Ten days passed in a flash.
During these ten days, the Pokémon's training basically met Aoki's requirements.
This is inseparable from the large amount of resources invested. As long as the Pokémon consume a little physical strength and energy, they will have special energy cubes to replenish their physical strength.
Unless their spirit can't withstand it, Aoki will order the Pokémon to stop.
In this respect, Aoki, as a psychic, is very sensible and confident.
Moreover, Aoki also has experience in the recovery of mental strength. Basically, as long as he falls asleep, he can recover to his peak state.
It is because of such conditions that the Pokémon's growth is visible to the naked eye.
Among them, Tyranitar successfully broke through to the senior Elite Four level, which is a sign of successful training.
The other Pokémon have also improved to varying degrees.
However, once the ten days were up, Aoki decided to temporarily change things up. High-intensity training is not necessarily better the longer it lasts.
Today, Aoki took the Pokémon to Las Noz City.
That's right, Aoki was going to Las Noz City to see Steven, or rather, seeing Steven was only one part of the trip; the main purpose was to discuss a collaboration with the Zuvoki family.
The fact that Aoki was negotiating a collaboration with the Zuvoki family in his personal capacity, and that the Zuvoki family had agreed to the exchange, demonstrates the extent of Aoki's influence at this point.
Of course, Aoki's relationship with Steven also played a part.
Perhaps... there were some unspeakable secrets about the Zuvoki family as well.
In any case, Aoki, accompanied by a Riolu that had reached a normal size and a Kirlia floating beside him, was welcomed into the Zuvoki family's territory by a large group of Zuvoki family members.
This wasn't Aoki's first time here, but the difference in treatment this time compared to last time was truly significant.
Led by the butler of the Zuvoki family, Aoki arrived at the training ground that Daigo had been using recently.
Daigo was commanding his Pokémon in a battle against someone, and upon closer inspection, he realized it was his second uncle, the one who had fought alongside Elite Four member Hanazuki in the Hunter Guild battlefield—the younger brother of Grandpa Hibiscus.
While his natural talent as a trainer wasn't particularly strong, thanks to the Zuvoki family's extensive training, he had achieved his current level of combat prowess.
Aoki stood quietly to the side, watching Daigo and his uncle fight.
After the battle, Daigo immediately approached Aoki with a mocking smile. "Tell me! Did you come to gather intelligence?"
Aoki laughed back, "Yeah, that battle was quite exciting. Aren't you afraid of revealing too much and letting me know your trump cards?"
The two laughed heartily and habitually bumped fists.
Only then, as Daigo drew closer, did he fully see Aoki's face and froze for a moment.
"Um, Aoki...did you get plastic surgery? Your face seems to have changed a lot lately, but upon closer inspection, I can't quite put my finger on it. I think you're even a little more handsome now." Daigo looked at Aoki's face with surprise and even pinched his cheek to check if he'd had work done.
*Slap*
—Aoki slapped Daigo's hand away. "There's not much of a change, but there have definitely been some changes lately. I wake up every morning thinking I'm handsome, hahaha—"
"Pah—shameless! But you know what, you really are much more handsome, even though you don't look that different." Daigo said with a look of disgust.
There was still a slight difference between Aoki and Daigo's current appearance.
This was the main reason why Aoki had Giovanni have someone specially customize a special human skin mask for him.
Aoki prepared many masks, each one gradually transforming from an ordinary face into his real face. This slow transformation, while surprising, wasn't entirely unexpected.
For example, Daigo now felt that Aoki had become more handsome, but upon closer inspection, he couldn't quite pinpoint the exact changes.
With a few more changes, Aoki will be able to reveal his true form to everyone.
While this carries some risk, it's not a significant risk for a Elite Four member.
Besides, Aoki possesses special superpowers, and his body is still developing, allowing him to easily attribute the changes to these factors.
They say girls change drastically at eighteen, but who can guarantee boys won't? As long as the pace of change is controlled, anything is possible, especially since Aoki isn't even eighteen yet.
The human skin mask is made according to the original appearance; there can't be drastically different features.
After all, the eyes, nose, and mouth are in the same place; just changing the details will create a completely different face.
Aoki's current attire, demeanor, and appearance, combined, make him look more like a refined and powerful figure than before.
Daigo's second uncle also came over, showing a hint of surprise upon seeing Aoki's current appearance, but mostly satisfaction.
He nodded repeatedly.
Aoki glanced at Daigo's second uncle, feeling his gaze was a little strange.
A father-in-law looking at his son-in-law?
"Aoki, is it alright if I call you that?" Daigo's second uncle said with a smile.
Aoki nodded, keeping a hint of strangeness and doubt to himself, and said with a smile, "No problem, Daigo and I are good friends, and you are my elder, so you can call me whatever you want."
The second uncle nodded repeatedly, "Then you can call me Second Uncle just like Daigo does. Don't be too reserved, don't be too formal, just be at home. If you have any requests or needs, you can just tell the butler."
Aoki nodded again.
Was he being a little too enthusiastic? But he still said, "Okay, thank you, Second Uncle."
"Second Uncle, let's end today's training here. Doesn't Aoki have something he wants to talk to Dad about?" Daigo said.
The second uncle nodded, giving Daigo a look that only the two of them understood, "That's right, don't keep Big Brother waiting. Daigo, you take Aoki over there, I'll have someone arrange lunch, Aoki can have a simple meal with us later."
"Uh... okay." Aoki, with his keen observation, of course also noticed the look in Daigo's second uncle's eyes.
He had a vague idea of what was going on.
However... since the other party hadn't said it explicitly, he had no way to refuse; he had to obey his elders' invitation to a meal.
Daigo led Aoki towards the deepest room in the Zuvochi family compound, encountering many of Daigo's clansmen along the way.
They were all very friendly when they saw Aoki.
While it's true that a family with such a rich history as Zuvochi would have very well-mannered members, this seemed a bit too friendly.
Daigo's various aunts and uncles were practically about to launch into a thorough, interrogative conversation with Aoki.
Fortunately, Aoki had been appearing on television quite a bit lately, so everyone knew him to some extent; otherwise, introducing themselves to everyone would have been very troublesome.
Finally, after navigating the maze-like Zuvochi family castle, they arrived at the patriarch's office at the deepest part.
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Second update! Requesting monthly tickets!
(End of this chapter)