"First, why would you recommend someone you hadn't seen in so long? Apart from my abilities, was there anything else?"
"I see. That was indeed the part I was concerned about. Simply put, it's because you like it, and also for my own sake."
"For your own sake, Mr. Tugen?"
"Yes. To improve as a Trainer. I had the same thought when I watched the last Pokémon League."
Toogan had actually entered the qualifiers for the previous Pokémon League, but he had lost to Hikari and failed to advance to the main tournament. That was when he had thought that he, too, needed to improve as a Trainer.
"At the time, I thought I had to become stronger than I am now if I didn't want to lose to the younger generation."
"Why does that lead to recommending a Gym Leader?"
"By putting myself in a different environment, I can expect to make further progress. That's why I've been looking for a successor ever since the Pokémon League."
Oukan was the oldest Gym Leader and had held the position the longest. That was why he couldn't simply step down, and he hadn't considered retiring until the League ended.
However, after losing to Hikari, he had begun to feel increasingly stagnant as a Trainer.
"My next goal is to join the Elite Four or become a Frontier Brain, so I want you to become a Gym Leader."
"I see. I understand."
"Hahahaha! In the end, I don't know how strong I can get at my age, but I want to prove I've still got it!"
"No, it's only natural for a Trainer to aim higher."
Striving for the summit was a natural impulse for a Trainer. Thus, Tugen's words, which seemed to mark a return to his original aspirations, reminded Kaim