Chapter 14 – Prelude to glory – part 2

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--Cerulean City Hospital--

Sometime after leaving the Cerulean Battle Arena, Ash, Misty and Brock had visited 
Wes, who rested in a room on the third floor. After explaining what happened in his 
match, Wes wasn’t too thrilled.

“I kinda figured something like that happened. I’d hoped I would get to fight one of you 
guys.” Wes sighed with disappointment.

“It would’ve been a great fight, but maybe we could just have a Pokémon battle later to 
make up for it.” Ash suggested, trying to bring up Wes’s spirits.

Wes thought about it before responding. “Yeah, I don’t see why not. It’ll be better to 
bruise your pride than your body anyway.” He shrugged.

“Hmph, we’ll see about that!” Ash huffed, his competitiveness getting the best of him.

“Hey Wes, I’ve been meaning to ask you something. What was that strange ability you 
used earlier against Senel?” Misty asked. Ash and Brock thought it was a good question.

Wes looked nervous at this. “Well…I technically wasn’t supposed to use that attack, nor 
could I tell you…at least not now. It’s confidential information.”

“It’s not so much of a secret now, considering everyone saw it.” Ash noted, giving Wes a 
look.

“Hey, shut up! Everyone else was using cool techniques, so I wanted to too.” Wes made a 
pout, puffing his cheeks stubbornly. “And I shoulda won that match...” Just then, he 
remembered something. “Ah, speaking of which, did you see my brother’s match? How 
did he do?”

“Brendan? Err…” Ash, Brock and Misty exchanged questionable looks. Ash decided to 
fill in. “Well, he won his match, but…something strange happened to him…”

“Something strange? Like what?” Wes pressed.

“Well…during the fight, he got a lot more aggressive than usual…that, and for a small 
moment, his eyes had a flash of pink…”

Wes’s eyes widened with alarm. “Are you serious…?” If it was what Wes thought it was, 
it was definitely trouble. “I should probably check on him.” He was about to get up when 
Rui stayed him.

“You’re still injured. Don’t go making your condition worse.”

Wes leaned in to whisper. “You know as well as I do what this means. My brother might 
be in trouble…”

Rui whispered as well. “Ash said it was pink, so there’s no immediate danger. There’s still 
time. Don’t worry. Please rest…for me…?”

Wes really wanted to protest, but he could never down a please from Rui. He merely 
grumbled as he lay back onto his bed. “Fine…”

“Looks like someone’s got the magic touch.” Misty joked, winking at Rui. Rui got the 
message and winked back. Brock and Ash were confused while Wes had a gloomy look 
on his face.

“Moving on, if you guys meet my brother later, could you tell him to visit me?”

“No need, I’m right here.” Brendan announced, waving haphazardly.

“Brother! I’m so touched that you came to visit me!” Wes cried dramatically.

Brendan shot him a look. “Actually, I was hoping you would be a vegetable, but I guess 
we can’t have everything…”

“…That was cold…”

“Anyway, how’s your condition…not that I care or anything, but just so I could tell Gary 
and Ritchie…” Brendan added quickly, avoiding direct eye contact.

“I’ll be fine in no time! I’ll be able to see the matches tomorrow. But brother…please, 
avenge me in the matches tomorrow! For the sake of our brotherly bond!”

Brendan gave Wes a blank stare. “…You enjoy annoying me endlessly, don’t you?”

“Sorry to interrupt your…whatever, but I was hoping if maybe you could fill us in about 
the tournament?” Ash requested.

“Oh right, those guys. I should definitely tell you guys about that. First off, there’s the 
fighter Zao. His fight was quick and to the point. 5 seconds barely went by before he 
wiped the floor with his opponent. He’s definitely a powerhouse to look out for. The 
second was based on Ash’s request, Soma. That guy doesn’t know the meaning of 
holding back. He somehow managed to engulf his attacks with fire and crush his 
opponent with brutal attacks. That’s another guy to watch out for. And then…there’s 
Crisis. The only thing more annoying than his looks is his mysterious attack.”

“Mysterious attack? What did he do?” Misty asked.

Brendan shrugged. “As soon as the fight started, Crisis gripped his opponent’s forehead. 
The next second, his opponent was unable to fight. I have a bad feeling about what he 
did, but that’s beside the point. If any of us fights those three guys, it’ll be best not to 
take them lightly. Prepare accordingly.”

“Tell me about it…” Ash mumbled under his breath, remembering his defeat by the Fire 
Vizier’s hands. “Did you happen to think of anyway to fight them, especially Soma?”

Brendan shook his head. “No, not yet. I should be able to think of one by tomorrow, so 
for now, go ahead and rest for the day.”

“Good idea. I can get in some extra training for tomorrow. See ya later!” Ash headed out 
the door with Brock and Misty.

Brendan laughed to himself once he saw Ash leave. “Well, how do you like that? Not a 
sign of fear or anxiety. He’s totally psyched to fight any of them.” He glanced back at 
Wes, who held a serious gaze. “Wes?”

“Ash told me what happened to you earlier. Don’t tell me it’s time already?”

“No, it’s not. I’m fine, really.”

“Don’t lie to me brother, I know you better than you might think. You’re hungry…aren’t 
you?”

Brendan’s eyes went from Wes’s eyes to Rui’s. She also felt the same way. “I…I just 
don’t like doing that. You know how I feel about that sort of thing…especially 
to…to…”

Rui placed a comforting hand around Brendan’s trembling ones. “It’s okay Brendan. I’ll 
be fine, honest. Now come on…please?” She pleaded.

Brendan felt his will being torn apart. It hurt him to do such a thing. “But Rui, I…”

“Brother, please do it. We’re both care about you, you know that.” Wes said.

“I know that, but…” Brendan looked at the two once more, and then sighed 
depressingly. “…Fine…”

-Cerulean City Gym – Ash and Brock’s Room-

It was well into the night. Ash lay in his comfortable bed, staring into the ceiling. The 
tournament has turned from one surprise to another. Brock and Misty had improved 
greatly over the past week, greater than he had expected. Then again, they are great gym 
leaders, so it shouldn’t have been too much of a surprise. It made Ash wonder if he 
would be able to beat them if he fought Misty or Brock. But then, he didn’t use his spirit-
sync yet, nor did his friends. It was still a mysterious as to who was the strongest.

Ash groaned, unable to get to sleep. It would be embarrassing to lose a match because he 
couldn’t sleep early enough, but his mind was still going on with several different 
thoughts. He was far too restless.

“Huh…?” Ash noticed someone passing by his door. There was a flash of orange as the 
person passed. “Misty…?” He stealthily rolled out of his bed and followed Misty. Given 
he had nothing better to do, he might as well find out what his best friend was up to.

After some stalking, Ash followed Misty as she went outside. Ash flattened himself to a 
wall and crept along the edges as Misty turned a corner. He was half way there when 
Satoshi awoken from his slumber to find his host following Misty. “Ugh, I was hoping to 
never see the day you stoop down to Takeshi’s level and stalk girls, and it’s Misty of all 
people!” Satoshi groaned.

“It’s not like that! I couldn’t sleep, so I decided to see what Misty was doing so late in 
the night.” Ash whispered.

“Hmm…I suppose that is an interesting topic. Might as well see what she’s up to.” Satoshi 
said. Ash continued his way until he was at the corner. He stopped to peer over the corner 
and see what Misty was doing.

With Misty, she stood in the middle of the grass patch behind the gym. She took a deep 
breath and released. “Kasumi, are you ready? We need to prepare for tomorrow.”

“I’m ready, and I agree. Tomorrow’s foes will prove even stronger than the ones we’ve 
faced today.” Kasumi agreed.

“Alright, let’s go guys!” Misty released her Corsola, Politoed, and Starmie. The three 
Pokémon cheered once they noticed their trainer. “I’m going to need your help for this 
one you guys. Are you up for it?” All the Pokémon gave respective grunts, confirming 
that they were more than ready. “Okay…here we go!” Misty clasped her hands together, 
channeling Kasumi’s light energy. “Spirit-sync!” In a flash, Misty spirit-synced with 
Kasumi. “Alright guys, let’s get to work! Corsola, Pin Missile!” At the call, Corsola shot a 
swarm of thin needles at Misty.

Misty dodged, side stepped, and maneuvered around the needles with a combination of 
grace and speed. Ash’s eyes could barely keep up. Misty was just warming up. “Let’s 
kick it up! Politoed, Water Gun! Starmie, Swift!” The three Pokémon surrounded Misty 
and started firing their respective attacks. ‘Okay, time to test my new attack. I hope it 
works…’ Misty spun several times while extending both of her arms in opposite 
directions. “Barrier!” Her hands left visible traces of a transparent yellow wall. The wall 
of light extended in length as Misty started forming a wall of light. Shockingly, all three 
of the Pokémon’s attacks were repelled by the shield. Misty stopped spinning and 
clenched her hands. The barrier would hold for only a few seconds, so Misty had to act 
fast.

“Let’s go offensive and try out that other attack.” Kasumi instructed.

“Right!” Misty jumped over the light barrier just before it disappeared and concentrated 
Kasumi’s energy into her hands. What appeared was long, thin beams of light. “Laser 
Strike!” The Cerulean gym leader launched a hail of light-based beams at Corsola and 
Starmie. The two Pokémon stopped shooting at Misty and jumped to dodge the attacks. 
Once they avoided the attack, they resumed firing at Misty, who was evading their every 
attack.

“Impressive. I’ve never though I would see Misty use those techniques so soon.” Satoshi 
pondered aloud. He noticed the way Ash was staring at the two. It was too easy to tell 
how surprised and amazed he was.

“I…never knew Misty was this good. Looks like Kasumi and Misty make a pretty good 
team. If we’re paired against them, it’ll be a tough fight.”

“I hate to admit it, but I’ll have to agree with that. Their speed and long range attacks will 
probably keep us at bay. But still, they got nothing on us when it comes to tricks.”

“You got that right.” Ash agreed. As the boy watched Misty in action, a thought crossed 
his mind, making him smile. “I’ve known Misty for so many years, yet I’ve never seen her 
work so hard before. I mean, I know she does a lot of work otherwise, but she’s giving it 
her all in this fight.”

“Hmm…that’s true…” Satoshi couldn’t help but wonder about that. Ever since their first 
battle against Soma, Misty had been training hard and pushing her limits. This was also 
the case after the comment he had about her a week ago. If Misty was anything like 
Kasumi, the girl would most certainly have a reason for trying so hard. The only question 
was what was her motivation? Could it be just to prove him wrong, or was her reason for 
fighting something else? The two continued to watch Misty train with interest.

As time progressed, Misty started to grow exhausted. “Okay guys, that’s it for the night. 
Thanks for the help!” She recalled the Pokémon into their balls and exhaled. “Alright 
Ash, you can come out now.”

Ash and Satoshi were both shocked. Did she know they were there the entire time? 
Stepping from the corner, he wore a sheepish grin. “Whoops, hehehe, hey Misty!”

“What are you doing awake so late? Shouldn’t you be getting some sleep?”

“You should too. I just couldn’t sleep because of tomorrow.”

Misty placed her hands on her hips. “Just like before. You were always so full of energy 
whenever you would have a gym battle the next day.”

“But I creamed every one of them, just like I’m going to do in this tournament!” Ash 
clenched his hands tightly, hyped about tomorrow’s battle.

