Waking Up to an Adventure - Silver Conference Chapter 21: Wired for Battle!, a pokémon fanfic

Chapter 21

Leaving the city of MarvelWood behind, the pair of Pallet Town Trainers traveled through a beautiful meadow. The weather was perfect for traveling, but they only got to explore this for a little bit before the forest overtook them on their path to Azalea Town once again.

The sun peeked through the canopy of trees from above, sending warm beams of gold scattered throughout that was a nice surprise with every other step. Between that and the shadow provided from the trees, it was the perfect temperature. However, the silence in the woods was deafening. They had failed to notice it, as after a while the noises of the forest seemed to become background noise that was filed away as irrelevant, but it wasn't until Ash heard a noise that this became apparent.

"What was that?" Ash asked, stopping in place and looking around. He suddenly had a tense feeling of being watched.

"Yeah, I heard that, too," Gary stated. It had sounded like a rustling in the sea of greenery above.

"Chikah..." Sitting on top of his hat, Ash could feel his Chikorita tense up; it too sensed the newcomer. Then, the rustling of leaves could be heard once again, and they saw a red blur jumping form tree to tree ahead of them, and coming straight toward them.

"Check it out, Chikorita!" Ash said, and immediately, the Grass-type uttered a confident cry and jumped from its Trainer's head. As it landed on the ground, the red blur shot down from the trees, moving so quickly at them that they all flinched.

"Scizor!" the newcomer muttered quietly but intimidatingly.

Ash and Gary closed their eyes, preparing for impact, but when none came, they slowly peeled their eyelids open. Chikorita was hunched up in an offensive position, its red eyes flaring with anger. Standing over it was a red Pokémon whose exoskeleton shined like polished metal. It too was in a battle position, and one of its pincers was raised, ready to strike at any moment. Currently, the two were locked in a staredown, reading to see who would be the first to make a move. "Scizor..."

"Chikaaa...!"

"Scizor..." Ruby and golden eyes looked unblinking at each other, and the tension was visible and could be cut with a knife; despite the Pokémon being much bigger than it was, Chikorita was not backing down.

"Okay Chikorita, use your-"

"Ash, wait!" Gary interrupted, and his traveling companion froze in place and glanced over at his rival. "Look: those claws aren't kidding. That thing means business. If you call the wrong move, it will be your last."

"What do you think I should do?" Ash asked as a bead of sweat escaped his hairline.

"I don't know," Gary replied. "Does this thing even have a Trainer?"

"I am its Trainer," a raspy voice spoke up. Moving out from behind a tree, an older man with graying brown hair and wearing old-style robes stepped out. When he made his appearance, the red Pokémon disappeared with blinding speed and reappeared, kneeling beside its Trainer.

"Scizor. Sci-zor..."

Now that the new Pokémon had moved from its position, the two humans lowered their guard slightly, and as did Chikorita. "Chikorita, you did great," Ash complimented, kneeling down beside his Pokémon and petting it. The Leaf Pokémon accepted the affection happily and leaned into its Trainer's hand.

"I'm sorry," the man apologized with a bow. "We were just doing a little secret training. I apologize for causing you anxiety. I am the Pokémon Trainer Muramasa. Allow me to introduce my Scizor whom I call Masamune."

"Hey!" Ash grinned, looking in admiration at the kneeling Pokémon as he fished out his Pokédex from his pocket.

"Scizor, the Scissor Pokémon. The evolved form of Scyther. Its incredible attack speed and its large scissor-like claws make it a formidable opponent."

"Kinda looks like a bigger, redder Scyther!"

"That's typically what evolution means, Ashy," Gary frowned, and ignoring the nasty look that Ash gave him, he smiled as he looked at the Pokémon up and down. "It certainly is cool-looking!"

"I'm impressed," Muramasa told Ash with a smile underneath his thin mustache. "With both you and your Chikorita. You're just the sort of Trainer I've been looking for, young man."

"Me?" Ash asked in disbelief, pointing at himself with his neck lowered slightly.

"Correct," he replied with a nod. "If I could ask a request of you, would you two like to accompany me to my training school here in the forest? I promise, it would not be a wasted trip." The two boys exchanged glances of confusion, locking eyes with cocked brow mirroring the other. But, they agreed, mostly out of curiosity, and followed the man to the destination.

o 0 o

The school that was hidden in the middle of the woods reminded Ash of the Fuchsia City Gym in the Kanto region. Like the ninja training Pokémon Gym, Muramasa's school was surrounded by trees, and entirely built in old-fashion Japanese architecture. Composed of a main tower that reached as tall as the oak trees that enclosed it from view, it also had a gate that bordered the area inside.

