The journey of the Pokémon trainer was actually much more unpretentious than imagined. After leaving Cerulean City, Paul once again plunged into the grassy wilderness.
Traveling the country road towards Vermilion City, it was obvious that there were more trainers practicing. Along the way, it would not be boring.
"Pidgeotto, descend rapidly, then turn back and deliver the final blow!" Paul calmly commanded with his arms crossed.
Pidgeotto swooped down. Just as it was about to reach the opponent's Raticate, it spun sharply in the air, grabbing the Raticate from behind and throwing it fiercely to the ground.
"That's amazing!" The Youngster in overalls looked at Paul with bright eyes!
The battle was over. Paul recalled Pidgeotto and shook hands with his opponent.
"You are too good, I'm convinced I lost." The Youngster readily admitted defeat and handed 100 Poké Dollars to Paul.
"Well, keep going." After receiving the money, Paul nodded at the other party to show respect.
Although the level of these roadside trainers was not very high, and the bets for the battles were small, it was better than nothing.
"Excuse me, how can I become as strong as you?" the Youngster asked eagerly.
Paul was momentarily speechless. * Young man, I'm afraid you think a little too much *. The level gap was too big, and he didn't know how to explain. "In short, you should work as hard as you can according to your own ideas. A lot of training will always make you stronger."
"Oh! I actually found an interesting trainer! How about it, do you want to have a showdown with me, the Pokémon trainer, A.J.?!" At this moment, a tall boy carrying a whip approached Paul.
"It's A.J.!" Before Paul could speak, the Youngster shouted out in surprise.
"Is he strong?" Paul asked.
"Of course," the Youngster kept nodding. "In our area, A.J. has never lost. He has won ninety consecutive victories, right?"
"That's right, and you look like you want to be the next notch on my winning streak," A.J. said proudly.
"You are really confident," Paul's mouth twitched.
"My private Gym is just ahead. If you want to challenge me, come find it!" After saying this, A.J. left.
* Ordinary yet confident? * Paul raised the corner of his mouth, thinking it would be good to get a little exercise.
After bidding farewell to the Youngster on the side of the road, Paul continued to walk forward. Sure enough, not long after, the so called private Gym appeared in front of Paul.
A huge tent surrounded by wooden stakes looked like a circus station. There was even a distinctive electronic screen hanging at the door, which read, (90) winning streak achieved!
* Tsk tsk, how much does he want to be popular, making it so gaudy, * Paul couldn't help complaining about A.J.'s decoration style.
"You're here!" A.J. walked out of the gate and brought Paul in.
In the open space in the middle stood an artificially built battlefield.
A.J. flicked his vibrant green bangs, walked up to the battle stage and looked at Paul, "Then, come on, become another number on my winning streak!"
Paul eyed him skeptically. * Boy, you are too arrogant *.
"Hmph, let's see how capable you really are." Paul came to the battlefield and stood still.
"Come on, I will let you know the difference in level!" A.J. flicked his whip and took out a Poké Ball with great momentum.
"Go, Sandshrew!!"
Paul countered, "If you want to talk big, you have to have the corresponding strength. Prepare for battle, Prinplup!!"
With its proud stance and wings like knives, Paul's Prinplup appeared on the stage.
"Oh, it's actually a Pokémon I haven't seen before," A.J. said with interest.
"That's why I said, training in isolation won't do much. Go Prinplup, use Bubble Beam!" Paul ordered first.
"Naive! Sandshrew, attack!" A.J. was not afraid at all.
The Sandshrew immediately curled up and spun at high speed.
The Bubble Beam was actually blocked by the high speed rotation.
"How about that?" A.J. looked at Paul proudly. However, Paul didn't panic at all.
"It is indeed well trained, but blocking the move does not mean the damage disappears. Prinplup, increase your power!"
At Paul's order, Prinplup's eyes widened, and the Bubble Beam burst out even more violently.
Boom!! Finally, the increase in energy caused a huge explosion, and the Sandshrew was also blown back.
