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"Hello, Jerry. I'm Tyler, nice to meet you."
Sato suddenly heard Squirtle's voice through Aura, and his heart trembled. He immediately turned his head toward Squirtle, pretending to look surprised. Then he reached out to gently pat Squirtle's little head with a smile.
Squirtle was clearly delighted that Sato called him by name. He didn't mind the head pat at first, but soon tucked his head into his shell to avoid being petted further.
"Tch, off you go, you little rascal. Just looking at you is making me annoyed now."
Captain Reggie, hearing Sato speak Squirtle's chosen name, immediately understood that Squirtle had revealed his special ability. Knowing there was no way to change Sato's mind, Reggie waved dismissively and spoke in mock irritation.
Sato knew better than to push his luck. Smiling sheepishly, he hurriedly scooped Squirtle up and practically ran out of the captain's quarters.
Back in his own room, he released Tentacruel, Lanturn, and Shellder to introduce them to Squirtle.
Squirtle's cheerful and lively personality quickly won them over, and before long he was playing with the others.
Two days passed in the blink of an eye after the ghost ship incident.
During those days, Sato gradually befriended many Trainers aboard the ship — comrades from the ghost ship battle, some of whom had risked their lives with him to set the ship aflame.
He carefully noted their names and contact information in a fine notebook, expanding his network as "Tyler."
At the same time, he began training Shellder and Squirtle.
For Shellder, Sato focused solely on improving Icicle Spear. Back on the ghost ship, he had already noticed Shellder's casting time was too long and his accuracy too low.
.....
Shellder's Data:
Pokémon: Shellder
Level: 21
Type: Water
Ability: Skill Link
Gender: Male
Known Learned:Tackle, Water Gun, Withdraw, Supersonic, Icicle Spear, Leer
Egg Moves:Bubble Beam, Mud Shot
Tutor Moves: None
TMs: None
Held Item: None
IVs:
HP: 25 (31)
Attack: 30 (31)
Defense: 30 (31)
Special Attack: 27 (31)
Special Defense: 23 (31)
Speed: 30 (31)
Overall IV Rating: Purple (Total IVs 165)
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Shellder's Skill Link gave him a tremendous advantage with multi-hit moves. His Icicle Spear would always fire the maximum five times — meaning a terrifying base power of 125.
As a ranged attacker, his output potential was astonishing. If he could find the time to set up Shell Smash, Shellder could even become a game-changer in battle.
Unfortunately, both Shellder and his evolution, Cloyster, shared glaring weaknesses: poor Speed and poor Special Defense. One Electric-type attack was often enough to cripple them.
That's why Cloyster was truly dominant only under game mechanics, where opponents were limited to four moves. In reality, most Pokémon had access to Electric-type moves.
Even so, as a physical tank, it was Tier 1 in terms of damage output.
Especially Cloyster — with a base Defense stat of 180, was nearly unmatched among Pokémon. Calling him a walking fortress was no exaggeration.
That made him slow but perfect as a bodyguard-style tank. Sato intended for Cloyster to serve as his physical shield while doubling as a devastating dual-offense ranged attacker when needed.
He already had a high-grade Water Stone. Were it not for his desire to let Shellder learn a few more pre-evolution moves, he would have evolved him already.
Sato knew that Shellder's power would skyrocket upon evolution, as he would immediately gain access to strong moves like Hydro Pump, Shell Smash, Toxic Spikes, Protect, and Spike Cannon.
It was worth noting that Closyter could also learn both Toxic Spikes and Spikes through leveling, making him an excellent hazard setter in real battles. His traps would severely restrict enemy movement, unless they could fly or had tremendous jumping ability.
Otherwise, approaching Shellder would be extremely difficult — one of the few ways he could control enemy positioning in reality.
As for Squirtle, Sato first had him train Aura Sphere.
But when Squirtle spent ten minutes producing only a pea-sized Aura Sphere, Sato immediately abandoned that plan, switching instead to Dragon Pulse and Water Pulse, which were easier to train.
Sato knew why Squirtle's Aura Sphere was so small and slow: his Aura was still weak, and his control over it immature.
Like psychic power, Aura couldn't be rapidly developed just through daily move practice. It required long-term, dedicated training.
Through their conversations, Sato learned that Squirtle could only extend his Aura about one meter around him — a far cry from the Lucario he'd once seen in the movies, capable of sensing enemies kilometers away.
Even though Sato didn't know the exact methods for training Aura, he required Squirtle to spend at least two hours every day practicing it.
Alongside Dragon Pulse and Water Pulse, Sato also tried to help Squirtle master Rapid Spin early.
Normally, Squirtle learned Rapid Spin at level 19. But with his natural talent, after watching videos of other Squirtle using it a dozen times, and failing seven or eight times himself, he successfully mastered the move.
To Sato, Rapid Spin was Squirtle's future core technique. It might look like a mere utility move for breaking free from traps and clearing hazards, but in Squirtle's case, it was both offense and defense in one.
By spinning rapidly inside his sturdy shell, Squirtle could deflect almost any physical attack — even rebounding them — except for pure energy moves like electricity.
Moreover, he could briefly "fly" by spinning, and even unleash moves like Water Gun, Hydro Pump, or Bubble Beam mid-spin.
And because Squirtle possessed Aura, even when tucked inside his shell spinning through the air, he could still sense enemies and their attacks, never losing his target.
Both Shellder and Squirtle showed excellent potential. Under Sato's guidance, just two days of special training gave them noticeably greater control over their moves.
More importantly, they had fully bonded with Sato, recognizing him as their powerful and worthy Trainer.
On the afternoon of the second day, around four o'clock, the cruise ship finally docked safely at Slateport City. With the crew's help, passengers began disembarking one by one.
"Farewell, everyone. Until we meet again."
At the port, Sato bowed politely to several Trainers he'd gotten along well with. Then, turning briskly, he disappeared into the crowd.