Early the next morning, Natsui and Erika paid a visit to the Petalburg Gym.
The Petalburg Gym was located on the outskirts of the city, backed by two lush green mountains. It was built like an old-fashioned Japanese mansion, surrounded by high, whitewashed walls. If not for the "Petalburg Gym" sign hanging out front, most people would never associate it with a Pokémon Gym.
They climbed the steps. The gym door was wide open, and there was no staff, so Natsui walked right in.
Inside was a huge, traditional dojo. It was completely empty and extremely quiet. Walking on the floorboards, they could only hear the echo of their own footsteps.
"Excuse me, is anyone here?"
Natsui called out. He waited a while, but when no one appeared, he called out again, louder this time.
Finally, someone came running out from the other side in a hurry.
But when Natsui got a good look, he saw it was just a little boy, around 7 years old.
This little boy wore black-framed glasses and had short, spiky dark hair. He wasn't tall and was wearing a t-shirt and shorts. He looked like the book-smart type.
He looked almost identical to his anime counterpart, and Natsui recognized him at a glance. This was May's younger brother, and Gym Leader Norman's son—Max!
"Coming! Coming!"
Max ran up to Natsui. When he saw Natsui's face, he suddenly pointed and shouted.
"Ah! It's you!!"
Natsui tilted his head. "Oh? You know me?"
"Of course!" Max said. "I've been watching the Silver Conference matches these past two days! I watched the live broadcast and the replay! You're the champion, Natsui!!"
Natsui was a little surprised Max recognized him, but on second thought, it made sense.
This was a kid who was full of knowledge, eager to learn, and craved information. In the anime, when he first met Ash, he recognized him instantly, and even knew which round Ash had been eliminated in.
"It's me." Natsui said with a smile. "Is Mr. Norman home? I'm here to challenge the Petalburg Gym."
"Challenge my dad..." Max was about to agree, then suddenly remembered something and smiled sheepishly. "Ah... I almost forgot. Dad left early this morning. He might be gone for a few days..."
"Eh?" Natsui looked at him, surprised. "He left?"
"Yeah." Max nodded. "It was just half an hour ago. Before he left, he told me to close the gate and put the sign out. But I was right in the middle of an intense match and forgot..."
This was really...
Natsui and Erika glanced at each other, a trace of helplessness in their eyes.
Just half an hour. If they had been a little earlier, they would have caught him.
But compared to the disappointment in Natsui's eyes, Erika shot him a sharp glare.
Whose fault is this?
It's Natsui's fault. They had woken up very early and were about to get dressed for breakfast, but this guy suddenly got an impulse and pulled her back into bed.
If they hadn't wasted all that time, they absolutely would have made it!
Natsui understood Erika's look and just shook his head with a wry smile.
His intentions had been good. After all, arriving too early might disturb Norman's rest, so he had deliberately delayed. He never expected Norman to leave. Who could have predicted that?
"Is that so..." Natsui sighed. "Well, did Mr. Norman say what he was doing? Or where I might find him?"
"Uh..." Max scratched his head. "I don't know the details. Oh, you can ask my sister! I'll go get her!"
With that, he zipped off to the other side of the gym and disappeared through the door.
He didn't even give Natsui time to react. All Natsui could think was that this kid was really enthusiastic...
It wasn't long before Max returned, this time dragging a cute, pretty girl into the dojo.
The girl was about Misty's age, with brown, shoulder-length hair that flipped out restlessly on both sides. Her features were lovely; even at her young age, it was clear she would grow up to be a great beauty.
The impression was so strong that Natsui recognized her instantly.
It was the popular female protagonist of the third generation, the one who replaced Misty as Ash's traveling companion—May!
In terms of appearance, May was on par with Misty, but she was a quieter person, though by no means dull. She even showed a clever side at times.
Natsui calculated the time. He had arrived in Hoenn a few days before Ash. May was supposed to leave on her bike for Professor Birch's lab in Littleroot Town on the same day Ash arrived, to get her first Pokémon.
The two would then have their fateful meeting and begin their journey.
Right now, Ash was still about two or three days away from arriving in Hoenn. That's why Natsui was able to see May here.
May had been confused when her brother dragged her onto the battlefield. She was about to pull rank as the older sister and tell him to calm down, but then she saw the man and woman standing there. She immediately understood and became more composed.
"Sorry." She gave Natsui and Erika a slight bow. "My father was called away by the Pokémon League on urgent business. Before he left, he said he might be back in three days."
Three days...
Natsui obviously couldn't wait here for three days. But if he didn't wait, his only option was to go to another city and come back to challenge Norman later.
"Well, it can't be helped. If that's the case, I'll come back another time."
Natsui shook his head. Just as he was about to turn and leave, Max called out to him again.
"Mr. Natsui, please wait!"
At this, not only Natsui, but May also turned to look at her brother.
"What's wrong?" Natsui asked.
Like a magician, Max pulled a pen and notebook from behind his back. He held them out to Natsui, his eyes full of hope. "Could you give me your autograph? I'm your fan!!"
Natsui was amused. He hadn't expected his victory in Johto to have earned him fans all the way in Hoenn. And this fan was a major supporting character from the anime!
"Of course, no problem." Natsui took the pen and paper, then asked, feigning ignorance, "So, what's your name?"
