Right in front of them, water poured down from a height of dozens of meters, crashing violently into the deep pool below. The splashing droplets shimmered in the air, reflecting light into a faint, curved rainbow that stretched across the mist.
Silas and Cyclizar stopped at the riverbank, their gazes locking onto the figure beneath the waterfall.
There, a Pokémon sat cross-legged in meditation, using the immense force of the waterfall to temper its body.
Feeling the reaction from the Mightiest Mark in his palm, Silas spoke softly, "No mistake, it is the one that Celebi mentioned, that incredibly powerful Greninja."
The Greninja, deep in its training, sensed their presence. In a flash, its figure vanished and reappeared directly in front of them.
"Nin~"
"Yes, that's right. I'm here to capture you." Silas nodded without hesitation and tossed out the Mightiest Mark.
A purplish red light flared from Greninja's body, striking the Mightiest Mark. The two forces clashed briefly before the item fell back into Silas's hand, now devoid of its energy.
It had been absorbed.
That meant Greninja had accepted the challenge.
Greninja instantly distanced itself, forming hand signs like a true ninja. One hand pointed toward the sky, its sharp gaze fixed firmly on Silas and Cyclizar.
"Charca!"
Charcadet looked up at Silas eagerly, expressing its desire to battle and win this fight for him.
Charcadet versus Greninja?
Even evolving once would not be enough.
Armarouge might be known for its immense firepower, but fire and psychic types were completely countered by Greninja's water and dark typing. It was a hard counter in every sense.
Meeting Charcadet's hopeful eyes, Silas gently shook his head. "No. You're still too small. You're not a match for Greninja yet."
Charcadet lowered its head, letting out a soft, subdued cry. It looked dejected.
Ever since coming to the ranch, aside from accompanying Silas while fishing or helping regulate the mushroom house temperature, it had very few chances to truly contribute. For a proud Pokémon like it, that was frustrating.
Silas took out a piece of Lava Cookie and fed it to Charcadet, then spoke with a serious expression, "I have an important task for you."
"Charca!" The little Pokémon straightened instantly, full of spirit. "Guaranteed completion."
"Good, very energetic." Silas nodded in satisfaction. "You'll be in charge of perimeter security. Don't let any wild Pokémon interfere with our battle."
Simple-minded and earnest, Charcadet accepted the mission wholeheartedly. It trotted to the outer area, its fiery eyes scanning the surroundings with vigilance, determined to fulfill its duty.
As for the wild Pokémon, they wanted nothing to do with this. With two terrifying powerhouses about to clash, they would rather run for their lives than get involved.
Shifting his focus back, Silas raised his hand and pointed forward. "Cyclizar, this battle is yours."
"Cyc!"
Cyclizar stretched its body, stepping forward to stand before Silas, facing Greninja across the water.
The strongest Greninja had issued its challenge. The battle began instantly.
At the very moment the fight started, Greninja moved at incredible speed, closing the distance in the blink of an eye. Its movements were ghostlike, impossible to track.
In an instant, countless Greninja appeared in front of Cyclizar, thousands of identical figures rushing forward simultaneously.
Double Team.
A signature move, hiding the real body among countless illusions before launching an unexpected attack.
Every single Greninja raised its right hand. Flying type energy condensed into short, gleaming blades, all slashing toward Cyclizar at once.
Aerial Ace.
Cyclizar instinctively stepped back half a step. Facing such an overwhelming number of targets, fear was inevitable.
But strong Pokémon shared one key trait, rapid adaptation.
Cyclizar flicked its tail, searching for the real body while shifting into a battle stance.
"If you can't find it, then forget it. Spin and wipe them all out!"
Cyclizar blinked rapidly to steady itself, then roared in response.
Its body shifted from battle form into riding form, bursting forward like it had activated a nitro boost.
The spinning motion created a violent whirlwind. Rocks and grass from the ground were swept up, forming a massive green tornado.
As the approaching Greninja clones entered the tornado's range, they were instantly shredded by the violent airflow, bursting into white smoke and vanishing one after another.
After eliminating all the clones, Cyclizar slowed down and came to a stop, a puzzled look appearing on its face.
"Above you, watch out!"
Silas's warning came from behind.
Greninja suddenly appeared directly above Cyclizar.
Just as Cyclizar looked up, Greninja launched its attack.
Gripping with both hands, it formed an enormous Water Shuriken and hurled it downward with full force.
The massive spinning blade tore through the air, packed with intense water type energy, accompanied by a piercing sound.
BOOM!
Water and debris exploded outward, carving out a shallow crater several meters wide. The pool surged, waves rising half a meter high.
After the attack, Greninja teleported to the top of the waterfall, crossing its arms confidently.
Countless powerful opponents had fallen to its giant shuriken.
Today would be no different.
As the strongest Greninja, it had absolute confidence.
But was that truly the case?
There was indeed a level difference between them, but with double resistance and Cyclizar's durability, it was far from being instantly defeated.
Not to mention that the earlier Rapid Spin had boosted its speed by one stage, allowing it to react in time.
Silas remained completely calm.
By the time Greninja realized something was wrong, it was already too late.
Using the explosion as cover, Cyclizar had quietly completed two rounds of Shift Gear.
Now its attack was plus two, and its speed had skyrocketed to plus five.
Silas exchanged a knowing smile with Cyclizar. At this moment, he could have raised both hands and declared to the world that Cyclizar was unstoppable.
This was the cost of failing to finish the opponent.
It was also the result of Greninja's arrogance after being undefeated for too long.
Now, it was time for it to pay the price.
Silas's expression sharpened as he gave the command, "Thunder Fang!"
With boosted attack and a double type advantage, Greninja had no way to withstand it.
Trying to dodge with speed or counterattack was impossible.
Cyclizar was now far faster, moving so quickly it left only afterimages, almost like teleportation.
In a flash, Thunder Fang landed cleanly.
Greninja's stamina dropped sharply into the red.
It attempted to retaliate with Shadow Sneak, but the attack struck nothing.
It could not even catch Cyclizar's shadow, completely suppressed in every direction.
A follow-up Dragon Tail slammed into Greninja, sending it flying like a cannonball before crashing down in front of Silas.
At that very moment, Silas threw out a Dive Ball.
He had specifically bought it for this capture.
Click.
Greninja was drawn into the ball. The Dive Ball fell to the ground and began to shake violently.
Cyclizar returned to Silas's side, raising its tail high, ready to strike and knock Greninja out if necessary.
The red light on the ball blinked on and off as it rocked back and forth.
Once.
Twice.
It entered the third shake…
(End of Chapter)