When the sun was hanging high above Silas and his group, they finally reached the northern part of Island.
Most of them were already too tired to speak.
Yuto Jun was now regretting deeply that he'd insisted on setting off before finishing breakfast—he felt like he was going to split apart.
Luckily, there was a small clearing at the foot of the cliff where they could come ashore and rest.
Bruno stood with his hands on his hips, watching the younger Trainers with a calm smile.
As expected of a man nicknamed the "Human Pokémon," Bruno's strength was no joke.
"Here, one for each of you. You should all know what comes next."
He casually pulled out the League's newly developed Energy Bars, made specifically for Trainers in the wild.
These specialized rations contained enough nutrients to meet a person's daily energy needs in just one bar. They were compact and easy to carry.
Even after intense physical exertion, one bar was enough to restore most of one's stamina — a human version of a Max Elixir, so to speak.
The only problem was the taste — tolerable from afar, unbearable up close.
Everyone groaned. This wasn't what they'd expected when Bruno said there wouldn't be any "trials."
But soon enough, each of them accepted an Energy Bar, ate it, and began climbing the cliff.
This group wasn't made up of spoiled rich kids. They had enough willpower to handle this much.
Silas and Soshu led the charge, climbing side by side.
The two were almost neck and neck — Silas had better physical strength, while Soshu was more skilled in climbing techniques.
The cliff was slanted in a "/" shape, and for non-professionals, it was quite a challenge.
"If someone falls from here, they'll be laid up for a few days at least."
Silas glanced around, found a foothold above, and with movements almost like an Aipom, scrambled upward swiftly.
He even had enough breath to talk to Soshu beside him.
"Don't worry. My uncle's Pokémon is watching from below, remember?"
Soshu grinned, moving upward with surprising agility for someone with such a large build.
"Besides, Nurse Joy's Blissey is here too. Even if we get hurt, recovery will be quick."
He said that, but his climbing speed noticeably increased.
Silas didn't reply—he simply sped up as well.
"Unbelievable," muttered Yuto Jun below them, carefully climbing. He glanced up at the two, speechless.
Were they treating this like a competition?
"Phew…"
And that "few" mattered — because Officer Airi (Jenny) was currently in third place, just behind the two "monsters."
Thankfully, the cliff had many handholds and footholds to choose from. Otherwise, free climbing nearly 90 meters with no equipment would've been impossible.
Even in the Pokémon world, human endurance had its limits.
The higher they climbed, the greater the psychological pressure. Even knowing they wouldn't die from a fall, no one wanted to experience that kind of pain—few people were masochists.
Soon, the group fell silent. Even the usually talkative Yezo was fully focused on finding stable footholds—there was no room for carelessness here.
At the top, Silas and Soshu were finally starting to separate in rank.
Silas had the lead, already a full body's length ahead of Soshu.
At first, he was just getting used to climbing. Once he found his rhythm, his speed and positioning improved rapidly.
If he weren't still wary of falling, he could've gone even faster.
Half an hour later, Silas was the first to reach the summit.
"Nice!"
He couldn't help but exclaim. The feeling was incredible—no wonder so many people in his past life had been addicted to extreme sports despite the risks.
"You've got some skill, kid."
As Silas caught his breath, Soshu climbed up right after him.
He panted a few times, clearly impressed.
During the climb, he'd watched Silas transform from a beginner into someone experienced. That learning speed was downright enviable.
"Not bad," Silas said cheerfully, accepting the compliment.
Soshu rolled his eyes.
The two sat by the edge of the cliff, chatting casually about fighting techniques—just ordinary martial moves, nothing secret. No one would share the core teachings of their fighting style that easily.
Even though Bruno's cabin was right ahead, they didn't go in, choosing instead to wait for the others with mutual understanding.
Before long, Officer Airi climbed up too, her movements as sharp as ever. She grabbed the cliff edge, pulled herself up, and rolled forward gracefully to absorb the landing impact.
Seeing the two chatting, she joined them, massaging her forearms with practiced family techniques.
One by one, the others reached the top.
"Machamp, you're up," said Bruno after confirming everyone had made it.
"Machaaamp!"
His Machamp smiled, responding with a cheerful grunt.
Its upper hands lifted a startled Blissey, while the lower ones wrapped around Bruno's waist.
"Machaaamp!"
Machamp crouched, building power in its legs.
Boom!
The ground beneath them cracked, spiderweb lines spreading outward from where its feet had been planted. A shockwave rippled outward.
And then—both Bruno and the two Pokémon were gone.
From the top, the group only saw a gray blur shoot past the cliffside before a soft sound reached their ears.
