"Tor..Blaziken?"
Blaziken was so shocked that its voice reverted to that of a Torchic. Shouldn't you be comforted by my unyielding spirit in defeat? Why are you mocking me instead?
Silas laughed heartily.
He quickly adjusted his mindset.
"I never really thought I was the protagonist of this world. Obviously, Ash is the real one." He muttered to himself.
Lack of strength just meant he had to keep improving.
Just like Blaziken said—one day, he'd get it all back.
"Snivy~"
Snivy, lying in Silas's hands, was gasping for breath from laughing too hard just now and hadn't recovered yet.
Silas rubbed the little fellow's head and snapped his fingers. "Alright, team, let's go check out another dojo."
Since Gym Leader Shigeru had mentioned it, and Silas had been considering it anyway, why not take this free time to study at the Fighting Dojo?
He placed Snivy on his shoulder, returned the other three big guys to their Poké Balls, and walked out of the room.
Arriving at the location of the Fighting Dojo, Silas stared thoughtfully at the slightly run-down exterior of the building.
He pushed the door open and stepped into the dojo. The lobby was completely dark.
"Hello? Anyone here?" Silas called out loudly.
His voice echoed for a long time, but there was no response.
Could it be no one was here? But the front door was open…
The dojo was small no more than a hundred square meters even in the lobby. Silas looked toward a door in the distance that glowed faintly with light.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
As Silas walked closer, he began to hear the sound of fierce impacts.
As if sensing his arrival, the sounds inside stopped, and the door opened.
"Apologies, but the dojo is temporarily closed to gym challengers and not issuing badges right now. Sorry about that."
In front of Silas stood a muscular man in a martial arts uniform, wiping sweat off as he casually explained.
"Uh, hello, Gym Leader Nobuhiko. I was referred here by Gym Leader Shigeru. My name is Silas Alaric, from Viridian City."
He quickly explained, then paused. Wait—considering the relationship between the two, wouldn't saying this just earn him a punch?
But Nobuhiko merely raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Sent by Shigeru, huh? Come in, then."
He turned and walked back inside.
Ah, what? Silas was confused. He had thought he was about to get kicked out, but from the looks of it, Gym Leaders Shigeru and Nobuhiko seemed to get along pretty well?
Now wasn't the time to dwell on that. Silas hurried after Nobuhiko into the room.
Inside, three Pokémon were resting to the side.
One was a small pink Pokémon with golden eyes. Its backside and shoes were brown, and its hands and belly were wrapped with white bandages. It had no hair. It was the Fighting-type Pokémon, Tyrogue.
The other two were its evolved forms: Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee.
Hitmonchan wore armor resembling a skirt—hard and durable enough to serve as protection. Its head had hair-like protrusions, its whole body was brown, and it wore boxing gloves like in a real match.
Hitmonlee, on the other hand, looked more like a mythical warrior from Silas's past life. Its arms and legs had spring-like segments that could freely extend and retract, making them deadly weapons.
Seeing their Trainer walk in with a stranger, the three Pokémon politely greeted Silas.
Silas smiled back in response.
After changing into a tank top in the rest area, Nobuhiko came back out. "Tyrogue, take them out back and continue training."
Tyrogue stood up, nodded silently, and led the way. Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee obediently followed.
Oddly, it was the unevolved Tyrogue who seemed to be the leader among the three.
"Tyrogue wants to evolve into Hitmontop, but the conditions aren't fully clear yet, so it's been holding back on evolving."
Noticing Silas watching them leave, Nobuhiko explained, having seen many people with similar expressions.
Tyrogue had been with him the longest. Out of respect for its wishes, Nobuhiko had never forced it to evolve.
Because of that long bond, even though it lacked in size and other stats, Tyrogue was still the strongest of the three.
Silas nodded in understanding. Hitmontop was a recently discovered third evolution for Tyrogue, but the conditions for evolution were extremely rare and still being studied. Researchers were trying to figure out exactly how Tyrogue could evolve into one of three different forms.
For now, Tyrogue would have to wait for the research to catch up before it could reliably become a Hitmontop.
