The significance of the Quartz Conference might not seem like much to other regions, but here in Kanto, it's considered one of the biggest events. It's thanks to this event that vendors here on the Quartz Plateau can make a tidy profit.
If the champion of the Quartz Conference were to help with promotions, the popularity of these stalls would definitely see an epic boost. That's why the stall owner seemed so eager when he saw Ash approaching.
As the stall owner intentionally shouted loudly, the surrounding people were drawn over.
"Ash? Is that Ash?!"
"It looks like him! At first, I couldn't believe it. Isn't he supposed to be heading to Dragon Island now?"
"I was wondering why someone could imitate Ash so well! Not only does the person look like him, but even his Pikachu is identical!"
"Stop exaggerating, don't all Pikachus look the same?"
"Ash's Pikachu is special!!"
"..."
The crowd started buzzing about Ash's appearance, and Ash understood why so many people had been giving him strange looks along the way, yet none approached him for autographs or anything of the sort.
He hadn't asked Mewtwo for any concealment.
Turns out, everyone thought he was already on his way to Dragon Island, so it was impossible for him to be in a place like this. Thus, they assumed the person here was just a very good Ash imitator, which is why no one came up to him.
As for why the stall owner recognized him instantly... he didn't care if Ash was real or fake. As long as he appeared at his stall, even a fake has to be real!
This way, his stall's popularity would explode!
Even the stall owner couldn't have imagined that the person in front of him was indeed the real Ash!
Seeing the crowd gather around, Ash rubbed his forehead in resignation. It seems after having fun here, they'll have to ask Mewtwo for concealment again, or else they won't be able to go anywhere else.
"First, give us twenty shots!" Misty also noticed the crowd forming around them and quickly spoke to the stall owner.
Let's get the Starmie plush toy first!
"Alright, here you go." The stall owner handed the long gun filled with rubber bullets to Ash. Seeing the eager look in Misty's eyes, Ash said, "Misty, you can start. Give Togepi to me."
"Huh? I'm going first?"
"Yep, you can play ten rounds first, leave me half the rounds." Even though only one shot would do, leaving ten means he can help Misty get other plush toys besides the Starmie.
Upon hearing this, Misty handed Togepi over to Ash and received the toy gun from him.
"Sss—Whew—" Misty took a deep breath and nervously raised the long gun, aiming carefully at the Starmie plush toy. To be honest, it felt more nerve-racking than a Gym battle!
"Bang!!" After several seconds of aiming, Misty finally fired her first shot, and unsurprisingly, she missed.
For a first-time shooter, even with a toy gun, it's challenging to accurately hit the target, despite the Starmie plush toy not being small.
Seeing that she missed her first shot, Misty felt a bit disappointed, but she quickly recovered and fired a second shot, then a third... Until the seventh shot, when she finally hit the Starmie!
Before Misty could cheer, the rubber bullet that hit the Starmie lifelessly fell without knocking it down.
"How... how could it not fall?" Misty exclaimed incredulously. She was sure her bullet hit the Starmie accurately, so why didn't it fall?!
"Come on, dear girl, if one shot could knock the plush toy down, would my business still be viable? Since the toys are quite large, hitting them isn't hard at all." The stall owner shrugged, speaking frankly.
Some unscrupulous stall owners might put fixed cans behind the plush toys, making it so that even if hit, the toys wouldn't fall. He hadn't done such a thing, just slightly weakened the force of the gun.
One hit can slightly move the toy; it takes multiple hits to knock it down. This is common knowledge here.
Not playing tricks, really, if one shot could bring the toy down, even someone who isn't skilled could land one or two hits in ten shots, right? Two hundred bucks for a guaranteed plush toy win, would his business survive?
Apart from using Ash's name in his strategy, the stall owner was quite candid, the plush toys on his wall were worth more than two hundred bucks if bought outside!
So there's no way to knock them down with one shot, unless you're extraordinarily skilled at hitting the toy's balance point to make it slide off. Otherwise, it normally takes at least five consecutive hits to knock it down.
After hearing the stall owner's words, Misty felt it made sense, given the large size, even a beginner like her could hit it easily. If one shot could bring it down, wouldn't that be a huge loss?
Misty fired three more shots consecutively but didn't hit any. Disappointed, she handed the toy gun back to Ash, then took Togepi from his hands, offering encouragement, "Good luck, Ash!"