Chapter 55: Training Session Visit

"You're not joking?"

Cynthia widened her eyes in disbelief. Was it really possible that no amount of training or practice would help them grow stronger?

Ryo nodded seriously. "Exactly. If that weren't the case, I wouldn't be putting these Pokémon up for adoption in the first place."

If the Pokémon could grow stronger without being entrusted to others, why wouldn't he just train a large group himself?

They could easily become elite-level Pokémon, possibly even reaching Kage-level strength! With an army of those, world domination wouldn't be out of reach.

But unfortunately, reality didn't work that way. It was just a dream.

Cynthia nodded, a trace of disappointment flashing across her face. She could tell from Ryo's serious expression that he wasn't lying.

"Alright, even though you can't capture these Pokémon, I have a chance to summon your original Pokémon here," Ryo said, patting her on the shoulder to comfort her.

Cynthia's eyes lit up. "Really?"

She had spent so much time raising her Pokémon—how could she not feel attached to them? Garchomp, in particular, had grown up with her and was like family.

Ryo smiled and nodded. "Yes, really."

"So how do we summon them?" Cynthia asked eagerly, trying to contain her excitement.

"Work hard," Ryo said with a grin. "Every time someone adopts a Pokémon, there's a chance I can summon one of yours."

Cynthia squinted at him skeptically. "You're not just saying that to get me to work harder, are you?"

Ryo's mouth twitched. He wanted to curse.

What kind of nonsense was that? Wasn't it the system's rules? If no new characters adopted Pokémon, there wouldn't be any exclusive treasure chests. Without those chests, he couldn't summon her Pokémon.

He couldn't tell her that, though.

Shaking his head, he rolled his eyes. "Think what you want. Do as you like."

He didn't bother explaining further. That question had genuinely soured his mood.

Cynthia shrugged, sensing his frustration. "Alright, fine. I'll work hard, but I have one condition."

"What condition?" Ryo asked, turning back to her.

"I want ice cream," Cynthia said, licking her lips. "Every day."

Ryo froze for a second, his mouth twitching.

Seriously? That was her big condition?

Anime didn't lie—this girl really loved ice cream!

"Fine," he agreed with a sigh.

Cynthia beamed. "Great! It's a deal, then!"

Without another word, she happily returned to feeding the Pokémon.

Ryo chuckled, shaking his head. Beneath that cool and elegant exterior was the heart of a little girl.

He grabbed some energy cubes and joined in on feeding the Pokémon.

The Pokémon nearby, who had been watching the two of them anxiously, visibly relaxed. They had been worried the two humans would keep talking and forget to feed them altogether.

After finishing the morning feeding routine, Ryo returned to the small cabin and sat on the couch to begin his training.

Meanwhile, Cynthia was assigned to train Dragonite, Espeon, and the recently added Gardevoir.

As a champion, she was more than capable of training Pokémon, so Ryo left the task in her hands.

Initially, Cynthia refused. After all, she was eager to keep an eye on the Diancie egg.

If Ryo hadn't threatened her with the egg and ice cream, she probably wouldn't have agreed.

Time passed.

Ryo opened his eyes, glancing toward the cabin's entrance.

At that moment, Asuma's team entered the cabin.

"Boss, sorry to bother you so early," Asuma greeted him with a smile.

Ino, however, pouted. "Five thousand ryō a day—how is this bothering him?"

"Ino!" Asuma turned and shot her a glare.

Ino kept quiet but gave Ryo a sideways glance.

Ryo didn't know how to respond. For a moment, he seriously considered spanking her.

He let out an awkward laugh and waved his hand. "It's fine. She's right—you did pay for this."

He stood up. "Follow me."

Leading the way toward the backyard, Ryo decided not to dwell on it.

Asuma held back, turning to Ino. "Ino, this training is worth every ryō. Don't say things like that again."

Shikamaru nodded in agreement. "Yeah, Ino, you need to control your temper."

Ino nodded. "Got it."

At this point, she also realized that coming here to train was indeed worthwhile. After all, Shikamaru had mentioned it yesterday when they left.

However, she still felt a little uncomfortable. Paying 5000 ryō for a training ground and seeing Ryo act as if it were entirely reasonable was hard to swallow.

"Alright, enough talking. Let's head over," Asuma said, jogging to catch up with Ryo.

The others followed close behind.

"Espeon, that's it. Let's do it again," Cynthia instructed with a serious expression.

As the group arrived at the back, they saw Cynthia sternly guiding Espeon on how to use its moves.

Seeing this, Asuma and his team grew serious.

Even Ryo's expression turned focused as he watched Espeon.

"Espeon!"

Espeon concentrated its gaze on a nearby tree, gathering its psychic energy into a beam that shot out at lightning speed.

In the blink of an eye, the beam hit the tree with a loud boom, shattering it into pieces.

The fragments flew in all directions, with some bits of wood embedding themselves into nearby trees.

Asuma and his team's eyes widened in shock as they stared at Espeon.

Asuma frowned slightly, calculating in his mind: That attack was almost at the level of a B-rank ninjutsu. The power may be a bit lacking, but its speed is incredible.

"Not to mention, this Espeon must already have the strength of a Chūnin, and it's a strong one at that," he thought to himself.

Although he had heard rumors about how powerful Pokémon were, this was his first time witnessing it personally.

Now that he had seen it for himself, he couldn't help but be amazed.

If Espeon was this strong, he didn't even dare imagine how powerful Dragonite must be.

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