Chapter 79: Ash vs Palmer Part 2

Ash twisted his cap around, ready for more.

"Go, Rillaboom!"

Ash's grass type roared, his energy restored from the rest Ash had given him.

"Rillaboom vs Milotic, begin!"

"Ice Beam, Milotic!"

"Dodge using Acrobatics!"

With great agility, Rillaboom rolled under the attack, avoiding all damage. Milotic tried to hit him with it a few more times, only for him to gracefully dodge it every time.

"And Ash Ketchum turned this match into a circus act! I don't know what his strategy is, but the audience is loving it!"

Palmer snarled, frustrated with the lack of results.

"Go in for Aqua Tail!"

"Wood Hammer!"

Rillaboom ducked under Milotic's tail, Swinging his hammer upwards into her chin and sending her flying, though she managed to stop herself from hitting the ground.

"Alright Rillaboom, Hit her with Drum Beating!"

"Ice Beam, Milotic!"

Milotic fired an even more powerful ice blast from her mouth, headed straight towards Rillaboom. Rillaboom was quick, summoning a shield of vines to surround himself, shielding him from taking too much damage. Milotic, on the other hand, was slapped around by the other vines he had summoned, knocking her to the ground unconscious.

"Milotic is unable to battle, Rillaboom wins!"

"Yes, way to go, Rillaboom!"

Rillaboom roared proudly, beating his chest in celebration. Palmer grunted in frustration as he returned Milotic to her Pokeball.

"You did well, Milotic. Go, Dragonite!"

Ash twitched nervously.

"Rillaboom, can you continue?"

Rillaboom flashed him a thumbs up.

"Alright then, let's win this!"

"Rillaboom vs Dragonite, begin!"

"Dragonite, use Wing Attack!"

"Dodge, then use Branch Poke!"

Dragonite swooped in trying to ram Rillaboom, only for him to leap and roll over him, jabbing his branch right down into his wing, sending him off course.

"Dragon Tail, Dragonite!"

Luckily, Dragonite corrected his course and swung his tail around, hitting Rillaboom and sending him flying. He rolled across the floor for a minute, but was able to pick himself up.

"Solar Beam, Rillaboom!"

Riillaboom closed his eyes, allowing energy to build up in his body.

"Don't let him do it! Go in for Dragon Rush!"

Dragonite growled, flying in with a burst of energy trying to hit Rillaboom before…

"Now, Rillaboom!"

With one final roar of defiance, Rillaboom let loose his powerful attack, striking Dragonite head on. Dragonite growled as he began to be pushed back.

"Don't give in, Dragonite! Give it all you've got!"

With one final roar, Dragonite put every ounce of energy into his attack, pushing through the Solar Beam to hit Rillaboom with full force, sending the drummer flying into a wall. When the dust settled, Rillaboom was uncoscious.

"Rillaboom is unable to battle! Dragonite wins!"

"'Things are getting down to the wire, folks! Now both trainers are down to their last Pokemon!"

In the stands, Ash's friends began to worry.

"Man, this isn't good. Palmer's Dragonite barely took any damage, and he wiped the floor with Rillaboom."

"Barry, Palmer's your dad. Any suggestions?"

Barry scoffed.

"Please! As if a Frontier Brain would be easy to beat! If Ash wants to beat my dad, he's going to have to work for it."

Cynthia smirked, enjoying the battle.

"If there's one thing Ash is, it's unpredictable. Something tells me Palmer's in for a surprise."

"Challenger Ash, please send out your last Pokemon!"

Ash took a deep breath, before drawing his last Pokeball.

"It's all up to you, girl. Go, Dragonite!"

"Dragonite vs Dragonite, begin!"

"Rock Tomb, Dragonite!"

"Use Dragon Dance to dodge it!"

Ash's Dragonite gracefully danced around the stones being chucked at her, determined not to let Ash down.

"Get in close and use Dragon Tail!"

"Keep her back with Twister!"

Palmer's Dragonite flapped his wings furiously, creating a small twister that sucked his opponent into it and spun her around furiously. But Dragonite refused to give in, pushing through the tornado and headed straight for him. Palmer began to sweat,and changed his strategy on the fly.

