"What? Didn't you just challenge the Battle Castle a few days ago?" Barry exclaimed in shock. "And now you're already here to challenge the Battle Tower?"
Barry stared at Gary with wide eyes. To him, the speed at which Gary progressed through the Battle Frontier seemed almost unbelievable.
Palmer, standing nearby with his arms folded, gave a thoughtful nod.
"That's correct," he said calmly. "To challenge the Battle Tower officially, a Trainer must not only receive a recommendation but must also obtain Symbols from the other four Battle Frontier facilities. Only then are they qualified to face the Tower Tycoon."
Gary didn't respond verbally. Instead, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small badge case.
With a quiet click, he opened it.
Inside the case were seven Gym Badges, neatly arranged in a row. Above them rested four shining Frontier Symbols, each representing a conquered Battle Frontier facility.
For a moment, the crowd around them fell silent.
Then Barry's voice exploded.
"What?! You already got all four Symbols?!"
He leaned closer, staring at the case in disbelief.
"These are the Symbols from the Battle Castle, Battle Arcade, Battle Factory, and Battle Hall!"
Barry knew Argenta's Battle Hall particularly well. He had seen Argenta's Dragonite battle before, and he knew how powerful it was.
If Gary had defeated Argenta, it meant his strength had already reached a level comparable to Palmer himself.
"Gary…" Ash muttered quietly.
Ash hadn't expected Gary to be this far ahead in the Sinnoh Battle Frontier challenge.
Ash himself had once challenged the Battle Frontier in the Kanto region, so he knew firsthand how difficult it was. Yet while Ash was still working toward collecting his Gym Badges, Gary had already conquered nearly the entire Sinnoh Battle Frontier.
He felt both surprised and slightly frustrated.
"Oh! That's impressive!" Palmer said with a hearty laugh.
"So you've already defeated the other four Frontier Brains. In that case, why don't we make tomorrow's festival even more exciting?"
Gary looked up at him.
"What do you mean?"
Palmer grinned broadly.
"Let's hold our Frontier battle tomorrow—right here during the Twinleaf Festival Battle Conference. It'll be a great exhibition match."
The crowd immediately began murmuring.
"A Frontier Brain battle?"
"Palmer versus that kid?"
"That would be amazing!"
Gary hesitated for a moment.
"I don't have any objections," he said, "but will that cause any issues with the festival schedule?"
Palmer waved his hand casually.
"It'll only make the event more entertaining."
Then he turned toward the woman standing beside him.
"Johanna, what do you think?"
Johanna—Dawn's mother and the host of the Twinleaf Festival—smiled warmly.
"Of course there's no problem. A Battle Frontier exhibition will make the festival even more exciting."
Gary nodded slowly.
"If everyone agrees, then I'm fine with it. Let's have the battle tomorrow."
"Good!" Palmer said enthusiastically.
"Then it's settled."
He stretched his arms and laughed.
"Now I'm heading home to see my wife. Barry, let's go."
Barry hurried after him, while Palmer's Dragonite spread its wings and followed closely.
Meanwhile, Gary returned to the Pokémon Center with Ash and the others.
Evening at the Pokémon Center
That night, the group gathered at the Pokémon Center's dining area for dinner.
Ash stared across the table at Gary, clearly dissatisfied.
"Gary, you're already challenging the Sinnoh Battle Frontier and almost finished with it—and you didn't even tell me!"
Gary shrugged calmly while eating.
"What difference would it make if I told you?"
Ash frowned.
"You could have invited me!"
Gary raised an eyebrow.
"Would you have had time to join me?"
Ash hesitated.
Gary continued calmly.
"You're still training the Pokémon you caught in the Sinnoh region. And you haven't even collected all eight Gym Badges yet."
Ash's expression immediately turned awkward.
Gary wasn't wrong.
Ash currently had only seven Gym Badges, and he still needed to defeat the final Gym Leader before entering the Lily of the Valley Conference.
Not to mention that most of Ash's Sinnoh Pokémon were still in training.
