Chapter 133. Pokémon League Admissions Exam
The next day, everyone said goodbye to Gary Oak and left the fossil-producing area.
"Let me take a shot, let me take a shot—please?" Asher begged Misty.
"No. It's still an Egg. What if the camera has radiation?"
Misty hugged the Pokémon Egg, shrank back from Asher, and looked especially protective.
Asher: "…"
What kind of excuse is that?
Watching this scene, Natsume yawned.
Asher's home was just up ahead, so he was traveling with them for now.
In Misty's arms was the Pokémon Egg Ash had brought out.
It would hatch into Togepi in the future.
Originally, Ash was excited about this Pokémon Egg too.
But now he had given it to Misty, because there was something even more exciting waiting for him.
"Come on, Charizard.
Let's build our bond and train hard!"
On the roadside, Ash and Charizard pressed palm to palm and forehead to forehead, straining against each other.
Pikachu hopped down from Ash's shoulder, blew a whistle, and waved two little flags to cheer them on.
Charizard's face flushed red, and its body kept getting pushed back.
Even with its resistance, Ash's forward push was no slower than the group's walking pace.
Natsume's gaze wandered over Charizard.
Starting yesterday afternoon, he had given Charizard a full-body checkup.
Its innate talent was as poor as ever, and because it had evolved prematurely, its body size was far smaller than that of a normal Charizard.
Among his system tasks, there was also an A-rank task concerning Charizard.
He had planned to wait until it evolved before tackling it.
But now, it seemed the key to this task wasn't on Charizard itself.
Natsume's thoughts drifted to the Charicific Valley.
He hadn't been there, but the turning point when Charizard began to grow exponentially stronger started from that place.
Maybe the key to the task lay in the Charicific Valley?
Natsume remembered that, in his previous life playing the games, there were special training methods that could enhance a Pokémon's innate talent.
But in all these years in Kanto, Natsume had never heard of training that could affect talent like that.
It seemed likely the Charicific Valley might have such a method.
Natsume thought about his Dragonite.
Although its various innate talents were zeros among ten thousand,
Under the constant influence of Dynamax energy, its physical power was actually no less than that of Dragonite at the same level—perhaps even greater.
If he could send it to the Charicific Valley to raise its talent…
Natsume made up his mind to find a way to send it there to train for a year first.
While boosting its talent, he would see if he could strengthen Dragonite's control over itself.
Within that year, he also needed to search for traces of Ho-Oh.
With the Sacred Fire that could bring the dead back to life as a safety net, Natsume could modify Dragonite without any worries.
"Sigh… By the way, you're entering the League.
Have you passed the Pokémon League Admissions Exam?"
Asher adjusted his camera and asked.
"What's the Pokémon League Admissions Exam?"
Ash flipped Charizard onto its back, then looked at Asher in curiosity.
"Uh… Looks like you definitely haven't passed."
Asher's mouth twitched.
He pointed at the small town up ahead and the tall building at its center:
"Over by my place, there's a Pokémon League Admissions Exam center."
"Hey, Natsume—what is the Admissions Exam?"
Ash recalled Charizard.
It looked much more obedient now, and at the instant Ash returned it, there was even a trace of relief on its face.
"The Admissions Exam?" Natsume paused.
After a moment, he remembered.
"Here."
With that, Natsume handed Ash a small booklet.
"What's this?" Ash asked, puzzled.
"Key points for before the test," Natsume said solemnly.
"To enter the Indigo Plateau Conference, besides collecting eight Badges, you also need to pass the Pokémon League Admissions Exam."
"For the exam, theory counts for 70%, and practical counts for 30%."
As he spoke, Natsume opened the booklet:
"The theory has two parts: one is basic Pokémon battle knowledge, and the other is some rules for the League.
It's out of 100 points, and you need at least 90 to pass."
"Aaah—"
Ash clutched his head like the sky was falling.
"We're doomed," Misty groaned, covering her face.
"Don't lose heart.
A lot of it is common sense.
Ash, if you memorize more of the match rules, you should be fine," Brock comforted him.
"Really?"
Ash looked at the thin booklet of only a few pages in his hand, a bit doubtful.
"Of course.
I'm taking it too, and I compiled this myself," Natsume added.
Hearing that, hope flared in Ash's eyes again.
"Mr. Asher, please lend me a quiet room!"
Ash grabbed Asher's hand, eyes brimming with tears.
"Uh… no problem.
My home is this way—come with me."
They followed Asher to a large house.
Inside, nearly every wall was covered with photos of all sizes, leaving almost no gaps.
"Wow, Mr. Asher, you've taken so many Pokémon photos!" Misty exclaimed.
"This is my collection room, where I usually process photos.
It's very quiet here."
Asher opened a door.
Inside were bookshelves—packed not with books but with dense rows of photo albums.
"Alright, time to grind!"
Ash charged in with Pikachu.
He opened the booklet and began reading carefully.
"Generally, there are about ten points' worth of giveaway questions…
Natsume, you're so professional—you even predicted these."
Excited, Ash turned to the so-called giveaway questions Natsume had forecast—
"Why is it recommended to blow air at Dragon-type Pokémon?"
Ash was full of question marks.
Flip to the answer—"Because Dragonair."
"???"
Is this booklet reliable?
Ash suddenly felt a bit worried, but he gritted his teeth and kept reading.
The next day, at the Pokémon League Admissions Exam Center.
Natsume accompanied Ash, and each of them took a number tag.
Behind them, Honora, Misty, and Brock also each took a number tag.
They weren't planning to enter the League; they were just here to join the fun.
Leaning against the wall, Ash looked quite nervous.
He was good at Pokémon battles.
But no one said there'd be a test!
The walls of the exam center were also plastered with various rules for the League.
"Don't worry, Ash," Misty said, stepping up to pat his shoulder.
"The Admissions Exam remains valid for several years.
If you pass this time, you won't need to come again for the next few years when you enter the League."
"No… It's just that I crammed all night, but it feels unreliable," Ash said, shivering.
"If it really doesn't stick, you can look over the key points posted out here."
Brock pointed to the corridor walls.
Ash took a deep breath, calmed himself, looked over—and froze.
"'It is forbidden for a Pokémon to enter the field while dancing.'
Why is that?"
Ash blinked.
"Because some Trainers tried to cheat by having their Pokémon use Quiver Dance in advance before sending them in."
Natsume appeared, a sandwich in hand.
"What about this one?" Misty said, pointing at a rule that was highlighted in red and bolded, incredibly eye-catching.
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