No trainer who had reached the main tournament wanted to fall into the losers' bracket right from the start.
And no one wanted to be eliminated on a stage like this.
Gao Tianming's miracle-like upset victory against a stronger opponent despite a type disadvantage gave countless trainers facing the brutal tournament format a glimmer of hope.
If he can do it, maybe I can too.
Even if they couldn't make it out of groups, staying on this stage for a few more rounds would already be worthwhile.
With that mindset, every trainer and every Pokémon gave it their all, both on and off the battlefield.
The same was true for Chen Mo's Gible.
Under the evening sun of Sand Park—
"Shahe…"
Hippopotas stared at Gible, who stood within the sandstorm with its eyes tightly closed.
Its usually dull-looking eyes had become completely numb.
When it had first received the assignment from the Bureau to serve as a sparring partner and help teach an unfamiliar Pokémon, Hippopotas had actually been extremely nervous.
Before becoming separated from its herd, its strength had been respectable among its peers.
But it was nowhere near the level of being able to teach younger Pokémon.
It had been worried whether it could even do the job properly.
To avoid letting Gible or its trainer notice anything strange, Hippopotas had kept itself constantly tense, deliberately maintaining a stern expression in front of Gible.
Though that purple chubby Pokémon kept laughing at how unsuited it was for acting cool—
Hippopotas still wanted to imitate the imposing authority of the Hippowdon from its old herd.
At the very least, it couldn't let the human trainer discover that this was its first time doing something like this.
After all, it had heard human trainers were extremely strict.
If...
Hippopotas didn't even dare imagine what would happen if it got exposed.
Thus, carrying a heart full of anxiety, it officially began its life as a sparring instructor.
To its surprise, the task given by the human trainer was incredibly simple.
It felt almost exactly like the days when it had played with its companions in the desert.
All it had to do was use its natural gift to create sandstorms—
Then make life difficult for Gible while it was trapped inside them.
Easy and enjoyable.
On the first day as an instructor, Hippopotas noticed that while Gible was initially flustered when dealing with the obstacles it created—
By evening, Gible had already begun dodging some of its attacks.
The visible rate of improvement was exaggerated, but still within reason.
Then came the second morning.
And Hippopotas completely stopped understanding what was happening.
The Gible standing within the sandstorm seemed as if it had achieved enlightenment overnight.
It could already avoid seventy to eighty percent of the attacks.
Afterward, the human trainer instructed Hippopotas to increase the intensity.
Gible once again fell into difficulty.
Just when Hippopotas thought it would take a long time for Gible to adapt to such a violent sandstorm environment—
On the third morning, Gible suddenly experienced another "breakthrough."
Not only could it dodge all kinds of attacks—
It had progressed from standing passively in place to casually walking through the sandstorm while evading attacks at the same time.
Hippopotas was dumbfounded.
By the fourth day, Gible had begun training with its eyes closed—
Relying solely on hearing and touch to avoid danger.
At that point, its training was essentially complete.
But as the sparring instructor—
Hippopotas was utterly confused.
It desperately reviewed everything it had done over the past few days.
But it seemed like it had only done two things:
First, create sandstorms.
Second, make them stronger.
Its mood sank.
Its entire career as a sparring instructor seemed destined to end without accomplishing anything.
Just as Hippopotas was preparing to pack up, grab its Poké Ball, and return to the Bureau—
The human trainer suddenly assigned it a new task.
Help Gible learn the true move Sandstorm.
Hippopotas could hardly believe it.
It admitted that Gible's learning ability exceeded its understanding.
But creating a true sandstorm wasn't an easy move to master.
Even Pokémon like its own species, born with the ability to manipulate sandstorms, had to spend immense effort awakening that racial talent.
And Gible—
Though Hippopotas didn't know much—
It had heard from Gengar and Absol that Gible had only been born a few weeks ago.
Teaching a baby something this advanced...
Was that really okay?
Yet the human trainer insisted.
And Gible's expression was equally determined.
Since it was only here to help, Hippopotas had no reason to refuse.
Time passed.
And today arrived.
It had been almost a week since Gible began comprehending Sandstorm.
At this moment, Hippopotas had only one thought.
Monstrous.
Absolutely monstrous.
It looked at Gible as if staring at a freak of nature.
Compared to the Hippopotas line—
Pokémon naturally born as children of the desert, blessed by the sand itself—
The Gible before it seemed more like the true chosen one of the sandstorm.
"Shahe…"
Just moments ago—
After maintaining Sandstorm for over ten minutes, Hippopotas had finally begun running out of stamina.
When it stopped generating the storm and prepared to tell Gible to take a break—
It suddenly realized something.
Its own Sandstorm had ceased.
But the sandstorm on the field...
Had not.
Though slightly weaker than before, it still continued to rage.
A terrifying thought appeared in Hippopotas' mind.
The baby Pokémon across from it...
Had successfully learned Sandstorm.
"Ka-ao..."
Stamina remained Gible's greatest weakness.
After maintaining Sandstorm for nearly two minutes, it had also reached its limit.
The storm faded.
Gible panted heavily.
But its black-and-white eyes shone brighter than ever.
"Ka-ao!"
Excitedly, it searched around for something.
Finally spotting a certain figure—
It could no longer suppress its emotions.
Running over on its tiny legs—
It opened its mouth and leapt.
Faced with Gible's signature head-first attack—
Chen Mo responded with practiced ease.
Using Aura to predict its trajectory, he caught the little shark in midair.
"Hup!"
The surprisingly heavy Gible landed in his arms.
Chen Mo vigorously rubbed the back of its head.
