Korrina's pupils contracted slightly. The fear in her chest was hard to shake. It was the same Bullet Punch, and yet her Lucario's hand speed had been completely suppressed. This was the first time.
Even so, this was still Ash's Lucario, and Korrina wasn't ordinary either. Even if she couldn't match her grandfather, she still had a Gym Trainer's eye. She could see that Ash's Lucario was clearly superior in raw skill, and losing that clash was inevitable.
But Korrina shook her head, casting aside the distracting thoughts. Her blue eyes blazed with fighting spirit. "The stronger the better! Lucario, unleash your power!"
Lucario stabilized his body, his right hand suddenly thrusting forward. An invisible force struck out from a distance toward Ash's Lucario. Aura Sphere.
"Dodge and counter with Bullet Punch!" Ash reacted swiftly.
Ash's Lucario dodged to the side, the Aura Sphere grazing his fur as it flew past. It hit the ground behind him and blew out a shallow crater. He pushed off, his right fist gleaming like metal, and shot forward like a bullet toward the opponent.
At this moment, Korrina's Lucario deliberately revealed an opening. Seeing the Bullet Punch about to land, Korrina cried out.
"Now! Counter!"
Korrina's Lucario glowed with a strange light. He took Ash's Bullet Punch head-on, and in the instant of impact, absorbed and concentrated the force, then multiplied it and struck his opponent right back.
"Oh no!" Misty exclaimed from the sidelines.
Ash remained unmoved. "Lucario, Detect!"
At the critical moment, Ash's Lucario's eyes flashed with blue light, channeling Aura at full strength. Every muscle tremor and every subtle flow of the opponent's energy was clearly picked up. His body twisted at an unimaginable angle, and he narrowly slipped the counter, then sent Korrina's Lucario flying with the returned force.
"What?" Korrina's eyes went wide.
That combination move was a technique she and her Lucario had spent a long time drilling. Deliberately create an opening to lure the opponent into attacking, then absorb and rebound the force with a fatal blow.
Normally, after an opponent used a move, their body would experience a brief stiffness, and combined with her Lucario's advance preparation, the hit rate on that combo was nearly a hundred percent. But Ash's Lucario had actually used Detect at that exact moment.
Absolutely insane.
Detect and Protect were similar but distinct moves. One could block any same-tier attack, the other could evade any attack with a hundred percent chance. The effects were different, but the result was roughly the same. Both neutralized the opponent's attack.
However, Detect wasn't quite the same as Protect. Although it had the same absolute preemptive quality, it required much stricter body control. Given Ash's Lucario's posture just now, even if he'd Detected the counter, he shouldn't have been able to dodge it.
Besides raw strength, Ash's Lucario was clearly something else. There had to be something special about him.
But no matter how unique Ash's Lucario was, Korrina wouldn't lose. In terms of bond with her Pokémon, she and Lucario were absolutely not weaker than anyone else in the world. Whatever gap existed in raw strength, they'd close it with bond and understanding.
"Lucario, Bone Rush!"
Korrina's Lucario brought her hands together and condensed Aura into two gleaming white bone staves, sweeping them in a storm-like offensive.
A glint of light flashed in Ash's eyes, and he immediately shouted, "Lucario, Close Combat!"
Ash's Lucario charged forward. His fists, elbows, knees, and feet transformed into a relentless barrage of strikes, each blow carrying incredible force. Even with the twin staves in her hands, Korrina's Lucario was constantly pushed back.
Even so, despite the strength of these close-combat strikes, they couldn't put Korrina's Lucario down in such a short time. Ash's Lucario only had a slight upper hand. That situation brought a look of joy to Korrina's face, but it also caused Gurkinn's eyebrows to draw together.
Korrina was happy that her Lucario could actually hold back Ash's Lucario's attacks, which she clearly attributed to her Lucario's richer battle experience. But that was just her surface read.
Her Lucario was only a Mid-High level. For a Pokémon of that rank, this level of performance was already remarkable. But standing across from Ash's Lucario, that judgment was insufficient. Ash's Lucario was Elite Four. Elite Four and anything below Elite Four were entirely different weight classes. Battle experience could compensate for some of a level difference, but not for a gap this wide.
