The salty sea breeze blew across the beach, carrying the warmth of the sun.
The young Trainer's voice wasn't loud, but it was just enough for the small circle of people around him to hear.
Jiang Han's face remained expressionless, his eyes as calm as an ancient well, as if he wasn't the one being provoked. He glanced indifferently at the person, his voice betraying no emotion.
"You want to have a go?"
This rhetorical question was more powerful than any insult.
Like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, the young Trainer immediately bristled.
"Let's do it then! I'll show you what a real Trainer is!"
He flicked his wrist and threw a Poké Ball. In a flash of red light, a short, stout Sandshrew appeared on the sand, curling its body and looking around warily.
"Sandshrew, use Defense Curl!" the young Trainer shouted impatiently.
The surrounding onlookers broke into low murmurs.
Although Sandshrew were common, a well-trained one could be quite troublesome, especially with its hard shell.
Jiang Han felt no ripples in his heart. A novice Trainer with a peak strength of no more than level ten or so was no different from a delivery of experience points in his eyes.
He didn't even take out a Poké Ball, merely patting his pant leg lightly.
The sand surged, and a Sandile burrowed out from beneath, revealing only its eyes as it stared coldly at the Sandshrew.
"Oh? A Sandile."
The young Trainer nodded with feigned sophistication.
"Ground-type against Ground-type, you won't have any elemental advantage."
Jiang Han didn't care for small talk.
"Dig."
With those two simple words, Sandile instantly submerged into the sand and vanished without a trace.
"Thinking of a sneak attack? How naive!" the young Trainer yelled. "Sandshrew, watch your feet! Use Sand Attack!"
Sandshrew immediately used its claws to rapidly kick up sand. For a moment, dust filled the air in an attempt to interfere with Sandile's judgment.
But in the next second, the sand beneath Sandshrew's feet collapsed violently. Sandile burst through the sand and bit down hard on Sandshrew's soft belly.
"Skree!"
Sandshrew let out a scream as its body was flung into the air by Sandile, landing heavily on the beach with its eyes swirled into circles.
A one-hit knockout.
The entire process took no more than ten seconds.
The surroundings instantly fell silent. Everyone looked at the cold Sandile on the field, then back at the expressionless Jiang Han.
It was too fast, and too decisive.
The young Trainer's face flushed between red and white; even his sunglasses couldn't hide his embarrassment.
He gritted his teeth hard and recalled his Sandshrew.
"Consider yourself lucky! I haven't shown my true strength yet!"
Refusing to accept defeat, he pulled out a second Poké Ball and slammed it onto the ground.
"Come out, Machop!"
A muscular Machop appeared, striking a bodybuilding pose toward Sandile, brimming with fighting spirit.
The Fighting-type Machop had a type advantage over the Ground and Dark-type Sandile.
"Let's see how you win this time!" the young Trainer roared.
Jiang Han glanced at the Machop and recalled Sandile. To deal with this simple-minded Fighting-type pokémon, he had a better candidate.
"Inkay."
The small squid-like pokémon floated in mid-air, the light organs on its head flashing, looking completely harmless.
Seeing Inkay, the young Trainer was stunned for a moment before bursting into laughter.
"Hahaha! You're sending out a squid to face my Machop? Are you trying to be funny?"
The people around also started whispering, clearly not favoring this matchup.
Jiang Han acted as if he hadn't heard anything and simply gave Inkay an order.
"Psybeam."
"Machop, rush in and use Karate Chop!"
Machop sprinted forward, its legs moving with the sound of whistling wind as it charged at Inkay.
But before it could get close, the organs on Inkay's head erupted with a brilliant, seven-colored light, enveloping Machop like a rainbow.
Machop's footsteps faltered, and its eyes became dazed.
It stopped in its tracks, staring blankly at its own fist, before uncontrollably punching itself in the head.
"Thump!"
With a dull sound, Machop clutched its head, its movements becoming even more chaotic.
"Machop! What are you doing!" The young Trainer was hopping mad with anxiety.
Jiang Han didn't give him any chance.
"Wrap."
