Jiang Han walked over and cleared his throat.
"Are you the interns from the Trainer School?"
The three youngsters immediately looked over. The boy wearing glasses adjusted them, scrutinizing Jiang Han:
"You are? The instructor Teacher Roxanne mentioned? You don't look much older than us."
His tone carried a hint of distrust.
Jiang Han couldn't be bothered to waste words on them and directly released his Sandile.
The moment Sandile appeared, its fierce killing intent immediately intimidated the three children.
The three children looked at Jiang Han, their defiant attitudes gone.
Jiang Han recalled Sandile, his voice flat:
"My name is Jiang Han. I am the temporary instructor Gym Leader Roxanne hired to guide you through your internship. Now, everyone state your name and the pokémon you own."
"My name is Xiao Tian, and this is my Zigzagoon!"
The lively boy spoke first.
"M-My name is Misato, and this is my... Skitty."
The timid girl said quietly.
The boy with glasses cleared his throat, regaining some composure:
"My name is Yuta, and my partner is Geodude."
Jiang Han nodded, already having a sense of their capabilities.
Zigzagoon, Skitty, Geodude—a standard configuration for pure rookies.
"Alright, the destination is Petalburg Woods. Your task is to observe and record the habits of at least three types of wild pokémon. If you are capable, you may attempt to capture one. Did everyone understand?"
"Understood!" the three answered in unison, their attitude much more respectful than before.
Jiang Han said no more, turning and leading the way out of the city.
Petalburg Woods is located south of Rustboro City and is a vast, primeval forest.
The trees in the forest were tall, their branches and leaves dense, cutting the sunlight into patches of dappled light that scattered upon the thick layer of fallen leaves.
The air was filled with the fresh scent of mixed soil and plants, occasionally punctuated by the crisp chirping of birds.
For rookie Trainers, this was indeed an excellent place for experience.
The pokémon species were abundant, yet relatively weak.
As soon as they entered the forest, the three youngsters were like fawns released into the wild, finding everything novel.
"Wow! It's a Wurmple! It's chewing on leaves!"
"Over there! There's a Nuzleaf over there!"
Jiang Han followed behind them, hands in his pockets, looking somewhat bored.
To him, a forest of this level was no different from his own backyard.
Just then, Yuta, the boy with glasses, perhaps wanting to show off in front of Jiang Han, pointed at a few Shroomish beneath a nearby tree and said:
"Look, those are Shroomish! The pokédex says they spread poisonous Effect Spore from their heads, so we need to be careful."
As he spoke, he seriously pulled out a notebook from his backpack and began recording.
Jiang Han glanced over and chuckled inwardly.
Armchair strategy.
He sensed that the Shroomish were calm and had no intention of attacking.
However, accidents always strike without warning.
The most lively one, Xiao Tian, saw the Shroomish, his eyes lighting up. He shouted, "My goal is to capture a Shroomish! Go, Zigzagoon, use Tackle!"
Without thinking, he immediately threw a Poké Ball.
"Wait!" Yuta's warning came too late.
The newly released Zigzagoon foolishly charged straight toward one of the Shroomish.
This action completely stirred up a hornet's nest.
The attacked Shroomish instantly bristled, and the other Shroomish immediately grew wary. The mushroom caps on their heads suddenly shook, and a visible cloud of powder sprayed out like smoke.
Stun Spore!
"Ah! My Zigzagoon!" Xiao Tian cried out in panic.
His Zigzagoon was coated in Stun Spore, immediately convulsing and collapsing onto the ground, losing the ability to battle.
"Quick! Recall Zigzagoon!" Yuta urgently shouted.
But the enraged Shroomish clearly had no intention of stopping; they marched forward aggressively on their short legs, surrounding the group.
The timid Misato was scared pale, clutching her Skitty tightly, completely at a loss.
"What should we do? What should we do?"
"They're coming!"
Watching the three flustered rookies, who were like ants on a hot pan, Jiang Han finally moved.
