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West of Rainbow City, Route 16.
"Go south from here, then turn east and you'll reach Fuchsia City."
Eddie spoke these words after recalling Garchomp to its Poké Ball, having just landed from his flight.
There were many interesting things awaiting him along the journey, so naturally he wouldn't simply ride Garchomp the entire way.
"It's just... why do I have this bad feeling?"
Eddie had barely arrived at this location when he felt an inexplicable sense of pressure.
He was now a Gym Leader-level trainer. For something to give him such an oppressive feeling, it would need to possess at least Elite level and above.
"Is there an enemy here?"
Eddie didn't dare let his guard down. The Eevee perched on his head also displayed a vigilant expression, seeming ready for battle.
However, this oppressive feeling dissipated after a short while, vanishing silently as if it had never existed.
"Was it just my imagination?"
Eddie frowned and spoke slowly.
This was merely his outward behavior, though—internally, he was cursing up a storm.
"Do they really think I'm a fool? I'm being tested and I'm supposed to act like it's just an illusion? Ridiculous!"
"But that pressure was genuinely strong—at least Elite level, possibly even Champion level."
Eddie walked forward with Eevee as if nothing had happened, but his mind was constantly working to identify who the enemy might be.
"There don't seem to be many trainers above Elite level right now. Some individuals will reach Elite level after a period of time, but currently they're only quasi-Elite level."
People like Sabrina, Koga, and Erika were all quasi-Elite level trainers who would become Elite level later, but that was a matter for the future.
"I only know that Blaine is Elite level now, but he shouldn't cause trouble for me, right?"
Eddie walked very slowly, adopting a leisurely pace as if enjoying the scenery, giving himself more time to think.
He didn't believe that the powerful trainer who had tested him moments ago was doing so out of mere boredom—there had to be follow-up actions planned.
So he would maintain his disguise first and think more carefully about who the enemy might be, preparing for whatever would happen next.
"There aren't many Elite level candidates, at least none that I can think of, so let's focus on Champion level possibilities."
"The Kanto region's Elite Four are all Champions, and Giovanni is as well."
Currently, there were only five individuals who might cause trouble for Eddie, and he couldn't afford to offend any of them.
"At worst, I can use my Z-Move to blast the enemy directly. I'd like to see which trainer can resist the power of a Z-Move."
Eddie considered this and could only narrow it down to these five people. If trainers from other regions had come to trouble him, there was no way he could guess that, right?
He simply assumed these five as potential enemies and began formulating tactics to fight each one.
If his opponent was merely testing him, then he didn't mind. He wasn't afraid of enemies who weren't using their full strength.
But if his opponent was going all-out to eliminate Eddie, then Eddie would respond with "Devastating Drake."
Eddie, who possessed Z-Crystal, couldn't claim he could defeat Champion-level trainers, but at least his opponents couldn't easily defeat him either.
However, this was a last resort. If he used his Z-Move, he wouldn't be able to deceive people later.
"I was thinking that when I fight Team Rocket, my strength should be at a certain level. Wouldn't it be perfect to use the ultimate Dragon-type Z-Move against Giovanni at that time?"
This was Eddie's plan. He wasn't certain whether Giovanni would join the battle when war broke out.
Giovanni hadn't participated in the conflict before his rebirth, but Eddie couldn't guarantee the man wouldn't join this time around.
Therefore, when the Dragonium Z came into his possession, Eddie had been preparing for this possibility.
He kept training himself under the assumption that Giovanni would definitely join the war, just to have the strength to fight that terrifying trainer when the time came.
"I hope it won't come to that."
Eddie had already formulated many tactics, but these were all based on the assumption that his opponent wouldn't use full strength—strategies he could employ to defeat them under such conditions.
As long as his enemy didn't use Champion-level strength, he could still defeat opponents even if they used Elite-level power.
Eddie now had the confidence to defeat Elite-level trainers using only Gym Leader-level strength.
After formulating tactics and countermeasures for each potential enemy in his mind, Eddie gradually returned to his usual adventuring pace.
"Is that young man over there a trainer? I'm a researcher who accidentally ran into a Zubat colony. They're chasing me now. Please help me!"
Suddenly, a middle-aged man ran toward him in a very disheveled state, with a large group of Golbat and Zubat pursuing him from behind.
"Is there a Zubat colony nearby? Are there any strange caves around here?"
Eddie looked around and found the terrain was almost entirely plains. There were some small woods, but no cave entrances visible.
Golbat and Zubat were widely distributed, and some did live in forested areas. Perhaps this man had disturbed the Zubat in the woods.
Eddie could only think this way, then extended his hand, ready to command Eevee to help.
After all, while he wasn't exactly a good person, he wasn't evil either. He wouldn't stand by and watch someone die without helping, as long as it didn't endanger his own life.
However, when the man ran closer to Eddie, he could finally see the stranger's face clearly.
Wearing a black suit, the "panicked" expression was indeed very convincing, but the familiar sense of danger left Eddie stunned.
Then Eddie's face showed shock and his pupils contracted.
His body instinctively turned around and he began walking away with Eevee...
All the tactics and plans he had originally conceived were disrupted by his subconscious actions after seeing this man.
But he couldn't blame himself. After all, he had considered so many possibilities, but he hadn't expected his enemy to approach him in this manner for testing.
His behavior wasn't to say he was afraid of his opponent, but just a subconscious reaction.
If he left like this, would his opponent be stuck awkwardly directing and acting in his own performance?
Of course, such a thing was impossible, so Eddie reacted quickly.
After all, it was just a momentary subconscious thought and action.
He understood his opponent's character and instantly thought of a way to handle the situation.
Then he turned around and walked back.
If things were as he suspected, perhaps there would be no need to fight.
This way, his strength and trump cards wouldn't be exposed—how perfect that would be.