Chapter 142:
In Aogiri Town, there were still quite a few open spaces.
In the past, the town's permanent population had numbered at least a hundred households. Though it was still a small town, it had been much livelier back then.
So, Aogiri Town wasn't actually small—it was just sparsely populated.
Hayashi Kaede led the two students to a vacant Western-style house.
It stood opposite the breeding house, along the Bluestone Trail leading toward the town exit. The front had a large courtyard where, in the past, many Trainers would gather for battles.
Later, the owner of the house went away for some reason, and the place fell into neglect.
Over more than ten years, the front courtyard had become completely overgrown. Weeds sprawled chaotically in every direction, some even breaking through the hard cement floor as they grew wildly.
But the space was still quite large.
It had been years since Hayashi Kaede last came here, and he couldn't help but feel a sense of nostalgia.
In the blink of an eye, so much had changed—where once was bustle, now stood silence.
"The place is a bit rough, but let's use this as our battlefield," he said, turning to the two students. "Now, send out your Pokémon."
The two students exchanged a glance, and a Poké Ball appeared in each of their hands.
With a flash of red light, two Pokémon emerged before Hayashi Kaede.
One was a small yellow electric mouse—a Pichu.
This Tiny Mouse Pokémon was mostly yellow, with black markings on its ears, tail, and neck. Its cheeks were pink—the organs it used to generate electricity.
The other was a Nidoran.
Judging by their appearances, both Pokémon seemed to have hatched not long ago.
Hayashi Kaede quickly checked their stat panels.
[Pokémon: Pichu]
[Gender: Female]
[Ability: Static]
[Aptitude: Blue]
[IVs: HP (18) Attack (10) Sp. Atk (18) Defense (5) Sp. Def (6) Speed (26)]
[Level: 8–9]
[Moves: Nuzzle, Thunder Shock, Tail Whip]
[Pokémon: Nidoran]
[Gender: Male]
[Ability: Poison Point]
[Aptitude: Green]
[IVs: HP (21) Attack (10) Sp. Atk (12) Defense (15) Sp. Def (16) Speed (6)]
[Level: 7–9]
[Moves: Leer, Focus Energy, Double Kick, Poison Sting]
As expected, both Pokémon were still in their newborn stages.
Hayashi Kaede thought for a moment, then released the two Pidgey, Pidgeotto, and Pidgeot he had brought with him.
In an instant, the courtyard filled with the cries of birds.
It was worth noting that, under Hayashi Kaede's care these past few days, these Pidgey and Pidgeotto had developed glossy, well-groomed feathers.
The two high school students were stunned at the sight of so many Pidgey and Pidgeotto.
"There are so many?!" one of them exclaimed, unable to hold back his amazement.
Especially when they saw the Pidgeot leading the group—their hearts skipped a beat.
Why did this Pidgeot seem to be surrounded by a faint aura of flames? And it was so much larger than usual—was this really a Pidgeot?
"I have a few challenge modes here," Hayashi Kaede said thoughtfully. "One involves with the Pidgey line—you could call it the Sky Challenge."
"The Sky Challenge can be divided into two formats. The first is where Pidgey and Pidgeotto attack your Pokémon from the air. Of course, we'll start with just two Pidgey, and later add Pidgeotto, increasing the difficulty step by step."
"The first tier is to last 30 seconds without being hit by one. You can use any method to evade its attacks. The second tier is to last one minute against two Pidgeotto, and so on, until finally, the Pidgeot joins the fray."
"For each difficulty level cleared, I'll reward your Pokémon with a special Energy Cube. These cubes can quickly increase your Pokémon's move proficiency, boost their effort values, or even help them learn new moves faster."
"The second format is for you to try and hit the Pidgeotto or Pidgey in the air. The specifics are similar to the first format, but the number of birds decreases as difficulty increases. The rewards are roughly the same."
This challenge format had long taken shape in Hayashi Kaede's mind. He just hadn't had the time to implement it until now.
The initial difficulty couldn't be too high, or it would discourage many new Trainers. But it also couldn't be too low—it needed to offer a real challenge.
The reward system was inspired by Gym Badges. Typically, challenging a Gym would earn you a Badge, and officially recognized Badges could grant priority entry into major tournaments.
Although Hayashi Kaede didn't meet the conditions to become a Gym Leader or establish his own Gym, he could use this method to create challenges and rewards to attract Trainers.
As long as the Energy Cubes were effective enough…
Hayashi Kaede looked at the two dazed students and smiled. "Since this is your first time challenging, it's free today. After this, there'll be a fee. So, are you interested?"
The two exchanged glances, their eyes burning with excitement. "Yes!" they said in unison.
They had heard of Pokémon training in this format before, but it was usually offered at Gyms—and expensive at that. Here, it was free today? How could they pass up such an opportunity?
Hayashi Kaede nodded. "Alright, we'll start with two Pidgey—one for each of you."
At his signal, two Pidgey immediately swooped down. After a brief exchange of glances, each fixed its eyes on its assigned opponent.
In truth, these Pidgey were on the verge of evolution. Already at levels 18 or 19, their presence was no less imposing than that of wild Pidgeotto.
The two high school students immediately grew serious.
First up were Pichu and Pidgey.
Type-wise, Pichu had the advantage.
So, Rikuchi Homura chose the second format—trying to hit the Pidgey.
Seeing the Pidgey flying overhead, Rikka took a deep breath. Weren't they both first-stage Pokémon? He didn't need to defeat the Pidgey—just land a hit. How hard could that be?
Besides, his Pichu was very talented in Speed!
"Pichu, use Thunder Shock!" he commanded.
The Pichu below obediently rubbed its cheeks, and a thin bolt of electricity shot from its body toward the Pidgey in the sky.
Young Pichu aren't very skilled at storing electricity, so they often need to rub their cheeks before releasing an electric attack.
But this telltale motion was all too obvious to the Pidgey in the air.
Thanks to long-term directional training from Gardevoir, the Pidgey simply tilted slightly to the side, effortlessly dodging Pichu's Thunder Shock…
Its movement was smooth and graceful.
"Huh?" Rikuchi Homura was dumbfounded.
It dodged it… just like that?