Chương 39: The Predestined Ending

The first match ended faster than expected.

One minute later, the smoke and dust dissipated.

The cunning tengu knelt on the ground, panting heavily, while Gara Gara had lost the ability to fight.

"We won!! Long live Sinnoh!!"

"That's a great start! Let's crush Kanto!!"

"..."

The students behind him erupted in thunderous cheers.

But Lu Sha didn't laugh; instead, she looked in Cynthia's direction again.

Neither of them showed any joy. Cynthia's hands, resting on her knees, were clenched tightly, and her face was pale.

"Something's not right," Cattleya whispered.

"Click! (Damn! It seems like Kikuko-sensei was holding back in the first round!)" Lu Sha nodded slightly.

As the two of them had predicted, things turned out exactly as they had.

With the arrival of Elite Four member Gengar, the situation instantly reversed.

The Gengar simply stood there, and the surrounding light seemed to be swallowed up. The entire battlefield instantly became filled with eerie winds, as if countless ghosts were wailing.

"Cut? (What's this? Why does the art style feel off?)" Looking at the battlefield where the style of the battle had suddenly changed, Lu Sha hissed softly.

It's clearly a Ghost-type Pokémon, but when it enters the battle, it's like a weather effect is activated.

Could it be that Ghost-type moves also have weather-related abilities?

Or do Champion Pokémon come with special effects on the field, like Legendary Pokémon?

"Ghost Realm!" Gadriya uttered the word.

"That's the ultimate manifestation of attribute control, the mark of a champion."

"Click? (Looks like Kikuko is getting serious!)" Lu Sha's spirits lifted.

Are they sending a champion-level team for the second match?

He knew that Gengar was Agatha's trump card, but Agatha had several Gengar, and he didn't know what it was made of at first.

But now it seems that Kikuko is going to be serious if she sends out her ace in the second game.

What followed was a suffocating massacre.

Against a champion-level Gengar, the Elite Four's Pokémon were like moths drawn to a flame.

One, two, three...

Mustard Bamboo King lost three of its main forces in succession.

The Gengar didn't even gasp for breath.

The cheers in the auditorium had long since faded, replaced by a despairing silence.

Even if you don't understand the specific details of the battle, even a freshman can tell that this is a fight on a completely different level.

This is an absolute crushing defeat.

"Crack! (Is this what it means for a champion to beat a king? It's like a father beating his son!)" Lu Sha couldn't help but complain.

To be honest, those few kings in Kanto are a bit overrated.

In other regions, if a top player has even one champion-level main unit, they can already be considered the strongest player in that region.

On the other hand, Kanto doesn't even deserve to be called the king if they don't have a champion team.

Five-minute halftime break.

At the start of the second half, Mustard Bamboo did not hesitate at all and immediately sent out his ace Rose Rade.

The moment Roserade entered the field, a green Grass-type Domain opened up, finally managing to barely withstand the encroachment of the Ghost Domain.

"There's still a chance! That's the Mustard Bamboo King's trump card!!"

Seeing that the situation had reached a stalemate, the students' hope was rekindled.

But when the scene shifts and a close-up of the Mustard Bamboo King's face is shown...

All the Sinnoh spectators fell silent.

The footage clearly shows that the old man's nose is bleeding.

Clearly, he was overworking himself to aid in the fight.

In contrast, Kikuko, the other side's queen, remained calm and composed.

Even so, the standoff on the field remained a stalemate.

The difference in quality is already obvious.

This championship-level battle lasted a full three minutes.

They still couldn't see a clear picture, but just by listening to the sounds and looking at the scene, they knew the battle was even more brutal.

With each collision, they could see a drop of blood dripping from the corner of the old man's mouth behind Roseradore.

In the end, Roserade fell, but it also successfully traded its life for Gengar.

Seeing both ace players fall, a glimmer of hope appeared in the eyes of the Sinnoh audience.

The King of Mustard Seeds is fighting so hard, surely they can win, right?

However, when Elite Four member Agatha released her next Pokémon, all the viewers watching the live stream in Sinnoh fell completely silent.

A dream demon appeared in the arena, and an identical ghostly domain opened up within it.