As Muramasa led the pair of Pallet Town Trainers to the front entrance, a smile spread across their face as they took in the view. "Welcome. This is my elite Pokémon training center." As far as the eye could see, there were many Pokémon and Trainers training on the courtyard. On a battlefield, a Nidoking and a Scyther were battling in a practice battle. The Poison-type Pokémon snarled as Scyther struck forward with a Slash attack, and it caught the blade in its sturdy grip. A Trainer and his Hitmonlee were both giving it their all against a pair of sandbags, and a young girl and her Machoke broke planks of wood with a striking Karate Chop.

They walked past a Hitmonchan and its Trainer sparring at the air, and Ash's eyes fell upon a Golem lifting weights in sync with its partner. "Young Trainers from all over the world come here to strengthen themselves and their Pokémon," Muramasa explained as he observed a Trainer and his Primeape jump-rope. "All I ask is that they work diligently to accomplish their dreams of being victorious in their Pokémon battles."

"Teacher, good morning," the students all greeted. They all took a break from their training to face him and bow, and even their Pokémon did the same.

"Thank you," he said with a wave of dismissal from his hand. "Continue your training, please."

"Yes, teacher!"

They made their way past the courtyard to the main tower of the school, and Muramasa gestured for them to sit down. "I must check up on the other students and make sure there are no other issues," he explained to them. "I have called for Leonard to take good care of you. He should be here shortly."

Ash took off his hat and crumpled it in his lap as he and Gary sat side by side on a pillow on the floor that looked out over the courtyard. They didn't have to wait long before a young boy with cropped dark hair approached and knelt down before placing his forehead on the ground in front of the pair. "Good morning! Welcome to our school!"

"Oh, thank you for inviting us," Gary replied, and he and Ash awkwardly bowed back. Chikorita did the same as well. "Your teacher must be a great Pokémon Trainer if so many students respect him as much as they do."

"You wouldn't believe how many Pokémon battles Mr. Muramasa won back in his day," Leonard said, turning back and looking at the older man in admiration as he observed a Machoke and Golem wrestling before giving the Trainers some pointers. "He was one of the top Trainers ever! But after winning so much, he decided to pass on what he knew to younger Trainers, so that they could become Pokémon Masters. But he's not the only impressive one. His Scizor Masamune is an awesome Pokémon. It moves so fast they used to call it the Crimson Streak!"

"The Crimson Streak, huh?" Ash repeated with a grin. "That's pretty cool!"

"It used to be," another voice spoke up abruptly. Off to the side was a young boy about Ash's age, and he had styled purple hair, and was leaning against a post clutching what looked to be a laptop under his arm.

"Don't say that," Leonard pleaded, even going as far as to falling on his knees for the other boy.

"That's Shingo, my top student," Muramasa introduced, joining the group once again after seeing that the other boy had made an appearance. "Perhaps you could... interest him in a Pokémon battle."

"Pokémon battle?" Ash parroted, standing up from his pillow and giving the teacher a smile. "That's fine with me!" He turned back to Shingo, who wore his own smirk. "I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town. Where are you from?"

"Let's see..." Shingo ignored Ash's question and crossed his legs where he stood. He unfolded his laptop and began to type on the keyboard. "Ketchum from Pallet Town... Ash..."

"Hey, am I on your laptop?" Ash asked, crawling over to the boy and peering over his shoulder. An image of Ash's Trainer profile popped up, which also included his current team of Pokémon. "There, that's me!"

"What is that?" Gary questioned, also moving closer to peer over the boy's shoulder.

"This is my Trainer file," Shingo explained. "It has statistics and other pertinent information on noteworthy Trainers going back five years. This has everything I need to know about their Pokémon and their strategies." His fingers flew across the keys expertly, and he barely had to look down at the letters. "According to my data, you're a type-C Trainer. You use fairly standard attacks and rely on your Pokémon's power to win for you."

"Couldn't have said it better myself," Gary sneered, and Ash returned it with a frown.

"You're prone to making rash decisions and relying on your hunches." He seemed to go back in his files, bringing up his old team that he used to battle in the Pokémon League competition. "I remember now; you lost at the Indigo Plateau because you hadn't trained your Pokémon well enough. Interesting match."

"Yeah, kinda," Ash replied nervously. "I guess you must have been at the stadium."

