Naoki felt a mix of nervousness and anticipation at the thought of attending a high-css ba. In his previous life, he had been an ordinary office worker and had never set foot in such elite gatherings. However, the prospect of introdug the cept of smartphoo the Pokémon world outweighed his apprehension.

  He kept his emotions in check, maintaining a calm demeanor despite the whirlwind of thoughts in his mind.

  Beside him, Alder beamed enthusiastically. "It's been ages since I attended one of these events," he admitted, "but don't worry! We'll go together."

  "Thank you for your help, Alder," Naoki said politely.

  Alder patted him on the shoulder with a hearty ugh. "o be so formal! Holy, the best part of these events is the food. Those corporate types sit arouiating deals while I wander off with Vola to sample all the delicacies."

  Naoki raised an eyebrow but chose to remain silent, imagining Alder cheerfully raiding the buffet.

  "When is the ba?" Naoki asked after a moment.

  Alder thought for a bit. "Early April, either the 1st or 2nd. Today's March 23rd, so we've got about eight days."

  Naoki hat left him enough time to attend the uping horse rag meet without any flicts.

  "I'll be staying in the Paldea region until then," Alder added. "We fly to Unova together."

  "Perfect!" Naoki replied, theended an invitation. "Why don't you stay at the ran the meahe town's hosting a horse rag meet soon. It'll be a fun way to rex."

  "Sounds great! sider it settled." Alder's mood lightened further, knowing Vola was safe. He was eager to explore the ranch that had done so much for him and his Pokémon.

  As Naoki led Alder around the property, the champion's admiratiohough modest in size, the ranch was a harmonious blend of nature and nurture. ly pnted crops thrived in orderly rows, Gogoats basked in the sunlight on open grassnds, and Pokémon, many of which were unfamiliar to Alder, frolicked joyfully.

  The sound of their ughter filled the air, and Alder couldn't help but sigh tentedly. "What a wonderful pce."

  Naoki raised an eyebrow. "Thinking about being a rancher, Mr. Alder?"

  The question gave Alder pause. A small part of him was tempted. There rofound joy in seeing humans and Pokémoing so peacefully, creating memories worth cherishing.

  But Alder's expression darkened slightly. "I envy you, but as the champion of the Unova League, I have responsibilities. It's my duty to ehe happiness of humans and Pokémon alike."

  Naoki nodded, having anticipated this ahoughts of Unova's challenges, particurly the chaos stirred by Team Psma, came to mind. "Then good luck, Mr. Alder. The Union is lucky to have someone like you."

  Alder smiled warmly. "Thank you. I won't let anyone down."

  Their versation was interrupted by shadows passing overhead. Naoki and Alder looked up to see several Dragonite desding gracefully, each carrying a satchel. The majestion nded in the pasture and greeted the Indeedee siblings, who handed out treats. With their treats in hand, the Dragotled on the grass, basking in the sun as they eheir well-earned snacks.

  Before Alder could fully process the sight, a group onairs swooped in from the forest. The dragon Pokémon approached the Dragonite, clearly ied in sharing their bounty.

  Alder's jaw dropped. "So many Dragonite!"

  He began ting under his breath. "Owo, three… four! And five Dragonairs?!" His voice rose with disbelief. "Are all these Dragonite yours?"

  Naoki chuckled. "ly. They're Pokémon I hired to help with ranch deliveries. They transpoods ordered by ers to town."

  Alder blinked. "Delivery?"

  Naoki nodded. "Yes."

  Alder paused, momentarily at a loss for words. the rand its Pokémon, he realized Naoki wasn't an ordinary farmer.

  A pyful grin spread across Alder's face as he said, "I 't help but wonder what kind of expression Lance would have if he saw this."

  Naoki blinked. 'Lahe Dragon Master and Kanto's Champion?'

  It made sehat Lance, hailing from the esteemed Dragon of Bckthorn City, might emplonite for all kinds of tasks, including deliveries. But Naoki was a trainer from Paldea, far from Kanto, so pretending not to know Lance seemed the best option.

  Seeing Naoki's ral expression, Alder's i piqued. "Oh, you don't know about Lance?" he asked, then unched into a story.

  "That guy Lance is the Champion of the Kantion and a proud member of the Dragon from Bckthorn City. He's a specialist in Dragon-type Pokémon. The Dragonite family is their hallmark, but even within their , Dragonite are incredibly rare."

