Chapter 58: Deino and Axew! Fight to Escape!

Last time on "Pokémon Unova Journey", Iris was training with Ash and Takeru so that Axew could be more experienced in battle. But despite the exercise, it proved to be futile as the Dragon Rage once again exploded, becoming a Dragon Sneeze instead.

But while the group were training, they were confronted by an angry Druddigon, along with a girl that seemed to be its Trainer! Introducing herself as Emmy, she explained that the Cave Pokémon wasn't listening to her at all.

But Iris knew better as she realized there was some sort of rope on Druddigon that made it feel hurt while searching for Belue Berries.

Wanting to train Druddigon to try and become a better Pokémon Trainer in battle, Takeru was challenged by Emmy, only for Druddigon to lose to Deino. But as soon as the battle has ended, they were assaulted by a Yamask and a Woobat, along with some ropes capturing their Pokémon friends!

"A Woobat and a Yamask! I think I know who they belong to if they're attacking us all of a sudden!" Takeru started to snap as he reached for the Sword of Yin that was on his back scabbard.

But before he could, Axew was pushed off of Iris' shoulder, much to her surprise.

"Ah! Axew!" Iris called as she watched to see her Dragon Type partner slam into Pikachu, before Pikachu slammed into both Narri and Deino! The four Pokémon yelled in surprise as they were all flung black by the Gust!

At that moment, four ropes flew out of nowhere and captured the four Pokémon, catching them in a bind! Another rope came by to bind Druddigon this time, before the five ropes began to drag all the Pokémon away!

"Druddigon!"

"Pikachu!"

"Axew!"

"Riolu! Deino!"

The four Trainers called out to their Pokémon, as the group and Emmy were shocked of what was happening to their Pokémon friends. Emmy frowned before she called Druddigon to save them!

"Alright, Druddigon! Dragon Claw!" Emmy shouted out.

Hearing her call, the Cave Pokémon slashed at the ropes binding both Pikachu and Narri, allowing the two to be freed! Upon noticing their partners released from the ropes, the boys called out to them.

"Pikachu! Are you okay...!?"

"Riolu...?"

"Pika Pi..."

"Y-Yeah... I'm fine... but Deino and the others...!" Pikachu affirmed that he was okay while Narri pointed out that the Dragon Types were still in danger! The group widened their eyes in shock to see the three Dragon Types get lifted up in the air!

Then, coming into their view was a flying machinery with a box that seemed to be for the Pokémon that were captured! As soon as the three were lifted to the machinery, the three Dragon Types were thrown into the giant box!

Druddigon, Deino, and Axew called out to their human and Pokémon friends, both concerned for what's going to happen to them. The group glared while Emmy panicked in concern for her partner.

"No! Now what!?" Emmy gasped as a familiar voice caught the four Trainers' attention!

"Now there's a twerpish question... Dumb indeed!"

"The answer to come, as we feel the need!"

"We bring... the white light of evil into the future!"

"Thrusting the hammer... onto the black darkness of the universe!"

"And carving our names in the rock of eternity!"

"The fiery destroyer! Jessie!"

"And with thunderous emotion, I am James!"

"Wisest of the wise, Meowth!"

"Now gather! Under the name of Team Rocket!"

"You morons again..." Takeru glared, annoyed with the evil trio's appearance while Emmy was rather confused from their sudden appearance.

"Team Rocket?" Emmy inquired, with the Kanto Trainer explaining.

"Yeah! They're really bad guys who show up and steal people's Pokémon!" Ash snapped, causing James to raise an eyebrow.

"Bad guys? I would reframe that as three geniuses working hard to capture Druddigon with a brilliant plan!" James declared proudly, much to the Child of Zekrom's annoyance as he shook his head with a deadpanned look.

"No one was asking..." commented Takeru before Meowth smirked.

"No matter... And additionally, grabbing Axew and Deino just shows that our awesome plan is working great!" Meowth declared, with Jessie adding in the icing to their little cake plan.

"And catching Pikachu and Riolu will be the icing on the cake! A cake that we'll bake for our dear boss, who will certainly savor every delicious bite!" Jessie declared, until Iris snapped, refusing to let her partner be taken away.

"Well, I don't think so! Axew is my partner! Look out!"

At that, the wild girl began to run up the cliffs to try and jump for the machine cage!