"Nah, I just hooked up my modem and download the files." Shingo smiled at Ash. "You know, you were pretty lucky to make the top 4 at your first big competition."

"Well, I'm way better now than I was then," Ash scoffed, standing up and heading toward the battlefield that was in the front courtyard. "C'mon, let's battle and I'll show 'ya!"

"Sorry, my data says you'll lose." Ash stumbled in the air, almost making his Chikorita fall of his head.

"I don't care what your data says! I want a battle!"

"It may be hard to believe, Ash, but Shingo's probably right," Leonard interrupted. "The stuff on his computer said he'd beat all of us, and he did."

"Okay, but so what?"

"There's no reason to have Pokémon battles anymore," Shingo said, standing up from his sitting position. "With the kind of information I have at my fingertips, I know a lot more about Trainers and their Pokémon then I could ever learn by battling them." He then looked up at his teacher with a flash of annoyance in his eye. "If you want me to battle so much, teacher, find me an opponent who can teach me something I don't already know." Shingo went to go walk off, but then Gary spoke up, who had been silent this entire time.

"If you were watching the Indigo Pokémon League, then you know that I was the winner of that tournament." Shingo's eyes opened and he stopped in place and studied Gary. The Pallet Town Trainer placed a hand on his chest and did a sort of bow. "Gary Oak from Pallet Town, at your service. Go ahead, look it up in your little computer."

"Very well," Shingo agreed, and once again sat down and began to type at the keyboard. Soon enough, his eyes widened slightly. "I see, you're not bluffing. A B-type Trainer, but a prodigy from the beginning. You have the potential to even become an A-type Trainer if your career goes further." The students all murmured quietly amongst themselves, looking at Gary in a whole new light. Meanwhile, Ash seemed to be steaming in jealousy. "According to my data, it says I would lose if I battled you."

"I never said I wanted to battle you." The sneer surprised Shingo, and his head whipped up to see Gary's nose in the air. "Why would the great Gary Oak want to battle a sniveling geek who is too scared to look up from his computer? If I'm going to battle someone, I'm going to battle someone who is going to give me a challenge."

"What did you say?!" Shingo exclaimed, standing up and slamming his folded computer shut.

"You said it yourself: you would lose if you battled me, so don't put too much energy into it," Gary said with a wave of dismissal. "Who I really want to battle... is him." The auburn-haired Trainer extended a hand forward and pointed his finger at Muramasa and Masamune. Everyone slowly turned to see the older man's reaction, but he mostly had none other than a slight raise of his eyebrow.

"It's clear that you don't know how powerful our teacher is," Shingo told him. "He was once a member of the Elite Four, and even as powerful as you are, my data says you will lose."

"Data schmata. I want a battle that I can learn something from. Otherwise, it is a waste of time." Shingo stared with a mixture of confusion and awe spiraling across his face, and his mouth gaped opened and closed like a Goldeen. "Well, what do you say, sir? Would you like to show everyone how two elite Trainers battle?"

Muramasa looked Gary in the eyes, and his wrinkled face was a mask of stone, but finally, he looked over to his Scizor. "Think you got what it takes?"

"Sci-zor," his Pokémon nodded, and stood from its kneeling position.

"Then, Gary, you have a battle."

It seemed like everyone was looking forward to this battle. The crowd that gathered around the battlefield by the front gates of the school seemed to be composed of all the students at the school. An excited murmur waved through as Gary and Muramasa took their respective sides of the battlefield. Ash stood off to the side and stared, but his eyebrows were lowered over his eyes. Beside him, Leonard whispered, "It isn't often that Mr. Muramasa battles. In fact, only a handful of us have ever seen him and Masamune battle seriously."

Ash's head turned to Leonard, but he looked past the student to look at another: Shingo. He was staring with his laptop in hand, and he reached up and flipped the camera around so it would be facing the battlefield. He was looking to record the battle to gather data. His eyes then looked out at Gary. Gary had acted very strangely towards Shingo. He almost acted like he had when he began his journey: smug and overconfident. Nothing of what Gary said was false in any way, just harsh. As much as Ash was jealous that Gary was the one who was battling Muramasa, this battle would be interesting.

"Let's use just one Pokémon each," Muramasa suggested. "I will, of course, be using my Masamune."

"Scizor," the Scissors Pokémon stated, and jumped forward onto the arena.

"I figured as much," Gary smirked. "Then against your Bug Pokémon, I'll use my own." Taking out his choice of Pokémon, he tossed it into the air in front of him. "Pinsir, I choose you!" The light that poured from his Poké Ball came down and came together to form the brown Bug-type Pokémon with a pair of long pincers rising from its head, which it clashed together and grunted.

