Littleroot Town.
Eastern Orchard.
Shiro moved quickly through the orchard. Officer Jenny followed closely behind him while the petite Nurse Joy had no choice but to jog to keep up.
A few moments later, Shiro suddenly stopped. After confirming that there were no humans or Pokémon nearby, he turned around and asked, "Nurse Joy, Officer Jenny, what do your families want?"
"My research institute hasn't even been built yet. Although I'm the Galar Champion, I'm afraid that doesn't have much to do with Kanto or Hoenn."
The two women immediately tried to speak at the same time, but Nurse Joy was still catching her breath, so Officer Jenny spoke first. "The Jenny family wants the right to act as your representative and distribute the three starter Pokémon to new trainers."
"Act as my representative to distribute the three starters..."
Shiro frowned slightly.
As far as he knew, distributing Pokémon was indeed the responsibility of the local Professor's research institute. However, trainers who couldn't make it to a Professor's laboratory usually chose to go to a Pokémon Center instead.
Pokémon Centers had already become the largest public institution of the League, not only in Kanto but throughout the entire Pokémon world. From healing Pokémon to handling various other matters, many trainers had already grown accustomed to relying on them.
In many places, the Joy family's Pokémon Centers were practically the local League's presence made visible.
So why choose the Jenny family?
"The Jenny family has police stations in major cities across every region. Just like Pokémon Centers, we can make it convenient for local trainers to receive their Pokémon. In some smaller towns that don't even have Pokémon Centers, there are still Jenny family police stations," Officer Jenny explained rapidly.
"How many League-registered trainers could those small towns possibly have?" Nurse Joy's petite face showed a slightly disdainful smile. She then added seriously, "Professor Shiro, the Joy family intends to establish a closer alliance with you. At every Pokémon Center, every member of the Joy family can provide you with any service you need."
She emphasized the word "any."
"Whether you need Pokémon Eggs, items, Evolution Stones, Pokéblocks, or anything else, as long as the Joy family can provide it, we will do so without any problem."
Hearing this, Officer Jenny couldn't help but snap, "Joy! Are you a toilet?"
Despite the insult, Nurse Joy remained as calm as ever. She simply looked at Officer Jenny and asked, "Jenny, aren't you the same?"
Officer Jenny froze as if someone had cast a binding spell on her. After staring blankly for a few moments, she was left speechless.
However, she didn't dwell on the matter. At a time like this, winning the right to act as Shiro's representative wasn't something that could be decided by whoever had the sharper tongue.
Although Nurse Joy's offer was tempting, Officer Jenny couldn't see even the slightest trace of desire in the man's eyes. There was only indifference.
As long as they could offer something that truly interested him, the Jenny family still had a chance to obtain the right to represent him in Hoenn's Pokémon distribution. For the Jenny family, this would be a landmark victory.
It would mean taking a big bite out of the territory the Joy family had been steadily expanding.
Officer Jenny frowned deeply, took a breath, and gently brushed her short teal-colored hair aside. She recalled the promises made by her family's elders and began to think.
The conditions she had thought of and could offer earlier were actually almost identical to what Nurse Joy had proposed. There was barely any difference between them.
But what if this youngest Pokémon Professor was not like Professor Sycamore of the Kalos region, who supposedly had a liking for women?
What did he want?
Galar Champion. Hoenn Pokémon Professor… Pokémon. Pokémon!
Officer Jenny suddenly remembered that one of Shiro's Pokémon was a Growlithe.
The Pokémon her family specialized in raising was also the Growlithe line.
However, this kind of Pokémon-related assistance was already included in their original promise, so it couldn't really be considered an advantage… But what if Shiro truly cared about such things? What if his first priority was the strength of his Pokémon?
Even if Nurse Joy could provide a complete set of training methods for Chansey and other healing Pokémon, it would still be inferior to Growlithe if Shiro didn't need those Pokémon.
No. She had to emphasize this advantage.
Officer Jenny's gaze became firm. Her heroic-looking face was filled with seriousness as she slowly said, "The Jenny family has trained the Arcanine line for generations. I heard that Professor Shiro also has a Growlithe. Has it already reached the Gym-level?"
"The Jenny family has a training method that can allow an Arcanine to reach the Champion-level directly, along with resources that can improve its potential and accelerate its growth."
Shiro's eyes lit up slightly after hearing this. He was clearly tempted.
Growlithe's strength had been steadily increasing every day, and its training had never been neglected, but its growth was simply too slow. In fact, all of the Pokémon he had were growing too slowly.
Whenever he thought about the many Champion-level trainers in this world, as well as the hidden Master-level trainers, he couldn't help feeling a sense of danger.
There was also Unown A. Although using the power of the Unown was extremely satisfying, that power ultimately didn't belong to him. If something went wrong, he would still have to rely on his own Pokémon.
The Indigo Plateau Conference he had agreed to with Agatha was not far away…
Although Shiro didn't know how intense this year's conference would be, judging from the rumors he had heard, it should be a world-level competition for Pokémon Masters.
Some old-timers might even come forward to organize it. It would be a crucial tournament for determining the League's higher-ranking positions.
If Growlithe could reach the Champion-level before the Indigo Plateau Conference, together with Corviknight and Gengar, who was about to break through, he would be able to face at least two Champion-level Pokémon at the same time. Whether he participated in the conference or fought in the wild, things would be much safer.
Increasing his strength had to be his top priority.
Shiro asked tentatively, "What if I need Growlithe to have the strength to challenge the Champion-level within six months?"
Officer Jenny didn't answer immediately. After hesitating for a moment, she said, "I need to take a look at your Growlithe."
Shiro did not hesitate. He took out a Poké Ball and released Growlithe.
Looking at the familiar Pokémon in front of her, Officer Jenny was shocked.
The Growlithe before her had actually already reached the peak of the Gym-level.
The Arcanine she had herself had only just entered the Gym-level, and it had relied on an Evolution Stone to break through. Based on what Shiro had said, she had assumed that his Growlithe would be lucky to have just entered the Gym-level.
Now, it seemed that it had already broken through a long time ago.
"This Growlithe..."
Officer Jenny suddenly found herself at a loss for words.
Although she was also a Growlithe trainer, her own Pokémon's development had already fallen far behind. If this had been one of the family's senior experts, that would have been understandable, but what guidance could she possibly give him herself?
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