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Sato had no idea that a powerful and mysterious organization had already set its eyes on him. At this moment, he was making use of the free wireless internet provided by the Pokemon Center, carefully analyzing tomorrow's opponent and their Pokemon on his laptop.
The tournament had already entered the quarterfinals. At this stage, none of the participants were ordinary — after all, to stand out among 2,421 contestants required more than just a bit of luck. Most of all, it required true strength.
Take, for example, Sato's opponent tomorrow. He was likely to be the third great obstacle standing in Sato's way during this competition. This Trainer came from the Hoenn Region, and his name was Brawly.
Yes, Brawly — a Trainer a bit older than Sato, who would one day become the Gym Leader of Dewford Town in Hoenn.
For now, though, he was just an obscure Trainer in Johto, much like Sato once was.
But underestimating him would be a grave mistake. Rumor had it that he was recognized by Bruno, one of the Kanto Elite Four and the Fighting-type master, and had once been fortunate enough to train with him for a time.
From Brawly's battle footage in this tournament, Sato saw that every one of his victories came easily. What stood out the most was that throughout the matches, Brawly had only used two Pokemon — Machamp and Medicham.
Moreover, Sato discovered that under Brawly's training, both Machamp and Medicham had mastered a technique of explosive, instantaneous movement. They also seemed to possess a powerful combat intuition, often evading enemy moves at the last possible moment in a strange, almost supernatural way.
"This explosive footwork is exactly what Swampert lacks right now. If I can learn this technique from Brawly, Swampert's current weakness in speed and mobility can be greatly compensated."
Watching the screen, Sato saw Machamp — which had been on the defensive — suddenly burst forward with astonishing speed, instantly closing a gap of nearly seven meters with a Venusaur. Then, with a single devastating Ice Punch, it brought the Venusaur down in one blow. Sato's heart raced with excitement.
He studied carefully, replaying the footage of Machamp defeating Venusaur more than ten times. Eventually, he noticed a huge drawback to this sudden burst of speed.
Even for a physically powerful Fighting-type like Machamp, after unleashing that move, its legs cramped up, leaving it unable to move for a moment. It was clear that this technique placed tremendous strain on the legs.
In other words, this explosive movement could only be used as a trump card. If the opponent wasn't defeated in one strike, the user would end up in a vulnerable position.
The side effect was similar to the exhaustion caused after using Hyper Beam.
Even so, Sato believed this technique would be extremely valuable for Swampert. Right now, Swampert's greatest fear was being unable to reach its opponent. But if it could close the distance, victory would be within reach.
"How can I learn this explosive movement technique from Brawly?"
That question lingered in Sato's mind after watching the footage. He knew that such battle techniques, which weren't standard Pokemon moves, were usually a Trainer's closely guarded secrets. To obtain them, a great price often had to be paid.
The problem was that Sato didn't have anything that a Fighting-type specialist like Brawly would value. For Trainers of that kind, the most precious treasures were items that could enhance their Pokemon's physical strength.
Unlike other types, Fighting-types relied not on flashy moves but on their bodies themselves.
In battle, Fighting-types could often stand against other Pokemon purely through physical might, with type-based moves serving more as tools to enhance their natural power.
Their bodies were much like those of humans — but far stronger.
This similarity allowed some Fighting-types to learn martial arts, physical exertion techniques, and even the use of certain human weapons.
Their one flaw, however, was their lack of intelligence. It was as though all their "talent points" had been spent on muscle. Some were so slow that no matter how much you taught them, they simply couldn't grasp certain special techniques. Most of their martial arts and power-based skills required endless repetition and muscle memory to master.
One thing was certain: if a Fighting-type Pokemon wanted to learn or refine higher-level moves and combat techniques, they needed powerful bodies. The stronger their physique, the better they could handle the strain of those advanced moves. Without such durability, their bodies would collapse under the stress.
That was why Fighting-type Trainers were always so obsessed with finding methods and treasures to strengthen their Pokemon physically.
Unfortunately, Sato didn't have anything like that on hand. The only items he could offer were a Tri-Leaf Revival Herb and two bottles of Tranquilizing Tonic that could restore mental strength and heal psychological trauma. But those were precious to him now, and he needed them himself.
"Forget it. I'll just beat him into submission first. Otherwise, I won't even have the qualification to negotiate."
After much thought, Sato gave up on the idea for now. He turned his full attention back to the battle videos, while also sparing a part of his focus to supervise his Pokemon's training nearby.
Yes — tonight, Sato chose not to play the hero again. He understood the principle of balance: advance and retreat, tension and relaxation.
After all, he had just poked the Viper Mafias last night. If he went and stirred up trouble on their turf again tonight, he really would be asking for death.
Sato was very aware of his limits. Without having mastered Teleport yet, and relying only on Natu, he didn't have enough strength to flaunt himself in front of the Viper Mafias.
Last night's bold act before the one-eyed youth had been fine — it might even give the Mafias the impression that he had deeper backing. But if he pushed his luck again tonight, things could spiral out of control.
So, aside from reviewing the footage of the other seven contestants, Sato spent the evening training with his Pokemon at the large practice grounds near the Pokemon Center.
...…..
The next day, at 10 a.m., in the main arena of the city's largest battle venue, Sato's quarterfinal match against Brawly began right on time.
Compared to the earlier rounds, the audience numbers had grown enormously. The main arena, which could hold more than 2,000 people, was packed.
Even before the battle started, supporters of both sides and eager gamblers were already arguing and shouting, filling the venue with noise.
Thankfully, once the host announced the arrival of the Trainers, the crowd quieted down quickly.
As Sato walked out of the player tunnel, the stadium erupted in cheers. This time, there were no boos at all.
After his overwhelming victories yesterday against three opponents to secure his place in the top eight, the crowd had come to realize that this Kanto Trainer who defeated Clair was truly skilled. He wasn't the underhanded trickster the papers and online gossip had painted him to be.
Seeing was believing — and many who had once doubted him were now converted fans.
"This is it… this is the feeling. I'm fired up."
Step by step, Sato walked to the battlefield. As the cheers thundered around him, his fighting spirit began to blaze.