After the battle ended, Shōshi gracefully crouched down and gently stroked Budew's bud, saying softly, "Thank you for your hard work, Budew. Come back and rest."
A flash of red light occurred, and Budew was withdrawn into its Poké Ball.
He stood up and walked over to Dawn, a gentle and appreciative smile on his face: "That was a wonderful battle, Miss Dawn. The chemistry and expressiveness between you and Piplup were excellent, especially the way you improvised a defense using Bubble Beam at the end; it was very inspired."
Dawn also hurriedly withdrew the panting Piplup into its Poké Ball. Although not winning left her a bit disappointed, she still responded with a generous smile: "Thank you, Mr. Shōshi. Your Budew is truly amazing. Whether it was the transition between moves or the display of style, everything was just right. I learned a lot from this battle."
She paused, a smile full of energy blooming on her face again. "But the next time we meet, I will definitely win! No problem, no problem!"
At this moment, Shinji also stepped forward, his dark purple eyes calmly scanning Dawn. His tone was flat, without a hint of emotion, yet he delivered a ruthless evaluation: "According to the rules of a Contest, you are full of openings. You focus too much on the visual effects of the moves while ignoring the fluidity of transitions. You also don't know how to guide or even utilize the opponent's moves to highlight your own Pokémon's characteristics and advantages. Idiot."
If she had heard such an evaluation when they first met, Dawn would likely have been jumping with rage again.
But at this moment, she just puffed out her cheeks and glared at Shinji with her deep blue eyes. Knowing that the shortcomings he pointed out were indeed real, she could only huff with a hint of reluctance: "I know, I know. You really are... I'll keep working hard!"
After complaining about Shinji, Dawn turned back to Shōshi and asked curiously, "Mr. Shōshi, from what you just said, do you also intend to challenge the Contests?"
"No." Shōshi shook his head slightly, a look of conflict appearing on his face. "I haven't decided yet whether to participate in Contests or challenge the Sinnoh League. Both are very attractive, making it hard for me to choose."
"That's simple!" Dawn's eyes lit up as she immediately offered a suggestion, pointing at Shinji beside her. "He's a Trainer who specifically challenges the Sinnoh League. Why don't you two have a battle? Once you experience both modes of battling, you'll know which one you prefer!"
"That is indeed a good suggestion." Shōshi's eyes brightened upon hearing this, and he turned to Shinji, issuing an invitation with a sincere tone: "Then Shinji, please have a battle with me."
Hearing Shōshi's words, Dawn was afraid Shinji would say something hurtful like 'waste of time' or 'not strong enough.' She quickly reached out and tugged at Shinji's sleeve, giving him a look that carried a hint of pleading.
She knew Shinji's personality too well. If he refused directly, the situation would inevitably be awkward.
Shinji felt the pull on his sleeve and caught Dawn's pleading look, his heart stirring slightly.
At the same time, he thought that Chimchar's training currently needed practical experience, and the opponent before him was just right.
So he didn't hesitate and nodded slightly: "Fine."
Dawn immediately breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly led the two to the open space from before, while she stepped back to the edge to act as a spectator.
Shinji and Shōshi stood facing each other. Shinji spoke first to establish the rules: "A one-on-one battle, how about it?"
"I'm fine with that." Shōshi nodded gently, his expression becoming more serious for the battle.
"Chimchar, prepare for battle." Before his voice even faded, Shinji had already taken a Poké Ball from his lower back and tossed it lightly.
A white light flashed, and the agile Chimchar landed steadily on the field. The flame on its rear burned vigorously, and it looked at the opponent with a wary gaze.
Shōshi didn't hesitate either, taking out his Poké Ball and throwing it: "Kricketune, I'm counting on you."
Another flash of white light occurred, and a Pokémon with a red body that looked somewhat like a violin appeared on the field. It was indeed a Kricketune.
"Wow, it's a Kricketune!" Dawn immediately took out her Pokédex and scanned Kricketune. The mechanical synthesized voice of the Pokédex followed: "Kricketune, the Cricket Pokémon. It uses its wings to make music-like sounds and attacks opponents by vibrating its wings."
With a thought, the light blue system panel instantly surfaced in Shinji's mind, precisely scanning the Kricketune on the field. Detailed information was clearly presented:
[Kricketune ♦]
Level: 20 (Advanced)
Type: Bug
Ability: Swarm
Potential: Medium
Base Stats: 384
Moves: Tackle, Sing, Fury Cutter, Slash
Shinji understood. A very ordinary Kricketune. There was a 6-level gap between it and the level 14 Chimchar, making it perfectly qualified to be an experience fodder for Chimchar.
However, its "Sing" move was a bit troublesome and had to be guarded against in advance.
