Pokemon: Spiritual Master-Chapter 704: This Is a Swordsman Worthy of Respect, Kartana! (Two-in-One - )
Chapter 704: This Is a Swordsman Worthy of Respect, Kartana! (Two-in-One Chapter)
"Fine, then you choose one of the little ones to help you."
Johan forced himself to perk up, smiling meaningfully at Tapu Bulu.
Speaking, he threw out Poké Balls, summoning all his little ones.
"Ka-kaah~"
Gengar had a mischievous smile, standing with arms crossed without moving, but from the shadow beneath its feet, shadowy tentacles extended out, waving at Tapu Bulu.
Seeing this scene, Tapu Bulu’s eyes immediately widened, then instinctively backed away.
Then looking at Ninetales, that freezing cold aura made Tapu Bulu immediately pass without thinking.
What it disliked most was the cold.
Looking again at the silly-smiling Dragonite waving its small wings, with its three-meter height, round belly and short arms, one look...
Clearly not good at scratching itches, pass.
Just as it looked toward Tinkaton, it saw her swaying her twin tails, gently placing her hammer on the ground.
Thud!!
The dull sound, plus the ground shaking, made a drop of cold sweat appear on Tapu Bulu’s forehead.
"Cha?" Tinkaton smiled gently, pointing at herself.
Tapu Bulu waved its hands repeatedly.
Its gaze moved again.
The robust but still snoring Urshifu with a snot bubble - this looked like a good itch-scratcher, but... it was sleeping.
Tapu Bulu hated being disturbed while sleeping most, so it wouldn’t disturb someone else who was sleeping.
Next was Ceruledge beside Urshifu.
Clang!!
Sharp blades wreathed in ghostly blue flames, those flames that seemed to burn souls made Tapu Bulu skip past again.
"Moo!!"
It couldn’t help standing up.
Not one normal one!
Don’t you have a single normal Pokémon?
"Bangi?"
Tyranitar, sitting on the ground, clapped and stood up, leaving a very obvious butt print, pointing at itself.
Is it me?
I’m great at scratching itches!
Looking at that butt print, Tapu Bulu’s eye twitched.
The only somewhat decent-looking Snivy was holding its head high, looking at it disdainfully from the side.
Noticing Tapu Bulu’s gaze, Snivy directly bared its teeth.
"Sni! (#`皿)"
Choose me and I’ll definitely strangle you later!
Tapu Bulu: "..."
Forget it!
[Never... never mind.]
Tapu Bulu took a deep breath.
"Never mind? Want to look at these few more?"
Johan took out more Poké Balls, summoning Regieleki and Regidrago.
"Regi—"
"Drago—"
Tapu Bulu’s expression froze.
It waved repeatedly at Johan.
Forget it, for an itch scratch, no need to risk half its life.
Johan couldn’t help but find it amusing.
He knew perfectly well what his Pokémon were like. Honestly, in the entire Pokémon world, besides himself, probably no one else would dare let them help scratch itches.
Tapu Bulu slowly floated up, then turned head-down, dug a depression in the ground, waved its arms, and threw an unknown seed into it.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The bell on its tail swayed and rang, emerald green light flowed from its body, then gradually injected into the soil.
"Sni?" Snivy couldn’t help narrowing its eyes, watching this scene.
This bull has some skills?
The next moment.
Rustle rustle rustle—
In the rustling sounds, the seed Tapu Bulu planted quickly took root and sprouted, growing branches. In just a few breaths, it had grown into a towering tree covered in snow-white flowers.
This was the ability Johan envied most.
Then Tapu Bulu landed beside the thick trunk, pressed its back against the rough bark, and began rubbing "huff huff."
"Moo~"
Tapu Bulu made comfortable sounds.
Johan’s expression was strange.
If you had this method, why didn’t you use it earlier?
Was it necessary to make things so difficult?
But the next second.
The expressions of Johan’s Pokémon all changed, and the rubbing Tapu Bulu immediately crouched down, hooves supporting the ground, assuming a push-up position.
Whoosh—
A bright white arc flashed across the tree trunk Tapu Bulu had been using to scratch its itch.