  Alder leaned closer, l his voice slightly. "It's said that Lance didn't always use just dragons. Ba the day, he used Pokémon that were thematically lions, like Gyarados, Charizard, and Aerodactyl."

  He chuckled. "If the elders of the Dragon saw how many Dragonite you've got on this ranch, they'd be floored. Holy, this pce feels more like the true dragon sanctuary!"

  Naoki offered a polite smile, unsure how to respond.

  "Do you know Lance personally, Mr. Alder?" Naoki asked after a moment.

  Alder nodded. "I've met him. He attehe same ba I mentioned earlier. We had a brief chat. He's a good guy, though a little intense about his dragons."

  Naoki houghtfully. "I see."

  Alder's gaze drifted back to the Dragonite basking in the sun. "But holy," he said, shifting gears, "you must be a Champion tht?"

  Naoki shook his head. "No, the Champion of the Paldea region is still Geeta."

  Alder looked puzzled for a moment but quickly pieced things together. The Paldea League's system differed from ions. In addition to the Champion rank, there were numerous Champion-level trainers scattered across the region.

  It dawned on Alder that Naoki might have once been among them—a powerful trainer who chose to step away from the spotlight to lead a quieter life with his Pokémon. The idea resonated with Alder, and he felt a growing camaraderie with Naoki.

  Their shared perspective on Pokémon—not as tools for battle but as partners for life—further strengthened his admiration.

  At that moment, a young trainer approached the ranch, carrying a Pichu cradled in her arms. She looked around nervously before spotting Naoki.

  "Excuse me!" she called out, her voice tinged with both excitement and uainty. "Is this Mr. Naoki's ranch?"

  Naoki turned, noting the familiar uniform of Naranja Academy. "Yes," he said. "I'm Naoki."

  The girl's face lit up with determination. "Great! Mr. Naoki, Pichu, and I are here to participate in the Green Grass Trial at the ranch!"

  Naoki wasn't surprised by the situation. With students frequently challenging the trials, it was only a matter of time before the news spread widely across the academy.

  He asked, "How many badges have you collected?"

  The girl hesitated, her expression tinged with embarrassment. "Uh... Pichu and I just started school this year, so we haven't earned any gym badges yet. But don't worry, Mr. Naoki! We've been through intense special training at the academy, so we're totally prepared!"

  Naoki maintained a serious expression. "No, you're not qualified to participate irial."

  The girl defted instantly, her enthusiasm wilting like a sun-scorched pnt.

  Ever si year, the Green Grass Trial at Naoki Ranch had steadily gained fame within the academy, eventually being the subject of campus legend.

  Rumors described a remote tryside location known as Naoki Ranch, run by a mysterious and powerful trainer rumored to be champion-level. Acc to whispers, this trainer had established trials at the ranch that were even more challenging than the Paldea League's championship gau.

  The key difference, however, was that the trials at Naoki Ranch were designed not to a victor, but to provide a sparring opportunity for trainers and Pokémon, helping them streheir bonds and hoheir bat skills.

  It was also said that anyone who mao pass the trials would receive a mysterious reward from the ranch's master.

  Naturally, the rumors attracted students eager to test their skills, but the trials were notoriously difficult, and no one had succeeded yet. In respoo the growing i, Naoki eventually set participation requirements—trainers had to collect a certain number of gym badges before being eligible.

  These trials soon became a badge of honor for students, even if they failed. Just attempting them became a source of pride:

  "I took on the Green Grass Trial and sted thirty seds against that Gogoat!"

  "Thirty seds? Hah! I held out for a whole minute!"

  "Well, I participated in the Lightning Trial and dodged several attacks from a champion-level Pokémohat!"

  Despite the boasting, many students still found themselves turned away by Naoki for not meeting the minimum requirements. Some were disheartened but resolved tym badges so they could return and try again.

  However, a few clever trainers discovered a loophole. They realized that if they acted pitifully, expressing their determination to battle powerful Pokémon and their deep desire to experiehe legendary Green Grass Trial, Naoki's resistance might waver. Sometimes, he would relent and allow them to try, even if their strength wasn't quite up to par.

  With this in mind, the girl csped her hands together, her eyes shimmering with determination. "Please, Mr. Naoki, just one ce! Pichu and I want to see the strength of your champion-level Pokémon. We'll give it our all and use this as motivation to grow stronger!"

