It took about two days, but the entire region of Johto and Kanto knew who I was.

I'd walk along the road on Route 39, and young trainers who'd normally challenge me without blinking an eye were quietly trying to keep as much distance as possible between them and I. Just hoping I wouldn't say anything.

I didn't really understand why, since battling trainers on the road between cities was the main reason I bothered not just using the high speed bullet train to get everywhere. It was a great way to keep the team in shape with lower level spars before more competitive matches in cities.

When I reached Olivine City, it began to sink in just how famous DJ Mary's article on me had made me.

"There's Nico from Takujimi," a girl whispered to another Youngster, "He's one of the strongest trainers around."

I glanced at them as we kept walking around the sleepy but gorgeous beachside town of Olivine. "Guess that's why no one wants to battle me in casual matches anymore."

"At least they're talking about the temple," Inoru muttered as his Bellsprout remained seated on his shoulder.

…

Olivine City's Gym was a simple rocky arena, but much smaller than the colosseum Goldenrod City had.

Unlike most Gyms, there was no front desk or staff. Only a single girl I recognized well.

"Hello there."

She was easily the most beautiful girl I'd ever seen in my life. Which was saying something after meeting Clair and Whitney. She had pretty, long, and clean light brown hair, flawless pale skin, and an incredibly adorable smile.

"My name's Jasmine." she was petting an Ampharos' head in the two plastic chairs that were supposed to be Olivine City Gym's lobby. "You must be Nico."

"It's a pleasure to meet you."

Jasmine spoke in a very light and dreamy voice. "I heard you were coming as soon your defeat of Whitney was on the news. If you're looking for a battle, I'm afraid we'll have to make it quick."

"Why's that?" asked Ino.

"I have to leave for Jubilife City before midday." Jasmine removed a Pokéball from her jacket and recalled her Ampharos.

I hadn't even checked in at the Pokémon center yet, I really just swung by the Gym to see if it was even open. I wasn't thinking we were even going to spar today, but that didn't mean I wasn't ready.

"Alright then, let's make it quick." I nodded as Jasmine nodded back in agreement.

…

A large part of this felt very…unofficial.

Jasmine didn't even have a judge present, technically as a WCPL Gym Leader she didn't need one, she'd only need to give a badge to someone she determined had performed well enough to earn it.

We faced off against a very large earthen rectangle like any other ring, and I released my Growlithe.

"Go boy!" I said.

The puppy barked and chased his tail a little bit, he looked a little too cheerful today as if this wasn't a real match. Jasmine released her Magneton, and Growlithe still didn't look to be taking the fight too seriously.

With Inoru as our only witness for the match, Growlithe and Magneton began to battle, and all it took was landing a single solid Thundershock to wake him up.

I should've told Growlithe before the match started that this was for real and not just a training session, because he was going way too easy. The pup actually yawned as Magneton zeroed in close and attempted to Tackle him.

Growlithe blinked, barely singed by the blow, all of his fireproof hairs standing on it from getting zapped. In a single bark, the pup actually got his head in the game, and stopped fooling around. Growlithe's Ember wrapped the match up closely, a large dust cloud forming when the Magneton was hit cleanly while attempting to set up more Thundershocks from long range.

The floating set of magnets were covered in fire, as Growlithe pounded it with a blazing tackle, growling very loudly.

Jasmine lazily recalled Magneton without a word and sent out her next Pokémon from a Great Ball.

A huge steel-clad behemoth practically the size of the entire ring went out next, and despite how huge Steelix was, Growlithe didn't look shaken up one bit.

"Use Iron Tail!" said Jasmine.

Steelix missed so badly it was almost comical, sure the puppy was a whole lot smaller than Steelix, but it was so much quicker that Steelix looked like it was treading water.

Steelix fell victim to the same disadvantage Magneton had. It was a Pokémon of average ability being coached by a girl who more or less wanted to get the match over with, and was at a severe type disadvantage.

Rock Throw as well would've been a very effective hit, but Growlithe's evasion had gotten so good, and the Pokémon so much quicker, that it missed completely.

A part of me wondered if Jasmine knew that Whitney's level of prestige and respect in Johto meant she wouldn't have been much trouble for Growlithe.

"Dig!" Jasmine said with a tone that erased any doubt in my mind that she or her team weren't trying. The level of desperation in her voice told me she really was doing her best.