"A good choice. Your Pinsir looks strong," the older Trainer complimented. "But we will end this in one strike. Masamune, use your Slash attack!"

"Pinsir, Harden!" The words barely managed to get past Gary's lips when the Scizor dashed across the battlefield and raised its claw. Luckily, Pinsir seemed to be on the same wavelength as its Trainer, and it crossed its arms in front of its body to protect its face. Its whole body glistened momentarily as its exoskeleton hardened, and a loud hollow sounded as Masamune struck Pinsir from right to left diagonally. Pinsir winced at the strike, but managed to keep its form. "Grab it with ViceGrip!"

"Dodge, Masamune!" As fast as it could, Pinsir lowered its defense and went for the offense, lowering its head and opening its pincers. But the Bug and Steel Pokémon was much more faster, and it disappeared blindingly fast while Pinsir's claws closed around air.

"It's fast!" Ash exclaimed, his eyes widening.

"But it can be faster," Leonard corrected at his right.

"Masamune, use your Steel Wing!"

"Scizor!" the red Pokémon muttered, hunching its back slightly. Its wings slid out from the appendages sticking out of its back, and they began to glow white. Before they knew it, Masamune was streaking across the battlefield. Pinsir barely had enough time to raise its arms to block its face again before it was struck and stumbling backwards. In a matter of seconds, Masamune flew past Pinsir again and struck it with its wings. And it was moving so fast that it only looked like a red blur.

"The Crimson Streak!" Ash gasped.

"This battle's over," Shingo murmured, just loud enough for Ash to hear, and the Pallet Town Trainer's dark eyes flickered over to the young Trainer, who flipped the camera on his laptop.

"Pinsir, concentrate on the way it attacks. We can't win if all we do is defend!" The order grabbed Shingo's attention, and he stopped after closing his laptop. Pinsir stood in the battlefield and closed its eyes, only recoiling when Masamune would slam into it. A few heavy seconds of silence passed, and finally, Pinsir's eyes shot open, and it turned its body in the direction opposite of where it got hit last, and in one fell swoop, it closed its pincers around Scizor's body.

"Zor?!" the Scissors Pokémon gasped, and the students watching followed suit. The Bug and Steel Pokémon struggled to get out of its opponent's grip, but Pinsir's claws were snatched tightly around its waist, so it only struggled in vain.

"Use Seismic Toss!" Gary ordered. Now that Scizor was standing still, Pinsir jumped into the air and whipped its head back, sending Scizor into the ground.

Now Shingo was staring with interest. It was obvious the boy wasn't expecting Gary to land a hit on his teacher's Pokémon. Muramasa, however, looked pleasantly surprised, and the hint of a smile was hidden beneath his mustache. "That was quite an impressive move," he said, and Shingo's eyes darted over to the older man. "But not enough. Masamune, use your False Swipe!"

In the blink of an eye, Scizor was back on its feet, and it leapt high into the air. Gary's head craned way up as the Bug and Steel Pokémon arched and began to descend toward his Pokémon. Pinsir's beady eyes tried following as well, but it was too late, and Scizor raised both of its claws into the air before bringing them down onto Pinsir's back. They could hear the air being forced out of the Stag Beetle Pokémon before it collapsed on the ground.

"Pinsir!" Gary called out with worry. Though the attack had caused quite a bit of damage, the Bug-type Pokémon slowly peeled itself off the ground and stood up, albeit shakily. The Pallet Town champion studied the battlefield for a moment before holding out Pinsir's Poké Ball. "Pinsir, return!" Pinsir was breathing heavily, and didn't put up a fight to a rest, and disappeared in the red beam that retreated inside the Poké Ball. "I give up. The way Pinsir was, it couldn't have defeated your Scizor."

"Knowing when to give up shows how smart of a Trainer you are, young man," Muramasa complimented, and both him and his Pokémon bowed to Gary. "I learned a lot from our battle."

"As did I," Gary replied with a bow back.

"You learned a lot?" Shingo snapped, his head whipping in the direction of his teacher. "You've got to be kidding, right? You're an elite Trainer – how could you have learned a lot from that?"

"All battles have the ability to teach if you allow them to," Masamune told him. "For example, today I learned that Pinsir is quite defensive, and can be quite in tune with its surroundings if given the proper training."