With one hand in his pocket, he casually tossed out a Poké Ball with the other.
A flash of red light, and an agile Sneasel appeared in the field, exuding a chilling aura completely different from Sandile's.
"Sneasel, finish this quickly." Jiang Han's voice was utterly calm.
Sneasel understood instantly, its figure transforming into a shadow that darted through the woods.
"So fast!" Yuta's glasses nearly slipped off.
A chilling frost appeared on Sneasel's sharp claws—Ice Punch!
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
A few muffled thuds, punches connecting solidly.
The aggressive Shroomish didn't even have time to spray out more Effect Spore before being hit directly by Ice Punch. One by one, they rolled their eyes, collapsed to the ground, and were completely knocked out.
The entire process took only a few seconds.
The three youngsters watched dumbfounded. The crisis that had left them helpless moments ago was so easily defeated in front of this man.
"Wow! That's amazing! Is that Ice Punch?"
Adoration shone in Xiao Tian's eyes. He quickly recovered from his shock, pointed at a Shroomish on the ground, and excitedly pulled out a Poké Ball,
"This one looks the strongest, I'm going to catch it!"
"No." Jiang Han recalled Sneasel, his voice cold.
Xiao Tian froze. "Why? Wasn't it already defeated?"
"I defeated it, not you."
Jiang Han glanced at him,
"It is a Trainer's rule: only opponents defeated through the efforts of yourself and your pokémon are you qualified to capture. Don't you find it shameful to take something already handed to you?"
These words instantly made Xiao Tian's face flush crimson, and he hung his head in shame.
Yuta thoughtfully adjusted his glasses, committing the sentence to memory.
Jiang Han couldn't be bothered to pay attention to them anymore, turning and continuing deeper into the forest.
While the three youngsters followed behind, collecting themselves, Jiang Han subtly fell back two steps. With a flick of his wrist, an inconspicuous Poké Ball was silently tossed into the nearby grass.
A small Inkay poked its head out, blinking its large eyes at Jiang Han.
Jiang Han handed it several empty Poké Balls, gesturing with his eyes toward the unconscious Shroomish behind them.
Inkay understood immediately, using its small tentacles to roll up the Poké Balls before sneakily submerging itself again.
The corner of Jiang Han's mouth involuntarily lifted.
Seriously, if Jiang Han took action, how could he possibly return empty-handed?
These Shroomish look good. Taking them back and handing them over to the organization will earn him points.
Time flowed by, and when the sunset dyed the forest golden-red, Jiang Han stopped.
"Alright, we'll stop here for today."
He waved his hand,
"It's getting late. The dangers in the forest will multiply, so we should head back."
Xiao Tian and Misato both looked excited, clearly having gained a lot.
Xiao Tian successfully captured a crying Lotad, while Misato plucked up her courage and had Skitty defeat and capture a Spinarak.
Only Yuta followed at the very end, disheartened. Although his Geodude tried hard, his luck was bad, and he never managed to successfully capture a pokémon.
"Yuta, don't be sad."
Misato comforted him softly,
"Uncle Saki is part of the Alliance. Didn't he team up with the Investigator Uncles and Aunties last time to crack down on the pokémon black market in the city? Since he's so amazing, he will definitely find a way to get you a great pokémon."
"Mm..." Yuta responded glumly.
Jiang Han, walking at the front, paused almost imperceptibly.
Saki?
An Alliance official cracking down on the black market?
A name instantly flashed through his mind—a name that had recently appeared in his mission briefing.
He calmly looked back at the boy wearing glasses, who looked disappointed.
Yuta... Saki Yuta?
This piece of intelligence, which even the Team Rockets intelligence network failed to uncover, was heard by him during a chance internship assignment.
Jiang Han chuckled inwardly.
He had originally only taken this troublesome job for a tm, but now it seemed the reward far exceeded expectations.
Looking at Yuta's frustrated face, a brilliant plan had quietly begun to form in his mind.
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