"How… how is this possible? Even the timing of evolution is perfectly controlled. Can someone really handle evolution with such precision?"
Shinmu swallowed hard as he watched Ralts, wrapped in radiant white light amid the fading Solar Beam, its form beginning to change.
"That kid is incredible… To control the exact evolution timing of a Pokémon… And from the news I've heard, he's supposedly an overbearing trainer. Hard to believe someone so young has reached that level."
Munemasa stared at Ash, stunned. The mere ability to judge evolution timing proved that Ash's analytical battle style had reached its peak.
Even calling him a shrine-level analyst felt insufficient.
Compared to him, both Shinmu and Siheng's data-flow techniques looked crude.
As the blazing sunlight faded from Scizor, the last traces of white light around Ralts dispersed. In its place now floated a beautifully evolved Kirlia—graceful and perfectly formed.
If Ralts resembled a small, timid girl, then Kirlia was like a lively young maiden—light green hair, white dress, ruby-like eyes sparkling with mischief, and pink fin-like ornaments resembling stylish hairpins.
Kirlia's appearance instantly captivated Sabrina.
"Wooo~"
Kirlia twirled midair as if proudly showing off her new dress.
"Heaven… King-class…"
Munemasa's voice trembled.
He never expected Ralts to skip Ace-tier entirely and evolve straight into King-tier strength.
If anyone told him this earlier, he wouldn't believe it—but the reality floated right before him.
"Hmph. That's what proper potential development looks like. Hard work finally pays its dividends."
Ash exhaled lightly, inwardly satisfied. All his past training was finally bearing fruit.
"Damn…"
Seeing Kirlia recover more than half her stamina immediately after evolving, Shinmu cursed under his breath.
Ash had calculated everything—even this.
"Yes… Her psychic energy is at least ten times stronger than before."
Ash smiled as he sensed the intense fluctuation.
"With this, I don't even need hand gestures anymore. I can release skills freely."
"Kirlia—use Quicksand Storm!"
Without giving Shinmu a moment to react, Ash commanded.
In an instant, Kirlia unleashed a torrent of psychic power—massive, sweeping, roaring like a river.
"Scizor—move! Hurry!"
Panic overtook Shinmu. He tossed aside his notebook and stepped forward to command directly.
But Scizor's movements were still slowed from its earlier Solar Beam charge.
"Good, Shinmu. You finally understand what actually matters."
Munemasa nodded in relief when he saw Shinmu abandon the notebook.
"Hassa!"
Even while injured, Scizor forced its leg to move, using Agility in a desperate attempt to escape the psychic torrent.
But its speed was nowhere near what it had been earlier.
"HASSA!!"
Scizor was engulfed—swallowed whole by Kirlia's psychic flood.
"Sandstorm Burial!"
Boom!!
Ash's command triggered a violent psychic detonation that shook the entire battlefield.
Dust erupted, the ground cracked, and the arena trembled from the shockwave.
"Scizor!"
Feeling that terrifying impact, Shinmu shouted, dread filling his voice.
Even without seeing through the dust, he could tell how overwhelming that attack had been.
Kirlia slowly retracted her psychic power, and as the swirling energy faded, Scizor's battered figure finally appeared.
Cracks ran across its once-hard crimson exoskeleton—clear marks left by the overwhelming psychic pressure that had crushed it.
"Scizor is unable to battle! The winner is Ash's Kirlia!"
Munemasa—Shinmu's father—declared the result immediately. He didn't worry about Scizor's injuries; the dojo's medical equipment could easily handle treatment.
"I had the advantage in level and typing… yet I still lost this badly."
Hearing Munemasa's verdict, Shinmu stared blankly at his unconscious Scizor, finally feeling the sting of defeat.
For the first time, he realized the data he collected had failed him completely.
"The so-called data battle style doesn't become strong just by collecting information beforehand."
Ash spoke calmly, flicking away invisible ash from his fingers.
"There will always be unexpected variables in a match. A real data-style trainer must consider those unpredictabilities and convert them into tactics that work for them."
He looked directly at Shinmu.
"Compared to the true data masters—like the ones at the Indigo Conference—your approach is far too shallow."
After the match, Munemasa's students carried Scizor to the infirmary.
Being a dojo, they naturally had proper medical facilities; otherwise, injured Pokémon would be a daily disaster.
Shinmu, however, picked up the laptop he had thrown aside earlier and quietly returned to his room.
He didn't even join everyone for dinner.
"It seems you've awakened his frustration," Munemasa said later that evening as he sat with Ash on the tatami.
"You want him to adjust his entire understanding of the data-style… but that won't happen in a day or two."
"At least today might help him understand something essential."
Munemasa looked at Shinmu's room with relief rather than worry.
"He needs to learn that battles can't be won by relying on information alone.
If he realizes that now, I believe he'll surpass me someday—even if it takes time.
Better this than letting him continue down a dead-end path and losing his way as a trainer."
Ash shrugged.
"Since you say so, I'll leave it in your hands."
To him, this was only temporary assistance anyway.
And honestly—crushing someone's confidence this badly left even him with a faint twinge of guilt.