"Although I only recently caught my Pinsir, so I haven't trained it as well as my other Pokémon," Gary added. "If I had used one of my other Pokémon, the battle wouldn't have ended so quickly."

"Is that so?" Shingo asked rhetorically with a raised eyebrow. Then, with the hand that wasn't holding his laptop, he took out a Poké Ball and held it up. "Fine. Then I will battle you."

"It won't be me that you'll be battling," Gary told him matter-of-factually, and then pointed out into the crowd. "It's him." Shingo's eyes followed Gary's finger and fell on Ash. When his gaze settled on the black-haired boy, he gave a look of confusion.

"But my data says he will lose."

"I wouldn't be as far as I am today without Ash," Gary told him. "I was like you when I started my journey – I thought my Pokémon were too good for weaklings. But then I battled him, and he opened my eyes. He showed me that Pokémon can be friends as well as partners. I think you could learn the same."

"Gary..." Ash murmured, unable to believe his ears.

Finally, Shingo smiled and closed his eyes, almost as if he already knew the outcome. "All right. I'll do it." Ash smiled greatly, and even Muramasa gave a smile at seeing his pupil agree to battle.

Both Trainers took their side of the battlefield, and Muramasa stood in the middle of it, opting to act as the referee. "Each Trainer will use only one Pokémon!"

With his laptop tucked under his arm, Shingo smirked and swung his arm wielding his Poké Ball. "Go!" The ball bounced off the ground and opened up, releasing a white light that formed into a familiar shape.

"Scizor!" it cried.

"Shingo's got a Scizor! Just like his teacher," Ash stated, his hand trembling with excitement.

"Blade is my most powerful Pokémon," Shingo explained. "It's faster, stronger, sharper, and lasts longer than the teacher's Scizor; and it's never been defeated in battle." He then crossed his legs as he sat and opened up his laptop, much to Ash's surprise. "Get ready, Blade."

"Scizor!" his Pokémon replied, and both its eyes and the lens from the camera flashed as Shingo faced the camera at the battlefield.

Ignoring this, Ash plucked a Poké Ball from his belt and pressed the button after tossing it into the air. The ball expanded, and the Pokémon Trainer's palm slapped against the metal before tossing it forward. "I choose Heracross!"

"Herlacross!" Ash's Bug-type cried out as it appeared on the battlefield across from Shingo's Blade. Its eyes locked with its opponent's and the tension thickened dramatically.

"Heracross... It's an interesting choice considering he has a Blastoise on his roster..." Shingo could be heard muttering on the other side, his eyes glued to the computer's screen.

"Begin!" Muramasa declared, throwing a hand straight up in the air.

"This should be a good one!" Ash smirked.

"All right Blade, Quick Attack," Shingo commanded, a small smile on his face forming as he typed on the keys of his laptop.

"Heracross, give your Leer attack a try!" Ash countered. Heracross replied audibly before its eyes began to glow orange, but this was a snail's pace compared to Scizor, who only tensed up temporarily before disappearing.

"Response to command: point two-nine. This battle shouldn't take very long," the student said confidently as he continued to input data into his computer. "Increase attack speed, Blade!"

"Scizor!" his Pokémon responded, and soon began to move so fast that it left behind two other afterimages of itself. "Scizor..."

"I don't believe it! It's so fast that there won't be any time for Leer to work!" Gary gasped. Scizor moved rapidly back and forth across the battlefield, and Heracross struggled to keep up with its orange eyes. Before it knew it, Scizor rammed its shoulder into Heracross, and the Bug-type Pokémon let out a gurgled cry as it was knocked backwards.

"Heracross!" Ash called as the glow faded from its eyes.

"At this speed, Blade's Quick Attack delivers three times more damage than normal," Shingo reported aloud. A single eyebrow rose on Ash's forehead, though Shingo's all-knowing smile never faded. "If you had my data, you'd already know that."

"We'll just see about that!" Ash spat back as his Heracross struggled to get off its backside in front of him. "Heracross, try to get up!"

"Herlacruh!" the Single Horn Pokémon hissed. With its Trainer's encouragement, the Bug and Fighting Pokémon managed to stand as Shingo's Scizor jumped back to its side of the battlefield.

"Let's end this; use your Metal Claw," Shingo told his Pokémon calmly, not even looking up as his fingers flew across the keyboard. Blade stood up straight and crossed its pincers across its body before a silver electricity began to sizzle around them. It jumped forward and out of reflex, Heracross tried to jab its opponent with its horn, but the shining claws just clamped around the prongs on its horn.

