They discussed a few more details. By the time evening arrived, Natsui finally left the area with Misty and the other two girls.
Since they still needed to choose team members and make preparations before leaving, it would definitely take some time. However, Natsui was not planning to head straight to Sinnoh. That gave Shelly and Courtney plenty of time to get ready.
After walking out of the warehouse, Natsui turned back and looked at the group seeing them off. Then he nodded to them.
"Well, I'll see you all next time."
"Boss..."
Misha and Masha looked at Natsui with tears in their eyes. During this visit, they had only spent a few short hours together. Both of them felt very sad about the farewell.
Still, they also knew that Natsui was a man who had important things to do. He could not stay here with them forever, so all they could do was watch him leave.
As for Shelly and Courtney, they knew they would meet him again in Sinnoh soon. On top of that, they already had things to deal with here, so they did not feel too sad about the goodbye.
Shelly waved a hand lazily.
"Then we'll see each other in Sinnoh."
Courtney nodded seriously.
"I'll wait for you in Sinnoh."
Natsui smiled at them one last time. Then he turned and left with the three girls.
Only after his back disappeared from view did Shelly and Courtney look at each other. Then they both turned around and walked back to their own warehouses.
Once those people were gone, only Misha and Masha remained in the open space.
Misha first looked in the direction Natsui had left. Then he looked toward the warehouses Shelly and Courtney had returned to. In the end, he could not help asking his sister, "Sis, do you think Shelly and Courtney both like the Boss?"
"Isn't that obvious?" Masha said. "Shelly and Courtney aren't ordinary women. Only someone like the Boss would attract them. Just wait. The moment they get a good chance in Sinnoh, they'll throw themselves at him."
Misha scratched his head and looked at Masha.
"What about you, Sis?"
"Me?" Masha's eyes lit up as she stared in the direction Natsui had gone. "Do I even need to say it? Of course I feel the same way they do!"
After leaving the outskirts, Natsui did not return to the Cerise Laboratory right away. Instead, he headed toward Chloe's house.
Because he knew the way, he walked in front. A few steps behind him, May leaned closer to Misty and whispered, "Who were those people just now?"
Even Chloe was listening because she was curious.
Of course, she knew the bikers. But as for the people in those two warehouses, she had no idea who they were or where they had come from.
Seeing that Chloe looked curious too, Misty immediately felt pleased with herself. She cleared her throat and explained to May, "You know how Natsui doesn't just challenge Gyms during his travels. He also helps the International Police solve cases. Those two women used to be admins in criminal organizations. After Natsui defeated them, they decided they wanted to work for him."
Since she had always traveled with Ash, May did not know much about Natsui's earlier adventures. Most of what she knew had come from Misty's stories.
Hearing this now, she felt all over again that Natsui was incredible.
The words International Police and criminal organizations sounded very exciting to her.
Misty noticed that Chloe looked even more curious, as if she wanted to hear more details. That made Misty even happier. She quickly picked out a few interesting stories about Shelly and Courtney and started telling them to the two girls.
Hearing them talk behind him about all his great accomplishments, Natsui could not help feeling a little proud.
After all, at moments like this, there was nothing better than being praised by three beautiful girls.
The three of them kept talking the whole way back until they reached Chloe's house.
By the time they arrived, the relationship between Misty and Chloe had already improved quite a bit. Misty was kind by nature. Even with Natsui involved, her impression of Chloe was still very good.
They walked up the steps. The moment Natsui rang the doorbell, the door opened almost immediately.
As soon as it opened, Natsui saw Chloe's younger brother standing there. It was the cool little boy named Parker.
"You actually came!!"
The moment Parker saw Natsui, he cried out in surprise. His whole face lit up with excitement.
Parker looked exactly the same as before. He was still cheerful, energetic, and pretty handsome too. It was easy to imagine that a boy like him would be popular in class.
Natsui still remembered that when they first met, Parker had said he was a fan and even asked for an autograph. Looking at him now, this little fan was still just as enthusiastic as ever.
Standing behind Parker were Professor Cerise and his wife, both of them smiling.
Professor Cerise had already told his wife that Natsui would be coming. He had also returned from the laboratory a little earlier than usual, though in truth he had only gotten home a few minutes before Natsui arrived.
"Talia, Parker, good to see you again."
Natsui handed them the gifts he had prepared. After him, Misty and May also politely introduced themselves.
"Nice to meet you. My name is Misty."
"I'm May."
Both girls were very polite, and Talia took an immediate liking to them. With a warm smile, she invited everyone inside.
Since they had arrived a little early, Talia had not had time to prepare everything yet. After leading them into the living room, she first served everyone tea, then asked her husband and children to keep the guests company while she went into the kitchen.
Parker was especially excited. He seemed to have endless questions and things he wanted to say. He kept pulling Natsui aside and asking him about everything.
He wanted to hear about all of it, from travel stories to winning the championship.
At first, Natsui answered patiently. But Parker was so enthusiastic that after a while, even Natsui started finding it a little hard to keep up.
Luckily, he had someone to help him.
He glanced at Misty, and she immediately understood. She smoothly took over the conversation.
She had already become very skilled at bragging about Natsui without exposing any secrets. And on top of that, she genuinely enjoyed doing it. So, in front of everyone in the room, she picked out a few exciting adventures from Hoenn and told them with obvious enthusiasm.
Misty's stories were so lively that everyone listened closely. Parker, in particular, was thrilled. Every now and then, he would cry out, "That's amazing!" which only made Misty feel more pleased with herself.
That was right. Talking proudly about Natsui made Misty happy too. Somehow, it made her feel even better than bragging about herself.
After everyone had finished their tea, the doorbell rang again.
Parker ran to open the door. When he came back, Chrysa and Ren were following behind him.
