Lance's Power

The Walrein, which rolled in front of Slowking, suddenly stopped its curled body, using its momentum to execute a powerful Body Slam.

This made the attack even more effective.

"Slowking, hold on!"

A green energy shield appeared around Slowking, blocking the full force of Walrein's attack.

"Charlie, use Icy Wind!"

After Slowking's Protect negated the attack, Wallace immediately gave his next command.

"Hoohoo~~"

Walrein shook its body, sending out a chilling gust filled with shards of ice towards Slowking at close range.

Although Ice-type moves don't deal much damage to Water-types, Icy Wind's speed-reducing effect could be a major problem for Slowking.

"Slowking, use Flamethrower!"

Slowking countered the Icy Wind with a stream of fire from its mouth.

The icy wind clashed with the flames in midair.

Cold met heat.

A fiery explosion erupted, sending thick smoke into the air.

Boom!

Both Walrein and Slowking staggered back from the blast.

Both Pokémon had taken some damage from the battle.

Lance watched from the side and nodded.

Although these Pokémon were weaker compared to his own team, Wallace's strength as a Trainer was undeniable, and Aoki's Slowking showed incredible potential. Aoki himself was also proving to be quite skilled.

He had the potential to become one of the top Trainers.

However, both were using Water-type Pokémon, making it difficult to determine a clear winner.

"Let's stop here. There's no need to continue the battle," Lance said.

Hearing this, both Aoki and Wallace withdrew from their battle stances.

If Lance hadn't interrupted, they might have fought until one of their Pokémon was unable to battle.

But after hearing Lance, they realized there was no need to continue.

There was no Pokémon Center in Verdanturf Town. If their Pokémon were seriously injured, it would be troublesome to treat them.

Besides, their battle was meant for practice, not a life-or-death match.

From the battle, it was clear that they were evenly matched.

However, Aoki had gained insight into Wallace's strength.

After all, Walrein wasn't Wallace's strongest Pokémon—his Milotic was undoubtedly much stronger.

And Walrein hadn't yet reached its full potential.

Meanwhile, Slowking had fully evolved and was currently Aoki's strongest Pokémon—aside from his Honchkrow, which had its strength amplified by its Moxie ability. For now, Slowking was Aoki's best.

There was still a gap between Aoki and Wallace.

But it wasn't as large as the gap between Aoki and Steven.

Which meant there was also a gap between Wallace and Steven.

Perhaps Lance was even stronger than Steven.

This was all Aoki's speculation, but he believed it was fairly accurate.

Lance's team was already well-formed, with his starter Pokémon being Charizard. His Dragonite might not have evolved yet.

After all, Dragonite only evolves from Dragonair at level 55. Once evolved, Dragonite would already have the strength of a lower-tier Champion-level Pokémon.

However, Aoki suspected Lance's Dragonair hadn't evolved yet. It was likely close, though.

That meant Lance was already at least an Elite Trainer.

And Aoki had yet to reach that level.

It was clear he needed to focus more on training his Pokémon.

Both Aoki and Wallace nodded and stepped away from battle.

"Aoki, you're much stronger than I expected. You'll have no trouble handling this Water-type Gym!" Wallace said with a smile.

After Slowking used Heal Pulse on Walrein, Aoki smiled and shook his head. "I'll probably be the weakest Gym Leader in the Hoenn region, haha."

He knew his own strength—among Hoenn's Gym Leaders, he would likely rank near the bottom.

"Don't underestimate yourself. Strength builds over time. I believe you'll surpass many Trainers before long," Wallace encouraged.

"That's right. You both have talent. You both have the potential to become truly strong Trainers. Don't sell yourself short," Lance added.

Aoki didn't argue. He just gave a modest response. A year from now, the strongest Gym Leader in Hoenn was still up for debate.

"Alright, that's enough for now. I need to investigate the mayor and his associates. If there's a problem, I'll deal with it directly," Lance said as he tossed a Pokéball, summoning Charizard before the three of them.

Pokémon: Charizard (Teal)

Gender: Male

Level: 50

Type: Fire/Flying

Ability: Blaze

Held Item: None

Egg Moves: Crunch, Dragon Dance, Dragon Pulse, Bite

Basic Moves: Wing Attack, Flame Charge, Heat Wave, Dragon Claw, Shadow Claw, Air Slash, Scratch, Growl, Ember, Smokescreen, Dragon Rage, Fire Spin, Slash, Flamethrower

Taught Moves: Blast Burn, Outrage, Tailwind, Iron Tail

TM Moves: Protect, Hidden Power (Water), Dragon Claw, Hyper Beam, Roost, Earthquake, Overheat, Return, Aerial Ace, Swords Dance, Rock Slide

As expected!

Seeing the data on Lance's Charizard, Aoki felt a slight chill.

Lance was already at the level of an Elite Trainer.

Though Charizard was only level 50, its Teal-tier potential, combined with Dragon Dance, Outrage, and powerful Fire- and Dragon-type moves, meant its strength was at least mid-tier Elite level.

This confirmed Aoki's suspicion that Lance's Dragonair hadn't yet evolved. Otherwise, knowing Lance's personality, he would have summoned Dragonite instead!

Waving at Aoki and Wallace, Lance climbed onto Charizard's back and took off.

"I should head back too. Now that I've tested you in battle, I can return to my duties," Wallace said with a smile.

Clearly, the battle with Aoki hadn't been his own idea.

Originally, there was only one Water-type Gym in Hoenn. Suddenly opening another naturally caused some tension with the Sootopolis Gym, leading to concerns from the League. Having Lance witness the battle served as a way to prove Aoki's strength, confirming that he was capable of running a Gym—even in a smaller town like Verdanturf.

"Thanks for your help," Aoki said, understanding the situation but still appreciative.

Wallace waved dismissively. "No need for thanks. Just pick a location in Verdanturf Town for your Gym, submit the request to the League, and they'll handle the construction. Just be aware—you'll need to cover the costs yourself."

Aoki nodded. "That's fine. I already have a spot in mind—right next to the house where I live. I just need to know when I can apply for a Pokémon Center."