"Hey! Don't be so reckless!" Takeru warned, only for his warning to come too late as she leapt to the aircraft, only to fall short barely.

"Iris!" Ash shouted as the wild began to girl. Before anyone could make any movement to catch her, Iris flipped back and landed on the ground, much to Ash and Cilan's surprise as James folded his arms.

"We'll raise Axew and Deino right and have them evolve... Then..."

"Team Rocket will take over the whole Unova region!" James started before Jessie finished for him as she turned to her Psychic-Flying Type!

"Now Woobat, use Gust!" Jessie called out. Woobat then complied as she unleashed the sharp gales from her wings! This stunned the group as they struggled to hold their ground before James made the next attack!

"Yamask, Shadow Ball!" James shouted out, causing the Ghost Type to do so!

Upon seeing it coming, the Child of Zekrom unsheathed the Sword of Yin!

"You wish!" Takeru yelled as he slashed at the Shadow Ball, causing it to be cut in half before it exploded weakly when it happened! That caught the evil trio off guard before they made their hasty retreat into their flying machine.

"Not good... Retreat inside!" James called out as he and Jessie jumped into the machine with Yamask and Woobat following!

With the flying machine flying off, the group could do very little as they watched to see the machine start to fly out of sight. But Emmy wasn't hesitant as she turned to Iris with a determined look on her face.

"That's it... We gotta do something!" Emmy called out, earning a nod from the wild girl.

"You betcha!" Iris nodded her head in agreement. At that, the Child of Zekrom turned to his Emanation Pokémon.

Without needing to hear what his human brother wanted to ask him, the young Fighting Type nodded in understanding before he slowly began to focus on tracking down Deino, Axew, and Druddigon's aura to make pursuit.

Meanwhile...

The evil trio were flying on their aircraft, heading off to find the perfect place to land to begin their Dragon Type evolution plan for both Deino and Axew.

"There are several mesas up ahead. The perfect place to land..." James said as Meowth came down from where he was atop the glass bubble at the top of the giant aircraft.

"And the perfect time to let the boss know the great things we've done for him!" Meowth added, until something shook! The sudden shaking caught the evil trio off guard before Meowth asked the question first.

"What was that?" Meowth questioned in surprise.

The answer came from the giant box! Druddigon was slashing at the inside of the box with Dragon Claw to try and make her escape with Axew and Deino! Deino tried to do the same by using Headbutt!

Axew could only watch as his two friends try to make effort into escaping the prison that they were caught up in.

For the evil trio, they finally realized what was going on as Jessie made a small glare at James, looking a little concerned of how strong the metal box was to hold the three Dragon Types.

"You're certain Druddigon won't be able to break out, aren't you?" Jessie asked seriously, causing James to smile at the question.

"Have faith that our ship is one hundred perfect safe and sound!" James answered proudly, as the aircraft continued to make their move towards the area on where the evil trio planned to land.

Back to the group...

The four Trainers and Emmy continued to make chase after Team Rocket's aircraft to rescue the three Dragon Type Pokémon!

"All right, everybody! Keep your eyes on Team Rocket!" Cilan reminded, as the group were doing so, with Emmy and Iris being the most determined ones, since the ones that were captured were their partners!

"I am going to get my precious Druddigon back from them if it's the last thing I ever do!" Emmy said determinedly while Iris began to think as she ran, thinking of her young Tusk Pokémon as an irreplaceable friend.

"Axew, my best friend and partner, means more to me than words can say!" Iris thought as she recalled back to the day when the Elder of the Village of Dragons talked to her about her leaving on a journey.

Flashback

"Listen well, Iris. You and your Axew will undoubtedly meet many Trainers and Pokémon all along your journey. And these encounters will surely help both of you to grow." The Elder spoke, earning a smile from the wild girl.

"Right! Thanks, Elder!" thanked Iris, as the elder continued.

"There are countless experiences that will awake the two of you... Excitement and sorrow... Good times and bad times... When you and Axew succeed in overcoming all adversities, then the doorway to becoming a Dragon Master will open wide!" The elder explained.

Upon hearing that, Iris smiled confidently before making her answer.

"I understand... And I'll- No, we'll do our very best!" Iris declared confidently.

"Ew!" Axew cried out in agreement.