Now everyone was here. Once Talia finished cooking, Chrysa helped her set the table, and their warm family dinner officially began.
After spending one night at the Cerise Laboratory, Natsui, Misty, and May got ready and left the next morning. They departed from Vermilion City and headed north toward the nearest battle facility.
That place was called the Battle Arena. To be honest, Natsui was not especially familiar with it. He only remembered a little from the past.
But that was not a problem. As long as he could defeat the Frontier Brain and get proof of victory, that would be enough.
The Battle Arena was located near a village outside Saffron City. Following the map, Natsui walked for more than half a day before finally reaching the area.
However, before entering the village, he stood there for a long time, looking toward Saffron City.
Not far away, the woman he loved was waiting there. It felt as though if he just took a few more steps, he could hold Sabrina in his arms again.
At that moment, his heart became restless.
He wanted to go see Sabrina right away.
But he knew this was not the right time. He could not let impatience get the better of him. At the very least, he needed to finish this Battle Arena challenge first.
Natsui pushed the thought aside, took a deep breath, and then turned his attention back to the village in front of him.
Even though it was out in the countryside, the houses were neatly connected, the scenery was beautiful, and the air was fresh and clean. It was a very pleasant place.
Even though this place was not managed directly by the Pokémon League, the League had still built a Pokémon Center nearby to support the Battle Arena. It gave trainers a place to rest, and they had even taken the time to make the area look nice.
The three of them headed straight to the Pokémon Center. When they entered, they found that the inside was very spacious. The decorations were expensive too. Besides them, there were a few other trainers eating in the dining area.
The person running the place was still Nurse Joy. That had not changed at all.
After Natsui checked in for the three of them at the counter, they were about to head into the restaurant and get something to eat. Just then, a smiling man walked over. He was wearing sunglasses and a blue shirt, and he was a little chubby.
"Excuse me, are you all trainers?"
Hearing that voice, Natsui turned around and looked at the man.
"And you are...?"
"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Scott. Since you're clearly trainers, may I ask what brings you here?"
Scott...
Natsui immediately remembered who this was. He was the owner of the Kanto Battle Frontier, the man who funded all the Frontier Brains.
He had not expected to run into him here. That really was a coincidence.
Before Natsui could answer, Scott suddenly took off his sunglasses and stared at him carefully.
"Now that I think about it... have we met somewhere before? Why does your face look so familiar?"
Natsui had never met Scott before. If Scott thought he looked familiar, there was only one possible reason.
Almost at the same time, Scott suddenly cried out in surprise.
"Ah! I remember now! You're that Champ—"
Before he could finish, Natsui cut him off with a quiet cough.
Even though there were not that many trainers here, he still did not want to attract unnecessary attention.
"It's me," Natsui said quietly. "Please lower your voice. Don't disturb the others."
Only after Natsui reminded him did Scott realize he had been too loud. He laughed awkwardly.
"Haha, I'm really sorry. I just didn't expect to see you here. It was too surprising."
"Actually, I'm surprised too." Natsui smiled and casually revealed Scott's identity. "I also didn't expect the owner of the Battle Frontier to show up in a place like this."
This made Scott even more surprised.
"Eh? You know me?"
Natsui only gave him a mysterious smile. Of course, he was not going to explain how he knew. Instead, he said, "Is that really so surprising? A rich man like you who also owns the Battle Frontier is bound to attract attention."
The words were just politeness. Scott had always kept a low profile and rarely appeared in public. If he had really been that well known, a lot more people would have recognized him already.
Scott knew Natsui was only being polite, but he did not mind. He just smiled.
"Did you come here this time for the Battle Frontier?"
"Of course." Natsui nodded. "But I've been delayed a little. It looks like I won't be able to challenge it until tomorrow."
"That's great!" Scott's eyes lit up immediately. He said excitedly, "The Frontier Brain of the Battle Arena is Greta. She's very strong! And getting to watch a Champion like you battle her... I'm sure tomorrow's match will be incredibly exciting! I definitely won't miss it!"
Greta, huh...
Natsui thought about what he knew regarding that Frontier Brain.
Unfortunately, he did not remember what she looked like or what Pokémon she used.
Still, that was not a big issue. No matter what team she had, as long as he stayed careful, he would win in the end.
After talking with Scott for a while longer, they agreed to head there together the next day. Natsui watched him leave, and only then did he finally go into the restaurant with Misty and May.
Once Scott was gone, Misty let out a breath and smiled.
"That guy just walked up to us like that. Based on how he looked, at first I thought he was some kind of talent scout. I never expected him to be the boss behind the Battle Frontier. You really can't tell just by looking!"
The night passed peacefully.
The next morning, after finishing breakfast, the three of them stayed in the Pokémon Center for a little while longer. When the time was right, they walked out through the front entrance.
The moment they stepped outside, they saw a red sports car speeding toward them. It pulled right up to the entrance, and the person behind the wheel was Scott.
"Get in. The rest of the way isn't far, but let me drive you to the Battle Arena!"
Natsui had not expected that when Scott said they would go together, he meant it literally. It suddenly made a lot more sense why the man looked a little chubby.
The three of them got into the car. They followed a country road for about five minutes, then entered a small forest. In the distance, they finally saw a Japanese-style building standing in the middle of the trees.
So this is the Battle Arena?
Natsui had originally imagined something that looked more like a large stadium. He had not expected it to resemble a temple instead.
As they got closer, they began hearing the shouts of many people. They were practicing martial arts.
While driving, Scott smiled and explained, "Greta isn't just the Frontier Brain of the Battle Arena. She's also an incredibly skilled martial artist herself. And on top of that, she has a very lively personality. Once you meet her, I'm sure you'll hit it off right away!"