Whether Brave Bird's attack disrupted the momentum on the field or stirred up Shigeru's inner turmoil , Shigeru couldn't calm his chaotic mind. He looked up at the Corviknight soaring in the sky.
After a long silence, he finally sighed and recalled Nidoking with a Poké Ball.
"Nidoking, you did very well,"
Shigeru said, walking towards the ruins and crouching down.
In the ruins, a purple arm pushed aside the rocks covering it, its body covered in wounds. Aside from the injuries from Brave Bird's attack, the rest were damage from the falling walls.
"Roar~"
Nidoking let out a weak growl, wanting to continue fighting.
Shigeru shook his head, stopping Nidoking's thought, and recalled it with a Poké Ball.
"I lost, White Feather,"
Shigeru said, his eyes filled with resentment, but even more so with helplessness.
The gap in strength between the two sides was greater than expected. In every match, Gary tried his best to win, but each time he lost decisively.
This match was even more devastating than the one on the resort island. On the resort island, at least he had switched to Whitefeather's Spikeback Pokémon, Ferrothorn.
In this match, he didn't even switch out Toxapex.
Clearly, Gary hadn't realized that if Whitefeather had been able to switch Pokémon in the resort island match, he wouldn't have been able to switch out Ferrothorn, and could have achieved perfect synergy with a Houndoom.
"A very good match, Gary,"
Whitefeather said, approaching Gary.
Gary had improved to this level in such a short time.
If it weren't for Red and Green, he might have shone brightly at the Indigo League.
Unfortunately, the appearance of Red and the others would ultimately bring about a dramatic change in the entire Kanto region.
With Gary's current level of skill, it was difficult for him to participate in battles of this scale.
"A loss is a loss, and I..."
Gary sighed helplessly. Perhaps a trainer like him truly couldn't achieve greatness.
Just like his grandfather had mentioned, only by being like his older brother could one stand at the pinnacle of Kanto.
"Grey?"
Bai Yu frowned. Grey's current state was quite similar to that of Green a while back.
Had this guy lost his will to continue competing?
"Can someone like me really become a good trainer?"
Grey forced a smile, his words tinged with bitterness.
He had collected eight badges, six from the eight major Kanto badges, and the remaining two were obtained from casually challenging gyms. Ash, on the other hand, had also collected six badges. Ash was currently challenging the Cinnabar Gym, preparing to collect his seventh badge.
While he collected badges faster than Ash, the quality of his badges was inferior.
Moreover, he had lost to Bai Yu repeatedly, each battle ending in a crushing defeat.
No matter what tactics he devised, Bai Yu easily countered them; he couldn't find any opportunity to attack. What was the point of him becoming a trainer?
Grey was lost and tired of this life. He wanted to return to Pallet Town.
"Shigeru, in your opinion, what kind of trainer would be considered excellent?"
Bai Yu smiled and looked at Shigeru.
What truly defines an excellent trainer?
A trainer who blindly pursues power, ignoring the feelings of their own Pokémon, and only knows how to fight, even if they stand at the top of the world, would still be considered unqualified by some.
A trainer who only wants to unleash flashy moves, live harmoniously with their Pokémon, and is happy even if their strength is low, wouldn't that be considered excellent?
The definition of excellence is very broad; the most important thing is how you define excellence yourself!
"I..."
Xiao Shi took a deep breath.
Yes, is standing at the top of the world the only way to be called an excellent trainer?
It feels... pretty happy, but traveling with Shinji instead of his girlfriends, seeing all sorts of Pokémon and encountering all sorts of unexpected events along the way.
This is perhaps what a trainer should experience. The strength of his Pokémon may not be the strongest, but his trust in his Pokémon is definitely the deepest.
"Xiao Shi, did you notice how much trust you had in your Pokémon during the previous sparring match?"
Bai Yu mentioned the three Pokémon Xiao Shi sent out in the previous match.
Apart from Skarmory, which was directly unable to battle due to a short training time,
the remaining Blastoise and Nidoking persisted until the very last moment.
Blastoise endured the spread of poison and still released the move Xiao Shi requested. It had absolute confidence in Xiao Shi's command; this kind of bond cannot be shown overnight.
Little by little in daily life, Blastoise's unconditional trust in Xiao Shi has accumulated.
"Trust…" The image
of Nidoking pushing away the rock in its final moments flashed through Xiao Mao's mind.
