bad as you made him out to be."

A quick glare from the boy in question was enough to send Goh cowering behind Ash, making him chuckle.

"So, are you still up for that battle?"

Paul smirked.

"Bring it."

A few minutes later, Paul was on the battle court, waiting impatiently for Ash to appear. Finally, Ash came running down the pathway, much to Paul's frustration.

"About time you showed up."

"Sorry," Ash said sheepishly. "I had to make a quick call back home. You ready?"

Paul nodded.

"Best of three, first Pokemon to knock out two of the other's wins."

"Agreed!"

Mustard, who'd agreed to act as referee, waved the green flag to begin.

"Go, Dragonite!"

"Drapion, standby for battle!"

"Dragonite, use Hurricane!"

"Dig in with Poison Jab!"

Dragonite began flapping her wings, creating massive gusts of wind that nearly forced Drapion into the air, but he managed to remain grounded by digging his claws into the hard ground.

"Dragon Rush, Dragonite!"

"Throat Chop!"

Dragonite dash forward, surrounding herself in Draconic energy as she rammed into Drapion at high speed. Drapion reeled in pain, but not before dealing a powerful blow right back, sending her flying away.

"Sludge Bomb!"

"Dragon Tail!"

Drapion spat out several large globs of poison, which Dragonite swatted away with her tail. But despite how much she was able to keep up with him, Ash could tell Drapion's onslaught was starting to wear on her.

"Dragon Tail, up close!"

"Crunch!"

Dragonite charged once again, hitting Drapion hard right across the face with her tail. But her success was short-lived, as Drapion immediately clamped onto it, making her cry out in pain.

"Harder!"

"Throw him off!"

Despite the pain she was in, Dragonite managed to throw Drapion off her, sending him crashing to the ground hard.

"Alright Dragonite, charge up a Draco Meteor!"

"Drapion, Venoshock, at my command!"

Both Pokemon began charging up their final attacks, the orbs growing bigger and bigger as their trainers waited.

"Now!"

At their respective commands, Drapion and Dragonite launched the full power of their attacks, filling the arena with smoke as they hit their targets. When the dust had settled, Drapion was on the ground out cold while Dragonite stood over him, tired but triumphant.

"Drapion is unable to battle, Dragonite wins! Round 1 goes to Ash!"

"Yes! Way to go, Dragonite!"

Despite how tired she was, Dragonite smiled, and gave Ash a thumbs up before being returned. Paul returned Drapion to his Pokeball as well, pausing for a moment before nodding in approval.

"Take a rest."

"Ready for round 2, Paul?"

"Bring it."

"Urshifu, I choose you!"

"Ursaluna, go!"

Ash was surprised when he saw Paul's next choice.

"Wow, Ursaring evolved? I thought Ursaluna were extinct?"

Paul chuckled.

"You're not the only one with some tricks up your sleeve. Scared?"

"You wish! Start off with Close Combat, Urshifu!"

"Bulldoze!"

Ursaluna slammed his paws into the ground, making Urshifu's path forward difficult, but still he persisted, rushing right up to Ursaluna and pummeling him with his fists, pushing the Hisuian variant back as it bellowed furiously.

"Headlong Rush!"

"Stop it with Superpower!"

Ursaluna snorted, before charging forward, pushing Urshifu a great deal across the battlefield before Urshifu managed to dig in his heels and stop him.

"Now use Aqua Jet!"

Still clutching onto his opponent, Urshifu shot forward in a jet of water, slamming his opponent into a wall hard. But in spite of this, Ursaluna did not seem fazed.

"Play Rough, Ursaluna!"

Before Urshifu could get off, Ursaluna grabbed him and began biting and scratching at him, dealing great pain to him due to his type disadvantage.

"Don't give up, Urshifu! Hit him with Counter!"

Urshifu roared fiercely and began fighting back, trading blow for blow with Ursaluna until they were forced apart, both of them worn down from their intense battle.

"Alright Urshifu, Surging Strikes!"

"Ursaluna, Thunder Punch!"

The two brawlers charged once more, fist and fist going at it as the energy built up between them. At last, a small explosion rocked the battlefield. Once the dust had settled, both Pokemon were unconscious.

"Both Pokemon are unable to battle! Round 2 ends in a draw!"

