Ash's talent is undeniably strong, even Professor Cerise, who doesn't keep up much with outside news, knows how famous Ash has become.
A super rookie with unparalleled talent who defeated an Elite Level Trainer despite being a novice. It's said he has a unique method of boosting his Pokemon's performance on the spot.
Yet, even so, Professor Cerise never imagined that Ash could elevate Riolu to the Advanced Peak in just over a month!
This Pokemon was practically useless a month ago, and while it's not completely skilled now, it at least has considerable combat strength.
Furthermore, Riolu hasn't even evolved yet; once it does, reaching the Elite Level would be a breeze.
Isn't this like some kind of cheat?
"Advanced Peak is nothing; Riolu and I aim for the stars and the sea! By the way, where's Chloe? Isn't she out of school yet?" Ash boasted about his Riolu and then curiously looked into the lab but didn't see Chloe.
Instead, some other researchers stuck their heads out of the lab curiously, wanting to see why Professor Cerise was so surprised.
"Chloe should be out of school. She should be arriving about now, right?" No sooner had Professor Cerise spoken than there was a knock on the door. Speak of the devil—just as they mentioned Chloe, she appeared at the lab's entrance.
As Professor Cerise opened the door, Chloe, dressed in her school uniform, appeared before everyone. Seeing the sudden increase in people at the lab, she was briefly stunned, then locked her eyes on Ash with a slightly surprised look: "Ash? Why are you here?"
"I just finished challenging the Cinnabar Gym and decided to swing by Vermilion City on the way." Ash replied with a grin, and after exchanging pleasantries with Chloe, found a spot to sit in the lab.
Chloe listened with interest to Ash's recent adventures. Although Ash has been quite famous recently, it's primarily due to the incident at the Fuchsia Gym. Besides that, there hasn't been much about him online.
People outside even question whether Ash's existence is just a stunt by the Kanto League—how else could such a strong newcomer suddenly appear?
Ash only had his success at the Fuchsia Gym to speak of; beyond that, he lacked any notable achievements.
The matter of defeating Sabrina at the Saffron Gym was mostly known only within the Kanto League, as one was a private challenge and the other a publicized live challenge.
In response to the public's skepticism, whenever Chloe had free time, she'd go online to rebut those questioning Ash, harshly criticizing them, but her solo efforts were ultimately insignificant.
Currently, Ash's fame isn't what it used to be, mainly because he hasn't been in the public eye for quite some time. Normally, a person would fade from public memory after being away for a month.
But Ash's reputation was still too high; even after a month, discussions about him hadn't diminished much; if anything, the questioning voices had grown.
Many people wondered if Ash was truly capable of defeating an Elite Trainer, why there's only footage of his battle with Koga and no evidence of fights with other Elite Trainers. They questioned whether his battle with Koga was scripted...
The nonsensical clamor echoed online. Even though it was live-streamed, they still couldn't drown out those voices.
People tend to follow the crowd, and not everyone saw that live broadcast. Amidst the shouts of fraud and conspiracy theory, many who were confused joined in.
Ash and his friends were unaware of these rumors until Ash learned of them during his chat with Chloe.
Initially, Ash was very angry—being unknown is one thing, but slandering him is another thing altogether!
On the surface, his strength might seem far from an Elite, but if it came to a real fight, he definitely could go toe-to-toe with a newly minted Elite!
He had indeed used a trick to win against Koga, but he explained the reason behind it! Just because a bunch of people online didn't know what kind of existence Victini was, they were nitpicking, distorting facts—Ash couldn't stand it!
"These people are so infuriating. I clearly won with my own strength... At least against Koga's first two Pokemon, that's how it was. How did it become all lies in their mouths? Is there no justice?! Just wait, I'll battle another Elite to show them!"
Ash said with some indignation, accepting his fading fame as a result of his intentional low profile, but he couldn't stand being slandered!
It would be hard to fade into obscurity again after that, and his fame would turn into infamy!
"Something feels off, Ash... Despite the lack of evidence supporting their claims, and no solid proof about the script they mentioned, there's a bunch of people agreeing with them, as if they're trying to lure you back into the public eye to prove yourself." Brock mused, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.
Just by looking at those statements Chloe showed them, each seemed hysterical. Those so-called evidence and proofs couldn't withstand scrutiny, yet over half the people were still there slandering Ash.