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Leon and Ash should've had a mentor&pupil relationship. Make Leon take an interest in Ash in that episode with the Gmax Pikachu and turn him into a recurrent character, teaching him all he knows, joining him on adventures, battling to his side, giving Ash stuff to do and tutoring him. Make him battle Leon a bunch of times, doesnt have to be a full battle, even an intro is enough, and make Ash lose constantly against him, Leon teaching Ash something new on every ocassion. On every defeat, on every adventure he learns something new about how to become an elite trainer, someone worth of the title of Champion.
On this final M8 battle, take EVERYTHING Ash learned from Leon over the past 3 years and use it to give Ash the upper hand. The student surpasses the teacher. Leon is incredibly proud and happy for him, Ash's growth feels believable since he was under the wing of the fucking undefeated champion, and Leon gets an INSANE amount of character development while keeping him likeable since deep in the end, he was always, ALWAYS cheering for the kid and trying to make him improve.
On his last scene, Ash chases after Leon who looks down after finally being defeated. But Leon turns around with a huge smile on his face, sunrise in the background, taking his cap off and giving it to Ash
"Why do you think I taught you all of that, Satoshi? From the very first moment I saw you... I knew you'd be the one who would win against me."
