The announcer raised his mic and declared, "Let the Pokéblock Wars begin!"
As soon as the signal was given, Ace wasted no time. He grabbed two Pokéballs from his belt and threw them into the air. "Let's go, Elekid! Smeargle!"
With a bright flash of light, Elekid landed on the battlefield, sparks crackling from its body, while Smeargle stood ready, its tail swishing behind it. The audience murmured in surprise at Ace's choice. Unlike the other four teams, which had at least one Flying-type Pokémon for mobility, Ace's team lacked one—at least, that's what they thought.
Ace smirked, already a step ahead. "Smeargle, use Fly! Go disrupt Team Red!"
Smeargle's body glowed as Flying-type energy wrapped around it. Within seconds, it shot into the sky, surprising the crowd. Gasps and cheers erupted as Smeargle soared toward Team Red's artificial island.
The red team's leader, Zoro, stood firm on his island with his Pokémon—Scyther and Honchkrow. His green bandana fluttered slightly from the wind as he narrowed his eyes.
"A Smeargle using Fly? Heh, not bad." Zoro smirked. "Scyther, use Swords Dance! Honchkrow, keep that thing away from our Pokéblock!"
Honchkrow flapped its large wings and flew to intercept Smeargle. However, Smeargle's eyes sharpened, and suddenly, electricity crackled around its body.
"Discharge!" Ace's command rang through the air.
Smeargle unleashed a powerful surge of electricity, covering the area in a bright yellow flash. Honchkrow screeched in pain as the attack struck it mid-flight. The dark bird wobbled, struggling to stay airborne.
Zoro's eyes widened slightly. "Scyther, get in there! Fury Cutter!"
Scyther, its body still glowing from Swords Dance, zipped into action. It appeared above Smeargle in an instant, both blade-like arms glowing green as it slashed downward.
But Smeargle reacted just as fast. Its tail shimmered metallic silver as it met Scyther's attack head-on. CLANG!
The two moves clashed, but Smeargle didn't stop there. The moment of impact sent out another surge of electricity—another Discharge!
"KROOOOW!!"
Honchkrow let out one last cry before crashing onto the island, its body twitching as it fainted.
Zoro clenched his fists. "Damn it, Honchkrow!"
Scyther, though still in the fight, wasn't in great shape as it also took damage from the discharge attack. Smeargle, however, ignored the weakened mantis as its body shimmered again—this time with Normal-type energy.
"Quick Attack!"
Like a bullet, Smeargle shot forward and slammed into the large red Pokéblock, causing it to crack. A second later—BOOM!—the block shattered into pieces!
The announcer's voice boomed over the speakers. "Team Red has been eliminated!"
Zoro stared at the remains of his block, speechless. He sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "Tch. Guess that's that. Wonder if that drinking stall is still open."
Meanwhile, on Ace's island, he had his own problems to deal with. A fierce-looking Fearow dived toward him, its trainer riding on its back.
"Oh, great," Ace muttered, holding his blue Pokéblock tightly. "This guy's coming straight for us!"
The trainer, a young man with wild blond hair and a blue jacket, grinned down at him. "Yo! It's time to duel—wait, wrong competition! AHAHA! Charmander, use Flamethrower!"
Ace recognized him instantly. "Joey Wheeler? From the green team?"
A stream of fire burst toward them. Ace acted fast. "Elekid, counter with Thunderbolt!"
The two moves collided in midair, the flames and electricity battling for dominance before exploding in a small burst of energy.
Fearow screeched and dived straight at Ace, aiming for the Pokéblock in his arms.
"Shock Wave!" Ace called out.
Elekid spun, releasing a wave of electricity that spread outward in all directions. The attack struck both Fearow and Charmander, sending them backward.
Ace smirked. "Nice try, but we're not letting you take our block that easily!"
Meanwhile, Smeargle zipped through the air, victorious from eliminating Team Red. It turned its focus to the next target.