Despite her granddaughter's happy expression, Gurkinn could see that Ash's Lucario wasn't simply "a bit above the average Elite Four." In terms of stat totals, Ash's Lucario could probably already sweep an Elite Four Beginner, and even a normal Mid Elite Four might not necessarily match him on stats. Under those conditions, how could Korrina's Lucario possibly hold him to an even match?
"This Lucario." Gurkinn stood on the sidelines, a strange expression flashing in his cloudy eyes. "He's learning."
The older the ginger, the sharper the taste. Gurkinn had ultimately been playing along with Ash and his Lucario to figure out the real purpose. Ash's Lucario, despite his fierce attacks, clearly wasn't producing the raw power of a Champion-level Pokémon.
Instead, his originally somewhat rough combos in battle became more effective the longer the exchange went on. His movements grew more fluid. The unnecessary passive attacks disappeared. His attack paths grew more cunning. He was absorbing his opponent's battle experience, converting Lucario's veteran combat sense into his own.
Combat experience was normally something you could only accumulate through steady daily fighting, constant training, and hard-won accumulated wisdom. But there were shortcuts. Simply battling a same-species Pokémon with more experience could allow you to learn far more from each of their moves than you'd learn through routine combat.
To do this, though, you had to withstand your opponent's more experienced attacks first. And then engage in close-quarters combat, using your own body to memorize the opponent's attack paths. To achieve this over two hours, you needed to be significantly stronger than your opponent.
Otherwise, engaging with a same-species Pokémon of greater experience easily led to a dead end. Furthermore, using your own body to absorb the opponent's attacks was very dangerous. You could easily be defeated before you'd learned anything.
However, that being said, the stronger a Pokémon was, the less combat experience it tended to have compared to its opponents. Pokémon like Ash's Lucario, whose sheer talent was that extreme, were actually rare.
Ash's Lucario had immense natural ability, which was why, despite little combat experience, he had already reached Elite Four level. Korrina's Lucario wasn't lacking in talent either, but he paled in comparison to Ash's. Which was why the current scene in the arena was playing out this way.
The weaker Pokémon had more practical combat experience, while the stronger Pokémon was suppressing his strength in order to learn more battle techniques.
Korrina didn't notice anything unusual. On the contrary, she looked pleased that Lucario was managing to block Ash's Lucario's attacks.
"Good! Keep pressing him! Lucario, Metal Sound smash!" Lucario's bone staves instantly vanished, his right hand transforming into a bladed chop, unleashing a sharp diagonal slash.
Ash's eyes flashed. "ThunderPunch!"
Ash's Lucario's right fist was enveloped in lightning. He didn't dodge or evade, and met the attack head-on. Fist and palm collided, lightning scattering in every direction.
Korrina's Lucario was pushed back half a step, but quickly stabilized his stance and counterattacked with an elbow strike. Ash's Lucario ducked, his knee thrusting sharply toward the opponent's abdomen, but Korrina's Lucario precisely blocked with the other hand.
The two once again locked into a fierce exchange. Fists and feet colliding, every move landing flesh on flesh. Time passed, minute by minute. The battle between the two Lucarios grew more intense. Fists howled, kicks crisscrossed, every collision made the air hum.
Another ThunderPunch clashed against a countering blow. Lightning flashed and exploded in the same instant. The ground beneath their feet finally cracked apart, sending debris flying in every direction.
But Korrina was starting to feel something was wrong. If it had been a complex battle of maneuvers, her Lucario's experience could just barely keep up with the opponent. But now, using the same moves on both sides and fighting on equal footing, that shouldn't have been possible.
"You. You actually let your Lucario learn our moves during battle!" Korrina said, her eyes wide with a mixture of shock and fear.
Hearing this, Ash smirked. "Thanks, Korrina. This is the most important reason I came to challenge the Gym, isn't it? Thanks to you, my Lucario has gained a lot of battle experience."
"Lucario is actually the youngest Pokémon on my team. Only Togepi is younger, and Gardevoir is roughly the same age, but Gardevoir has her teacher. Lucario can only learn from me. I've always wanted him to fight against more experienced Pokémon of his own kind, but Lucario is so rare, and until I heard news of the Shalour Gym, I didn't know of any Trainer with one."
