When energy is abundant, and there are no injuries to worry about. Battle becomes the fastest and most efficient way for a Pokémon to grow.
And without a doubt, Lugia had perfected this method and applied it fully to Greninja.
Low on energy? Go to the deep-sea trench and absorb more.
Injured from battle? A lineup of support Pokémon would be ready to help with healing.
Hit a bottleneck? Then keep battling, never stop battling, fight like your life depends on it.
And then, naturally… the breakthrough came.
---◓---
No one knew how much time had passed. When Greninja finally defeated a Peak Elite Four level Azumarill and waited for the next opponent, it saw Lugia appear before it.
"LU-GI-AAAAA!!!"
With a loud and long cry, Lugia lowered its head and stared at Greninja for a long while. Then it slightly shifted its body, and a silver feather fell into Greninja's hand.
In the next moment, the feather emitted a blinding silver light, startling Greninja into reflexively letting go.
But the silver feather didn't fall. Instead, it turned into a puddle of silvery-white liquid and quickly seeped into Greninja's body.
"Gre?"
Greninja lightly patted its hands, curious as to where the silver feather -or rather, the silver liquid- had gone.
But Lugia clearly had no intention of explaining. It summoned an enormous Wailord.
Lead the way. Time to leave!
Greninja was stunned to realize it had actually completed the training set by Lugia. Then came the rush of exhilaration, excitement, and eagerness.
It, Greninja, could finally go home!
---◓---
Kanto League Headquarters, President's Office.
Goodshow was swinging his short legs as he handled League affairs, occasionally sipping from the glass of orange juice beside him, completely at ease~
Suddenly!
Goodshow sat up straight, lifting a document in front of him and reading every word on it carefully.
The content was simple, but to Charles Goodshow, it was undoubtedly a surprise!
Or perhaps… a shock.
After a long while, Goodshow put down the document and tapped his desk in silence.
"Haaahh… So in the end… you were the first to step forward."
The document read clearly:
[◓⃙-Johto Champion Position Application
Applicant: DarKnight Elite Four, Yuga Sato-◓⃙]
---◓---
That evening, the news of Sato applying for the Champion position spread throughout the entire Johto Region!
With Cynthia from the neighboring Sinnoh Region having gone first, no one doubted the young Sato's qualifications anymore.
If someone else's kid could do it, then our own surely could too… right!?
But most people only accepted it on the surface. Deep down, they couldn't stay calm.
Once Mark, Sen, and Will -all out on assignments- began returning to the Johto League branch, everyone finally realized…
Sato… WAS DEAD SERIOUS!
---◓---
"Need me to go over the Champion Challenge rules again? Are you really sure about this?"
At his mansion in Silver Town, Joseph looked seriously at Sato.
As longtime friends, Joseph believed he understood Sato pretty well.
But challenging for the Champion title… wasn't it still too soon?
Sato lay on the sofa, casually flipping through the Champion Challenge confirmation form. Then, right before Joseph's widened eyes, he signed his name without a hint of hesitation.
Lifting his head, Sato found Joseph's expression rather amusing.
"Mm… I see. It's been a while since we've battled. How about a match?"
Joseph let out a soft sigh. He was still worried Sato might be rushing into this because of Cynthia.
So this time, he didn't hesitate to agree.
"Then let's battle!"
Four minutes later, Joseph silently recalled his fallen Gogoat…
It was currently his strongest Pokémon, and its strength had reached Peak Elite Four level.
But facing Greninja, not even a single scratch had been left on its body. Its aura was completely the same as usual.
Joseph pointed at Greninja and opened his mouth, but was too stunned to say anything.
"I-I… It…"
"Mm. Champion level."
"…T-Then Zoroark and the others…"
Sato smiled. "Well… More than enough to serve as a regional Champion~"
Joseph stood frozen, feeling a bit defeated, but soon his heart filled only with sincere blessings.
"Had me worried for nothing. Guess I really haven't battled you in too long, I forgot you're a monster among monsters~" Joseph muttered, half-joking.
Sato chuckled. Showing off in front of Joseph like this!
…It really wasn't easy.
But it felt great.
That kind of quiet satisfaction.
---◓---
A week later, preparations for the Champion Challenge were complete. All three other Elite Four had arrived.
The rules of the challenge were simple: Sato would fight the other three Elite Four in a gauntlet battle, with no breaks and no changes to the original six Pokémon selected.
Only after defeating all three Elite Four would he be declared the winner!
Cynthia had already completed this path in the Sinnoh Region.
Now…
It was Sato's turn!
---◓---
Thump!
The gates to the arena opened, and Sato walked out of the tunnel under a blazing light.
Looking at the packed stadium, Sato had the idle curiosity to wonder, how did the League manage to sell so many tickets in such a short time?
More importantly… 'how were there so many people actually showing up?'
"""""""SATOOOOOO! CHAMPIOOOON! SATO-SAMAAA! DARKNIGHT CHAMPION!..."""""""
The coordinated chant echoed to the skies. Sato waved his hand around at the crowd, instantly stirring up an even louder wave of cheers.
He was already very familiar with this whole routine.
As the chanting gradually died down, across the arena, Elite Four Will slowly walked out as well.
The audience cheered warmly, but it was nowhere near the response Sato had received.
Facing each other, both of them appeared calm. Will didn't even show much fighting spirit.
Publicly or privately, Will really didn't mind just letting Sato pass through. But in front of so many people, he figured he had to at least put on a show.
Soon, both sides sent out their Pokémon.
Sato immediately sent out the highly mobile Honchkrow.
And Will sent out the representative of Psychic-types: Alakazam!
As the referee announced the start, both Alakazam and Honchkrow moved almost at the same time.
Miracle Eye flared brightly; this was the core move that allowed Psychic-type attacks to affect Dark-type Pokémon.
Will didn't even have to say a word. Alakazam had already "inserted the eye."
…But in the next moment, a shadow flashed past Alakazam and took it away in an instant.
…BOOOM!
The sound of impact echoed, and on the far edge of the arena wall, Alakazam was already slumped down, its eyes swirling, completely unconscious.
INSTANT KNOCKOUT!
In an Elite Four level battle…
An instant kill in one strike…
Was the strength gap really this big!?
Will stared blankly at the fallen Alakazam. He hadn't even had time to establish a mental link before his Pokémon was already down.
He had miscalculated.
Sato didn't need him to hold back at all!
The only thing this match could offer was the chance to make the loss look… not too embarrassing.
"…Slowbro, give it everything!"
"…Bro."
Will sent out his second Pokémon. His entire aura shifted, and even his hair began to lift slightly, he activated full Psychic amplification.
"Slowbro, Trick Room!"