"Elite Four Karen!" Aoki and Steven simultaneously nodded to Karen.
Aoki and Steven had met this attractive, albeit somewhat unconventional, girl during the Sinnoh League.
Although their interactions weren't extensive, they had spoken a few times, so meeting again wasn't awkward or unfamiliar.
"It's truly unexpected to run into you two here. I initially thought it was some powerful wild Pokémon battling," Karen said, patting her chest in a gesture of relief.
Aoki and Steven exchanged glances.
Their understanding was such that a single look was enough to convey their thoughts.
Steven's meaning was simple: he was the leader of their team, and neither he nor Phoebe had any objections. Even without Adams' instructions, Aoki was the default leader, and when the four of them were together, Aoki usually made the decisions.
Of course, this was also because Aoki always considered Steven and the others' opinions when making decisions.
From the time they met until now, Aoki had never disappointed them, and every decision he made had benefited them.
"How have things been? Have you made any progress?" Aoki asked with a smile.
Hearing Aoki's words, Karen's fair cheeks flushed slightly. She scratched her head, a little shyly, and said, "You probably know what my strength is like. Becoming an Elite Four member was entirely the League pushing me into it. The wild Pokémon here are too high-leveled, and I don't dare to run around. I've only just spent two weeks at my Stationed place.
Only after getting familiar with the area did I dare to venture out and look around. When I heard the sounds of battle earlier, I rushed over, and I didn't expect it to be you two."
There's a saying, "meeting an old friend in a foreign land." For her, encountering Aoki and Steven in such a high-risk environment was an unexpected pleasant surprise.
Aoki nodded. Karen's strength was probably the weakest among the current Johto Elite Four. However, she had a clear understanding of her own position, knowing that in this dangerous environment, without a Champion-level Pokémon, running around was truly perilous.
"Don't belittle yourself so much. Your potential is clear for all to see. Among our generation, your talent is definitely among the top. You just haven't encountered the right opportunity yet," Aoki comforted her.
Who among the Elite Four could be considered simple?
Although Karen was currently at the bottom of the Johto Elite Four, that was only because the new Elite Four, Baile, had unknown strength. Itsuki, who was originally similar to Karen, had somehow encountered a special opportunity, overtaking her and leaving Karen behind. Even with her natural dark-type advantage against psychic-types, Karen was no match for Itsuki.
Plus, there was Koga, who was already a Team Rocket executive and had long coveted the Elite Four position.
One could only say that the Johto League had truly selected a group of outstanding talents, and it was a mixed bag of individuals.
Hearing Aoki's comforting words, Karen just smiled politely.
She knew her own capabilities. If she had some confidence in battling Aoki during the Sinnoh League, now she truly felt helpless.
Even Koga, the strongest Elite Four member in the Johto region, needed Aoki to go easy on him during their battles just to avoid a complete rout, and this was without Aoki even summoning his ace Pokémon.
Karen truly had no idea how strong Aoki's current power had become.
"By the way, what exactly is the identity of that Baile from your Johto region? I've never heard of them before," Aoki asked.
Aoki was truly wary of that Baile. Sometimes, the more unknown an enemy was, the more uneasy he felt.
Aoki always hoped that all matters would be under his control. Even if not completely, he at least needed to understand them to a certain extent, whether it was Team Rocket or organizations like Team Magma or Team Aqua. But now, with a new cult emerging, and so many powerful envoys, plus this Baile, it was hard for him not to make connections in that direction.
In fact, Aoki wasn't the only one curious about Baile's identity. At least Steven, standing beside Aoki, was also very interested in this person's background.
If they were currently in the Pokémon world, given Aoki and Steven's current statuses, they could find out Baile's identity and origin with a little time. However, they didn't have that much time. Once inside this place, getting useful information was not so simple.
Karen showed a thoughtful expression. "Actually, I don't know much about their identity either, but it's said that the Johto League found them even before it was established. I heard they were a singer in the Ecruteak City Dance Hall, or perhaps used to be a singer and are now in charge of the singers, who knows?"