Flashback End

"This is something that Axew and I have to overcome if I want to be a Dragon Master!" Iris thought before she quickened her pace as she raced in front of the group! Noticing this, the others followed suit.

"I hope Deino is okay... To be honest, I haven't trained much with the little guy ever since I caught him after helping him out with the Ducklett incident..." Takeru thought as he thought back about the little Dark and Dragon Type.

From what the Child of Zekrom remembered, there was hardly a time when he had trained with the Irate Pokémon.

Deino didn't seem to have mind, as he preferred napping and eating at the same time. And there were a few times when he had trained with Axew as he noticed the struggle the Tusk Pokémon was having with Dragon Rage.

Of course, the end result wasn't good as Axew continued to make a Dragon Sneeze, causing the others to be hit with the failed Dragon Type attack as well.

But nevertheless, the Tusk Pokémon was praised by Iris for putting up a good effort thanks to Deino's support. But when Takeru turned to the Irate Pokémon, the Dragon and Dark Type was already onto his business with eating the berries at the bushes.

From that on, the Child of Zekrom could only think that he was neglecting the Irate Pokémon a little since he hasn't used the young Pokémon much ever since he had caught the little Dragon and Dark Type.

"Are you worried about Deino?" Narri's sudden question caught Takeru's attention as he glanced to see Riolu glancing at him while the group continued to run.

Not wanting to let the others know that he could actually understand the Emanation Pokémon's words, the Child of Zekrom gave a brief nod to the young Fighting Type before Narri gave a small nod.

"Don't worry, brother... If I know him right, then he should be alright for what's happening. He may be clumsy and a bit gluttonous, but he's no fool when it comes to helping others out..." Narri assured softly with a smile.

Blinking in surprise at first, the Child of Zekrom narrowed his eyes before he gave a small smile. He understood where this was going, and he agreed that the Irate Pokémon might be fine with Druddigon and Axew.

"Mm... Thanks, Riolu..." thanked the Child of Zekrom, earning a nod from the young Fighting Type as the group continued to make their way to go after the evil trio and to get their Dragon Type friends back.

Back to Deino and Axew...

Pokémon POV

Deino and Axew both watched as their big friend was casting waves through the airship by slamming her fists onto the metal wall again and again. Eventually, the fatigue started to get to her...

"Druddigon..." Deino breathed out in concern before he turned to Axew with a serious tone.

"Hey, Axew! Shall we give it a try?" Deino asked, catching the Tusk Pokémon by surprise before he gave a nod of agreement.

"Yeah! Let's do it together! Druddigon! Stand back, please!" Axew requested, causing the big Pokémon to raise an eyebrow before she did so, standing back as the two little Dragon Types began to form energy inside their body!

Then, with enough focus, the Dragon Rage attacks formed in their mouths, to unleash the energy and...

BOOM!

The impact from the double Dragon Rage attack caused a lot of damage onto the ship, and it surprised the evil trio as well, as they began to lose control of the ship, which started going down.

"What was that!?" Jessie wondered as the controls began to short-circuit.

End POV

Back to the group...

The four Trainers and Emmy all watched in surprise to see the airship starting to descend down with smoke coming out of it a little.

"They're going down!" Ash commented in surprise.

"Looks like they did it... We better hurry!" Takeru reminded, as the group continued to make their way to where the ship had fallen.

Back to Axew and Deino...

With the airship taken down, the impact from the fall had stunned the evil trio as they emerged from the holes on the top of their fallen aircraft.

"Man... I never would've guessed that that pipsqueak Axew would use Dragon Rage...!" Meowth groaned, feeling the pain from the fall he and his teammates have taken due to the crash.

"When it joins us, it'll be a plus!" James suggested, but before Jessie or Meowth could object or agree, there was a noise which caught the trio's attention as they turned to see Druddigon breaking the metal wall to get herself and the two little ones free!

Both Deino and Axew rode on the Cave Pokémon's head, as the evil trio watched the three start to make their escape. But they weren't worried, as they seemed to be prepared in case if their captives did escape.

"They are escaping... But they won't get far, that's for sure!" Jessie assured calmly as she and James took out their Pokémon's Pokéballs.

Back to the group...

"There's no time to lose... We should be able to catch up to them..." Takeru pointed out as the group was ready to head to a path when Iris stopped, before she called to the others to stop them from going any further.