Misty giggled to herself. That quality of Ash was one of many she truly admired. It was 
definitely worth it to train for both her sake and his. “I look forward to it as well.”

“So let’s try out best out there! I’ll be rooting for you all the way!” Ash extended his 
hand, looking very determined.

Misty glanced at his hand for a moment. Perhaps she shouldn’t feel so special over the 
handshake, but something about the way Ash said it made her feel very special. After a 
pause, she grasped Ash’s hand and shook it. “And I’ll be cheering you on too.” The two 
stayed with their hands still clasp, silence permeating the air. They were content with their 
current atmosphere.

It was a few moments later when Ash thought of an idea. “You know, while watching 
you train out there, I couldn’t help but feel really excited.”

“EH?” Misty jumped, her face darkening in color. What did Ash mean by that comment?

“Also, I was kinda thinking, if you didn’t mind, if we could do it together.”

Misty’s face was now bright pink. “W-w-what? Y-you mean out here, i-in the open?”

“Yeah! I mean, it’s not like anyone’s going to interrupt us.”

“I…I…erm…” Misty turned about swiftly, twiddling her thumbs nervously. ‘What am I 
suppose to say? I mean, we haven’t even started dating yet, and he’s willing to go this far? 
What do I do?’

Ash looked at Misty with great confusion. “Is something wrong? If you don’t feel like 
training together, that’s okay.”

“Oh, training!” Misty gasped, facing Ash. “Yeah, that’s right, you were talking about 
training together, right?”

Ash blinked. “Yeah. What else would I be talking about?”

“Oh, hehehe, right, I knew that. Sure, I don’t mind training with you.” Misty laughed 
nervously.

“Pervert…” Kasumi mumbled.

“Shut up!” Misty growled mentally.

“So, wanna get started?” Ash asked. Misty nodded and the two immediately started 
sparring.

-Cerulean City Gym – Dining Room-

Brock was at the kitchen stove doing what he does best when he heard Ash walk in, or 
rather, shuffle to his seat. “Hey, good morning Ash!”

“Morning Brock…” Ash folded his arms together and rested his head on it.

“Hey Ash, are you alright?” Brock asked worriedly.

Ash released a sigh before answering. “I’m fine, just a little sore from last night…”

“Oh? Doing what may I ask?”

“I was up with Misty. We were going at it for at least two hours…”

A spoon dropped from Brock’s hand, along with his jaw. “Say…WHAT!?”

Ash propped his head up with his hand. “Yeah, I was also surprised with how long she 
could last. And those things of hers were something else too…uhh…Brock?” He called, 
pondering why Brock was sitting at a corner with depression clouding over him.

“It’s not fair…” He mumbled lowly, “How…how could he score with a girl before 
me…!?”

Ash was very confused. “Brock? What are you talking about?”

“Ash…you seriously need help on how to speak properly to others…” Satoshi suggested 
with a groan.

“Help on speaking? I don’t need help. I speak very goodly!” Ash boasted.

Satoshi could only sigh. “…Just forget it…” 

After everyone had eaten and prepared themselves, Ash, Misty and Brock headed for the 
waiting room in the arena. It was there Brendan awaited them. “Sleep well?”

“Kinda. Are you ready for today?” Ash asked.

Brendan nodded. “I’m as ready as I’ll ever be. You guys made it just in time, because 
they’re about to start the next pairings.”

“Great! Let’s see who’s up!” Ash faced the pink haired sensational sister, who stood by 
the door way.

“Alright everyone, if I may have your attention. I have the list for the first match of the 
day. For the first round, Misty and Farah, please step up!”

“Alright, I’m up first!” Misty piped, pumped with excitement.

“Good luck Misty.” Ash cheered on.

Misty nodded and walked up to her sister. Following her was a teenager around Misty’s 
age with short green hair and gentle brown eyes. She had on a pair of white snow boots 
and a long sleeved red orange dress. “Let’s have a good match, Misty!” Farah said, 
clenching her fist in excitement. The two women followed Lily to the battle stage.

In the arena area, Violet was more than ready to start as the two fighters took their 
positions. “Welcome to the second day of the Cerulean Gym’s martial arts tournament! 
First up for today’s round promises to be quite a match up! In the right hand corner, we 
have a skilled martial artist from a village known as Rasheans. She’s a tough little cookie 
and doesn’t mind showing it. Let’s give it up for FARAH OERSTED!” The crowd 
applauded for the woman, who flashed everyone a reassured thumbs up and smile. “And 
on the left hand corner, we have the youngest sensational sister who shows much 
potential, let’s give a hand to MISTY WATERFLOWER!” Once again, the audience 
clapped for the fighters, eager to see the battle. “Without further ado, let’s get started! 
Ready…! FIGHT!”

(Mid Boss 2 – Tales of Destiny II)

Farah darted forward at Misty instantly, rearing her fist back to attack. Her arm thrust 
forward with great force, but Misty parried the attack with her own. Farah swung with 
her other fist, but Misty deflected that attack as well. When Misty saw a small 
opportunity, she swung her fist at Farah, only for the Rashean’s martial artist to block her 
attack skillfully. The two started exchanging attacks back and forth, the opposition 
holding their ground and blocking the blows. This lasted for minutes until one of them 
decided on a new approach.

“Palm Strike!”

WHAM!

Misty released a sharp breath, being successfully struck in the stomach by Farah. The 
sensational sister stumbled back, clutching her stomach painfully. ‘That attack was 
strong…I better take precaution against her…’ She decided on changing styles and went 
with her Hyoushi Renge, her body and hand motions swaying as though in a dance.

Farah shook her hands out and clenched them tightly. Raising her fist, her foot bounced 
lightly, keeping her moving. ‘I see. That’s the same move she used to defeat Jam. It won’t 
work on me.’ She dashed towards Misty, preparing to strike.

‘Gotcha!’ Misty thought victoriously as she saw Farah’s fist attack coming. She spun into 
a duck, dodging the powerful fist strike and struck at Farah’s vital point.

Unfortunately for Misty, Farah somehow faded away, leaving nothing but air in her 
place.

‘Oh no, an after image!’ Misty’s eyes widened with shock, unable to react as Farah was 
behind her.

SLAM!

“Ack!” Misty’s body hit the ground hard as Farah slammed her elbow into her back, 
causing heavy damage. Luckily, Misty rolled out of the way before Farah could deliver 
an even heavier blow with her foot. She jumped up and tried another attempt at the 
Hyoushi Renge, this time taking the offensive. When Farah tried to counter her, Misty 
spun around the fist and struck her fingers at the key points on the arm, only for Farah to 
capture her hands and throw them up, leaving Misty defenseless. “Rising Dragon Strike!”

POW!

Misty was sent flying upward by the uppercut attack, being knocked a few feet up and 
back.  She was about to land when Farah lunged at her. “Twin Palm Strike!

POW! POW!

The red head was pounded by two consecutive powered up palm strikes, sending her 
even further. Misty’s body tumbled along the ground, battered and injured. “Misty, can 
you stand…?” Kasumi asked in alarm, fearing her hostess’s safety.

Misty struggled to stand on her feet, trying hard to maintain her battle posture. ‘I’ll be 
okay…I just didn’t expect Farah to be this strong of an opponent…’ She clasped her hands 
together and closed her eyes, focusing on Kasumi’s energy. ‘I wish I didn’t have to do this 
so early, but Farah’s too good of an opponent to take the easy way out. I’ll have to give it 
my all…’ Her body was enveloped by a soft yellow glow, showing that her connection 
with Kasumi was working. “Spirit-sync!” In a flash, Misty’s hair changed to silver as her 
skin changed into a tanned shade.

“What in the name of Inferia did that girl do…?” Farah stepped back in surprise, taken 
aback by Misty’s transformation. She never encountered anything like that during her 
journeys. This was certainly something new. Though she was surprised at first, she smiled 
with anticipation. ‘I look forward to seeing what she can do…’

Misty placed her hands on the spots that were struck by Farah. “Regenerate!” With that, 
her wounds were healed, leaving Misty refreshed. She then jumped high in the air and 
used the power of Kasumi’s light-based energy to form powerful light projectiles. “Laser 
Strike!”

“Ngh!” Farah guarded herself from the flurry of lasers, the beams giving her scratches. 
‘What was that? Did she just throw…light?’ Misty’s means of attacking were different 
from normal approaches. At least Misty was proving to be full of tricks. “HA!” The green 
haired fighter ran swiftly at Misty, who was dropping down from the air. “Triple 
Blossom!” Misty defended against Farah’s three spin kicks by forming a visible barrier of 
light in front of her. Once Misty landed, she took the offensive and struck at Farah’s 
chest with several palm strikes before jumping back. “Mirage!” Farah jumped towards 
Misty while creating several after images, attempting to confuse Misty.

“Laser Strike!” Misty threw the beams at the copies of Farah, a majority of them 
disappearing. However, she was unsuccessful in hitting Farah before the woman got in 
physical range.

“Chi!” Farah spun at Misty, striking her several times with her palms before slamming her 
two palms into Misty’s chest.

BOOM!

The explosive of chi energy went off like a powerful shotgun, releasing an ear shattering 
sound resembling a lion’s roar. Misty was lifted off her feet and shot across the arena, 
taking a severe blow from the Chi attack. Thankfully, Misty recovered in mid air and 
reduced the ground impact by rolling onto her feet. “Regenerate!” Misty used more of her 
spirit’s mana to heal her wounds. Given the amount of energy she used up already, she 
had to be a little more conservative since healing takes up considerable mana depending 
on the injuries. It was time to switch battle styles. She slid her feet back and held her 
palms out in front of her. After taking a deep breath, she charged at Farah with great 
speed.

Clash! Clash! Clash!

Misty’s light-charged attacks in combination with Farah’s chi based fist attacks created 
sparks as they continue exchanging blows, both of them holding their ground as equals. 
After minutes of being in a clashing stand still, the two girls had their fist locked, 
resorting to a battle of strength and will. Though Misty had undergone great training, 
Farah was far stronger, and it showed with Misty being pushed back little by little.

“Come on Misty! You can do it!” Ash cheered, enthralled with Misty’s performance.

Misty glanced at Ash at the corner of her eye, a wave of happiness washing over her. 
‘He’s…cheering for me...!’ Her attention turned to the girl in front of her, her teeth 
gritting tightly. ‘As long as Ash is cheering me on, I won’t give up!’  With a burst of 
motivation, Misty slowly started pushing Farah back. 

Farah broke the lock and tried to punch Misty, but the Cerulean gym leader smacked the 
fist away and thrust her knee into Farah’s stomach, knocking the wind out of her. As 
Farah stumbled back, Misty stood in a new battle stance. Her back knee was bent 
forward while her other leg was outstretched. The arms were positioned in a similar 
pattern as her fingers were curved in a praying mantis style. She closed her eyes to 
heighten her senses and calm her body.

“Palm Strike!” Farah yelled, preparing to strike down Misty. Her hand was inches away 
when Misty’s eyes flashed open.

SMACK!

Misty thrust her fist into Farah’s chin swiftly, canceling out Farah’s attack and stunning 
the girl. Now was Misty’s chance to strike back. Using her finger tips, she struck Farah 
with unholy speed, too fast for even the most trained eyes to catch. After the many 
dozens of blows, Misty quickly moved to Farah’s side and performed a powerful sweep 
with her arm, tripping the green haired fighter. “This is the end…!” While Farah was in 
mid air, Misty raised her fist, putting all of her strength into it. “GATLING 
BARRAGE!”