Its face held not only a thirst for victory, but also a deep desire not to let Xiao Mao down after all the training he had received.
"I…I understand."
Xiao Mao was still somewhat dazed, but he already knew his ambition to become a trainer.
He wanted to help his grandfather complete the Pokédex, to see all kinds of trainers, to witness the true nature of this world. Beyond that, he wanted to become stronger; his impatience had lessened considerably.
His mind wasn't as preoccupied as it had been before.
Bai Yu took out a gym badge from his pocket.
Xiao Mao's strength was absolutely worthy of this badge.
His main trainer was at Elite Four level, and his Pokémon were only a few steps away from Elite Four status.
With a little training, he would definitely be an Elite Four trainer.
It seemed a bit harsh of his gym not to have earned such a badge.
"This is proof of defeating the Macha Gym. Although you didn't defeat me, your strength absolutely deserves this badge,"
Bai Yu said calmly.
He also wanted to see just how far Gary could grow in this world.
It was just a badge; if it could help Gary grow, it would be a blessing.
After all, there weren't many trainers like Gary who could inspire him to use his main force in battles.
He couldn't go back to being a researcher.
"I...I can't accept it,"
Gary shook his head and refused.
What right did a trainer who lost the match have to take the gym badge?
Besides, Red hadn't gotten the badge, and neither had his brother.
If he accepted the badge now that he had lost the match, they would laugh at him for the rest of his life.
Gary didn't want to see Green's face.
"The badge won't affect your growth; on the contrary, it will motivate you to become stronger,"
White Feather tossed the badge to Gary.
Gary quickly caught the gym badge. It looked like an ordinary gym badge, yet he had challenged three times, each time ending in failure.
This time, however, he obtained the badge in this way.
"The Macha Badge~ Motivation?"
Shigeru gripped the badge tightly; it was burning hot.
It also fueled his determination to achieve a high ranking at the Indigo League and prove its worth.
"Losing the match but getting the badge, how does it feel?"
Shinji approached from the stands, a hint of mockery in his voice.
He'd watched the match too, and frankly, he saw no hope of Shigeru winning.
From start to finish, Shigeru was completely controlled by Shiraha's rhythm, led by the nose.
"At least I got the badge. Why don't you challenge him too?"
Shigeru shook off his earlier dejection, raising an eyebrow at Shinji.
He'd lost, but he'd obtained the badge he'd always dreamed of.
At least, this badge was something Shinji would have a hard time getting.
"Forget it. Didn't you notice Shiraha has already left the arena?"
Shinji slowly shook his head; he'd already gotten the answer he wanted.
Even if he continued challenging, there wouldn't be a good result.
The Indigo League was still a month away; he didn't want to suffer another heavy blow during that time.
Someone was quite depressed after losing the match on the resort island.
"Shinji, do you want to go to Alola?"
Gary looked at Shinji seriously, his intention clear: he wanted to catch that Pokémon.
"You want to catch Toxapex too?"
Shinji was taken aback, then immediately thought of Toxapex.
Indeed, compared to Pokémon like Skarmory and Drapion, Toxapex was outstanding in both the number of Spikes and its recovery ability. A month of dedicated training for Toxapex would definitely have an amazing effect at the Indigo League.
Besides, everyone in the audience was talking about Toxapex; it seemed that various Toxapex Pokémon would appear at the upcoming Indigo League.
They would be at a huge disadvantage if they didn't have this Pokémon.
"I have this idea, are you going or not?"
Gary's eyes were serious; he really wanted to catch Toxapex. He wanted to use it to deal with that idiot Ash; Ash's growth had put considerable pressure on Gary.
He wanted to use Toxapex to teach Ash a lesson.
"Let's use Bai Yu's tactics to teach his opponent a lesson, let him know what a 'real' Pokémon battle is like, and give him a profound battle experience.
" "Okay, I also have some insights. We can discuss how to deal with Toxapex later. Xiao Shi's provocation strategy is effective, I think..."
Shinji became unstoppable once the topic of the battle came up.
Lately, he had been influenced by Xiao Shi, and wasn't as gloomy as portrayed in the anime.
He was much more talkative, and whenever Pokémon tactics were mentioned, he would often come up with novel ideas, tactical systems beyond Xiao Shi's imagination.
