"Bulbasaur, use Bash!"
Kenji saw Vine Whip miss and immediately issued a new command.
But obviously, he didn't consider that Bulbasaur couldn't even hit Weedle with Vine Whip, so how could a simple bash succeed?
"Weedle, Spinning Silk, aim for its eyes," Natsuhiko instructed.
After realizing that Bulbasaur wasn't as tough as imagined, Weedle became more composed.
Hiss—
A bright white line of silk shot out, sticking directly between Bulbasaur's eyes, obstructing its vision.
"Daa na!!"
With its vision suddenly impacted, Bulbasaur panicked, interrupting its own attack.
"Bulbasaur!"
Kenji got a bit flustered and couldn't come up with a response right away.
This was the lack of battle experience and the Trainer's shortcoming in adaptability.
Also, Bulbasaur's severe lack of training led to its slow speed, making it so easily hit in the eyes by Weedle.
"Wrap it up."
Then, they saw Weedle swiftly glide across the ground, continuously spitting out white silk from its mouth, round after round, turning Bulbasaur from a Garland Tortoise to a wrapped bundle.
"Daa na..."
Only its head was exposed, unable to see clearly, and Bulbasaur could only call out helplessly.
"Stop! Stop!" Kenji hurriedly shouted, rushing over with his fleshy steps to Bulbasaur's side, trying to remove the silk, only to find himself stuck to the strong adhesive silk.
"That's not how you do it, Weedle,"
Natsuhiko approached, calling Weedle back.
They saw Weedle's tail sweep over the silk, layer by layer cutting through it, finally freeing Bulbasaur.
Kenji hugged Bulbasaur tightly.
"Bulbasaur, are you okay?"
"Daa na." Bulbasaur shook its head, looking at Weedle with a mix of awe and fear in its eyes.
Weedle "proudly" lifted its head, resembling a triumphant general.
"Your battle experience is nearly zero, and your command lacks flexibility. Actually, Bulbasaur is not weak, and my Weedle did not perform that strong. In a normal battle, we would be more likely to lose,"
Natsuhiko explained honestly.
"Woo?"
Hearing Natsuhiko say it was not as good as Bulbasaur, Weedle felt a bit unconvinced.
Natsuhiko patted its back, "No rush to deny it; our purpose for being here is to challenge the impossible, to make you stronger. Recognizing your shortcomings is the best way to grow."
Weedle, having consecutively defeated Rattata and Bulbasaur, had grown somewhat overconfident.
As a Trainer, Natsuhiko had to ensure it clearly recognized its limitations.
Confidence is good, but blind confidence has the opposite effect.
"Woo..." Weedle lowered its head, seemingly a bit disheartened.
But it quickly bounced back.
It realized that what Natsuhiko said was true; they were here to grow stronger, and admitting others were stronger was nothing to be ashamed of.
Patting Weedle's back, Natsuhiko looked satisfied.
Beside him, Kenji watched him comfort Weedle, looking as if he wanted to say something but held back.
Noticing his expression, Natsuhiko said, "According to the club's rules, you still have 50 minutes left. Do you want to continue battling?"
Each trainer in the club charges by the time; each hour charges separately, and even less than an hour is considered a full hour.
"I..." Kenji opened his mouth.
Natsuhiko's earlier words not only dispelled Weedle's excessive confidence but also dealt him a heavy blow.
The fact that Bulbasaur lost heavily implicated him as the Trainer.
"Actually, you've already learned a lot of theoretical knowledge, including battles and training content. What you lack is experience and a comprehensive understanding of your Pokémon," Natsuhiko added.
"How do I better understand my Pokémon?" Kenji asked curiously, blinking.
"Train, continuous training. Have you trained with your Bulbasaur?"
"No... no, I just brought it home from the Trainer's Building yesterday," Kenji replied awkwardly.
"That explains it; Bulbasaur has a high potential. Train well, and you'll find it quite different."