Crack—
Immediately after, that thick trunk was directly cut into two sections out of nowhere!
The smooth cut even made the upper half of the trunk slide down the cut surface, crashing heavily to the ground.
Bang!!
Raising a large cloud of dust.
"This is..." Johan was stunned.
"Moo..."
Tapu Bulu seemed unsurprised by this scene, floating up with a helpless expression.
This was why it wanted Johan and the others to help scratch its itch instead of growing trees to scratch itself.
"Goka..."
Ceruledge’s eyes flickered with flame.
Since it hadn’t been particularly focused on Tapu Bulu’s scratching, Ceruledge hadn’t seen the earlier scene happen.
But that perfectly even cut on the trunk, and the slight sharpness remaining in the air, made Ceruledge realize something. Its twin blades trembled slightly, emitting faint ringing sounds.
"Moo!!"
Tapu Bulu made a low sound. After brief helplessness, anger couldn’t help rising in its heart.
Once or twice was fine, but appearing every time it wanted to scratch an itch, that feeling...
The feeling of being suddenly interrupted while scratching halfway was even more uncomfortable than not scratching at all, and much more so.
Slice! Slice!
Out of nowhere, cutting waves appeared one after another, as if small gaps had appeared in the air, leading to unknown places.
In the middle of those gaps, a small figure was finally locked onto by their vision.
At first glance, it looked like a child’s origami toy, with a humanoid structure, its head folded into its body, with a yellow four-pointed star cut out in the center that looked like both a mouth and eyes.
Its slender single-layer paper arms were like two blades that could cut through anything, gleaming with cold light.
Cut another boring thing!
"Found it, Rotom!" The Rotom Pokédex activated zoom photography, finally getting a clear shot of that guy in the air. Even Gengar rarely refrained from messing around.
"As expected, Kartana." Johan said softly.
"Begin recording!" The Rotom Pokédex started its information collection, analysis, and recording functions.
Johan, in his capacity as International Police Chief Inspector, named this creature.
"Code name: UB04: Blade. Name: Kartana, Drawn Sword Pokémon, Grass and Steel-type. Its body is thin as paper and can become a sword that cuts through everything. Danger level: Extremely high!"
He had already reviewed some UB materials collected by the "UB Task Force."
Besides UB01: Symbiont provided by the Aether Foundation and UB02: Expansion that Johan had subdued, the "UB Task Force" mainly targeted UB05: Glutton, also known as Guzzlord.
Supposedly it came to the Pokémon world with Anabel ten years ago, hiding somewhere in slumber, only recently showing signs of awakening.
Since Kartana was appearing for the first time, Johan directly took over "naming rights."
"Record! Record! Rotom!"
The Rotom Pokédex recorded the information and footage while sending real-time updates to the "UB Task Force."
At the same time.
At "UB Task Force" headquarters on Melemele Island, Anabel and Dr. Burnet received the Rotom Pokédex’s "live broadcast."
"Another Ultra Beast? UB04: Blade, Drawn Sword Pokémon, Kartana?" Anabel frowned tightly.
"Obviously no Ultra Wormhole appeared..."
Dr. Burnet’s hands rapidly typed on the keyboard.
After repeated confirmation, there were indeed no signs of Ultra Wormhole opening.
The "UB Task Force’s" current main objective was to stably lock onto every Ultra Wormhole opening and develop Poké Balls capable of capturing Ultra Beasts.
Otherwise, even if they defeated Ultra Beasts, being unable to capture or return them was just wasting time.
In this regard, the "UB Task Force" had cooperated with the Aether Foundation.
This would normally be quite difficult.
But after Teacher Johan provided Buzzwole to assist research, development made breakthrough progress.
Whether real-time monitoring of Ultra Wormhole openings or Beast Ball development, both were approaching success.
Yet even so, they still couldn’t capture this Kartana’s appearing Ultra Wormhole.
"Perhaps..." After hesitating briefly, Anabel said: "It arrived in the Pokémon world before we came."
Such Ultra Beasts were rarer but not nonexistent, like the UB05: Glutton, Guzzlord they’d always been wary of.
"Possible." Dr. Burnet nodded.
She began receiving information collected by the Rotom Pokédex.
