"I understand, Drake. I will focus on my assigned task from here on."
"Good. I will be monitoring the situation as well. If anything dangerous happens, I'll come to your aid immediately."
"With you watching over me, I can rest easy. Now, it's time for me to take action. First, I need to stir up some commotion to lure those hyenas out.
"Drake, do you have any recommendations?"
"Give me a moment. I'll check for you now."
Leaning against a tree trunk, Ron quietly waited for Drake's response.
To be honest, he wasn't particularly concerned about Team Aqua's bounty on his head.
As long as he disguised himself as Garus, there was no way Team Aqua's operatives would be able to track him down. However, since Drake had personally reached out with a plan that could bring him significant benefits, Ron was more than happy to participate.
As for the potential dangers in the operation? He wasn't worried. With Gardevoir and Lucario's Aura abilities at his disposal, he highly doubted that anyone could get close to him undetected.
"I found something. There's a battle tournament happening in Slateport City. You can enter the competition, and I'll discreetly leak the information. It won't be long before Pokémon hunters come looking for you."
A moment later, Drake's voice sounded again, providing Ron with a suitable course of action.
"Thanks, Drake. I'll set off immediately. Once I arrive in Slateport City, I'll contact you first thing."
"Be careful. Sidney and I will remain in constant contact with you. If anything goes wrong, you must call for help immediately!"
"Don't worry. I'm not the reckless type."
Ron chuckled before setting his plan into motion.
After checking the map to confirm his current location, he shed his disguise and reverted to his true appearance. Then, with a nod to Gardevoir, he let it teleport him away using Teleport.
As Ron moved into action, Sidney, who oversaw the Hoenn Region's Pokémon Rangers, also began her preparations. She discreetly mobilized a trusted team of Rangers and Forest Hunters, deploying them near Slateport City.
Drake, too, temporarily delegated his ongoing duties to his deputy before leading a squad of subordinates toward Slateport City.
For now, the Pokémon hunters assigned to the bounty had no concrete leads on Ron's whereabouts. They could only commit the target's description to memory and remain on the lookout—waiting for an opportunity to strike if they encountered him.
Nome, too, was playing the waiting game, hoping to let the Pokémon hunters flush Ron out before swooping in like a hidden predator.
Meanwhile, Ron, now the unexpected center of attention, was making his way toward Slateport City as swiftly as possible.
By the afternoon of the following day, Ron, covered in dust from his travels, finally arrived at the registration desk for the battle tournament hosted by Stern in Slateport City.
"Hello, I'm Ron, a Trainer from the Kanto region. I'd like to register for the battle tournament."
"Understood. Please present your Pokédex for verification."
After processing countless trainers signing up for the battle tournament, the staff member was no longer surprised by Ron's slightly disheveled appearance.
Once registration was complete, Ron headed straight to the local Pokémon Center.
As for the organizer of this tournament, Stern, he was something of a celebrity in Slateport City.
Stern was a well-known strait explorer who also owned Stern's Shipyard, the Oceanic Museum, and the ferry service S.S. Tidal, all of which significantly boosted Slateport's popularity.
The battle tournament he was currently hosting was another one of his efforts to attract more tourists and trainers to the city.
To make the battles more exciting, Stern had slightly modified the usual battle format.
Each trainer was allowed to use only one Pokémon, with a maximum strength cap of High Elite level.
The battle took place at sea, with participants piloting wooden boats provided by the organizers. A match was lost when either a trainer's Pokémon was defeated or their boat sank.
This rule inherently increased the risk of injuries, but for trainers who grew up in the Hoenn region, battling at sea was nothing unusual.
Even trainers who mostly traveled inland in Hoenn were used to harsh conditions and didn't concern themselves too much with the possibility of getting hurt.
In fact, many trainers believed that this kind of battle was the most realistic, as wild Pokémon or enemies wouldn't follow tournament rules when attacking them on the open water.
Of course, to ensure trainers' safety, direct attacks on trainers were strictly forbidden—any violation would result in immediate disqualification.
After reading through the tournament rules, Ron turned and stepped into the bathroom, leaving his Pokémon to roam freely in the room.
As his gaze fell upon Ron's large bed, Larvitar hesitated for a moment before slowly climbing onto it.
Once he was sure that the bed could support his ever-growing weight, Larvitar relaxed and lay down in the center.
Seeing this, Lucario and Froakie exchanged uncertain glances.
They had already evolved once—they were adults now. They couldn't just flop onto the bed like Larvitar without a care in the world.
Looking over at Machamp doing push-ups in the corner, and Persian using Paper Art to sense the air currents generated by Machamp's movements, they felt that this was how responsible adults should behave.
But… if they considered their actual age, weren't they technically still kids?
After exchanging another glance, understanding each other's thoughts, Lucario and Froakie stopped hesitating and lay down on either side of Larvitar.
Though they had changed over time, their bond remained as strong as ever. Without even discussing it, the three of them began rolling around on the bed like children at play.
When Ron stepped out of the bathroom and saw his large bed struggling under the combined weight of the three Pokémon, he could only roll his eyes in exasperation.
"Alright, everyone, rest up for tonight. Tomorrow, we have the battle tournament. When the time comes—"
Hearing Ron's voice, the Pokémon whose strength exceeded High Elite level—like Machamp—immediately lost interest. Gengar, on the other hand, had to keep a low profile to avoid revealing its identity, so it wouldn't be participating either.
Instead, Nidoking and Blaziken perked up. A chaotic free-for-all? That was exactly their kind of battle.
"I'll be teaming up with Gardevoir for this one," Ron announced without hesitation, ruling out Nidoking and Blaziken immediately.
A Fire-type Pokémon like Blaziken would struggle to perform at full strength on the water, and as for Nidoking… Ron seriously doubted he could row a boat fast enough with that weight on board.
Ignoring Nidoking and Blaziken's instantly dejected expressions, Ron flopped onto the bed, getting comfortable.
Hearing the bed creak under the pressure and emit distressed groans, Gardevoir finally decided to use her Psychic to help support the bed's structure.
Perhaps because Larvitar was close to evolving into Pupitar, his weight had skyrocketed—he now weighed over 130 kilograms (286 lbs).
Gardevoir still couldn't comprehend how such a small Larvitar could be so incredibly heavy.
And yet, Ron had once told her that some trainers—without any special training—could casually carry a Larvitar in their arms.
…Was that even possible? Or were those trainers secretly some kind of unknown Pokémon disguised in human skin?
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