Steelix then burrowed within the ground, and again, what would've been a super effective hit had Growlithe been so much faster than Steelix the move missed entirely.

Steelix tried flying out of the ground, but was so slow that Growlithe was able to start to feel the rumbling beneath his feet and dashed away, coating the entire left flank of Steelix's metal armor in flames the entire time it unearthed itself.

Growlithe had Ember all day, he was landing at will with it.

Exhausted, outmatched in every way, Steelix collapsed after Growlithe beat it to the point he was dashing along his metal protected spine basking his back in fire.

…

"Congratulations."

My fourth gym badge.

It was hard to believe I'd made it this far after only competing in the Pokémon League for a few months.

"If you'll excuse me, I need to get ready for my trip." then Jasmine locked up the Gym and left a sign.

Gone to World Championships. Will be back next week!

The girl then walked off in the direction of Olivine City's lighthouse.

Before I could begin to process the note she left, I looked at the Mineral Badge in my palm, using an app on the new Pokétch I had bought to scan the badge's serial number. I checked on my PokéNav and soon enough, I was ranked in the top twenty Junior trainers in Johto and Kanto, which meant any trainers competing in WCPL under the age of sixteen.

I received a message from Professor Oak.

Hello Nico, please visit the nearest Pokémon Center as soon as you can. Thank you.

…

I wondered what he could want.

Growlithe was barely injured at all except from the bits of rock that had dug deeply into his flank against Steelix, and the few Thundershocks Magneton had hit him with a few minutes ago.

I used my Trainer's ID function by placing my PokéNav into the Video Calling machine in the Pokémon Center lobby.

It took a few moments, but then Professor Oak joined the call.

"Hello Nico, how're you?"

"Fine Professor."

He fixed his glasses. "Now, as I understand it, you're currently in Olivine City judging by your profile?"

That's the speed of the internet. Although I think he just happened to check after calling me.

"I am, why?"

"Blue has personally invited you to come to the World Championships, he wants the same people who went to his gym for training to watch him compete."

I was a bit shocked. "Really? T-That's an honor but it's a little out of my budget."

"Blue has enough sway with the tournament committee to have gotten both you and Inoru your tickets." Professor Oak said.

"Thank you Professor," I said, as we both bowed our heads.

As expensive as tickets to World Championships were, that didn't mean this trip was going to be cheap. It wasn't like I was broke or anything, having beaten four Gyms and battled plenty of trainers on the road in between, but getting a hotel, food, and any other expenses would be-

I smiled at the Professor. "How soon should we go?"

"As soon as you can actually," Oak said. "I recommend you go before train tickets to Sinnoh get any more expensive. Good luck on your journey and safe travels, I'll see you in Jubilife."

He ended the call and I turned to Inoru.

"Wow." I managed to say.

"It's not like you're competing against the best in the world." Inoru pointed out.

"Yeah but," I gulped. "Blue invited me to watch him compete. Me, someone who he trusted with his Growlithe and, that's it."

Inoru crossed his arms. "Nico. This is a very big honor, but you don't need to feel overwhelmed."

I couldn't even imagine it. I hadn't been much farther than Mount Takujimi all things considered. Even Viridian City was just a few hours away by highspeed rail.

But Sinnoh? And World Championships, where Red created the World Pokémon League?

Inoru cleared his throat.

"Right, we should get going."

…

I really hoped we could come back to Olivine City someday, the beaches really were beautiful.

I'm sure we would, it was the only way to get a ferry to go to Cianwood to challenge Chuck.

On the train platform, I saw Jasmine.

Feeling a bit nervous, I boarded the same passenger car as her.

"Hi."

Jasmine smiled, surprised to see both Inoru and I ready to go to Sinnoh with her. "Wasn't expecting to see you two. You're headed to Worlds as well?"

"Yeah, you got a lot to look forward to at that competition right?" I asked. "A lot of matches?"

"Me? Compete?" Jasmine laughed. "Heavens no."

The doors to the car slid closed and we took our seats across from her.

"No, I'm going because Clair invited me."

"You know each other?"

Jasmine shrugged. "All Gym leaders know each other."

"No I mean, well enough for her to invite you."

"Oh," Jasmine said. "Well we've been friends for years."

"We didn't get along that well when we met." I said.

"I heard." muttered Jasmine. "I expected you to be quite the challenge. You were good enough to convince Gold to quit her team."

