After a day of rest, Natsui returned to the Indigo Stadium for the Top 8 quarter-final match.
It was from this round onward that the battles adopted a full 6v6 format!
And according to the advancement path from the group draw, his opponent this time was none other than Ritchie, the trainer who had eliminated Ash!
In this battle, Ritchie once again sent out the three Pokémon he had used against Ash—Pikachu, Charmander, and Butterfree—while adding a Wartortle, Oddish, and Primeape to complete his final lineup.
To counter Ritchie's team, Natsui correspondingly sent out Gardevoir, Charizard, Blastoise, Venusaur, Gyarados, and Jolteon to battle!
Looking at the types of Pokémon used, it was hard not to notice that Ritchie's team was almost identical to Ash's initial lineup. Combined with their similar age, appearance, and the mutual admiration between them, it was difficult not to wonder if Ritchie was secretly Ash's father's illegitimate son!
Of course, that was just a joke.
After Ash's match ended the other day, Delia and Professor Oak had left the Indigo Plateau and returned to Pallet Town.
Although Ash had been eliminated, he didn't leave with his mother. Instead, he stayed behind, wanting to see just how far Natsui could go and what results he could achieve!
At this moment, he was sitting in the stands, carefully observing Natsui's every move, as if trying to learn something from this battle.
However, to his surprise, once the match began, he had expected Ritchie to put up a tough fight. But against Natsui's fully evolved Pokémon, Ritchie's team was completely overwhelmed and rendered helpless!
None of Ritchie's Pokémon posed any real trouble for Natsui. Instead, Natsui seized every opportunity to defeat them one after another.
It was a complete domination on all fronts!
In the end, Natsui easily achieved victory with a score of 6-0.
Rubbing his eyes, Ash still couldn't believe it even after the match was over. The same Ritchie who had eliminated him was so powerless in front of Natsui!
The six bouts, when added together, took less than 30 minutes!
The suffocating pace and the massive gap in strength left Ash speechless, and he couldn't help but feel sorry for Ritchie.
That was too brutal a defeat!
But if I were the one battling Natsui, would the result have been the same?
Thinking of this, his own elimination suddenly didn't seem to sting as much.
After the entire battle, from Natsui's perspective, if he were to compare Ritchie to the other trainers he had faced, Ritchie's strength was not particularly outstanding. Not only was he not on Ash's level, but he was also slightly weaker than Gary and A.J.
At best, his skill was about the same as Giselle's.
He figured that the reason Ritchie had made it to the Top 8 was likely due to a bit of luck and, more importantly, facing weaker opponents!
Just as Natsui was about to leave through the contestant tunnel, the announcer's voice echoed through the microphones.
"First, let's congratulate trainer Natsui on successfully advancing to the semi-finals! And by defeating his opponent with a score of 6-0, he has also set a new record at the Indigo Conference!"
Hm?
Hearing this, even Natsui himself was very curious. He quickly stopped in his tracks and listened intently.
A set of data first appeared on the big screen, and then the announcer continued, "Since the founding of the Indigo Conference, no one has ever made it all the way from the preliminary rounds to the semi-finals with a perfect winning streak! Today, with his powerful skills, trainer Natsui has easily achieved this, which means a new record has been born!"
The spectators in the stands, filled with admiration, rose to their feet and applauded, congratulating Natsui.
After the applause died down, the announcer added, "And I have every reason to believe that in his upcoming battles, trainer Natsui will continue to make history and raise the bar for this record even higher!"
It was unclear if this was an instruction from the League to deliberately hype Natsui up.
From the announcer's words, it seemed he was on the verge of becoming a "Natsui fanboy"!
But it was hardly surprising. With Natsui's current popularity, almost anything involving him could become a hot topic.
On the field, Natsui just shook his head, turned, and left the stadium.
Although he was somewhat pleased about setting such a record, it didn't really mean much, nor did it bring him any tangible benefits.
After all, limited by the overall skill level of the region, the caliber of trainers at the Indigo Conference was indeed a bit low compared to future conferences like the Melissa of the Valley, Vertress, or Lumiose Conferences. Therefore, even a perfect streak wasn't something to be overly proud of.
Meeting up with Koharu and the others, Natsui returned to his dorm and, as usual, had a big meal to celebrate.
The athlete's village was now quite deserted, with only a handful of competitors remaining. Walking down the streets of the residential area, you could go a long time without seeing a single person.
In fact, after his elimination, Ash's dorm had been reclaimed by the conference. Left with no other choice, he, along with Misty and Brock, had moved into Natsui's private building.
This policy wasn't because the Pokémon League was being pragmatic and trying to save on accommodation costs, but rather a protective measure to prevent disgruntled eliminated trainers from harassing the remaining competitors!
To outsiders, however, such an action inevitably felt a bit callous!
Another day passed.
A well-rested Natsui, in the semi-finals, eliminated a female trainer named Melissa!
This battle, compared to his previous ones, finally gave Natsui a bit of a challenge.
In particular, Melissa's Rhydon and Venomoth were incredibly valiant, performing at 120% of their strength!
But fortunately, in the first four bouts, Natsui's Pokémon lived up to expectations and narrowly defeated their opponents. Faced with Melissa's two formidable Pokémon, Natsui decisively sent out Haunter for the fifth round. It scored a two-for-one, defeating both of them consecutively and leaving no chance for a comeback. Once again, with a score of 6-0, he became the first to advance to the finals!
After watching the entire match, the audience was absolutely ecstatic!
Not only were the six bouts intense, but being able to witness the continuation of a record-breaking streak was naturally a very exciting event!
And having reached this stage, even Natsui couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement.
From receiving his first Pokémon to this moment, after a long journey, he was now just one step away from the Indigo Conference championship!
Fortunately, he managed to calm himself down in time and quietly waited for the other finalist from Group B.
However, in a surprising turn of events in the Group B matches, A.J. was defeated in the Top 8 and did not make it to the semi-finals as he had hoped!
It seemed his wish was destined to go unfulfilled.
But another trainer, Corey, defeated A.J.'s opponent in the semi-finals and successfully advanced!
And Natsui's final opponent would be this very man, the one he had met on New Island, but whose memory had been erased by Mewtwo!
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