SLAM!

With that blow, Farah’s body hit the floor with a heavy thud. Within moments, all that 
could be heard was the heavy panting of the two girls. Though Farah was conscious, her 
body was heavy with wounds and sores from Misty’s Gatling Barrage. Misty was weary 
from her previous rounds with Farah, and performing the Gatling Barrage was no easy 
task. 

Violet began the countdown. “1…2…3…4…” Farah started struggling to get up, but 
Misty’s fist was still planted on her, keeping her down. She could feel Misty’s strength 
dissipating. “5…6…7…8...” The martial artist looked into Misty’s eyes, seeing into her 
soul. There was so much determination in the girl. It was then she knew this battle was 
lost. “9…10…! By default, Misty is the winner of this match!” Violet announced. The 
crowd immediately went into a grand applause for the battle.

Misty struggled as she stood up. She looked down on Farah and extended her hand. 
“That was a great fight, Farah. I couldn’t have won without giving it my all.”

With a weak smile, Farah gripped Misty’s hand, using it to help her get on her feet. 
“You’re definitely the best fighter I’ve gone against. Let’s do it again sometime.”

“I just hope it isn’t as painful next time.” Misty joked. The two held onto each other as 
they walked towards the waiting room.

Inside, Ash beamed excitedly. “Woohoo! Way to go Misty!” He praised, running up to 
his friend. Misty raised her hand to give him a thumbs up, but tripped over her own feet, 
too weak to even stand properly. “Misty!” Ash caught her before she fell, holding her 
gently.

Misty’s eyes opened weakly, giving Ash a sleepy smile. “I’m just a little tired. After all, I 
barely won that match…” Before Ash could get a word in, she fell asleep, resting her 
head on his chest. Her spirit-sync dissipated.

“That’s one strong girl you got there. Be sure to take good care of her…” Farah grinned 
sheepishly. She took a seat in one of the benches and leaned into it tiredly, hoping to 
regain her strength.

“I would take her somewhere to get some rest. Brock and I will take care of things from 
here.” Brendan said. Ash nodded and scooped up Misty, taking her to a room to rest in.

It wasn’t too long after that Lily arrived with the next pairing. “If I may have your 
attention. Brendan Birch and Crisis, please come with me for the second round.”

‘Damn…him of all people…what were the odds?’ Brendan glanced at Crisis, who wielded 
a grin wicked enough to send chills down his spine.

Crisis walked up to Lily, casting his eyes at Brendan. “Come on Brendan, we shouldn’t 
make this lovely lady wait.” He grinned.

Brendan sighed as he walked towards the stage, keeping his distance from Crisis. This 
battle had trouble written all over it.

On the battle stage, Violet started the match right away. “Ladies and gentleman, I hope 
you’re ready for these two talented fighters to get it on! On the left, we have the 
mysterious yet powerful man known only as CRISIS! On the right we have the genius 
boy wonder, BRENDAN BIRCH!” The crowd applauded for both fighters. Brendan 
held a laser-like focus on Crisis, who still kept the evil grin. “Both fighters ready…? 
FIGHT!”

(Melfice theme – Grandia 2)

Brendan immediately took a defensive position, not taking his eyes off Crisis. ‘Just 
great…this choice of battle music just screams bad news.’

Crisis chuckled at Brendan’s poor means of defense. “Brendan, as you call yourself, if 
you ever plan on even being a challenge, as least show some effort. Do something like 
THIS!” He faded from sight in an instant, surprising Brendan.

‘I can’t panic. I must keep calm and focus on my surroundings…’ Brendan closed his 
eyes, heightening his senses. At first, he couldn’t detect anything. But faintly, he could 
detect fast movement. Crisis…he was attacking from behind. “Got you!” He swung his 
fist at the direction he perceived.

Only to hit nothing.

“Not good enough!” Crisis said, standing behind Brendan.

WHAM!

Brendan was knocked a good few feet, struck by a powerful fist attack. The boy landed 
with a skid, quickly jumping back to his feet. ‘He tricked me…? I thought for sure he was 
going to—’

“—Be right behind you?” Crisis finished for him.

Brendan stumbled back in shock. “You…you can read my mind?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” Crisis ran swiftly towards Brendan, arching his hands into 
claws. Brendan was barely able to avoid the continuous swipe attacks as he started back 
up, evading what attacks he could.

“Why do you hold back? Perhaps you’re trying to find the easy way out of this fight? Or 
maybe…” Crisis caught Brendan by the shirt and pulled him close to a whisper. “Maybe 
you’re afraid of showing your powers…?”

‘He…knows…?’ Brendan pushed him back, keeping distance from the man.

“Hmhmhm, how amusing. You’re actually trying to put up a fight. Let’s see how you 
resist this!” Crisis jumped in the air towards Brendan. As Brendan dashed to the side to 
avoid the attack, Crisis disappeared in midair.

“Not this again…” Brendan crossed his arms defensively, keeping his eyes and wits about 
him. There was total silence on the arena, creating great tension. Where would Crisis 
strike next? It was almost as if he was hiding…

“BOO!” Crisis shouted, instantly appearing right in front of Brendan.

“GWAH!” Brendan fell on his behind, completely spooked by the sudden appearance. 
Strangely, Crisis seemed to have stopped in suspended animation, only to slowly fade 
away.

“Hahahaha…the look of fear in your eyes was absolutely priceless! You are such a card, 
Brendan…” Crisis’s voice echoed throughout the stage, seemingly coming from every 
direction.

‘Why does he keep emphasizing my name…? Does he know something I don’t…?’ 
Suddenly, he could feel Crisis’s presence. It was very close.

“I do know something you don’t. Wish to know?” Crisis whispered into his ear.

“RAAH!” Brendan swung wildly at Crisis, who merely faded from view again. This was 
starting to get annoying. “Stop with the games and fight me already!”

“But the fun is just getting started. Then again, I do suppose this is getting a little 
boring.” Crisis stopped running around and crouched on one knee while supporting 
himself with one hand. He was prepared to sprint. “I would start running if I were 
you…” His free hand was starting to glow faintly with ominous energy as the man raised 
it into the air. Suddenly, he broke into a speedy dash. “Psychic Slash!”

Brendan stepped back just in time to dodged the strike and counter with his fist attacks. 
Crisis dove to the side and attacked with his Psychic Slash again, this time slashing across 
Brendan’s chest. The younger white haired fighter back flipped away from the attacker, 
going defensive again. ‘Psychic attacks…? So he IS psychic after all. Well, doesn’t that just 
make things more difficult…?’ Brendan grimaced, dodging Crisis’s assault.

“Ready or not, here I come!” Crisis performed a leap in the air, preparing a lethal pounce 
on Brendan.
 
SLASH!

Crisis’s slash attack grazed the ground as Brendan jumped into a roll, barely avoiding the 
attack. “Why don’t you fight back, boy? I know you have the ability to do so!”

‘And that’s the problem. I CAN’T use my abilities. Not in such a public place. But then 
again…I have to do something…’ Cursing his luck, Brendan decided on a different 
approach to this battle.

He started running.

“You’re not going to escape me that easily!” Crisis started chasing Brendan as the boy 
was reaching the edge of the arena. The psychic jumped towards Brendan once the boy 
stopped at the edge, preparing another Psychic Slash.

‘Sorry Boss Man, I’m going to have to break the rules for this battle…!’ Brendan clapped 
his hands together and waited for Crisis’s attack. The position was just right for this to 
work.

SLASH!

The ground where Brendan stood had a deep gash tore into it. However, Brendan no 
longer stood in that position. “What…?” Crisis blinked in surprise, not expecting such a 
maneuver.

“Eat this!” Brendan exclaimed, leaping at Crisis from behind. Cleverly, Crisis merely 
stepped backwards towards Brendan and thrust his elbow into the boy.

WHAM!

Brendan released a sharp gasp, receiving a powerful blow. Crisis grinned mischievously. 
“Sorry, but you’ll have to try better than that before you can even think of landing an 
attack on me. You have to do an attack like this…” He turned around and placed his free 
hand on Brendan’s chest. Brendan was given no chance to retaliate as Crisis called out an 
attack. “Psychic Force!”

BAM!

Brendan’s body flipped wildly into the air and landed roughly on the ground. Signs of 
smoke emanated from his seared chest as he attempted to stand up, trying to recover from 
the attack. Crisis walked up to the battered Brendan, who was crouched. Crisis looked 
displeased as he lifted up Brendan by the hair. “Hmph, how disappointing. I expected 
better from you. I think I’ll have some fun with you…” He lifted his other hand and 
gripped Brendan’s forehead.

And that was all Brendan could see before his world went black.

-Unknown area-

(The one who is torn apart – Xenogears)

“Ugh…” Brendan groaned as he started to awaken, finding himself lying on the ground. 
He shook his head and stood up, trying to figure out where he was.

There was nothing but black all around.

“Where…is this place? Wasn’t I fighting that guy in the tournament?” Brendan 
questioned himself.

“Actually, you are still in the tournament. As for where this place is, you may be a little 
surprised…”

“That voice…Crisis?” Brendan looked around, but couldn’t find a trace of Crisis’s 
whereabouts.

“Now that no one can hear us, we can have an actual conversation…my dear 
Cataclysm…”

“Cataclysm? What are you talking about?

“What, did you actually forget Cataclysm? It’s your name. Your true name.”

“No way! My name is not Cataclysm!” Brendan denied.

“Hmhmhm…so naïve you are, Cataclysm. But perhaps it’s too early to tell you the truth. I 
doubt your consciousness can handle the gravity of your identity. On the other hand, I’ve 
found something rather interesting…” Crisis faded into view, holding what resembled a 
brown, hard covered book.

Brendan grew curious about the book. “Where are we and what is that book?”

“Why this is your mind, of course. The fact you can’t see anything should’ve been a dead 
giveaway, considering your ever so ‘mysterious’ nature. And this book, you ask? It’s 
nothing special, except the fact it holds information in which you may find 
entertaining…oh? Well that’s interesting! Did you know that one of your hobbies include 
collecting information? Perhaps it’s time I walked a mile in your shoes, eh?”

Brendan raised an eyebrow. “What….? I never told you anything about…wait a sec…” 
His eyes widened when he saw the named listed on the book.

It read Brendan Birch.

“That book…is it…?”

Crisis’s malevolent grin grew wide, not taking his eyes off the book. “About time you 
noticed. It contains every bit of info about you that you know of. Your memories you 
might want to call it. Ah, another piece of interesting info. Did you know that you 
actually enjoy being around your ‘family’, namely Boss Man, Gary, Ritchie, Wes and 
Rui? I find it very interesting, don’t you?”

“Stop it!” Brendan lunged at Crisis, only for the mysterious man to fade from view and 
reappear at another spot. 

Crisis leafed through the pages until he spotted something else. “Ohohoho! Well this is 
just plain juicy! According to this, the two people that are closest you are your brother, 
Wes Wilder, and your sister, Rui Mazaki. My, aren’t you just a softie?”

“Grr…leave me alone…!” Brendan attacked again, but Crisis just repeated his earlier 
action, evading the strike. “Stop playing these mind games and just fight already!”