"It, wasn't that straightforward."

Jasmine looked over to Inoru. "I expect you had a large part to play in how good Nico's team's gotten."

"Well why is that?" Inoru said.

"Aren't you Nico's mentor?"

"Yes." Inoru replied. "But there's much more to it than that."

Jasmine was intrigued. "Tell me."

"In many ways, Nico tutors himself in battling. I myself only starting raising my Bellsprout just after Nico and I left Takujimi Shrine."

"How?" Jasmine said. "I was under the impression sages spent their entire lives raising Pokémon."

"Everyone starts off as a Novice, they're technically not inducted into the order after a month or so of determining if they possess the character to become a monk," explained Ino. "After you become a Novice officially, only after years of training you become an Initiate."

"And what does that mean?" asked Jasmine.

"Initiates are allowed to raise a Bellsprout, they're basically a measure of how well they understand what the sages know." Inoru explained. "Eventually, if you become an Elder, and the most senior Initiates in a temple elect you to do so, you're the leader of a temple."

Inoru glanced outside the window at the incredible passing countryside of Johto heading eastward. "Elders are the caretakers of all the Pokémon in the temple. The Pokémon Nico and I started out with were raised initially by Elder Toji, Takujimi's Elder. They're the only ones allowed to raise anything other than a Bellsprout, or Hoothoot in Sprout Tower's case."

"Then, why was Nico's first Pokémon a Vigoroth?" asked Jasmine.

Inoru and I looked at each other.

"It's a long story," I said.

"We've got hours until we reach the main terminal in Celadon City and take the train to Jubilife." Jasmine shrugged. "Tell me."

I squinted in thought, then looking at Jasmine with a wince. "I can't even really tell you the truth behind most of what happened during my first few months at the temple."

Inoru decided to put his foot down. "Elder Toji decided Nico needed a special pilgrimage to spread word about the temple. He instructed me to go with him and watch over him."

"I want to hear the story about that pendant." Jasmine looked at my necklace containing a carving of Mew.

"It was Elder Toji's." I said. "He gave it to me the day I left Takujimi."

"So the monks let you stay a monk, but also wear clothes like a regular person? To do whatever you wanted."

"Almost whatever I wanted," I said. "I can still have a girlfriend though," I added with a shrug.

Jasmine sat a bit stiffly, smoothing out her skirt down her legs and looking out the window quietly.

A very silent rejection.

I tried to break the tension. "Ino can have one too, I made sure to ask before we left."

"Not that I intend to pursue anything other than the perfection of our ancient arts." Inoru raised an eyebrow, looking at me with disapproval for a moment.

"So, how often do you stay in touch with the temple?"

"Hm." Ino rubbed his chin at Jasmine's question. "We sent a Hoothoot to Takujimi when we left Sprout Tower. I think Elder Li will send word to us as soon as he gets a message back."

"Why don't you use technology of any sort? Why do you never eat meat or wear regular clothes? Except you Nico."

I explained. "Mew saved humanity, we believe it was because there is a higher purpose for us. A deep connection to Pokémon and the spirits. Materialism, vanity, fame, that all disconnects us from that purpose."

"But you've done nothing but battle and gain fame since you started competing," said Jasmine lightly. "Isn't that the opposite of that?"

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

"Elder Toji saw something in Nico, truthfully, I see it too." Ino said. "He believes that he can do something significant. Be it discover or recover something no one's seen, or do something no one's ever done."

"To make the temple famous again," Jasmine said. "Because this is the first I've heard about it in a while."

"The decision wasn't taken lightly. Many Initiates thought Nico wouldn't be ready for this challenge or that he shouldn't have been allowed to leave." said Ino.

Jasmine now looked at me. "I must say, you're the most unique trainer I've met in that case. What do you think is the end goal of the journey you were sent on?"

Win World Championships someday? Find Red? Find Mew?

"Do what I'm doing now I guess, have people talking. Soon enough, I can have people coming back to yearly pilgrimages to Takujimi Shrine. And our Order will be restored." I shrugged.

"Well it's certainly working so far."

Inoru muttered in agreement. "Indeed."

…

Blue had to wave off hordes of reporters when he boarded our train.

"God, what a nuisance." he almost had to push away a particularly annoying man trying to record Blue's voice on his PokéGear.

Oak chuckled. "Well when you barely leave your Gym except to go to Worlds, that tends to happen."