On his island, Ace kept his eyes on Joey Wheeler, who was now glaring at him.
"You got lucky, pal!" Joey yelled, shaking his fist.
Ace simply smirked. "Let's see if you can back up that talk!"
With one team down, the battle was only getting started.
Joey's grin widened as he pointed forward. "Charmander, go in with Metal Claw! Fearow, back him up with Tri Attack!"
Charmander's claws glowed a fierce silver as it lunged at Elekid, who met it head-on with a crackling Thunder Punch at Ace's command. Sparks flew as the two Pokémon clashed, their trainers shouting encouragement from opposite ends of the island.
"Come on, Charmander! Show 'em what we got!" Joey cheered.
"Elekid, don't let up!" Ace urged.
Meanwhile, Fearow flapped its massive wings and fired a Tri Attack, a powerful blast of three different energy beams—fire, ice, and electricity—hurtling toward Elekid.
"Dodge it with Trailblaze!" Ace commanded.
Elekid's body glowed with a vibrant green aura as it zipped out of the way, using the boost of Trailblaze to gain speed. It darted across the battlefield, avoiding the attack entirely before launching itself high into the air.
Ace's eyes glinted. "Supercell Slam!"
A surge of electricity crackled around Elekid's small frame as it spun mid-air and shot down like a living thunderbolt.
BOOM!
Elekid slammed into Charmander, sending a jolt of pure electrical energy coursing through its body.
"CHAAARR!!" Charmander cried out in pain as it tumbled backward, smoke rising from its body.
Joey clenched his fists. "Tch… Not bad, pal! But Joey Wheeler ain't shown his full power yet!" He pointed dramatically. "Charmander, trap Elekid with Fire Spin!"
Charmander groaned but stood its ground, exhaling a swirling vortex of flames that quickly wrapped around Elekid.
Elekid flinched as the scorching rings circled around it, the heat searing its body.
"Damn… That move hits multiple times…" Ace muttered, watching as the flames flickered around Elekid.
Joey smirked. "Now, Fearow! Harass Elekid with Steel Wing!"
Fearow cawed and swooped down, its wings glowing metallic white.
Ace's eyes narrowed. "Elekid, brace yourself!"
Elekid grit its teeth, sparks crackling as it prepared to counter. But before the attack could land, Ace caught sight of something moving in the distance.
While Ace was locked in a heated battle with Joey, Smeargle soared across the battlefield, arriving near the combined islands of Team Orange and Team Yellow. Both trainers had combined their islands to fight each other.
On the islands, chaos reigned.
"I'M GONNA WIN THIS TIME, GRAY!!" A loud voice roared.
"SHUT UP, NATSU! I'M TAKING YOU DOWN FIRST!!" Another voice shot back.
The two trainers, Natsu and Gray, were engaged in an intense clash, their Pokémon battling fiercely.
Natsu, the fiery brawler of Team Orange, commanded a Ninetales and a Charizard—both blazing with heat.
Gray, the cool and collected (only in name not in behaviour) leader of Team Yellow, had a Lapras and a Mamoswine—both radiating an icy aura.
Their battle had reached a boiling point, fire and ice clashing in the middle of their merged islands, with neither trainer willing to back down.
But then—THUD!
A shadow landed between the four battling Pokémon.
Smeargle.
The artistic Pokémon crossed its arms, tail swaying behind it, as its eyes locked onto the four powerful opponents.
For a moment, silence.
Then, Smeargle spoke. Not in human language offcourse, but in the language of Pokémon.
*It seems that you still want to dance with each other, but… You will not be able to make steps anymore because I am gonna see if you can even walk properly...woof~*
Natsu and Gray blinked in confusion. "Huh??"
But their Pokémon?
Their expressions darkened.
Lapras, Mamoswine, Ninetales, and Charizard all turned toward Smeargle, suddenly glaring with annoyance.
And in that moment—Smeargle knew.
He had their full attention.