"How is it? Do you have any suggestions for me after reading the information?" Lance said with a smile.
Steven, Phoebe, and Wallace immediately turned their attention to Aoki.
The four of them had participated in the Sinnoh Tournament together, and knew that he was the best at this sort of analysis.
After entering the top 32 of the Sinnoh Tournament, before each match, Aoki would help them analyze their opponents' strength and Pokémon, as well as the situations they might encounter and how to deal with them.
So at this time, the three of them naturally looked at Aoki habitually.
Seeing the expressions of the three people, Lance also looked at Aoki with a hint of curiosity. Since these three people trusted his judgment so much, he must have some outstanding qualities.
Moreover, among the four people here, Lance was most familiar with Aoki, and the other three were connected more through their shared competitive spirit. Lance and Aoki had been through life and death together. He also had a certain understanding of Aoki's abilities, so he also wanted to hear what suggestions Aoki had.
Seeing that all four of them were focusing their attention on him, Aoki suddenly revealed a helpless expression. However, he did have opinions about this Champion Challenge.
"Actually, you are the first choice of the League for this challenge tournament. The others are just runners-up. What do you have to worry about? Just tell the League that if they don't let you be one of the Elite Four, you can run away and go to other regions. For example, the Hoenn region is very good..." Aoki said jokingly.
"Yes, you can!" But he didn't expect that someone else would respond, and it was Phoebe, who never cared about causing trouble.
A smile appeared on the faces of all five people. They understood each other and knew that Aoki was just talking. Lance was a member of the Blackthorn family. If he ran away to the Hoenn region, the first one who would not let him go would be his own family. It was like asking Steven to go to another region to become one of the Elite Four; was that possible? Impossible! These family members receive help from their families and grow up much faster than others, in the hope that they can repay the family in the end.
"Well, okay, let's talk it out," Steven on the side coughed, interrupting everyone's silent smile.
Aoki nodded and organized his words a little. "In fact, in my opinion, your biggest rivals right now are three."
"Three?" Lance was stunned.
"Yes, the Fuchsia City Gym Leader, the Poison-type Pokémon trainer Koga, the Pewter City Gym Leader, the Rock-type Pokémon trainer, and... the Ice-type Pokémon trainer Lorelei!" Aoki said the names of the three people.
Hearing the three names mentioned by Aoki, Lance was not surprised by the first two, as they were indeed masters, but this Lorelei... "This Lorelei is the player who participated in the Sinnoh Tournament with you last time. Is her strength... really that strong?" Lance was a little confused.
Aoki glanced at Lance who looked bewildered. She is more than just strong, she is simply someone sent by destiny to target you. The type advantage she holds over you is even more terrifying than you might expect. As long as she is around, you don't have to think about becoming the Champion so easily, Aoki thought silently in his heart.
"She's very talented, and her current team's prowess may be a bit far behind yours, but you can watch her match recordings from the Sinnoh Tournament. I'm sure you'll gain something from it," Aoki said aloud.
Hearing this, Lance did not doubt him. He nodded and decided to go back and take a closer look at the information about this Lorelei. In Lance's impression, Aoki was not a person who spoke without thinking. Since he thought so highly of Lorelei, she must have her strengths.
They had a brief exchange again and Aoki pointed out some specific points that needed attention when facing these potential opponents.
Suddenly, Lance suggested, "How about we play a few practice matches before the official challenge begins?"
After being asked this by Lance, the other four looked at each other and were somewhat moved. They also wanted to see how far they were from being able to challenge the Elite Four. As for Lance, he wanted to get more training and fight with different Trainers before the challenge competition began; maybe he could get some inspiration or new strategies.
"What are we waiting for? Let's go! Let's go!" The one who made the biggest noise was Phoebe. It was not that she liked fighting so much, but that going out and being active was much better than staying cooped up in a room like this.
"Let's go," Lance said, throwing his cape back with a flourish and striding out.
Seeing Lance's actions, Wallace pondered for a moment, then imitated him and shook his own cape with a similar flair. He nodded silently to himself. He is indeed quite handsome. Not bad at all.
Steven and Aoki walked at the back, choosing to ignore the two blatantly posturing individuals. Out of sight, out of mind.
...
The five of them walked towards the League's training ground together. However, on the way to the training ground, they met someone familiar.
"Hi, Lance, Aoki!" A loud, familiar voice sounded behind Aoki and the others.
When Aoki heard this familiar voice, the corresponding familiar figure immediately appeared in his mind.
"Professor Oak," Lance and Aoki shouted together in greeting.
Steven and Phoebe, on the other hand, stared at Professor Oak as if he were a rare animal. They had finally seen a living, walking Professor Oak!
After learning what the five people wanted to do, Professor Oak immediately expressed his desire to go and see it together. But Professor Oak had not come alone. After he waved to someone not far behind him, a woman with two children appeared in front of them.
Aoki could feel that Steven, Phoebe, and Wallace were all frozen in place. This... Professor Oak's wife? So young? Were those two kids his children? So small? They looked at Professor Oak's head full of white hair and suddenly felt that Professor Oak was still very strong despite his age! The three of them looked at Professor Oak with a newfound sense of admiration, especially Steven, who thought he might secretly ask him for the secret later; maybe he could even ask the old man to give him a younger brother or sister...
Aoki knew without even thinking that they were thinking the wrong thing. But there was no way to avoid it, given the circumstances...
"Brother Aoki!!!" One of the two children ran straight towards Aoki after seeing him. The other one also became very excited. The two of them ran over, one latching onto his front and the other onto his back.
"Long time no see, Ash, Gary!" That was right, the two kids running over were Ash and Gary from Pallet Town. And that woman was of course Professor Oak's good neighbor, Ash's mother, Delia.
It was not until Aoki introduced them all that Steven and the others lowered their heads slightly in "shame," realizing their evil subjective consciousness had led them astray. They had been led astray by their own assumptions, not by Aoki.
Then the group expanded instantly. At this time, Ash and Gary were not Trainers yet and did not have their first Pokémon. This time, Professor Oak had brought them here to see the world and to witness what a real Pokémon battle was like, which would be beneficial for their future growth.
When Ash and Gary knew that Aoki and his five companions were going to have a battle, they clamored to go and watch it together. They were very excited. There was nothing to hide in the first place, and Lance and the others did not refuse.
So the entire group went directly to the training ground within the League compound. As a chief investigator and a member of the Elite Four, Lance could use a separate, private training ground, not to mention that Professor Oak, a respected figure, was with them. Their path was completely unobstructed.