Ash Ketchum, Oak, Blue, Gary, Crystal, and Gold all entered the train compartment I had picked Jasmine and Inoru. This train was bigger with a sleek white and blue paint job, there was enough space for everyone as they all took their seats. The central terminal of Celadon City, was supposed to take us directly to the heart of Jubilife.

After almost eight hours.

I looked over at my fellow Johto trainers. "How long have you two been in Celadon City?"

The doors to the passenger car began to close.

"Oh we just got here." Gold said.

"Yeah, we came as soon as Professor Oak told us he got us tickets." said Crystal. "I'm so excited to see Blue become World Champion again."

"Hasn't happened for a few years admittedly," he said in his calm smooth voice. "But I do feel I got a really good shot."

I watched the way he put his hands in his pockets as he said this with his usual casual air. "How many people do you have in your division?"

"One hundred and twenty-seven." Blue said. "The first four rounds are just to get to the quarter finals."

"What're the qualifications to compete?" I asked.

"Easier than you'd think," answered Blue. "You need to be ranked in the top twenty in at least one of all nine regions. Then you need sixteen badges or more, and the League has to personally verify your team is ready to compete."

"What does that mean?"

"It's not too common, but severe injuries can happen during matches at the World Championship level." Blue took out his Pokédex for a moment from his jean pocket, glanced at it, and put it away. "Red put my Raticate in the hospital for nearly three months when we were still kids, stuff like that but sometimes far worse. The League sends someone to make sure your team is good enough to not let themselves get hurt like that."

"Oh." Gold looked grave, Crystal, Gary, and Ash looked a bit nervous too.

Oak chuckled. "Don't you lot worry, it takes years to reach such a level. And the Pokémon that compete at the highest degree possible are never in any real danger."

"They aren't?" I wondered.

From what I gathered, Red, Blue, and trainers like them raised Pokémon to the closest to legendaries in terms of skill and power except from regular Pokémon instead.

"Of course not," said Blue reassuringly. "Until a Pokémon has fainted, they're never in any danger of being damaged permanently in any way."

"What's this I hear about you challenging team Rocket?" asked Ash.

"I hear it's a bunch of bogus." Gary snorted. "There's no way one of us could handle Team Rocket all on their own."

Oak looked like he wanted to tell his grandson to knock it off, Gary's older brother wanted to as well, but both Blue and Oak said nothing.

"It wasn't Team Rocket that was a threat, it was who showed up afterward. Guy who acted like he was bigger than Team Rocket, but not really a criminal. Very shady anyway, even his Zubat was great."

"Silver," said Gold.

"You know him?"

"I've run into him a few times." Gold was clearly trying to sound tough. "His Bayleef was no match for me though."

Oak laughed. "I remember Professor Elm calling me the morning after you two fought. Apparently, you lost."

"No, I didn't!" Crystal laughed at this.

"How can a Quilava lose to a Bayleef?" Gary looked stumped.

"Silver's just that good. He almost beat me." I said.

"He did?" Crystal looked very surprised.

Ash was curious too. "How did he almost beat you?"

"His Bayleef is something else, there's just something off about Silver, it's hard to describe."

If there was one thing I didn't appreciate, it was how much Oak let on that he knew but didn't tell. I knew a fair bit about Silver from playing the games, but not anything worth mentioning.

"Anyway," I looked at Crystal. "How's everyone's teams coming along?"

"Fantastic," answered Gary proudly. "I caught a huge Fearow and won a Scyther during a tournament. Bugsy's trainers hosted a bug type catching contest in Pewter near Viridian Forest, and I got first place."

"I decided to go with Krabby and Sentret." Crystal didn't add anything more, possibly because she was working on Pokémon she didn't want us to know about. Knowing Crystal, I don't think that was the case however.

"I'm raising a Pidgeotto and a Charmander," Ash said. "I managed to get Pikachu to pull off Volt Tackle last week."

"What about you Nico?" asked Crystal as Oak pulled out his laptop next to her to probably start working on research.

I cleared my throat. "I still just have Growlithe and Ursaring. Those are the three I'm working with right now."

"So besides Blue, who do you think has a shot at winning Worlds this year?" asked Gold.

Everyone began to chatter.

…

Jasmine tended to talk more with Oak, Inoru, and Blue, while Crystal, Gary, Gold, Ash, and I spoke.