As for Bai Yu himself, he was already heading towards the gym's backyard.
Those spectators were all familiar faces; they wouldn't come down to challenge him.
Even if they did challenge him, Bai Yu needed to come up with different tactics; he couldn't use Toxapex every day.
He had to admit, poisoning felt really good. He needed to find a way to get a Crystal Blossom; Crystal Blossom was much more interesting than Toxapex, with its Corrosion and Poison Spread abilities.
All three Pokémon can perform well in gyms, and the key is that this Pokémon is also compatible with Sandstorm teams. The only drawback is that Crystal Blossom cannot recover HP.
Lacking any recovery methods, besides Crystal Blossom, there's another Pokémon in the Padia region, nicknamed "Salt King," which is also Bai Yu's future main Pokémon.
There's also a Terra-type Pokémon. These three Pokémon together will create a world-class performance.
"Salt King is also the nemesis of Toxapex, perfectly countering it while also setting up entry hazards."
Bai Yu's mind conjured up the image of that seemingly ordinary Pokémon.
It possesses an overpowered exclusive move, and combined with its blocking move, Toxapex can only stand there helplessly, barely surviving by setting up entry hazards.
"Many trainers went to the Alola region to catch Toxapex Pokémon this time. Afterwards, I pulled out my Salt King and used it to defend against them, giving them a good lesson."
"They don't learn the good stuff, they only learn these bad tricks."
Bai Yu clicked his tongue, his mouth almost reaching the sky in a grin.
"Once they get their Salt King, I'll use my offensive team to teach them a lesson."
"Hehe~ There are so few Gym Leaders as considerate as me."
Bai Yu became more and more excited as he thought about it; the Pokémon in Paldea were stronger than he had expected.
After clearing the Alola map, Bai Yu had considered going to Paldea, but ultimately chose to go to the Galar region instead.
Clearing the first two regions gave him items related to the battle system, and the Galar region's battle system was naturally Dynamax. Dynamax was more important to Bai Yu than Crystallize.
Dynamax's effect only lasted for three turns, while Crystallize had no time limit and changed the Pokémon's type, making it useful for defensive synergy in battles.
But… if the map only gives one Crystal Orb, and a single-type one at that, it's better to get the Crystallizer first. Besides, the Pokémon in the Galar region aren't weak either.
Each has its advantages and disadvantages. Compared to these two regions, other regions seem unremarkable. Among them, the Unova region holds the least interest for Bai Yu.
The Unova region has had a very low profile across generations. In the anime, Ash's Pokémon raised in the Unova region are often called the "Baby Team."
Only one Krookodile can be considered the leader; the other Pokémon sent to battles are just there for show, lacking any real threat.
"Kuja~"
As soon as Bai Yu entered the backyard, Gengar rushed out from the shadows, sticking out its tongue and making faces.
"You idiot…"
Bai Yu rolled his eyes and reached out to tap Gengar's little head.
This idiot, all he does is do these stupid things.
"Kuja~"
Gengar covered its little head, looking at Bai Yu with dissatisfaction.
Didn't it just win the gym battle? I was just trying to scare him, and he hit me like this! How awful... He
doesn't understand a thing about me, his cute and charming little Gengar.
╭(╯^╰)╮
"Alright, go rest in the backyard."
Bai Yu sighed. This idiot always liked to escape from his Poké Ball. He wondered which Pokémon he'd learned this bad habit from; he definitely needed to curb it.
Gengar had sneaked out without even Bai Yu noticing.
Ghost-type Pokémon's ability to conceal themselves was truly unmatched by ordinary Pokémon.
Bai Yu placed all his Pokémon in the backyard and glanced at Ferrothorn not far away.
Ferrothorn was using vines to cover its face, lying on the ground in a bizarre posture, fast asleep.
He glanced at Excadrill, who was also lounging in the sun, its body flat on the ground like a drill, looking equally relaxed.
These two Pokémon showed absolutely no competitive spirit, especially Excadrill.
Despite being called a true Garchomp, it behaved like this.
If it really faced Cyndaquil's Garchomp, things would get really messy.
"These guys, whenever they have free time, they don't know what to do."
Ps..
If you like this book, and want to read more chapters, kindly join Patreon.
Thank You:)
Read 30+ Chapters Advanced chapters ahead at Patreon.
[email protected]/Horizons685
(End of Chapter)