Thud.
Machamp landed lightly on the summit, setting down a clearly shaken Blissey.
Bruno stepped out of its arms, perfectly composed. "Let's go."
Silas silently whistled in awe. What power.
Even his Blaziken, with its explosive leg strength, could clear 200 meters easily—but that came from species-specific athleticism.
Machamp didn't have that kind of innate leaping ability.
To carry over 150 kilograms' worth of weight and leap this high purely by muscle strength was astonishing.
The group followed Bruno toward a simple wooden cabin not far away.
"Mrs. Briney, I'm here to bother you again," Bruno said cheerfully, knocking on the door.
"Oh, it's little Masao," came a calm, elderly voice from within. "So these must be the youngsters you mentioned last night."
Masao—that was Bruno's real name. Ever since he'd become one of the Elite Four, hardly anyone called him that anymore, let alone with a "little" in front of it.
Only the League's most senior veterans could address him that way.
Naturally, Mrs. Briney was one of them.
The younger Trainers tried to hold back their laughter. They knew it meant Bruno was on close terms with the old woman—but still, it was hard to associate the towering Elite Four member with the word "little."
"Mrs. Briney, please, spare me some dignity in front of the kids," Bruno said with a helpless chuckle.
Creak—
The door opened, revealing a plainly dressed elderly woman leaning on a cane. She gave Bruno a stern look.
"When you came crying to me after Aki thrashed you back in the day, you weren't talking about dignity then."
Aki—that was Lorelei's real name.
Everyone perked their ears up. The implication was clear: in the past, Bruno had been bested by Lorelei.
That kind of gossip was rare—after all, official battle footage of the Elite Four was almost never released, let alone battles between them.
At their level, there was simply no need for publicity just to show off strength.
So by that logic, Bruno must rank lowest among the Kanto Elite Four.
The others quickly drew the same conclusion. Their gazes toward Bruno shifted.
After all, Lance, the "Dragon Messenger," was universally acknowledged as the strongest. If the Champion title were easier to obtain, he'd likely be there already.
Then there was Agatha—stationed longest among the Kanto Elite Four, a Ghost-type specialist whose strength didn't decline with age; if anything, she only got stronger. Her decades of tenure weren't just a number.
Many suspected she was still holding back—but at minimum, she was clearly stronger than the other two.
So the only real debate was: which of the remaining two was stronger—Bruno or Lorelei?
Opinions varied; each had his or her followers. Lorelei's fans were many—but so were Bruno's. No definitive verdict had ever been reached.
Now… the evidence seemed to lean toward Lorelei being the stronger one.
Even Soshu glanced at his uncle Bruno. Bruno couldn't have mentioned this kind of thing lightly—it was the first time Soshu had heard Bruno admitted to being thoroughly beaten by Lorelei.
Bruno met their gazes and knew exactly what they were thinking.
"That match wasn't an official battle—it doesn't count," he responded, though his tone sounded rather weak.
Everyone nodded knowingly—an acknowledgement of a loss—then averted their eyes.
Further discussion would surely draw Bruno into offering a real spar—and that would be bad for him.
And still—bottom-rank or not—that was still the bottom of the Kanto Elite Four. These were not ordinary trainers. A single serious Pokémon could vanquish a whole group of them with ease.
"Alright kids, come with me," Mrs Briney said, leaning on her cane as she headed outside the cabin. "Release your respective starter Pokémon."
They obediently followed her into the clearing, each Trainer recalling to mind their partner.
Thankfully, the Silph family's island had teleportation gear—otherwise several of the Trainers' starters weren't even with them.
Sixteen Trainers, sixteen Pokémon—lined up neatly.
"You liar—you were definitely hiding strength." Silas muttered low to Yezo beside him.
Next to Yezo stood a massive black-and-red Pokémon that looked like a standing tiger, with a flame-belt around its waist.
Had it not been for Professor Oak and Professor Rowan's lecture, Silas might not have recognized it.
This was the Charizard-like Incinerox from the Alola region—its pre-evolutions were Litten and Torracat. (Fire/Dark type.)
This was a starter Pokémon many still hadn't heard of—not part of the current League's "canonical" initial partners—because the Alola League hadn't yet been established.
But it and its siblings in Alola—the grass/ghost starter (Decidueye) and the water type (Primarina)—had been confirmed capable of learning the Ultimate Moves.
By tradition, their base forms (Rowlet, Litten, Popplio) would become Alola's starter trio: Grass / Fire / Water.
"I went to a lot of effort to catch this guy," Yezo said proudly—avoiding Silas's pointed question about hiding strength.