Ecruteak City? Singer?
Aoki's heart stirred slightly. It seemed Karen didn't know much about this person either. But a singer becoming an Elite Four member in the Johto region?
To be honest, he really didn't quite understand the Johto League's thinking and logic.
However, the high-ranking officials of the Johto League were once also high-ranking officials of the entire Kanto League. They certainly weren't foolish. So, for them to set aside their prejudices about Baile's identity and let them become an Elite Four member of a region, there must be something uniquely outstanding about them.
Aoki felt the most likely possibility was that this Baile was incredibly powerful, powerful enough to make them overlook their background.
The more he thought about it, the more plausible it seemed. Otherwise, the other three people chosen by the Johto League, while meeting the Elite Four standard in terms of strength, none of them could become the first Elite Four with overwhelming power like Lance or Drake.
Perhaps they had chosen one, and this Baile was their trump card. It was just that they hadn't made a move during the exhibition match that day, which was why everyone knew so little about this person.
However, the more this was the case, the greater Aoki's suspicion of Baile became.
A singer capable of possessing such strength?
Not everyone had such a powerful cheat as his chip. While a singer's income was indeed higher than that of ordinary commoners, that was all it was. To grow to the level of an Elite Four, unless the other party was a child of destiny like Ash, it was hard not to be suspicious.
The League's reliability in investigating a person's identity was truly pitifully low. Take Aoki himself; with Team Rocket's information protection, unless the League's internal information was turned upside down, no trace of Aoki's identity could be found.
The same applied to the commander of the League's Second Legion, the Black Emissary of the Cult.
People who understood the League well, or rather, those who had directly emerged from the League, could, to a certain extent, circumvent the League's investigation of an individual. Of course, such a cost was relatively high, and it also demanded a high level of self-discipline.
Currently, what Aoki knew was that the deepest infiltration of the League by external forces was by the commander of the Second Legion, the Black Emissary, and the current Johto Elite Four member, Koga, the Poison-type specialist.
"Alright, thank you for providing us with this information. Consider these as a return; I believe you'll find them useful.
However, we have other matters to attend to, so we won't delay your training." Saying this, Aoki took out some special healing potions and some special energy blocks that accelerated recovery from his storage space.
Seeing the items Aoki produced, Karen's face lit up with surprise. Just a piece of information that was inconsequential to her could be exchanged for so many things, making her feel as if she had been hit on the head with a pie.
"Thank you!!" Karen thanked him repeatedly, showing no intention of refusing.
Everyone who used Aoki's items knew their worth, and in this place, these items were indeed more valuable than many other resources.
After speaking, Aoki and Steven continued their journey, while Karen prepared to head in another direction, the one they had agreed upon for the Johto region.
"By the way, Karen, if you ever encounter trouble in the future, you can wait for us here. We should eventually return to this place, but for now, don't tell anyone about it," Aoki said to Karen before Salamence flapped its wings again.
After speaking, he left Karen, who was still a bit confused, staring blankly as Aoki and Steven disappeared into the distance.
"Since you chose to tell her your chosen meeting point, why didn't you just let her join us?" Steven asked, puzzled, once they were truly gone.
Aoki narrowed his eyes. "Because I still can't guarantee her identity. If we brought her along, it would mean constantly telling the other party our location, which is too dangerous."
He paused slightly, then continued, "But if her identity is not an issue, then she's highly likely to be attacked. If she can escape successfully, then we can take her in. And the place I mentioned, by the time we return, it will at least be after things have become clear.
This way, the initiative is in our hands, and we won't suffer a sudden attack."
Listening to Aoki's explanation, Steven nodded thoughtfully. It seemed Aoki was suspicious of everyone except those he truly understood well.
It had to be said that under such circumstances, caution was indeed necessary.
At the same time, Steven felt even more certain about Aoki being the leader.
