svetikya Chapter 503 Ash's Declaration, the So-Called Pokémon Battle
Chapter 503 Ash's Declaration, the So-Called Pokémon Battle
After watching Shinji leave, Darkrod turned his gaze entirely to Ash, his deep eyes revealing obvious interest for the first time.
“Ash…” Darko spoke slowly, his tone carrying a sense of approval, unlike when he had spoken with Shinji and the others earlier.
"At this Lily of the Valley Conference, the only person I consider a rival is you. I know very well how difficult it is to catch a legendary Pokémon, which is why I trust you."
Darko's calm smile remained unchanged throughout. Even though he said he believed in Ash, his expression did not reveal the slightest thought that Ash might defeat him.
He simply said, "Because you were able to capture Darkrai, I believe you have the strength to defeat my Darkrai by relying on your other Pokémon and through your cooperation with them."
Dacto’s tone carried a strange certainty, as if he had already foreseen that scene.
As he spoke, he seemed to remember something, and a curious smile appeared on his lips.
"But speaking of which, I am quite curious..."
Darkrai looked at Ash, and at Pikachu perched on his shoulder, watching him warily, and slowly asked:
"Why do you seem to rarely use your Darkrai in regular matches? I've watched a lot of your match footage, but Darkrai seems to appear far too infrequently."
The only publicly available video of Darkrai appearing was when Ash challenged the Canyon Gym.
When facing the Waterway Gym Leader, Dublin, Ash's Darkrai almost completely crushed him, just as Darkrai did when challenging the other gyms.
However, to achieve such an overwhelming victory when challenging the Canal Gym, even if the challenger is not Darkrai but just an ordinary Pokémon, it is still possible to achieve that level if the level is right and the type advantage is favorable.
In fact, Shinji's match videos show that he basically achieved a complete victory over Darkrai, so in the eyes of many trainers, Darkrai, as a legendary Pokémon, is not as terrifying as imagined.
Darkrai was not concerned with what outsiders thought of him.
The only thing that bothered Darkrai was that Ash hadn't used Darkrai in public since that incident, so Darkrai thought Ash probably wanted to hide Darkrai's strength.
If that's the case, Ash wouldn't have needed to reveal Darkrai's strength when challenging the Canal Gym. It would have been pointless and would have allowed Ash to figure out Darkrai's true strength.
That's why Darkrai asked the question that had been bothering him for so long when he met Ash today.
However, to everyone's surprise, Ash did not answer directly.
Meeting Dakdo's probing gaze, he showed no embarrassment at being questioned, but calmly countered with:
"Before answering your question, I also have a question for you, Mr. Dacto."
Darko raised an eyebrow slightly, signaling Ash to continue.
"Why do you only use Darkrai when you're doing gym challenges?"
Dakdo's calm expression seemed unbroken; he even let out a soft chuckle.
The laughter was soft, yet carried a sense of matter-of-fact composure.
"Hehe, that's an interesting question."
He looked at Xiaozhi as if he were looking at a child asking a naive question.
"Isn't the reason simple?"
Dacto spread his hands, his tone as natural as if he were stating an axiom.
"Because Darkrai alone is enough."
"Neither gym leader nor any other trainer can pose any threat to Darkrai."
He paused, his smile unchanged, but his words inadvertently revealed a deeper meaning.
"If that's the case, why bother using other legendary Pokémon?"
Just this casual choice of words made Kaoping's eyes narrow.
Ah Xun was also stunned for a moment, then realized what was happening and an expression of disbelief appeared on his face.
Could it be that... this guy owns more than just Darkrai among the legendary Pokémon?
The atmosphere at the scene suddenly became deathly silent.
If that's the case, then the real dark horse of this year's Suzuran Tournament should probably be Dakto.
The question is, how many legendary Pokémon does he actually have?
Two? Three?
You can't exactly be covered in legendary Pokémon from head to toe, can you?
Ash, who was talking to Darkrai, didn't pay attention to the atmosphere. When Darkrai answered, Ash simply shook his head slightly and corrected him, "That's not what I meant."
Ash's eyes were clear, and his expression became unusually serious.
"What I mean is, why didn't you bring your original companions? The ones who helped you catch the legendary Pokémon. Since, as you said, the catching process isn't easy, then I imagine you must have fought alongside your original companions while catching the legendary Pokémon, right? If that's the case, why did you abandon them after you succeeded?"
This time, Dakdo's smile finally froze slightly.
The air in the hall seemed to grow even heavier.
This question gets to the heart of the matter and touches on a problem that Dacto deliberately ignored.
He was silent for a moment.
It was very quiet around; the only sound was the breathing of the people around.
Dakdo took a deep breath to calm himself down, and even the smile on his face returned, but his eyes held a hint of complexity.
"So you meant them..."
His tone remained calm, revealing little emotional fluctuation.
"The reason is actually the same as the answer I just gave."
Darkrod took a small step forward, and Darkrai beside him floated slightly, an invisible sense of oppression spreading out.
"Legendary Pokémon are called legendary because they possess power far exceeding that of ordinary Pokémon. You, who have caught Darkrai, should know this better than anyone else, Ash."
His gaze swept over Pikachu on Ash's shoulder, his expression suggestive.
"I have spent most of my time capturing them, naturally in pursuit of their extraordinary power. Now that I have such great power, why should I send out those weaker, ordinary Pokémon for victory?"
From the perspective of purely pursuing victory, Dacto's logic seems impeccable.
In a sense, Darko's theory is basically similar to Shinji's.
If Shinji had caught those legendary Pokémon, would he have become Darkrai?
No one knew.
However, Dakdo's words sent a chill down everyone's spine.
They are Pokémon trainers, and their ultimate goal is victory.
Therefore, after Dakdo said those words, everyone felt the same resonance and thought.
Only Xiaozhi remained unmoved after hearing all of this.
He simply raised his hand silently and gently straightened the baseball cap on his head.
He then lowered the brim of his hat slightly, concealing his expression.
"is it?"
Ash's voice rang out.
Calm, yet possessing a breathtakingly powerful quality.
He raised his head, his gaze sharp and intense, staring directly at Dakdo.
“In that case, Mr. Dacto.”
"If I were to meet you at this Lily of the Valley Festival..."
Xiao Zhi took a deep breath and said clearly, word by word:
"I will not use my Darkrai against your Darkrai as you think."
"What's the meaning......"
Darko finally couldn't understand Ash's thoughts. He frowned and stared intently at Ash, as if trying to see through Ash completely.
"It doesn't mean anything special." Ash continued to firmly walk the path he believed in, stating his thoughts.
"I simply want to show you just how much potential those ordinary Pokémon you talk about can unleash when facing legendary Pokémon that are inherently superior to them. And similarly—"
Ash's gaze swept over all the trainers present.
"I just want to prove to everyone that, in addition to pursuing power and victory, trainers should not forget the bonds they have built with their companions who have walked alongside them all the way. The criteria for judging strength and weakness have never been based solely on Pokémon."
"Pokémon battles are not just random fights between Pokémon. The real start of a Pokémon battle is not the referee waving the flag and blowing the whistle, but the moment the trainer issues the first command."
Ash's declaration echoed throughout the Pokémon Center's lobby, each word resounding with a profound conviction.
.......