Pokémon: Simultaneous time travel, this Ash is too versatile!

Chapter 252 A crushing defeat, Cynthia's plea, protect the sea god!

"Electric Shock!" Ash decided to risk everything and use Electric Shock. In a head-on collision, this was the only move that had a chance of winning, even if the chance was extremely slim.

The Pikachu that charged toward Togekiss initially had only a faint electric aura on its body, but then its electricity suddenly surged more than tenfold!
Its body was completely covered by golden lightning, turning its entire body into a deep golden color. The terrifying power made the surrounding air tremble.

"boom!!"

The deep blue Brave Bird charged forward and collided with the golden high-voltage electric shock, unleashing an unprecedentedly terrifying sound. The entire arena shook, and light and shockwaves spread across the entire field.

All the power was firmly locked inside the psychic barrier set up by Mewtwo; otherwise, everything around would probably have been swallowed up by the aftershocks.

The shockwaves, like those of a ferocious lion, repeatedly pounded against the azure barrier, yet they couldn't even create a ripple. A strange light flickered in Cynthia's beautiful eyes; the power of a god-level being was indeed extraordinary.

Even the league's top-tier barrier would tremble slightly in such a shockwave, and might even develop some cracks.

However, even if cracks appear, they can be repaired instantly. The Alliance's barrier is indeed not very strong in terms of instantaneous defense, but it is still top-notch in terms of long-term defense. As long as it is not shattered in one hit, it can be repaired instantly.

However, compared to Mewtwo's barrier, that thing is nothing.

The solidity of the thing in front of her was unimaginable; even a champion at their peak might not be able to budge it.

Ash never expected that at the most crucial moment of the clash between the two Pokémon, Cynthia wasn't thinking about the outcome of the match, but instead focused all her attention on Mewtwo's barrier.

Cynthia didn't care, but he couldn't. He could feel the terrifying damage his body was enduring, both physical and mental. It was the first time he had ever experienced such horrific harm.

Even when he clashed with Mewtwo, he didn't suffer such severe damage because Mewtwo didn't break through his defenses much. But now, the damage he suffers depends not on himself, but on Pikachu's defense.

In other words, it's similar to a real injury. His own defense is practically non-existent; the only thing he can withstand is his stamina, or physical ability.

Without the support of Aura, Ash can hardly be considered a god-level being. Although his physical strength is strong, it has not yet reached the point where his physical body can rival that of a god. Therefore, this kind of true damage is still quite difficult for Ash to withstand at the moment.

Even if it's tough, he has to stay upright! If even he collapses, Pikachu's fate is even worse. If he can hold on, then Pikachu still has a sliver of hope...

The aftershocks of the shock lasted for several tens of seconds, and the two intertwined lights slowly dissipated, leaving the arena in a mess.

The once smooth ground became uneven and pitted, with many places even having bottomless holes. These were all damages caused by the collisions between Pikachu and Togekiss.

The ejected lightning and the falling flight-type energy ultimately caused this damage.

Xiaogang and Xiaoxia both turned their gazes toward the battlefield, eager to know the outcome.

As the last dust settled in the arena, the final outcome was revealed. Togekiss was covered in injuries, but she remained suspended above the ground, while Pikachu lay quietly on the ground, motionless.

The result is obvious: Cynthia has won.

Ash plopped down on the ground, the faint aura emanating from his body disappearing. He had withstood the pressure of Brave Bird's attack, but Pikachu couldn't.

Even with the high-voltage shock filtering out much of the damage, and Brave Bird's Strike only dealing a third of the damage, Pikachu still couldn't withstand it, simply because the level difference between the two was too great...

Once Pikachu's defenses are breached, even a small amount of damage from a Champion-level opponent can be fatal to it. Don't forget, Pikachu is currently only at the Gym Leader level.

"Alright, that's all for now. Mewtwo, could you please open the barrier?" Cynthia clapped her hands, announcing the end of the battle, then looked at Mewtwo with her beautiful eyes and made a request.