“And what, miss out on your favorite hobby? I can certainly see why you enjoy it. This is 
just so much fun!” The white haired menace continued flipping through the pages until he 
reached a point in the book that aroused his interest. “Wait a minute…according to this, 
you….hmhmhmhmhm….HAHAHAHAHA! This is perfect! Absolute gold! I can’t 
believe it!” He chuckled madly.

“Stop reading my memories damn you!” Brendan was growing furious at Crisis’s antics. 
He didn’t know where the man was going with this, but he knew he wasn’t going to like 
it.

Crisis ignored Brendan and continued reading. “It seems that over the years, you’ve 
gained something precious to you…a heart to be precise. Hmph, had you known what 
you really are, you would be surprised by the fact you even had a heart. And take a 
gander at this…it would seem as though someone has stolen your heart. Not long ago in 
fact…”

“Stop it…”

“And it seems she’s completely oblivious to your affections too…”

“Stop it…!”

“Heh, how humorous.” Crisis closed the book and gave Brendan an insidious look. 
“You’re in love with your ever so precious sister, Rui Mazaki. Am I right?” Brendan’s fist 
trembled with fury as he glared murderously at Crisis. Crisis, being the comical mad man 
he is, gave the boy a surprised glance. “…Was it something I said?”

“I’m…I’m…I’m going to KILL YOU!” Brendan dashed with great speed at Crisis, 
swinging his fist of fury at him.

Crisis caught the attack, and glanced at the fist. “Hmm…the motivation is there, but 
you’re not yet strong enough for me. Actually, hold on a second…” He faded from view, 
leaving Brendan in darkness. A minute later, he reappeared. “It looks like Zao is getting 
impatient. It’s always painful when he’s upset. I apologize for leaving so soon, but don’t 
worry, I’ll leave you a going away gift. I think a mental scar should be good enough.”

“Ah…!” In the next moment, Brendan found himself chained to a wall. Ahead of him 
were Boss Man, Gary, Ritchie, Wes and Rui. They all had sharp swords in their hands 
and blank looks in their eyes. Crisis stood in front of them, a mischievous expression on 
his face.

“Like what you see? It gets better. Just watch.” Crisis snapped his fingers. Right then, the 
five top members of Team Nova started fighting each other in a battle to the death.

“What are you guys doing? Stop fighting each other! The enemy is right there!” Brendan 
yelled in a panic.

“I’m afraid your words fall on deaf ears. This is the place where your wildest nightmares 
come true, courtesy of me of course.”

SLASH!

“Ooh, and one of them bites the dust.” Crisis quipped, noting the death of the first 
victim, Ritchie. One by one, each of the team members died by their own member’s 
hands until one of them were left.

It was Rui.

“And now for the best part! Go Rui!” Crisis commanded. Rui looked at Brendan and 
walked up to him. She pulled back the sword and stabbed Brendan with it several times, 
causing the poor teen to undergo excessive torture. After a long series of stab wounds, 
everything went black.

A split second later, Brendan opened his eyes, just to find his team members in the same 
exact position before they killed each other. The only difference was the fact Crisis 
wasn’t there. “Did you enjoy a taste of my abilities? I hope so, because this will continue 
for 24 hours. If you still retain your sanity after this, remember these words well 
Cataclysm: As long as you are still alive, I will continue to hunt you down. Those who 
you care for will befall a horrible fate, unless you gain the strength to kill me. Should you 
kill me, these nightmares will end. Remember that…” After that message, the Team Nova 
massacre resumed, and repeated continuously in similar forms of gruesome fate.

-Cerulean City Gym – Battle arena-

Crisis released his grip on Brendan’s forehead. Trapped in the illusionary world, Brendan 
fell on the floor, his eyes void of consciousness. “Start the countdown. He won’t be 
getting up anytime soon.”

“Uh…okay. 1…2…3…” As Violet started counting down, she couldn’t help but feel 
worried. Brendan had such a pained expression on his face. It was a wonder what Crisis 
did to him. “8…9…10! The winner of this match is Crisis!”

As Crisis walked off the stage, he glanced at Brendan, who was currently being picked 
up by a stretcher. ‘Grow strong Cataclysm…for when you do…my plans will be well on 
the path of completion.’

Inside the waiting room, Brock cast a worried look at the fallen Brendan. Though he had 
no idea what happened, that Crisis must’ve done something terrible. He could only hope 
the same fate wouldn’t befall him. The breeder considered going to check on Brendan’s 
condition when he saw Lily preparing to tell the next pairing.

“Attention fighters! I hope you’re all pumped and ready for the next round. Will Brock 
Slate and Naruto please come with me!” Lily announced.

“Alright! Now it’s my turn to shine!” An energetic blonde teen yelled, shooting his first 
in the air. The blue eyed boy wore an orange jumpsuit, a pair of blue sandals and had 
three streaks across his cheeks, resembling whiskers. 

Brock raised an eyebrow at Naruto. ‘He’s quite lively. This should be interesting.’ He 
thought as he walked with Lily and Naruto to the stage.

On the battleground, each fighter took their stances and stood a good amount of feet 
away from each other. Violet stood in between the two. “It’s time for round 3, so I hope 
you’re ready for some more heated action! On one side, we got the skilled pervert all the 
way from Pewter City, give it up for BROCK SLATE!”

“…You’ve really got to work on your introductions…” Brock mumbled, giving her a flat 
gaze.

Violet ignored Brock and continued. “And on the other side, we have a ninja coming all 
the way from Konoha village! He’s the village’s number one hyperactive ninja; give a big 
hand for NARUTO UZUMAKI!” The crowd gave a grand applause for the young lad, 
who grinned widely. “Fighters ready…? FIGHT!” And off the stage she went to give the 
two fighters room.

(Sarutobi – Naruto)

“Shall we begin?” Brock slid his foot back and curled his back fist while his other hand 
was open, the back of it facing Naruto.

 Naruto held his hands in front of him, his fore fingers performing a plus sign. “Kage 
Bushin no jutsu!” Two more Naruto clones emerged from Naruto, the three man team 
running swiftly at Brock.

‘Kage what? Must be a fancy name for after images.’ Brock awaited the assault of the 
Narutos. The first one approached from his right and tried to attack with a jump kick. 
Brock stepped to the side, barely avoiding the jump kick, but leaving Naruto open.

WHAM!

Brock sent Naruto flying with a crushing blow to the face. “Hah, gotcha!”

POOF!

Or so Brock thought.

‘Wait…that wasn’t an after image…but that wasn’t the real one either…’ Brock only had 
time to glance back at the other Narutos rushing him.

POW!

One of the Naruto copies punched Brock in the stomach while the other jump kicked him 
in the chest. The attack injured Brock, but his body was tough enough to shake it off. 
“Eat this!” Brock grabbed the aerial Naruto and slammed him into the other.

POOF!

Brock was shocked when the two Naruto’s disappeared in a puff of smoke. “Where did 
he go?” His eyes scanned the surroundings closely, but then quickly looked up to see 
Naruto flying towards him from the air. “Oh no you don’t!” Brock held his arms up 
defensively, blocking the aerial attack. As soon as Naruto landed, the young ninja sent a 
swarm of fast-paced fist and kick attacks. The Pewter City gym leader was holding his 
ground well against him, blocking and evading blocks in a calculating manner. Once 
Brock saw a pause in Naruto’s attacks, he immediately pulled back his fist for a crushing 
attack.

Naruto saw the attack coming and barely dodged it. This time, Brock was taking the 
offensive against him, making the ninja step back and dodge the attacks. Brock made his 
attacks precise to make up for the slower, but more powerful pace of strikes. Naruto 
couldn’t block any of the attacks, or else he would receive some injures due to the force.

The young ninja jumped away just in time to dodge Brock’s powerful swing. It looked 
like he would have to put some emphasis on his abilities. Pressing his hands together, 
Naruto charged himself with chakra energy, increasing his strength and speed 
considerably. “Kage Bushin no jutsu!” This time, Naruto created 8 more clones. All nine 
Narutos ran at Brock again, but this time with twice the speed of before.

Though outnumbered and beaten by speed, Brock wasn’t daunted by Naruto’s abilities, 
but impressed. Of course, he wasn’t one to take lightly. “It’s time to get serious.” Brock 
flexed his hands and stood his ground. He looked up at two of the Naruto clones rushing 
towards him. After avoiding their initial strike, he thrust his fist into each of the Naruto 
clones’ stomach with great force, instantly making them dissipate. Two more approached 
closely from behind, but Brock leapt backwards and slammed his elbow into their faces, 
also making them disappear. Two more approached from each of Brock’s sides, but he 
saw it coming at the last second. Brock gripped one of the clone’s fists and swung 
Naruto’s entire body at the other clone, canceling them out. The three remaining Naruto 
clones engaged into fierce close combat.

In the stands, three people watched the battle with a combination of excitement and 
intrigued. “YOU CAN DO IT NARUTO! SHOW THAT GUY WHOSE BOSS!!” A 
pink haired girl, Sakura, cheered loudly, shooting her fist in the air.

A raven haired boy sitting next to Sakura wasn’t nearly as excited, but rather interested 
with the fight. However, he retained a cool, calm, and collected look. “Hmph, he isn’t 
doing too bad…for a loser. It should be me that’s out there.” The boy, Sasuke, scoffed.

“Now, now, Sasuke. Naruto beat you fair and square at a chance to prove that he’s 
capable of becoming Hokage. Show some support for a fellow teammate.” The grey 
haired masked teacher, Kakashi, stated wisely. Sasuke merely huffed in response, 
mumbling about how much he hated rock-paper-scissors.

Naruto stopped fighting in mid-match to stare at his teammates, mainly Sakura, with tears 
of joy. “Sakura’s cheering for me…!” He extended his fist towards Sakura, giving the girl 
a thumbs up. “SAKURA! I’M GOING TO WIN THIS ONE FOR YOU!”

Sakura showed off a nervous smile while waving haphazardly at Naruto. “Err…y-
yeah…do that…” However, her inner self, Inner Sakura, had other thoughts in mind. 
‘Come on Naruto, I got 100 bucks riding on this! Don’t lose this one!’

“Whoa…that girl is pretty cute!” Brock mused, flashing his signature grin.

“Hey, hey! Hands off, no eyes! That’s MY girlfriend!”

“Not if I beat you to it, blondie!” Brock challenged.

Naruto gasped, and then glared in anger. “Take. That. Back!”

“Don’t worry, I will, after I take your Sakura!”

“Keep your pervy hands away from her!”

“No way! She’ll be mine!” The two started arguing back and forth, glaring at each other.

‘You’ve got to be kidding me…’ Sakura sighed, ‘That guy scares me more than Rock 
Lee...’ Her anger soared once they continued to bicker over her. “BOTH OF YOU ARE 
WRONG! I’M SASUKE’S GIRLFRIEND!”

Sasuke’s eyes widened with shock. “What the hell? How am I involved in this?”

Naruto started glaring daggers at his rival, Sasuke. “DAMMIT SASUKE! STOP 
TRYING TO STEAL MY GIRLFRIEND!”

“No, you mean my girlfriend!” Brock corrected.

“THAT’S IT! PREPARE TO DIE, NO EYES!” Naruto shouted, finally having enough 
of the nonsense.