"Hold on!" Iris called before Ash could walk to the path.

As the wild girl looked around, she then jumped onto the branch of the tree in front of them. Then, closing her eyes, she focused on the connection that she seemed to have with the Tusk Pokémon.

With the connection, she witnessed Druddigon walking to make her escape with Axew and Deino on top of her head. But unfortunately, Yamask and Woobat came to intervene with their escape!

Upon recognizing the enemies, the Cave Pokémon turned to head for another route, with Axew and Deino being concerned for what's going to happen.

"Iris, what are you doing? We need to hurry and rescue Druddigon, Deino, and Axew!" Emmy asked, calling out to the wild girl in confusion and in desperation. But Iris didn't seem to listen as she turned to another route.

"Got it... That way!" Iris called out before she jumped off the tree to go in the direction that she had pointed at. This surprised both Cilan and Emmy, as Emmy was the first to call out to her.

"Iris, where are you going?" inquired Emmy, as Cilan pointed to the other direction that they were about to head to.

"Going this way is much faster!" Cilan said, until Ash realized what was going on.

"Iris must be able to sense where Axew, Deino, and Druddigon are..." Ash guessed, catching the Child of Zekrom's attention.

"You mean she can feel the connection she has with Axew?" Takeru questioned, causing the Kanto Trainer to frown before he raised his head to see where the wild girl was running off to.

"I don't know for sure, but... I'm gonna trust her! Let's go!" Ash called as he ran after Iris, causing Takeru and Narri to look at each other before they nodded to each other. They followed after Ash, with Cilan and Emmy doing the same.

Back to Axew and Deino...

Pokémon POV

The three Dragon Types were still making their escape from Team Rocket and their Pokémon allies as they stopped at a cliff! But with the edge so close, the Cave Pokémon yelped in surprise as she and the two little ones fell off!

"AHHH!" Deino and Axew screamed in surprise before they fell onto a moss-covered rock.

Recovering from the fall, the Cave Pokémon approached the two, concerned for their health.

"Are you two okay...?" inquired Druddigon, causing the two to shake their heads before turning to their big friend.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Druddigon...!" Axew assured as Deino groaned.

"I feel like my jaw hurts a little from that little fall... but I think I'll be fine." Deino grunted, earning a nod from the Cave Pokémon. But just as they were about to feel relief...

Woobat and Yamask soon flew towards them as the evil trio arrived to confront the three Dragon Types, cornering them with smirks on their faces.

"Hate to burst your bubble..." Jessie started calmly.

"But you can't escape the grip of Team Rocket!" James finished, while Meowth made the demand.

"So get a grip and join with us!" Meowth added, only for Druddigon to immediately rebel against the idea with a Focus Blast attack! Upon seeing the attack coming, the trio easily dodged by backing away a bit to the side!

"You're a feisty Pokémon with an attitude... I like it!" Jessie chuckled with a menacing look, until James started the counterattack.

"But we're finished playing kids' games. Now Yamask, Shadow Ball!" James shouted out as Yamask did so, only for Deino to counter with an attack of his own!

"Geez, you all are annoying! Just leave us alone!" Deino snapped as he fired Incinerate, which incinerated the Ghost Type attack! The flames barely missed Yamask as he dodged out of the way in time!

"Woobat, Gust!" Jessie ordered out loud.

And Woobat did so, flapping her wings to cause a strong of gust to occur and knock all three Dragon Types off balance!

"If you give up while the giving's good, then you'll be on the front lines when we take over the Unova region!" Meowth sneered, as the three Dragon Types slowly recovered from the Gust attack.

But before any more threats could be given, a familiar voice caught everyone's attention!

"Not going to happen!" Iris called out, surprising the evil trio! The three Dragon Types turned to see their human friends, along with Narri and Pikachu!

"It's the twerps!" Jessie noted with a glare, as Iris smiled to see her Dragon Type partner.

"Axew, we'll save you!" Iris declared, with Emmy and Takeru joining to call for their Dragon Type friends.

"You'll be just fine, Druddigon!"

"Just wait for a little bit longer... We'll get you and the others out of their hands, Deino." Takeru assured calmly.

"Iris!"

"Emmy!"

"Takeru!" The three Dragon Types called out to their human friends, all feeling content and relief as James narrowed his eyes, refusing to let the captives escape.