"Scizor..." the Scissors Pokémon murmured, and soon, the electricity snaked its way down Heracross's horn and danced around its entire body. Heracross flinched in pain, and Ash cried out, but the attack continued, and Blade eventually pushed Heracross's face closer to the ground. The glow faded momentarily, but then started back up again to inflict more damage.

"C'mon, Heracross! You can do it!" Once again, its Trainer's encouraging words seemed to give it strength, and Heracross's eye shot open as it struggled against Scizor's strength.

"All right, Blade, lift it up now!" With a surprising display of strength, Scizor removed one of its claws from Heracross's horn, and with a mighty tug, it lifted Heracross off the ground and held it high in the air. The Bug-type Pokémon flailed its arms and legs helplessly in the air, but it was completely irrelevant. "Now toss it!"

"Heracross, don't let it throw 'ya!" As Blade swung its arm to throw it in Ash's side of the battlefield, Heracross reached up, and as the Scizor opened its claw to release Heracross and send it flying, Heracross successfully managed to snatch up its claw in its grip, quickly stopping its flight and instead making it land heavily on the ground. Looking up from his computer for the first time during the battle, Shingo gasped as Heracross landed steadily on its feet, something that went unnoticed by Ash, but not by his teacher. "Heracross, use your Horn Attack, now!"

"Herla-cruh!" the Single Horn Pokémon cried, lunging forward horn-first at Scizor.

"Dodge it, Blade!" Shingo shouted hurriedly, and the Bug and Steel Pokémon reacted both out of command and reflex, and twisted its body to avoid the powerful horn. For the most part, it missed, but one of the prongs on Heracross's horn skimmed across Scizor's abdomen, something that was audibly heard by a screech. Blade jumped back, but fell down onto one knee and winced in pain whilst placing a claw over where it had been injured.

Shingo gasped once again, and his mouth hung open in shock. "H-how..." He blinked, unable to believe his eyes, and then they flickered down to his computer screen. "Point one-eight?! I've never seen a defense like that; impossible!"

"I bet that wasn't in your database, was it?" Ash said with a raised fist and a triumphant smile.

Shingo's eyes flickered up to the Pallet Town native for just a moment before donning a serious look and typing on his laptop. "I'll do a quick analysis and have the computer choose my next attack."

"I learned to use my gut in a Pokémon battle, and you don't learn guts online!" the black-haired Trainer smirked. Gary looked on from the sidelines beside Leonard with a knowing smile planted on his face as Ash called for his next command. "Heracross, use your Take Down!"

"Herla-cruh!" his Pokémon responded, opening its wings and charging at its opponent. At that moment, Shingo's computer beeped, and the student's eyes flashed.

"Yes! All right, Blade, use your Agility!" Scizor also opened its wings with the command of its Trainer, and soon, it disappeared. Heracross skidded to a stop in the middle of the battlefield, and looked around with panic glittering its eyes. Blade was moving so fast that there looked as though there were three Scizor constantly rotating around it. "The perfect choice! Heracross doesn't have the speed to counter this attack!" Shingo said.

"This Scizor is even faster than I thought," Ash commented as his brow furrowed underneath his cap.

"Now let's see your gut beat my data!"

"Don't try to chase after it, Heracross," the Pallet Town Trainer instructed, noting the erratic and panicked way Heracross was looking around. "Relax and let it come to you." Just like that, the anxiety lifted from Ash's Pokémon, and it closed its eyes and sat still.

"What's it doing?" Shingo questioned as a bead of sweat escaped from underneath his lilac locks. "Why is it just... sitting there?" He stared and observed as Heracross didn't move a muscle, and meanwhile Blade was still orbiting around Heracross with its Agility, but keeping a safe distance away. "I better look into this."

"Great, Heracross! You're doing fine!" Ash's voice made Shingo jump slightly, and his eyes jumped back and forth between the computer screen and the battle in front of him frantically.

"Looks like Shingo's having a hard time watching the computer and the battle at the same time," Gary commented with a smirk.

"He's starting to realize where his attention should be," Muramasa agreed quietly with a smile of approval.

"If there was one thing I learned during the Pokémon League, it was my first battle in the Champion's cup against Prima from the Elite Four," Gary continued. "After I defeated her, she told me that a Pokémon's strength can only come from the inside."