For hours we talked about battles, what life at home was like. I began to suspect Gary, Gold, and Ash might've had feelings for Crystal. They acted differently when she wasn't in the train compartment to go get some food, but that might've been me.

I guess she was the only girl in the group.

Well past sundown, the train began to pull into the Sinnoh region.

If I thought the view of Johto region's nighttime city skyline was beautiful I hadn't seen anything yet. Sinnoh was larger and much more colorful, wider, and much more expansive.

Jubilife wasn't even the biggest city in the entire world, which surprised me since it was far bigger than Celadon which I had passed through, based off of Tokyo.

That night, we all said goodnight and we went off to our hotel rooms.

The Pokémon Center in Jubilife wasn't really one Pokémon Center it was multiple, and with the dozens of trainers coming in from all over the world, they were already packed.

As large and beautiful as Jubilife was, I wasn't able to enjoy it for long, the moment Ino and I checked into our room, I changed, showered, ate some noodles I bought from the lobby, and fell asleep almost instantly.

…

I don't think I'd ever seen so many people gathered anywhere at any one time.

Tens of thousands of people all gathered in Jubilife Stadium, filling the gargantuan colosseum from top to bottom. In the lobby lining up to my place in the stands, I caught glimpses of Cynthia, and even Leaf, the current world champion.

Both young women looked exactly as I was expecting, and I even saw Volkner, getting ready to compete, shortly after debriefing his team of a few teenagers and even one adult trainer.

The tournament staff had been able to transfer part of the Eternal Fire from Kanto, said to have been given from Ho-Oh, used as part of several opening ceremonies for official League tournaments. Every judge for the tournament stood in full uniform, over sixty dozen competitors, some in their team jackets, other just wearing the outfits I remembered a few of them wore from the games and anime, were out on the arena floor as well.

A tournament official walked up a large number of steps, and lit the brazier to commemorate the start of the World Pokémon League Championships.

I applauded, alongside the thousands around me.

And then, the tournament began.

Blue gave myself, Gary, Crystal, Gold, and Ash a short run down of how the entire day was going to go. Jasmine had already found her family that had invited her and was going to spend the tournament with them spectating. Blue told us the rules, that we were all accustomed to, all of us having Gym badges, as well as which Pokémon trainers to keep our eyes on.

In the very first round, in four smaller arenas spread out in a plus sign around the central main colosseum, Blue had to face a very strong trainer from Unova named Bryson. The arenas appeared to be huge tennis courts in a way really, with large metallic walls separating the rings to prevent battles from crossing into each other.

I was in the stands alongside Blue's team, cheering.

Inoru was silently watching, always keeping his Bellsprout by his side, that actually appeared a bit shaken up by the sheer power of the battling.

In the very first round, Pokémon trainers were only allowed to use two Pokémon, switching out a Pokémon meant its forfeit, and as always, no items could be used.

The center judge for Blue's match I recognized as one of the top WCPL officials from Kalos, an aged balding man with a neatly trimmed white beard, and a strong competitor in his day, and part of the first Gyms in the region.

"Begin!" he shouted, throwing his hand down.

Bryson's Krookodile moved faster than most Pokémon I'd ever seen, and speed wasn't even its best asset. And while it was quick by most Pokémon standards in terms of stats, it wasn't among the fastest.

Blue led with a Rhyperior, a Pokémon he'd only been working with earlier this year as Gary told me, which ended up being a mistake.

Rhyperior's Earthquake was so strong that it even shook the stands a little bit, and Krookodile countered with a degree of versatility and ingenuity I didn't even think Pokémon could have outside of my own team.

Krookodile was able to move quickly and decisively enough through the quaking earth to grab Rhyperior, reaching the epicenter of the earthquake to avoid the majority of the damage. In the blink of an eye, so fast I almost missed it, and Krookodile hit Rhyperior with Outrage.

Krookodile's whole body glowed red, and it went ballistic, hitting Rhyperior so hard with its tail and fists, that even her stony armor cracked.

Rhyperior was on shaky legs after that, and when Krookodile pinned her near the edge of the ring, narrowly avoiding Crunch and Stone Edge by the skin of its rock piercing teeth, the judge stopped the match.

"Stop! Back to your lines."

"Rhyperior snap out of it!" said Blue. "Counter his Stone Edge with your own!"

That proved to be the wrong decision, Krookodile's Stone Edge was far better, and the number, power, and speed, behind the rocks he could levitate and strike towards Rhyperior blasted through her own.