"Wait, that Pokémon is—"
But then Dr. Burnet noticed the Pokémon confronting Kartana.
"Ula’ula Island’s Guardian Deity, Tapu Bulu!" Anabel said in a deep voice.
On screen.
Tapu Bulu confronted Kartana, emerald green light flowing from its body as the ground beneath it rapidly grew a large patch of verdant grassland.
Grassy Surge, Grassy Terrain!
Swish—
Kartana’s arms merged, becoming a sharp blade, the yellow four-pointed star on its head flickering as if expressing something.
"Moo!!"
Tapu Bulu’s eyes were serious, its hooves colliding at its chest, making "clop clop" sounds like horse hooves.
The next moment.
Both rushed toward each other simultaneously.
No intense collision sounds, no flashy moves, just after an extremely fast flash, both crossed paths.
"Moo..."
Tapu Bulu’s serious and angry expression became helpless.
It looked down at its own body.
The originally intact body suddenly burst with bright white arcs, accompanied by crisp cutting sounds, instantly becoming covered in dense cutting wounds.
Even the surrounding air, the energy it released, and the Grassy Terrain were all completely severed!
However, Tapu Bulu didn’t fall, just slowly landed on the ground. Misty green light appeared again, rapidly healing its wounds.
But Kartana seemed to have just done something trivial, slowly turning around, expression cold, blade returning to arm form.
Cut another boring opponent!
"Worthy of being the swordsman Kartana that can cut through any enemy." Johan clicked his tongue.
Tapu Bulu had encountered an Ultra Beast that severely countered it.
As a large, powerful but unable-to-scratch-its-own-back, typical "heavy" Pokémon, facing Kartana - only palm-sized, extremely fast with sharp blades.
While not having attribute disadvantage, it was clearly outmatched in agility.
Of course, though Kartana could wound Tapu Bulu, it couldn’t defeat Tapu Bulu with its strong recovery ability. Neither could truly deal with the other.
It’s just that attack-specialized Kartana held more initiative.
Tapu Bulu looked at Johan.
[This is my second trouble.]
Kartana had come to Ula’ula Island several years ago. Initially it cut whatever it saw. Though it was in the wild without causing much commotion, it put many wild Pokémon in danger.
So Tapu Bulu, as Guardian Deity, had to find Kartana, and in the end...
Well, Tapu Bulu was completely entangled by Kartana.
Because in Kartana’s view, Tapu Bulu was an opponent worth cutting.
But Tapu Bulu was naturally lazy and trouble-averse. After seeing Kartana stop harassing other places and wild Pokémon, it ignored Kartana.
But it could be lazy - Kartana couldn’t.
Hence the earlier scene. Whenever Tapu Bulu grew trees, Kartana cut them, just to force Tapu Bulu to fight it properly for a satisfying cutting session.
"Swish..."
Kartana stood proudly in the air, wind blowing across its body, making paper-like fluttering sounds.
Its height was only thirty centimeters, but its spirit couldn’t be measured by height. Its goal was to cut through everything - whether matter, energy, or even space.
Kartana could cut through space!
It was thanks to this ability that it could independently cut open the space between Ultra Space and the Pokémon world, traveling to this strange world, to the Alola region.
All to find opponents worth cutting.
But obviously, Tapu Bulu’s lazy nature greatly dissatisfied Kartana.
However.
Following Tapu Bulu’s gaze, Kartana finally noticed Johan and his Pokémon’s presence.
So many powerful Pokémon!
Kartana’s spirits lifted.
More opponents to try cutting!
"Swish!"
The airborne Kartana’s form trembled slightly, then vanished from sight.
Here it comes!
"Ka-kaah!"
Gengar wasn’t panicked at all. It hopped on its little legs, then instantly disappeared from its original position.
In Johan’s aura, he "saw" the blade-wielding Kartana and the charging chubby Gengar cross in the air like Tapu Bulu and Kartana had before.
Both Pokémon’s movements stopped.
"Swish!"
Kartana’s expression was cold, somewhat disdainful.
Its blade returned to arm form.
"Ka-kaah!!"
Gengar showed "terror," its chubby body cleanly cut in half!
Split right through the middle of its belly!