Max immediately stood up straight and tall. "How rude of me!" he called out. "My name is Max, I'm 7 years old! I hope to travel just like you and eventually become a great Trainer like my dad!"
"That's a wonderful dream. Mr. Norman is a very strong and respected man. He's the perfect role model. I'm sure he'd be very proud to hear you say that."
Natsui scribbled a few lines on the first page of the notebook. He handed it back to Max, who opened it and saw the words: May you always keep your original heart and achieve your dreams. Your friend—Natsui.
Seeing the words, Max trembled with excitement.
Natsui handed the pen back to Max and was about to leave, but he suddenly noticed May, who was looking down, curiously studying his Torchic. An idea struck him.
"What, do you like it?"
Hearing Natsui's voice, May glanced at him, then back down at Torchic. She neither confirmed nor denied it.
"It looks cute. What's it called?"
This was a perfect example of May's character. Despite being a Gym Leader's daughter and having a Pokémon-loving, theory-rich brother like Max, she herself knew very little about Pokémon.
In the anime, after getting her starter from Professor Birch, the first time she encountered a wild Pokémon, she naively threw a Poké Ball, thinking she could catch it without battling.
Even in battle, she didn't understand type matchups, which led to her Pokémon being defeated. In the end, it was Ash, the master of reverse-attribute battles, who had to explain the rules to her like a veteran.
It was truly unbelievable.
And May's first Pokémon, as everyone knew, was also a Torchic.
"It's called Torchic. It's a Fire-type Pokémon."
"A Fire-type Torchic..." May nodded, as if only half-understanding. "Its feathers look so fluffy and warm. It must be nice to pet."
"It's very strong. Judging by your age, and being the Gym Leader's daughter, you must be about to get your first Pokémon and start your journey, right?"
At the mention of "journey," May's eyes clearly lit up. It was obvious that travel appealed to her more than Pokémon!
"That's right. As soon as Dad gets back from his League business, I'm going to Littleroot Town to see Professor Birch."
"I knew it." Natsui nodded and gave his recommendation. "Although Treecko and Mudkip are also great, if you're undecided when you choose, you should really consider Torchic. Trust me, you won't be disappointed!"
"Torchic..."
Hearing this, May looked again at the little orange, chick-like Pokémon at Natsui's feet.
Setting aside its type, purely from an aesthetic standpoint, it definitely fit her style.
Hmm. Just like this person said, it seems like a good choice.
After Natsui and Erika left the gym, May came back to her senses. She turned and saw her brother grinning foolishly at the notebook. She was puzzled. "You got that guy's autograph. Why? Is he famous?"
"Are you kidding!?" Max shot his sister a look. "You don't even know him? He's the champion of the Silver Conference and the Indigo Conference! He's a being who crushes his opponents with absolute power! And you don't know him!"
"Really? He's that strong?"
May pictured Natsui's face again. But no matter how she looked at it, he was just a handsome, gentle-looking man. She really couldn't connect him with the title of "champion."
"By the way," Max said, "what did he say to you?"
May shook her head. "Nothing. He just recommended I choose Torchic as my first Pokémon."
"Torchic..." Max frowned, thinking seriously for a moment before speaking slowly. "His advice definitely wouldn't be wrong. I was going to recommend Treecko, but if Mr. Natsui said so, then maybe Torchic really is stronger. And type-wise, Fire beats Grass, so in terms of choice..."
He paused, looked at his sister again, and thought about her personality. He nodded firmly.
"I see. Why didn't I think of it before? Maybe Torchic... really is a better match for you..."
...
After leaving the Petalburg Gym, Natsui and Erika stood at the entrance. They didn't leave right away, but instead pulled out their phones to check the map.
According to their previous plan, skipping the Petalburg Gym for now wasn't a big deal. They would loop around the entire Hoenn continent and end up back here eventually. They could just challenge it then.
It just meant the order of things would change.
But it couldn't be helped.
Composing themselves, the two headed for the outskirts of Petalburg City.
Just like Oldale Town and Littleroot Town, Petalburg City wasn't a major tourist destination, nor did it have any famous natural scenery. Since the gym battle was off, they had no reason to stay.
Their next destination was Rustboro City to the north. There was another gym waiting for him there.
But getting to Rustboro City was a long walk. They had to travel along the coast and pass through the famous Petalburg Woods. It wouldn't be an easy trek.
But that's what a journey was.
It was in these boring stretches of travel that you expanded your horizons, met new people, and trained your Pokémon.
Leaving Petalburg City, the two continued west. They didn't follow the main road for long before they reached the long, winding western coastline of Hoenn.
Natsui didn't know what lay on the other side of the sea. But looking at the wide, blue water, the frustrated disappointment of missing Norman that morning was washed away.
Seeing the golden sand stretching across the coastline, and noticing many other Trainers on the beach, Erika had an idea.
"Why don't we walk on the beach?" she asked. "Maybe we'll find some Water-type Pokémon unique to Hoenn!"
Natsui nodded, having no objections.
They slowed their pace and walked onto the sand. In his mind, Natsui ran through all the Hoenn Water-types.
But thinking about it, besides Kyogre, they were all quite common. There wasn't a single one worth actively searching for.
He turned and glanced at Erika, seeing how excited she was, and couldn't help but smile.
Ah, well. Forget about finding Pokémon. I'll just use this time to relax with my girl...
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