Arriving at Sabrina's residence, Sam got straight to the point and asked whether she planned to participate in the Masters Tournament.
Sabrina glanced at him.
"Don't you need to earn the first badge from Erika before you can even enter the Masters?"
Sam nodded.
At the same time, a bad feeling suddenly rose in his heart.
Could it be…
"I'm going."
Sabrina's answer was firm and decisive.
Sam's heart skipped a beat.
Sabrina had never gotten along particularly well with Erika. If those two ended up facing each other during the tournament, they might not even need Pokémon.
The battle could easily turn into a showdown between two women.
That would be far more terrifying.
For the first time, Sam regretted asking.
Seeing his silence, Sabrina narrowed her eyes.
"What? Are you afraid I'll defeat your girlfriend?"
"No, of course not," Sam said hurriedly. "Since it's the Masters Tournament, everyone should rely on their own strength."
Sabrina let out a cold snort.
The atmosphere immediately became awkward.
Sam secretly sighed.
As expected, mentioning Erika around Sabrina was like throwing a lit match into a powder keg.
After a while, Sabrina suddenly asked,
"When are we leaving?"
Sam replied,
"The first challenge is Erika, so there's no need to leave Rainbow City yet."
Sabrina nodded.
"Then I'll make my preparations."
Not daring to continue the conversation, Sam quickly left.
With some free time before the tournament began, Sam decided to examine Charizard's current status.
He opened the Pokémon panel.
[Pokémon]Charizard
Type: Fire/Flying
Category: Flame Pokémon
Fusion Rate: 100% Fusion with the Four-Tailed Sun Wukong
Ability: Blaze
Hidden Ability: Solar Power
Strength: Champion Mid-Level
The fusion rate had finally reached one hundred percent.
Perfect fusion.
However, despite reaching full synchronization with the Four-Tails, Charizard's strength had not increased as dramatically as Sam had expected.
Curious, he began experimenting with the system.
Unfortunately, no matter how many times he called for it, the system completely ignored him.
After several failed attempts, Sam gave up.
Just then, the door opened.
Erika walked in.
"What are you doing?" she asked with a smile. "Preparing for the Masters?"
Sam looked up.
"I never expected you to be the first Gym Leader."
Erika smiled and nodded.
"Surprised? You can earn your first badge very easily."
Sam already knew the requirements.
To qualify for the Masters Tournament, a Trainer needed five badges:
Stability Badge — earned from Erika
Freedom Badge — earned from Skyla
Patience Badge — earned from Norman
Unity Badge — earned from Pryce
Dignity Badge — earned from Hapu
Only after collecting all five could a Trainer enter the Masters Tournament.
"That may be true," Sam said, "but I still want to earn the badge through my own strength. If I can't defeat strong opponents fairly, then I won't get very far in the Masters."
Erika looked into his eyes.
For a moment, she found his seriousness surprisingly attractive.
Without warning, she sat down in his lap.
The two chatted for a while before Erika finally stood up.
"I should start preparing too."
Once the qualification period began, many Trainers would challenge her for the Stability Badge.
As a Gym Leader, she needed to be ready.
After Erika left, Sam found himself with nothing to do and ended up taking a nap.
Soon, the Masters qualification matches officially began.
Early in the morning, Sam met up with Ash, Brock, Misty, and Sabrina before heading to the Gym.
Erika was already waiting there.
The arena was packed.
Countless Trainers had arrived, all hoping to challenge Erika and earn the Stability Badge.
Sam stood among the crowd and watched quietly.
This time, he had no intention of asking Erika to go easy on him.
If he wanted to compete among the best, he needed to prove himself honestly.
Soon, Erika's first challenger stepped onto the battlefield.
It was Brawly from Dewford Town.
Without hesitation, Brawly threw a Poké Ball.
A flash of white light appeared.
[Pokémon]Machamp
Type: Fighting
Category: Superpower Pokémon
Ability: Guts
Hidden Ability: No Guard
Strength: Elite High-Level
Erika immediately responded.
[Pokémon]Vileplume
Type: Grass/Poison
Category: Flower Pokémon
Ability: Chlorophyll
Hidden Ability: Effect Spore
Strength: Elite Beginner-Level
The battle began instantly.
Erika struck first.
"Bullet Seed!"
Vileplume opened its mouth.
A rapid barrage of seeds shot forward like machine-gun fire, racing toward Machamp.
But Machamp reacted immediately.
A shimmering wall of psychic energy materialized before it.
The incoming seeds slammed into the barrier one after another.
Reflect!
The first exchange of the Masters qualification tournament had officially begun.