Pokemon: Spiritual Master-Chapter 589: The Future Belongs to You

It was Blue's turn.

Actually, with Blue's personality, he had already sensed the power gap between himself, Red, and Teacher Johan. There was no need to battle anymore; they weren't on the same level.

It was like in the Special manga when Red and Blue first met and encountered Mew—Blue decisively withdrew.

However, the opportunity to challenge Teacher Johan was truly rare, and his life trajectory had already deviated significantly from the Special manga, so he still wanted to try.

"Go, Pidgeotto!"

Replacing Red on the field, Blue decisively threw his Poké Ball, summoning the Pokémon he had prepared for battle.

"Screech——!!"

The "house bird" of the Kanto region, the evolved form of Pidgey, a Normal and Flying-type Pokémon, Pidgeotto.

Blue's Pokémon could actually be divided into two periods.

One was from when he started his journey until he completed the Indigo Plateau and challenged the Elite Four to become Champion.

The other was shortly after becoming Champion, when he was defeated by Red and returned to serve as the Viridian City Gym Leader.

In the Viridian Gym, Blue obtained "The Secret of the Earth" left by Boss Giovanni, and using this, he trained a new team of Pokémon.

In just over a year, he trained that team to a level where they could compete with Red.

This was what people called a "breeder."

But the current Blue... was still only in the first stage.

Johan didn't know if he would ever reach the second stage.

"A Flying-type Pidgeotto to counter Larvitar's Ground-type moves?" Lance nodded slightly. When it came to Flying-types, he had quite the authority.

"But Larvitar is also a Rock-type Pokémon. Isn't he concerned about Larvitar's Rock-type moves?" Lucian looked quite interested.

"Battle begin!" Professor Oak didn't show much inclination to favor his grandson.

Blue was a proud person with strong self-esteem. He always looked down on trainers who were weaker or not very clever.

Professor Oak had actually spoken to Blue about this, but his personality was just that way.

So, in Professor Oak's view, letting Blue taste defeat wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

"Pidgeotto, Sand Attack!" Blue's expression was calm, his eyes half-closed, seizing the initiative just like Red had.

Against Teacher Johan, if they didn't seize the initiative... they might not even get a chance to make a move.

"Screech!!"

Pidgeotto let out a long cry, flapping its wings to stir up sand and direct it toward Larvitar's face.

Larvitar was indeed a Rock-type Pokémon, but Rock-type moves... often had some "issues" with accuracy.

Such as Rock Slide, Rock Throw, and even Stone Edge.

Using Sand Attack to lower Larvitar's accuracy, then using the Flying-type Pokémon's speed and aerial advantage to outmaneuver it... this was Blue's battle plan.

"A very clever little fellow," Lucian crossed his legs and adjusted his glasses.

Compared to Flint's appreciation for Red's passion, Lucian admired Blue's calmness and planning more.

But...

Formulating a strategy was one thing; whether the strategy could be implemented... was another matter entirely.

Poof——

Larvitar got a face full of sand.

"Yoji?"

Larvitar wiped its face, looked at the Pidgeotto flying into the air, and then... grinned.

Using Sand Attack against the Tyrant of the Desert—no, against the child of the Tyrant of the Desert?

You guys are really... mischievous!

"Sandstorm," Johan's voice came.

"Yoji!!"

If that's the case, let me show you what real sand is!

Larvitar called out in its childish voice, and streams of sand coiled like small snakes, swirling around Larvitar's feet.

The next second.

Bang!!!

Countless sand particles exploded, and yellow sand instantly covered the entire battlefield. Pidgeotto was immediately enveloped in the sandstorm, looking somewhat panicked at the surrounding sand.

Wait, I just threw a tiny bit of sand, and you respond with such a massive sandstorm?

"Calm down, Pidgeotto, Quick Attack!"

"Screech——!!"

Blue's voice quickly steadied Pidgeotto from its panic. It flapped its wings vigorously and, wrapped in white light, darted to the side to dodge.

Whoosh——

Just as Pidgeotto flew away, a rock like a cannonball shot up from below, missing it.

Seeing this, Johan raised an eyebrow, showing a bit of surprise.

"Not bad reaction speed," Lucian nodded.

"But it's useless," Flint added.

Sure enough.

Just then.

Whoosh——

Another huge rock was thrown up from below.

"Pidgeotto, dodge quickly!" Blue called out in a deep voice.

Bang!!

Despite Pidgeotto's best efforts to dodge, the rock still grazed its wing as it flew past.