"Fight back with Dragon Claw!"

His Dragonite raised his claws to his chest, reflecting his opponent's tail and striking back with his own attack at the same time. The two fought back and forth like this for a few minutes, both beginning to tire out.

"Thunder Punch, Dragonite!"

Palmer's Dragonite nodded, dealing a quick and powerful blow to his opponent, sending her spiraling to the ground, landing very painfully.

"Dragonite!"

With a grunt, Dragonite pushed herself off the ground, still able to fight but it was clear it was taking its toll on her. Palmer grinned, it was time to end it.

"Dragonite, use Dragon Rush!"

The male Dragonite began charging up a powerful attack, ready to finish off his opponent. Ash looked at his faithful Pokemon.

"Are you ready to implement that strategy we've been working on?"

Dragonite perked up, nodding.

"Alright, on my signal."

After a minute of preparation, Palmer's Dragonite launched himself towards his opponent, speeding towards her like a rocket. Closer…closer…closer…

"Counter Shield!"

"Counter what?"

With a renewed sense of energy, Ash's Dragonite began flapping her wings, creating huge gust of wind through Hurricane to keep her opponent at a distance. To bolster their power, she used Dragon Dance, creating massive windstorms that rocked the entire battlefield. Palmer's Dragonite tried to keep going, but the wind proved too strong and he went off course entirely, smashing into a wall. Although this didn't knock him out, it did throw him off balance as he tried to recover.

"Now Dragonite, use Dragon Rush!"

Palmer's Dragonite regained his senses just in time to see his opponent speeding towards him, having just enough time to react in shock before the impact. For a moment, everything was still, before Palmer's Dragonite collapsed, completely out of energy, while Ash's Dragonite panted triumphantly over him.

"Palmer's Dragonite is unable to battle, Ash's Dragonite wins! Which means the winner is Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town!"

"Yes! Way to go, girl!"

Ash's Dragonite smiled, pulling him and Pikachu into a tight hug, making him chuckle.

"Alright, you deserve it."

"Drago!"

Despite his loss, Palmer felt invigorated, returning his Dragonite with a smile.

"Good job, Dragonite. Take a well earned rest."

After that, he walked over to Ash and shook his hand firmly.

"Congratulations, Ash. You gave me a well fought battle."

"Thanks, Palmer. I had a great time as well."

"As a result of today's battle, there has been a change in the World Coronation Series rankings! Ash Ketchum has now risen to rank 84!"

Ash pumped his fist, proud of his accomplishment.

"We're that much closer to Leon, Pikachu. Think we have what it takes?"

"Pika!"

"Yeah, I do too."

Far away in Galar, Leon smirked as the battle finished.

"Not bad, kid. I look forward to battling you again."

In the stands, Ash's friends were cheering excitedly, except for Barry.

"I can't believe it. My dad lost?"

Cynthia just chuckled.

"What did I tell you? Ash is full of surprises."

"Did you see that Counter Shield tactic? That was amazing!"

"I know! Who would've thought that you could use Pokemon moves like that?"

"It doesn't surprise me. Ash is always thinking outside the box like that."

"I'm just glad he's still using it. It'd be a shame if he forgot everything I taught him."

This made everyone beside Barry and Cynthia stare at Dawn in shock.

"You taught him that?"

Dawn chuckled, and rubbed her head.

"Well, sort of. He kind of got the idea from watching one of my contests. That's got to count for something, right?"

Everyone else just sighed.

The next day, it was time for the four research assistants to return to Vermillion City. Cynthia, Dawn, and Barry were there to see them off.

"Good luck in the World Coronation Series, Ash. Make sure to get to the Master class, because I'm dying to have a battle with you."

"You bet, Cynthia!"

Dawn stepped forward next, the two of them doing their signature high five.

"Good luck, Ash. We're all rooting for you back home."

"Thanks, Dawn!"

"Ash, you'd better win, or I'm going to fine you 2 million bucks!"

Ash just laughed.

"Sure, Barry."

With that, the quartet boarded the ferry for home, ready for whatever adventure awaited them next.