Suddenly, Heracross's eyes shot open, and both Trainer and Pokémon knew that it had adapted to Scizor's great speed. "Heracross, Fury Attack!" Ash ordered in perfect sync with Heracross opening its eyes. Heracross gave a cry and leapt forward, flailing its horn erratically and aiming straight for an empty space on the stadium. Blade appeared in a red blur, and its eyes widened when it realized that Heracross was coming straight for it.

"Crush it with your Metal Claw!" Shingo countered, and his Pokémon raised its pincer high into the air, but its eyes and mouth widened. Before it could initiate the attack, Heracross's horn drove into Scizor's stomach, and the red Scissors Pokémon was sent flying back.

"Nice work, Heracross!"

"No way!" Shingo exclaimed, jumping up on his feet. Stepping past his laptop, Gary and Muramasa gave a satisfied grin as the boy had seemed to forgotten it as his Pokémon landed on its back. "Blade, stand up! Stand! They can't win!"

"Scizor..." the Bug and Steel Pokémon grumbled, and slowly gathered itself into a standing position.

"It's on the ropes, Heracross," Ash said, pointing forward. "Let's finish it off, now!"

"Herla-cruh," his Pokémon agreed, and lunged forward at Scizor once again, flailing its limbs and horn at its opponent with its Fury Attack once again. Blade bunched its limbs together in a defensive position, and the sound of Heracross's hard exoskeleton clacking against Blade's hard-as-steel body echoed off the building and fence around them.

"But how... it's moving faster than my data predicted!" Shingo questioned with a cocked eyebrow and a helpless look.

"There's a whole lot more to Pokémon than data!" Ash told his opponent. "Let's win this, Heracross!"

"Keep on battling, Blade!" Neither Pokémon backed down, and they both met in the center of the stage once again. Claw clashed with horn as the two Bug Pokémon exchanged blows back and forth. This continued for a few moments before Blade reached out both of its pincers in an attempt to grab Heracross's horn with a Metal Claw, but Heracross parried by lowering its horn and knocking its claws skyward before pushing forth and driving the appendage into Blade's stomach. "Blade!" Shingo cried.

"This might be it," Ash muttered, his whole body tingling with excitement. But Scizor opened its wings and used them as a parachute to steady itself and simply skid across the battlefield before eventually stopping on its feet.

"Great recovery," Gary remarked.

"What do you expect?" Shingo replied to the commentary with a smirk. "Blade, Quick Attack now!" A light blue aura shimmered around the Scissors Pokémon's body and it cut through the air to tackle its body into its opponent, but Ash was prepared.

"Quick, Heracross! Counterattack!" Heracross also pushed forward and attempted to stab its horn into Scizor's stomach once again, but this time, the Bug Pokémon blocked it with a claw.

"Too slow!" Shingo smirked, and Blade continued its attack, delivering a strong right-hook to Heracross's face. The Bug and Fighting Pokémon bounced back, but landed heavily on its feet.

"Your Scizor's a tough battler, Shingo," Ash complimented, and as Scizor landed on its feet, Shingo retaliated.

"Your Heracross is tough too, Ash," he replied. "But my buddy Blade will never give up!"

"We're not giving up, either!"

"Blade, Metal Claw!" Shingo commanded, a grin of delight painted on his mouth as he called his command. Scizor buzzed through the air and its pincers began to sparkle with silver light once again.

"Dodge it, Heracross!" As Scizor drew closer and swiped at Heracross – leaving a streak of silver electricity in its wake – Heracross quickly lowered onto all fours, and Blade struck at the air. "Nice move, Heracross!" Ash cheered as both Shingo and Blade gasped in surprise. Heracross quickly pulled itself back onto its feet, and with Blade over it, attempted to throw Scizor into the air with its horn.

"Blade, use Agility!" Shingo called, and using Heracross as a stepping stone, Blade pushed off the Bug Pokémon and flew straight up into the air. "Finish it up with False Swipe!" Once the Scizor was at a respectable height, the red Pokémon began its descent down at its opponent.

"Stand your ground, Heracross!" Ash instructed, and his Pokémon planted its feet firmly on the surface of the battleground as it watched Blade get closer and closer with each second.

"We win!" Shingo declared.

"Remember, with Pokémon you can't predict anything!"

"Scizor!" Blade announced as it reached Heracross and raised both of its claws above its head before bringing them both down in a double axe handle. The attack struck powerfully and forced Heracross to the ground on all fours once again, but Heracross used this to its advantage and pushed all of its limbs off the ground and into Scizor.

"No way!" Shingo breathed as his Pokémon was sent spiraling into the sky.