If he tried to challenge the Battle Frontier now, he would have to rely on older Pokémon from previous regions—and even then, many of them might struggle against Frontier Brains.
"Wait a second," Brock suddenly interrupted.
He leaned forward slightly.
"Gary… you only have seven Gym Badges too, don't you?"
Everyone froze.
Ash blinked in confusion.
"What? Gary, you only have seven?"
He clearly remembered Gary having eight before.
Gary waved his hand casually.
"One is missing, but it doesn't matter. I'm focusing on the Battle Frontier first."
Ash nodded slowly.
That explanation sounded reasonable.
If Gary really wanted to collect the final badge, it wouldn't take him long.
Then Dawn leaned forward excitedly.
"Gary, are you confident you can defeat Mr. Palmer tomorrow?"
"I heard he's as strong as the Elite Four!"
Gary remained calm.
"If I wasn't confident, I wouldn't challenge him."
Dawn's eyes sparkled.
"Then I'm definitely watching the battle tomorrow!"
Although she had heard many stories about Gary's strength, she had never actually seen him battle before.
Tomorrow would be her first time.
The group continued eating and chatting until dinner ended.
The Final Day of the Twinleaf Festival
The next morning, the Twinleaf Festival reached its climax.
On the final day, a special Battle Conference was held.
Any Trainer attending the festival could participate.
The rules were simple:
Each battle was a one-on-one match, and the Trainer who ultimately won the tournament would earn the right to battle Palmer, the Tower Tycoon of the Battle Tower.
Additionally, the champion would receive a special festival trophy.
Gary and Ash arrived at the festival grounds early.
The battlefield itself was nothing more than a large public square that had been converted into a temporary arena.
However, because of the special exhibition match scheduled afterward, the organizers had invited a professional referee from the Battle Tower to oversee the tournament.
At 9:00 AM sharp, the competition began.
Johanna stepped onto the stage wearing an elegant dress.
As the host of the festival, she raised a microphone and addressed the crowd.
"Thank you all for your patience! Before today's battles begin, please allow me to introduce a very special guest."
She gestured toward the side of the stage.
"Please welcome the Tower Tycoon of the Sinnoh Battle Frontier—the undefeated master of the Battle Tower—Mr. Palmer!"
"HELLO, EVERYONE!"
Palmer stepped forward with a broad grin, waving enthusiastically at the cheering crowd.
Johanna smiled warmly.
"Mr. Palmer, thank you so much for joining today's Twinleaf Festival."
"The honor is mine," Palmer replied cheerfully.
"I'm happy to contribute to this wonderful local tradition."
After the introductions and opening speeches were completed, the Battle Conference officially began.
Dozens of Trainers stepped forward eagerly to compete.
However, since Twinleaf Town was only a small town, most participants were beginners rather than experienced battlers.
Even Dawn managed to win several rounds.
After multiple elimination rounds, only two Trainers remained.
Ash and Barry.
The crowd gathered closely around the battlefield as the final match began.
Ash chose Pikachu.
Barry sent out Empoleon.
The battle was intense but short.
Pikachu's speed and experience proved overwhelming, and after a fierce exchange of attacks, Empoleon was finally defeated.
Ash won the tournament.
He had earned the right to challenge Palmer.
Barry collapsed dramatically onto the grass.
"This is so frustrating!"
Dawn sighed while eating a box of takoyaki.
"I wanted to battle Mr. Palmer too…"
Barry groaned.
"I was supposed to defeat my dad!"
Gary glanced at them calmly.
"You two don't need to be jealous."
They both turned toward him.
"What do you mean?" Dawn asked.
Gary folded his arms.
"Even though Ash won the tournament, he's not actually in a good position for the next battle."
Ash blinked.
"What do you mean?"
Gary explained calmly.
"Pikachu is your strongest Pokémon, and it just fought through multiple consecutive battles."
"It's probably exhausted."
"And the rest of your Pokémon…"
Gary paused briefly.
"…aren't strong enough to challenge Palmer yet."