After lunch, Ash and his friends continued their journey to Fuchsia City. This trip to Fuchsia City was taking a bit longer because Ash and his friends were training as they traveled. So, considering the time spent on battles and whatnot, it was normal for it to take a while.
But they should reach the next city in a day or two. After resting and resupplying there, another week or so of travel should get them to Fuchsia City.
If there are fewer battles along the way, this time could be cut in half or so.
An hour later, Ash and his friends were walking along the main road when a figure suddenly appeared in front of them.
"Are you Trainers? I seem to sense the aura of Fighting in you!"
Ash and his friends stopped as they were confronted by the figure. The person looked at Ash and directly stated his reason for stopping them.
Ash and the others were quite used to such encounters because they sometimes did the same themselves.
This kind of opening move usually signaled the start of a wild battle.
Ash looked closely at the person blocking their way. It was a sturdy-looking middle-aged man, with a humanoid Pokemon wearing red boxing gloves beside him.
This is a Fighting Type Pokemon, Hitmonchan, and its level wasn't low, being at the Advanced Peak.
In the wild, that was quite a respectable level.
"You're looking for a wild battle? Alright, how much are we betting?" Ash took off his backpack and handed it to Misty, then skillfully took out a Pokeball and addressed the middle-aged man in front of him.
He had gained plenty of experience from wild battles and knew that such battles didn't require much verbal exchange. Once both sides agreed to fight, they would settle the wager, and the battle could begin.
Some wild battles didn't involve betting, but Ash would still accept them all. After all, every battle helped his Pokemon gain experience; the more, the better.
However, after hearing Ash mention a wild battle, the middle-aged man was clearly taken aback and somewhat puzzled, saying, "What wild battle? I'm Anthony! I'm the soon-to-be Champion of this year's P1 Fighting Tournament! The reason I came to see you is that I sensed the aura of a Fighting Type Pokemon on you and wanted to see if you're interested in sparring a bit."
Ash: ...
"You don't know about a wild battle?"
"What wild battle?"
Goodness, there was actually someone who knew even less than he did!
When Ash heard that the opponent didn't even know about wild battles, he was amazed. This guy looked like he was almost forty, hadn't he ever experienced a wild battle?
"A wild battle means a duel between Trainers in the wild. If both parties agree, they can also bet some money or something for a little extra excitement in the battle," Ash patiently explained to Anthony.
In Ash's eyes, this middle-aged man seemed a bit pitiful for not knowing about wild battles at his age; it was as if he'd walked out of some remote wilderness.
"Ahem, I see, that's what it means. Sorry, I misunderstood you. Well, yes, I'm here to challenge you to a wild battle. Let's wager a thousand bucks," Anthony coughed awkwardly and quickly recovered.
"Alright, let's begin," Ash said, stepping back to create some distance, moving to stand opposite Anthony, who was momentarily caught off guard.
They could start battling already? So straightforward?
"Alright, Wartortle, you're up!" Since the opponent's Pokemon was likely going to be the Hitmonchan beside him, Ash decided to use a Pokemon of similar level to fight.
Using Charizard would be a bit too overwhelming for the opponent.
But when Anthony saw Wartortle, he wore a puzzled expression. "Uh... don't you have any Fighting Type Pokemon? I specifically came out here to find Trainers with Fighting Type Pokemon for battles, in preparation for the P1 Fighting Tournament. If it's not a Fighting Type, I might not be..."
Anthony seemed hesitant, as he didn't want to waste time battling a non-Fighting Type Pokemon.
Upon hearing this, Ash felt increasingly perplexed. What was with this person? Couldn't battling other types of Pokemon also increase experience?
No matter what competition you're entering, as long as your Pokemon gets stronger, isn't that what matters?
But since the opponent requested a Fighting Type Pokemon...
"Return, Wartortle." Wartortle, just sent out, was promptly recalled with a bewildered expression—confused turtle.
"Alright, Riolu, I choose you!" Ash fetched another Pokeball from his waist and tossed it out.
"Riolu!" The blue-and-black puppy appeared on the field, full of energy.
"Is that a Fighting Type Pokemon?" Anthony asked, looking at Riolu with a puzzled expression.
"That's right, he's a Fighting Type Pokemon from the Sinnoh Region," Ash nodded in confirmation.
Strictly speaking, this was technically Riolu's first battle. Since recovering, Riolu had only sparred with other Pokemon in the group, always stopping short. The others had even been going easy on him.
If he faced the group's Pokemon head-on, he'd be knocked out instantly, failing to achieve the desired sparring effect.
Thus, this battle would be Riolu's debut, against a same-type Pokemon two tiers above him.
But Ash had no intention of losing.
"Such a little guy, can he really fight?"
"Why don't you find out?" Ash replied nonchalantly to Anthony's skepticism, as blue light faintly glowed around him.