Mewtwo nodded, and with a somewhat unpleasant expression, opened the barrier.

Seeing Ash lose the match, she felt a little empty inside, even though it was the most normal outcome. She had anticipated this result from the very beginning of the battle.

With his god-level strength, it would be incredibly easy for him to discern Cynthia Togekiss's power. A Champion-level powerhouse facing a Pikachu that's only at the peak of the Gym level—unless Pikachu can pull off the miracle that Lucario did when it battled her, there's absolutely no chance of victory for it.

As she had predicted, Ash and Pikachu tried their best, but could only barely raise their strength to Champion level, and even then, it was just a superficial Champion level.

They possess the energy of a champion, but their bodies simply can't keep up. If they encounter an equally matched opponent, it's manageable, but if they face an opponent stronger than themselves, and their energy can't keep up during the confrontation, allowing the opponent to penetrate their energy and strike their body, then it would be extremely fatal.

Just like now.

Actually, Pikachu's ability to last that long far exceeded Mewtwo's expectations. If it were anyone else, this would have been an absolutely perfect battle. After all, who else could fight to this extent between a Gym Leader and a Champion?
But he was Ash, and Mewtwo discovered that she didn't like seeing Ash lose. This was the first time she had seen Ash lose, which is why she realized this feeling in her heart.

Meanwhile, after Mewtwo removed the barrier, Ash stood up, then ran over to Pikachu and gently picked it up.

"Pika Pika..." Pikachu opened its eyes weakly after being picked up by Ash, and murmured something.

"It's okay... It's just one failure. You can win next time. Let me heal you first." Ash comforted Pikachu, channeling the power of Viridian into Pikachu's body to help it recover from its injuries.

"Come back, Togekiss, thank you for your hard work." Cynthia recalled Togekiss and then walked gracefully to Ash.

The weakened Pikachu and Cynthia exchanged a glance. The latter bent down and gently stroked Pikachu's fluffy head with her delicate hand: "Little guy, you did very well. You exceeded my expectations in every aspect. With your help, your trainer will be able to stand at the top of the world sooner or later. It's just that you are still a bit immature right now."

After their defeat, the enemy came to comfort them—a feeling Ash and Pikachu were experiencing for the first time, as they had never lost a battle as a team since their debut. This was their first defeat, and a particularly crushing one at that.

Throughout the journey, Ash has experienced defeats, but he has never lost while using Pikachu before; this is the first time.

In terms of strength, tactics, and every other aspect, he was completely overwhelmed by Cynthia.

He's only been a trainer for half a year, and he's already quite proud of what he's achieved, but neither Ash nor Pikachu are willing to give up.

This wasn't a defeat like Charizard vs. Glaceon, where one move was slightly off, but a defeat where the opponent completely overwhelmed the Charizard in every aspect.

Since his debut, this was the first time Ash had experienced such pure suppression at the trainer level. His every move was seen through by the other, while he could not see through the other's actions.

Many times, the advantage was gained entirely by the convenience of the Aura Force, which allowed them to predict the opponent's actions. However, even if they predicted the opponent's actions, they still couldn't dodge the opponent's attacks because the difference in strength was too great.

Cynthia's words of comfort made Ash and Pikachu feel a little better, but they still felt a strong sense of resentment. Pikachu, in particular, had an intense desire to become stronger because, in a sense, it was the one who had dragged Ash down.

If he weren't so weak, Ash wouldn't have been injured like this.

But that's all for the future. Now, a loss is a loss. Without using Mewtwo and Gengar, Ash had no chance of beating Cynthia. This was actually predetermined. Ash just wanted to use Bond Pact to overcome the level difference.

As it turns out, bonds aren't a magic bullet. A significant level difference is still a significant problem, and it's not just a level difference; Ash was also outmatched by Cynthia in terms of the number of trainers he had trained.

He is still too young.