Ash slowly explained his reason for challenging the Shalour Gym. Plenty of Gym Leaders had Mid-level Pokémon, but Ash had only heard of one Gym Leader with a Lucario, and that was here. As the Gym Leader, this Lucario's experience was definitely strong, at least stronger than Ash's own Lucario.
Ash himself could teach Lucario the application of Aura Power, but as for actual combat experience in martial arts, even the Aura Warrior's inheritance could only teach the introductory techniques. To improve combat experience, you had to fight.
But Lucario hadn't fought many times. His current level was basically earned through training. This was mainly related to Ash's travel timeline. He had only been on the road for less than a year. Many of his Pokémon had already reached High level, everyone advancing step by step, and because everyone's talent was high, none of them had stayed at any one level for long.
That meant Lucario had barely had time to accumulate real battle experience while climbing from High to Elite level. The exceptions on the team were the frequently-appearing Charizard and Pikachu. The remaining Pokémon actually had combat experience that didn't quite match their current levels, and Lucario was the most severely affected.
So Ash thought that even though Lucario's opponent wasn't a very high-level Pokémon, this battle could still teach a lot.
"Fine, being used as a whetstone? Then let's Mega Evolve!" Korrina gritted her teeth, crossing her arms in front of her chest. The stone on the back of her right hand emitted a dazzling beam of light.
On the field, Lucario suddenly exerted force, breaking through his opponent. After several backflips, he puffed out his chest, and a dazzling gem appeared inside his body. His Mega Stone. The Key Stone connected with the Mega Stone, and Lucario's form began to change. A few seconds later, Mega Lucario stood on the field.
"Mega Evolution? So this is the Mega Stone that your family passed down through the generations?" Seeing Lucario's Mega Evolution, Ash wasn't too surprised. Before the battle, Korrina had already mentioned it was because of him that their family had discovered the function of their inherited Mega Stone. But hearing about it and seeing it were two different things. Now, watching Mega Lucario stand across from him, the feeling was still strange.
"Not bad. My Lucario is now unbeatable. Even if there's a level gap between him and your Lucario, the bond between us will make up for it." Korrina placed her hands at her sides, her small chest puffed out proudly.
Seeing this, Ash's competitive spirit stirred.
"Bond, huh? The bond between me and Lucario won't lose to anyone. Let's go, Mega Evolution!"
Originally not intending to Mega Evolve in this battle, Ash raised his right hand high. Stone light flickered at his wrist. Ash's Lucario also instantly changed his stance. A few seconds later, two Mega Lucarios stood on the field.
Misty and the others widened their eyes, watching without moving. Two Mega-Evolved Pokémon of the same species fighting each other, this was the first time.
"Using Mega Evolution too. Lucario, strike first, Extreme Speed!" Korrina's smug expression faded, her demeanor turning serious as she quickly issued the command.
"Close Combat!"
Compared to Korrina's tense response, Ash showed no sign of panic. Two simple words, however, instantly made Korrina tense. Her Lucario had already taken considerable damage. If he got hit by another close-range Fighting-type move, his stamina might be completely drained. But her Lucario's ace was speed, so he was unlikely to be caught by the opponent.
Mega Lucario's figure instantly vanished, tearing through the air with a sharp, explosive sound. The next moment, his right fist was aimed directly at Ash's Lucario's face. Just as the fist was about to touch fur, Ash's Mega Lucario moved.
His eyes didn't even shift, yet his body seemed to anticipate the strike. With a slight tilt, he let the incoming fist, carrying immense energy, graze past his face. While dodging, his own right fist was already loaded with power. Ash's Lucario slightly bent his body, and the punch he'd been preparing struck his opponent's abdomen.
A heavy impact rang out through the Gym. Korrina's Mega Lucario's eyes widened, his body curled up like a shrimp, and he was sent flying backward as if hit by a cannon.
"Lucario!" Korrina cried out, her eyes wide with shock. But nothing could change the fact that Lucario was slammed against the boundary wall of the arena.
Boom! The wall cracked, rubble tumbling down. Korrina's Lucario slid down the wall, and the moment he hit the ground, his Mega Evolution dissipated.
The outcome of this battle had been decided very suddenly. The winner was Ash's Lucario.