Mura walked over to Yong, took a red, flame-shaped badge from Flannery, and handed it to him with a smile.
"Kid! Here you go, the Heat Badge. That was a fantastic battle today. I enjoyed it too, and I look forward to seeing what you do next!"
Yong quickly accepted it and gave the old man a sheepish smile.
"You're too kind, Mr. Mura! I still have plenty of room for improvement!"
"Recognizing your shortcomings is how you improve! I'm sure you'll stand out in the upcoming competition!"
Competition?
Seeing the confusion on the boy's face, Mura hurriedly covered his mouth. Realizing he had let something slip, he laughed it off and patted Yong on the shoulder.
"Hahaha! Never mind! Anyway, keep working hard! I have something to take care of, so I'll be off!"
"Mr. Mura!"
Yong called out urgently, trying to stop him, but Mura ignored him entirely. Pretending he hadn't heard, he hurried out of the battlefield.
"Was that really necessary?"
"Heh-heh!"
Flannery lifted her head smugly at the sight.
"Want to know? Well, I'm not telling! Hahaha!"
Speechless at the girl's antics, Yong could only shrug helplessly and ignore her.
When Flannery noticed that he was ignoring her, she grew even angrier.
"Hmph! I'll definitely beat you at the Elite Tournament! Don't get cocky!"
"The Elite Tournament?"
Yong caught the key phrase.
"What Elite Tournament?"
Flannery rolled her eyes, turned, and left.
"What's wrong with her?"
Left speechless once again, Yong shook his head, recalled the now-recovered Marshtomp and Baltoy, and headed out of the Gym.
Baltoy
With three badges successfully secured, his next stop was the northern ice fields. Before that, though, he still needed to visit the Fiery Path and see whether he could encounter that legendary figure.
Yong returned to the Pokémon