After crossing mountains and rivers and enduring countless hardships, Xiao Yan finally reached the Indigo League venue.
"There are so many people here... Seeing it in person feels completely different from watching the cartoon. My blood's pumping!"
Xiao Yan lined up with the other competitors. With so many people around, he couldn't find familiar faces like Ash or Gary anywhere.
Could any of these people end up being my opponent...? There are way too many!
The noisy crowd suddenly fell silent as an old man stood before the Sacred Fire cauldron.
"The Pokémon League is a place where those who truly love Pokémon compete and battle one another. The Sacred Fire, the flames of Moltres, watches over us. Pokémon Trainers, give us battles that leave you with no regrets! Now, I officially declare the Pokémon Indigo League tournament open!!!"
As he finished speaking, waves of cheers swept through the venue.
The Indigo League tournament was finally about to begin...
After the opening ceremony, I followed the other competitors to the draw hall to determine the battlefield for the first round.
"Good afternoon! Please show me your Trainer registration."
Xiao Yan handed his Pokédex to the staff member to register.
"All right, Xiao Yan from Pallet Town, your registration is complete. Please press this button to determine your battlefield for the first round."
Following the staff member's instructions, Xiao Yan pressed the button on the table. The light above it cycled through the water, grass, ice, and rock symbols before finally stopping on grass.
"Your battlefield for the first round will be the Grass Battle Arena. Now I'll enter that result into the elimination bracket."
After the staff member entered the information, Xiao Yan's photo and another person's photo appeared on the large screen above.
"The person up there is your opponent. You'll be in the fifth match at the Grass Battle Arena, held at three in the afternoon. Don't forget."
Additional note: The Indigo League tournament first determines the battlefields. There are four types: rock, grass, water, and ice. After winning battles on all four, competitors use a standard battlefield starting in the fifth round. The first five rounds are primarily 3-on-3, with 6-on-6 battles beginning in the sixth round.
"Who should I choose for the first round?"
Xiao Yan looked over the twenty Pokémon on his list: Pikachu, Charizard, Entei, Suicune, Riolu, Blastoise, Snorlax, Gyarados, Umbreon, Glaceon, Golduck, Pidgeotto, Ivysaur, Shelgon, Rhydon, Dragonite, Aerodactyl, Sandslash, Garchomp, and Arcanine.
"I have to win the first four rounds to keep competing from the fifth round onward. I don't have that many Pokémon, so some will have to battle more than once. I should avoid dragging out the early matches, or I'll just wear my Pokémon down. That means choosing the best Pokémon for each battlefield."
After sitting on a sofa in the venue's dedicated Pokémon Center and thinking for a long time, Xiao Yan finally made his choices.
"Professor Oak, I'm here to swap Pokémon."
Xiao Yan held the Pokémon Balls Professor Oak had sent over.
"I'm counting on you for the first round."
"All right! Gary from Pallet Town has used his Fearow to defeat A Qiu's final Pokémon! Gary has set another record, defeating his opponent's three Pokémon with only two of his own, and the battle took just ten minutes! What an incredible performance!"
Xiao Yan looked up at the live broadcast on the large television in the Pokémon Center.
"Gary really is amazing..."
Xiao Yan stayed at the Pokémon Center, watching the other competitors' matches on television. After watching Ash's spectacular match...
"Next up is the fifth match at the Grass Battle Arena. Would both competitors please make their way to the Grass Battle Arena?"
"Finally, it's my turn! Let's go, Pikachu."
Xiao Yan and his opponent both arrived at the Grass Battle Arena.
"Both competitors for the fifth match at the Grass Battle Arena are in position. On the red side is Xiao Yan from Pallet Town, and the coach accompanying him is actually a Pikachu!? A Pikachu wearing sunglasses, no less!!!" (Since Pikachu wouldn't be taking part in this match, Xiao Yan had him stay in the coach's area so he could watch Xiao Yan's battle up close.)
Camera flashes kept firing throughout the stands as everyone took pictures of Xiao Yan's Pikachu.
"Ahem... And on the green side is Xiao Shan from Shanxiao Town. Now, let the match begin!"
"Go, Ivysaur!" Xiao Yan sent out his first Pokémon.
"Raticate, let's finish this match quickly!" Xiao Shan also sent out his first Pokémon. The moment Raticate appeared, he tried to provoke Xiao Yan's Ivysaur. Ivysaur remained unmoved, making it clear he had no interest in responding.
"As you wish!" The corners of Xiao Yan's mouth lifted.
"Just try it! Raticate, Tackle!"
Raticate sprinted toward Ivysaur.
"Grab him with your vines." Ivysaur extended his vines to stop Raticate's Tackle, then wrapped them around him and lifted him into the air, leaving him unable to move.
"Mega Drain." Ivysaur steadily drained Raticate's HP.
"Raticate, break free...!"
Raticate tried to struggle free, but with most of his HP already drained, his strength gradually faded until he finally collapsed on the ground.
"Raticate is unable to battle! Xiao Shan, please send out your second Pokémon."
Xiao Shan sent out Golbat.
"Thanks for your hard work, Ivysaur!"
Xiao Yan had a habit of giving every Pokémon a chance to battle.
"Your turn, Snorlax."
"Xiao Yan's Snorlax on the red side is actually asleep!? Yet Xiao Yan seems completely unfazed. Let's see what happens!"
"Here's our chance! Golbat, use Wing Attack!"
Golbat flew above Snorlax, preparing to attack with his wings.
"Sleep Talk."
Another note, since some people may not know: When the user of Sleep Talk is asleep, the move randomly selects one of the user's known moves to use without consuming any energy.
A Hyper Beam shot out of Snorlax's mouth and blasted Golbat into the sky.
"Incredible! Xiao Yan's Snorlax can actually use Hyper Beam while asleep, and Xiao Shan's Golbat still hasn't fallen back down after being blasted into the sky!"
Thud!
After a long while, Golbat finally fell back down, unable to get up and battle again.
"Golbat is unable to battle. Xiao Shan, please send out your third Pokémon."
The excitement in the venue kept building.
"Damn it!" Xiao Shan glared at Xiao Yan through gritted teeth, tightly gripping his final Poké Ball.
"Beat him, Muk!" Xiao Shan's last Pokémon was Muk.
"Go, Golduck!" Xiao Yan sent out Golduck.
"Sludge Bomb."
Muk hurled one Sludge Bomb after another at Golduck.
"Send them back with Hydro Pump."
Golduck fired Hydro Pump at Muk, knocking the bombs Muk had just thrown back onto him as well.
"Muk is unable to battle! The winner is Xiao Yan from Pallet Town, who finished the match in just three minutes!!!"
Xiao Yan's Pikachu returned to his shoulder.
"Let's head back, Pikachu."
Xiao Yan left the arena to the sound of cheers.
Before you continue