HEY, they're deleting fics! Just in case, I've also got it up on SH, but I'm shadowbanned there… so you'll have to search it directly on google. Just type 'Pokemon Above the Top' and it should pop right up. Also, all the chapters are free and public on my pa7reon/Romeloff - no subscription needed, all free chapters are public[1].
-----------------------------------------------------
Due to the ongoing buzz from the Ace Tournament, the number of people coming to challenge the Shadownight Gym just to catch a glimpse of Sato was exploding at an astonishing rate.
Seeing so many people showing up just for him, and to avoid tarnishing the Gym's reputation, Sato postponed his next travel plans and decided to dutifully do what a Gym Leader ought to.
Accept all Trainer challenges!
However, the difference in strength was far too great, and even Zoroark and the others couldn't grow much from these one-sided matches.
Sato had no choice but to have Honchkrow and Houndoom summon four of their companions from the Forest of Shadows: Murkrow, another Honchkrow, Houndour, and Houndoom.
Adding to that the Drapion, Pikachu, and Zweilous from Sato's own team -none of which had reached Ace level yet- by rotating them in battle, he could just barely manage the load.
Even so, very few managed to earn a Gym Badge from Sato.
Most of those who did hadn't actually defeated Sato in battle. It was only because their performance during the match was decent, and their bond with their Pokémon showed promise, that Sato selectively awarded a few Badges.
Otherwise, no matter how "excited" or "eager" the others were to meet him, they would've been frightened off by how ruthlessly impartial he was.
Ironically, this led to a number of gifted rookie Trainers managing to win the simplest 2v2 matches -defeating the Murkrow + Houndour duo- and thereby truly "winning" their Gym Badges.
For this group of kids, Sato, upholding his role as a "teacher", would keep them in the audience stands to watch several matches where Drapion instantly crushed opponents.
Once their faces turned pale, their steps unsteady, and cold sweat beaded on their foreheads, only then would Sato allow them to leave…
After all, they were just rookies!
And what rookies feared most… was arrogance, right?
So every Challenger who walked out of the Shadownight Gym with a Badge wore a look of sheer relief and joy, all sighing in gratitude at their good fortune.
Which only made them more determined to work harder, harder, and even harder!
For a time, the Shadownight Gym's reputation soared. Trainers who earned the Shadow Badge proudly posted it online, stating how much growth they'd experienced through the Gym Challenge.
Of course, there were also anonymous posts online complaining that the Shadownight Gym was too difficult, with Pokémon getting no training value before being instantly defeated by the Gym Leader.
But not a single one of those anonymous posters had ever earned the Shadow Badge. Their critiques were groundless and quickly met with widespread ridicule until they deleted their posts and apologized.
Meanwhile, Mark and the rest of the Gym staff could only silently endure as they were mentally overwhelmed by Sato's series of "brilliant" strategies, too intimidated to say a word.
Truly…
The demon was still the same demon!
Only this time, he had turned his hand toward the pure-hearted and adorable Challengers!
After that, Sato naturally pushed all repeat challengers to Mark and the others, giving them a chance to train as well.
But one rule never changed: anyone who earned a Gym Badge had to first watch several of Gym Leader Sato's matches, so they could understand deeply…
The Shadow Badge… was hard-earned!
And just like that, a full month passed before the number of Trainers challenging the Shadownight Gym returned to normal levels.
But by then, the fame and reputation of the Shadownight Gym had skyrocketed, leaving other Gym Leaders red-eyed with jealousy!
However, the moment they remembered that Sato had become the Ace Tournament Champion at such a young age, and that his future as an Elite Four Trainer -and maybe member- was practically guaranteed, their petty jealousy was instantly extinguished.
And the reason Sato had spent the past month dealing with so many challengers wasn't just to build practical experience for Drapion and the others; it was also part of his preparation to attend Celadon University.
One of Charles Goodshow's female secretaries called Sato again after he returned to Shadownight Town, bringing up the topic of Celadon University once more.
After much deliberation, Sato finally decided to enroll for a short period of study.
At the same time, he was also hired as an honorary lecturer, tasked with giving several open lectures to the students of the Trainer Faculty.
As for what he would teach, Sato had basically sorted out the plan during the past month.
Outside of handling challengers, he had devoted almost all his remaining time to little Absol. Just as Professor Wen had warned, Absol held an extremely deep hatred toward humans.
And it was only because Zoroark and the others were Sato's companions that they managed -after a full half month- to reach a point where Absol no longer rejected them.
But that was all…
Whenever Sato watched Absol from a distance, all he could see in its eyes was deep vigilance and hostility.
If he got even slightly closer, Absol wouldn't run… it would immediately attack.
Starting with Quick Attack, Scratch, and Bite… then progressing to Slash, Night Slash, and Psycho Cut.
As expected of a Pokémon with Elite Four level potential in the Dark-type, once Absol moved past its juvenile stage, its growth was visible to the naked eye every single day.
Perhaps due to the traumatic things it had witnessed in the poacher camps, Absol's thirst for power had become overwhelming.
That was the only area where it willingly interacted with Zoroark and the others. When they were teaching it how to get stronger.
So for the next half month, Sato challenged Absol's limits little by little, approaching it one step at a time each day.
By the end of that period, the progress was decent: as long as Sato didn't get closer than two meters, Absol wouldn't actively attack.
But two meters was its absolute limit. Sato tried for several more days but couldn't reduce the distance any further.
Not wanting to overstimulate Absol, Sato slowed things down and began preparing its daily food in front of it instead.
Previously, it had always been Sia's Wigglytuff who delivered the food to Absol.
Being so young, and with Wigglytuff's strong friendly aura, Absol had eaten obediently without thinking too much about it.
But once it realized that the food it had been eating all this time was provided by a human…
Absol clearly couldn't accept it!
So it starved itself for two full days… until it collapsed.
When Absol finally woke up, it was surrounded by Wigglytuff and Zoroark.
And Sato was there too, standing exactly two meters away, quietly watching.
"Absol, let's make a deal. When you become strong enough to defeat Drapion, I'll give you a choice. You can either return to the wild or stay with us as our partner. The decision will be yours.
Until then, I won't command you to fight for me. All you need to do is eat well, rest well, and keep getting stronger every day."
"…Sol?"
.
.
150 PS - CH
[1] https://www.scribblehub.com/series/1432910/pokmon-above-the-top