"Swish..."
Cut another boring opponent.
Kartana’s gaze swept over Johan’s other Pokémon again.
As for Gengar...
A guy that couldn’t even withstand one cut and was sliced in half wasn’t worth looking back at.
The only thing puzzling Kartana was - even though Gengar was cut in half, why did the human below and its companions all look unconcerned?
So cold-hearted?
But then Johan said while holding his forehead: "Alright, Gengar, stop playing."
"Ka-kaah!"
Behind it came Gengar’s giggling.
Hm?
Kartana spun around sharply.
It saw the purple chubby waving one hand at it while grabbing its cut-off "lower half" with the other, squishing it back together.
Squish, squish?!
"Ka-kaah~~"
Gengar looked down at its little feet, gently wiggling them as if checking for problems.
Seeing its feet still responded normally, it patted its belly with a "relieved" expression and sighed deeply.
Kartana: "?"
Johan smiled and shook his head, beckoning to Gengar. The chubby floated back with a giggling expression under Kartana’s confused gaze.
"Ka-kaah~"
This old man was so scared~ Really thought I was cut in half~
That mischievous look brought laughter from Johan and the little ones.
"Ceruledge." After flicking the purple chubby’s forehead, Johan called out.
"Goka!"
Ceruledge stepped forward, looking up at airborne Kartana, flames rising in its eyes.
Speaking of who had the strongest battle desire facing Kartana, it was definitely Ceruledge.
As fellow "sword" users, fellow swordsmen, Kartana’s agile movements and sharp cuts made Ceruledge excited beyond measure.
Johan naturally had his own plans for sending out Ceruledge.
Ceruledge’s fighting spirit was one aspect. Kartana being a Grass and Steel-type Ultra Beast with 4× Fire weakness was another.
Most importantly.
This Kartana probably had at least ordinary Champion main Pokémon level strength.
For Ceruledge, it was definitely a great opponent.
With 4× type advantage, even if somewhat stronger, it had fighting chance.
"Swish!!"
Facing Gengar’s "trickery," Kartana was obviously angry, raising its hand to point at Johan. An almost tangible pressure formed into a blade slashing forward, its sharpness making Johan immediately feel like needles on his back.
"Goka!"
But Ceruledge swept its blade toward the incoming blade.
Clang!!
Like metal clashing against metal, accompanied by sparks, Kartana’s pressure blade was deflected aside.
Thud—
Landing on the ground, leaving a thin but deep sword mark.
"Swish?"
Kartana looked at Ceruledge, its four-pointed star opening and closing slightly, expression gradually becoming serious.
From Ceruledge’s body, it sensed the aura of a fellow swordsman, an unstoppable momentum to cut through everything.
Kartana’s body slowly descended from the air, reaching eye level with Ceruledge. Its paper-thin arms rotated slightly like a sword gathering power in its sheath, battle intent gradually emerging within.
"Swish!"
You’re not bad!
Ceruledge also slowly raised its blade, pointing at Kartana, eyes narrowing as the ghostly blue flames in them became more intense.
Just "not bad"?
Hum—
The blade turned with a buzzing sound, ghostly blue flames immediately covering it.
Arms and blades crossed before its face.
It had trained, grown, and fought so hard - it wanted more than just "not bad"!
Such an evaluation...
You’re not giving me face!
Ghostly blue flames suddenly burst from Ceruledge’s eyes as its form swayed slightly, leaving only scorched footprints.
"Swish!"
Kartana’s expression became solemn instantly.
So fast!
Seeing ghostly blue arc light flashing toward it, Kartana immediately merged its arms into a sword, charging at Ceruledge without hesitation.
Sizzle—
Sparks flew instantly. Amid ear-piercing grinding sounds, Ceruledge and Kartana crossed paths.
So fast a sword!
So sharp a sword!
Both Ceruledge and Kartana thought simultaneously.
Thud!
Standing apart, Ceruledge’s black-purple armor showed a clean cut.
While on Kartana’s paper sword, ghostly blue flame danced.
Ceruledge and Kartana hadn’t reacted much yet, but nearby Tinkaton showed a "heartbroken" expression first.
