The backyard of the Pokémon Research Lab encompassed nearly every known type of wild terrain: from mountains to rivers, from stone caves to lava pits, from forests to swamps.
It had everything.
Just from this alone, one could sense that Samuel Oak's ambitions weren't small… and that his financial power was extremely impressive.
In the Pokémon world, where strength reigns supreme, money is important, but ultimately, it's just an accessory to power.
Let alone someone like Samuel Oak at Champion level; even Sato, after becoming the Leader of the Shadownight Gym, had rarely lacked money.
For noble families and clans, the main role of wealth was to ensure their descendants never fell below a certain standard.
But for most ordinary people, the amount of money they had determined the ceiling of their children's growth.
To cross that gap in the middle, unless one was truly gifted like Norman, the odds were extremely low!
Oh, Sato doesn't count… he had a "cheat".
---
Upon entering the Oak Lab's backyard, the first thing they saw was an endless plain. It was so vast that even horde of Tauros could run freely without issue.
The area closest to the lab had flatter grass, and that's where the buffet for the banquet had been set up.
With blue skies and white clouds, a gentle breeze blowing, and friends gathered here to enjoy good food and fine wine… it was the very definition of relaxation.
Most had already forgotten Professor Oak's earlier "remarks". They each found familiar friends to chat with, and the mood was cheerful.
As the host, Professor Oak naturally brought Gary along, moving from group to group and chatting with everyone, fulfilling his duties.
Sato, too, was surrounded by many people; almost all of them leading figures of this era.
Other than the still-vacant Champion title in Kanto, the future Champions of Johto, Hoenn, and Sinnoh were all gathered here today.
And all of them, more or less, had some kind of connection to Sato.
But he didn't care about any of that. He simply used every chance he got while moving around to quietly observe Giovanni, who rarely spoke, gradually calming his own nerves.
Giovanni's current strength was unknown, but even if he had already reached Champion level, he likely still wasn't a match for Oak. That meant it was unlikely he'd cause trouble here.
Through his observations, Sato noticed that Giovanni was very interested in the conversations going on. It seemed he was trying to gather intel about the League, but his attention on Sato himself wasn't that strong.
From this, Sato inferred that Shaka -who had returned to Team Rocket as an Elite Four- probably hadn't revealed anything about Joseph's Viridian Power.
Either that, or Giovanni was hiding it way too well, not leaking even the tiniest hint.
At that moment, Oak brought Gary over to where Sato and the others were. Faced with someone of Champion strength, everyone behaved themselves.
"Seeing you all really reminds me of my younger days. Back then, I too was full of youthful spirit!"
Oak laughed heartily. As he spoke, his eyes swept over the crowd, and even lingered on Norman and Sato for two extra seconds.
"…Sato, you're from Cerulean City in our Kanto Region, right?"
Sato was momentarily stunned. He hadn't expected Oak to point him out in front of everyone.
There was no time to overthink it, so he quickly replied, "Yes, though… now Shadownight Town is my home."
Oak nodded. "Too bad Drake snatched you up first, or I really would've wanted to take you as a student… I'll be focusing more on research from now on and gradually stepping back from being a Trainer. It'd be a shame if no one inherited that path."
"Sss~"
Gasps echoed from all around, and in an instant, everyone's gaze toward Sato changed.
After all, to become the Champion of Kanto, one had to possess absolutely overwhelming strength.
If the strength wasn't enough, the League would rather leave the Champion seat vacant than let someone unworthy take it.
So… who exactly was Sato to deserve this? He had already become Elite Four Drake's "student", and now he was being admired by former Champion Samuel Oak as well?
Others only knew how to envy Sato, but Sato himself could hardly keep from complaining.
'Old man Oak… if you admire me, can't you just tell me privately?!'
Saying it in front of so many people was no different from throwing Sato into the fire.
"Thank you for the recognition, sir, but I am hardly worthy… Drake has treated me extremely well, and I've never considered switching mentors."
Sato spoke sincerely yet tactfully. He started by praising Oak, then gently declined the offer by appealing to emotion.
Whether Oak's offer to take him as a student was serious or not, Sato's response left no room for criticism.
Upon hearing this, the people nearby began looking at Sato with much warmer expressions.
Since Sato had refused, didn't that mean they still had a chance?
And then…
"After hearing that, I want to take you as my student even more. How about I talk to Drake and see if you can study under me for a while?"
Whoosh whoosh whoosh~
Now not only were his peers staring at him with eyes full of envy and jealousy…
Even the older Trainers nearby who had been quietly watching suddenly gathered around with curiosity.
Champion Samuel Oak was trying to steal someone else's student, and it looked like he wasn't about to give up easily.
For a moment, Sato suddenly wondered… 'Was Samuel Oak holding a grudge against Drake and doing all this just to mess with him?'
"I… uh… I…"
Sato's eyes instantly filled with panic and confusion, torn between hope and struggle. He understood that now was the time to play dumb; he couldn't refuse, but he also couldn't accept.
'Didn't you say you were going to ask Drake? Then go! Hurry up!'
"Professor Oak, look, Sato's totally confused by you. Maybe don't ask him such difficult questions. Better to bring it up with Drake directly."
With a single step forward, Lance appeared at Sato's side, smiling as he spoke.
As Kanto's newly appointed Dragon-type Elite Four, he had the standing to speak up.
At that moment, Sato truly felt Lance was like a real aniki: stepping in right when he needed help, instantly diffusing the awkward situation.
"Exactly, exactly! Samuel, if you're going to snatch someone's student, you should at least ask their teacher first. You've gotten even more overbearing since stepping down as Champion!"
The second to speak up was Howard. He had known Oak for many years, and their relationship had always been good, so stepping in now made perfect sense.
Oak also seemed to realize that what he said wasn't very appropriate. Seeing others step in, he quickly eased up and laughed heartily.
"Guess I got a little too eager. Sato, make sure you learn well from Drake, don't bring shame to his name."
"I'll do my best, sir!"
Sato quickly responded, thinking to himself that the crisis had finally passed. But before he could even send a grateful glance toward Howard and Lance, someone else spoke up.
"Sato… Leader, are you really not going to reconsider my grandpa's offer? My grandpa is super awesome!"
Sato looked down at Gary, who stood beside Oak, and thought, 'What is wrong with your whole family?!'
'Please spare me!'