“YOU’RE GOING DOWN, BLONDIE!” Brock and Naruto both restarted their battle 
with each other.

As the fight between Brock and Naruto resumed, Sasuke shot the two an incredulous 
look. “Just great…more idiots to deal with…”

As time progressed, Brock soon found himself at a disadvantage. Naruto seemed to have 
endless energy as he continued to pummel Brock with more and more clones. During the 
exchange of fist, Naruto punched Brock in the face, stunning him for a moment. That was 
all the ninja needed. “Here we go!” Naruto made two more clones. Four of the five 
Naruto clones surrounded the stunned Brock and dashed at him.

“U-ZU-MA-KI!” Each of the clones yelled respectively, striking Brock with a 
simultaneous upward kick. The breeder was thrown high into the air, unwillingly awaiting 
the finishing move the real Naruto was about to give. Naruto was right above Brock. 
“NARUTO RENDAN!” 
 
WHAM! CRASH!

Brock plummeted to the ground with a very hard crash. Naruto landed soon after and 
canceled his Kage Bushin technique. The crowd was in a hush as Brock lay on the 
ground. He wasn’t moving.

Violet decided to start the countdown. “1…2…3…”

‘Come on Brock, get up. Don’t let this guy beat you! You’ve worked too hard for this!’ 
Takeshi encouraged. 

“4…5…6…7…8—” Violet cut herself off when she saw Brock struggling to stand up. 
The Breeder, though battered and injured, stood on his feet. “Brock has stood up. The 
battle will continue!”

Naruto was stunned. No one had ever taken the full front of his combo attack and stayed 
unconscious. ‘This guy…he sure has some will power! He’s definitely a worthy opponent.’

Everything was at a stand still. Brock suffered greatly through those attacks and was still 
standing. “Don’t think…you’ve won…just yet. I…still have some fight left in me…” He 
slammed his palms together, focusing on Takeshi’s mana. “Spirit-sync!” A rush of wind 
whipped around the two battlers as Brock’s hair changed to a dark green, succeeding in 
the spirit-sync.

‘What the heck did he do? All he did was change his hair color…’ Naruto pondered in 
confusion. Even though he really wanted to know what this spirit-sync was, he knew not 
to underestimate his opponent. This time, Naruto was going to go all out. “Taiyuu Kage 
Bushin no jutsu!”

The crowd gasped in shock at what they saw next.

Dozens of Naruto clones flooded the battle arena. It was now Brock against 50 Naruto 
clones.

Naruto smirked in victory. There was no way Brock would be able to face all of them in 
his condition. “Let’s see you beat my army of clones!”

Brock grimaced slightly. ‘I didn’t want to try it this early, but it’s better to test that move 
you taught me…’

Takeshi nodded. ‘You have a point. I will do the best I can to provide you energy. Use it 
well.’

‘I plan to.’ Brock clenched his fist tightly, preparing his body. “You’re a good opponent 
Naruto, but it’s time I took this battle to a whole new level!” The Naruto clones had to 
shield themselves as a gust of wind suddenly exploded from Brock. Once the charge was 
complete, a strong circulation of air was flowing over Brock’s arms and legs. “Now the 
real battle begins!”

“Let’s go!” Naruto yelled, as he and his army of clones clashed with a spirit-synced 
Brock.
 
As the two clashed, Brock was engulfed with dozens of kicks and punches. Shockingly, 
he had been able to block and parrying almost every single attack. In slow motion, Brock 
could be seen carefully blocking each attack and strike at a clone, causing it to disappear. 
Brock would slip through the guard of the copies and knock them out, quickly going to 
the next one. Some of the clones tried to grab onto Brock to restrain him, but it was like 
trying to hold down a raging beast. No such luck.

Brock saw a group of Naruto clones in front of him in a row. There was his opportunity to 
try out some of his new attacks. “Here we go!” He leapt forward with his fist as the 
spearhead, which was engulfed in a thick swirl of wind. “Wind Fist!”

WHAM!

“Ah…!” A line of Naruto clones were swiftly wiped out from the attack.

“Hmph! Your clones can’t hold me back! Why don’t you just…” Brock lifted one of the 
copies in the air, “Come out and face me!” He hurled it at two more clones, making those 
three disappear.

‘Damn…no eyes is even tougher than fuzzy brows…! But he has a point. I’m only wasting 
energy.’ Naruto thought ruefully. He canceled the ninjutsu, leaving only him, one other 
clone, and Brock. “You give me no choice. Time to use my ultimate attack!” Naruto 
extended his hand to his clone, who started making the notion with his hands over 
Naruto’s extended one, as though he was spinning something. Suddenly, a swirl of wind 
started forming in the palm of Naruto’s hand. It soon turned into a small blue ball of 
swirling energy. “Look out no eyes, because I’m about to wipe you out!” The clone 
grabbed Naruto’s free hand, spun him around for momentum, and released Naruto 
towards Brock before disappearing. “RASENGAN!”

Brock dashed towards Naruto with his fist curled tightly, putting all of his energy into 
the strike. “WIND FIST!

CLASH!

The crowd closest to the stage was almost blown away with the force emitting from the 
two battlers. Violet had to hold onto the stage in order to prevent being blown away. 
Both fighters held their ground, staring down each other. Their limits were being tested as 
they began pushing their respective attacks into their opponent.

‘What…?’ Brock stared in shock as the Rasengan started pushing him back. He was 
losing. ‘This kid…he’s incredible! If this keeps up…I’m going to lose…!’ Though he was 
trying his hardest, Naruto’s Rasengan was too condensed and powerful. At any moment, 
the attack would break through and hit Brock. The match will be over if Brock receives a 
direct hit. He studied Naruto’s Rasengan as best he could to spot a weakness. It was 
literally a ball of wind, compressed into an unbreakable attack. How was he going to get 
an edge and win? Was it even possible? ‘Man, if only I could somehow break that ball. 
That thing has got to be as solid as a rock…wait a minute…’ Brock thought back to his 
training with Team Nova.

--Flashback--

“RAAAH!” Brock charged at the boulder in front of him and raised his fist.

CRACK!

“Agh…!” Brock coiled on the ground, holding his fist in agony. He almost broke his 
hand.

“Don’t be so weak! Try again!” Wes demanded.

“But it’s impossible! I’ve tried over 10 times, but I can’t do it! How on earth am I 
supposed to break a rock with my fist? I’m not strong enough!” Brock argued.

“It’s because it’s a rock that you CAN break it!” Wes answered.

Brock stared at Wes, dumbfounded. “…huh?”

“Ugh, useless. Look, you need to realize something. You are a powerhouse. A 
powerhouse must be able to break through anything in order to get to the target. The 
minute you are stopped or blocked, it’s over. Now tell me this: What is the weakness of 
solid matter?”

“The weakness of solid matter?”

“Yeah, think about it. Have you ever seen construction worker go at it? They don’t use 
hammers or blunt weapons to break into things. Think about what they use…”

Brock took a moment to think about the question. “…They…dig. They use sharp tools, 
right?”

“Partially. Everything has a center gravity that holds it together, just like this rock. A rock 
and a balloon are the same in concept, except one is just more condensed. What do you 
use to pop a balloon?”

“That’s easy. A pin!”

“What about rocks?”

“Hmm…a drill?”

“Correct. Now, where’s the best spot on an object to use it?”

Brock, being that he works with rock Pokémon, knew this answer. “It’s the center…” His 
eyes lit up at the realization.

“Exactly. The weakest point in any solid object is the center. You need the right strength 
and the piercing ability to break any solid object or defense. If you hit it the right way 
with your fist, it can be just as devastating as a drill. Observe!” Wes swiftly turned 
around and punched the boulder. In an instant, the boulder cracked and fell apart, 
proving Wes’s point.

--End of Flashback--

‘I see…so I just have to strike the center to break Naruto’s Rasengan…but it’s too small! 
Think…think…!’ Brock grimaced as he was getting pushed back. He had to be quick.

Takeshi knew what Brock was trying to do, and had an idea of how to help. ‘Brock, wind 
is a formless ability, like water. It’s hard to control, but possesses much malleability. If you 
wish to ‘pierce’ Naruto’s Rasengan, you will have to change the form of your attack. I’ll 
leave it up to you.’

‘Change the form of my attack…yes, I got it!’ Using most of his remaining mana and 
stamina, Brock started concentrating on his fist and the shape he had in mind. Suddenly, 
the wind forming around his arm started swirling faster and grew narrower, changing the 
very shape of the wind in front of his fist. The wind grew sharper. ‘Now to finish it!’ 
Brock grinned as he quickly made the wind spinning around his arm reverse direction, 
spinning the same way Naruto’s Rasengan did. Something shocking happened at that 
moment.

“W…what? No way!” Naruto gasped in shock. The sharp front of Brock’s Wind Fist 
started piercing into Naruto’s Rasengan. Not only that, but because both wind attacks 
were going in the same direction, and Naruto’s attack was spinning faster, the Rasengan 
powered up Brock’s Wind Fist, making it almost 10 times faster and more powerful.

Brock started pushing in as his new attack absorbed Rasengan’s power, boosting his 
considerably. “This is it! WIND DRILL!”

POW!

“AAAAAAAH!” The attack struck Naruto and sent him flying off the battle stage, 
spinning at an incredible pace.

CRASH!

Naruto’s body was thrown into the stands, creating an explosion of dust and wreckage. 
As the dust cleared, dizzy swirls could be seen in his eyes as he lay on top of the rubble. 
He was unconscious.

Brock canceled the spirit-sync and held onto his arm, which had gone numb. The 
Rasengan gave his Wind Drill too much power for him to control properly. “Phew, that 
was too close.”

Violet walked up to Brock and raised his hand high. “And the winner by a knockout is 
BROCK SLATE!” The crowd applauded both fighters’ efforts and valor. It was a 
remarkable battle.

In the stands, Naruto’s allies went to the fallen hero’s side, checking on his condition. 
Naruto opened his eyes and stared the pink haired girl standing above him. “Sakura…! I 
need you to kiss me in order to give me strength…!” 

STOMP!

“I was just kidding, Sakura!” Naruto cried, getting stomped repeatedly by Sakura.

“I lost 100 bucks because of you! You’re gonna pay for that!” Sakura yelled furiously.

Brock sweat-dropped at Sakura’s aggressive behavior. It rivaled Misty’s behavior. 
Speaking of which… “I should check up on those two to see how they are doing.” He 
started making his way towards the room Misty was resting in.

-Cerulean City Hospital – Misty’s Room-

Ash sat in the quiet hospital room for what felt like hours, the only sound being Misty’s 
breathing. At first, Ash merely wanted to make sure Misty was okay, which she was. But 
now, he just sat in a chair and kept a half focused gaze towards the girl. He couldn’t 
clearly understand just what he suddenly found to be so intriguing to him. Years ago, he 
would’ve easily dismissed the thoughts in his head and acknowledge Misty as his best 
friend. But now, something was different. Could it have been the fact it’s been so long 
since he had seen her? Or maybe, he was maturing into the age where his thoughts would 
be as confusing as they were curious. Though he didn’t know the answer, there was just 
something about the girl that captured his attention and wouldn’t let go. A throbbing 
sensation which compelled him to do something, something he didn’t understand quite 
clearly.

