After finishing his last match on the preliminary fields, Gary had made it through the preliminaries and officially entered the top sixteen.
The next matches would take place three days later, and the venue would switch to the main arena, Indigo Stadium.
It was the arena Ash had dreamed of competing in, one he had only ever seen on television before.
Before that, however, Ash still had to get through his final preliminary match.
He was scheduled for the third afternoon match on the Grass Field, a day later than Gary.
At that moment, Ash's trio was anxiously working out their battle plan, waiting for the match to begin.
A light rain had fallen the night before. Gary wore a white turtleneck sweater, light blue jeans, and a white knitted jacket. With his sharp edge softened, he looked more like the boy next door.
Holding Togepi and accompanied by Eevee, Gary stood leisurely at the entrance to the athletes' village.
Beep, beep! A horn sounded as Professor Oak drove up in a red sports car with a beautiful woman beside him.
"Grandpa! Aunt Delia, you're here." Gary stepped forward with a smile.
"Gary, congratulations on being the first to reach the championship tournament." Aunt Delia nodded with a warm smile.
"Oh, Ash can do it too." Gary politely nodded in return.
"All right, get in first. Let's drop our luggage off at the hotel. This time, we're going to watch you and Ash win in style, right there in person." Professor Oak rested one hand on the window and held the steering wheel with the other, looking every bit the seasoned driver.
"Sure. Let me drive, Grandpa," Gary replied with a smile.
"Haha, it's been a while since you drove your beloved car, hasn't it? Here, it's all yours." Professor