Rhyperior was able to tank most of the hit based on her typing and toughness, but she wasn't so lucky on the next attack. Rhyperior wasn't given enough time from being staggered to follow it up with another attack, and Krookodile landed flush with Crunch, directly on her shoulder.

Krookodile's jaws were so powerful the entirety of Rhyperior's stony shoulder seemed to crack, and Rhyperior was forced to take a knee.

"Stop!"

Rhyperior was barely able to get back onto her feet.

"Can you continue?" the judge looked to Blue.

It took him a second, but he wisely withdrew Rhyperior. She was caught before she could even regain her footing.

"Man." I heard Ash say next to me. "I didn't think we'd lose the first fight of the entire tournament."

"It's not over." said Crystal.

I shook my head. "I agree with Ash. Blue still should've been able to win the first match up even if he only had a year to work with Rhyperior."

"A year isn't enough time?" Gold was confused.

"At the World Championship level, evidently not," I said quietly.

Blue needed a second to think, and my respect for Bryson instantly elevated when I saw who Blue sent out next.

He went with his main, his starter, who everyone knew was his best Pokémon.

Blastoise took his fighting stance, and Krookodile didn't appear shaken, not even for a second.

Krookodile went down swinging, but Blastoise decisively knocked him out, no need for the judge to even ask before declaring a knockout.

Blastoise landed three consecutive hits, and Krookodile barely was able to get one, a single Stone Edge off as Blastoise was missing his Ice Beam. Blastoise wasn't really going all out, not even during a World Championship match, but his Ice Beam was so powerful, that momentarily each time it went off, the air got a bit chillier for a second, even several meters away in the stands.

I could feel the cold laser from out here, each time it fired.

Blastoise then bodied Krookodile, as his Surf filled the arena for a moment, and the amount of water he summoned flooded the ring. Krookodile couldn't even dive underground to dodge, instead lifted into the waves.

Blastoise sent Krookodile flying so hard from the water type attack that Krookodile broke apart the ground beneath him when he fell, spinning as he went. I could tell by its eyes that Krookodile was not getting back up, at least not until it visited a healing station at the Pokémon Center.

Bryson grimaced, muttering to his Pokémon when he recalled him, then sending out his next.

His Bouffalant packed a serious punch, charging forward as fast as it could as its horns glowed a bright gold.

"Giga Impact!" I heard Bryson shout.

Blastoise's stance, toughness, and technique were so strong, that just by Withdraw-ing into his shell, he avoided most of the damage. Admittedly, the Bouffalant hit Blastoise so hard that his shell went flying, but Blastoise easily repositioned midair by using his water canons to gain balance, and then land on his feet.

As powerful as Bouffalant appeared, Blastoise again just overwhelmed it with the raw strength behind his blows.

Blastoise used Ice Beam to pin Bouffalant down near the edge of the ring, and before hitting it with a Hydro Pump from hell.

"Ouch." Crystal gasped, sitting next to me in the metal bleachers.

My ears hurt a little from how much water, and how quickly it was leaving Blastoise's water cannons, battles at this level were loud from the power behind the blows. Bouffalant couldn't dodge or counter, not from how fast, hard, and large the water type attack was.

"Stop!" the judge shouted instantly based on how strong of an attack the Normal type took.

Bouffalant was knocked clean out, that Hydro Pump had all but sent it flying out of the ring. No small feat, considering the Bouffalant was strong enough to send Blastoise into the air with any attack.

"The winner of the match is Blue from Pallet Town!"

Blue crossed the edge of the ring and shook hands with Bryson as we all applauded in the stands.

"I knew my big bro was gonna wipe the floor with that nobody." Gary chuckled.

"Blue is still well, Blue." Gold, Ash, and Crystal didn't disagree with me. "But the fact that any trainer forced Blue to go from experimenting to go with his main meant Bryson pushed him."

"Why would Blue experiment at World Championships?" asked Ash.

"His confidence I suspect." everyone was surprised Inoru said anything at all, he'd stayed quiet almost all day. "Blue was sure he could try new things with new Pokémon based on the fact he could always use his Blastoise if all things failed."

He wasn't wrong, not at all.

Blue walked up to us, taking a water bottle his younger brother handed to him.

"Thanks Gary," he smiled at us. "You guys get breakfast yet?"

