Pokémon Padea Adventure: The Journey Continues

Chapter 283 The Battle of the Strongest Partners, VS Dunzi (2)

Under a sky filled with dark clouds, Ash and Dunzi took out their respective glowing "Tai Crystals" and threw them at the heads of Pikachu and Charizard in front of them.

The moment the "Taijing Bead" landed on their heads, crystals simultaneously emerged from the ground, completely covering and enveloping them.

Soon after, as the emerging crystals receded back into the ground, Pikachu and Charizard's bodies became crystalline, and the "Typhoid Orbs" that had landed on their heads transformed into crystals representing their respective typhoid attributes.

Above the head of the crystallized Charizard, which glows red, floats a huge "flame candlestick," representing the crystallization attribute of Charizard, which is also one of its own attributes—the fire attribute.

Charizard's Crystallize type was not unexpected for Ash and his friends, since it comes from Charizard's own type, rather than a third type with a high degree of uncertainty.

Conversely, if Charizard's Crystallize type is not surprising, then Pikachu's Crystallize type is unpredictable, after all, its existence is unprecedented and will never be repeated.

When they first saw Pikachu in its "hat-too-crystallized" state, both Dunzi and Huangbo were so surprised that their jaws dropped open.

Having seen the previously circulated videos and heard eyewitness accounts from both the academy and the alliance, this information had reached Huang Bo's ears to some extent. Despite being mentally prepared, Huang Bo was still somewhat incredulous upon witnessing such a scene for the first time; it was nothing short of a miracle, and she kept marveling at it.

Conversely, before Dunzi, who was completely unaware of this, saw the enormous "red and white baseball cap" crystal floating above Pikachu's head, the red coming from the blush emanating from Pikachu's body. At this moment, Dunzi was filled with questions, his thirst for knowledge overflowing as he asked Ash.

"Ash, how long has this been going on?"

Despite his surprised and somewhat incoherent questioning, as if he were talking to Ash, Dunzi's eyes never left the crystal "hat" on Pikachu's head.

Even though Dunzi's question wasn't very specific, Xiaozhi still managed to deduce Dunzi's question from the situation and answered it.

"How long... how long? Oh! You mean Pikachu's Crystallize type, right? Actually, I don't know much about it either. Based on the previous summary by Xinli from the 'Padia League' and Teacher Leihe from the 'Orange & Grape Academy,' we'll temporarily call Pikachu's Crystallize 'Hat Crystallize.' It doesn't change into any other type; it just strengthens its own type."

"Alright! The battle is not yet over. Please continue your battle, both trainers."

Dunzi and Xiaozhi's conversation went on for too long, prompting Huangbo, the referee, to remind them.

Dunzi, who had been interrupted by Huangbo's questioning, also came back to his senses after a brief moment of curiosity and thought. He shook his head to calm himself down and muttered to himself.

"Forget it, whatever crystallization it is, my Charizard will definitely be the strongest partner!"

As he spoke, Dunzi raised his voice and shouted to Xiaozhi.

"Ash, let's settle this with a duel!"

Xiao Zhi smiled slightly after hearing this, raised his hand, and put his hat on backwards in reply.

"Alright! Let's settle this with a duel..."

Both sides gave the order at the same time.

"Charizard, use Flamethrower!"

"Pikachu, use 'Trillion Volt Thunder Drop'!"

In an instant, the battlefield outside "Bakegu Town," under the dark, cloud-covered sky, was now filled with the starlight reflected from the crystallized Pikachu and Charizard.

As their Pokémon charged up their moves, the two bodies gradually coalesced into a huge beam of light, illuminating two patches of red and yellow sky on either side. This caused the people in nearby "Bakero Town" to notice the intensity of the battle.

Within the crystallized body of Charizard, blazing flames surged forth, the overflowing flames from its mouth casting an even more crimson glow upon its already luminous body. In contrast, Pikachu's body, overflowing with bright, blinding electricity, transformed into red lightning as it heated itself.

"Go, Pikachu!"

"Go! Charizard!"

At the command of their respective trainers, the two Pokémon immediately unleashed their charged attacks.

"Ouch!"

