After registering, Ash and Brock entered the contestants' waiting room. Participants had to submit their registration certificates to the staff there to receive their match numbers.
Meanwhile, Emily and Misty headed to the audience stands with Pikachu to watch the tournament.
There were quite a lot of competitors. More than a dozen trainers were already inside the waiting room.
Most of them had Fighting-type Pokémon, with only a few bringing Pokémon of other types.
And then there was Brock—the odd one out—entering the tournament with Geodude, preparing to fight a whole crowd of Fighting-types.
Anthony stood nearby, speaking seriously with Hitmonchan, likely explaining battle strategies.
"Brock, you're the only one here with a Rock-type Pokémon," Ash said, noticing the strange looks from the surrounding trainers.
Many of them looked like they were hoping to face Brock's Geodude in the first round.
Most of the competitors were fairly young—around Brock's age—and many clearly had prior tournament experience.
A few rookie trainers had joined as well, but the veterans mostly ignored them. In their eyes, rookies probably didn't even understand proper battle tactics yet.
"My Geodude might be at a type disadvantage, but they won't beat me that easily," Brock said confidently while patting Geodude's sturdy head.
Brock rarely trained with Ash during their travels, so Geodude had only reached Lv. 24.
Fortunately, most of the trainers here had Pokémon around the same normal-level strength, with only a few entering elite-level Pokémon.
"If it gets too tough, just leave it to me," Ash said, lightly flicking the bulging vein on Primeape's forehead.
Primeape immediately looked ready to punch him.
"You're that trainer from earlier, aren't you?"
Anthony approached Ash. When he saw the energetic Primeape playing around beside him, he sensed that it wasn't ordinary.
Ash nodded in acknowledgment.
"You've trained your Primeape well."
Primeape stared at Hitmonchan, the cross-shaped vein on its forehead twitching.
"But it still won't beat my Hitmonchan. I hope we meet in the ring."
Anthony left with Hitmonchan, the two Pokémon still glaring at each other.
Just wait until I meet you… I'll beat you until you cry.
Ash couldn't understand where Anthony got the confidence to say something like that.
Maybe it came from all those years of finishing tournaments without winning.
Soon, staff members began calling out match numbers.
When a contestant's number was called, they headed out to battle.
Ash roughly estimated that each match lasted about three minutes, sometimes even shorter.
First Match
"Number 24 versus Number 8!"
After waiting for a while, Ash finally stepped into his first match.
He entered the arena with Primeape. His opponent was a flashy young man with a pompadour hairstyle, whose Pokémon was Machop.
Isn't that the guy who came with the trainer using Makuhita earlier?
The pompadour trainer felt uneasy the moment he locked eyes with Primeape.
"Machop, use Strength!"
As soon as the referee gave the signal, the trainer tried to strike first.
"Keep your distance—don't let it grab you," Ash commanded.
If Machop grabbed Primeape, it would probably follow up with a Seismic Toss combo.
Machop's muscles bulged as it lunged forward, trying to grab Primeape.
But its attempts kept missing.
Instead, Primeape occasionally landed quick punches in return.
"Use Karate Chop!" the trainer shouted anxiously.
If this continued, Machop would definitely lose.
"Cross Chop!"
Primeape blocked Machop's Karate Chop with both arms, shoved it backward—and then delivered a powerful kick straight to its chest.
Machop flew backward and tumbled right out of the ring.
Ash's first match ended easily.
Machop's level was far lower than Primeape's, so it stood no chance. Primeape barely took any damage.
As Ash stepped down from the arena, it was Brock's turn.
When Brock's opponent saw him walking up with Geodude, he burst out laughing.
This guy didn't even look like a rookie trainer.
So why was he entering Geodude into a Fighting tournament?
With those squinty eyes and calm expression, he definitely didn't look like a strong opponent.
This match looked like a free win.
"Hey man, be careful," the opponent mocked.
"Thanks for the advice," Brock replied calmly, ignoring the laughter around him.
What happened next surprised everyone.
Brock's Geodude fought fiercely, and his opponent's Makuhita was completely overwhelmed.
A matchup that should have been an easy win for a Fighting-type was overturned by Geodude.
Makuhita retreated from the ring in humiliating defeat.
"This is ridiculous!" the Makuhita trainer nearly vomited blood in frustration.
He had been completely led around by Brock's Geodude.
"You lack real battle experience. Go train a bit more," Brock said calmly.
This Geodude trainer actually had some serious skill.
Maybe he was the dark horse of this tournament…
Though admittedly, he was quite literally "dark."
Tournament Progress
"Number 24 versus Number 6!"
"Number 24 versus Number 37!"
Match after match continued.
Ash and Primeape won every battle, defeating several opponents and advancing all the way to the final round.
Their opponent in the finals—
Anthony's Hitmonchan.
Ash had faced Hitmonlee in the semifinals. Fortunately, it wasn't being commanded by Team Rocket this time, and he managed to win after a tough fight.
Brock's Geodude was eliminated in the third round.
Even so, winning two matches was already impressive given the type disadvantage.
In the end, Geodude simply couldn't overcome the matchup gap.
Meanwhile, Anthony's Hitmonchan fought its way to the finals.
In reality, Ash had unknowingly eliminated several strong opponents—including Hitmonlee—that Anthony would otherwise have faced.
But now Anthony had to face an even stronger opponent.
Primeape.
Anthony had spent more than ten years competing in this small tournament without ever winning the championship.
This time was probably his best chance.
But Ash had no intention of letting his dream come true.
"Primeape boy… I didn't expect you to become my opponent in the finals," Anthony said in surprise.
"Is winning this tournament really worth abandoning your family for?" Ash asked.
"I must win this championship."
Anthony avoided the question. His eyes were filled only with the desire for victory.
The audience wasn't surprised that Anthony reached the finals.
But Ash, a rookie trainer, had become the tournament's biggest dark horse, reaching the finals in his first participation.
"Hitmonchan, if we win this match, we'll finally achieve the championship we've dreamed of!"
Anthony said excitedly.
Hitmonchan punched the air eagerly.
All it had to do was defeat that monkey.
"Primeape, Focus Energy."
"Hitmonchan, Fake Out!"
Anthony had misjudged Ash's strategy.
Primeape didn't attack—instead it focused its energy, preparing for critical strikes.
"Sonic Punch!"
"Cross Chop!"
Hitmonchan's Mach Punch struck first, landing a fast blow on Primeape and interrupting its Cross Chop.
"Haha! Your Primeape isn't as fast as my Hitmonchan!" Anthony laughed confidently.
He could already imagine Primeape collapsing.
"You're celebrating too early."
Primeape remained standing in the ring, glaring at Hitmonchan with burning fury.
Hitmonchan rushed forward again, launching another lightning-fast punch.
Primeape didn't retreat.
Instead, it charged forward to meet it head-on.
Boom!
Their fists collided in midair.
Primeape felt the power in Hitmonchan's punch, forced it aside, and then countered with a heavy strike that sent Hitmonchan stumbling backward several steps.
Hitmonchan steadied itself, staring at Primeape with a serious expression.
"Mega Kick!"
Primeape didn't give it a chance to recover.
It leaped high into the air—
Then slammed down with a devastating kick.
That single strike shattered Anthony's championship dream.
PS: I've been releasing chapters daily . Honestly, it hurts seeing almost no support on Patreon after all that work.If you're enjoying the fic, even a little, supporting me would mean a lot. It helps a student stay independent .
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