To be fair, the mainstream perception of the Pokémon world wasn't far off the mark.
Purely from its base stats, Sableye was indeed completely unsuitable as an offensive powerhouse. Its defensive capabilities also fell short of being passable.
Even its Speed wasn't particularly impressive. On paper, it simply wasn't cut out for battle!
But when evaluating a Pokémon, numerical stats were only one part—albeit an important part—of the equation.
Otherwise, Slaking—a Pokémon with a base stat total of 670 and even considered god-tier—wouldn't be so overlooked in this world.
By that logic, Mega Mewtwo X should be on par with Mega Rayquaza.
Of course, the reality…
Well, those who know, know!
Let's not embarrass him today!
In any case, Arceus—the creator—shut the door on Sableye winning through sheer stats but left it a "backdoor."
With its hidden Ability Prankster and a slew of debilitating status moves, Sableye carved out a niche for itself, even in battles among top-tier Pokémon.
In his past life, many players would instinctively furrow their brows upon seeing this little troublemaker staring back at them.
The +1 priority status moves it could use were devastating in double battles.
And it wasn't bad in singles either.
Take the current situation, for instance. Kieran was now facing the predicament created by Sableye.
How could there be such a nasty Pokémon?!
While Kieran pondered how to break free, the swift execution of Mean Look had already sunk into Sentret's body.
Due to the effects of Mean Look, Sentret's body soon emitted a dark aura, temporarily shielding it from the red light of being recalled into its Poké Ball.
Unless a special switching move was used, Sentret couldn't be withdrawn.
But under the influence of the Choice Scarf, it couldn't use anything other than the "Charge Beam" it had been locked into since the start.
Moreover, due to Disable, Sentret couldn't use the move it had previously employed.
At this point, Aiden's tactic was fully unveiled.
Unable to flee, unable to use moves, Sentret could only struggle endlessly, depleting its stamina until it collapsed from exhaustion.
A complete lockdown with no weaknesses.
[Teacher Azure, can you just be human? The poor kid is about to cry!]
[That said, Teacher Azure did give plenty of hints. He practically spelled out this tactic before the battle started, and he clearly waited a long time before using Mean Look.]
[True. A quick-thinking Trainer should've already recalled their Pokémon by now.]
[That's right. After all, Teacher Azure has always been like this. He values the Trainer's skill more than raising strong Pokémon.]
[I understand, but this strategy is still dirty af!]
As Sentret futilely punched the air, Aiden didn't command Sableye to rush in and finish it off quickly.
Instead, he quietly observed Kieran's facial expressions, seemingly waiting for something.
As someone who knew the story and had truly met this aspiring young Trainer from Kitakami, he understood that Kieran was actually a very sensitive and fragile child.
In the game's storyline, his motivation for becoming stronger was simple:
He had lost to the protagonist in the competition for Ogerpon, so he stubbornly believed his failure was due to insufficient strength.
If only he had been stronger, perhaps he would've been the one to capture Ogerpon.
With this mindset, the darkened Kieran quickly assembled a team of powerful Pokémon and used them to conquer Blueberry Academy, becoming its "champion."
Yet, even after forcibly capturing Terapagos with a Master Ball, he still lost to the protagonist in the end.
Was he not strong enough?
Of course not—his team of Pokémon was nearly on par with true champions.
The root cause was that his heart remained that of a child who couldn't accept failure and hadn't grown.
So what Aiden was doing now was something extreme—
Demonstrating the vast gap in strength to force Kieran to confront failure.
And Kieran's expression was exactly as Aiden had anticipated—he was on the verge of tears.
He had imagined his Pokémon being easily crushed by Aiden's main lineup or, after some leniency, narrowly losing to preserve his dignity.
But he never expected to be utterly boxed in, leaving him no room to maneuver, forced to watch his Pokémon exhaust itself and fall.
Why did it turn out like this?
Was it because he wasn't strong enough?
Of course, he was just a rookie Trainer—it was normal to lose to Teacher Azure, right?
No matter how strong he became, wouldn't he still be effortlessly defeated by Teacher Azure like a child?
But why…
Why did it feel so painful?
Kieran suddenly realized the essence of Pokémon battles—
So that's it. Pokémon battles are cruel games where only the victor takes all?
If that's the case, I really don't want to lose anymore…
"I… I surrender…"
Just as Kieran's eyes began to lose their luster and his demeanor turned ominous, Aiden's voice quickly interrupted:
"Kieran, do you remember what I said before the battle began?"
Aiden's words broke Kieran's train of thought and forced him to recall what Aiden had said before the battle started.
Stay true to yourself?
Those four impactful words quickly surfaced in Kieran's mind.
At the same time, Aiden spoke again:
"In fact, I can sense that your determination to become an excellent Trainer isn't fake, and you've been working hard toward that goal."
"…"
Kieran looked up at Aiden with a puzzled gaze.
"But to become a strong Trainer, failure is also indispensable."
Aiden sighed.
"This might be a tough battle, but through it, let me feel your passion and strength, Kieran."
After repeating his pre-battle opening remarks, even the barrage quickly noticed something amiss.
