Gyarados, the Water-type Pokémon Ditto was most skilled at Transforming into.
Whether it was the physical training on the seafloor of Shadow Island and competing against Water-type Pokémon, or the training to conquer the glacier falls, it had all been carried out in Gyarados's form.
Therefore, Ditto was extremely familiar with Gyarados's body structure, and its skill in battle could be said to have reached almost perfection.
Duplica's mother's Ditto had Transformed into Feraligatr. Tetsuya did not know how many kinds of Pokémon this Ditto could Transform into, but this "Feraligatr" was very strong. Furthermore, Feraligatr was an amphibious Pokémon, giving it a wider range of attack options.
Gyarados's Aqua Tail swept powerfully toward Feraligatr. Feraligatr crossed its claws and stared directly at the Aqua Tail without the slightest fear.
Slash cleaved forward, instantly shattering the spiraling column of water from Aqua Tail. Feraligatr backflipped onto land and immediately fired Hydro Pump without the slightest pause.
"Waterfall."
Tetsuya gave the command. Waterfall could be considered Gyarados's strongest Water-type move. It was trained at the glacier falls, and Tetsuya was also very confident in it.
Gyarados swung its tail, sending water splashing throughout the pool. Immediately afterward, water surrounded Gyarados's entire body, while the water in the pool rose together with it as it charged fiercely toward Feraligatr.
Feraligatr's Hydro Pump was quickly broken through by Gyarados's Waterfall. It was completely unable to stand against it!
The power of the move even surprised Yuri, making her afraid to face it head-on.
"Feraligatr, retreat!"
Yuri shouted. A move like this left her no choice but to become tense. If Feraligatr were truly hit, the consequences would be really bad.
Feraligatr did not dare hesitate in the slightest, retreating more than ten meters through a succession of backflips and rolls; it didn't dare turn his back on Gyarados.
Gyarados crashed down onto the ground. With a thunderous boom, another large pool formed on the ground, one that was no smaller than the original.
The instant Gyarados landed, it swung Aqua Tail straight down, connecting the original pool with the newly formed and turning the entire area into a new body of water.
Feraligatr narrowly avoided Gyarados's lethal blow. It seemed there was already no possibility of defeating Gyarados in the water, but Gyarados also had very serious weaknesses. It could not move on land, and it was especially vulnerable to electricity…
"Ditto, Transform into… Zapdos." Yuri smiled faintly.
Tetsuya could not help sucking in two sharp breaths!
This Ditto could actually Transform into Zapdos…
That meant Duplica's mother must have some connection to Zapdos. Even if it was not her Pokémon, she had to be very familiar with it. Otherwise, there was no way Ditto could Transform into a Pokémon out of thin air.
Furthermore, there was no actual Zapdos present now, which meant Ditto had the transformation into Zapdos deeply imprinted in its mind…
Under Tetsuya's gaze, Ditto's body began to change. The Feraligatr from before gradually became a large golden bird amid a burst of white light.
The moment its transformation into Zapdos was complete, dark clouds immediately filled the sky, thunder rumbled, and lightning flashed!
'Damn it…'
Tetsuya could only inwardly lament his bad luck. Although Zapdos could be considered an "inconspicuous" presence among Legendary Pokémon, a Legendary was still a Legendary. Its power was far beyond that of ordinary Pokémon.
Even though its base "stat" total was lower than that of some regional pseudo-legendary Pokémon, Zapdos, as a Legendary Pokémon, had an extremely long lifespan and, clearly, plenty of room to improve, so its combat capacities had gradually increased through years of battle.
If Ditto remained in Gyarados's form now, there was only one path left for it… death!
A single Thunder would finish it off.
They were done fighting in the water, so they would take the battle to the sky…
"Zapdos, Thunder." Yuri gave the command. Thunder was guaranteed to hit under the current conditions. Zapdos did not even need to aim. It only needed to send Thunder crashing into the water.
"Ditto, Golurk!"
How could Tetsuya dare hesitate in the slightest at this point? Ditto burst out of the water, shook the droplets from its body, and Transformed into Golurk.
At that moment, Zapdos's Thunder came crashing down, striking Golurk. However, as a Ground-type Pokémon, Golurk was completely unafraid of Electric-type moves. After Thunder passed, it was completely unharmed.
Now it was an aerial battle, Golurk against Zapdos.
Zapdos's Electric-type moves had no effect on Golurk, while Golurk's Ground-type moves could do nothing to Zapdos either. This aerial battle would come down to which side had more aces at its disposal.
Tetsuya was extremely confident in his battle tactics, but even he was not confident that they could make up for the difference between this two species.
"Ditto, charge with High Horsepower and strike with Ice Punch."
Tetsuya commanded the first attack, hoping to seize the initiative. Golurk retracted both legs into its body and activated its rocket propulsion. Its body became enveloped in earthy-yellow energy, using the force of High Horsepower solely to increase the power of Ice Punch.
"Boi. Today I'll show you the power of a Ditto after it Transforms into Zapdos!" Yuri said, clearly extremely confident in her Ditto.
Golurk charged forward with tremendous force, both fists wreathed in freezing air as it gathered the energy of its entire body.
If this had been Tetsuya's actual Golurk, the power of this attack would have been unparalleled. The explosive force and brute strength Golurk had trained at the glacier falls were not something an average Pokémon could withstand unless it had extremely strong Defenses.
As the first Pokémon to conquer the glacier falls, that stage of training had improved Golurk's physical condition, strength, and resistance in every aspect!
The second stage of training at the glacier falls focused on instantaneous explosive power. Golurk had to complete everything in one continuous motion, charging up the glacier falls in a single burst without being allowed to stop. It needed to gather even greater strength and succeed in a single strike.
If Golurk itself were here, Tetsuya would have been much more confident…
Ditto was not Golurk, after all, and all of its capabilities would be somewhat reduced. Therefore, even Tetsuya had his doubts about facing this "ZapDittos".
But since the battle had already begun, even if the opponent were the creator Arceus itself, he would fight to the very end!
Golurk, Transformed from Ditto, charged at tremendous speed, closing in on Zapdos in an instant.
Zapdos did not even need a command from Yuri. With a turn of its body, it flew behind Golurk, after which white light surged around its entire body and its gaze became exceptionally sharp!