The fire-breathing dragon raised its head and roared, then spewed flames from its mouth, causing the flames in its chest to spray out along its throat, releasing a "flame jet" that was hot enough to burn through steel.

"Pikachu, Pikachu!"

Faced with the raging flames of the fire serpent, Pikachu retaliated, its limbs planted on the ground for support, unleashing the thunderous power contained within its entire body with all its might. In a flash, a huge, pillar-like red current surged forward, colliding with the giant fire serpent spewed by Charizard. The two powerful attacks violently intertwined on the battlefield.

"Whoosh..."

"Clang! Clang..."

The roaring flames were as powerful as the thunderous roar, and they tried to suppress the opponent's attack with overwhelming force.

The skill clash had been deadlocked for some time, with no clear winner, much to the surprise of Xiaoqing and Paipa, who were watching the battle.

Huang Bo, the referee, was equally shocked. However, as a teacher of the combat department, she possessed professional ethics and forced herself to remain calm, closing her mouth which kept opening in surprise.

"Ash, Pikachu, go for it!"

"Dunzi, Charizard, you guys do your best too!"

Amidst the cheers of Xiaoqing and the others, Xiaozhi and Dunzi gave their orders for the final victory in their battle.

"Charizard, go for it! Let's use our strongest attack to prove we're the strongest duo!"

Encouraged by Dunzi, Charizard recalled its past experiences in "Charizard Valley" and regained its fighting spirit. Unconsciously, it felt itself overlap with the image of that competitive Charizard.

The fighting spirit transformed into raging flames, spewing from Charizard's eyes. A ball of fire expanded and surged from its chest, and it suddenly increased the firepower output of its "Flame Breath" move. The "fire serpent" visibly grew larger, striking Pikachu's attack squarely, briefly suppressing Pikachu's attack and leaving Pikachu unable to raise its head for a long time.

"Pikachu, Pikachu..."

Seeing Pikachu being suppressed by Charizard's attack, Ash encouraged it from the side.

"Pikachu, go for it! When it comes to who is the strongest partner, our bond will only grow stronger! Go, Pikachu!"

Ash's words reached Pikachu's ears, and its body, suppressed by "Flamethrower," grew increasingly red. Whether it was the reflection of the firelight or an overload similar to entering a "heat state," the excessive workload caused Pikachu's body to gradually heat up and turn red.

Pikachu's reaction after its body turned red was to gradually tense its limbs, causing its body to rise and its head to be raised high. The electric current overflowing from its body also leaked out wildly like a flood.

Go, Pikachu!

"Pikachu, Pikachu! Pikachu!"

From the perspective of Charizard and Dunzi, even though they were facing the huge wall of fire directly in front of them, Charizard reacted first. Its breathing became rapid, and two scratches began to appear on the ground where it was standing as it moved backward. Its standing body also slowly bent down.

The mound behind him noticed the Charizard's unusual behavior and immediately asked it a question.

"Charizard, what's wrong?"

Before he finished speaking, Dunzi noticed that behind the wall of fire in front of him, a dazzling light was brewing, surging outwards uncontrollably, and huge red electric currents shot into the sky.

"Don't give up, Charizard!"

Charizard stomped its feet hard, making a final push for victory. However, the sound of a massive electrical explosion far surpassed the roaring flames of Flamethrower.

With a loud "boom".

Pikachu's massive red electric current pierced through its chest, and the "Trillion Volts Thunderbolt" attack passed through Charizard's body. After the explosion of Pikachu's move, the battlefield was filled with smoke, and everything returned to calm.

The clouds in the sky dispersed, and the crystalline light emanating from the smoke dissipated, indicating that Pikachu and Charizard had both broken free of their crystalline state.

When the smoke cleared, Charizard was seen lying on the ground with its eyes resembling mosquito coils. When everyone looked in Pikachu's direction, they saw that it had collapsed on the ground, panting heavily, after reverting to its crystallized state.

"The battle is over! Charizard is unable to battle, Pikachu wins, so the final victors are Ash and Pikachu!"

After announcing the battle results, Ash came up behind Pikachu, gently picked it up, and encouraged it.