After encountering Karen, Aoki and Steven consciously accelerated their pace. In the afternoon, they finally reached the vicinity of the third marked point, a unique sand dune standing in the desert.
In the desert environment, sandstorms raged, visibility was very low, and due to the fluidity of the sand, Aoki and Steven found it difficult to leave marks there. They believed that even if Phoebe and Wallace were there, it would be hard to leave traces.
Originally, this location was not within the range marked by Aoki and the others.
After all, such a place was truly unfriendly to others, especially water-type Pokémon trainers like Wallace.
However, the desert was too vast. If they skipped it, it would lead to an uneven distribution of selected locations, increasing the difficulty for Aoki and the others to rendezvous.
So, they ultimately chose this place.
"This sandstorm, even I, who likes to use Steel-type Pokémon, don't particularly enjoy it." Steven's current formal attire was specially made, with a particularly high and upright collar. The outer layer of this collar was wrapped in special metal, which could effectively defend against the impact of the sandstorm.
His Scizor beside him kept making "clink, clink, clink" sounds under the impact of the sandstorm.
Compared to Steven's extravagant method of resisting the sandstorm, Aoki's method was much simpler: he directly used his psychic power to envelop himself.
Of course, Aoki did not envelop Steven as well.
According to him, it was to "train Steven's resistance to harsh environments."
So, after entering the desert region, Steven's gaze towards Aoki was incredibly resentful, the kind that was as resentful as can be.
However, Steven also comforted himself internally, thinking that Aoki didn't want to waste too much psychic power and needed to remain vigilant of his surroundings.
Sure enough, just as Steven thought and comforted himself, Aoki's face suddenly changed!
Aoki stared grimly at a patch of yellow sand in front of him. Although he couldn't see what it was, his psychic power could perceive many things invisible to the naked eye.
"What's wrong?" Steven asked, seeing the change in Aoki's expression.
Aoki's expression remained unchanged, even growing more solemn. "Such powerful spatial energy fluctuations. To be able to use such strong spatial energy on this continent, which has spatial lockdown, I wonder what it is."
Although Steven didn't know exactly what was happening, the fact that Aoki, who was known for his composure, unconsciously became so grave, made him feel a sense of pressure as well.
But then, Aoki's expression changed dramatically again. What was originally just solemn now turned into horror, his eyes wide.
"The space is tearing! Quick! Steven!" Aoki didn't have time to explain anything. He jumped onto Salamence's back and rushed in the direction his psychic power was sensing.
Steven's face also changed dramatically. He recalled his Pokémon, jumped onto Aerodactyl, and quickly rushed forward. At this point, he no longer cared about the sandstorm.
Aoki's eyes surged with psychic power, and the scene perceived by his psychic ability seemed to unfold before his eyes.
In the vast yellow sands, a black rift suddenly appeared in mid-air. Around this rift, black, lightning-like, tiny energy ripples pulsed, and the rift expanded rapidly with the help of these energies.
Below this spatial rift, there were two people: one standing, the other sitting cross-legged on the ground, fiddling with their fingers, as if everything had little to do with them.
Salamence and Aerodactyl flapped their wings with all their might, carrying Aoki and Steven through the sky filled with yellow sand.
Aoki's expression was no longer as horrified as before, but the solemnity on his face had not diminished at all.
Steven's Aerodactyl flew beside Aoki's Salamence. He wanted to ask something but couldn't open his mouth, knowing that if he did, at this speed, his mouth would immediately fill with sand.
Aoki glanced at Steven, knowing his discomfort, and with a slight thought, connected with him via telepathy.
"Two minutes until arrival. Two individuals, unknown strength. They are creating a spatial rift, possibly to transport something in. When we get there, one person per target, resolve them quickly, and then destroy the device!" Aoki told Steven.
Steven nodded. Although he knew that what Aoki said might be serious, the prospect of fighting a powerful trainer made him a little excited and anticipatory.
