🎆 Happy New Year! 🎆
Thank you all for the amazing support throughout this year. 💙To celebrate the arrival of the new year, here is a special New Year code:
🎁 Code:NewYear: F3B16
📅 Code validity:
Start: December 30, 2025 at 11:55 p.m.
End: January 2, 2026 at 11:00 p.m.
Enjoy it and let's start this new year strong. 🚀✨Here's to an amazing 2026! 🎉
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After dinner.
After a night of rest.
The next day, the tournament officially began.
On this occasion, many people known to Cain also attended the tournament.
Cynthia, Diantha, Drasna, and several others were among the spectators.
Practically everyone who had been in the Top 32 of the past Sinnoh Tournament was there.
Because all of them had the level necessary to aspire to the Elite Four positions of their respective regions.
Although, of course, among those thirty-two there were still notable differences in level.
But in any case, all of them were more than qualified to become Gym Leaders.
Cynthia, accompanying the people from Sinnoh, sat not far from Cain and his group.
Seeing Cain and his companions, Cynthia hesitated for a moment, but in the end she approached.
"Long time no see, Cynthia," Cain said with a smile.
Of all those present, he was the one most familiar with her.
Cynthia nodded. Cain had reached the semifinals in the Sinnoh Tournament, Steven had taken first place; in reality, there was barely any difference between the three of them.
"The pokéblocks from last time aren't working as well anymore, I don't know if it would be possible..." Cynthia rarely asked favors, so when she addressed Cain with this request, she couldn't help showing some discomfort.
Hearing her, Cain was a little surprised.
Cynthia, from time to time, sent him money into his account, and he arranged for someone to send her pokéblocks regularly.
He never thought her Pokémon would have consumed them so consistently until now.
It was only natural then that, with the increase in her Pokémon's strength, those pokéblocks were no longer enough.
Without hesitation, Cain smiled and nodded: "No problem, though you know, I need to observe your Pokémon up close."
If someone offered their own Pokémon as study material, of course he wasn't going to refuse.
And even more so if it was someone with the future of a Champion.
"What about us, Cain? Don't go preferring only Cynthia and forgetting about your friends," Steven immediately cut in.
"Yes, yes, us too, Cain!" added Phoebe, backing the idea.
Perhaps others didn't know, but Steven had received certain information from his father: Cain's abilities as a breeder no longer had anything to envy compared to those of his master, Matsuda Takashi. Only, because of his low profile, that hadn't been spread around.
Juan and old Matsuda himself had also preferred to keep it a secret.
With such an opportunity, Steven wasn't going to let it pass.
And with the relationship the three of them had with Cain, asking him that couldn't even be considered presumptuous.
"Oh? Couldn't we be included as well?" a feminine voice sounded from the other side.
Looking up, they saw Diantha and Drasna approaching.
Thanks to the times Cain had traveled to Kalos for work matters, and the official revelation of the fairy type, he had kept some contact with them.
At first, Diantha and Drasna only intended to greet, but apparently they had overheard something very important.
All those prodigies from different regions were asking Cain for personalized pokéblocks?
Diantha, of course, didn't intend to refuse the idea and seized the opportunity.
Cain, with a slightly resigned smile, thought: "You all offered yourselves, it's not my fault."
For any breeder, preparing personalized pokéblocks for all of a trainer's Pokémon was a titanic task.
But Cain wasn't just any breeder.
For him, the difference was that his system would take an hour to process, or at most a few more.
The problem lay in the manual preparation, which was somewhat more tedious.
Overall, nothing he couldn't handle.
He nodded and said: "No problem. Miss Diantha, Miss Drasna, long time no see."
Steven, Wallace, Cynthia, and Diantha: the four of them had Champion potential in their regions; Phoebe and Drasna weren't far behind either.
Without realizing it, Cain had already surrounded himself with a circle full of individuals with a brilliant future.
Since everyone had decided to stay, they looked for some free seats and sat together.
After the Sinnoh Tournament, a certain familiarity already existed between them, so there was no discomfort at all.
If at that moment Giovanni had ordered the elimination of everyone present in that group, the League would surely have been paralyzed for an entire century.
The impact would be unimaginable.
Of course, it was only a passing thought.
...
The tournament to determine the next Elite Four had officially begun.
In order to quickly select the challengers, the preliminary phase was organized in a single-elimination format.
The battles took place continuously, without pauses.
The Nurse Joys and their Chanseys were stationed at the edges of the field, ready to attend to any Pokémon that fell in battle, ensuring nothing interfered with the upcoming matches.
There were no unnecessary speeches; everyone present was knowledgeable in the matter, so the battles began immediately.
The first battle was Lance's.
Cain didn't know his opponent.
The difference in level between the two was evident: Lance only needed his Kingdra to dispatch three consecutive opponents and claim victory.
Many of those participants had been invited more as a formality, to "make an appearance" and gain experience.
But even so, being summoned by the League to a tournament to determine the next Elite Four was an honor they could boast about for their entire lives.
Yes, invited.
Because the participants in this tournament were selected directly by the League; only those strong enough received the invitation.
The second to go out was Koga. His opponent was also far below his level.
There was no surprise: Koga won easily.
Then came Flint's turn.
Perhaps by arrangement of the League, all duels pitted strong against weak.
It gave the impression that they wanted to eliminate the weakest first, give them the chance to show up and leave with some prestige.
Only a few cases turned out exceptions.
For example, Lorelei, who went in as the apparent weaker side, managed to impose herself on her opponent.
Will and Karen also won, though with quite a bit of difficulty.
That made it clear that even among geniuses there were marked differences.
Lorelei, Will, and Karen would, without a doubt, receive greater attention from the League.
That those three achieved victories didn't surprise Cain, but what did catch his attention was that another unknown participant, starting as the weaker side, won with much more ease than them.
His name was Kagen.
A man Cain had never heard of, and who nevertheless had received an invitation from the League.
That aroused certain suspicion in him.
Kagen didn't seem to specialize in a particular type.
But in the way he directed his battles and in how he treated his Pokémon, Cain perceived a familiar feeling.
It was like... like those members of Team Rocket he had met in his past life.
Or rather, like those powerful trainers who saw their Pokémon as mere tools.
Almost identical to the Cain of his previous life.
That was why he seemed so familiar.
But how could someone like that have received an official invitation from the League?
Not only was Cain puzzled.
Professor Oak, sitting right behind, also showed the same doubt.
Someone with that profile should never have the chance to aspire to a position among the Elite Four.
(End of chapter)