End POV

"Don't bet on it! Yamask, Shadow Ball!" James shouted out.

Yamask did so, forming the Ghost Type attack between his hands. But Takeru and Ash had other ideas as they called to their partners to intervene with the attack.

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"

"Riolu, use Aura Sphere!"

As Thunderbolt shocked both Yamask and Woobat, the Aura Sphere attack hit both of them, causing the two of them to be knocked back! The Shadow Ball disappeared, causing the attack to fail.

At the right timing, Cilan called for the three Dragons Types to make their escape.

"Quick! Now's your chance!" Cilan called out, calling for the three. Emmy smiled, waiting for her Dragon Type friend with open arms.

The Cave Pokémon obliged as she carried the two little ones in her arms before running to where the Trainers were! Deino and Axew jumped into their Trainers' arms first, as the Child of Zekrom and the wild girl embraced their Dragon Types.

"We came as fast as we could...!" Iris spoke happily.

"Sorry we kept you all waiting..." Takeru apologized, causing the Irate Pokémon to rub his head on the Child of Zekrom's chest in affection, showing that it was alright.

But before Druddigon could reunite with Emmy, James took this moment to call for Yamask to attack again!

"Yamask, use Night Shade!" James called out.

At the order, the Ghost Type glowed a little with his eyes turning red! Then, with Night Shade's power, he began to unleash red sound waves from his mouth!

With the attack coming for her, the Cave Pokémon took the hit and wrapped her arms around Emmy protectively as they were both struck with the Night Shade's power!

The attack began to cause them to skid back a little as they tried to resist the attack together!

"Hang on, Druddigon!" Emmy said, her voice starting to waver from the attack! But the resistance proved to be futile the moment James made the next order to his Ghost Type Pokémon.

"Yamask, let it rip!" James yelled, causing the Spirit Pokémon to continue pressing on with Night Shade! The attack then grew stronger, enough to knock both the Trainer and her Pokémon back!

"Emmy! Druddigon!" Takeru called in concern as the group ran over to them.

"Are you alright?" Ash asked, causing Emmy to get up with a smile, assuring that both she and her Cave Pokémon were alright.

"Yeah, I'm okay..." Emmy answered, with Druddigon giving a grunt to say that she was alright as well. Then, remembering the aid that Druddigon gave her, Emmy turned to her Dragon Type friend with a soft and thankful smile.

"Thanks so much, Druddigon... You protected me!" Emmy thanked gratefully, causing Druddigon to give a small nod before she got up, looking determined to deal with the enemies that hurt her and Emmy.

Then, as the group and her Trainer watched, the Cave Pokémon placed her left arm over her right arm as she started to glow orange. The group were in awe while Emmy was surprised to see what her Pokémon was doing.

"What's that?" Emmy wondered as Team Rocket looked on in horror at realization. Iris grinned, recognizing the move as she called it out.

"Druddigon learned Draco Meteor!" Iris answered, causing Emmy to look at her and repeat.

"Draco Meteor?" Emmy repeated, allowing the wild girl to make a brief explanation of it.

"Yeah! Now it needs to concentrate all its power and shoot it toward the sky!" Iris called out, causing Emmy to nod to her before turning to her Cave Pokémon.

"Druddigon, concentrate all of your power!" Emmy shouted out as Druddigon did so. As she charged the energy inside her body, an orange light emanated from her jaws. As soon as Iris saw it, she called out to Druddigon's Trainer.

"Do it!" Iris encouraged, allowing Emmy to give the order while pointing at the sky!

"Now release it, straight toward the sky!"

Druddigon then moved her head up towards the sky, a ball of orange glowing in her mouth. Then, the energy of the Draco Meteor was shot, before it exploded high in the air! Several of the meteor began to descend down towards the sky!

The Draco Meteor's power caused the meteors to hit Team Rocket, while one of them hit Yamask, resulting in his immediate defeat by the powerful attack! Upon seeing how much power was released, Emmy couldn't help but be awed by it.

"Wow, this is Draco Meteor?" Emmy questioned in surprise, earning a nod from the wild girl.

"You bet, way to go!" Iris exclaimed, impressed with how much power it contained. Axew and Deino were in awe as well, and so were Team Rocket! They recovered from the blow they had felt from the Draco Meteor attack, and they were ready to make the steal.