"Should we go to the Pokémon Center first?" Cynthia asked softly, seeing Pikachu's weak appearance.

"No need, it'll recover quickly." Ash shook his head, declining Cynthia's offer. Under the healing power of his Viridian, Pikachu was back to its energetic self in just a few minutes.

Upon hearing this, Cynthia was slightly taken aback. Ash wasn't the type to let his Pokémon suffer from injuries, so why wasn't he taking Pikachu to get treatment despite its serious injury? Did he have some other method?
"Don't worry, Miss Cynthia. Ash possesses the power of Viridian, which can heal Pokémon. Moreover, his Viridian power has grown to a very strong level. Even a top-tier Gym Leader Pokémon wouldn't need long to recover." His good friend Brock revealed all of Ash's information.

The fact that one possesses the power of the Everlasting Stones is not something that can be easily revealed to others, but if that person is Cynthia, then it's a different story. After all, she is the champion, and naturally she wouldn't have any ulterior motives towards Ash.

“The Power of Viridian… I’ve heard of it. It seems to be a gift from the Viridian Forest to certain humans, a power that only a very few humans living in the Viridian Forest can possess. And it’s just a legend. In fact, no one has ever appeared who possesses the Power of Viridian.” Cynthia said, looking at Ash with surprise in her beautiful eyes.

Besides the power of Aura, Ash also possesses the power of Viridian. Just how many secrets does this boy hold?

He is like a black hole, containing endless things that no matter how much one tries to explore, one can never fully understand.

A few minutes later, Pikachu's external injuries had completely disappeared. Pikachu then jumped out of Ash's arms, shook its arms, and barked at Ash with great enthusiasm, indicating that it was completely healed.

"So fast? That's even faster than the Pokémon Center's recovery speed." Cynthia, who was calm and collected during the battle, was now repeatedly surprised. Ash's recovery speed for Pokémon was simply too fast. Pikachu's injuries would probably take an hour or two to recover at the Pokémon Center.

But Ash only used it for a few minutes now, this recovery ability... might be useful to that little guy too.

"It's alright. Pikachu's level isn't actually that high. The higher the level of a Pokémon, the longer it takes to recover. If Miss Cynthia doesn't mind, you can release Togekiss. Although she hasn't lost her ability to battle, her injuries must be quite severe." Ash stood up from his kneeling position, dusted off his knees, and turned to Cynthia.

“Okay, thank you.” Cynthia didn’t refuse and released Togekiss without hesitation.

She had originally planned to go to the Pokémon Center with Ash, but Ash ended up healing Pikachu instead. If Ash hadn't made that suggestion, she would have asked him for help.

After all, she wanted to see just how effective Ash's Viridian Power was at restoring Pokémon. If it could easily restore even a Champion-level Pokémon, then it should also have an effect on that Pokémon.

Ash's Viridian Power, while not as effective as it was on Pikachu, also restored Togekiss to its perfect condition within minutes, as Togekiss's injuries were not as severe.

Cynthia's eyes flashed with a strange light before she recalled Togekiss: "I have something I want to tell you, Ash."

"what?"

"Go in and talk."

……

In the living room, Ash, Cynthia, and her two friends sat upright on one sofa, while Cynthia sat on a separate sofa. Cynthia's expression was slightly solemn, which was the reason why Ash, Cynthia, and her friends had such expressions.

From the moment Cynthia called them in, they sensed that she had something very important to say. For Cynthia to show such an expression, it must be something significant.

"Then I'll get straight to the point, Ash. I want to ask you to protect a Pokémon."

"Protect a spirit? What kind of spirit?"

"Lugia, God of the Sea."

Ash and his two friends: ? ? ?
Countless question marks appeared above the heads of the three, and their expressions instantly became extremely strange. This was mainly because what Cynthia said was too hard to bear. What did she mean by protecting the sea god Lugia?
Do they even need to protect the sea god?!

(End of this chapter)