For Natsuhiko and the others who knew the relationship between the two, it was hard to suppress their smiles.
As Natsuhiko put it,
this move is called lifting a rock only to drop it on one's own foot.
Since it was just a private competition, there was no need for a referee.
After standing in position, the two glanced at each other and then summoned their respective Pokémon.
"Roar——!!"
Accompanied by a roar, a Pokémon with a brown-gray body and immense wings carrying an ancient aura appeared in mid-air.
With each flap of its wings, the grass on the ground would ripple.
Aerodactyl!
"Oh? Lance actually summoned Aerodactyl. I thought he would summon Gyarados," Flint said with a smile.
Natsuhiko glanced at him, pursing his lips, and said, "A Water and Flying Type Gyarados would only negate the Ice Type weakness against Kona's Pokémon, and lose its Water Type advantage. But if it were against you or Hilona, Gyarados's type might have an advantage."
"Ah, this..." Flint's expression froze.
Then he showed an even bigger smile.
He seemed unconcerned about it.
Natsuhiko continued to focus on the field.
An Elite Candidate Level Aerodactyl.
Lance's progress is really fast....
On Kona's side, the presence wasn't as grand as Aerodactyl's.
Amidst a mix of red light, a Cloyster appeared in front of her.
Though it didn't make a big show, compared to Aerodactyl, this Cloyster's aura was not weak at all.
Hilona slightly furrowed her brows.
"This isn't the Cloyster Kona used before. It's newly cultivated, so fast?"
Natsuhiko raised his eyebrows.
Also an Elite Candidate Level?
From the time he informed Kona about the "Dragon Slayer Shell," not much time had passed.
Less than half a year.
To cultivate a Cloyster to the Elite Candidate Level in such a short time?
Kona has high talent and the full support of Silver Academy.
But Natsuhiko didn't think Kona could cultivate a Shellder to Elite Candidate Level from scratch in such a short time.
The only explanation is that when Kona started training this Cloyster, it wasn't weak to begin with.
In fact, this was indeed the case.
After Natsuhiko informed her about the "Dragon Slayer Shell," Kona sought a Shellder with good potential and matching traits.
Upon learning Kona's intentions, Silver Academy directly opened its entire breeding base to her.
Among them were numerous Shellders with varying strengths.
Luckily,
Kona eventually found this one among many Shellders.
When she captured it, it already had Gym Leader Level strength.
Shellder needs a "Water Stone" to evolve, so even if it reached Gym Leader Level, it remained a Shellder.
But with just the food provided by Silver Academy and its own efforts, it could reach Gym Leader Level. This shows that this Shellder's potential is very strong.
Moreover, these Shellders were bred, so there wasn't the same difficulty in bonding with a Trainer as with Wild Pokémon.
At least, the bonding process was much simpler than with Wild Pokémon.
Thus, according to Natsuhiko's hints, Kona waited until Shellder learned the move "Hatching" before using the "Water Stone" to evolve it.
Finally, she obtained the current Elite Candidate Level Cloyster.
Of course, it's undeniable that this Cloyster hasn't been with Kona for long, so their momentum might not match Lance and Aerodactyl.
Also, this Cloyster's strength is slightly inferior.
But in any case, an Elite Candidate Level Cloyster, or rather "Dragon Slayer Shell," is the main reason Kona agreed with Lance's suggestion today.
And this is the foundation that Natsuhiko always aspired to have but could never obtain....
Whether it's Kona, Lance, Flint, or Hilona, although Natsuhiko's current strength might have almost caught up with them,
the foundation they possess means they have much better conditions for nurturing new Pokémon than Natsuhiko.
Silver Academy is a prestigious academy in the Kanto Region and even the entire Pokemon Realm, its foundation is something that not even Natsuhiko's teacher, Agatha, might compare to.
But with that said...
Natsuhiko couldn't help but lift his lips into a smile.
This first match is becoming quite interesting.
He never expected Lance's "Nightmare" to arrive so quickly.
——————
PS: I went back to my hometown today, was busy the whole day, loaded a truck full of stuff, I'm really exhausted~~ so the update was a bit late...