In the real world, the Heal Ball variant of Rotom developed by Natsume could heal several Pokémon at once.
Although the healing effect declined slightly with more targets, it was more than enough for the Clefairy that had suffered only minor injuries while hiding.
"Big bro Natsume, you're amazing!"
Ash cheered from the side. What had been estimated as three days of work was wrapped up by Natsume in mere moments.
"Congrats, Natsume! Looks like your research paid off."
"Yeah, Natsume, your efforts over the past few days definitely weren't in vain!"
Brock and Misty also offered their congratulations.
Having seen Natsume buried in his Poké Ball prototypes these past few days, they had a good idea of what he was up to.
Judging from Rotom's current performance, Natsume's research had clearly succeeded.
"This is incredible. If this new form of Rotom becomes widespread in Pokémon Centers, it could drastically reduce medical expenses."
A voice chimed in—Lance, the Dragon-type Champion of the Kanto region, approached with a smile and extended his hand to Natsume, who was now surrounded by admiring Clefairy like a star.
"The researcher behind the Rotom–Natsume Theorem, it's an honor to formally meet you. I'm Lance, Dragon-type Champion of the Kanto Region—you can just call me Lance."
Clearly, Lance no longer saw Natsume as just another researcher.
Hearing Lance's praise, Natsume rubbed his nose modestly and shook the offered hand.
Hmm… if this tech really caught on, Pokémon Centers might end up with a pretty bad reputation.
Still, Rotom species were quite rare to begin with, so large-scale implementation would be difficult anyway.
"Big bro Natsume... hey, Natsume..."
As Natsume and Lance shook hands with serious expressions, Ash whispered urgently from the side.
Out of the corner of his eye, Natsume saw Ash wildly winking at him, looking very excited.
Natsume instantly understood.
"Lance, did you bring any Pokémon capable of battling today?"
He pointed to the Dragonite behind Lance. "Like that one."
Lance was a bit surprised. "My Dragonite is very strong."
"I know. That's the whole point, right Ash?"
As he said this, Natsume turned to Ash.
"Mm! Mm! Mm!"
Ash's eyes sparkled as he nodded furiously.
Exactly! Big bro Natsume gets him so well! With that, Mr. Lance would totally agree to—
"So I want to battle you—to test out this new form of Rotom."
Natsume continued without missing a beat.
"Ahhh—"
Ash let out a disappointed groan, staring at Natsume in betrayal.
"Relax, Ash. If I win, you'll have a stronger sparring partner than even Lance by your side in the future."
Natsume patted Ash's head, which instantly lifted his spirits.
"Okay! Big bro Natsume, go for it!"
"A test, huh…" Lance thought for a moment, then nodded.
"Very well. I've been wanting to see what this new form of Rotom is capable of. This should be an exciting match!"
An exciting match… Natsume glanced up at the sky, a bit sheepishly.
Yeah… Lance's expression was going to be pretty exciting, alright.
On the summit of Mt. Moon, a clearing had been chosen as the battlefield.
Everyone was gathered, watching the two opponents with anticipation.
In the middle of the field, Brock acted as the referee.
"Alright—battle start!"
With the command, neither side immediately sent out their Pokémon.
"Natsume, are you sure you're only using one Pokémon?"
Lance looked at Natsume with a strange expression. It wasn't until now, just before the battle, that he realized Natsume only had two Pokémon with him.
One was a newly raised Pikachu.
The other, the Heal Ball Rotom.
There was no way Natsume could win against a full team like his.
"Yes—just these two."
Natsume nodded solemnly.
In truth, there was a Poké Ball transmission device available on site.
Back at Professor Oak's lab, Natsume had raised plenty of Pokémon—most were ones he'd captured over the years for his experiments.
He had imagined that when he called them, they'd all rally eagerly to be on the front line.
Instead, when he called out… every single Pokémon bolted from the screen—two Primeape even turned their red behinds to the camera in protest.
"Sigh… fine. Let's change it from a Double Battle to a 1v1, then."
Lance rubbed his brow, deciding to go easy on him.
That way, it would support Natsume's research while sparing him a total defeat.
Instead of using Dragonite, Lance pulled out another Poké Ball and tossed it.
"Roooaaar!"
With a burst of red light, a mighty Pokémon appeared: bright orange body, huge wings, a flaming tail, and a low, thunderous roar that echoed like a dragon's growl.
"This is my Charizard. He should be more than enough to help test your new Rotom form."
Lance introduced the Pokémon casually, arms folded, exuding a powerful aura.
"Alright—go, Heal Ball Rotom!"
At Natsume's call, the Heal Ball Rotom flew onto the field, trailed by a crowd of Clefairy.
"Hey, hey! You can't go in there!"
Misty and the others scrambled to hold them back.
"Rotom!"
Rotom turned back and said something unclear—but instantly, the Clefairy all stopped in their tracks.
Then they began spreading out in an organized circle around the battlefield.
"Clefairy, Clef, Clefairy..."
They started performing a mysterious dance again.
"Wow, they're so cute! It looks like they're cheering Rotom on!"
Misty's eyes sparkled as she watched them.
"Big bro Natsume—good luck!"
Ash called out from behind.
Natsume gave him a thumbs-up.
Heal Ball Rotom entered the battlefield. The match officially began.
"You go first. I'm mainly here to help test out this new Rotom form's moves."
Lance closed his eyes. From his perspective, this Rotom's level was far lower than his Charizard's.
Plus, it seemed very slow. In a normal battle, Charizard would have the first move—and Rotom wouldn't stand a chance.
[Charizard, LV66]
Seeing the level on his scanning app, Natsume put his phone away.
"Okay, but let's agree—you can't get mad later, alright?"
"Why would I be mad?" Lance asked, puzzled.
"Good. I'm recording this." Natsume pressed something on his phone.
Lance: "..."
This battle wouldn't use the standardized stadium rules.
There was no need. In the standard simulation format, Rotom's moves would function exactly as described.
What Natsume wanted to test was how these moves worked in real-life conditions.
And thanks to that, Lance was willing to let Rotom go first—even if it was slower.
"Alright! Heal Ball Rotom, use Curse Ball!"
"Rotom!"
A strange, purple beam shot from Rotom's core, enveloping Charizard instantly.
Lance didn't tell Charizard to dodge, watching with great interest.
Before the match, Natsume had already informed him—this Rotom had developed entirely new, never-before-seen moves.
He was eager to see just how powerful they were.
As Charizard was surrounded by the eerie glow, even without orders to evade, its instincts screamed danger. It began struggling.
But it was useless.
Just like being captured by a Poké Ball, Charizard was effortlessly absorbed by Heal Ball Rotom.
"If I'm not mistaken… this move seals the opponent?"
Right on. Lance still stood with arms folded, but there was a subtle change in his expression.
After capturing Charizard, Heal Ball Rotom fell silent. Time passed—second by second.
"This is so weird… Big bro Natsume, this doesn't feel like a Pokémon battle at all."
Ash scratched the Pikachu on his shoulder, completely thrown off.
This was nothing like the exhilarating battles he had imagined.
(End of Chapter)