"You did great, Gible."
"I always believed you'd succeed in mastering Sandstorm!"
"Pika pika!"
Perched on Chen Mo's shoulder, Pikachu also stretched out its tiny paw in praise.
Meanwhile—
The other Pokémon training nearby, including Pidgeotto, all came over.
After receiving congratulations from everyone—
Gible immediately began tugging at Chen Mo while excitedly babbling.
"Ka-ao! Ka-ao!"
Chen Mo understood.
The little shark wanted to know who its opponent would be tomorrow.
To be honest—
Besides its own hard work and Gengar's dream-training sessions—
Part of Gible's breakthrough today undoubtedly came from pressure.
Its group had been relatively fortunate.
Compared to the other seven groups, its competition was on the weaker side.
Yet even so—
As group-stage matches progressed, Gible could feel its opponents growing stronger and stronger.
And itself becoming increasingly strained.
Sand Tomb was not invincible.
As one of the most popular Pokémon in the Pikachu Cup—
Many trainers who found themselves grouped with Gible had already prepared strategies specifically to counter it.
Fast and agile Pokémon could escape Sand Tomb's range immediately.
Defensive Pokémon could endure its effects and retaliate directly from within the storm.
And then there were Rock- and Ground-type Pokémon.
They were barely affected by Sand Tomb at all.
Many could simply outlast Gible through sheer durability.
It was precisely because Gible craved strength and victory so desperately—
That it had achieved today's breakthrough.
"Five minutes ago, the result was just decided."
"And it's someone we know."
Chen Mo held up his phone.
Displayed on the screen was the photo of a Bureau employee named Mo Ji—
The same official Chen Mo had met during the Grimer incident.
"Ka-ao..."
Though Gible couldn't understand the written information—
When Chen Mo scrolled down, the opposing Pokémon appeared.
A round, yellow, oversized mouse.
Gible recognized it immediately.
Raticate.
The evolved form of Rattata.
Gengar had previously shown Gible recordings of several particularly strong opponents in its group.
Mo Ji's Raticate had been one of them.
Despite its plump appearance—
This Raticate was exactly the type Gible struggled against.
Fast.
Quick-reacting.
And equipped with the trademark move Quick Attack.
Sand Tomb alone would likely be insufficient to restrict it.
"Ka-ao!"
Gible's eyes grew serious.
It had only just learned Sandstorm—
And immediately encountered such a difficult opponent.
Was this a test?
Regardless—
It had no intention of losing.
"Shahe..."
A voice suddenly came from beside it.
Gible turned around.
Hippopotas was looking at it with an extremely complicated expression.
Now that Gible had mastered Sandstorm—
Its mission was complete.
Soon, someone from the Bureau would arrive to take it back to the ecological reserve.
After spending so much time together—
Hippopotas deeply valued the relationship they had developed.
Part teacher.
Part friend.
After a long silence—
Thinking of Gible's current goal—
It opened its mouth and once again forced a stern expression onto its face.
"Shahe!"
(Don't lose!)
Floating beside Hippopotas, Gengar didn't laugh at it this time.
Dream training had been effective.
But Gible's mastery of Sandstorm was primarily thanks to Hippopotas.
Without its tireless generation of sandstorms day after day—
Gible could never have learned the weather move.
Gible understood this very well.
Deep down—
It truly regarded Hippopotas as a teacher.
Looking at Hippopotas, it nodded seriously.
"Ka-ao!"
(I'll definitely win!)
The next morning.
As the group stage entered its later rounds, the schedule was no longer as hectic as before.
Gible now enjoyed ample rest between matches.
However—
Because today's opponent would be troublesome—
And because Hippopotas had already left—
Gible didn't train as hard as usual.
Instead, it followed Chen Mo and arrived at the stadium early.
"...In that case, I'll head up first."
"Gengar, stay in the player lounge with Gible."
"When the match starts, go directly to the field."
"Don't run around."
"Gengui!"
Gengar wore a surprisingly serious expression.
It solemnly promised while waving goodbye to Chen Mo and Pikachu.
The moment they disappeared from sight—
Its face instantly switched back into a mischievous grin.
It winked at the wide-eyed Gible.
"Gengui!"
(Let's go!)
"Ka-ao..."
"Gengui!"
(Don't worry, I'm here!)
In the blink of an eye—
Gengar had already forgotten every promise it made.
Dragging Gible behind it, it raced toward the outside of the stadium.
There was still plenty of time before the first morning match.
The crowd outside wasn't particularly dense.
But the moment Gengar arrived near the food stalls—
It instantly became the center of attention.
"Teacher Gengar! You're here early today! Want some freshly steamed meat buns?"
"Teacher Gengar! It's hot today—how about some ice cream?"
"I told you we'd definitely find Teacher Gengar here! Teacher Gengar, can I get a photo with you? I'll pay!"
"This is great. Even with so many people around, it feels cool whenever Teacher Gengar is here."
Amid the constant cries of "Teacher Gengar!"
Gengar felt like it was floating on air.
Casually pulling out a stack of bills from somewhere inside its body—
It began expertly conducting business with the vendors.
"Ka-ao..."
(Where did you get that money?)
"Gengui."
(Children shouldn't ask.)
Taking the ice cream Gengar handed over—
Gible listened to the creaking sound of a nearby electric fan.
Its innocent eyes filled with confusion.
Then—
A crisp click echoed out.
The fan slowed to a stop.
Someone in the crowd called out uncertainly:
"Power outage?"
Immediately afterward—
People began noticing that it wasn't just this small area.
Even the giant advertising screens outside the stadium had suddenly gone dark.
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