Not worried about Ceruledge, but distressed about Ceruledge’s armor.
Don’t break it...
"It’s fine." Though Johan also felt "pain," it was just one cut.
After their brief initial clash, both Ceruledge and Kartana took their opponent more seriously.
"Swish!!"
Energy similar to Ultra Wormholes appeared around Kartana, its momentum climbing.
Ability: Beast Boost!
[Beast Boost: Pokémon with this ability randomly increase one stat except HP when they defeat an opponent with an attacking move!]
But clearly Kartana’s current situation differed from normal "Beast Boost."
It seemed that as battle time continued, its energy would gradually increase!
"Cheating..."
However, Ceruledge didn’t retreat due to Kartana’s momentum change, calling out lowly.
"Goka!"
Crack—
A fissure opened in its black-purple armor, ghostly blue flame tongues licking out from the crack.
Armor Shed!
Physical Defense decreased while Speed greatly increased!
"Cha!" Tinkaton gripped its hammer handle tightly.
Now even Johan felt pain.
But for Ceruledge and Kartana, this was just the beginning!
In an instant.
Clang!!
Ceruledge and Kartana turned simultaneously in perfect sync, slashing their blades at each other.
Sparks flew, blades rang!
Kartana’s single sword and Ceruledge’s twin swords deadlocked, ghostly blue flames surging.
"Swish!"
Fire was what Kartana hated most, and this bone-deep ghostly blue flame made it feel like its whole body was burning.
In the second collision, despite Beast Boost’s enhancement, Kartana not only gained no advantage over Ceruledge but was also painfully burned by Ceruledge’s flames.
Ceruledge also noticed Kartana’s condition, seeing the slight scorching on its blade, then looking down at its own twin swords.
After brief consideration.
It looked at Johan.
Johan also saw another crack appear in Ceruledge’s armor, forcibly suppressing his heartache and nodding slightly:
"Do what you want to do."
"Goka!"
Getting Johan’s approval, feeling Johan’s unconditional trust, endless power surged in Ceruledge’s heart. It gently rotated its sword edge.
Hum—
The ghostly blue flames on its twin swords dissipated.
Seeing this, Kartana paused, seemingly not expecting Ceruledge to withdraw its flames voluntarily.
But when it looked at Ceruledge and their gazes met, Kartana immediately understood—
The "worthy to cut" opponent it had been seeking had finally appeared!
"Swish!!"
Kartana’s momentum gained another Beast Boost enhancement.
Facing a true swordsman, it had to show a swordsman’s spirit!
Though Ceruledge had been attacking before, now as respect—
Kartana’s gaze became stern, its form like wind and lightning, rapidly shooting toward Ceruledge.
While Ceruledge might be inferior to Kartana in strength, defense and other aspects, in pure speed it even had advantage!
Clang!!
Another blade clash.
Without flame interference, in pure collision, Kartana gained huge advantage!
Despite its seemingly small form, it burst with extremely strong pressure.
Though its blade pressed against Ceruledge’s blades, there seemed to be abundant "sword qi" around them.
"Shadow Claw!" Johan called out timely.
Though Ceruledge chose not to use flames, that didn’t mean no other moves.
It really wanted to spar with Kartana in swordsmanship.
"Goka!"
Ceruledge’s blocking blade thrust upward, creating space, while its other blade slashed at Kartana.
Ghostly chill made Kartana feel considerable threat.
However.
At this moment, Kartana’s originally merged blade arms split in two, returning to dual arm form.
Or more accurately, dual blades!
Clang!
Kartana’s left arm-blade clashed with Ceruledge’s right sword.
Suddenly.
Kartana’s expression calmed.
"Swish..."
Twin swords are used like this.
One sword rides the wind, one sword breaks waves. Feel it, my opponent!
Clang!!
Ceruledge was somewhat surprised.
It thought Kartana used single-sword style, not expecting... it was also dual-sword style!
But facing Kartana’s sudden fierce attack, Ceruledge could only raise both swords to barely parry.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Each of Kartana’s strikes carried terrifying buzzing, flying sparks, and Ceruledge’s sword trembling.
As if allowing this continued slashing would break even Ceruledge’s twin swords.
