"Baimu! You've gotten stronger again!"
Malva's voice brimmed with envy. "Was that a Z-Move just now? The way you put your whole heart into it was art!"
Ever since he realized his strength had hit a long-term plateau, his desire to improve had far exceeded that of most people.
It wasn't that he and his Pokémon hadn't worked hard enough. Perhaps they hadn't found the right approach, or perhaps their natural talent had its limits. Either way, they were stuck at this stage.
In the world of trainers, talent was an elusive thing, and every Pokémon was different. But it did exist, and it affected their energy levels.
Ash's Pokémon proved that, in a way.
In the same span of a year, a Pokémon could fail to win a League Conference or grow strong enough to go toe-to-toe with the Elite Four, even a Champion.
Malva had raised plenty of Water-type Pokémon and changed his team members many times, but he was still stuck.
So he had begun looking for a push from outside.
Such as "help" from a powerful Champion like Baimu.
Why not ask Diantha?
He would! He'd ask them both!
No rule said he could seek help from only one Champion. Besides, Champions were busy. When one had no time, he could ask another.
Malva's little plan was coming together nicely.
Lokomoko stood beside them and nodded. "Baimu improves by the day, just like his cooking."
"You're too kind. Blastoise was impressive too. That last Dragon Pulse hit hard!" Baimu said sincerely.
Even without a same-type boost, Mega Blastoise had used Shell Smash and its Ability to match a Z-Move from a level-ninety Milotic!
And it was at least ten levels behind!
Even accounting for the stats gained through training, there was still a gap between them.