It was also the first time Silas had seen a Pokémon that didn't want to evolve.
After all, evolution usually meant greater power for a Pokémon very few would resist becoming stronger.
But whether to evolve or not was a personal choice. Most Trainers would respect that decision.
That was the unspoken trust between people and Pokémon.
Nobuhiko sat kneeling beside a low table, calmly brewing tea.
Silas sat cross-legged across from him. While kneeling was a common posture in this world, he still wasn't used to it.
The ancient ancestors of his previous life had made it very clear kneeling was bad for your health!
Thankfully, in the Pokémon world, sitting posture wasn't strictly enforced, or he might've been criticized from a young age for lacking manners.
"I've heard of you," Nobuhiko said as he rinsed the teacups with hot water.
"Huh?" Silas looked puzzled.
"Master Bruno told me. He said Professor Oak and Professor Rowan mentioned you. They said you're quite impressive."
Nobuhiko poured the brewed tea into the cups and handed one to Silas.
"Thank you, Gym Leader Nobuhiko."
Silas quickly accepted the cup and took a sip. Not bad it wasn't as bitter as he expected.
"Master Bruno asked me to look after the dojo for Master Koichi, though I personally wasn't thrilled about it." Despite his massive build, Nobuhiko's movements were unexpectedly delicate. "I still have a long way to go in my training."
Silas suddenly felt a mix of awe and frustration. What was with everyone today?Shigeru acted like this, and now Nobuhiko too?
Nobuhiko weak? That was a joke. Nobuhiko was known as the Karate King how could his strength be lacking?
Though he followed Master Bruno's teachings, he frequently traveled to hone his skills and was quite famous across different regions.
It was even rumored that his ace, Machamp, had been personally instructed by Chuck.
Others might not know, but Silas definitely did—Chuck's Machamp constantly restrained its own strength as part of its training regimen. It was Chuck's true ace Pokémon.
If Nobuhiko wasn't strong, there's no way Chuck would've mentored him.
The gap would've been too wide for any meaningful guidance it'd be like chickens and ducks talking.
Silas could only console himself: Nobuhiko wasn't being modest he just had incredibly high standards for himself.
"Anyway, lucky for you, I was planning to head to Mt. Mortar in Johto for training soon," Nobuhiko said casually.
Silas felt helpless. Did you really have to say that out loud?
"And Gym Leader Koichi's request…" he gently reminded.
"No big deal. I'll just get one of my students to watch over the place. Not like we get many visitors anyway you're the first one to come here this month."
Nobuhiko waved it off like it was nothing. What could Koichi do? Beat him up?
Even though Koichi and Bruno were friends, technically speaking, Nobuhiko was Bruno's student and therefore slightly higher in seniority than Koichi.
"Oh right—why did Shigeru end you here?" Nobuhiko poured himself another cup of tea, sipping as he asked.
"Senior Shigeru said you're really strong and told me to come learn from you." Silas repeated Yosuke's words honestly.
"Pfft."
Nobuhiko let out a mocking laugh. "Those psychics always love to act all mysterious—so weird."
Silas gave a strained smile and tugged at his own cheek. He didn't understand. He was still just a kid.
Nobuhiko looked Silas up and down carefully. His sharp gaze made Silas feel itchy all over, a deeply uncomfortable sensation.
Then Nobuhiko downed the tea in one gulp and said, "Come with me."
Silas followed him into the changing room. Nobuhiko casually pulled out a black-and-white martial arts uniform and tossed it to Silas. Then he walked out, leaving behind a single, simple sentence:
"Put it on. Come out."
Silas changed into the dojo uniform. Surprisingly, it fit perfectly.
Though Nobuhiko looked burly and rugged, he was unexpectedly meticulous even the clothes seemed freshly laundered and clean.
When Silas stepped out of the changing room, Nobuhiko was already standing at the center of the fighting platform in the room.
The entire room resembled a training dojo, with the platform at its center. All around it were scattered wooden stakes, sandbags, and other training equipment.
Nobuhiko gestured for Silas to come up. Silas immediately stepped onto the platform.