The gloomy atmosphere seemed to shroud the Sinnoh region in despair.

The Lizard King on Mustard Bamboo's side showed no signs of unleashing its domain.

In terms of sheer presence alone, there is an insurmountable gap.

"Crack! (That's it, the Mustard Seed Bamboo King should be gone.)" Lu Sha spoke in a low voice, saying that if nothing unexpected happened, the remaining two would be instantly killed.

Under the watchful eyes of the entire Sinnoh team, he was traded 2 for 6. He couldn't even imagine how much cyberbullying Mustard Bamboo would face after the match.

Not everyone cares whether you try your best; some people only care about the results.

"We lost..."

"There's no hope!"

"Ah! How come the Mustard Seed Bamboo King is so weak!"

The faint sobs and complaints coming from the back row confirmed Lu Sha's point of view.

However, the battle was not over.

On the screen, the old man, who was already unsteady on his feet, let out a hoarse roar.

He commanded the last two Elite Four Pokémon to launch an attack.

That wasn't a battle; it was more like a life-or-death struggle.

It's about exchanging blood for injury, exchanging life for injury!

In the final battle, even though Leafeon was pierced through the body by Shadow Ball, it still unleashed its final Sunblade, striking Mismagius.

boom!!

As the last rays of light faded.

The nightmare demon fell.

Leaf Fairy also fell.

At the same time, the Mustard Bamboo King, having exhausted his last bit of energy, also collapsed.

In order to replace the nightmare demon, he did not hesitate to push himself to the brink of death.

The words "Winner: Kikuko (Kanto)" appeared on the screen.

A tsunami of cheers erupted inside the Kanto stadium.

Meanwhile, the Sinnoh Grand Hall on the other side of the screen was deathly silent.

Looking at the gaunt figure being carried onto a stretcher by medical staff, and listening to the students around her uttering discouraging words like "Damn it" and "Too weak," Lu Sha felt a strange sense of irritation.

"Click! (This old man is a werewolf!)" Lu Sha gently tugged at Gadriya's sleeve and pointed to the screen where Kikuko, even after winning the match, still took off her hat and bowed deeply to the stretcher.

Cattleya frowned slightly, seemingly puzzled, yet also resistant.

She understood what Jie Zizhu was doing, but she didn't like this tragic drama of self-sacrifice.

But sensing Lu Sha's serious expression, she finally nodded gently.

"Smack."

In the suffocating somber atmosphere of the auditorium, a clear and proud applause rang out.

Cattleya stood up gracefully, expressionless, maintaining her usual demeanor.

But her applause was crisp and rhythmic, and with the spread of her superpowers, it resonated clearly in everyone's ears.

Everyone stared at her in astonishment.

They didn't understand why Jia Deliya would applaud when Jie Zizhu had lost so badly.

Sinnoh's last remaining member has been defeated.

Are they going to applaud Kikuko, their enemy?

Followed by.

"Ugh!"

Cynthia suddenly stood up, tears streaming down her face. Her hands trembled as she clapped them together forcefully, as if that was the only thing she could do at that moment.

Grandpa is not a sinner.

He measured the distance between the peak of Sinnoh and Kanto with his own fall.

He laid bare this stark difference in skill before all Sinnoh trainers.

"Slap, slap, slap!"

The trio of Prantina also stood up. Although their eyes were red, their gazes were more determined than ever before.

Wu Song stood up, and the other top students and faculty members also stood up.

Seeing the common action of these top students, the ordinary students seemed to understand something and silently stood up and applauded together.

Like a toppled domino, two thousand Sinnoh teachers and students stood up in silence.

Thunderous applause erupted in the auditorium and lasted for a long time.

This is not a celebration of defeat, nor is it a tribute to the enemy. It is a salute to the old man who fought to the death, and a vow by the people of Sinnoh to be spurred on by shame.

At that moment, Dr. Mustard sat there, listening to the surging applause behind her, looking at Cynthia's resolute back, and glancing at the proud and upright Cattleya, a tear sliding down her cheek.

This is what Mustard Bamboo wanted to convey to Sinnoh Future, even though he publicly executed himself.

Mustard Bamboo lost, Sinnoh lost, but Sinnoh's future cannot afford to lose again.