"Alright, you go first." Shinji habitually gave the first move to the opponent, hands in his pockets, his expression indifferent.
"Then I won't be polite!" Shōshi said deeply. "Kricketune, use Sing!"
Kricketune vibrated its wings, emitting a melodious song with a hypnotic effect. The sound waves spread toward Chimchar.
Hearing Shōshi's command, a flash of understanding crossed Shinji's eyes. As expected, he used Sing.
"Chimchar, Glare!" Shinji's cool voice followed immediately.
Chimchar's eyes immediately glowed red, staring menacingly at Kricketune.
The intense intimidation instantly disrupted Kricketune's rhythm, and the melodious song came to an abrupt halt.
"Flame Wheel."
Shinji's cool voice rang out again.
Chimchar was instantly enveloped in flames, transforming into a wheel of fire. With an unstoppable momentum, it slammed into Kricketune.
"Bang!"
With a dull thud, Kricketune was sent flying. It rolled twice on the ground before barely stopping, having taken significant damage from that hit.
"Ember."
However, Shinji had no sympathy. To him, the point of a real battle was to completely overwhelm the opponent.
What he wanted was a ruthless offense to knock the opponent down.
Chimchar opened its mouth and spat out a series of hot Embers, accurately hitting the sluggish Kricketune.
With another dull thud, after being hit by the Embers, Kricketune could no longer hold on. Its eyes turned into swirls as it collapsed on the ground, losing its ability to battle.
"Kricketune is unable to battle. Chimchar wins!" Dawn, watching from the side, naturally acted as the temporary referee, announcing the result loudly. Her face was full of excitement as she clapped her hands and cheered for Chimchar.
Faced with Shinji's swift and fierce offense, Shōshi and Kricketune were completely defenseless.
Shōshi shook his head helplessly and walked forward to withdraw Kricketune: "Thank you for your hard work, Kricketune."
However, at the very moment Shinji was about to withdraw Chimchar.
Chimchar on the field suddenly tilted its head back and opened its mouth. A fierce flame, several times thicker than Ember, erupted out. The scorching fire sliced through the air with a crackling sound; it was Flamethrower.
"Wow! Is that... Flamethrower?!" Dawn's eyes widened in surprise, and she shouted excitedly, "Chimchar learned a new move!"
Shinji was also somewhat surprised, an imperceptible flicker passing through his dark purple eyes.
He immediately used his thought to call up the system panel to check Chimchar's information.
The panel showed that Chimchar had already reached level 15.
Shinji understood. So that was it; under the pressure of battle, it had completely mastered Flamethrower.
In the games, Chimchar evolves at level 16. Although evolution in the real world didn't have such strict level restrictions, level 15 indicated that its strength was already close to the threshold of evolution.
Although he felt happy inside for Chimchar's growth, Shinji's face remained expressionless. He simply gave Chimchar a slight nod.
On the other hand, Dawn had already run to Chimchar's side, crouching down to excitedly stroke its head: "Chimchar, you're so amazing! You actually learned Flamethrower. That's incredible!"
Chimchar was a bit embarrassed by the praise. It scratched its head with a happy smile on its face, and the flames around its body became much softer.
Shōshi also walked over and said sincerely to Shinji and Chimchar: "Congratulations, Shinji. Your Chimchar has mastered a new power. Moreover, your Chimchar is very well-trained; its attacks are decisive and fierce."
"This battle has benefited me greatly and has also helped me make a decision."
Shinji nodded slightly and responded succinctly: "Thanks."
Dawn hurriedly asked curiously, "Mr. Shōshi, have you decided which path to choose?"
"Yes." Shōshi nodded with a smile, his eyes filled with determination. "I've decided to participate in both. Contests can showcase the style of Pokémon, while the Sinnoh League can temper their strength. The two don't conflict. I want to use this way to more comprehensively experience the meaning of traveling with Pokémon."
"Wow, that's such a cool decision!" Dawn praised sincerely. "I'm sure you'll achieve great results in both!"
"Thank you for the well-wishes, Miss Dawn." Shōshi smiled gently, then looked at Shinji and Dawn. "I have my own travel plans, so I won't disturb you any further. I hope we'll have the chance to meet again."
"We definitely will!" Dawn nodded vigorously.
Shinji also gave Shōshi a slight nod as a farewell.
Shōshi waved his hand and turned to walk in the opposite direction of Jubilife City, gradually disappearing into the woods.
Watching Shōshi's receding figure, Dawn turned to Shinji with a smile full of energy: "Shinji, let's keep going too! Onward to Jubilife City!"
"Yeah." Shinji responded and withdrew Chimchar, taking the first step forward.
Dawn quickly caught up. The sunlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves, casting long shadows of the two as they stretched toward Jubilife City.