It was just as Natsuhiko had suspected.
"How do you train? A... a Weedle is so strong,"
Losing the battle wasn't much, but losing to Weedle struck him deeply.
"Can I take that as you're switching from battle training to practice training?" Natsuhiko raised an eyebrow.
Just as he thought there would be no chance for today, he unexpectedly found a way to earn money and train simultaneously.
The club also offers this service, practice training.
"Yes." Kenji nodded firmly.
"Okay." Natsuhiko placed Weedle back on the ground, "Weedle, since that's the case, let's make up for today's missed training."
"Woo woo!!" Weedle was full of fighting spirit.
Having been told by Natsuhiko that it wasn't as good as Bulbasaur, it also wanted to get stronger quickly.
Plop.
Natsuhiko took off his ill-fitting clothes, revealing a skinny, dark body covered in fine scars.
Seeing the scars all over Natsuhiko's body, Kenji fell silent.
"We're going to train now; you can join us if you wish, and if you have questions, feel free to ask. Maybe I can provide some answers."
With that said,
They began training Weedle.
In the club's training room, various professional training equipment was available. Compared to outdoor training, the results were better.
Of course, it was also more tiring.
But no matter how exhausting it became, every time Weedle saw Natsuhiko persist, it gritted its teeth and persevered.
Kenji also attempted some basic training with Bulbasaur, and with a little mimicry, he felt the difficulty of training.
Occasionally, he would pose questions, and Natsuhiko would provide experimental but justified answers.
Soon.
The hour-long training session came to an end.
As the bell chimed in the training room, Kenji waved generously, booking another three hours with Natsuhiko and Weedle without batting an eye.
Highlighting his lavishness.
This also gave Natsuhiko and Weedle more opportunity and time to complete the day's basic training content.
Three hours later.
Kenji, naturally chatty, was thoroughly impressed by Natsuhiko and Weedle, not because they had beaten him but because of their hard work.
Hardworking people always earn respect.
Meanwhile, Natsuhiko gained his first loyal customer at the Silver Pokémon Battle Club.
"I've gained a lot this time. I'll book you again next time, and tell my classmates to come learn too."
In the hall, watching Kenji leave.
Making money while training.
Feels good.
Curiosity sparked in Anai, who jostled his arm, "Impressive, Natsuhiko, to have a loyal customer on your first day. He seems eager to introduce you to more clients too."
"Lucky," Natsuhiko replied, holding the exhausted Weedle, and smiled.
Anai pouted.
In her heart, reaffirming her impression of Natsuhiko as "a lucky person."
This time, it truly was a stroke of luck.
Because in her mind, the most common reason trainers left the club was that their Pokémon were severely beaten during a match.
A large portion of clients came with the aim of venting, so they would not hold back.
With Weedle's fragile frame, she doubted Natsuhiko would last a few days.
"Here's your pay for the training session," she said, handing over several Alliance Coins.
"That much?" Natsuhiko exclaimed unexpectedly as he counted the 320 Alliance Coins.
Anai rolled her eyes, "You have a Junior Trainer title; the fee is 400 each time, which means 80 per hour. Four hours amount to 320, payable immediately after each session ends."
Indeed, those who could hold memberships at Silver Pokémon Club weren't ordinary wealthy people.
That teenage, middle-schooler Kenji's monthly allowance was probably several times his monthly wages.
"Thank you," Natsuhiko thanked, as money was what he needed most right now.
"By the way, out of curiosity, what's the fee for Intermediate Trainers?"
"Intermediate is double yours, Advanced is four times, Special is ten times, and each level earns a different commission. Higher levels exist, but I'm not aware of them," Anai shrugged.
Tsk-tsk.
"How do you raise your rank?"
"It's based on the number of members you attract and your skills. I don't know the specifics; that's the supervisor's job, but it's not easy."
Natsuhiko nodded, thanked once more, then took Weedle home to rest.