"Great, Pikachu! We've won the final victory..."

"Pikachu, Pikachu..."

Exhausted, Pikachu weakly replied to Ash's words. After a brief celebration, Xiaoqing and Pipa also stepped forward to offer their congratulations to Ash and Pikachu.

He had already reached the opposite platform and was standing in front of the fallen Charizard, bending down to comfort it.

"You did a great job, Charizard! Even though we lost, you're still my strongest partner!"

After saying that, Dunzi took out a Poké Ball and recalled the Charizard, which had lost its ability to battle. As she stood up, she looked up and saw Ash and the others walking towards her.

"Dunzi, that was a great battle! You and your Charizard worked together seamlessly. You're the most competitive pair I've ever faced!"

As Ash said this, images of his various Charizard opponents from his past travels flashed through his mind. These included: Alain and Mega Charizard X at the Lumiose Conference in the Kalos region; Kiawe and his Charizard using Z-Moves in the Alola region; and his battle against Leon and Dynamax Charizard in the Galar Masters Tournament finals.

After congratulating Ash and Pikachu on their victory, Dunzi also expressed his feelings.

"Ash, it's true what you said, you and Pikachu are really strong... and thank you for your praise. Charizard is indeed my strongest partner, after all, it's my first Pokémon, my first chosen Pokémon!"

Hearing Dunzi's answer, Xiaozhi proudly introduced his Pikachu.

"What a coincidence! Pikachu was also one of my initial Pokémon choices. We met by chance because I overslept..."

As they were talking, Ash inadvertently mentioned Nishida and Venusaur.

"Like us, I also battled Nishida before. His Venusaur was also his first Pokémon. We were also a strong opponent!"

When Ash mentioned Nishida and Venusaur, Dunzi seemed to have been opened up and started talking.

“I know that. Nishida and I are from the same hometown. We both received our first-choice Pokémon from the professor's lab on the same day. I got my Charmander, Nishida got Bulbasaur, and a Squirtle was obtained by the professor's grandson. We were trainers who went on adventures in the same batch…”

As he spoke, Dunzi's thoughts returned to that day, and he muttered with emotion.

"Unfortunately, none of the three of us trainers persisted on the path of Pokémon Trainer. I became a chef, Nishida became a photographer, and we all coincidentally ended up in the Padilla region. The other one who got Squirtle became a scholar like the professor. None of us persisted on the path of Pokémon Trainer..."

"However, besides us, I heard there was a fourth trainer in that batch. Because he was late, Nishida and I missed the chance to meet him. We also left the path to becoming Pokémon Trainers early and came here, so we have no way to contact him... I really wonder how that trainer is doing, and whether he is still persisting on the path of Pokémon Trainer? All three of our initial Pokémon were chosen by those of us who arrived first. I wonder how the professor solved this problem?"

"Wait, Dunzi, what are you saying? I can't quite hear you..."

Xiao Zhi asked Dunzi, who was muttering something.

"I mean..."

Just as Dunzi was about to tell Ash and the others about his past, Orihime's voice came from the Pokémon Center next to the field.

"Okay, I understand! The snow season is over, right? I'll pass that on to them..."

Everyone's attention was drawn to Huang Bo, who was seen talking to someone in front of the "Interjun" machine panel in the central green area.

Then, Huangbo came up to Xiaozhi and the others.

"Ash, I just received a message from Mimosa, the head nurse of Orange & Grape Academy. She's relaying a message from her sister, Mimori, the ranger from Frosty Mountain!"

"Due to magnetic field interference affecting communications in the Padilla region, we can't reach you via the Rotom Phone. We can only leave a message on the Pokémon Center, which has slightly better, but not by much, communication capabilities."

"They say the snow season at 'Mount Frosty' has ended, so you can climb to the summit and challenge the 'Frosty Gym'!"

Upon receiving the good news, Ash was overjoyed and said happily.

"Great! I was just wondering where to get the last gym badge, and now I have this wonderful news. Now I can collect the last badge and qualify for the Paradis Tournament!"

With that, Ash and his friends said goodbye to Dunzi and Orihime, and then headed towards "Frosty Mountain" without stopping.