"Remarkable! Druddigon learned Draco Meteor!" James pointed out, with Jessie preparing to attack.

"Which means, let's catch it! Now, Woobat, Gust!" Woobat did so, as she began to unleash the sharp winds onto the group. Of course, both Ash and Takeru were ready to drive their enemies away with their attack.

"Pikachu, Electro Ball!"

"Riolu, Aura Sphere!"

Pikachu then gathered the electricity in his tail, somersaulting a bit as he did so. He then fired the super effective attack at the Psychic-Flying Type before Narri then followed up by releasing the Fighting Type attack!

The two attacks made their mark, dealing double the damage onto Woobat, before Iris took the moment to call for the next attack!

"Yes! Axew, use Dragon Rage!" Iris shouted out.

"Deino, you use Dragon Rage as well!" Takeru added, causing the two Dragon Types to jump out of their Trainers' arms before they began to charge up their attack!

The two gathered the energy in their stomach before the energy reached their mouths! Then, as Deino released the energy, Axew did the same instead of biting down on it!

The double Dragon Rage attack then collided with Team Rocket, exploding onto them! As it happened, the Kanto Trainer and his Electric Type partner were excited to see victory in their hands along with the successful attack.

"Yeah!" Ash said, pumping his fist in the air.

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed, happy for his Tusk Pokémon friend, while Cilan had a smile on his face.

"I guess it isn't Dragon Sneeze anymore." Cilan mused, before the smoke cleared away, allowing the group to see that the evil trio and their Pokémon were gone. But the sound of jets caught their attention as they looked to see the trio escaping with their jet packs!

"I detest meddlesome twerps! They always appear to get in our way." James snapped, with Jessie narrowing her eyes with a serious look.

"It might look like we've lost this latest round, but our dream WILL definitely be realized." Jessie spoke, with Meowth adding the finishing touch.

"And that dream is taking over the entire Unova region for the boss!" Meowth added, before they flew off to their next destination on their jet packs.

"Axew, you were wonderful! You did it! You finally learned how to use Dragon Rage!" Iris spoke proudly as she held the little Tusk Pokémon in her arms.

"Axew!" Axew cried out, looking happy and proud for his accomplishment of being able to learn the Dragon Type attack properly.

"I know and I'm just as happy as you are! We've worked so long and hard for this!" Iris giggled as she hugged her Dragon Type friend, before the two cuddled against each other, as Cilan smiled.

"It was a long time coming, but like a fine meal, it was well worth the wait! A tasteful Dragon Rage!" Cilan spoke, after putting his hand on his chest.

"And Druddigon's Draco Meteor was pretty awesome, too!" Ash commented, with the Mouse Pokémon crying out in agreement.

"Nothing quite like your Pokémon improving with every passing day. With those kinds of moves, I'm sure you two will be strong battlers together." Takeru assured, with Deino giving a grunt of agreement.

Narri agreed alongside with a simple nod and a small smile on his face. As the group praised her, Emmy smiled, feeling grateful for what the group was able to do for her today.

"You've all helped me decide what to do... I'm going on a journey with Druddigon!" Emmy declared after leaning in conspiratorially towards Druddigon.

At her declaration, the Cave Pokémon then rubbed her head lightly against Emmy, causing her to laugh a bit.

"Great! We'll work hard, too! And I'll become a Dragon Master!" Iris spoke, pumping her fist while Axew grinned, giving a cry of agreement.

"I'm working hard, too! And someday, I'm gonna become a Pokémon Master!" Ash declared proudly, with his Electric Type partner giving a cry of agreement as well.

For Takeru, the Child of Zekrom smiled a little upon hearing what Ash and Iris were going to do. Scratching the back of his head, Takeru turned to Deino and Narri, before speaking up as well.

"My dream... I guess... I still have a lot of work to do if I want to become the best in Unova..." Takeru spoke, causing Deino to look up at him, the same going for the young Fighting Type.

"Heh... that's for sure. But we can accomplish our dream together, right?" Narri spoke, earning a nod from the Child of Zekrom.

"Yeah..." Takeru spoke, before looking up at the sky. What he wasn't aware, was that someone else was working hard to achieve the dream that she wanted to accomplish as well.

Meanwhile...