"Whoosh—"
Without any attempt to conceal themselves, Salamence and Aerodactyl arrived at their destination.
The two people already there seemed unsurprised by their appearance; in fact, the middle-aged man, who had been sitting on the ground looking somewhat bored, even showed an interested smile.
The person who had been standing abandoned the instrument she was manipulating and slowly turned around, revealing a face devoid of expression, like a mask.
If not for the fact that this face appeared flawlessly smooth, with a hint of redness beneath the fair skin, it might genuinely have been mistaken for a mask.
This woman was dressed entirely in a white gown.
"It really is you! The new Elite Four member of the Johto region, the Steel-type Elite Four! Bailin!" Aoki leaped from Salamence's back without hesitation. He threw out two Pokeballs, and Aggron and Tyranitar, his signature heavy-duty Pokémon, appeared before him.
Steven also didn't hesitate. He likewise threw out two Pokeballs, revealing his shiny Metagross and an Aggron, also his representative Pokémon.
Bailin showed no change in expression when Aoki called out her name, but the middle-aged man, who was slowly standing up, grew increasingly excited. His black eyes scanned Aoki and Steven's Pokémon, as if deciding which of the four Pokémon better suited his aesthetic.
"Sandstorm Elite Four, Aoki.
Devon Corporation's young master, Steven Stone. It truly is you two. I had guessed you would be able to find this place," Bailin said calmly, her tone as if she were having afternoon tea with Aoki and Steven.
"Hehehehehe—so the people who come here are all so famous? It seems many talented young individuals have appeared in the Alliance during my absence," the middle-aged man beside them laughed strangely, as if he had spotted his prey.
He even stuck out his tongue and licked his dry lips, clearly eager.
Hearing the middle-aged man's words, Aoki guessed his identity: a member of the Divine Cult, someone who had entered this place long ago and chosen to remain here!
"Do you fancy either of them? Both of these are handsome guys!" The middle-aged man looked at Bailin with a teasing expression.
But Bailin seemed to ignore his words and said plainly, "You choose."
Upon hearing this, the middle-aged man pouted but said nothing further. He knew that Bailin was the true leader of the Divine Cult, the most favored person by the Bishop, and was rumored to be the White Emissary.
"In that case! You're the one! Pretty boy! Remember, my name is Jockley, if you've ever heard of…" Jockley said to Aoki with extreme arrogance. He had set his sights on Aoki's Tyranitar and Aggron.
"Never heard of you!" Aoki said calmly. Although his voice wasn't loud, they could all hear him clearly.
Jockley? Chocolate? What kind of name is that?
Instantly, such a disrespectful remark made Jockley, who had been full of smiles, stiffen.
However, since he had made his choice, Bailin said nothing more. She looked at Steven and threw out two Pokeballs.
Metagross! Aggron!
The same Pokémon, in the same starting positions, the only difference being that Bailin's Metagross was not a special shiny Pokémon.
"Ya ya ya ya—two people using Steel-type Pokémon, how boring, isn't it? The not-so-good-tempered…Sandstorm Elite Four, Aoki?" Jockley's words always had a sarcastic tone.
Perhaps because he had been here for so long, about twenty-five years, it had twisted and perverted his mindset.
But while he spoke, his hands were not idle. He summoned two Pokémon.
After two flashes of red light, a Cacturne and a Torterra were summoned.
As soon as these two Pokémon appeared, Aoki felt that even the swirling yellow sand in the surrounding desert had significantly decreased, as if the sand dared not approach them.
Aoki's eyes narrowed. Grass-type Pokémon.
This was very disadvantageous for a trainer like him, who centered his strategy around Tyranitar!
Moreover, Cacturne is a cactus Pokémon, native to deserts, so this place was essentially its home turf. It naturally wasn't afraid of sand.
