Time rewound once more to the moment right before Tyranitar used Giga Impact.
When Milotic saw the terrifying force of Giga Impact, a gut instinct already told her:
There was no way to block it.
In that final moment, the only instinct Milotic had left was to activate Aqua Ring, the move that allowed it to hover in mid-air.
And Aqua Ring… was also a move that restored stamina.
Call it fate: faced with Tyranitar's desperate all-out attack, Milotic didn't use Protect; instead, it frantically pushed Aqua Ring to its limit.
When the smoke and dust from the explosion engulfed both sides, Tyranitar and Milotic had both run out of energy.
The only difference was that Aqua Ring was still spinning around Milotic on its own.
While Tyranitar, stiffened by the effects of Giga Impact, fainted on the spot.
"Tyranitar has lost the ability to battle. Milotic wins! Trainer Sato, please send out your next Pokémon!" The referee raised the flag and shouted the announcement.
The cheers and sighs from the crowd need not be described… because in the end, it all turned into thunderous applause.
For Milotic, and for Tyranitar, who had challenged beyond its level.
Truthfully, anyone with a sharp eye knew that if Milotic hadn't broken through mid-match, the final victory would have belonged to Tyranitar without question.
And even after breaking through, wasn't Milotic still nearly taken down by that frenzied Tyranitar?
Sato still had two Pokémon left!
Sato silently recalled Tyranitar, now back in its regular form, and without hesitation sent out Kirlia.
"…Three moves. Take back the victory that belonged to Tyranitar."
"Hmph, I only need one!"
Kirlia strutted onto the field with her head held high. At the same time, her body began to glow with a dazzling blue light, as if responding to Sato's telepathic message.
Mid-Elite Four level… Gardevoir!
Up in the audience stands, Phoebe and Ryoko exchanged excited looks. They had been waiting day and night to finally see Sato's strongest Pokémon enter the match.
The pressure of her Elite Four aura was unleashed without reservation, wave after wave hammering at the crowd's minds.
This… this this… was this still the Ace Tournament they remembered?!
"This kid… he's really something else… haha." Lance, after his initial surprise, burst into laughter. And in that moment, he realized: he had become one of the ones waiting to be surpassed.
A bit bittersweet, but also a little proud.
Cynthia, disguised and seated among the crowd, had taken leave under the excuse that her Garchomp had broken through to Elite Four level a few days ago.
The moment she saw Sato's Gardevoir, her fighting spirit nearly burst free on the spot.
"I know Kirlia's evolution name! It's Gar… Gar… Gar…"
Cynthia gently patted the little shota next to her on the head and softly said, "It's called Gardevoir, and she's very strong."
"Mhm! Gardevoir! She's also really beautiful… just like oneesan!"
Cynthia pursed her lips into a smile. The boy's innocent praise clearly delighted her, and she couldn't help but ruffle his watermelon-shaped hair again.
"Nooo~ Even if you're pretty, you can't touch my head. Dad says I won't grow tall if people do that!"
Cynthia laughed even more, sneaking in another pat.
The shota's father hesitated but didn't stop her. A couple head pats wouldn't hurt the kid.
After all, beautiful women are always easily forgiven…
On the battlefield, the energetic, noble, elegant, beautiful and cold Psychic Queen Gardevoir stood in stark contrast to the battered and exhausted Milotic.
And the moment Gardevoir no longer hid her Elite Four-level strength, everyone knew…
This match was already decided.
But none of them expected this match to end far faster than they had imagined.
Gardevoir calmly extended her right hand and gently lifted it…
Milotic was suspended one meter in the air, completely immobilized. She couldn't even blink.
Then, Gardevoir's right hand "gently" waved downward.
A massive crater, 15 meters in diameter, formed just like that. Milotic lay in the center, having cleanly and completely lost consciousness.
"Milotic has lost the ability to battle. Gardevoir wins! Since all six of Trainer Wallace's Pokémon have lost the ability to battle, the final winner of this match is…
"YUGA SATO FROM SHADOWNIGHT TOWN!"
In an instant, the entire arena erupted with gongs and drums, fireworks and cheers. Everyone offered thunderous applause and joyful shouts to both Sato and Wallace.
In one match, the crowd witnessed a breakthrough mid-battle, an evolution breakthrough, and Mega Evolution!
They saw the most beautiful Milotic, the pseudo-legend Tyranitar, the Psychic queen Gardevoir… and even a flying fish at the end!
And more importantly, they witnessed an Elite Four level battle!
On the battlefield, Sato and Wallace slowly walked to the center.
Wallace glanced at the cracked crater beside them and couldn't help but slap Sato hard on the shoulder. "Couldn't you go a little easier? My poor Milotic had it rough!" Read complete versıon only at 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝·𝘧𝙞𝙧𝙚·𝔫𝔢𝔱
"And what about my Tyranitar? It was clearly about to win twice." Sato grinned. While shaking hands, he quietly applied more pressure.
"Tch… I just wanted to give your Gardevoir a moment in the spotlight, that's all! And look at you, hiding her strength this whole time?"
Wallace tried to pull his hand back but couldn't, still wearing that shameless grin as he argued back, then even tried to turn the blame.
Looking at Wallace's smug face, practically shouting "What can you do to me?" in broad daylight, Sato thought to himself… 'yeah, this guy really is invincible when he leans into being shameless.'
"Whatever. I'm the Champion now anyway, no need to stoop to the level of a defeated challenger~"
Sato smiled and let go, maintaining a dignified -and ever-so-slightly smug- expression that made Wallace grind his teeth in frustration… but he didn't dare show it openly.
'Tch…' his hand still hurt… A LOT.
After that, the two of them waved to the audience in sync, a move they had obviously rehearsed in advance.
Seeing the Champion and Runner-up chatting so "happily", the audience couldn't help but grow even fonder of these two young Trainers… handsome, elegant, and above all, strong.
This… THIS WAS TRULY THE LIGHT OF THE LEAGUE'S FUTURE!
Charles Goodshow let out a hearty laugh and cheerfully left the VIP suite.
"Let's go. Time to award our League's rising stars!"
"Yes, President!" everyone responded in unison.
In fact, after the match between Sato and Wallace, Ryoko and Phoebe also completed their 6v6 full battle to determine third and fourth place.
As expected, Phoebe was just slightly stronger than Ryoko and smoothly claimed third place.
Ryoko, on the other hand, was perfectly satisfied with making it into the top 4 and felt no disappointment whatsoever.
Because it was a battle between two beautiful female Trainers, even the third-place match filled the stadium, and the cheers from the stands were at times even louder than the final…
As the sunset cast golden light across the entire Indigo Plateau, the Ace Tournament's awards ceremony finally reached its peak.
Sato stood atop the highest podium, receiving the Champion's trophy and certificate from President Charles Goodshow. He then glanced at Wallace and Phoebe, whose envy was plain as day.