"Now, Mika! Use Force Palm!" Mana shouted out as she watched her Emanation Pokémon deliver the final blow onto Pansear, who screeched in pain before he was blown back hard by the impact of the Fighting Type attack.

"Pansear, no!" Chili exclaimed in disbelief as he watched his partner groan in defeat.

At the sight of the Fire Type being defeated, Cress made the call, gesturing the Yamada girl as the victor.

"Pansear is unable to battle! Riolu wins, so the winner of the Striaton Gym Battle is Mana Yamada!" Cress called, causing Mana to smile softly and turn to Mika happily as the two cheered for their victory.

"We did it, Mika! We won!" Mana called out, as she and the female Fighting Type hugged each other, both celebrating their first victory at a Gym. As for Chili, he sighed, feeling a bit irritated for his loss, yet he didn't have a grudge.

"Thanks for trying, Pansear. Return and get some rest..." Chili spoke as he called back his Fire Type partner. Cress smiled a little, feeling a bit sad that his brother lost, but happy to see a challenger be able to overcome her first trial.

Later...

"This belongs to you... the Trio Badge." Cress explained as he hands the Badge over to the Yamada girl, who took it with a gentle smile.

"Thank you..." thanked the Yamada girl, before Chili stepped up with a reminder of the next Gym.

"If you're going to take part in the Unova League, then why not head for Nacrene City? That's where most challengers go after they've defeated the Striaton Gym here..." Chili explained, earning a nod from Mana.

"Mm... I'm well aware... but thanks for the reminder." Mana thanked politely, catching the two by surprise.

"You're already aware...?" Cress questioned in surprise.

"Of course... After all, I know what my brother has done to gain three Gym Badges so far..." Mana explained, causing Chili to blink.

"Your brother...? Wait, is your brother by any chance..." Chili started to question, only for the Yamada girl to confirm for him.

"Mm hm... My brother is Takeru Yamada..." Mana explained with a nod, before she made a calm look.

"If I want to be able to figure out the truth of what I'm looking for, then I'm sure I'll be able to find it once I catch up to my brother and his friends as I travel around Unova..." Mana assured calmly, yet with a confident look.

"I see..." was all Cress could say while Chili looked a little confused as to what she had said.

"What truth, exactly?" Chili questioned, causing Mana to stop before she turned to the two.

"...The truth about my missing eldest brother." Mana spoke seriously.

To be continued...

Takeru's Team:

Riolu (Narri): (M): (Aura Sphere, Blaze Kick, Thunder Punch, Dig)

Deino: (M): (Dragon Rage, Headbutt, Bite, Incinerate)

Tirtouga (M): (Aqua Jet, Protect, Ancient Power, Bite)

Tepig: (M): (Flamethrower, Smog, Flame Charge, Rollout)

Zorua: (F): (Scratch, Leer, Pursuit, Dark Pulse)

Darmanitan: (M): (Psychic, Bulk Up, Fire Punch, Flamethrower)

With Prof. Juniper:

Joltik: (M): (Electro Ball, Signal Beam, String Shot, Electroweb)

Petilil: (F): (Magical Leaf, Sleep Powder, Stun Spore, Mega Drain)

Tranquill: (M): (Air Cutter, Gust, Aerial Ace, Roost)

Next chapters:

Chapter 59: A Serious Rival Named Hugh!

Chapter 60: The Scalchop to Train For!

Chapter 61: Fight for Love! Go, Cottonee!

Chapter 62: A Challenge from a Strong Sword!

Chapter 63: Mana and Elgyem! A Hope for UFO!

Next chapter preview:

Hugh: You're a Pokémon Trainer, right? Do you take care and love your Pokémon like all Trainers should do?

Takeru: That's a silly question... Of course I do. I consider them my family if I could when I'm not around with my family members...

Stephan: Pokémon as family, huh? Sounds nice... But hey! Judging by how the four of us are here, there's only one thing to do!

Ash: Yeah! I know! Let's have a battle... Wait, what!? Oshawott's scalchop has gone missing during the battle!

Stephan: Hold on...! If you're running off with your Pokémon... doesn't that count as a forfeit since we're not continuing...?

Hugh: Technically, since it was your Pokémon's attack that sent the scalchop flying, it kinda doesn't count as a forfeit...

Events that occurred:

- Axew masters Dragon Rage

- Mana is revealed to have defeated Chili won the Striaton Gym Badge