The boy’s eyes glanced over to Misty’s face. He felt his heart skip a beat as he sucked in a 
silent breath. Now he really wondered why he never really noticed before. Misty’s face 
had a very soft and smooth complexion, further enhanced by the sunlight outside. Her 
hair was slightly longer than he remembered, covering some of her face. Even the simpler 
designs of her face, such as her nose and ears, had formed her face into a delicate entity, 
one that Ash had to consider cute. Cute, something Ash normally wouldn’t admit, but 
had no problem admitting that about Misty. At least, he wouldn’t say that out loud.

His finger tips stroked Misty’s face as gingerly as a feather would. It was more pleasing 
to his senses than he had ever anticipated. ‘Why…? Why am I doing this…?’ Ash 
questioned himself. He certainly didn’t want to be seen doing such a thing, even less 
wake up Misty. However, something tugged at him, persuading him to perform such 
strange actions. ‘This…feels so…weird, but also…kinda nice.’ The wandering fingers 
traveled towards her hair, allowing the strands to flow over his finger tips gracefully. He 
didn’t know what Misty did to keep her hair so fine, but it was definitely working.

He jumped a little when he noticed Misty shifting in bed, quickly withdrawing his hand. 
His breath was still, praying he didn’t awaken Misty. After a moment of small movement, 
Misty stopped, showing that Ash’s prayers were answered. Ash released the air he was 
holding back, relieved. ‘What on earth am I doing? I shouldn’t be doing this kind of stuff! I 
mean, really!’ He shook his head, trying to straighten out his strange thoughts. All came 
to a halt once his eyes lay on Misty’s small, pink lips.

A big mistake on Ash’s part.

Ash’s heart rate quickened at the sight, his cheeks gaining extra color. A wild thought 
suddenly flashed through his mind, one that even surprised him. He wondered how soft 
Misty’s lips were. Given how smooth her hair and face was, her lips were probably just as 
smooth. There was a hint of lip gloss, something that provoked his curiosity even more, 
making him ponder the ultimate question: What would her lips taste like? His radical 
thoughts were beginning to be something of problem, especially since he was slowly 
leaning forward. Just a small, innocent one wouldn’t hurt anyone, right? As his heart 
started beating more and more rapidly, his face was getting close to hers. His eyes were 
unfocused, as though stuck in an unshakable trance. ‘I…I shouldn’t do this…this 
isn’t…this isn’t…’ He couldn’t complete the thought, too entranced to think clearly. He 
was so close, he could feel the heat of her breath beating on his lips, enticing his 
unconscious mind to push for the last inch. Just as those thoughts occurred for that final 
inch, Ash—

Knock! Knock! Knock!

—was infinitely thankful for the interruption. He was immediately on his feet and 
attentive to the person knocking on the door. “Come in!” Ash answered, but quiet enough 
so he wouldn’t wake up Misty.

The door open, and Brock stepped in, still holding his arm. “Hey Ash! I won my match!”

“Awesome!” Ash cheered, giving Brock a high five. “How did Brendan do? Or did he 
not fight yet?”

“Actually…he did fight. His battle was against Crisis…”

Ash winced at the news. “So…what happened?”

“Brendan lost, but something weird happened. During the battle, Crisis held onto 
Brendan’s head. It was only for a few seconds, but after Crisis released him, Brendan just 
dropped to the floor. He looked utterly destroyed. I hope he’s alright…”

“Me too.” Ash agreed solemnly. Though he wasn’t exactly on friendly terms on Brendan, 
he still didn’t want anything terrible to befall him. After all, he did help Ash on a few 
occasions.

Brock peered over Ash’s shoulder, taking a peek at Misty. “How’s Misty doing?”

“Fine!” Ash answered quickly, feeling jumpy about the subject.

Brock noticed this, and grew curious. “Are you alright? You seem just a tad…excited.”

“Oh no, not at all! I-I’m just fine, really!” Ash tried to hide his anxiety, but it was 
slipping. Brock raised an eyebrow, not believing him the slightest. “A-ah…I’m gonna go 
towards the arena area. I’ll see you there!” The nervous boy walked briskly past Brock 
and towards the designated area.

“I wonder why he looked so nervous...” Takeshi pondered.

“You got me on that one. Oh well, let’s just follow him.” Brock shrugged, heading 
towards where Ash went.

Ash and Brock arrived just as Lily was starting the next match. “Zao and Soma, please 
come with me to the arena.”

“Soma!” Ash and Brock darted their eyes in the direction of the man that defeated them 
before. As Ash remembered, he still wore his glasses and bandanna. 

The Fire Vizier was walking past Ash when he noticed him and grinned with anticipation. 
“So far, so good Ash. I hope you have improved, because next time, I won’t be going 
easy on you. Let’s just hope you will last longer this time.”

“Hmph, we’ll see about that.” Ash scoffed angrily. Man that guy was cocky.

“Let’s calm down and watch the fight. Remember who he’s going against.” Brock 
advised sagely.

“Hmm…” Ash did just that and stared outward towards the arena. He knew well of 
Soma’s overwhelming strength, but Zao was definitely no pushover.

There was no clear-cut winner in this battle.

Zao stood on one side of the arena, his arms crossed and his posture serious and 
unflinching. Soma on the other hand looked more than ready to start, as was Violet. “On 
this corner, we have a very cool, calm and collected fighter who shows great potential on 
the arena. He’s the tall, mysterious and handsome ZAO KAIZA!” Violet waited until the 
clapping died down. “And in the other corner, he reigns from foreign lands, facing only 
the strongest of opponents and breaking them down. He’s the flaming powerhouse 
known as SOMA HOMURA!” And thus Soma was given his round of applause. Violet 
stepped away from the around to give the fighters room. “Are the fighters ready…? 
FIGHT!

(Get down to business – Order sol’s theme – Guilty Gear Slash)

Soma slapped his fist together in excitement. “I’ve been waiting for a good match all day. 
Don’t disappoint me now!” He jumped high in the air and dove right at Zao. Zao side 
stepped just in time to dodge an earth shattering aerial punch. The metal floorboard 
suffered a huge dent from the attack. Soma was immediately on his feet and stampeding 
towards his opponent. As the vizier started swinging his fist, Zao continuously dodged 
his attacks with ease. “Stop dodging and fight me! Blazing Bri—!” Soma’s attack was 
halted when Zao snatched his fist, his piercing gaze not leaving Soma’s eyes.

“[Are you the fire vizier?]” Zao inquired in a foreign language. Soma stared wide eyed at 
the man. Zao was speaking in luminarian! “[Answer my question.]”

“[What if I am?]” Soma answered.

Zao’s eye narrowed almost unnoticeably. “[Then fight for your life.]” Zao released 
Soma’s fist for an instant before punching Soma’s face. The blow made Soma stepped 
back, taken by surprise. Luckily, he recovered as Zao charged towards him with 
unparalleled speed. Soma had a hard time keeping up with the pace.

‘What the hell? Who is this guy?’ Soma grimaced as he back away from Zao, who was 
continuously chasing him down. ‘I don’t like feeling I’m getting from him. I should finish 
this quickly.’ Soma jumped back further, dodging a punch from Zao and powering 
himself up. Zao watched as flames enveloped Soma’s body. “Eat this! BURNING 
RAVE!” With a loud battle cry, Soma lunged at Zao with flames of fury.

CRASH!

Zao guarded against Soma’s Burning Rave and was pushed all the way to the wall 
outside the arena grounds. A mix of fire and dust clouded the two from sight. A trail of 
seared concrete and melted metal was made from the attack. When the two fighters were 
visible, the crowd could see Soma and Zao in a lock.

The mysterious yellow eyed fighter stared at Soma with an emotionless stare while Soma 
had aggressive ones. “[…Is that it? Show your true power, or die a weakling.]” Zao 
demanded.

POW!

Soma’s body flew from his position all the way back to arena, but recovered in midair 
and landed safely. “Agh…damn it…!” He was crouched on the ground, clutching his 
stomach painfully. Zao jumped over to the stage and landed softly in front of Soma.

“[I want to see your true strength. Do it now, or die. Those are your only choices.]” Zao 
said bitterly.

WHAM!

Soma was punched in the face, pushing him further back by a few feet. After spitting out 
blood, he stood up with a heated expression on his face. “So it’s a fight you want? I 
didn’t want to do this so soon, but I’ll make the exception here.” He gripped his knuckles 
tightly while tensing every muscle on his body. A ring of fire appeared on the ground 
around him, rising along with his energy. “Tyrant Overdrive!” The fire suddenly exploded 
from him, enveloping his body. He dashed forward without warning, creating a blaze trail 
towards Zao. Zao jumped, dodged, and block each devastating attack.

The Vizier jumped in the air reeled both of his fists back. “Hyper Gun Flare!” He thrust 
his fist like a machine gun, shooting fire bullets that were twice the size of his normal Gun 
Flare. Zao quickly dodged the hail of deadly fire bullets, making sure to avoid getting hit. 
When he saw the perfect time to strike, he jumped as high as Soma and swung his fist, 
only for Soma to catch it. If Zao was surprised, he didn’t show it. “You’re not going to 
get me that easily!” With a cry, he spun Zao and tossed him at the ground. Fortunately 
for Zao, he landed on his feet, avoiding injury.

‘I really need to finish this guy off while I have the chance.’ Soma spun his body super fast, 
leaving a large trail of flames as he spiraled down at Zao. “Let’s see you block this! Hyper 
Burning Rave!” To everyone else’s point of view, it would look like a meteor that was 
flying down at his opponent.

Zao frowned at the fiery powerhouse. Even for him, that attack would cause severe injury 
if hit directly. Soma was about to land a hit on Zao, when the black haired man moved 
his hair away from his other eye, revealing something that surprised Soma for an instant.

In the next second, there was a blinding crash that temporarily blinded the audience. All 
was clear when the flash ended.

Soma had missed, but there was also something else. He was no longer a fighting ball of 
flame. “What…? Impossible!” The red haired fighter exclaimed.

Zao side stepped at the last second and guarded himself from the explosion of fire. His 
hair was back in position, blocking the side of his face. “Tyrant Overdrive.” He said in 
monotone. Just like Soma, there was a rush of fire flowing from Zao. He glared down at 
Soma, who was vulnerable. “[Die.]” He raised his fist to deliver a fatal strike.

But stopped less than an inch before striking.

With merely a grunt, Zao left the stage.

There was a long period of silence. No one had any idea what just happened. 
“Uh…okay…I guess that means Zao forfeits the match. The winner of this round is Soma 
Homura!” 

There were multiple murmurs in the crowd, concerning Zao’s sudden withdrawal from 
the match. Soma stared at Zao’s leaving form, his eyes narrowed. ‘What…the hell? Why 
did he stop?’ Looking ahead, he could see Crisis looking at Zao with a serious look on his 
face. Soma could tell Zao’s reason for stopping his strike was because of Crisis, but the 
question was why…

With Zao and Crisis, the two were walking in the middle of a quiet hallway. Crisis 
created a gap between him and Zao, knowing Zao’s temper. “Just to let you know, I had 
a good reason for stopping you. We’ve been called in for a change of plans. Besides, had 
you actually killed Soma, that would only create problems later on. We can’t risk us being 
discovered.”

Zao glanced at Crisis for a few moments before looking forward. “No matter the reason. 
The next time you interrupt me, I’ll kill you.”