"Yeah I already ate." said Gold, everyone more or less muttered in agreement.

"Your Blastoise is incredible." Inoru said.

"Thank you, Nico here was able to land a hit on it during training." Blue said confidently.

Ash smiled. "You did amazing Blue."

"Ah, I'm not satisfied winning my first match two one, gotta readjust a little bit before my next fight."

Gary scowled. "You had to remind me." he said angrily.

"How long until your next match?" I asked, hearing the crowd from a nearby battle cheer together.

"About two hours, you guys wanna walk around? I'll catch up with you all in a moment, I have to get Rhyperior to a healing station."

I nodded. "Yeah I want to see a few fights."

"Great, I'll meet you by ring five at eleven later."

Gary walked off to follow Blue, and the rest of us walked out of the stands to try to see some other matches.

…

What proceeded was some of the best battling I'd ever seen in my life.

Even those who lost were the smartest, strongest, and by far, most skilled Pokémon trainers I'd ever seen.

Blue, as I was expecting, was right about who to keep my eyes on in the earlier rounds of the World Championships.

Cynthia wasn't even using her mains, Milotic, Garchomp, or Spiritomb, and still won her first match two nothing. She used one Pokémon, Glaceon, using two moves, Shadow Ball, and Quick Attack.

Even at a type disadvantage against a Magmortar and a Magcargo, Glaceon didn't even take a single hit. Cynthia's Glaceon had incredibly advanced timing, distance management, and spacing.

Despite Glaceon's speed, Glaceon would appear to always be in a position that suited it, landing a Shadow Ball in a split second just as Magmortar or Magcargo would try to land super effective Fire type attacks.

If Glaceon didn't land, that was fine, it would hit them with a Quick Attack, dash away, and reposition somewhere else in the ring, waiting for their next attack.

While Glaceon was incredible, Cynthia's coaching of her Pokémon was better. She seemed to know exactly what advice to give, when to tell Glaceon to pressure, when to fight defensively, and what attack to use.

Volkner and Leaf had to face each other in the first round.

Volkner was a man in his thirties with spiky blonde hair, he had a bright blue jacket, matching several trainers he brought with him from Sunyshore City.

Leaf had long brown hair, and was wearing a short red skirt, blue socks and tank top, as well as her signature white cap.

Volkner had brought a large number of people from Sunyshore City to spectate, and there were over five hundred people, enough to pack the bleachers nearby shoulder to shoulder ringside. Leaf's entire family from Pallet Town was there, and from what I could tell, a decent portion of the town was there as well.

"Let's win this Luxray!" shouted Volkner.

The Gleam Eyes Pokémon roared loudly when its paws hit the flat earth of the ring.

Leaf smiled. "Okay folks, let's do this." she said proudly from her Trainer's box.

She tossed out a Pokéball and the largest Venusaur I'd ever seen was released. I had only seen a few during footage of Pokémon battles online, but this Venusaur was huge.

"Ready? Begin!"

The shouting made it difficult to discuss the match at all with anyone else on Blue's team I was there watching with.

Volkner was actually giving Leaf a run for her money, unlike how I was expecting.

While Luxray went down after a mostly dominant match by Venusaur's monstrous Vine Whip, Volkner's next Pokémon rivaled Blue's Blastoise in terms of speed, technique, and sheer power.

Volkner's Electivire was so fast that its Electric type attacks made Ash's Pikachu look slow by comparison. Sure, Ash was just starting to compete but still.

"Let's go Leaf!" a Pallet town girl shouted.

"Get 'er Volkner!" someone else cheered.

Venusaur put up a very good fight, and I found out what Petal Blizzard was.

Silver's Bayleef whipped up a tornado of razor sharp leaves using Razor Leaf, and it was still among the strongest attacks Vigoroth ever got hit with, but it didn't hold a candle to Petal Blizzard. Petal Blizzard was like four different Razor Leafs but the leaves moved like homing missiles, controlled directly by Venusaur.

The attack was decently damaging but Electivire was unlike most Pokémon I'd ever seen.

It was so hard to hit it that despite battling World Champion Leaf's main for several minutes, it had only taken two Vine Whips right to the torso, and a Petal Blizzard head on.

Electivire on the other hand had been able to latch onto Venusaur twice with the red tipped wires sprouting from its back, and zapped Venusaur with Thunder.