[Is that kid emanating black energy? Is he about to be corrupted by Teacher Azure?]
[It's just a gym challenge—it shouldn't go that far…]
[So Teacher Azure predicted the opponent would turn dark and gave a preemptive warning…]
[Observation Haki? You're terrifyingly skilled at this!]
As the barrage noted, Aiden had already roughly anticipated the current situation.
That's why, knowing Kieran was just a rookie, he persisted in using a tactic that would leave him trapped if he failed to spot the solution.
"If you want to grow, try stepping out of this failure, learn from it, and come back stronger."
"Failure isn't scary. Being able to draw lessons from it and having the courage to try again is a fundamental quality of becoming an excellent Trainer."
After speaking, Aiden smiled warmly and looked at Kieran.
"…"
Kieran fell silent for a moment, his gaze fixed on Aiden.
So that's what it meant?
Did Teacher Azure see through my obsession from the start and say those words before the battle?
Truly…
Shaking his head, Kieran's eyes gradually regained their shine.
He looked at Aiden again, silently wiping away the tears that had welled up while watching Sentret collapse.
Teacher Azure really was an extraordinary person. No wonder the students of Paldea were so eager to repeatedly challenge the Sunshine Gym.
Even someone as gloomy as me had been inspired by him.
"I understand, Teacher Azure."
Kieran nodded solemnly and recalled Sentret, who had long since collapsed from exhaustion.
"Next, I'll show you my growth!"
"Go, Gligar!"
Since it was a 2v2 battle, Kieran still had another Pokémon capable of fighting.
A pink, mischievous-looking Gligar.
"Hiss!"
Upon entering the battlefield, Gligar was momentarily startled by the ghostly Sableye but quickly composed itself, standing obediently and awaiting its Trainer's command.
Seeing Gligar brimming with fighting spirit, Kieran couldn't help but smile.
That's right—it's just as Teacher Azure said!
No matter what, you need the courage to face failure and try again.
Because my Pokémon stepped onto the battlefield fully aware of the possibility of defeat, I can't let them down!
"Teacher Azure, let's battle again!"
This time, Aiden truly felt Kieran's burning desire to fight and the sudden surge of intangible presence around him.
"Gligar, use Knock Off!"
…
Five minutes later.
"Predictably, I lost again…"
Recalling the now-fallen Gligar, Kieran sighed helplessly.
He hadn't been a Trainer for long, and the Pokémon he currently had were temporary partners captured in Kitakami after the major events had settled. Their strength still needed time to grow.
Thus, losing to Teacher Azure was entirely normal.
But it didn't matter. As long as he kept growing with them, one day they'd surely become very powerful.
With that thought, Kieran quickly smiled and looked at Aiden, who was smiling warmly.
"Teacher Azure, thank you so much for your guidance!"
"No need to thank me. I'm just fulfilling my duty as a gym leader. It's my honor to help every challenger learn something."
Aiden smiled and crouched down to pat Sableye, who was now looking for praise.
Beyond testing whether challengers were qualified to earn a badge, guiding their growth was also the responsibility of an excellent gym leader.
In this regard, Aiden believed he was doing quite well, and his efforts always yielded good results.
After this round of "psychological therapy," he believed Kieran would likely avoid falling into darkness so easily in the future.
[Tear-jerking moment—is Teacher Azure actually such a positive gym leader? Are you Paldea students eating too well, giving Teacher Azure bad reviews?!]
[Wait, does anyone remember how this kid was reduced to tears by Teacher Azure's dirty tactics earlier?]
[So Teacher Azure has a dual nature—one angel side, one devil side!]
[That said, Teacher Azure is surprisingly professional at dishing out motivational speeches—I'm getting hyped just listening to him!]
[A gym leader's essential skill, huh? Feels like every gym leader is a master of psychological therapy…]
[Still, how could there be such a nasty Pokémon like Sableye?!]
[Is it possible that it's not the Pokémon that's dirty but rather Teacher Azure's style that turns everything dirty?]
Under the watchful eyes of the barrage, the first challenge of the new semester at the Sunshine Gym concluded perfectly.
Challenger Kieran received Aiden's critique and had his future growth direction realigned—this battle might have an incredibly profound impact on him.
Aiden showcased his professionalism as a gym leader under the gaze of countless viewers.
And the barrage learned a crucial lesson about challenging the Sunshine Gym:
When facing Aiden, you absolutely must get the answers from the quiz beforehand; otherwise, passing his test will be extremely difficult!
After the gym battle ended, Aiden smiled and bid farewell to Kieran.
"Teacher Azure!"
Before leaving, Kieran suddenly became bashful, his face reddening slightly with embarrassment. But eventually, he mustered the courage to look up at Aiden with a serious expression.
"Can I come back to challenge the gym again in the future?"
Although he had seemed utterly useless in the first half and failed to win with Gligar in the second, earning no recognition from Teacher Azure…
As long as he kept striving, someday he'd surely earn the gym badge from Teacher Azure!
Kieran thought to himself.
In response, Aiden maintained his warm smile and gently replied:
"Of course, you're always welcome."
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