"I thought you'd pick Kalos's Greninja," Silas teased.
"Greninja's battle style doesn't match mine," Yezo replied calmly.
Their conversation drifted.
"you you you" Mrs Briney began, pointing with her cane at several Trainers and their Pokémon:
Yumiko Murasame & Lurantis
Hiroki Silph & Blastoise
Jun Yuto & Charizard
Seiichirō Sasaki & Swampert
Tatsuya Yoda & Infernape
"Decent breeding—but lacking in places." She said briefly.
Five Trainers stepped aside without protest—it wasn't a once-in-a-lifetime chance; Mrs Briney's judgment was precise.
The remaining eleven looked tense.
"Jump!" she said suddenly.
They froze for a moment, then complied.
"you you you" She pointed out four more, dismissing them with her cane:
Kaidō Rukuhira & Sceptile
Riko Laramie & Charizard
Jun'ya Yamashiro & Blaziken
Yuji Tachibana & Venusaur
Their excitement drained away—they stepped aside.
Mrs Briney walked slowly in front of the remaining seven, checking each Trainer and each Pokémon with her gaze.
"Acceptable." she judged for:
Kona Aki & Incineroar
Soshu Bruno & Feraligatr
Daisy Oak & Serperior
"Very good." she judged for:
Joy & Golem
Airi Jenny & Bisharp
Yezo & Incinerox
Then she stopped in front of Silas and Blaziken.
"Rare talent and trust—excellent." Her voice lifted slightly.
Silas met her gaze, feeling something unusual. And for someone familiar with it, he realized: this was… Aura?
Silas's eyes flickered, unnoticed as Mrs Briney turned away.
He remembered: few people can truly master Aura.
No wonder Mrs Briney could make even this rudimentary judgment. Aura's practical utility ranked high among all abilities.
"Not mastery—just some perception." Blaziken's voice echoed within Silas's mind.
Of course, it wasn't really a voice—more like a telepathic sense, automatically translated into words for ease of understanding.
"So? That's still impressive." Silas murmured.
It wasn't his first mental-link with Blaziken by now.
"Who would like to enter and learn first?" Old Mrs Briney asked the seven.
"I'll go first—I'm pressed for time. We have to hit the road this afternoon." Silas apologized to the other six with a smile.
The others nodded—they knew his schedule.
Early or late wouldn't change the effect.
Silas led Blaziken briskly into the room and closed the door behind them.
"Ah, you two are here." Mrs Briney greeted kindly.
"Yes." Silas replied respectfully.
"The so-called Ultimate Move is truly a power born of Trainer and Pokémon's bond. That is why its strength surpasses other moves.
"For your Blaziken's Blast Burn, there are three key points.
"First—the word 'explosion' is not used lightly. Fire itself carries an explosive nature. So when the Fire-type FinalStarter uses Blast Burn, its force is more direct than on other types.
"The Ultimate Fire-type technique aims to exploit that explosive character to the extreme.
"The real secret lies in containment.
"Only when the power is compressed and focused to its limit, then released in a single instant, can you achieve true explosion—and maximum damage.
"As for how to execute it, here are some suggestions—they are merely reference, since every Trainer and Pokémon's habits differ. You must discover or even invent the method that suits you best.
"Step one: compress the flame's mass. This is something many Trainers ask their Fire-type Pokémon to train. For Blaziken—a Fire/Fighting type—the best approach is to apply a fighting-style method to the flame…"
Mrs Briney began teaching the technical points of Blast Burn in detail, non-stop.
Silas and Blaziken listened intently—these were the distilled years of Mrs Briney's experience. Such instruction was rare.
Not only Blast Burn—many of the concepts applied to other ordinary Fire-type moves.
Half an hour later, Silas and Blaziken emerged deep in thought.
"How do you feel?" Bruno asked standing beside them.
Silas nodded silently—no words. He was clearly still thinking.
Bruno smiled.
Soshu, who had long discussed the order and should have gone second, was already impatiently heading inside.
He looked eager.
Half an hour later—Silas jolted.
"Oh crap—if I don't hurry, I'll miss it." He quickly recalled Blaziken and released Pidgeot.
"Sorry everyone, I'll go ahead." Silas bid farewell, mounted Pidgeot, and flew away from the cliff.
The others chuckled as they watched. The distance to Indigo Plateau was considerable—even at Pidgeot's speed, it would take a while.
"He'll probably arrive by nightfall," Hiroki Silph commented.
The others laughed.
Silas was unaware of all this. In his mind there was only one thought:
Indigo Plateau, I'm coming!
.....
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