"Yoji..."

Larvitar below smacked its lips.

When it comes to "bird hunting," I still have a big gap compared to hammer sister... I should learn from her in the future.

But it's okay.

If accuracy isn't enough, quantity makes up for it!

In the sandstorm, one could vaguely see that on the ground, around Larvitar's feet... there were numerous rocks of various sizes.

The two just thrown were merely testing the waters. Next...

Would be the real move!

"Larvitar, knock it down."

"Yoji!!"

Larvitar stomped on the ground, causing all the surrounding rocks to jump up, and then it quickly, whoosh whoosh whoosh——

Rapidly threw a large number of rock projectiles into the air.

"Screech?!"

When Pidgeotto finally stabilized itself without falling, it opened its eyes only to see... a mass of rocks already appearing before it, as if covering the sky.

How... to dodge this?

Bang!!

Bang bang bang——

The dust suddenly all dispersed, and Pidgeotto fell to the ground.

"Pidgeotto has lost its ability to battle!" Professor Oak announced the result.

"Your idea was quite good," Johan nodded, commenting.

Blue recalled Pidgeotto and looked at the Poké Ball in his hand, falling into silence.

The gap was too large.

Johan, with Larvitar, walked up to Red and Blue. He patted Blue's shoulder and said to both of them:

"Don't be discouraged. Keep up the good work. The future belongs to you."

The future belongs to us?

Red's eyes immediately brightened, and Blue also put aside his previous disappointment, his eyes glimmering.

In the future, when their strength increased, they would definitely come back to challenge Teacher Johan!

"That phrase sounds familiar," Steven pondered.

"Indeed, I think I've heard it somewhere before," Flint nodded.

After Red and Blue completed their challenges, they left with Professor Oak on a flight that same night.

Their journey wasn't over yet, or rather, it had just begun. Now they would return and continue their travels.

The difference was that after watching the matches during this time and challenging Johan, the two had broadened their horizons considerably.

Hopefully, in the future, they would avoid some detours... maybe.

"I heard you had a battle with two youngsters."

On the second-floor balcony of Cynthia's residence, the two sat at a table under the moonlight.

"Melo~~Melo~~"

Meloetta danced gracefully under the moonlight, humming an ancient song, looking quite happy.

Garchomp squatted on the roof, basking in the moonlight, its eyes constantly fixed on Johan.

"Ka-kaah~~"

Gengar hugged Garchomp's shoulders.

Don't be tense, let's enjoy the moonlight together.

Such is the "plastic sisterhood"—fighting to the death during battles, then arm in arm afterward.

"Garrr——"

Garchomp gave a low grunt and turned its head away.

"They were two very interesting youngsters," Johan smiled and nodded.

He didn't know how far they would grow in the future.

But he was somewhat looking forward to it.

When Red and Blue grew up, and then encountered Ash who was just starting his journey, what wonderful things might happen?

It would definitely be fun...

"Your smile is a bit..."

Looking at Johan's unconsciously raised "Gengar signature" smile, Cynthia rested her chin and gently stroked Ninetales a couple of times.

"Oowoo~~"

"Ahem, ahem..." Johan coughed twice and put away his expression.

He was being "infected" by Gengar more and more seriously.

"What are your plans now?" he asked, changing the subject.

"Hmm, next..." Cynthia fell into thought.

The "Youth Master World Championship" was over, and trainers from all over the Pokémon world were successively leaving.

For instance, Professor Oak and his group had already gone back, and Lance, Lorelei, Leon, Carina, and others would also leave on the earliest flights or ferries after receiving their competition rewards tomorrow.

Lucian, Flint, Aaron, and others had received messages from the Sinnoh League and were also preparing to return to Sinnoh.

As a Sinnoh native, Cynthia had also received a message.

In fact, the Sinnoh League's attitude was quite clear. As the first to implement younger leadership in the League, they had already internally designated Lucian, Flint, Cynthia, and others as candidates for the Elite Four and even Champion positions.

Or more accurately, they had earned the qualifications to challenge for these positions.

After returning this time, under the witness of the Sinnoh League's top officials, if they completed the challenge and achieved victory, they would become members of the Sinnoh League's Elite Four!

Of course, they might still need some time to settle down and digest what they had learned from this competition.

And this challenge would not be public.

Actually, Johan felt that there was a high probability that the older members of the Sinnoh League would "go easy" on them.

Had Flint unconsciously already become an Elite Four member?

