After delivering his taunts, Gary left triumphantly with his cheerleaders.
At this point, he still hadn't matured; he was the same arrogant rich kid as always.
Even though they were both trainers who had advanced to the fourth round, Gary didn't really think much of Natsui. In fact, he was deeply dissatisfied with the amount of popularity Natsui had gained after the previous round's match.
So what if he beat a weak little girl!
If it were me, I could have ended the battle even more cleanly!
Besides, in terms of background, he was Professor Oak's grandson, and in terms of hype, he was the top contender in the tournament. Why should Natsui be the one getting all the attention!?
Hmph! I'll teach you a good lesson in a bit and show everyone who's truly superior!
Watching Gary's retreating back, Koharu was the only one in the group seeing him for the first time. Witnessing his disdainful and provocative attitude toward Natsui, her first impression of him was, to say the least, terrible.
After the drawing session concluded, the final round of the preliminaries began.
Ash's match was scheduled for 11:00 AM, while Natsui's was set for 3:00 PM.
Although 3:00 PM wasn't exactly prime time, it couldn't be helped. With only 32 trainers left, the number of matches had been reduced to 16, with each field hosting only four battles, making it impossible to schedule them any later.
After leaving the venue, they found a place to rest for a while. When the time was right, Ash headed to the trainers' lounge, while Natsui and the others went to the spectator stands of the Grass Field.
The place was still packed, but fortunately, the biker gang had saved them seats in advance. What they didn't expect was that just as they sat down, they spotted some familiar faces nearby!
An elderly man with short, silver-gray hair wearing a white lab coat, and a beautiful woman were sitting in the adjacent seats.
"Huh? Professor Oak!? And Aunt Delia? What are you two doing here?"
Though his eyes were squinted, Brock's sharp gaze was the first to spot them.
Professor Oak was just as surprised to see Brock and Misty. "Well, well, if it isn't you two!"
Delia smiled warmly. "Hello. Thank you both so much for taking care of Ash all this time. You must have had your hands full."
"It's no problem at all, we're comrades!" Brock said. Then he added, surprised, "But I remember when Ash called you yesterday, you were in Pallet Town. Why did you make a special trip to come and cheer him on today?"
Professor Oak replied, "While watching the matches on TV at home is comfortable, you can only truly feel the atmosphere by being here in person!"
At that moment, Professor Oak's gaze moved past Brock and landed on Natsui.
Although he was getting older and his memory was fading, the professor remembered the young man he had met once before, thanks to the recent tournament matches.
"Your name is Natsui, isn't it? I've been watching your matches too. It's very impressive to have defeated so many opponents!"
Natsui gave a friendly greeting, his eyes then shifting back and forth between Professor Oak and Delia.
This was the first time he had met Ash's mother, and he couldn't for the life of him figure out why an ordinary housewife would be spending so much time with a renowned Pokémon Professor!
They seemed to have no common interests, so why didn't Professor Oak refuse her company?
And since she was here to watch the match, why hadn't she told Ash beforehand?
Was she afraid of putting pressure on him?
Shaking his head, Natsui pushed these strange thoughts from his mind and introduced Koharu, who was beside him.
"This is Koharu, she's Professor Sakuragi's daughter."
"Oh?" Professor Oak was quite surprised and took a closer look at Koharu. "I remember when you were just a month old, I attended your celebration and even held you. I can't believe how much you've grown!"
Koharu nodded politely. Her mother had never told her about this, and she, of course, had no memory of it.
Professor Oak continued to ramble on, and seeming to be caught up in the moment, he even divulged some secrets from Professor Sakuragi's school days.
But what might have been amusing anecdotes for a scientist, Koharu found utterly uninteresting.
Just then, Ash's match began, and the group quickly turned their attention to the field.
Ash entered as the green contender, while his opponent, Kaoruko from Maiden's Peak, entered as the red.
However, unlike Ash's simple walk to the trainer's box, Kaoruko's entrance was quite the spectacle!
A red carpet was rolled out from the contestant's tunnel, and then, a girl in an elegant red kimono walked out slowly as attendants scattered cherry blossom petals around her.
Her appearance was both dignified and elegant, instantly capturing the gazes of most of the men in the stadium, including Brock.
At the same time, in a section of the stands, a group of young men and women played taiko drums and performed rhythmic chants, loudly shouting, "Victory for Lady Kaoruko! Victory for Lady Kaoruko!"
Even amidst the roar of the stadium, their voices cut through the noise. In contrast, Ash's side was completely overshadowed.
Watching the display, Misty murmured, "Wow, what an entrance. Looks like she's another popular trainer. What do you think? Should we cheer for Ash now?"
"Forget it," Brock said, shaking his head. "Don't waste your breath. The sound of just a few of us, let alone comparing to them, would probably be swallowed by the surrounding crowd before it even left the stands."
On the field, the referee announced the start of the match. Ash sent out Bulbasaur first, while Kaoruko sent out Beedrill.
In terms of typing, Beedrill's Bug/Poison had an advantage over Bulbasaur's Grass/Poison. However, right from the start, Ash showcased his skills as a master of reverse-type battles. He first used Leech Seed to restrain the flying Beedrill, then finished the battle with a Tackle.
What was strange, however, was that even though her first Pokémon was defeated, Kaoruko's supporters weren't disheartened at all. Instead, they cheered joyfully, constantly shouting, "There's still another one!"
Despite the confusion, the match continued.
Kaoruko silently recalled her Beedrill and sent out Scyther.
It was clear that this Scyther was very strong. After using Double Team, its two illusory clones were somehow able to move around the field along with the original!
With this incredible ability, Scyther pushed Bulbasaur to the brink. In the end, however, Bulbasaur managed to use its Vine Whip to strike all the clones at once,
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