PJ123: Bewitch, Battle, and Bewilder!

is the 33rd episode of , and of .
==Synopsis==
The second match of the Masters Eight Tournament semifinals is here, and it’s Ash versus Cynthia! Our hero wants to battle Leon in the finals, but Cynthia’s determined to keep that from happening. It’s a six-on-six battle, and first is Ash’s Dragonite versus Cynthia’s Spiritomb, who eliminates Dragonite. Then Cynthia switches out Spiritomb, and the next matchup is Roserade versus Gengar. But Roserade is switched out for Spiritomb again, and Gengar goes down. Ash calls out Pikachu, and Cynthia rotates through several of her Pokémon until she reaches Spiritomb again. Pikachu almost lands a win, but Spiritomb has the last laugh with Destiny Bond. Can Ash make a comeback?
==Episode plot==
Before the match begins, Ash dons his Dynamax Band and Z-Ring before getting his Pokémon ready for battle; all of them are excited to participate.
On the other side, Cynthia meets with Diantha, who decides to cheer her on and asks her to end Leon's winning streak. Cynthia appreciates her support but tells her that she intends to retire at the end of the tournament, much to Diantha's surprise. At the stands, Team Rocket prepares their livestream of the match.
As the two sides meet, Dan begins the match. Cynthia sends out Spiritomb as her first Pokémon, much to the audiences' surprise as no one had expected her to bring out the Forbidden Pokémon. Meowth and Wobbuffet are intimidated, while Jessie believes that there's nothing special about it; James on the other hand believes it is strong, since it is the Champion's Pokémon after all. Ash on the other hand sends Dragonite. As the match begins, Dragonite attempts to use Draco Meteor, but Spiritomb retaliates with Sucker Punch. Dragonite uses the attack again, but Spiritomb manages to endure the attack. It then Hypnosis on Dragonite, putting her to sleep before using Dream Eater, causing Dragonite to faint. Ash's Pokémon, who were watching the match, are disappointed by the loss.
Ash proceeds to send Gengar as his second Pokémon, while Cynthia recalls Spiritomb for Roserade. Roserade uses Leaf Storm while Gengar uses Shadow Ball, with the two moves negating each other. Gengar then uses Will-O-Wisp against another Leaf Storm. While he ends up getting hit by some of it, his attack also reaches Roserade and burns it. Seeing this, Cynthia recalls Roserade for Spiritomb, much to Ash, Gengar and Pikachu's surprise.
Gengar uses Dazzling Gleam, although Spiritomb uses Sucker Punch once more. While Gengar is hit by the attack, he is able to pull off his own move and successfully hits Spiritomb. However, he quickly faints after getting back up when Ash asks him if he could continue fighting. Team Rocket is stunned that Ash is being cornered, while Hop and Goh are concerned about Ash.
Cynthia proceeds to recall Spiritomb for her Togekiss, while Ash decides to send Pikachu out. Pikachu uses Thunderbolt, but Togekiss evades his bolts before using Air Slash from behind, causing him to flinch. After using Zen Headbutt, she recalls Togekiss for Gastrodon, intending to use its typing to protect it from Pikachu's attacks. It uses Earth Power to send Pikachu in the air before following up with Stone Edge, but Pikachu uses Iron Tail to reflect the rocks on Gastrodon before using Quick Attack while it's distracted by the weight of the rocks, causing it to faint. Team Rocket and Ash's Pokémon are delighted by the turn of events. After thanking Gastrodon for its performance, Cynthia brings Spiritomb out again.
Knowing that Spiritomb is extremely dangerous to handle, Ash orders Pikachu to spin around while using Thunderbolt. Cynthia believes that Pikachu is performing a victory dance and has Spiritomb use Hypnosis once more, but the tornado negates the attack and electrocutes it. Ash then tells Cynthia that it was the Counter Shield that he had done before during the Sinnoh Leagues, which Cynthia then recalls about. Ash then orders Pikachu to use Electroweb, which Spiritomb tries to stop using Sucker Punch; however, he dodges the move and ensnares Spiritomb's Odd Keystone. As Ash orders Pikachu to finish it off with Iron Tail, Cynthia gives Spiritomb the command to "use it", which it manages to pull off before being hit.
Spiritomb disappears, prompting Dan to hover down and see if it had fainted before dark energy erupts from the Keystone, engulfing Pikachu in it and also causing him to faint. The announcer then recognizes the move as Destiny Bond and that Ash could no longer use 10,000,000 Volt Thunderbolt. Diantha sees that Ash has been dealt a serious blow, having lost his ace Pokémon while Cynthia still has hers in reserve. Leon is left impressed with Cynthia's strategy and wonders if Ash can turn the battle around, as he is left at a severe disadvantage with only three Pokémon left, while Cynthia has four.
==Debuts==
===Pokémon===
*Cynthia's Spiritomb
*Cynthia's Togekiss
===Move===
*Destiny Bond
==Trivia==
*"Side story": 
*Despite meeting each other over 700 episodes ago, this is the first time Ash and Cynthia battle.
**As of this episode, Lance is the only Pokémon Champion that Ash hasn't battled.
==Gallery==
==References==
Category:Episodes featuring Champions