And with Cynthia becoming Champion, could it be far off?

"What about you? Do you have any plans?" Cynthia asked in return.

"Me?"

Johan smiled.

Previously, when Drake came to watch the competition, he had already told him and Steven that after the competition ended, they should visit the Hoenn League headquarters, though he didn't say why.

Based on Johan's understanding of Drake, he could guess with his rear end what going to the Hoenn League headquarters was about.

It was undoubtedly to have him or Steven accept an Elite Four position or something similar.

If it had been before he understood what being an Elite Four member meant, hearing such news, Johan would definitely have been excited.

Elite Four!

In the entire Pokémon world, except for the Galar region which didn't have Elite Four, every other region had only four such positions!

It almost represented the highest power in a region and was a symbol of status—how prestigious was that?

But after meeting the Elite Four of both Sinnoh and Hoenn regions, Johan understood...

Elite Four?

Just high-level workhorses. freewebnσvel.cøm

Hoenn's Glacia, Sinnoh's current Bertha and future Lucian—weren't they all living "examples"?

In a region, at least two "workhorses" among the Elite Four had to work diligently to complete the work of all four Elite Four members.

Of course, exceptions like Lucian, a "top workhorse" who could do the work of two, existed.

But what about Hoenn?

Just Glacia alone.

Busy from dawn to dusk, day and night.

Wouldn't going there now be like finding trouble for himself?

At the very least.

He would wait until the Hoenn League brought in another "workhorse" willing to work hard, Johan thought.

So when Drake spoke to him about this, he planned to wait and observe, let Steven go back first, and then find an excuse to hang around for a few more days.

Steven and Wallace together, wasn't that enough for the Hoenn League to "deal with"?

He'd wait until they had sorted things out before deciding.

"I plan to stay in Unova for a few more days. The Blueberry Academy has invited me to visit and provide some guidance," Johan said.

Upon hearing this, Cynthia's eyes lit up slightly, "I'm also planning to take some time to settle down."

Elite Four... wasn't her goal.

"Then we—" Johan felt a slight movement in his heart as he looked at Cynthia.

"I heard there's a festival in Eindoak Town in Unova," Cynthia said, lightly brushing her hair.

Eindoak Town... festival...

For these two words, Johan was almost desensitized.

Especially the word "festival."

After experiencing so much, Johan had come to understand.

Whatever timeline or plot—it was all fake.

If he went, there was a high probability that he might "trigger" certain events.

But thinking carefully.

Actually, Eindoak Town at most had just one mythical Pokémon, Victini, and one white dragon, Reshiram.

Having encountered so many legendary Pokémon, Johan was no longer as fearful of them.

At least...

With him and his little companions, they should already have some self-preservation ability when facing legendary Pokémon, right?

Moreover, there was also Cynthia...

"Shall we go?" Cynthia asked softly with a hint of expectation.

"Let's go!" Johan nodded.

At worst... he'd call N over in advance. With N having gained Zekrom's approval, he could stand at the front, so there would be no need to worry about what Reshiram might do.

"Good."

Cynthia's eyes curved into crescents.

After chatting for a while longer, the moon had almost reached directly overhead.

"Hmm, I need to sleep now..." Cynthia yawned, stretched lazily, outlining her curves.

She stood up and walked toward her room.

Johan also nodded and stood up.

Bang!!!

Just as he reached the door, Garchomp jumped down from the roof, standing at the doorway, vigilantly staring at him.

"Garrr?"

Young man, in the middle of the night, what are you planning to do?

Johan opened and closed his mouth.

Come on, this is the second-floor balcony. I have to go down through the house, right?

At most, at most... I might just check if Cynthia's bed is warm enough...

"See you tomorrow~~"

Cynthia's voice came from inside the room, her cheeks flushed red.

Forget it.

Johan sighed silently.

Anyway, he originally climbed up from downstairs...

"Ghost-Ghost, let's go, time to go home and sleep."

"Ka-kaah~~"

Climbing from the balcony to the first-floor garden.

In his two lives, this was truly Johan's first time.

Had they officially become a couple?

Were they?

Probably...

With such doubts in his heart, he climbed from the back garden of Cynthia's residence to the back garden of his own residence.

Gengar floated at his side, giggling, covering its mouth, looking like it wanted to laugh but didn't dare.

Look at him acting like he's never seen the world (Д)σ

Cynthia sat by the window, watching the figure under the moonlight, a sweet smile appearing on her face.

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Powerstones?

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