Chapter 90

"You may be interested in him, but what does that have to do with me?"

"..."

...

On the battlefield.

Nathan's opponent was a petite, shy-looking girl. As soon as she stood opposite him, she hurriedly bowed.

"Hello, I'm Sophie Song from Lake City No.1 High School."

Nathan smiled and replied, "Nathan Vesper, from Poplar City No.1 High School."

"Battle begin!"

The referee raised the flag and shouted.

Upon hearing the signal, both Nathan and Sophie threw out their Poké Balls.

Two Pokémon appeared on the field.

Sophie sent out a standing rabbit-like Pokémon over a meter tall—Lopunny—a Normal-type that looked quite cute and was especially beloved among female trainers. It had a pair of large ears.

Nathan sent out Flygon.

Both were at Gym level.

"Interesting. That Flygon must be the same Trapinch from before, right? It's already evolved to its final form."

"Yeah, and it's already at the Gym level. Judging by its size, it's been well-raised."

"Well, we'll still have to see how it performs in battle."

Several university professors discussed among themselves.

On the battlefield, the match had already begun.

"Lopunny, Quick Attack!"

Sophie was the first to issue a command.

Lopunny sprang into motion, turning into a blur of light as it charged toward Flygon.

"Flygon, use Sand Attack, then set up a Sandstorm," Nathan said calmly.

"Flyy~"

Flygon flapped its wings, whipping up a smokescreen of sand that spread across the field, blocking Lopunny's charge.

Lopunny was forced to halt, and its line of sight was completely cut off—it could no longer see Flygon.

Immediately afterward, Flygon's wingbeats grew faster and faster.

The wind began to howl, carrying sand along with it.

A Sandstorm formed, engulfing the entire battlefield.

Lopunny wrapped itself in its long ears, alertly watching its surroundings.

Flygon's figure flickered in and out of sight within the storm, making it difficult to target.

"Lopunny, be ready to use Payback at any moment!"

Although Sophie looked timid, she showed a trainer's composure in battle.

Lopunny nodded, preparing itself.

Dark energy began to gather around it.

Nathan's lips curled into a slight smile. "Payback, huh? A move that absorbs an enemy's attack and retaliates with even greater force before they can retreat."

A Dark-type move—

Not normally something a Normal-type like Lopunny could learn.

However, Lopunny could acquire it through a TM.

Nathan, unfazed, simply smiled. "Flygon, use Boomburst."

Moves like Payback could only be used effectively if the opponent got close—otherwise, it couldn't be activated.

"Flyy~"

As Nathan spoke, Flygon's voice rang out from within the sandstorm.

A wave of sound burst forth in ripples, sweeping across the entire battlefield with immense force.

Lopunny's face twisted in discomfort.

It couldn't help but cry out in pain.

Sound-based moves almost always hit unless completely soundproofed, so the target would always be affected.

"That should be enough. Let's finish this—Flygon, Dragon Breath, then Dragon Tail," Nathan said softly.

"Lopunny, use Agility and prepare for Mirror Coat!" Sophie Song shouted anxiously.

But unfortunately, it seemed Lopunny didn't hear her.

Despite Boomburst ending, Lopunny still wore a pained expression, clearly disoriented.

"Aftereffects of Boomburst?" one university professor commented.

"Correct," another nodded. "Most sound-based moves cause lingering effects. If sound isn't blocked, the Pokémon will suffer temporary tinnitus afterward and won't be able to hear commands until it passes."

"Sandstorm and Boomburst... quite the clever combo," one of them praised.

At this point, the battle was clearly nearing its end.

From behind, Flygon unleashed Dragon Breath, striking Lopunny hard and inflicting visible damage.

Then—

Flygon quickly flew behind Lopunny again.

Its tail, glowing with dragon energy, swept out horizontally.

A sharp whistling sound cut through the air.

Lopunny was slammed into the ground in the distance.

…

"That Flygon is really strong."

"Did you notice how its speed increased dramatically once the Sandstorm started?"

"Yeah—could be the result of targeted training."

"Not sure, but that little guy has a lot of potential."

"Definitely."

The professors exchanged comments.

They weren't concerned about written exam results.

Their universities focused on Pokémon.

As long as a student had good character and talent in training and battling, they were open to admission—even if their academic performance was lacking.

They could be given special recommendations.

Nathan's match ended quickly.

Lopunny had completely lost the ability to battle.

He left the battlefield and returned to Lily's side.

"Well done," William said with a grin. "But this afternoon, you'll need to give it even more effort."

The morning had been for exhibition matches.

The afternoon was for challenge battles.

The morning simply gave everyone a chance to perform.

But the afternoon was all about individual initiative.

In the challenge battles, anyone could challenge anyone.

Losers would lose their chance to be challenged again.

Winners would stay on the battlefield, waiting for more challengers.

William didn't know how many Pokémon Nathan had, or their levels.

But he did know that Nathan had a Volcarona—and that alone was enough.

Nathan smiled helplessly and nodded.

As for the afternoon…

He probably wouldn't need Volcarona.

After all, Pangoro was just about ready.

Though its training wasn't fully complete, it could now compress an Energy Ball to the point it could swallow it in one gulp.

Thinking of that, Nathan couldn't help but smirk a little in anticipation.

The morning matches ended quickly.

There weren't as many participants as expected—just a few strong schools from nearby cities.

Everyone had one match.

The fast ones ended in minutes, the longer ones took just over ten.

As the afternoon arrived—

A refreshing breeze brushed across their faces.

A young man from North City stepped onto the field and shouted toward Nathan:

"I challenge Trainer Nathan!"

"Heh, boss, I knew someone would challenge you. Didn't think it'd happen so soon though."

Sam grinned mischievously beside Nathan.

"Tch." Nathan shook his head with a sigh, then stood up and walked to the opposite side of the field under everyone's watchful eyes.

"Hello, I'm Nathan Vesper."

"Hi, I'm Julian Shen from North City," the young man replied with an eager smile.

"I know I'm probably not your match, but if I'm going to challenge someone, it might as well be a strong opponent. That's the only way to improve through battle."

Nathan nodded slightly and smiled. "Then let's do it."

"Battle begin!"

As the referee shouted, both trainers tossed their Poké Balls.

"Roooaaar!"

Pangoro's roar thundered across the field.

Since their recent travels, Pangoro had been enjoying salt scrubs almost daily—combined with a hearty diet, medicinal baths, and other care—

Its body had grown more muscular and imposing than ever.

A normal Pangoro would be around 2 meters tall.

But Nathan's Pangoro now stood a massive 3 meters, exuding raw power and overwhelming presence.

Its aura alone was intimidating.

Julian sent out a Samurott—the final evolution of Oshawott and a pure Water-type.

A solid Water-type starter and a respectable Pokémon at Gym level.

Ordinarily, Samurott would be the more imposing of the two.

But this time, as Pangoro took the field and let out that thunderous roar—

Samurott couldn't help but take a step back.

Both were Gym level.

Nathan remained calm.

"Pangoro, use Energy Ball."

"Roar!"

Pangoro bellowed and thrust out a paw, condensing an Energy Ball just small enough to be swallowed in a single gulp.