After coming out of the contestant channel, Natsui went directly to Arena F.
The battlefields for the preliminaries were on a water surface within the Whirl Stadium. The organizers had divided the water into sixteen small squares where the preliminary contestants would battle to determine the 64 main event participants.
However, since they all shared the same pool of water and it was connected underneath, if a battle in one area became too intense, the turbulent water surface could easily affect the other nearby contestants.
Fortunately, Natsui and the others had already scouted the place yesterday, so they were relatively familiar with the water conditions and were mentally prepared.
Arriving at the waiting area, Natsui stood there quietly, waiting for his turn. Before him, there were still two pairs of contestants battling in Arena F. Taking advantage of the time, he turned his head to glance at Ash and Misty.
Ash had gone to Arena A, while Misty was assigned to Arena B. Through the crowd of contestants, he could vaguely see Ash waiting for his turn, just like him, while Misty was already battling someone.
Due to the angle, he couldn't see who Misty's opponent was, but with her skill, there shouldn't be a problem as long as she didn't encounter a particularly tough trainer.
Coming back to his senses, Natsui focused his attention on his own arena, looking for his potential opponents.
In Arena F, the first two matches concluded quickly. After watching them, Natsui could only describe it as "chicks pecking at each other."
From his perspective, these people were simply too weak. It wasn't that there were no outstanding trainers, but the majority were below standard.
It seemed this was the biggest drawback of not having a badge requirement!
A dozen or so minutes later, the first two matches ended. At the referee's signal, it was finally Natsui's turn.
Natsui walked from the crowd onto the battlefield, and for a moment, the gazes of all the contestants in Arena F were focused on him.
It wasn't because he was special; almost every participant enjoyed this kind of treatment.
After so much experience, he was as calm as still water facing so many eyes and wouldn't be as anxious as the first-time competitors around him.
Especially for trainers who were socially anxious or not good at interacting with people, being watched by dozens of pairs of eyes made their hands and feet turn cold, with sweat beading on their backs.
This preliminary match used a one-on-one rule. Each side sent out one Pokémon for a single-round, winner-takes-all battle with absolutely no room for error.
Natsui's opponent for this battle was a little boy of only seven or eight. The boy was still childish but wasn't the least bit timid. He had an eager look on his face, clearly excited for the match!
The two stood on opposite sides, facing each other across the water.
Looking at his opponent, Natsui rubbed his chin.
Which Pokémon should he send out?
Speaking of which, he currently only had three Water Pokémon: Blastoise, Gyarados, and Suicune.
Hmm...
He pondered for a moment.
Suicune definitely couldn't be revealed on an occasion like this. It wasn't that he wouldn't use a Legendary Pokémon in battle, but he hadn't found the right opportunity, and bringing it out now would be overkill. If he faced an opponent like the legendary beast trainer, he could send out a Legendary Pokémon to counter, but it would obviously be a long time before he met someone like that.
As for his giant red Gyarados...
Sigh, better not. Firstly, it was far away at the Sakuragi Institute, and it was too late to switch it in now. Secondly, Gyarados was still too ferocious. Natsui tried to keep it from battling if possible, as he didn't want to cause any psychological trauma to the other trainers.
With that in mind, Natsui held Blastoise's Poké Ball in his hand.
No choice, I have to rely on you!
He threw his Poké Ball forward, and at the same time, the little boy also sent out his Pokémon.
As the blue light faded, a Poliwag appeared before Natsui.
Compared to the Poliwag, Blastoise's body was enormous. The two Water Pokémon, one large and one small, stood in contrast. Although Natsui had told it not to be careless before the match, Blastoise now looked down at its opponent from above, finding it hard to muster any interest.
Actually, Natsui really wanted to send out his Dragonair, but the organizers had a strict requirement for the participating Pokémon in this tournament: every Pokémon had to have the Water type. Therefore, even though Dragonair could live in water, it didn't meet the competition's regulations.
When the match began, both trainers ordered an attack at the same time.
Poliwag used a Water Gun, while Blastoise endured the minor damage, charged straight up to Poliwag, and finished it off with a simple Tackle and Bite.
It was clean, swift, and won without the slightest complication.
All one could say was that this Pokémon, which had once helped Natsui win the Indigo Conference championship, was in a league of its own in such a small tournament.
"How could this happen?"
Seeing his Pokémon's eyes swirling as it sank into the water, the little boy collapsed onto the ground, unable to believe what he saw!
Poliwag's easy defeat shattered his conviction. His pre-match confidence was gone, and the blow was especially huge for him!
After eliminating his first opponent, Natsui's second and third matches were also easy wins.
Because they were all Water-type Pokémon, the Water-type moves that the participating Pokémon relied on were all greatly weakened. They could only rely on moves of other types to battle. In this regard, Pokémon that were tough and had defensive capabilities had a big advantage.
When all three matches were over, it meant he had advanced to the main event. When he returned to the lounge, he saw Ash and Misty coming back together.
The two looked relaxed, talking and laughing along the way, having clearly advanced successfully as well.
"How did it go? Everything smooth?" Natsui asked.
Ash gave Natsui an 'OK' sign. "It was too easy! There weren't any decent opponents at all!"
Misty nodded in agreement. "It was really easy, a bit different from what I imagined. I thought I'd run into stronger trainers!"
All three of them had performed as expected, with no one slipping up. This was a successful first step, and everyone was happy. Now, all they had to do was wait for tomorrow's main competition.
Leaving the stadium, they met up with Erika and Brock. The two had watched their entire matches from the audience and were well aware of the results. Seeing them now, they couldn't help but congratulate them again.
And in light of their excellent performance, Natsui took them to another restaurant this time for a barbecue feast to reward themselves!
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