Manalo Stadium.
The battle between Ash and Gladion had reached its middle stages.
Pikachu and Zoroark fought fiercely, having already traded blows for several rounds.
Even amid the dust and smoke from the explosion, Gladion did not let up his attack,
ordering Zoroark to use Hyper Voice.
"Pikachu, meet it head-on with Thunderbolt!"
Ash chose the most direct, hot-blooded approach.
Though he could not see through the smoke, he had complete faith in Pikachu.
Pikachu unleashed every last bit of electricity in its body.
A golden serpent of lightning, thicker and more dazzling than before, roared forth and slammed into the visibly distorted sound waves!
BOOOOM!!!
A deafening blast thundered through the sky.
The collision of lightning and sound waves sent an explosive shock wave sweeping outward,
even causing ripples in the protective barrier around the battlefield.
The spectators nearest the field instinctively covered their ears, and some even leaned back.
"A head-on clash! Both sides have unleashed powerful moves, and they're evenly matched!"
Announcer Ji Qiu exclaimed, "My goodness, this isn't even a clash of Z-Moves!"
On the field, the smoke and dust from the explosion had yet to clear completely.
"Now's the time, Zoroark! Night Daze!"
Gladion launched another attack.
Seeing this, Cynthia commented, "Pikachu has used up a lot of stamina fighting consecutive battles, while Zoroark has only just entered the field and is in excellent condition."
"If this keeps up, Pikachu may give out first."
"Pikachu, dodge with Quick Attack!"
But adversity only made Ash and Pikachu more tenacious.
Pikachu became a streak of white light again, racing across the field.
Black energy blasts kept exploding behind Pikachu, scattering broken stones.
Even while moving at high speed, Pikachu tried to retaliate with Thunderbolt,
but Zoroark nimbly dodged each attack or canceled it out with Dark Pulse.