"I never thought Psychic power could be used like this."
Walking along the road toward his next destination, Vermilion City, Nozomi was in an exceptionally good mood.
Earlier, when he had left, he had forgotten to mention the prize money to Officer Jenny. Not wanting to squeeze through the crowd again, he had decided to test whether he could send a message telepathically using his newly honed Psychic power.
To his surprise—it worked!
"Psychic power really is something else," Nozomi mused to himself.
Controlling objects, teleportation, even telepathic communication… he wondered what there wasn't that Psychic power could do.
He thought that when he had the time, he wouldn't just train Pokémon; he would also hone his own superhuman abilities.
Lost in these thoughts, he suddenly noticed a large gathering up ahead.
"What's going on here?"
It was unusual to see such a crowd on this road. Clearly, something must have happened to draw them together.
Curious, Nozomi pushed his way through the throng.
And then he saw a familiar figure.
"Huh? Yuuji?"
He had only bid farewell to Yuuji yesterday. To see him again today was unexpected.
But Yuuji didn't look well. He was currently in the middle of a Pokémon battle—and clearly on the losing side.
"Wait… who's that…"
Nozomi studied Yuuji's opponent, whose face looked vaguely familiar, as if he'd seen him somewhere before.
"That pale green hair, that prematurely aged look, the backpack on his back… and his Pokémon is a Sandshrew…"
Nozomi was about to recall exactly who this pale green-haired boy was when a voice nearby interrupted his thoughts.
"A.J., the Beast Tamer, is amazing!"
Nozomi: "…."
Just when he was about to figure it out himself, someone had spoken the answer out loud. A flush of irritation rose in his chest—he couldn't breathe, couldn't calm down.
Finally calming himself, he heard the trainer next to him continue.
"Yeah, this is his ninety-second win already!"
"At this rate, he's basically unbeatable in Vermilion."
"Only clueless outsiders dare challenge the Beast Tamer, A.J."
The crowd's words were full of praise for A.J.
Nozomi remained noncommittal. Having read the original story, he could admit that A.J. was indeed skilled. Not every trainer could set up a private arena and maintain a streak of over ninety consecutive wins.
But to claim he was unbeatable across all of Vermilion—that was a stretch.
Thinking this, Nozomi watched Yuuji's battle with A.J.
The fight was intense, teetering on a knife-edge. Yuuji's Pokémon, fitting for a rookie trainer, was a Bellsprout.
Normally, both Pokémon were unevolved, and their levels weren't drastically different. Bellsprout, with its Grass type advantage against Sandshrew's Ground type, should have had the upper hand.
Yet reality was the opposite. Sandshrew dominated the battle, and Yuuji's Bellsprout found itself struggling.
The reason was twofold.
First, A.J.'s Sandshrew had reflexes, adaptability, and physical strength far beyond the Bellsprout, clearly several tiers above.
Second—and most importantly—was the difference in trainer command.
To put it simply, Yuuji's level of Pokémon command was that of an elementary school student, while A.J.'s strategy and guidance were on a high school, if not college, level.
Of course, Nozomi considered himself slightly superior to A.J., but only slightly.
At that moment, A.J. flicked the whip in his hand, and Sandshrew stepped back, avoiding Bellsprout's flurry of Vine Whips, then created some distance.
The surrounding trainers, along with Yuuji, thought A.J. was retreating.
Nozomi's eyes narrowed:
"A.J. is about to go for the decisive blow."
Even watching briefly, Nozomi, as a highly skilled trainer, could read the subtle movements of Sandshrew and sense the trap.
Previously aggressive and relentless, Sandshrew's sudden retreat—without taking significant damage—was deliberate.
"A normal person might think this is a trap," Nozomi thought, "but there's no way Yuuji's brain would consider that."
As he predicted, Yuuji, excited by Sandshrew's retreat, immediately commanded:
"Bellsprout, the opponent's scared! Take this chance—use Razor Leaf!"
Swish, swish, swish.
Leaves flew through the air.
Bellsprout's Razor Leaf lacked the finesse of a Leafeon; its trajectory was stiff and predictable. Any skilled trainer could read it instantly.
As expected, A.J. saw through the attack.
"Sand Attack!" he ordered.
Sand flew high into the air, yellow dust everywhere, obscuring both Pokémon's vision.
Bellsprout was stunned and disoriented.
Yuuji, who should have reacted, was equally bewildered.
Nozomi covered his face.
For the first time, he questioned whether taking this guy as a subordinate had been the right choice.
Even if Bellsprout had just been cautious, it would have been better than this—at least the chance of being ambushed would have been lower.
It was clear: a weak trainer always has reasons.
Then, from behind Bellsprout, a shadow shot forward.
A claw glimmered coldly as it swung high.
"Bellsprout, watch out!"
Yuuji finally reacted, but the enemy was too close. Even with Bellsprout's speed, there was no time to evade.
Slash!
Bellsprout was hurled back, three new wounds appearing, unable to continue the fight.
"It seems I've won this match." Sandshrew returned to A.J.'s side, a triumphant smile on his face. "That's your stop. This is my ninety-second win. Thank you for being a stepping stone toward my hundred-win streak."
"Curse it!"
Yuuji, now one of the ninety-two losers, slumped in defeat.
"I… I could have won…" he muttered, frustration gnawing at him.
Looking at the surrounding trainers, he saw their eyes filled with admiration and envy for A.J., which only deepened his humiliation.
"If only the boss were here…" he thought, imagining how Nozomi would teach this arrogant A.J. a lesson.
And then…
He really saw Nozomi!
"No… No-Nozomi Boss!?"
Yuuji's eyes widened in shock, completely stunned.
His eyes weren't deceiving him—he really had seen Boss Nozomi!