Terrance suddenly felt relieved that Ash remembered him.
Seeing that Gary Oak and Misty were confused, Brock stepped in to explain.
"Terrance is also a Breeder, and he's always been my role model to learn from. Not only that, he's also an incredibly powerful Trainer!"
Hearing Brock's words, Ash finally reacted and said, "Brother Terrance, battle with me!"
"Hold it." After listening to Brock's introduction, Gary Oak pulled Ash back. "Since he's such a strong Trainer, of course it should be me, Gary Oak, who defeats him!"
"Gary, what are you doing! I was the one who asked first!"
"Stop talking nonsense. A weak Trainer like you could never win!"
"You two…" Professor Oak sighed helplessly.
With a smile, Terrance looked at the two of them and said, "How about you both come at me together? I am very strong, after all."
"But…" Ash froze for a moment.
"Are you looking down on me?!" Gary Oak was dissatisfied.
Shaking his head, Terrance took out Ice Vulpix's Poké Ball and released Little Vulpix.
As Little Vulpix appeared on the beach, this Pokémon, which was mostly white with fluffy white fur on its head and tail, instantly caught everyone's attention. When they looked at Little Vulpix's beautiful gradient blue-to-white pupil-less eyes and four light blue paws, Gary Oak, Misty, and Brock all exclaimed at the same time.
"A snow-white Vulpix?"
Seeing their shocked expressions, Ash blankly pulled out his Pokédex, but hearing the device report no data made his face twist in frustration.
"Oh? An Alolan Vulpix?" Professor Oak said in surprise. "That's quite a rare Pokémon. Even in Alola, they aren't commonly seen."
"Yes, I caught this little guy in Alola."
"Ash, Gary Oak, this is a Pokémon you two are probably unfamiliar with, right? So, if you face an unknown Pokémon, won't your chances be better if you battle together?"
Terrance chuckled.
Ash and Gary Oak exchanged a glance, then both turned away with a snort, refusing to acknowledge each other.
"I absolutely won't cooperate with him." ×2
"Go, Charmander!"
"Go, Growlithe!"
With that, both of them threw out their Poké Balls at the same time. Seeing the Pokémon they chose, Terrance was slightly surprised.
Did they guess its type just by looking at Little Vulpix's appearance?
"Ash, don't be careless. Terrance is powerful." Seeing the absolute confidence on Ash's face, Brock knew this was bad and emphasized the warning again.
"Alright, I get it! Charmander, use Flamethrower!" Ash ordered.
"Hmph. Growlithe, jump into its flames and then unleash Flame Wheel!" Gary Oak commanded.
Facing Ice Vulpix, Charmander squeezed out a burst of flames and spewed it out suddenly. However, to Ash's fury, Growlithe, under Gary Oak's command, actually absorbed all the flames that Charmander had spewed out, then, enveloped in Charmander's flames, lunged towards Vulpix.
"A Growlithe with the Flash Fire Ability, huh." Watching Ash and Gary Oak's not-quite-cooperation, Terrance felt quite helpless. The next moment, he calmly spoke.
"Blizzard."
As Terrance spoke, Ice Vulpix looked expressionlessly at Growlithe, who was flying over and slightly opened its mouth.
Whoosh!
It gently exhaled a breath of cold air, and Blizzard instantly formed and swept towards the Growlithe in the sky, then blew toward Charmander. In just a single move, Growlithe, who had absorbed Charmander's flames and unleashed Flame Wheel, was frozen solid along with the flames on its body, and the Charmander behind it was likewise not spared. Both of them turned into ice statues as they collapsed to the ground.
"I told you to be careful…" Brock sighed, patting his forehead.
"Just one move?!" Misty couldn't believe that Ash and Gary Oak had actually been knocked out in an instant…
"Charmander!" "Growlithe!"
Seeing their Pokémon defeated in seconds, Ash and Gary Oak were horrified. Fortunately, Little Vulpix had excellent control of its strength, the ice shattered quickly as the two Pokémon fell.
"You two are still far from ready. Right now, challenging Terrance is much too early." Professor Oak spoke up. "Terrance is known as the strongest Trainer of the new generation in the Hoenn region."
Hoenn… the strongest Trainer?
Ash didn't fully understand the weight of those words, but the phrase strongest Trainer alone made his eyes widen in disbelief. He never imagined that the person who had once given him a gift would possess such an extraordinary title.
"The strongest Trainer?" Gary Oak, knowing more than Ash, was stunned as he looked at Terrance, who wasn't much older than himself. That someone of his age could already be called the strongest Trainer of Hoenn's new generation, especially when this acknowledgment came from his own grandfather, was all the more shocking.
Who was Professor Oak? A towering figure in the Pokémon world; his evaluation alone was proof enough of Terrance's strength.
"What?!" Misty covered her mouth, staring at Terrance in astonishment.
"It's just an empty title." Terrance smiled and declined, "There are actually many powerful Trainers in Hoenn."
"My strength is still far from enough."
Terrance's refusal didn't convince Ash. At this moment, his eyes were shining as he said, "Brother Terrance, I didn't expect you to be so amazing. I've decided that starting today, you will be the goal I aim to surpass!"
"Uh…" Terrance gave a wry smile.
A goal to surpass, huh?
Though Ash, still at the very beginning of his journey, was clearly immature, Terrance knew he had tremendous potential. At the very least, Ash from during Kalos period would barely qualify to fight him.
Perhaps, a few years from now, Ash really could become a top-tier Trainer and catch up to his strength.
"Ash, you're daydreaming again." Gary Oak recalled Growlithe with clear disdain for Ash.
"What did you say—"
In the blink of an eye, the two were bickering once more, leaving everyone else helpless.
After some more conversation, Terrance also explained to Ash and others his purpose in coming to Kanto.
"Terrance, you're heading toward the port too? Then we can travel together," Ash said.
"Sure." Terrance nodded.
Gary Oak, Professor Oak, and Ash all had different destinations. Terrance, and Ash and his friends were planning to head to the port to catch a ship, and at Ash's invitation, Terrance decided to go with them.
After bidding farewell to Professor Oak and the others, Ash, Brock, Misty, and Terrance set off as a group.
At the same time, Terrance was hesitating whether he should give Ash some of the guidance in advance that he had intended to give the Ash of Kalos period? But after some thought, he abandoned the idea. Ash had only been a rookie Trainer for less than two months. He was still far too inexperienced in every way. It would be better to let him gain some experience on his own first.
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