"I don't know what that mystic weirdo sent you here for, but since you're already here, I'll teach you something."
Nobuhiko stood with his hands behind his back, looking like some reclusive martial arts master if only he weren't a muscle-bound man.
"First off, you should already know that once a Trainer reaches the Elite level, their methods of command generally split into two styles."
Silas nodded. Of course he knew. But he hadn't known from the start.
This wasn't something taught in the League schools. He only learned it after joining the Pewter Gym.
And if it hadn't been for his exceptional talent, he might not have been told until he became one of the gym's core member.
This was also why the League required ordinary citizens to reach a quasi-Elite level before they could even apply for a Pokédex.
He had long held some doubts. Although most humans in this world were exceptionally strong with endurance, strength, agility, and even dynamic vision at superhuman levels compared to his past life—Pokémon were still leagues ahead.
Aside from their nearly maxed-out resistance to elemental attacks, humans were inferior in almost every way to Pokémon.
If not for the invention of the Poké Ball, humanity would probably still be living in fear of Pokémon to this day. After all, they were once called "monsters."
If Pokémon weren't generally uninterested in attacking humans who lacked substantial internal energy and if they only attacked due to their ancient predatory instincts—then the human race might've gone extinct long ago.
Even the average human, after years of training, would only be on par with a newborn Fighting-type Pokémon and even then, without the ability to use any moves.
Those with a bit more talent might barely reach the strength of a Level 5 Pokémon.
Someone like Nobuhiko, who had extraordinary talent and training under a master, had spent over 30 years to reach roughly the equivalent strength of a Level 15 Pokémon.
Not everyone could be like Chuck capable of taking down powerful Pokémon with just his bare hands.
Silas, however, was gifted. At only 16 years old, he already matched Nobuhiko physically.
For Trainers, when their Pokémon weren't overwhelmingly powerful, their own reflexes and agility were still fast enough to keep up with the rhythm of battle.
But as their Pokémon grew stronger, most people's physical capabilities couldn't keep pace with the speed of commanding them.
Silas, with his sharp mind, had sensed something was off early on. That's why he kept training his body diligently.
If not, even with his natural talent, his current physique wouldn't be nearly this strong.
But most people weren't like him. So what could they do when they could no longer keep up with their Pokémon?
That's when the Elite Four level became a turning point.
Most Elite-level Pokémon were far faster than what a human could realistically react to—whether in movement or in executing attacks.
The majority of this world's people weren't born with special abilities. But after racking their brains, they eventually found a workaround.
Prediction.
Sounds absurd, right? Isn't that just gambling?
But every Trainer who possesses Elite-level Pokémon also has immense experience in battle, and incredibly strong bonds with their Pokémon.
Based on this, someone proposed the theory: even if a Trainer couldn't clearly perceive the situation on the battlefield, they could still rely on their battle experience and deep understanding of their Pokémon to make predictive, pre-emptive commands.
Combined with the Pokémon's own ability to assess the fight and their mutual trust, they could still win battles.
Trainers who used this method were typically called the Intuitive Style.
That is, they relied on intuition and experience to make occasional key commands ones that, if successful, could decisively turn the tide.
Don't underestimate this style. If it weren't powerful, it would've been discarded long ago.
The bond between a Trainer and their Pokémon is a mysterious force. Truly powerful Intuitive Trainers were in no way inferior to the second major style the Psychic Style.
Now, the "psychic" in this context doesn't strictly refer to Psychic-type powers—it's an umbrella term for various special abilities: telepathy, Aura, the power of Viridian, the power of Sinnoh's bonds, etc.
It's just that most of these abilities are similar in function to psychic powers, and since psychics are the most common among them, the name stuck.
Trainers in this style don't need much explanation. Even just basic telepathy is enough to facilitate commands.
In real battles, although fewer people fall into the Psychic Style category, that doesn't necessarily mean they have a higher win rate than those in the Intuitive Style.
"Honestly, I think this whole League classification is pointless."
The words from Nobuhiko's mouth took Silas by surprise. What did he mean by that?
....
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