Pokémon: Cacturne (Light Blue)
Gender: Male
Level: 84
Type: Grass/Dark
Ability: Sand Veil
Held Item: None
Egg Moves: Acid Spray, Magical Leaf, Seed Bomb, Belch
Basic Moves: Spiky Shield, Destiny Bond, Payback, Poison Sting, Leer, Absorb, Growth, Leech Seed, Sand Attack, Needle Arm, Sucker Punch, Ingrain, Foul Play, Spikes, Assurance, Pin Missile, Energy Ball, Cotton Spore, Sandstorm
Learnt Moves: Synthesis, Stomping Tantrum, Thunder Punch, Giga Drain, Foul Play, Superpower, Drain Punch, Snore, Seed Bomb, Worry Seed
TM Moves: Toxic, Protect, Solar Beam, Double Team, Grass Knot, Substitute
A Cacturne with the Sand Veil ability—such a Cacturne was practically tailor-made for this location. This one Pokémon alone would put Aoki at a significant disadvantage.
Sand Veil Ability: When in a sandstorm, evasion is increased, the body becomes more agile, and the continuous damage from the sandstorm has no effect on Pokémon with this ability.
The other Pokémon, Torterra!
Pokémon: Torterra (Light Blue)
Gender: Male
Level: 84
Type: Grass/Ground
Ability: Overgrow
Held Item: None
Egg Moves: Growth, Body Slam, Double-Edge, Earth Power
Basic Moves: Earthquake, Wood Hammer, Tackle, Withdraw, Absorb, Razor Leaf, Curse, Bite, Giga Drain, Leech Seed, Synthesis, Crunch, Frenzy Plant, Leaf Storm
Learnt Moves: Frenzy Plant, Grass Pledge, Seed Bomb, Worry Seed, Iron Tail, Stealth Rock, Iron Head, Block, Superpower, Stomping Tantrum, Snore
TM Moves: Toxic, Protect, Solar Beam, Rock Tomb, Rest, Energy Ball, Stone Edge, Grass Knot, Sleep Talk
The Grass/Ground-type Torterra also wouldn't take damage in a sandstorm, though it didn't get the evasion bonus that Cacturne did in a sandstorm.
But merely being immune to sandstorm damage directly minimized the advantage of Aoki's Tyranitar.
Therefore, this Jockley only appeared to be a slacker who looked down on everyone, acting as if he was superior.
But in fact, this person was outwardly crude but inwardly meticulous. He made his choice after hearing Aoki's Elite Four title from Bailin and seeing Aoki's Tyranitar.
Grass-type Pokémon have a very significant advantage over Rock-type Pokémon.
And these were two level 84 Grass-type Pokémon, just one step away from the first hurdle of the Champion rank.
The key was that Aoki didn't even know if these two Pokémon were his trump cards.
As for Tyranitar's sandstorm being countered, Aoki wasn't too worried.
Since the opponent chose to open a spatial rift in this location, they must have been prepared.
Bailin's Steel-type Pokémon didn't need to worry about the sandstorm, and Jockley's special Grass-type Pokémon also didn't need to worry about its effects.
Aoki didn't dare to summon more Pokémon immediately, because he didn't know if summoning more would trigger an emergency response from the opponent, causing them to summon even more Pokémon.
This Jockley was different from Brad. His belt was packed with Pokeballs, and the two he threw out were just two of his many Pokémon.
Someone who had lived here for twenty-five years, who was originally a prodigy in the Alliance, and unlike Brad, he should have had access to far more resources.
So Aoki felt that he definitely had trump card Pokémon.
However, Aoki wasn't worried that his strength would be excessively strong. What kind of person carries so many Pokémon?
One type is resource-rich, having excess resources to train more Pokémon, and the Pokémon team composition itself requires them to carry so many Pokémon, like Aoki.
The other type is that a single Pokémon struggles to break through to a higher limit, and to improve strength, they can only rely on increasing the number of Pokémon.
Aoki guessed it should be the latter type.
It's true that resources are abundant here, not just material resources but also Pokémon resources.