‘Hmph, I would like to see you try.’ Crisis scoffed mentally, being sure to keep silent. It 
was always painful whenever he annoyed Zao. “We have a time table to keep. Let’s not 
be late.” The two faded from sight as they went elsewhere to carry out their orders.

Back at the waiting room, Lily was more than ready to start the final match for the round. 
“Okay, will Ash and Recca please follow me.” She announced.

“About time.” A black haired boy said. He had on a black muscle shirt, long pants and 
sneakers. On his right forearm was a white casing, and higher up was several tattoos with 
different inscriptions. There were seven of them. Recca and Ash both followed Lily to 
the battlegrounds. 

At the battle site, Ash and Recca kept a fair distance from each other while Violet was 
prepared to start the match. “Ladies and gentleman, this is the final match before the semi 
finals, and here we have quite the match up. On this side, we have the amazing boy 
wonder, ASH KETCHUM!” There was cheering on this part. “And in this corner, from 
Japan, hails a fiery force to be reckoned with. Please welcome RECCA HANABISHI!”

“ALRIGHT RECCA! KICK SOME ASS!” A teenage girl and boy, Fuuko and Domon 
respectively, shouted from the crowd. Domon was very lean and muscular, wearing a 
simple t-shirt and shorts. He had a short, black Mohawk, brown eyes, and a nose ring. 
Fuuko had a pink sleeveless shirt, tight jeans, green eyes and brown hair.

“I hope Recca doesn’t get hurt…” The quieter girl, Yanagi, whispered to herself, clasping 
her hands. She had long light brown hair and soft brown eyes. She was dressed in a small 
skirt and a blue school uniform.

A man, Mikagami, sitting next to her had very long light blue hair, and darker blue eyes. 
He wore a white suit and an intrigued expression on his face. “This should be interesting.”

On the stage, Recca held a confident smirk. “I hope you’re ready, because now you’re 
gonna face a true Hokage ninja.”

“WHAAAAAAAT?” A voice shrieked throughout the gym. The quick pitter patter of 
footsteps could be heard making its way towards the arena from the stands. Appearing at 
the door was a shocking sight as a boy was wrapped in many strands of bandages burst 
through the entrance.

It was Naruto.

“Oh HELL no! There’s no way that loser is a hokage! I’ve worked all my life trying to be 
one, and I refuse to believe that loser is a ninja, a hokage even less!” Naruto yelled. He 
was about to leap over the wall when he was held back by a very annoyed Sasuke and 
Sakura. Kakashi was standing behind them, wearing an amused expression under his 
mask.

“You idiot! Stop making a fool of yourself!” Sasuke chided.

“Yeah, listen to the gothic looking friend of yours and calm down.” Mikagami shot 
coolly.

Sasuke caught the remark and wasn’t very happy. “You want to say that to my face?” His 
glare connected with Mikagami’s glare, creating sparks between them.

“Hey, hey, hey, what’s with the pipsqueak calling me a fake?” Recca interrogated, 
irritated by the interruption.

“This pipsqueak is a REAL ninja, not some washed up has-been like you!” Naruto 
insulted.

“A real ninja? HA! You’re not a ninja! You’re just some puny, loud-mouthed head case!”

“You’re nothing but some punk who plays ninja! We’re actual ninjas, unlike the goof 
troop of a team you have!”

“HEY!” Domon, Yanagi and Fuuko shouted. Mikagami was too busy trying to glare 
down Sasuke.

Recca pointed at Naruto incredulously. “What are you talking about!? You look like a 
walking tangerine, the girl with a planet for a forehead looks as though she was attacked 
by pink lemonade, and that emo guy probably he cuts himself more than his enemies! 
Face it kid, you guys look like you’re cosplaying a fruit basket!”

That tore it. “I’M GOING TO KILL YOU!!” Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura shouted. 
Kakashi luckily grabbed them all, stopping them from trying to maul Recca.

“Ehehehe, sorry for the trouble, please continue the match.” Kakashi apologized, 
dragging the angry threesome away.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at Mikagami. “…You and me, outside, after this match.”

“Just don’t whine after.” Mikagami shot back.	

Violet and Ash sweat-dropped massively. “That…was weird…anyway! Are both fighters 
ready?” Recca and Ash nodded as Violet ran off the stage. “FIGHT!”

(Shining Collection – Iceman)

Ash clenched his fist while taking on a power up stance, forming an X with his arms and 
bending his knees slightly. “Spirit Sync!” His skin tone darkened while the tips of his hair 
turned red. The expression on his face showed he was ready.

Recca extended his right arm, which had a hint of red and orange energy emanating from 
it. “Nadare, come on out!” From the cast on his arm emerged a serpentine dragon made of 
fire. Its more distinctive features were on the face, which had black eyes with yellow 
pupils and something similar to flowing whiskers extending from its nose. Jumping in the 
air, dozens of tiny fireballs shot out from Recca’s palm onto the battle field.

Explosions were scattered across the arena as Ash jumped, side stepped, and dodge the 
attacks. Unfortunately for Ash, Recca wasn’t just standing still for Ash to come for him. 
He was also on the move, heading towards Ash while still firing. When Ash and Recca 
were starting to close in, Recca closed his hand and ran at Ash. When Ash swung his fist, 
Recca ducked under and aimed his hand at Ash.

BOOM!

“Arg!” Ash was struck with a barrage of fireballs shooting from Recca’s palm, receiving 
dozens of burns. When he opened his eyes, which were closed from the bright flash of 
fireballs, he noticed Recca’s right arm pulled back.

“Second dragon, Saiha!” The teenager sprouted a long blade made of fire from his arm, 
aiming at Ash.

In a panic, Ash made himself fall back to avoid the flaming blade, carefully placing a 
hand on the ground to cut down his recovery time. As Recca’s blade swooped over his 
head, Ash bounded upward and rolled back before Recca could bring his blade back. The 
fire dragon wielding teenager wasn’t going to let Ash off the hook that easily. He 
prepared another blade strike at Ash and darted towards him.

Ash got up just in time to catch Recca dashing speedily towards him. Recca wasn’t the 
only one with tricks up his sleeve. “SHADOW CLAW!”

CLASH!

“What the…?” Recca was startled when Ash caught the blade single handedly, which 
possessed a black covering in the shape of a claw. At the corner of his eye, he saw Ash’s 
free hand about to strike him down with another Shadow Claw. He hurriedly jumped 
back to dodge the swipe, then ran forward to perform a spinning slash. Ash ducked to 
avoid the blade attack, only to catch Recca flashing his right palm at the boy after 
spinning. “Nadare!”

“Not this time!” Ash jumped in the air to dodge the stream of fire balls. He kicked his 
feet outward, using the air boost function of his shoes to perform a midair dash at Recca. 
“Shadow Claw!”

SLASH!

Recca didn’t get the chance to avoid getting hit, earning a slash across his chest. The fire 
ninja took the brunt of the attack, but not without a reason. “Third dragon, Homura!” 
Recca shouted. A spiral of fire encircled his right arm, boosting its power considerably.

SMASH!

Ash sucked in a sharp breath as the blow struck him in the stomach directly. The attack 
sent him flying a few feet and skidding across the ground. While sliding, Ash pushed 
himself off hard enough to bounce back on his feet. Crossing his arms defensively, Ash 
activated the Shadow Claw in both his hands as he dashed towards his opponent.

Recca considered using Nadare again, but Ash might dodge it like last time. Instead, he 
decided to engage in close combat as well. “Let’s do it, Homura!” He yelled, allowing the 
third dragon to envelope his arm with fire. Once in range, Ash sent a series of fast swipes 
and palm strikes at Recca, who either blocked with his flaming arm or dodged it. Ash 
swung his darkness powered hand at Recca, only for the fiery teen to duck under the 
attack. “Eat this!” Recca thrust his arm at Ash’s side.

Unfortunately, Ash anticipated this attack and captured it with his other hand. Before 
Recca could react, Ash curled his free hand into a tight fist, packing it with even more 
dark energy. “Shadow Fist!”

POW!

Taking a heavy blow to the face, Recca was knocked back a few feet. However, that 
wasn’t enough to cause any significant injures to the hokage leader. Recca thrust his arm 
at Ash from a distance, sending a long stream of fire in the shape of a whip.

“Arg!” Ash grunted, blocking the attack. The flame whip latched onto his arm, grappling 
him. “Wha…!?”

Recca held tightly on the fire whip and started spinning while Ash was hooked, making 
the trainer spin wildly in the air. “Time to send you flying!” Once Recca gained enough 
momentum, he canceled the fire whip and sent Ash flying towards the far wall.

‘If he thinks he can get me this easily, then he’s crazy!’ Ash focused Satoshi’s mana into 
his right arm, which was starting to be veiled with darkness aura. “SHADOW WHIP!” 
Suddenly, a long, thick black line extended from Ash’s arm and wrapped around one of 
the ceiling lights, which was surprisingly sturdy. With a tug, he stopped himself from 
flying off and started swinging towards Recca, this time striking back, hard. Once the 
direction was set, he stopped the Shadow Whip and sent the mana towards his feet. 
“Shadow Kick!”

‘ Did he just copy off my Flame Whip?’ Recca brought his arms upward to block the 
attack, planning a way to counter against the Shadow Kick.

However, Ash was just about to hit when he kicked his foot as hard as he could, 
suddenly stopping in mid air and dropping right below Recca’s guard. Recca’s eyes 
widened as Ash pulled back his fist.

WHOOSH!

Ash’s attack missed by inches as Recca side stepped and flashed his palm at Ash. Recca 
called out his attack. “Nadare!”

BOOM!

Ash managed to roll out of the way in the nick of time, avoiding a close range fireball 
attack. He continued to roll until he was on his hands and feet. Right before Recca’s 
fireball barrage could hit him, he pushed himself into the air and towards Recca. 
“SHADOW CLAW!”

Recca was prepared for this one. “SAIHA!”

CLASH!

Both attacks were deflected by each other, given they were of equal strength. Once Ash 
landed, he and Recca began clashing against each other furiously, neither fighter willing 
to give their opponent the upper hand. It was an epic battle of flame verses shadow.

Minutes past and there were no signs of shifting balance. It was a standstill. Seeing this, 
Recca jumped back, dodging Ash’s spin kick. ‘Man, this guy is starting to be a pain in the 
neck.’ He glanced at his right arm, his eyebrows furrowed in thought. ‘I didn’t want to use 
this…but if I want anything to change, I’ll have to do it…’ Recca curled his fist as he called 
out. “It’s your turn! Fourth dragon, Setsuna!” emerging from his arm cast was a dragon 
that looked similar to the other ones, except it only had closed eye.

Ash growled under his breath. He didn’t like the feeling he was getting from that dragon. 
It felt…evil.

Violet recognized the dragon from yesterday and was quick to announce a warning. 
“Everyone! Please close your eyes!” She yelled, closing her own eyes.

‘Why do we have to close our eyes?’ Ash wondered. His eyes followed to Setsuna’s 
closed eye. 

And then, it opened.

Ash’s eyes widened as he stared at the eye. It had a very daunting gaze, making him step 
back in surprise. This didn’t look good.

“Shun en!” The dragon growled.

FLASH!

A shrill cry of pain echoed through the large stadium.

-Cerulean City Hospital – Misty’s Room-

Misty’s eyes suddenly snapped open as she shot up in her bed. “Misty? Is something the 
matter?” Kasumi asked worriedly.

