Sinnoh Region——
Cynthia sat on the sofa, swinging her little feet, her polished toenails gleaming softly under the light.
The TV was already turned off. Ash's match with Koga was over, and there was nothing more to watch.
However, Cynthia was still pondering Ash's last words.
"The power of Victini, huh? The legendary Pokemon said to bring victory to trainers. It's said to appear beside those trainers who greatly desire victory for justice. That reasoning is quite plausible, but it feels somewhat off... Looks like I need to check out this year's Quartz Conference."
For a Champion of Cynthia's caliber, the Quartz Conference was nothing more than child's play. What could a trainer with two years of experience possibly accomplish?
A trainer like her, who started traveling at fifteen with Gym-level Pokemon, could probably be counted on two hands worldwide.
Not every family can provide Pokemon beforehand and train them to Gym level.
So these Quartz Conference matches never caught Cynthia's eye. To put it bluntly, even in her debut year, she could have swept through the Quartz Conference!
However, if her debut self were to meet the current Ash, whether she could win would be a mystery.
Even if Bulbasaur did rely on Victini's power at the end, what about the earlier Charizard and Pikachu? They certainly didn't rely on Victini's power.
If a weak Bulbasaur could thrash an Elite Peak Pokemon after receiving the God of Victory's power,
wouldn't Charizard and Pikachu, if granted that power, win more easily?
Thus, Ash now, on his own merit, could at least challenge a typical Elite Trainer.
The premise is if the Elite he's battling doesn't have information on Ash, otherwise... Ash still wouldn't stand a chance against an Elite.
To truly think defeating Koga, the Elite candidate today, means Elites are mere stepping stones would be underestimating Elite trainers.
Any trainer with a bit of skill should have noticed the weaknesses in Ash's battle strategy this time.
Though Charizard and Pikachu have garnered significant strength after powering up, they're far from being on par with the Elites.
Koga lost because he continuously attacked, and if he had used buffs instead, steadily draining the opponent's strength, he could have easily won.
If that method of victory seems ugly, one could also choose to buff and then use wide-range attacks.
With increased attack power, even a glancing hit with a move could do substantial damage to the opponent.
The biggest weakness of Ash's Charizard and Pikachu lies in their defense and physical strength; faced with such an assault, they wouldn't last long.
Besides these two methods, Cynthia could think of over ten more ways to deal with Ash, results that come from having intel on the opponent.
So Ash is strong now, but compared to the Elites... Finding an Elite who hasn't watched the matches might give him a chance to see if he could win.
"Hey, Lorelei, get me a special spectator seat for the Quartz Conference... Yes, I want to watch... Haha, isn't that obvious? Of course, it's to see the little guy... Mm, I'm quite interested... You're the one robbing the cradle, okay I'm hanging up."
After playfully retorting, Cynthia hung up the phone, feeling a sprout of anticipation for Kanto's so-called child's play matches for the first time.
...
Besides Cynthia, several Elites worldwide also took notice of the match, and they all called the Kanto League, expressing their wish to observe this year's Quartz Conference.
Once labeled a novice cradle, a chicken fight, a nobody's playground, the rookie tournament, now it turned into a bustling event.
The phones at the Kanto League were almost ringing off the hook.
And the ringleader behind all this had quietly slipped out of Fuchsia City.
Led by Gardevoir, Ash and his companions left Fuchsia City, arriving at a secluded mountain path a little way ahead, finally able to sit and rest.
Just finishing the match, they should head to Fuchsia City's Pokemon Center for recovery, but Fuchsia City was in a complete uproar!
With Ash's fame, staying in Fuchsia City was impossible without being immediately surrounded.
After all, he had defeated an Elite candidate as a newbie trainer, and won the third match overwhelmingly!
Although Ash finally conjured up a Victini excuse, very few worldwide knew of Victini, perhaps only Koga in Fuchsia City was aware.
Others might just see Ash's mention of Victini as a random excuse, only those truly acquainted with Victini's abilities would take Ash's seemingly casual words seriously.
"Is this the distress of fame? Really frightening, those people have absolutely no regard for others' feelings!!" Ash remarked, wiping the sweat from his brow caused by the crowd swarming around him.
Previously, Ash was quite fond of fame; after all, in youth, who doesn't enjoy showing off in front of a crowd? Making a grand show in front of everyone is definitely a dream since childhood!