Argenta looked at Blastoise and felt a growing headache.
She knew almost nothing about Gary's Blastoise. After seeing Dragonite repeatedly pushed back by it, she no longer dared to attack recklessly.
After a moment of hesitation, she decided on a riskier but more direct approach.
"Dragonite, use Thunder!"
Gary responded immediately.
"Blastoise, Ice Beam!"
If Argenta wanted to trade damage, Gary certainly wasn't going to refuse.
Dragonite's body crackled with golden lightning as electricity surged upward toward the sky.
At the same moment, Blastoise fired two streams of freezing energy from its cannons. The beams converged midair, merging into a single, thicker Ice Beam that shot straight toward Dragonite.
BOOM!!
Thunder roared across the battlefield.
At the same instant, the Ice Beam struck Dragonite directly.
The freezing energy rapidly encased Dragonite in ice.
"Draa…!"
Blastoise endured the Thunder strike once again. Sparks crackled across its shell as the powerful electricity coursed through its body.
The attack drained a large portion of its stamina, and sweat began to bead on Blastoise's forehead.
Gary narrowed his eyes.
"Did it go down?"
He looked toward Dragonite, which was completely frozen in a block of ice. It was difficult to tell whether it had already lost the ability to fight.
Although Dragonite possessed the Multiscale Ability, that advantage had already been broken by Blastoise's earlier attacks. After taking such a powerful Ice Beam, the damage should have been severe.
"Dragonite—use Steel Wing!" Argenta commanded urgently.
The frozen Dragonite didn't respond.
"Draa…!"
Argenta's expression stiffened.
She had believed Dragonite could withstand at least two Ice Beams, but now it seemed she had overestimated her partner's endurance.
"Blastoise—Flash Cannon!" Gary ordered suddenly.
"Blastoise!"
Twin silver beams erupted from Blastoise's cannons. The attack shattered the ice surrounding Dragonite and struck it directly.
The impact sent Dragonite flying several meters across the stage before it crashed to the ground, completely motionless.
"Dragonite is unable to battle!"
"The winner of this match is the challenger, Gary!"
The referee announced the result immediately.
Argenta sighed and shook her head with a wry smile.
"I truly didn't expect the challenger to be this strong."
Scott had told her over the phone to give the battle her full effort, but when she saw Gary was only a teenager, she hadn't taken the warning entirely seriously.
Now, thinking about it carefully—
Even if she had fought with everything she had, her Dragonite likely still wouldn't have defeated Blastoise.
After the match, Argenta stepped forward and handed Gary the Stage Symbol.
"Congratulations. This is the Stage Symbol. It's yours now."
"Thank you," Gary replied.
He accepted the symbol politely.
[Ding! Mission completed. Rewards have been distributed to the system storage space.]
Now Gary had obtained the Stage Symbol.
Only one facility remained in the Sinnoh Battle Frontier—
The Battle Tower.
Gary planned to collect the final symbol first before heading to Lake Valor. The timing should work perfectly.
"Ms. Argenta, thank you for the battle," Gary said with a slight nod.
After saying goodbye, he turned and left the Battle Hall.
Watching Gary's departing figure, Argenta let out another sigh.
"That boy… I wonder if Palmer will be able to stop him."
Twinleaf Town
A while later, Gary landed near the Pokémon Center in Twinleaf Town.
The final Frontier facility of the Sinnoh Battle Frontier—the Battle Tower—was located here.
Gary climbed down from Garchomp's back and looked around.
"Hm?"
He noticed colorful banners hanging along both sides of the street.
Large signs surrounded the town square with the words:
"Celebrate the Twinleaf Festival!"
"The Twinleaf Festival…" Gary murmured.
This festival was a special tradition unique to Twinleaf Town. It lasted for three days and three nights.
Judging by the decorations and crowds, today seemed to be the first day of the celebration.
Gary thought for a moment.
"Ash challenged Palmer during the festival before…"
That meant Ash Ketchum was probably somewhere in Twinleaf Town right now.
Gary shrugged slightly.
"Never mind. I'll go to the Battle Tower first."
He recalled Garchomp and released Cyclizar, riding it toward the Battle Tower.
The tower wasn't far from town. It would only take about twenty minutes to reach.
Battle Tower
The Sinnoh Battle Tower was open to the public.
Trainers from all over could come here to participate in battle challenges.
Winning battles earned Battle Points, which could be exchanged for Technical Machines (TMs) and other rare items.
In addition, if a Trainer achieved twenty consecutive victories, they would earn the right to challenge the Frontier Brain—
Palmer, the Tower Tycoon.
If someone managed to defeat Palmer, they could choose one special reward without spending any Battle Points.
However, when Gary arrived at the tower today, the place seemed unusually quiet.
The entrance hall had very few people nearby.
Most likely, everyone had gone to enjoy the festivities in town.
Gary returned Cyclizar and walked inside.
"…No one?"
He stepped into the lobby.
The large hall was almost completely empty.
"Hello?" Gary called out.
No answer.
"Is anyone here?"
Still nothing.
"Hello?"
Gary frowned slightly.
"Is this place completely unattended…?"
He waited a moment before raising his voice again.
"Is anyone here?!"
After shouting several times, footsteps finally echoed from the corridor.
"I'm coming! I'm coming!"
A young woman hurried out from the end of the hallway and quickly approached the lobby.
When she saw Gary standing there, she blinked in confusion.
"…Do you need something?"
Gary sighed internally.
Normally, only trainers who had already completed the required winning streak could challenge Palmer. So when someone arrived, the receptionist wouldn't immediately assume they were there to challenge the Frontier Brain.
"My name is Gary," he said calmly. "I was recommended by Mr. Scott to challenge the Battle Frontier. Is Mr. Palmer here?"
The young woman froze.
"You're… here to challenge the Frontier Brain?"
"Is there a problem?"
"No, no," she said quickly, shaking her head. "It's just that Mr. Palmer has been invited to attend the Twinleaf Festival celebration. If you want to challenge him, you'll have to wait until the festival ends."
Gary frowned slightly.
"When does the festival end?"
"The festival lasts three days," she explained. "However, there will be a special tournament held during the celebration. The winner will get the chance to battle Mr. Palmer."
"If you want to challenge him normally, you'll probably have to wait until the day after tomorrow."
"I see," Gary said.
Then he nodded slightly.
"In that case, I'll head to the festival."
Gary decided it would be better to find Palmer first and schedule the battle directly so he wouldn't waste time later.
Besides, Ash and his friends were probably in Twinleaf Town as well.
Once Ash headed toward Sunyshore City and passed by Lake Valor, Team Galactic would soon begin their next move.
"Alright," the receptionist said. "Enjoy the festival."
Gary left the Battle Tower and rode Cyclizar back toward the town square where the celebration was taking place.
The streets were packed with people.
Colorful stalls lined both sides of the road, selling snacks, souvenirs, and festival games. Young trainers and townspeople filled the streets with laughter and excitement.
Gary walked around casually, buying a few snacks as he explored the area.
As he approached one particular stall, he suddenly stopped.
The stall itself was empty—
But Gary immediately recognized the person standing behind it.
The stall owner was Brock.
"Customer!" Brock said automatically when he saw someone approaching.
But when he looked up, his eyes widened.
"Gary?!"
"What are you doing here?!"
He looked completely stunned.
Gary raised an eyebrow.
"I'm here to find someone. But why are you selling things here?"
Then he glanced around.
"Where are Ash and Dawn?"