Gotta Catch That One

Chapter 78: The Bond of a Champion

There was nothing that could really describe what Ash was feeling at the moment. He'd imagined this moment time and time again. He realized now, how ridiculous some of his fantasies had been, such as jumping up and down, or dancing victoriously on the battlefield. There was absolutely no way he'd have enough energy to do that, Ash-Greninja or not. Battles like this took it all out of you, and adding the exhaustion of merging with Greninja only made Ash feel more like he'd drop at any moment.

His ears had been ringing for a few moments as his victory was declared by both the announcer and referee. He heard some of the cheers from the crowd, but none of it really mattered at the moment. As his senses came back to him, Ash's mind ignored his success immediately. He didn't even look towards his friends, his mom, or even Serena.

"Greninja," Ash whispered, slowly starting to limp forward, seeing his loyal water type turning and reverting back to his original form. Both Pokemon and trainer suddenly stumbled from further exhaustion, the end of their connection taking even more of their strength. Ash managed to limp his way towards the frog-ninja Pokemon in time, though, and the two managed to hold each other up.

"Gren...ninja," Greninja slowly croaked out, his tired eyes somehow lit up with excitement. The battle had been just as important to him. Not only had he finally defeated a powerful rival Pokemon, but he'd also truly fought as one with the trainer he cared for so much.

Ash smiled back at the frog-ninja Pokemon. "We did it," Ash said weakly, eyes drooping a bit. He gave his head a quick shake to wake himself up. "I knew you could do it. I knew all of you could do it." He glanced down at Pikachu, who was also pretty tired, leaning against Ash's leg for support. "You're all champions."

At that moment, there were four flashes of light, and the exhausted trio, were suddenly joined by four more exhausted Pokemon. Hawlucha and Noivern held each other up, while Goodra just sat on the ground, Talonflame resting on his shoulder. Everyone was beaten up, bruised and scratched. And somehow, they couldn't have looked happier. They all realized what they had just accomplished. They'd defeated their strongest opponent ever, and they'd won the most important match in their trainer's life. The trainer they'd all grown to love so much.

Maybe Ash should have expected it. For someone who often had so much unexpected energy, maybe he should have guessed his Pokemon would have had it. But really, after a battle like that, to have your Pokemon tackle you, or just fall on you really, was the last thing he would have expected. It was a great feeling, though. Even if Goodra's weight was close to killing them all. The Kalos team was really that, a team. And their teamwork had just won one of the most difficult tournaments a trainer and their Pokemon could enter.

When they were finally done with the group hug, or whatever the pileup could really be called, Ash and his Pokemon just sat down. The crowd was still going nuts, and the announcer was recapping the match. Ash thought he even heard President Goodshow, Diantha and Sycamore chiming in. He didn't listen, though. He just looked at his Pokemon, his friends, and finally embraced what they'd actually just achieved. If he had the strength to stand, he would've jumped up right then and there, yelling happily for his achievement.

"Ash?" Ash let his attention go to the voice calling his name. He turned his head, and saw Alain, holding up his Charizard as best as he could, as they struggled to get over to Ash's position. Finally, after a somewhat awkward few moments, they made it. Alain looked at Ash a moment, then his Pokemon. His gaze finally rested on Greninja. "I don't know what to say," he said with a weak laugh. "Congratulations, I suppose."

Ash smiled and got up on one knee. He was exhausted, but he wasn't going to sit while his opponent congratulated him. He took a deep breath and stood. He wobbled a moment, and felt kind of lightheaded, but managed to stay upright. "Thanks, Alain," he breathed out, stumbling as he held out a hand." He felt himself starting to fall, but something grabbed him just in time. He looked to his right and saw Greninja holding him up, but the frog-ninja held tight, as he was close to dropping as well. Ash glanced back to Alain who was watching with a bit of concern. The younger trainer held out his hand. "Thanks for the best battle of my life," Ash finally managed to say.