Leaf was trying to come up with something to tell Venusaur to gain control of the match but I heard a single giant electric SNAP in the air, like someone stuck a giant fork into the world's largest electrical socket.

All over the shouting, cheers and nearby battling.

Electivire had activated Thunder Punch, and the amount of electricity it was building in its hand had temporarily crisped a lot of the air around it.

I had already just begun to realize what the sound was by the time Electivire blurred across the ring while Venusaur attempted to dodge. In a violent yellow flash, Electivire punched Venusaur cleanly across the snout, sending it flying.

"Venusaur!"

Leaf's starter struggled to its feet, clearly paralyzed.

It then collapsed, not knocked out, but not able to continue by any measure.

Everyone from Sunyshore cheered and there was a pause in the fight as Leaf recalled Venusaur and began to strategize.

"How come Volkner's never placed in World Championships before?" I muttered to Ash.

"From what I can tell he probably has." Ash instantly checked his profile on his PokéGear. "Looks like he hasn't. I guess World Championships are just that competitive."

You don't say.

Leaf's next Pokémon was released from an Ultra Ball, the crowd gasped, even though a few of them had probably seen one before.

It was an Espeon, a Pokémon I had never seen outside of strange visions I had during my dreams, Leaf possessed one of the few in existence and I was about to witness it battle.

Espeon was the Psychic Eeveelution, with sheer light purple lavender colored fur that almost looked transparent depending on how the light hit it. In the center of its forehead lay a bright red ruby or gem of sorts, redder than even the strongest paint I've seen. Espeon had a forked tail, and light purple eyes with white irises.

I immediately removed my 'Nav and scanned it with my Pokédex function.

I'd have to read the entry later because one of the most competitive matches I'd seen in my life was about to begin, Leaf's Espeon was female according to the Pokédex.

"Begin!" the center judge shouted.

Electivire had barely taken a step forward when it had to slip its head out of the way. Espeon's cry was a melodic but shrill scream, much how a cat mewled or screeched when she attacked.

A large pink beam had almost struck it right in the face, Electivire had under a second to dodge Espeon's Psybeam released straight from her mouth.

I could only imagine how much damage that psychic laser would've dealt if Electivire hadn't dodged.

The following exchange happened instantly despite all the action.

There was another giant electric snap in the air when Electivire struck, attempting to hit Espeon with a Thunder Punch.

Espeon dodged, dashing around the edge of the ring so fast she kicked up a small dust cloud.

She repositioned as Electivire turned to face her, and Espeon actually split the ground apart under her next attack.

Espeon's ruby glowed an even brighter red and a massive wave of psychic energy was released in an expanding circle outward. There was no chance to block this. Espeon's Psychic attack probably could level buildings or at least a sizable house, it was a miracle Electivire was able to stand up at all after that, let alone fight.

All of this had taken place over the course of about two seconds, that was just how quickly Espeon and Electivire fought.

"Electivire, use Thunder! Give her all you got!" Volkner shouted.

Enraged at being rocked, Electivire crossed his hands, charging his entire body with the electricity the wires from his body released.

A massive rush of electricity flew forward as Electivire tracked Espeon's dashing around the ring, and for a split second, I saw Espeon's slightly forked tail twitch in the air. She changed directions, dodged a Thunder so powerful it fried the wall behind it completely black, and countered.

Espeon's Quick Attack was a psychically enhanced move, she rushed up to Electivire and hit it twice across the face with her tail, which she had augmented with the energy stored in her forehead gem judging by how her tail was glowing a light shade of pink.

Electivire actually staggered after the blow, and the moment Espeon landed back on the ground she blew Electivire away with another Psychic.

Electivire tried to tether itself to the ground to avoid some of the damage with one of its black wires to no avail, and he struck the edge of the ring on one of the metal border walls so hard the ground shook.

Electivire struggled to its feet, and began to activate Thunder Punch as Espeon hit him with Psychic again.

This time, Electivire had no chance to dodge, and shook against the metal wall under the power of the light pink energy wave, a huge ringing sound emitted from Espeon when she released the attack.

Electivire slumped over, completely knocked out.

The center judge raised a blue flag to his left. "Leaf from Pallet Town is the winner!"

Everyone was silent for a moment.

Espeon quickly licked the back of her paw, her ear twitching

And then they burst into cheers, even Volkner's fans from Sunyshore applauded, he had been able to take out the reigning champ's starter.

…