  Naoki sighed inwardly. This was being a on occurrence.

  Softening his tone, he expined, "It's not that I'm against you challenging the trial, but if the gap in strength between Pokémon is too great, your Pokémon could get seriously hurt."

  Though he could remedy injuries with his Life Goat Milk, he worried that trainers might take this attitude into wild battles, where such safety s did, leading to potential disaster.

  The girl's enthusiasm, however, was uerred. "Don't worry! I've brought plenty of medie for injuries!" she decred fidently.

  Her Pichu jumped from her arms onto the grass, ched its tiny paws iermination, and a fairic current crackled from its cheeks. "Pichu!" it squeaked eically.

  Naoki stared at the duo in silence for a moment before sighing. "Alright, fine. I'll let you try. But remember, don't push yourselves beyond your limits. Got it?"

  "Thank you so much!" the girl beamed, high-fiving her Pichu.

  Naoki led them to the battlefield. He called out to a Gogoat from the pasture. "Py with this little Pichu for a while," he said to the goat Pokémon.

  The Gogoat looked at the Pichu a out a soft bleat.

  "Meeeah~"

  The girl's determination shone brightly as the battle began.

  The girl sent out Pichu!

  Gogoat summoned Grassy Terrain, bing the field with restorative energy. Pichu blinked in fusion, lost iall grass.

  Determihe little Pichu unched a Thunder Shock, but the attack missed entirely.

  Gogoat tered with a pyful Vine Whip, gently sending Pichu tumbling through the air.

  As Pichu hurtled toward the ground, Gogoat caught it with its vines, softly boung it bato the fray like a trampolihis pyful cycle repeated several times.

  Naoki watched silently, giving no ands. Beside him, Alder observed the se with keen i.

  "You're helping these rookie trainers build their Pokémon's strength," Alder remarked.

  Naoki gave a polite smile, though inwardly he thought, 'ly'. His main goal was for challeo help his Pokémon hoheir practical battle skills. However, most of the challengers who showed up were beginners.

  It was like a level 8 Pichu squaring off against a level 60 Gogoat—akin to challenging a final boss immediately after leaving the tutorial zone.

  The battle reached its iable clusion.

  With o gentle flick of Gogoat's vine, Pichu was knocked unscious.

  The girl ran forward, scooping up her Pichu. To her relief, it was unharmed—simply exhausted from the battle.

  Naoki approached them, a thought f in his mind. Retly, every trainer seemed to use the same reasoning to justify their challenges. He decided to iigate.

  "Mind if I ask something?" Naoki began.

  The girl bowed awkwardly before answering. "Well… it's because everyo the academy thinks battling champion-level Pokémon is super impressive. None of us have seen a champion before, so we all want to witheir Pokémon in a. Plus, those who attempt the Green Grass Trial get bragging rights back at school…"

  Naoki immediately uood the situation.

  With a sigh, he said, "I don't mind visitors ing to see Gogoat or other Pokémon. But using battles with champion-level Pokémon as a way to show off is not the right mi."

  The girl blushed deeply, clearly feeling ashamed.

  Alder stepped forward and added, "He's right. If you want to challenge champion-level Pokémon, train hard with your own Pokémon. One day, you could bee a champion yourself."

  The girl stared at Alder in awe before nodding early. "You're right. I'll do my best!"

  Naoki smiled and handed her a few bottles of Moo Moo Milk, each bearing the Naoki Ranch logo. "Here, take these as a gift from the ranch."

  "Really? Thank you!" The girl looked both surprised and grateful.

  Naoki's tone grew serious as he said, "When you return to school, you help me spread the word? Trainers o collect at least six Gym Badges before attempting the trials. The differen strength could lead to injuries—or worse, ireme cases, a Pokémon might lose its ability to battle entirely."

  The girl froze, holding the milk tightly. After a moment, she looked down at the Pichu in her arms. "I uand," she said quietly.

  Naoki softened his voice. "Do you love your Pokémon?"

  The girl looked up, meeting his gaze. "Yes. I love Pichu, and I want to be with it forever."

  Naoki's smile returned. "Then keep moving forward. Take Pichu with you to every er of the world. When you've grown strong enough, I'll face you in a serious battle. Until then, work hard."

  The girl's determination fred anew. She hugged the bottles of milk and nodded firmly. "I will. Thank you, Mr. Naoki!"