"Told 'ya!" Although its wings were out, Scizor seemed to be so thrown off by the counterattack that it was having a hard time catching its balance. "Okay! Use your Horn Attack, Heracross!" Ash commanded with a point of his index finger, and as Scizor made its eventual descent toward the earth, Heracross stood at the ready, and caught it with its horn before giving a mighty shove and tossing Blade over its shoulder.

"Blade!" the lilac-haired student exclaimed. Seconds later, his Scizor flopped on its back and sat unmoving.

"Ash wins the match!" Muramasa declared, bending his open hand in Ash's side of the battlefield.

"Yeah!" Ash cheered loudly, and ran up to his Pokémon. "I knew you could do it!"

"Herla-cruh!" his Pokémon smiled up at its Trainer, accepting the praise humbly.

"Blade..." the pair heard, and their eyes looked over to see Shingo kneeling down and helping his Pokémon up off the ground. "Are you okay, buddy?"

"Scizor..." the Scissors Pokémon grumbled, looking at its Trainer in shame.

"Shingo," Muramasa spoke up, and both of them turned to look at their teacher. "What about your computer?"

"I don't need it anymore," Shingo admitted, a guilty smile crossing his face as he looked down at his Scizor. "I forgot what real matches were like." He placed a hand on his Pokémon's steel shoulders. "You were great; you battled very hard." Quickly, the shame melted from Blade's face, and it nodded at its Trainer.

"Scizor..." Shingo chuckled and helped his Pokémon onto its feet.

"Shingo's battling spirit has been restored, old friend," Muramasa said to his own Scizor, his eyes trailing to the forgotten computer at the edge of the battlefield. "And I think ours has been, too."

"Zor," his Pokémon agreed with a nod of its own.

"Thanks, Shingo," Ash thanked. Now that the battle was over, his Chikorita had crawled back up onto his shoulder. "I sure learned a lot from you in that match."

"I think I learned more from you."

"See? You should have listened to me sooner!"

"I think I'll take some time and analyze our strengths and weaknesses without using this for a change," Shingo said, gesturing to the laptop that was now folded underneath his arm. "And after I do some more training..."

"Then we'll battle again," Ash finished, holding out his hand for Shingo to shake.

"Great," the student replied with a nod, and took Ash's hand into his own. "But be careful, cause I'll be a stronger Trainer next time."

"I hope I will be, too."

Ash:

Party:

Blastoise (Poké Ball) (m)

Moves: Skull Bash, Dig, Hydro Pump, BubbleBeam

Bulbasaur (Poké Ball) (m)

Moves: SolarBeam, Vine Whip, Razor Leaf, Tackle

Heracross (Poké Ball) (m)

Moves: Horn Attack, Leer, Take Down, Fury Attack

Chikorita (Poké Ball)

Moves: Razor Leaf, Tackle, Vine Whip

At Professor Oak's Lab:

Tauros (Safari Ball) x2 (m)

Moves: Fissure, Horn Attack, Take Down

Kingler (Poké Ball) (m)

Moves: Water Gun, Bubble, Crabhammer, Hyper Beam

Muk (Poké Ball)

Moves: Poison Gas, Sludge Bomb

Primeape (Poké Ball) (m)

Moves: Thrash, Mega Kick, Scratch, Seismic Toss

Pidgeotto (Poké Ball) (f)

Moves: Gust, Quick Attack, Whirlwind, Double-Edge

Stantler (Poké Ball)

Moves: Hypnosis

Training at Charicific Valley:

Charizard (Poké Ball) (f)

Moves: Flamethrower, Fire Spin, Skull Bash, Slash

Kanto Badges:

Boulder Badge

Cascade Badge

Thunder Badge

Marsh Badge

Rainbow Badge

Soul Badge

Volcano Badge

Earth Badge

Diamond Badge

Indigo League Rank: Top 4

Johto Badges:

Zephyr Badge

Gary:

Party:

Venusaur (Poké Ball) (m)

Moves: SolarBeam, Vine Whip, Razor Leaf, Mega Drain

Arcanine (Poké Ball)

Moves: Take Down, Fire Spin, Fire Blast, Flamethrower

Nidoqueen (Poké Ball) (f)

Moves: Rock Smash, Hyper Beam, Mega Punch, Double Kick

Nidoking (Poké Ball) (m)

Moves: Horn Attack, Earthquake, Tackle

Pinsir (Poké Ball)

Moves: Fury Attack, ViceGrip, Harden, Seismic Toss

Hoothoot (Poké Ball)

Moves: Foresight, Peck