"Gligar is unable to battle! Piplup wins!"
"The winner of this match is Steven Stone from Mossdeep City!"
As the referee's voice echoed across the battle arena, the match concluded.
Crobat and Ariados, who weren't even at a type disadvantage, couldn't withstand Piplup's attacks—let alone a Ground-type Pokémon that was weak to Water-type moves.
"Piplup!"
What a thrilling battle!
Of course, Piplup was referring to his opponent's performance.
Steven and Kota shook hands amicably after the match.
"Congratulations on advancing. I hope you can claim the Champion title," Kota said without appearing overly dejected. Instead, he smiled lightly and added, "That way, it won't be embarrassing that I lost to the Champion!"
He had already mentally prepared himself the moment he'd drawn Steven Stone as his opponent.
Being overwhelmingly defeated was normal—exactly as expected.
"Yes, I will," Steven replied simply before leaving the venue with Piplup.
The next match would be the round of sixteen, and the quarterfinals would take place in the central area—the largest venue of all.
Steven returned to his room to watch the matches of various contestants on television.
Fortunately, the room was spacious enough to accommodate all of Steven's Pokémon.
However, with Metagross and Aggron occupying space, it did feel somewhat crowded.
"Piplup, come hold this."
Steven retrieved a Pokémon Egg from the incubator and handed it to Piplup.
"Piplup?! (⊙_⊙)?"
Why me?
Piplup accepted the Pokémon Egg, looking somewhat bewildered.
"Although this little one is still in the egg, it can sense the outside world," Steven explained with a light chuckle.
"Once it becomes familiar with your scent, it will naturally grow close to you when it hatches. It will be your second-best friend!"
Piplup was confused at first.
Then Piplup suddenly understood!
Piplup gladly accepted the responsibility!
"Piplup~"
Little buddy, come out quickly~
"Piplup?!"
You mean... a sword will hatch from this?!
We'll go into battle together!
Wouldn't that be wonderful?!
Steven had no idea what Piplup was muttering to himself. He picked up Riolu, who was clinging to Scizor nearby, and placed the Fighting-type on the bed.
He groomed Riolu while narrating the battles playing on the television.
This was perhaps the most effective way for Steven to strengthen his bond with Riolu.
Riolu felt Steven's hand gently stroking his fur while listening attentively to Steven's narration.
He simply felt a sense of familiarity wash over him.
Soon, the third day of the competition arrived.
Steven made it a habit to find a suitable location to train with his Pokémon each evening after the lottery draw.
Metagross and the others wouldn't need to take the field anytime soon, and there might not even be a need for them to appear at all.
Therefore, the intensity of their training was left to their own discretion.
Arena One, morning session.
These were the round of sixteen battles, so each smaller venue would only host two matches today.
"The green side contestant is Steven Stone, who has advanced with overwhelming victories!"
"The red side contestant is Summer, who only had one Pokémon faint across all his previous matches!"
"Who will emerge victorious and earn their ticket to the top eight in the main arena?! Let's wait and see!"
"Now, please welcome both contestants!"
Steven and Summer emerged from the contestant tunnel and walked directly toward each other.
They met at the center of the battle arena for the customary pre-match handshake.
"Your journey in this tournament ends here," Summer declared with apparent confidence.
Even the smile on his face carried a hint of mockery.
"You've made it this far by defeating weak opponents—no amount of publicity will help you now."
"Oh," Steven responded indifferently.
Publicity? Hype?
I don't know anything about that.
After each match, he'd simply stayed in his room grooming Riolu and ventured out for evening training sessions.
"Hmph!" Seeing Steven's dismissive attitude, Summer immediately became enraged.
He angrily jerked his hand away from Steven's grip and turned to walk toward his designated position.
"Piplup?"
Is he your enemy?
Piplup tugged curiously at Steven's pant leg.
"I don't know," Steven looked down at Piplup and shrugged.
He's probably... jealous?
Steven had witnessed Summer's capabilities in previous matches.
Summer was the type who lacked skill but remained overconfident.
He'd reached this point by defeating weak opponents.
That earlier statement should have been a self-introduction.
Steven didn't pay it much attention and turned to walk to his designated position.
"Steven Stone from Mossdeep City versus Summer from Striaton City in the Unova Region! Let the battle begin!"
The referee waved his flags, officially starting the match!
Steven simply raised his chin slightly, and Piplup walked onto the field.
"Let me teach you what true strength looks like!" Summer said coldly, throwing the Poké Ball in his hand high into the air.
Bang!
A large, blue Seismitoad covered with numerous wart-like protrusions appeared on the field.
A Water and Ground dual-type—Seismitoad!
"Seismitoad, huh? If it's not for a rain team..." Steven began analyzing the situation.
Leading with Seismitoad likely ruled out the Swift Swim ability, unless Summer planned for Seismitoad to set up Rain Dance itself.
The remaining possibilities were Poison Touch and Water Absorb.
This Seismitoad hadn't appeared in any of Summer's previous matches, so Steven could only make judgments based on their brief encounter.
"It appears to be meant as a counter to Piplup, so the ability is most likely Water Absorb."
"Piplup!"
Piplup's gaze sharpened as he drew the toy sword from his waist.
This opponent!
He's worth drawing my blade for!
"Oh! What do we have here! The sword that Piplup always carries has been unsheathed! What kind of held item could this be?!"
"Uh... no matter how I examine it, it simply looks like a common toy from any store?"
"Is there some deeper meaning behind Piplup always carrying it?"
The commentator grew excited upon seeing Piplup actually draw his sword in response.
However, the staff behind him had nearly exhausted their reference materials and still couldn't identify any information about the sword in Piplup's flipper.
Summer gritted his teeth and glared toward the commentary booth.
His Seismitoad forced Piplup to draw its sword, yet they didn't mention his Pokémon at all?!
"Very well! Today I'll demonstrate that no amount of publicity matters in actual battle!"
"Seismitoad, Earthquake!"
Seismitoad slammed its thick arms forcefully onto the ground!
A wave of seismic energy suddenly spread from beneath the surface!
"Water Pulse."
Piplup raised the toy sword in his flipper and slashed downward!
He slammed the water sphere condensed on the sword's tip into the ground.
The visible water waves and the invisible Earthquake energy collided!
Although Summer's commands sounded fierce, his Seismitoad was merely at the Alpha level.
Facing a Overlord-level Piplup, it couldn't possibly win a direct clash of moves.
The energy from Water Pulse broke through the Earthquake's force and struck Seismitoad directly.
However, Seismitoad, despite being affected by the residual energy from Water Pulse, remained completely unharmed.
This confirmed Steven's assessment—this was indeed a Water Absorb Seismitoad.
"Time to get serious, Piplup."
"Piplup!"
I've been serious this entire time!