"Incredible," Goh said in awe. "Ushifu is one of Ash's strongest Pokemon. To think Ursaluna could even battle him to a draw…Paul really is something else…"

But Ash wasn't upset. In fact, he was even more pumped up than ever before."

"Come on back, Urshifu! You did great, get some rest."

"Ursaluna, return! You gave it your all, we'll take it from here."

Paul turned to Ash, a fire lit in his eyes.

"You haven't slacked off on your training, I see. Good."

"We're just getting fired up! You'll have to do better than that if you want to win!"

"Oh, we will. Go, Electivire!"

"Infernape, I choose you!"

Paul's eyes went wide with shock when he saw his old Pokemon facing him once more, but his mouth soon turned into a smirk.

"Well then, show me how far you've come!"

"Infernape!"

"Electivire, use Thunderbolt!"

"Infernape, use Flame Wheel!"

Electivire fired off a powerful Thunderbolt, hoping to stop Infernape altogether, but this barely slowed him down as he spun towards Electivire, striking the electric type hard.

"Charge Beam!"

"More Power, Infernape!"

Infernape's flames burned hotter, dealing as much damage as he could to Electivire while the Electric type charged up his attack. Finally, once he had enough energy gathered he fired it, blasting Infernape clear to the other side of the battlefield.

"Now use Stomping Tantrum!"

While Infernape picked himself up off the ground, he suddenly felt the ground begin to bounce and shake, Electivire stomping the ground hard to unbalance him. The more he tried to get his footing, the more he failed to.

"Don't give up, Infernape!"

"Keep at it, Electivire!"

But soon Ash noticed Infernape's eyes begin to glow red, signaling his Blaze ability beginning to kick in.

"Alright Infernape, time to kick things up a notch! Use Dig!"

Infernape, now fueled by rage, dug into the ground, disappearing from view. Electivitre scanned the area, trying to find his hidden enemy.

"Flamethrower!"

"Electivire, jump!"

Paul's warning came too late, as Infernape burst out of the ground underneath his opponent, firing off a huge Flamethrower that sent him sailing into the air.

"Finish him off with Fire Blast, Infernape!"

As Electivire plummeted towards the Earth, Infernape threw in one final attack, making sure he hit the ground with enough force to knock him out cold.

"Electivire is unable to battle, Infernape wins! Round 3 and the match go to Ash Ketchum!"

"Yes! Way to go, Infernape!"

"Infernape!"

Despite his loss, Paul couldn't help but feel proud, returning Electivire to his Pokeball with a smile.

"You did well, get some rest."

Afterwards, he walked up to his opponent and bowed, first to Ash, and then to Infernape, both of whom returned it. Mustard smiled, and clapped for a well fought battle, the rest of the students following suit.

"Yes, very well done, both of you! Come, let us reward your efforts with dinner."

An hour later, Paul and Ash were sitting in the dining hall, catching up.

"Hey Paul, why didn't you compete in the World Coronation Series? I could see you making The Masters Eight easily."

Paul shrugged nonchelantly.

"Too much pageantry and flash for my liking."

"Then what have you been up to?"

Paul dug through his bag before producing a plaque, which to Ash's astonishment contained all of the Kanto Battle Frontier symbols.

"You beat Brandon?"

"It took me a few tries, but yes. Now I'm training to be Pyramid King when he retires, which is why I was hoping to train here."

Ash grinned.

"Well, we'll have to have a rematch when you take over!"

"Any time, Ketchum!"

At sunset, Paul was ready to depart. Ash and Infernape were there to see him off.

"Good luck with your training, Paul!"

"You too, Ash. You'd better win the whole tournament, though."

"You can count on it!"

Paul then turned to Infernape, and offered him a handshake, which the Fire Type accepted.

"Keep up the good work."

"Ape!"

With that, Paul boarded the ferry and set off back for the mainland, Ash watching him leave with a smile.

"You know what, buddy? Seeing Paul today makes me want to win even more!"

"Pika Pika!"

"That's the spirit! Now come on, let's get a little bit more sparring in before the sun goes down!"

With that, Ash and his Pokemon turned around and headed back to the dojo, their spirits lifted even higher and their goal seeming even closer in reach.