Inkay's two long tentacles extended like flexible whips, lashing out like lightning. Seizing the gap in Machop's confusion, it bound the pokémon tightly from head to toe.
Machop struggled continuously, but the more it exerted force, the tighter the tentacles wound.
Under the effects of confusion and the binding, its brute strength had nowhere to be applied. Eventually, its stamina gave out, and it lost the ability to battle.
The entire area was silent.
If the first match was a crushing defeat, the second was a complete mockery.
A seemingly weak squid had dispatched a muscular Machop without shedding a drop of blood.
The young Trainer was utterly dumbfounded. He stared blankly at the Machop tied up like a dumpling on the field, then at the innocent-looking Inkay floating in the air, and finally turned his gaze toward Jiang Han.
Jiang Han's expression remained calm, as if he had only done something insignificant.
This disregard was more hurtful than any taunt.
The young Trainer's face turned pale. Trembling, he recalled Machop and, without saying a word, pushed through the crowd and ran away in disgrace.
Jiang Han's two battles were like a stone thrown into a calm lake, instantly stirring up a thousand waves.
"That Inkay is so strong!"
"His Sandile too, it took out Sandshrew in one move!"
"Who is this guy? I've never seen him before."
Soon, an indignant rookie Trainer stepped forward.
"I challenge you!"
Jiang Han looked at these eager young faces before him, his heart untroubled.
Experience babies coming right to his door—it would be a waste not to take them.
"Fine."
For the next hour, this patch of the beach's battlefield practically became Jiang Han's personal show.
One Trainer after another took the field, and one after another, they were defeated.
Whether it was a flying Pidgey, a swimming Magikarp, or the common Raticate found in the grass, none could last more than a few rounds against Jiang Han's Sandile and Inkay.
Jiang Han's commands were precise and efficient, always seizing the smallest opening in his opponents to claim victory in one strike.
Whether it was the gap in Pokémon strength, potential, or commanding ability, Jiang Han was far superior to this group of Trainers.
Sandile's Dig was elusive, and its Brick Break was heavy and powerful.
Inkay's Psybeam was bizarre and hard to defend against, and its newly learned Protect allowed it to block opponent's attacks several times without a scratch.
After a series of gauntlet matches, Jiang Han showed no signs of fatigue; instead, he seemed to grow stronger with each fight.
After the battles ended, he could clearly feel the energy within Sandile and Inkay grow a bit stronger.
Sandile, Level 13!
Inkay, Level 11!
The surrounding challengers were finally completely cowed; no one dared to step forward anymore. Their gaze toward Jiang Han had shifted from initial provocation and disdain to awe and admiration.
Jiang Han didn't care about this at all. He recalled his pokémon and turned to leave.
Just then, a small hand grabbed the corner of his clothes.
Jiang Han's footsteps paused. He instinctively frowned and looked back, a hint of alertness in his eyes.
The one holding him was a little boy who looked only seven or eight years old. The boy wore clean short sleeves and shorts, his large eyes sparkling as he looked up at him with full admiration.
"Big brother, you're so amazing!" The little boy's voice was crisp and loud. "My name is Xiao Mu. Can you teach me how to have pokémon battles?"
More trouble.
A flash of impatience crossed Jiang Han's mind. He really wanted to just pick this kid up and toss him into the sea.
He had a mission to complete; he didn't have time to play house with a child.
Just as he was about to coldly refuse, a name suddenly flashed through his mind.
Xiao Mu!
Jiang Han's pupils constricted slightly.
He remembered now. Last night at the Pokémon Center, while investigating intelligence on Team Aqua, he had incidentally browsed through the profiles of all the famous figures in Slateport City.
The Curator of the Slateport City Museum, a big boss who was famous even throughout the Hoenn region—Mr. Namu.
The records mentioned that Curator Nan Mu had an only son whom he cherished as a precious treasure. His name was... Xiao Mu!
Jiang Han looked at the innocent little boy before him whose eyes were full of stars. The impatience in his heart was instantly replaced by a cold calculation.
This wasn't just some brat.
This was clearly a key that could knock open the doors to Slateport City's high society!
Ãdvåñçé çhàptêr àvàilàble óñ pàtreøn luffy1898