This time, Tinkaton was truly nervous.
Broken armor could be repaired - just more materials and its skilled craftsmanship.
But if Ceruledge’s swords broke, repair wouldn’t be a matter of just money.
"Ceruledge..."
Johan’s aura had completely spread, merging with Ceruledge’s aura, seeing the battlefield situation clearly while making trainer and Pokémon completely unified.
Constant defense wasn’t what a swordsman should do, but if defense had purpose, that was different.
"Do you see clearly?" Johan murmured.
Ceruledge didn’t respond, just stared intently at Kartana, working hard to parry while flames in its eyes grew brighter.
Simultaneously.
Ceruledge’s momentum began rapidly climbing.
Swords Dance!
Using parrying force to execute Swords Dance!
The ringing was masked by blade collision sounds.
But this wasn’t all!
Ceruledge’s own strength also quietly improved through repeated parrying.
Battle was indeed the best path to improvement.
Kartana was also surprised by Ceruledge’s changes.
"Sunlight is perfect - Sunlight Blade!"
After familiarizing with Kartana’s swordsmanship, it was counterattack time!
"Goka!"
The flames accumulated in Ceruledge’s body compressed to extremes at this moment, surging like volcanic eruption.
It hadn’t violated its earlier "promise" by releasing flames outward.
It just converted this power into explosive force!
Simultaneously.
The single-strike style secrets learned from Bear Instructor were fully displayed!
"Goka!!"
Take this sword!
Ceruledge deflected Kartana’s twin swords with one strike, its retreating steps briefly stopping before surging forward. Its blade covered with brilliant blazing energy slashed out.
Kartana’s expression shook, feeling this sword’s power.
"Swish..."
This sword...
Clang!!!
After the ringing, small Kartana crashed into the ground like a cannonball, the entire ground bulging then collapsing thunderously.
Rumble—
Was it over?
Watching the "livestream," Anabel and Dr. Burnet were shocked by the scene, wondering.
However, the next instant.
Boom!!
Kartana burst from the ground, twin swords still sharp, momentum climbing to an even higher peak!
This moment’s Kartana had reached ordinary Champion ace Pokémon level!
It gazed intensely, pointing its sword at Ceruledge, crying out.
"My opponent, hold nothing back - let me see your strongest sword!"
Strongest sword?
Ceruledge and Johan exchanged glances.
Hiss...
White vapor escaped from beneath Ceruledge’s mask.
Blade turned.
Roar!!
Flames, more intense than before, rose from its blade.
One sword punishes evil, one sword subdues souls!
Beneath Ceruledge’s feet, spiraling ghostly blue flames burned upward, seeming to carry countless spirits.
At this moment, heaven, earth, and sun all seemed to dim.
"Ceruledge!"
Johan and Ceruledge’s eyes opened wide simultaneously, blue aura surging.
Bitter Blade!
"Goka!"
Twin swords, Brilliant Strike!
Instantly.
Speed reached its peak, aura surged to its limit - single-strike style secret, Twin Sword Brilliant Strike!
"Swish!!"
Excellent!
Kartana’s heart shook greatly. Facing Ceruledge, it advanced instead of retreating, twin swords covered in sunlight, fearlessly meeting the attack!
Sunlight Blade!
One black, one white. One dark, one bright.
Clang!!!
Crossing paths.
Victory decided!
"Goka!"
Ceruledge cried in pain, chest armor cracking with a vicious gap, falling to one knee.
"Swish..."
Kartana calmly turned around, looking at Ceruledge with satisfied expression.
This trip was worth it.
Hiss!!
Flames suddenly rose as it fell lightly to the ground.
Eyes spinning.
"Goka..."
This is a swordsman worthy of respect...
Ceruledge swayed as it stood, eyes showing respect.
Johan clutched his chest, full of pain.
Not physical pain - financial pain.
How much rare metal and materials would this battle cost...
However, seeing Ceruledge’s satisfied expression, confident surging appearance, and its strength improvement.
Forget it.
Johan sighed lightly.
Worth it too.
Then he picked up the "livestreaming" Rotom Pokédex, looking at the shocked Anabel:
"Am I approving the requisition or are you?"
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Powerstones?
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