"Adjust your posture, Sandshrew!" A.J. hurriedly commanded. The Sandshrew did have skill. A.J. twitched the whip a few times, and the Sandshrew adjusted its body in the air. It rolled into a ball as it fell, completely absorbing the impact of the explosion.
* What are you going to do about this move? * Paul smiled. "Prinplup, use Steel Wing!"
Prinplup's wings glowed with metallic luster, and it flew towards the Sandshrew at high speed!
"Sandshrew, get away!" A.J. immediately waved his whip, instructing the Sandshrew to use Dig to hide.
Watching the Sandshrew disappear underground, Paul laughed internally, * Finally took the bait *. "Prinplup, use Water Pledge!"
Prinplup turned around and landed firmly over the Sandshrew's hole, then knelt down on one knee, striking the ground with one wing.
Boom! A huge water column directly rushed the Sandshrew into the air.
"It's over, Aqua Jet!!" Paul gave instructions continuously without giving the slightest chance.
Prinplup's body was wrapped in water, and it fiercely collided with the immobile Sandshrew in the air. The surging water energy once again overwhelmed the Sandshrew's defense.
Bump! The Sandshrew fell to the ground, eyes swirling, completely knocked out.
A.J. fell to his knees in disbelief, "I lost?"
"Come back, Prinplup." Recalling Prinplup, Paul came over to A.J., stretched out his hand and pulled him up.
"It was a good fight, it gave me some good experience." Paul patted A.J. on the shoulder and said seriously.
"Don't comfort me, I lost, and I lost completely." A.J. drooped his head in frustration.
"Losing isn't strange, everyone loses sometimes." Paul shrugged his shoulders, "Just find a way to win back, wouldn't that be fine?"
A.J. looked up at Paul: "Really, aren't you comforting me?"
"I don't comfort boys." Paul rolled his eyes and continued: "It can be seen that your Sandshrew is really well trained, facing Water type moves without fear. You must have put it through special training to overcome its fear of water."
A.J. nodded, "That's right, Sandshrew is my first Pokémon. Ordinary trainers like us can only catch up with those trainers backed by the League if we work harder."
"Just keep working hard, I think you will be stronger in the future." Paul encouraged A.J. a little.
How should he put it, A.J. was inexplicably very similar to Paul. Both of them believed in strict training. A.J.'s disadvantage was that he could only start working hard with common Pokémon like Sandshrew and Butterfree.
"Thank you." A.J. cheered up at this time. "I will not give up, I will train again, and then embark on the journey to get the badges."
"I will wait for your challenge at the Indigo League Conference," Paul said seriously.
"I will definitely be there," A.J. replied seriously.
Next, A.J. invited Paul to visit his Pokémon training setup in the tent, and the two had lunch together.
Paul was not stingy and taught him some Pokémon knowledge A.J. hadn't encountered. Including some low level energy cube production methods and common skill training for Sandshrew.
Paul had noticed before that A.J.'s Sandshrew relied more on its own physical strength for impact and ramming attacks, and its utilization of its Ground type energy was messy, to say the least.
So Paul taught A.J. the training methods for Sandstorm and Magnitude, which moved A.J. very much. Paul believed that it would not take long for A.J.'s strength to improve again.
The two got along well, and Paul also took advantage of A.J.'s facility to exercise the Pokémon in his hands.
A.J. almost drooled watching the two powerful Pokémon, Prinplup and Electabuzz. He vowed to go on a trip early, and then subdue such powerful Pokémon!
The long lost special training lasted all afternoon, and Paul spent the night in A.J.'s tent. It was not until the next day that the two bid farewell.
As evidence of friendship, A.J. even gave Paul two Pokémon training aids he made himself. These were devices made of strong springs. Wearing them strengthens and exercises a Pokémon's physical strength anytime and anywhere.
After getting the new training equipment, Paul continued his journey happily.
* When Ash gets two badges and travels here feeling a little complacent, A.J. will probably give Ash a surprise. *
The forest in the distance was foggy. Paul turned around and left gracefully, put one hand in his pocket, waving farewell with the other hand. * Um, cool and that's it. *
A.J. watched him go, a small smile playing on his lips. * Hmph, what a cool guy. See you at the Indigo League Conference, Paul! *