However, the resources are not as abundant as imagined, because high-aptitude Pokémon are rare among wild Pokémon, and not everyone is like Aoki, possessing special training methods that can improve a Pokémon's aptitude during training.
It's even common for some people to lack sufficient understanding of a certain Pokémon, leading to a decrease in the trained Pokémon's aptitude.
Therefore, everyone must undergo specialized training before becoming a trainer, at least gaining a basic understanding of several common Pokémon, but only a basic understanding.
To train any Pokémon, one needs to understand that Pokémon sufficiently.
This is why civilian trainers find it difficult to become powerful trainers.
Getting off track, with Jockley's light-blue aptitude Pokémon, without special training methods, reaching this point was already the limit.
That's why Aoki guessed the second possibility was more likely.
The opponent didn't give him much time to think. Just as Aoki was preparing to test him, the opponent also prepared to test Aoki's limits first, not summoning any more Pokémon.
"Cacturne, Ingrain! Torterra, Razor Leaf!" Jockley commanded his two Pokémon, immediately directing them to attack.
Aoki's psychic eyes flashed, and he also commanded his two Pokémon with telepathy.
Tyranitar had only recently broken through to the Champion rank, and Aggron hadn't even broken through to the Champion rank yet.
So Aoki was at an absolute disadvantage, meaning he couldn't directly take the opponent's attacks.
Originally, the sandstorm in the desert had significantly lessened due to the appearance of these two Grass-type Pokémon, but under Tyranitar's intentional control, the sandstorm surged again, even stronger than before.
However, the instrument that could have been destroyed by Tyranitar's sandstorm remained unchanged this time, having been improved.
A massive, howling Razor Leaf was thrown from Torterra's back. Before it could hit Tyranitar and Aggron, it was successfully blocked by Tyranitar's Sand Shield and the shield formed by Aggron's Stone Edge.
This probing attack had no effect, but Tyranitar's sandstorm grew increasingly dense.
Meanwhile, the battle between Bailin and Steven also began.
It seemed deliberate; Bailin and Jockley intentionally aimed to separate Aoki and Steven, intending to defeat them individually.
But after a simple probing, fierce attacks followed.
Tyranitar as the main attacker, Aggron as support!
Under Tyranitar's control, the sandstorm enveloped both Aoki and Jockley, as if a nearly impenetrable sand shroud had covered the already low-visibility sandstorm.
Slowly, the color of the sand began to change, though the change was quite slow. To use crimson sand, in Tyranitar's normal state, was somewhat difficult.
The opponent's barrage of Energy Balls continuously attacked Tyranitar and Aggron, forcing the crimson sand, which was difficult to create, to be used for defense before it could even form a significant mass.
However, though the crimson sand hadn't fully formed yet, the sand shroud had, and Aoki had nothing left to hide.
With the opponent having advantages in type, level, and even ability, if Aoki didn't take action, it would truly be a slow death.
"Mega Evolve! Tyranitar! Aggron!" Aoki roared.
A double Mega Evolution!
While this wouldn't bring a qualitative change to Tyranitar, allowing it to break through the first hurdle of the Champion rank, it would temporarily allow Aggron's strength to reach the Champion rank. This way, Aggron would no longer be a burden, and Tyranitar's crimson sand could finally truly appear.
Mega Tyranitar!!
Mega Aggron!!
"Tyran—"
"Aggron—"
"Oh? This special evolution is quite similar to the divine power infusion of the Divine Cult that Bailin mentioned, but it also looks a bit different. Is this your trump card? Not bad!" Jockley's eyes lit up upon seeing Mega Tyranitar and Mega Aggron.
With Mega Tyranitar's long roar, crimson sand furiously erupted from the ground, merging into the swirling yellow sand.
The crimson sand seemed to spread like an infection, devouring the yellow at a rapid pace.
Within a few breaths, all the sand had turned a fiery red.
This was not just a change in color; it also brought a change in temperature.
Aoki's Tyranitar's special ability, Sandstorm Domain: Crimson Sand Domain, reappeared!