“It’s Ash. He’s in trouble.” Misty placed a hand over her heart. “I can feel his pain.”

Kasumi raised an eyebrow. “You can feel his pain from…your heart?”

“I had this kind of connection with him for awhile, but kept it to myself. It’s kind of like 
a sixth sense, but just for Ash.”

“Hmm…” Kasumi never thought of such a concept before. It made her wonder if she 
ever had that ability in her past life. “We should probably see what’s going on. Can you 
walk?”

“Yeah, let’s go.” Misty stood up and walked hurriedly out of the room.

-Cerulean City Gym – Arena-

The crowd gaped in shock as Ash fell to his knees, being set ablaze by Setsuna’s Shun en 
attack. The attack gave Ash very severe burns, and being that Satoshi was spirit-synced 
with Ash, he felt it too. His body was going through intense pain as Ash tried regaining 
his footing.

“You’re pretty good, but it would be best if you gave up. I don’t want to give you any 
really serious injuries.” Recca warned.

‘Damn it…he’s too strong…!’ Ash thought grimly, gritting his teeth. Before the 
tournament, he felt so ready to make it to the top, beat Soma, and get the shards and his 
hat back. However, he would have to get past Recca…which was starting to seem more 
and more impossible. He could feel Satoshi’s mana waning from the lethal fire attack. 
Not only that, but Ash’s stamina was dropping, along with his body and morale.

“Ash has fallen! I will now start the countdown!” Violet announced. “1…2…”

“Come on Ash, get up! Get up!” Brock pleaded.

“Don’t let up Satoshi!” Takeshi yelled.

“Easy for him to say…” Satoshi muttered. He hated to admit it, but the burns caused him 
spiritual damage, making it harder for him to channel mana to Ash. The situation was 
looking grim.

“3…4…”

“ASH!”

“SATOSHI!”

“GET UP AND FIGHT!”

Ash cracked open an eye weakly, glancing at the owner of the voice. “Misty…?”

Satoshi’s eyes widened as he saw Misty’s spirit, realizing that Kasumi called out to him. 
“Kasumi…”

“5…6…”

Right then, a thought occurred to Satoshi, something he never considered until Kasumi 
and Misty’s call. It struck a sense of alarm in him. “Ash…we cannot lose this fight. There 
is one good reason for this.”

‘What is it?’

“If we lose to Recca, then Misty or Brock will have to fight him too. If that scenario 
happens…”

Ash’s eyes widened at the thought once the danger registered into his head. ‘There’s a 
chance Recca might use Setsuna on them!’

“7…8…9—”

‘I won’t let that happen!’ Ash immediately jumped to his feet, just in time to avoid losing 
by countdown. He winced at the sudden pain that shot through his body.

“Ash has stood on his feet! This match will resume!” Violet said, glad that Ash was 
alright.

Recca had a look on his face reflecting both surprise and amazement. “You know, for a 
moment, I actually thought I had you. I’m glad I was wrong.” He extended his fist, 
prepared to continue combat.

Ash closed his eyes for a beat, contemplating. ‘If I don’t win this match, I will be letting 
down my friends. This guy is powerful, and I don’t want Brock or Misty to get hurt…’ He 
clenched his trembling fist tightly. Once his eyes opened, Ash a whole new level of 
determination, one set on winning the tournament. “You’re not going to beat me that 
easily! BRING IT ON!”

Recca formed a tight fist in his hands, bursting with battle adrenaline and excitement. 
“That’s the spirit!”

(Never End – Siam Shade)

Recca stepped back defensively as he held out his right hand as Ash running towards 
him. It was time to get advanced. “Nadare, Saiha, combine!” Fire balls shaped as blades 
flew at Ash in swarms.

“Shadow Whip!” Ash lashed the dark energy whip at the fire blades, knocking them 
down with each swipe as he advanced.

SLASH!

Recca slid back after receiving a whip slash across his chest. “Saiha, Homura, combine!” 
At the call, a fire whip lashed out at Ash. This time, however, the whip had a bladed 
edge, which increased its striking power.

CLASH!

Both whips connected and created a sharp spark of conflict between the two powers. The 
two fighters circled each other continuously to find a good opening, only for their 
opponent to parry the attack and elongate the cycle.

After 3 minutes of exchanging attacks, Recca decided to bring out— “Setsuna!” he 
called out. At the name mentioned, everyone in the stadium closed their eyes.

“Ash, close your eyes! If we look into that dragon’s eyes, we’re finished!” Satoshi warned. 

‘I know, I know!’ Ash did as instructed and shut his eyes tight. A thought suddenly 
occurred to him. “If my eyes are closed, how will I be able to know when Recca—”

WHAM!

Ash caught a flying knee attack to his chin, sending him off the ground. The boy 
recovered and landed on his feet, wincing at the intense pain. He was about to open his 
eyes to strike back when he realized the dragon may still be out. ‘Satoshi, come on, help 
me out here!’

“Just follow the sound with your ears. It’s not that hard.”

‘Satoshi…you do realize I only trained for a week, and even then, we didn’t even practice 
that kind of training.’ Ash growled mentally, jumping back incase Recca was still on the 
move. ‘Just be my eyes.’

“And get MY body burned? No thanks!”

‘You’re a freaking ghost! What body?’

It took a moment for the fact to sink into Satoshi’s mind. “…Oh…right…”

‘…You’re pretty dumb for a warrior.’

“Just shut up and listen to whatever I say.” Satoshi opened his ghostly eyes, and sure 
enough, Setsuna was still out. “Quick, duck and punch upward!” He shouted hastily. Ash 
quickly dropped low to the ground, feeling something whiz by his head.

POW!

“Agh…!” Recca stumbled back and clutched onto his stomach. The blow took him by 
surprise. He tried a low sweep with his leg, but Ash leapt over and towards Recca with 
his shoulder.

WHAM!

The hokage ninja was knocked on his back from the shoulder rush. ‘Hmm…looks like he 
found a way past Setsuna. Time to let out the big guns.’ Recca recalled Setsuna back into 
his arm.

“Ash, Recca has called back his dragon. You can open your eyes now.” Satoshi informed 
his host. Ash slowly opened his eyes to see Recca standing across from him. There was a 
pause as both fighters tried to get their second wind.

“Man, those two are in a league of their own…” Domon said, sweating with anticipation. 

“Recca seems to have the upper hand in strength, but Ash proves his resilience and 
flexibility.” Mikagami said sagely.

“Does that mean they’re equal?” Yanagi asked.

“To some extent. But if it were me instead of Recca, this battle would’ve already been 
over. His moves are too sloppy and there were several chances he could’ve struck down 
Ash. Recca still has a ways to go.”

‘Why do I get the feeling Mikagami is being a smart ass…?’ Recca growled at the thought. 
He looked up to notice Ash lunging towards him with the Shadow Claw. “Fifth dragon, 
Madoka!”

CLASH!

“What…?” Both Ash and Satoshi gasped in surprise as the Shadow Claw was deflected 
by a red, transparent shield.

“That ain’t all he can do! Eat this!” Recca yelled, flashing his hand at Ash.

The moment Ash landed, his legs were suddenly encased in the barrier, immobilizing him. 
He tried hitting it, but only ended up hurting his own hand. “I can’t move…! Grr…!”

“I didn’t want to do this, but I have to use my ultimate dragon.” Recca stood back and 
held out his hand. Due to his continuous use of dragons, Recca’s body was reaching its 
limit. Using this attack was hard enough as it is. ‘I’ll use a low enough power so it won’t 
kill Ash, but it’ll definitely knock him out.’

‘I have to find a way out! Come on Ash, think, think!’ For Ash, his only real techniques 
were the Shadow Kick, Shadow Claw, Shadow Fist and Shadow Whip. With his feet 
glued to the floor, his options were severely limited. What made it worse was the fact he 
was running on practically zero mana. He only had enough to push for one more move, 
but what would it be? What could possibly get him out of his situation?

“Let’s go all the way…Seventh dragon, KOKUU!” Recca shouted. At that instant, a 
dragon with one eye and a sharp row of teeth flew out of Recca’s arm and stayed high in 
the air.

“What? He’s using Kokuu? He’s going to blow that kid to bits!” Fuuko screeched 
fearfully.

Mikagami narrowed his eyes. ‘Looks like they’re both at their limits. Recca knows this, 
which is why he’s going to end it now.’

Ash struggled as he saw Kokuu charging up a fire ball in his mouth. ‘Come on…I have to 
get out…!’

“And…FIRE!”

WHOOSH!

A devastating laser beam shot from the fire ball and towards Ash at a blinding pace. 
Everything seemed to go into slow motion at that moment.

In that same instant, Ash closed his eyes and clapped his hands together. Something at 
the back of his mind gave him a subtle message, enough to get it across what he had to 
do. “SHADOW SHIFT!”

CRASH! BOOM!

The beam shot through the floor where Ash stood, erupting the space in an explosion. 
Everyone gasped at the amount of destruction caused by Kokuu. Almost half of the 
Arena on Ash’s side was completely demolished by the beam. Smoke and debris were 
scattered across the battlefield.

Ash was nowhere in sight.

“Where did he go…?” Recca’s shoulders were slumped from the extreme use of energy 
he put into the battle. The last thing he wanted was for Ash to appear—

“Take this!” Ash shouted, leaping from the floor in front of Recca.

‘He…jumped from my shadow!?’ Recca only had time to gasp before Ash’s attack 
connected.

SMASH!

Ash’s fist slammed into Recca’s chin with a fierce uppercut. Recca was knocked into the 
air and on his back with a thud. Just then, the Spirit-Sync dissipated, leaving both Ash 
and Satoshi completely exhausted. He could barely stand up given how badly his legs 
were trembling.

From Violet’s point of view, it was clear to tell Recca was knocked out.

“And the winner for the final round in this tournament is ASH KETCHUM!” There was 
a loud roar throughout the stadium, all the pent up excitement and suspense from the 
battle exploding into a dramatic cheer. Misty, Brock and Pikachu ran to Ash’s side, as did 
Mikagami, Yanagi, Fuuko and Domon did for Recca.

Misty held onto Ash and lifted him so his arm was around her shoulder. “Ash, are you 
alright? Ash?”

“I…think I’ll live…just really tired…” Ash said slowly, still trying to catch his breath.

“You put up a good fight, man. We’re proud of ya.” Brock said with a smile.

“Pikapi, pika!” Pikachu cheered.

“Thanks guys.” Ash smiled. When he looked up, he saw Lily walking up to them.

“That was, like, such a great match! Congrats!” Lily said enthusiastically.

“It wasn’t easy, that’s for sure.” Ash sighed with relief.

“By the way, I just wanted to let you know that you guys have made it to the semi finals. 
I wanted to give you the list of pairings for tomorrow’s round.” Lily flipped through her 
clipboard until she landed on the desired page. “Ah, here we go…according to this…” 
After she read the listings, Ash, Misty and Brock were shocked beyond belief.

The pairings were as followed.

Soma versus Brock and Ash versus Misty.

--------------

Great…gods! About freaking time I finished. It took me several months, MONTHS to 
finish this chapter. I really do hope you appreciate the hard work I put in for you guys. It 
would give me great satisfaction if you can review and let me know how you like this 
chapter.