Faced with this result, Danny gave a wry smile, but in the face of absolute power, he accepted the loss gracefully.
"That's right, I lost. However, the second match will no longer be a test of who is stronger, but rather a challenge to use the ice you just obtained to craft something!"
With that, he pointed to a wooden board. Natsui glanced over and saw a simple diagram of an ice sled!
"This trial is limited to three Pokémon. Whoever can first carve the block of ice into the shape of a sled will win the second match!"
So it really is this!
It seems Danny's competition events are exactly the same as they were in the anime, completely unchanged!
"No problem, I accept the challenge."
Seeing Danny speak of such an event with such a serious expression, Sabrina, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but shake her head.
Making a sled out of ice?
Is this the standard of the Navel Gym!?
Freezing ice, making a sled...
What's next? Are we going to slide down the mountain?
How absurd. Not only were these events surprisingly childish, but they were even a bit less impressive than the Water Gun target practice at the Tangelo Gym. Compared to the Indigo League, they weren't just a little different; they were worlds apart. It could be said that they had completely deviated from the Pokémon League's rules and abandoned battling altogether!
In truth, ever since she had arrived in the Orange Archipelago, Sabrina had been captivated by the local customs and scenery, and the days she had spent with Natsui had left her with many wonderful memories.
But in her heart, she looked down on this Orange League, which seemed like child's play!
Whether it was the Gym Leaders or their competitions, everything seemed to exude an air of amateurism and unprofessionalism!
Without any actual battles, what's the point of deciding a winner? Are they trying to become all-around athletes?
But seeing that Natsui, the challenger, had no objections, she knew he must have his own reasons and didn't say anything more.
At this point, Danny had summoned a Machoke and a Scyther to join his Nidoqueen, forming his team.
Natsui thought for a moment, recalled his Articuno, and sent out Gardevoir and Jolteon, who, along with the Haunter in his shadow, also formed a team of three Pokémon.
Danny's gaze first swept over Jolteon and Haunter, finally lingering for a moment on the Gardevoir he had never seen before.
What kind of Pokémon is that?
It's so beautiful. Did he catch it in another region?
Not only did he have an Articuno, but he also had such a strange Pokémon. This made him even more curious about this man's identity.
Coming back to his senses, and seeing that Natsui was ready, Danny waved his hand, and both teams of Pokémon began to work on their ice blocks.
He himself stood to the side with his arms crossed, not participating in the command.
After all, the Gym had been open for so long, and his Pokémon had made countless ice sleds. Practice had made them perfect, and their movements were extremely fast, requiring no further instruction.
His Scyther, in particular, with its two scythe-like forelimbs, could easily cut through the ice and create the shape he wanted.
Compared to his, Natsui's Pokémon were undoubtedly much slower.
On one hand, the ice that Articuno had just frozen was too solid, which was now a hindrance. On the other hand, they were simply inexperienced, having to be careful with every step, afraid of breaking the ice block.
"Gardevoir, use your Psychic to turn this ice pillar a little!"
"Haunter, quickly cut off that extra part!"
"Jolteon, hurry up and clear away these ice chips!"
With every cut and carve, a large amount of ice shards flew everywhere!
Under Natsui's commands, his three Pokémon were bustling with activity, but even so, Danny's Pokémon still finished their ice sled a step ahead of them.
Seeing this, Natsui was quite helpless.
But it couldn't be helped. After all, this was his opponent's specialty. Even if his Pokémon possessed greater power, in a competition of skill like this, they still couldn't change the outcome.
However, even though he lost this round, Natsui didn't mind too much. He just treated it as a fun game with his Pokémon. At least they had all had a good time.
"With this, we're tied at one-to-one," Danny said, also secretly relieved not to have been swept 2-0. He then changed the subject and smiled. "Next up is the third and final round, the tiebreaker. But before that, let's push our ice sleds to the starting point."
By now, the snow had completely stopped, and the dark clouds had dissipated a lot.
Since the distance wasn't too far, Natsui didn't have Gardevoir use its psychic powers. Instead, everyone worked together to push the ice sled to a spot marked with a 'START' flag.
Only then did he realize that the place Danny had just led him up was the steepest side of Mt. Navel. And now, they were facing a slope that was like a giant slide, slanting downwards!
The view here was even more open, and the scenery even more captivating.
The two stood side by side, admiring the view for a moment. Then, Danny extended a hand, pointed to a clearing at the foot of the mountain, and said, "This final match is a test of teamwork with your Pokémon. Both of us, along with our Pokémon, will ride our ice sleds at the same time. The first one to reach the seashore is the final winner!"
Natsui's eyes scanned the mountain path a few times, and he asked, "What about the route? Can we choose any path we want?"
Danny nodded.
"That's right. As long as you and your Pokémon don't leave the ice sled, you can use any method and take any route. As long as you can reach the finish line, everything is fine!"
A no-rules race...
Natsui made an 'OK' sign, indicating that he understood.
For the final round, Danny also changed his Pokémon again. He switched out his Nidoqueen and Machoke for a Geodude and an Electrode, who, along with the Scyther that had performed so well in the second round, all got into the ice sled.
Natsui didn't adjust his lineup. He followed Danny's example and sat at the very front of his ice sled, with Gardevoir, Jolteon, and Haunter in order behind him.
Beside them stood a signal light. The moment the red light turned green, both of them leaned forward and pushed off at the same time. Instantly, the two ice sleds shot down the thick layer of snow.
Seeing them depart, Sabrina also got back on the cable car and headed towards the finish line via another track.
From high in the air, she had a perfect bird's-eye view of the race below.
At first, the ice sleds moved down slowly, but as their speed continuously increased, they became faster and faster!
On both sides of the sleds, the snowy landscape flew by. And in front of Natsui were occasional rocks and other strange obstacles.
At such a speed and height, this high-speed race could be said to be extremely dangerous.
If they were careless for even a moment and hit one of these things, not to mention themselves, the ice sled would at least be shattered to pieces!
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