Chapter 62, Acting Gym Leader: This
battle between Natsuki and Blaine went very smoothly.
Natsuki displayed his battle talent and command ability far exceeding that of ordinary people.
It can be said that Blaine's strength is extraordinary, far beyond what is shown in the original games and anime.
However, Natsuki's strength has already taken shape, and even if Blaine brings out his strongest team, Natsuki can face it with ease.
The levels are there; not to mention Arcanine at level 57 and Lucario at level 55, even the red Gyarados is at level 51, crushing all Fire-type Pokémon in this Fire Arena.
In fact, Natsuki could sense that Blaine was not using his full strength.
As a senior expert, Blaine naturally wouldn't suppress his grandson, Natsuki, so it was normal for him to give way.
However, Natsuki was certain that even if Blaine went all out, he had a 90% chance of winning.
After the intense battle, Blaine's evaluation of Natsuki was extremely high.
Over the years, the Natsuki family had produced many excellent trainers, but none had truly reached Natsuki's current level of strength.
Most importantly, Natsuki had achieved this in less than twenty days.
Among his peers, no one could compare.
Natsuki, of course, wasn't arrogant; he listened to the praise but ignored it.
Natsuki's answer was straightforward: although he used to be afraid of Pokémon, he had been secretly studying them.
So after resolving his inner conflict this time, he was able to unleash his accumulated knowledge and skills, successfully applying his previous research findings to his Pokémon, which is why his Pokémon's strength improved so quickly.
Blaine had no doubts, and this was the only explanation that made sense.
In Blaine's eyes, this was absolute talent.
After all, a Pokémon's strength might be something the Pokémon develops through training.
But a trainer's mental fortitude, command abilities, and battle strategy cannot be acquired overnight.
...
After the battle, Natsuki and Blaine had breakfast together.
During this opportunity, after further discussion, Natsuki learned that Gym Leader level strength was roughly around level 30 or 40.
The weaker ones were probably only around level 20.
Of course, there were strong ones, such as Kikyo from the Scarlet Gym and Giovanni from the Viridian Gym.
Blaine gave them extremely high praise, even predicting in advance that Kikyo might soon become one of the Poison-type Elite Four.
Xia Mu wasn't entirely sure if Xia Bo knew the inside story, but what Xia Bo meant was that the younger generation of dojo trainers in the Kanto region were generally quite weak, and the only ones to be wary of were these two dojos.
"Speaking of which, I suddenly had an idea. I wonder if you'd be interested in acting as a dojo trainer for the Crimson Lotus Dojo for a couple of days," Xia Bo said, sipping tea after breakfast.
Xia Mu was taken aback. "Acting as a dojo trainer??"
This was no small matter.
Although he had seen similar plots in novels in his previous life, they were usually just perfunctory.
Now, Xia Bo was asking him to act as a dojo trainer for the Crimson Lotus Dojo, especially in the current situation—wasn't this tantamount to pushing him into a fire pit?
"What? You're not willing?" Xia Bo asked with a smile.
"Grandpa, didn't you already close the dojo?" Xia Mu asked, both amused and exasperated.
"It is closed, but it can reopen, right? I didn't know your strength before, but now you've defeated me. I believe you're more than capable of managing the Crimson Lotus Dojo. Besides, this is a test for you. If you can defeat most of the challengers, it will not only help the dojo out of its predicament but also greatly enhance your reputation." Uncle Xia's words carried a deeper meaning.
Xia Mu fell into thought.
Thinking about it carefully, this was indeed a good thing for him.
He came to Crimson Lotus Island early to battle various trainers and gain experience points.
Now, becoming a substitute gym leader would mean he wouldn't need to look for them; the experience points would come to him on their own.
Seeing Xia Mu deep in thought, Uncle Xia didn't urge him.
After a long while, Xia Mu finally looked at Uncle Xia: "Then, shall I give it a try?"
Uncle Xia, looking like a promising student, stood up and patted Xia Mu's shoulder. "Don't worry, I'll have my men help you. It's okay if you lose. If you really can't handle it, Grandpa will cover for you."
Having reached an agreement, Xia Mu still felt a little like he had fallen into a trap.
But now wasn't the time to think about that.
What he should be thinking about was how to face the many challengers and how to make himself the biggest beneficiary.
...
Nearly an hour passed in a flash.
Under the protection of several staff members in black, Professor Mulan and Sonia finally arrived at the Cinnabar Gym.
Today's events had escalated considerably, and Mulan and Sonia were clearly aware of the current situation.
After some discussion, Blaine explained the various details to Mulan and Sonia.
They weren't from the Kanto region, and although they belonged to the upper echelons of the League, they couldn't overstep their authority to act at this level.
"So your plan is to push Natsuki out into the open to shield you from trouble? I'm not saying this lightly, but Natsuki's strength is probably insufficient." Mulan didn't think there was anything wrong with Blaine's approach; she would have done the same.
However, having Natsuki act as the Gym Leader might be considered training under normal circumstances, but in this situation, it was different.
Mulan, being an experienced elder, knew that unless a trainer of Champion-level strength was in charge, who could continuously accept challenges?
If the challengers were all weak newcomers, it wouldn't be so bad, but clearly, the trainers causing trouble outside all possessed considerable strength.
"If I were to say, Xia Mu already defeated me just now," Xia Bo said with a smile, sipping his tea.
These words made Mulan choke, swallowing the words that were about to come out.
Unbelievable.
She had witnessed Xia Mu's Pokémon; while its aura was indeed strong, defeating Xia Bo was truly unexpected.
She knew Xia Bo's strength well.
"Is that true?" Mulan asked,
not to Xia Bo, but to Xia Mu.
"I suppose so, but Grandpa definitely held back," Xia Mu said modestly.
With Xia Mu's reply, Mulan turned to Uncle Xia: "It seems I underestimated this child. In that case, let's observe as bystanders and see what little Xia Mu is capable of."
Uncle Xia nodded.
Their conversation ended there.
Sonia, who had been silent the whole time, listened attentively, her gaze occasionally fixed on Xia Mu.
She hadn't expected Xia Mu to be so skilled, but now that Uncle Xia and her grandmother had said so, she felt a surge of curiosity and wanted to see for herself.
She had the right to judge his strength, because her friend was a super-powerful trainer.
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(End of Chapter)