"AGGRON—!!"
Aggron let out a pained roar.
CRACK!
Its impossibly tough armor shattered apart, and its massive body slammed heavily into the ground with a miserable cry.
Chidori's piercing power was terrifying.
It had punched straight through Aggron's steel armor.
Aggron stared at Greninja in horror.
What the hell is this!?
My strongest armor got destroyed in one hit!?
Is this thing even a Pokémon!?
Are you a living drill or something!?
"Finish it, Greninja."
"Use Rasenshuriken."
From atop Gyarados, Aaron's calm voice rang out.
Aggron's pupils instantly shrank as danger flooded through its entire body.
"ROOOAR!!"
Aggron forced itself back to its feet and let out a furious roar.
Dense earth-yellow energy burst from its body and gathered around its iron-hard head, forming two massive axe-like horns that radiated terrifying pressure.
Cold light gleamed from them.
Head Smash.
A Rock-type move with a base power of 150.
With STAB, its destructive power became even more terrifying.
And thanks to Aggron's Rock Head Ability, it would suffer no recoil damage.
An unbelievably powerful move.
...
At the same time, Greninja raised its right hand, palm facing upward.
Powerful blue-white energy rapidly condensed above it.
WHIRRRR—
As the energy gathered, a giant sphere nearly two meters wide spun above Greninja's palm.
Several windmill-like blades formed around the spiraling sphere, rotating at terrifying speed while releasing overwhelming pressure.
RUMBLE!
Greninja's scarf-like tongue cape whipped wildly in the wind.
Rocks tore free from the ground and rose into the air, pulled upward by the energy gathering in its hand.
Cracks spread across the earth.
Thin white streaks appeared throughout the surrounding air, as if the atmosphere itself had been cut into threads.
"Grenin..."
Greninja's expression sharpened.
Holding the terrifying Rasenshuriken, it charged straight toward Aggron and slammed it down.
"ROOOAR!!"
The axe-like horns above Aggron's head erupted with blinding light as they collided head-on with Greninja's Rasenshuriken.
BOOOOOOM!!!
In an instant, a blinding white flash exploded outward.
Then an earth-shaking explosion tore through the battlefield.
The ground split open.
Trees were ripped away in an instant.
A gigantic mushroom cloud rose into the sky, like the detonation of a miniature nuke.
BZZZZZZT!
Terrifying shockwaves surged outward one after another, sweeping through everything in every direction like colossal tidal waves.
Within several hundred meters, nothing remained standing.
Trees snapped apart one after another.
The destruction was terrifying.
The old man and Moss were nearly blown away by the violent shockwave, but Scizor arrived just in time, grabbing both of them and retreating onto a distant tree.
Only then did they narrowly avoid being caught in the blast.
WHOOOOOSH—
The violent wind howled as the thick smoke slowly dispersed.
After some time, the smoke finally cleared, revealing the center of the explosion.
"This is..."
Standing atop a giant tree, Moss, the old man, and Scizor stared into the distance, mouths slightly open and faces filled with disbelief.
A gigantic crater came into view.
It looked like a meteor impact crater, spanning more than fifty meters across.
Greninja stood in the center of the crater, still in its Bond Phenomenon Form, without a single visible injury.
Its cloak snapped in the wind.
Pale mist curled around its feet as the last traces of energy faded from the impact site.
It looked calm.
Completely untouched by the devastation around it.
...
At the center of the crater, all that remained of Aggron were scattered fragments.
Its original form could no longer be recognized.
It was dead.
Killed by the frog it had once looked down on.
Titan, the S-rank Pokémon Hunter, had been completely wiped out.
One man.
Six Pokémon.
Not a single survivor remained.
In the sky above, Aaron stood atop Gyarados's head with an indifferent expression, as though he had merely stepped over an obstacle.
The golden aura around his body slowly faded as he returned to normal.
His Pokémon also reverted to their original forms.
The battle was finally over.
As a mere Gym-level Trainer, Aaron had defeated a peak-stage Champion-class Trainer head-on.
Not only that, he had annihilated the opponent's entire team.
If word of this spread, no one would believe an eighteen-year-old boy had accomplished such a feat.
...
Aaron rode Gyarados over to the old man and Moss.
"Grandpa, Moss."
"Are you two alright?"
Both the old man and Moss shook their heads, indicating they were fine.
Admiration filled Moss's eyes as he looked at Aaron.
"Aaron... you're seriously incredible."
"So when you fought me before, you weren't even using your full strength."
"I've decided."
"I'll make you my goal and keep training until I become stronger."
"One day, I hope you'll fight me again."
"And next time... I want to force you to use your full power."
Moss spoke with complete seriousness.
Aaron smiled slightly.
"Alright."
"It's a promise."
Aaron extended his fist.
Moss bumped his own against it.
Beneath the setting sun, the two made their promise.
When they met again in the future, what kind of story would unfold between them?
No one knew.