Outside the central plaza of Shalour City, the area was packed with Trainers participating in the Baby Cup.
Most of them had one or more unevolved Pokémon at their side.
The majority were rookie Trainers, with a small number of experienced Trainers mixed in.
Since this was an official League tournament, the prizes were secondary.
Achieving a good ranking was what really mattered, as it could help Trainers pass the Junior Trainer certification exam.
Violet, who had just received her starter Pokémon and officially become a rookie Trainer, had also signed up for the Baby Cup.
At that moment, the stadium loudspeakers echoed across the venue.
"Next match: Rookie Trainer Violet versus Elite Trainer Hayato Sora. Please proceed to the designated battlefield."
"Ah—!"
Violet clutched her head in panic.
Why was there an Elite Trainer in the Baby Cup?!
And why was she fighting them?!
Spectators gathered around the battlefield, curious about this obviously uneven matchup.
Feeling extremely nervous, Violet stepped onto the battlefield.
She wanted to ask the senior Trainer to go easy on her—
But what she saw next became a sight she would never forget for the rest of her life.
A massive winged dragon descended from the sky with terrifying momentum.
Boom!
"Vrrraaa!"
With a deep draconic roar, the creature landed heavily on the battlefield.
Its body was wrapped in a layer of dragon-type energy armor, radiating a frightening aura.
The oppressive presence locked onto Violet, making her body tremble involuntarily.
It felt like being stared down by a giant dragon.
Cold.
Predatory.
Dominating.
It was the gaze of a high-level predator looking down upon a lesser creature.
"Vrrraaa~"
The Noibat that had landed looked around in confusion.
Why hadn't the match started yet?
Then it remembered—
Ah!
They probably hadn't seen the number tag.
Noibat leaned its head toward the staff member and raised one wing, pointing at the tag on its forehead.
"Gulp…"
The staff girl responsible for checking identities swallowed nervously.
Her voice trembled.
"Y-You're here to compete? Where is your Trainer?"
"Vrrraaa! Vrrraaa!"
Noibat explained that Hayato Sora was busy, so they had come to compete on their own.
Obviously, the referee couldn't fully understand what it was saying.
"If there's no Trainer present, it will be considered an automatic withdrawal…"
she reminded cautiously.
"Vrr…?"
Noibat's eyes widened in shock.
It blinked at her and tried to act cute in hopes of slipping through the rules.
This trick always worked on Hayato Sora.
But today—
It failed.
The referee instinctively stepped backward, her body trembling.
Forcing a polite smile, she said nervously,
"Well… it's not completely impossible. I'll go ask the Gym Leader."
She turned and ran straight backstage to find Gym Leader Gurkinn.
For League tournaments held in cities, Gym Leaders often oversaw the event organization.
Gurkinn happened to be backstage today, and the message quickly reached him.
"Hayato Sora's Pokémon came here to compete on their own?"
Gurkinn stroked his beard.
"Let them participate. Pokémon trained by an Elite Trainer entering the competition by themselves—that's quite an interesting gimmick."
Most rookie Trainers and ordinary citizens knew very little about League-certified Elite Trainers.
This would be a perfect opportunity to showcase their level.
Free publicity.
With Gurkinn's approval, the match began as scheduled.
"Welcome everyone!"
"Thank you all for attending the Shalour City Baby Cup Tournament!"
"Please welcome our two competitors. The match will begin shortly."
Violet nervously stepped onto the battlefield and released her starter Pokémon.
Surskit.
A Bug/Water-type Pokémon.
Including the pointed crest on its head, it barely exceeded 50 centimeters in height.
Meanwhile, the Noibat across from it—
Thanks to the Tempered Form enhancement, it stood over one meter tall.
With the layer of dragon-type energy armor covering its body, its total height looked closer to 1.5 meters.
Nearly three times larger than Surskit.
The difference between them was enormous.
Surskit:
"You're a baby Pokémon too?"
(Shocked Pikachu face.jpg)
Noibat proudly lifted its chin.
As if saying—
"Yep! We're the youngest at home. This is our first time going out!"
Surskit: "…"
Noibat waved its wing impatiently.
"Come on, come on! Hurry up and attack me!"
It couldn't wait to enjoy a thrilling battle.
On the opposite platform, Violet silently encouraged herself.
The opponent had no Trainer present.
She still had a chance.
"Surskit! Quick Attack!"
Its four slender legs extended outward, and oil secreted from the tips of its feet.
Surskit slid rapidly across the ground like a skater, accelerating toward Noibat at incredible speed.
Thud!
"Vrr?"
Noibat shook its head.
Did something just bump into it?
It didn't even hurt.
"Sur—!"
Meanwhile, Surskit let out a miserable cry.
A second pointy bump had appeared on its head.
It had rammed straight into Noibat and given itself a huge lump.
"Ow! Ow! Ow!"
Surskit rolled across the ground in pain, tears streaming down its face.
"Surskit! Get up!"
Violet shouted anxiously from behind.
And then—
It appeared.
One of Ash Ketchum's legendary techniques.
The god-tier move:
"Get Up!"
"Sur…"
Right before everyone's eyes—
Surskit actually wobbled back onto its feet, glaring fiercely at Noibat.
Noibat: ???
Wait, seriously?
You can just stand up because your Trainer told you to?
That clearly violated the basic laws of Pokémon battles.
But somehow—
It worked.
Seeing its opponent's fighting spirit reignite, Noibat decided not to hesitate any longer.
Its wings beat rapidly as it shot into the sky.
Dense Dragon-type energy wrapped around its body.
Noibat unleashed Dragon Rush, diving downward at full speed.
BOOM!
Dust exploded across the battlefield.
Surskit was blasted into the air and thrown completely out of the arena, losing the ability to battle.
"Surskit is unable to battle! The winner is Noibat!"
Upon hearing the referee's announcement, Noibat secretly wiped imaginary sweat from its forehead.
"Vee-vee…"
(Phew! That was close. They were about to activate plot armor and reverse the battle. Luckily I was stronger.)
Under the curious and shocked gazes of the crowd, Noibat soared into the sky and disappeared.
Soon after, two more Noibat without Trainers appeared in the same battlefield.
Both of them also won their matches.
The audience watching nearby was completely stunned.
One after another.
Three incredibly powerful Noibat.
So this…
Was the level of an Elite Trainer?
After finishing their matches, the three Noibat collected their next battle schedule from the staff.
Yet none of them felt proud.
Not even close.
At the ranch, Kangaskhan and Cyclizar were far stronger than them.
Even the three Mudsdale were countless times stronger.
They still had a lot of training to do.
Their goal—
Surpass the Mudsdale.
Tonight, they decided to train two extra hours.
Meanwhile, Cyclizar—who had been secretly watching from the shadows—returned to the ranch ahead of them.
By the time the Noibat returned, Hayato Sora had already received the message.
He was waiting outside the house to greet them.
Seeing Hayato Sora personally come out to welcome them, the Noibat immediately sped toward him.
They circled him excitedly, rubbing against him affectionately.
Hayato Sora stroked each of them and smiled.
"I already heard about your performance today. You've grown stronger, little Noibat."
Noibat:
Hearing Hayato Sora's praise made them incredibly happy.
But another Pokémon, feeling ignored, reached out and tugged at Hayato Sora to grab his attention.
"Grao~"
(The little red flower! Hayato Sora, look at me! Look at me!)
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 70 chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/Chakraflow789