Ash's Story (Part 5: Modern Sinnoh)

Chapter 71: Tower Print

The next morning felt calmer than the festival should have allowed. Twinleaf Town still carried the smell of food stands, trampled grass, and late-night fireworks, but the road ahead of us had sharpened into one clear shape. Palmer had invited me to challenge the Battle Tower, and Scott had arrived before breakfast as if he had been waiting for that moment longer than I had.

Mom stood near the entrance with Professor Oak and Eve, talking with Scott while Pikachu sat on my shoulder. Lillie was beside me, quiet but smiling, and Dawn looked more nervous than she wanted to admit. Barry kept shifting from foot to foot, which told me he was excited, worried, and trying not to explode.

Scott adjusted his glasses and looked toward the tower. "This is it, eh? The final Sinnoh Battle Frontier challenge you have been waiting for."

"Yeah," I said, tightening my glove around my fingers. "I know the Battle Tower rules, but that does not mean Palmer will be easy. Forty-eight wins before him is still forty-eight chances to make one mistake."

Barry pointed at me so fast that Pikachu's ears twitched. "That is exactly right! My dad does not battle like a normal Frontier Brain! He watches everything, and then he makes you pay for thinking too slowly!"

Mom smiled gently, but I could see the worry hiding behind it. "Then do not try to rush just because everyone is watching."

"I won't," I promised, and Pikachu tapped his paw against my cheek.

Pikachu's meaning came warm and steady. "We run fast, but we do not run blind."

I smiled at him because that was exactly what I needed to hear. After everything that had happened in the forest, after Tangrowth, Purugly, and Toxicroak had all changed in their own ways, this battle felt different from another badge or another ribbon. It felt like Sinnoh was asking whether I had learned how to keep moving without forgetting the people and Pokémon beside me.

Professor Oak folded his arms with a proud look. "The Battle Tower tests endurance before it tests brilliance. Remember that, Ash. Many Trainers can win one fine battle. Fewer can stay clear-minded after forty-eight."

Eve gave me a small nod. "And Palmer is waiting after all of that, not before it. That means he expects you to arrive tired."

"I know," I said, looking toward the doors. "So I will arrive ready."

The first set of battles passed quickly, but not carelessly. I rotated my team instead of trying to let one partner carry everything. Some Trainers came at me with speed, some with power, and some with strategies that tried to make me impatient. I felt the tower watching how I reacted more than how hard I hit.

Pikachu handled quick opponents who tried to overwhelm us before we could think. Torterra slowed battles down when the field needed patience. Empoleon took the center when I needed a partner who could stand through pressure without flinching. Those three began to feel like the shape of my final answer.

By the time I passed the twenty-fourth battle, my legs felt heavier than I wanted to admit. Lillie met me near the waiting room with water, and Dawn tried to cheer loudly enough to cover her own nerves. Barry paced so hard that Tox finally told him he was wearing a track into the floor.

Tox spoke in his calm, exact voice. "Ash is conserving enough energy. Barry is not."

"I am conserving emotional energy!" Barry shouted.

Daniel looked at the tower monitor and adjusted his glasses. "That phrase does not become scientific because you say it loudly."

Gladion only leaned against the wall with Umbreon beside him, but his eyes stayed on every battle replay. "Palmer will not care how many wins came before him. He will only care what Ash still has left when he reaches the top."